The tradition of chanting has been passed down through Śruti Parampara over millennia in India. To this day it continues to be a profound practice of expressing devotion, learning and imbibing the teachings of ancient scriptures and an integral part of ritual, meditation and contemplation.
I love my late friend Jean Le Mée’s introduction to the oral tradition of Veda:
Precious or durable materials – gold, silver, bronze, marble, onyx, or granite – have been used by most ancient peoples in an attempt to immortalise their achievements. Not so, however, with the ancient Vedic seers. They turned to what may seem the most volatile and insubstantial material of all – the spoken word – and out of this bubble of air fashioned a monument which more than thirty, perhaps forty centuries later stands untouched by time or the elements. For the pyramids have been eroded by the desert wind, the marble broken by earthquakes, and the gold stolen by robbers, while the Veda remains, recited daily by an unbroken chain of generations, traveling like a great wave through the living substance of the mind.
This extraordinary strength of the tradition lies in the teacher – student relationship and the way the teaching is transmitted. The most humble of all methods of learning – simply listening to the teacher, and then repeating. And of course, doing this over a sustained long period of time.
Everything about this teaching is going against the grain in terms of what modern systems, processes and media are constantly encouraging us to do – which is to develop a short attention span or become an expert at something in the least amount of time possible.
Veda chanting however, requires entirely an opposite approach. One cannot learn small bits – even if this is over a long period of time and immediately start to teach these things. We need a deep dive into the Vedāṅga-s, the rich cultural context in which these practices take place, know a wide range of texts and practices, before teaching even a small practice.
Some key points about this model of transmission:
- Students spend considerable time with the teacher and has their approval to teach. You don’t learn the basics and immediately start teaching.
- One has not only embarked upon a sādhana as a student but has been mentored to “teach”. This is an entirely different skill set.
- Students are aware from scripture the qualities of a teacher and make it a continuous process of striving to work towards that ideal. Even if that ideal is quite impossible to achieve, the process of working towards that is considered very important in the tradition. We have prayers and our teacher’s guidance to account for our shortcomings.
- All lineage-based students & teachers in India, acknowledge their teachers and their teachings. It is entirely unheard of in the tradition, that one’s teacher is not known. The teacher also knows the student and their practice and what they need to be working on.
- Not everyone can teach, this is the reality. Everyone can practice however!
The 2024 INDICA – Veda Studies chanting teacher training program will open for applications on 22 April. If you are eligible – you can register your interest for now already!
On registering your interest, you will immediately receive an email with a link to
watching a one hour introduction to the teacher training program.