Speech and Hinduism

For this post I intend to discuss examples of the power of speech in the Vedas and in the Upanishads, focusing on its creative power and how it is linked to the divine.

The Vedas and the creation of the world itself are focused on the importance of speech. The highest caste, the brahmins, come from the mouth of Purusa when he is divided, and two major gods Indra and Agni (Rg Veda, Creation, paragraphs 12-13). Agni, or fire, is also referenced later in the Upanisads as related to speech (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 3.9.24). Speech and breath retain their significance in the Upanisads, Atman is described as being found in speech, "he is incomplete as he comes to be called breath when he is breathing, speech when he is speaking" (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, 1.4.7) and to be realized when one knows one is brahman "if a man knows brahman in this way, he becomes the whole world" (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, 1.4.10). Speech and breath fulfill two of the desires of men, "his speech is his wife; his breath is his offspring" (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 1.4.17), essential parts of being complete. Speech and breath are given further powers by Yajnavalkya, who states, "Who is the one God? Breath. He is called 'Brahman,'" (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 3.9.9) and "On what is speech founded? [...] ourselves," (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 3.9.24-25) and "the highest brahman is speech" (Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 4.1.2). Furthermore, I wish to echo Yajnavalya's explanation of the importance of speech. Speech is how truth is conveyed, how prayers are made, how people are taught. As the Vedas were oral traditions, it is also how they were conveyed and passed down. Speech (and breath) are foundations of Hinduism and thus are given places of power among its precepts and in Indian society--the speakers of the Vedas and the rituals are the highest caste.