Myths or Realities? > Vedās Originated With Buddha Kassapa’s Teachings

August 3, 2024

Vedās likely originated with Buddha Kassapa, who was a Buddha on this Earth before Buddha Gotama. Evidence from the Tipiṭaka discussed.

Vedās Mean “Higher Knowledge”

1. The following extracts are from Wikipedia (Ref. 1) regarding the Vedās in Hinduism:

▪“The Vedās are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.”

▪“There are four Vedās: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda, and the Atharvaveda.”

▪“The bulk of the Rigveda Samhita was composed in the northwestern region (Punjab) of the Indian subcontinent, most likely between c. 1500 and 1200 BCE, although a wider approximation of c. 1700–1100 BCE has also been given.”

▪My comment: Since Buddha Gotama is believed to have attained Buddhahood around the 5th century BCE, the Vedās were there well before that.

2. While Hinduism’s Vedic literature is in Sanskrit, Buddhist literature is in Pāli. Yet, there are striking similarities between the two languages.

▪Many underlying concepts, as well as words themselves, are strikingly similar. Some examples are kamma (karma), Nibbāna (Nirvāna), Bhikkhu (Bhikshu), paññā (pragnā), dosa (dvesha), avijja (avidyā), etc. Most Pāli words have been “twisted and made interesting/musical.”

▪In Buddha Dhamma, there are only three Vedās (higher knowledges): pubbenivāsānussati ñāṇa, sattānaṁ cutūpapāte ñāṇa, āsavānaṁ khayeñāṇa; see “WebLink: suttacentral: Saṅgīti Sutta (DN 33).” The three types are discussed in “WebLink: suttacentral: Tevijja Sutta (Iti 99).”

▪Thus, Vedās in Buddha Dhamma are very different from those in Hinduism. Since it is impossible to cultivate the original three types described by Buddha Kassapa (once the essence of his teachings was lost), yogis likely adopted the four types mentioned in #1 above.

Terminology Was There Even Before Buddha Gotama – How Is That Possible?

3. Many people incorrectly assume that Buddha Gotama “adopted” many concepts from the Vedās because those terms appeared in Vedic literature before Buddha Gotama.

▪There was Buddha Kassapa on this Earth before Buddha Gotama. Buddha Kassapa’s teachings (especially the true meanings of key concepts) were lost with time. But many concepts, including kamma, kamma vipāka, and many others, were incorporated into Vedic teachings and transmitted through many generations. Of course, the Vedic teachings used the Sanskrit language derived from Pāli or Magadha. Sanskrit means “derived from” (“san” + “krutha” or සන් කෘත or සංස්කෘත in Sinhala.)

▪The same is true for the concept of five aggregates, or pañca khandha, which the Vedic teachings adopted as five skandhas.

Whose Concepts are Kamma, Nibbāna, Paṭicca Samuppāda, etc.?

4. A complete account may require a whole book. However, there are several instances in the Tipiṭaka where Buddha Gotama explained to various Vedic Brahmins that many of their teachings originated with Buddha Kassapa.

▪Many concepts in Vedic literature, including karma (for kamma), got into the Vedās from Buddha Kassapa, who was on Earth before Buddha Gotama. I briefly discussed that in “Buddhism and Evolution – Aggañña Sutta (DN 27).”

▪When Prince Siddhartha was born, such Vedic teachings were prevalent. We are in a similar situation now, with many vital concepts misinterpreted.

▪I mentioned the above because many people wonder in online forums whether Buddha Gotama “adopted” Vedic concepts. Those concepts originally came from Buddha Kassapa. Keep in mind that any Buddha discovers those concepts by his own efforts.

5. For example, in the WebLink: suttacentral: Māgaṇḍhiya Sutta (MN 75), [in Sinhala] Buddha Gotama converses with a Vedic Brahmin who quotes a verse from the Vedās. Buddha Gotama then says that Buddha Kassapa initially uttered the verse and came down through generations in the Vedās without the true meaning. I have discussed that verse in the post, “Ārogya Paramā Lābhā..”

▪This verse, “Arogyā paramā lābhā, Santuṭṭhiparamaṃ dhanaṃ; vissāsa paramā ñāti, Nibbānaṃ paramaṃ sukhaṃ” was popular among the Vedic brahmins of the day of the Buddha.

▪The WebLink: suttacentral: Māgaṇḍhiya Sutta (MN 75) describes how Māgaṇḍhiya (a Vedic brahmin) tells the Buddha that his teacher also taught him that same verse. When the Buddha asked him to explain the meaning that his teacher taught him, Māgaṇḍhiya gave a mundane interpretation that “Health is the ultimate profit, etc.” see “Ārogya Paramā Lābhā..”

▪The Buddha told Māgaṇḍhiya that this verse came to the Vedic literature from the previous Buddha (Buddha Kassapa), whose Buddha Sāsana had since disappeared: “Pubbakehesā, māgaṇḍiya, arahantehi sammāsambuddhehi gāthā bhāsitā“ OR “Māgaṇḍhiya, that verse was uttered by a previous Buddha.”

▪This is why only “conventional meanings” of pure Dhamma survive when Ariyās (Noble Persons) are not present to interpret the deep meanings in the suttās correctly.

▪This is precisely what has happened during the past hundreds of years, when true meanings of many keywords like anicca, dukkha, anatta, Paṭicca Samuppāda, and Ānāpānasati bhāvanā were hidden. See “Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta – Wrong Interpretations“ and “Misinterpretation of Anicca and Anatta by Early European Scholars.”

Three Buddhas Were on This Earth Before Buddha Gotama

6. In the “WebLink: suttacentral: Mahāpadāna Sutta (DN 14),” Buddha Gotama states that there have been four Buddhās, including himself, in this eon (mahā kappa), i.e., on this Earth: Kakusanda, Konagama, Kassapa, Gotama.

▪The Buddha provides a similar account in the “WebLink: suttacentral: Vepullapabbatta Sutta (SN 15.20).” He describes how a particular mountain had three different names and heights during the times of each Buddha.

▪The point here is that those Buddhās were on this Earth at times far apart. Considering that the Earth’s age is about 4.5 billion years, it is reasonable to assume that they could have appeared millions of years apart.

▪Human history goes back far more than anyone can imagine. Evidence is gradually emerging about our deep past: “WebLink: Pure Dhamma Forums: Back to Builders of the Ancient Mysteries (BAM) – Full Movie, Documentary.”

7. Therefore, the existence of Buddha Kassapa before the Buddha Gotama helps explain many questions about the connection between Vedic terms and Buddhist terms.

▪After the end of the Kassapa Buddha Sāsana, his teachings were transmitted as Vedic teachings without deeper meanings.

▪We have that problem even today! A good example is the Ānāpānasati bhāvanā, which is currently translated into English as “breath meditation” by many translators.

▪After regaining Buddha Kassapa’s interpretation during our Buddha’s time, the Vedic description has again taken hold in the present day. If not for Waharaka Thero, we would have followed those wrong interpretations, too. But, of course, it will again disappear and be rediscovered by the Maitreya Buddha millions of years in the future on this Earth itself.

Bhagavad Gita – “Verses of Bhagavad”

8. The word Buddha (Bhagavath for bhagavā) itself appears in Vedic teachings. For example, the Bhagavad Gita (or “Verses of Bhagavad”) contains many Vedic teachings originally from Buddha Kassapa. Of course, most concepts have mundane interpretations.

▪For example, “WebLink: suttacentral: Brahmāyu Sutta (MN 91)” provides a detailed account of Vedic brahmin Brahmāyu, who was well-versed in the three Vedās (tiṇṇaṃ vedānaṃ pāragū). At the beginning of the sutta, brahmin Brahmāyu recites the qualities of a Buddha: ‘itipi so bhagavā arahaṃ sammāsambuddho vijjācaraṇasampanno sugato lokavidū anuttaro purisadammasārathi satthā devamanussānaṃ buddho bhagavā’ti. Then he sends his pupil to the Gotama Buddha to check whether he has the “thirty-two marks of a great man (dvattiṃsamahāpurisalakkhaṇāni).”

▪How would Brahmāyu know about and even recite the qualities of a Buddha? Such verses and (vague) ideas had been transmitted in Vedic teachings from the time of Buddha Kassapa!

▪I mentioned the above in the post “Buddhahood Controversies – Introduction.”

▪Note: In those days, there must have been only three Vedās (in Sanskrit) instead of the currently cited four; see #1 above.

Distortion of Pāli Words in Vedic Literature

9. Aanother critical aspect is associated with incorporating Buddha Kassapa’s teachings into Vedic literature: The Vedas “adopted” many Pāli words into Sanskrit while giving them mundane meanings.

▪The Pāli words like kamma, Nibbāna, Paṭicca Samuppāda were made “more impressive-sounding” by mostly adding the “r” sound. Those three Pāli words became karma, nirvāna, and Pratītyasamutpāda, respectively, in Sanskrit Vedās.

▪As we know, “karma” conveys the same idea as “kamma.” But the similarity is only superficial.

▪To understand the laws of kamma, one must understand Paṭicca Samuppāda. In fact, “laws of kamma” are embedded in Paṭicca Samuppāda. It is the generation of (abhi)saṅkhāra that leads to kamma accumulation. Then the steps in Paṭicca Samuppāda explain how such kammic energies bring vipāka (rebirths are only one aspect of kamma vipāka.)

No “Meat” Can be Found in Vedic Literature

10. Even though the word Pratītyasamutpāda appears in Vedic literature, I have not seen a detailed explanation of it anywhere.

▪For example, the Wikipedia article “WebLink: wikipedia.org: Pratityasamutpada” does not provide a “Vedic explanation.” It goes back to (mundane versions) of Buddhist concepts.

▪The closest analysis on Pratītyasamutpāda I found is an article by Joanna Jurewicz, WebLink: web.archive.org: “Playing with Fire: The pratityasamutpada from the perspective of Vedic thought” (2000). However, it does not provide an analysis of the steps (from Vedic literature) in the sense of how one step is connected to the next. It only tries to explain the meanings of the adopted words avidyā (for avijjā in Pāli), samkāra (saṅkhāra), vijñāna (viññāṇa), nāmarūpa (nāmarūpa), sadāyatana (saḷāyatana), sparsa (phassa), vedanā (vedanā), trasna (taṇhā), upādāna (upādāna), bhava (bhava), jāti (jāti), jarā, maraṇa (jarā, maraṇa).

▪We can clearly see how the terms have been adopted with a variation of sound.

11. Of course, one could still say, “How do we know for certain it was not the other way around?” i.e., Buddha Gotama could have adopted the Vedic terms.

▪That question disregards the fact that there were three Buddhās before Buddha Gotama. Yet, the Tipiṭaka is the only evidence for the existence of three Buddhās before Buddha Gotama.

▪The strongest argument is that the Vedas do not provide a coherent explanation of the steps in their version: Pratītyasamutpāda. From the article in #10 above, it is hard to imagine they would have been able to explain any connections among the terms used. In contrast, the Tipiṭaka provides a coherent, detailed analysis of Paṭicca Samuppāda.

▪I could be wrong about this specific point. If someone knows such a detailed analysis of Pratītyasamutpāda from Vedic literature, please email me (lal@puredhamma.net) or post a link on the forum.

Confusion Caused by Sanskrit Words

12. It is no wonder that the early European scholars were confused and misled by the above-discussed issues.

▪To summarize: (i) They saw similar-sounding words in Buddhist and Vedic literature. (ii). They saw that Vedic literature preceded the Pāli Tipiṭaka.

▪However, they could also see that Buddha’s explanations in the Tipiṭaka were logical and profound.

▪Furthermore, the mundane explanation of “anicca” as “impermanence” and “anatta” as “no-self” tallied with the Sanskrit words for them: “anitya” does mean “impermanence” and “ātma” (“ātman”) means “self” or “soul.” See “Misinterpretation of Anicca and Anatta by Early European Scholars.”

▪Even to date, almost all English translations of the Tipiṭaka for “anicca” and “anatta” are “impermanence” and “no-self”!!

Incorrect English Translations of the Tipiṭaka

13. People look up Pāli-English dictionaries to find meanings of words like anicca and anatta. Of course, they find “impermanence” and “no-self.” We are used to looking up dictionaries for answers.

▪However, Pāli-English dictionaries were initially written by European scholars like Rhys Davids. Did they fully understand Buddha Dhamma? Of course not.

▪The interpretations of those early European scholars (that have taken a firm hold) were heavily influenced by Sanskrit (Vedic) literature and mundane interpretations of Tipiṭaka.

▪See “Pāli Dictionaries – Are They Reliable?” and “Elephants in the Room.”

14. The Buddha had foreseen the problems of a direct translation of the Tipiṭaka. He warned not to TRANSLATE the Tipiṭaka to ANY LANGUAGE (direct “word-by-word” translations cannot provide the deep meanings of concepts like anicca and anatta; a single word in any language cannot provide the same meaning for such words). See “Elephants in the Room.” That problem is magnified in Sanskrit due to the above mentioned reasons, especially in #12. Two Vedic brahmins named Yameḷa and Kekuṭa were experts on the Vedic Texts. They became bhikkhus and asked the Buddha whether they should translate the Pāli suttās into Sanskrit.

▪The Buddha admonished them that Sanskrit was a language with musical overtones developed by the high-minded Vedic brahmins. Thus, it was impossible to convey the true meanings of Māghadhi (Pāli) words in Sanskrit; see WebLink: tipitaka.fandam.com: Chulavagga 5.33.

▪In the Sutta Central English translation, the Pāli word for Sanskrit (Chandasa) is “metrical”; see “WebLink: suttacentral: 15. Minor matters (Khuddaka),” which is the translation of “WebLink: suttacentral: 1. Khuddakavatthu”. The relevant Pāli text is located close to the end and starts as, “Tena kho pana samayena yameḷakekuṭā nāma…”.

▪The word “metrical” there comes from “WebLink: wikipedia.org: Metre (music).” There is a reason to call Sanskrit a language with “musical overtones.” Pāli and Sanskrit had roots in the Māgadhi language the Buddha believed to have spoken. For example, dhamma and kamma changed (or “Sankritized”) to dharma and karma, and Paṭicca Samuppāda to “WebLink: wikipedia.org: Pratityasamutpada.” Vedic Brahmins ignored the “phonetics” (sounds indicating meanings) and made up “sophisticated sounding” words with “musical overtones.” In the old days, the use of Sanskrit was forbidden to “people of lower castes.”

Not Only Concepts but also Buddhist Rituals Were Adopted

15. “Uposata” is to dedicate a day once a week or once a month (usually a full Moon day) to try to live like an Arahant, i.e., to abstain from immoral deeds or “sensual/pleasurable activities,” including sex. This is a common practice in Asian Buddhist countries. People spend the whole day in a temple, although it can also be done at home.

▪Such a practice existed before Prince Siddhartha attained Buddhahood. It is stated that Queen Mahamaya Devi (Prince Siddhartha’s mother) regularly practiced it.

▪In the “WebLink: suttacentral: Uposatha Sutta (AN 3.70)” the Buddha explains to Lady Visākhā that various groups practiced three variations of Uposata at the time. The three variations are listed as “Gopālaka uposatho, nigaṇṭha uposatho, ariya uposatho.”

▪For example, “nigaṇṭha uposatho” was the practice/rituals adopted by the Jains (followers of Nigaṇṭanathaputta) at that time. Nigantanathaputta is another name for Mahavira, the founder of Jainism, which is still practiced in India. Of course, “ariya uposatha” is the Buddhist version that the Buddha explained in detail.

▪Such a practice originated with Buddha Kassapa, the Buddha before Buddha Gotama. Just like concepts like kamma/kamma vipāka also propagated with mundane meanings, that practice was performed with different variations/adoptions by various groups when Prince Siddhartha was born.

Buddha Kassapa’s Account by Buddha Gotama

16. Finally, in the “WebLink: suttacentral: Ghaṭikāra Sutta (MN 81)” Buddha Gotama provides a detailed account of his life during the time of the preceding Buddha, Buddha Kassapa.

▪I have linked to the verse: “Once upon a time, Ānanda, there was a market town in this spot named Vebhaliṅga. It was successful and prosperous, populous, full of people.” They were sitting at a place where Buddha Kassapa had a monastery a long time ago.

▪Our Bodhisatta (named Jotipala in that life) was persuaded by his friend to visit Buddha Kassapa.

▪Our Bodhisatta became a bhikkhu in Buddha Kassapa’s Sāsana, but a Bodhisatta cannot comprehend Dhamma from anyone else. I think a sutta (or it could be in the Vinaya Piṭaka) states the following: Jotipala, as a bhikkhu, tried very hard but could not make any progress. When he asked Buddha Kassapa about that, Buddha Kassapa told him the reason: Jotipala would be the next Buddha, and as a Bodhisatta, he could not learn the Noble Truths from anyone else. If anyone knows the name of that sutta, please comment or email me: lal@puredhamma.net.

▪The following online article has more information on Buddha Kassapa: “WebLink: ancient-buddhist-texts.net: The Chronicle of Buddha Kassapa.”

References

1. Wikipedia article: “WebLink: wikipedia.org: Vedas”

2. Wikipedia article: “WebLink: wikipedia.org: Buddhism and Hinduism”