By Bhakta Rob
Here’s an article I’ve sent to dandavats.com:
All over Cornwall now, as in Wales, you will find road signs and official notices in two languages, both in English and also in the original language of the region. Up until a few years ago, these native languages of Britain, dating back to pre-Roman times, were pretty much ignored as defunct, but a recent government encouraged spirit of national or regional pride has increased efforts to preserve and revive them.
Of course, this materialistic spirit of nationalism is not very much approved of in the Vedic literature, considered to be the emanation of the breathing of Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead:
yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke
sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma ijya-dhīḥ
yat-tīrtha-buddhiḥ salile na karhicij
janeṣv abhijñeṣu sa eva go-kharaḥ
“A human being who identifies this body made of three elements with his self, who considers the by-products of the body to be his kinsmen, who considers the land of birth worshipable, and who goes to a place of pilgrimage simply to take a bath rather than meet men of transcendental knowledge there, is to be considered like an ass or a cow.” (Bhāg. 10.84.13)
But still, greater public interest in our pre-Roman, and pre-Christian history on this island and further afield may provide some fertile new ground for advancement of the Vedic culture.
When I was younger, before becoming a Hare Krishna devotee, being the son of a proud Welshman, I was very interested in the ancient Celts. Naturally I began to look into the Druids, and I read much about the many links between their culture and the ways of old India. The Druids unfortunately did not record most of their teachings, since these were passed on in an oral tradition similar to the Vedas prior to the advent of Vyasadeva, the literary incarnation of Krishna, but there is strong archaelogical and linguistic evidence to cement the link.
All of the Celtic tongues, such as Cornish and Welsh, have many similarities with Sanskrit, the original language of India, and indeed, the root of all Indo-European languages. A nineteenth century historian travelling in the Isles of Scotland found that in one place the local dialect was called Sans Chrieu. Further east, the ancient folk songs of Bulgaria contain reference to Lord Krishna, and in fact a Deity of the Lord was uncovered recently in Siberia. There is also evidence from the sastra that rsis or sages used to travel from the western countries to India many thousands of years ago.
The Vedas entirely support this connection. It’s an accepted fact in Vedic culture that before the onset of the age of Kali, the Emperor of Hastinapura in India was the Emperor of the entire world. Maharaja Yudhistira, being supported by Lord Krishna, was one such famous Emperor, as stated in the Mahabharata. This apparently grandiose claim is not so disbelievable if we look throughout history at the grip over large swathes of the globe previously exerted by Rome c. 2000 years ago, or by London in the 1800s, and in the modern day, by Washington. Here Srila Prabhupada gives an insight into the traditional system of governance:
“After gaining victory in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, the Emperor of the world, performed the Rājasūya sacrificial ceremony. The emperor, in those days, upon his ascendance to the throne, would send a challenge horse all over the world to declare his supremacy, and any ruling prince or king was at liberty to accept the challenge and express his tacit willingness either to obey or to disobey the supremacy of the particular emperor. One who accepted the challenge had to fight with the emperor and establish his own supremacy by victory. The defeated challenger would have to sacrifice his life, making a place for another king or ruler. So Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira also dispatched such challenging horses all over the world, and every ruling prince and king all over the world accepted Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira’s leadership as the Emperor of the world.”
Purport to Srimad Bhagavatam 1.9.41
Prabhupada further explains:
“The name Bhāratavarṣa is not only the name for India, but it is the name for this planet. Formerly, five thousand years ago, the whole planet was known as Bhāratavarṣa. The Vedic culture was all over the world. These Europeans and Americans, they are coming of the same stock, Indo-Aryan stock. There is a great history behind this, how some of the kṣatriyas, they left India during the time of Paraśurāma. He declared war against the kṣatriyas and he was incarnation of God. He was killing the kṣatriyas like anything and some of the kṣatriyas fled from India and came to this part of the world. So from historical point of view you Europeans and Americans, you belong to the kṣatriya stock of old India, and somehow or other you have forgotten this Vedic culture. Originally you belonged to this Vedic culture. The Vedic culture was all over the world, even in America—different types of worship or concept of God. The Red Indians also had some religion.”
Lecture on Srimad Bhagavatam 6.1.11
New York, 1971
So, as Prabhupada points out, due to the influence of time, as more recent empires have come and gone, so we have forgotten our original culture. No Celt could disagree. Whether some of those in the younger generation of Celtic revivalists could be persuaded to accept the Vedas as the same bona fide source of knowledge as would their ancient counterparts is dependent on our enthusiasm in making the case. We have to be confident in this regard. if we have doubts ourselves as to the veracity of this information, passed down to us by Srila Prabhupada, then we are rendered impotent to take full advantage of it in the service of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Caitanya is the personal appearance of Lord Krishna in the modern age, who advented Himself in Bengal around 500 years ago with the purpose of reawakening the original Krishna consciousness of all living beings. It was His pleasure pastime to conquer over the elitism and impersonalism that prevailed in India at that time. Even now, the facts about the links between Celtic and Vedic culture may not always be appreciated by the “cows and asses” of nationalistic persuasion both here and in India who obssess about the superiority of their own stock, but in a more open hearted and multicultural modern society, we must be unafraid on both sides to make the case for the bond between us. Smashing the mundane brahminical supremacism of His era in so many ways, Mahaprabhu stressed His desire to spread Krishna consciousness beyond India:
“Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma. His mission should be preached not only in India but pṛthivīte, means all over the world. Yata, pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi—all cities and all villages, all countries, sarvatra, everywhere, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement should be propagated. And He has openly said that anyone—doesn’t matter in what, which family or in which country he has taken his birth, anyone—ye kṛṣṇa tattva vettā sei guru haya. Anyone who knows this science of Kṛṣṇa, he’s eligible to become a Vaiṣṇava or a spiritual master.”
Srila Prabhupada, Gayatri Mantra Initiation Lecture
Boston, 1968
There is already a strong tradition amongst the “fringes” of British society of the passing down of skills, particularly those to do with nature and the soil, and of the passing down of lore and teachings, even of accepting the superior knowledge of elders. Unfortunately this has become polluted due to various influences, by intoxication, by interpretation and by false pride. But if even a handful of young Celts can put aside more modern nationalistic concerns, and were to take up the duties of spiritual life in the same mood of gravity and purity as did their ancient Druidic forefathers, then maybe there would be real hope for a revival of the original Krishna conscious culture of Britain.
With humble obeisances to Yaduvendu Prabhu, whose extensive research in this field has inspired this article. I hope in some small way he will be pleased with it.
