Initiation to the Vedas: An abridged edition of The Vedic Experience-Mantramanjari

This short book is just an invitation to read The Vedic Experience -.Mantramanjari - An Anthology of the Vedas for Modem Man and Contemporary Celebration by Raimon Panikkar. Such a book may not be easy reading, especially for those who are not familiar with indic culture, which has so much to offer provided that we approach it prodded not by mere curiosity, but urged by a genuine longing to discover in ourselves the morning light of humanity's primordial spiritual awareness. "Initiation to the Vedas" is the title of this invitation to reanact the vedic experience, the human experience discovering the meaning of life in Man and in the World. The title, however, could just as well be "Initiation of the Vedas" inasmuch as the book describes the path of initiation travelled by vedic Man becoming aware of Life in himself. Or, the title could even be "Initiation into the Vedas" since the entire body of the vedic hymns is nothing but a celebration of the rebirth of Man to the divine Life. The myths and rites constitute a symbolic universe through which Man touches the sacred, and thereby embraces reality. Initiation, the existential experience necessary to reach the fullness of the human condition, represents one of the most significant events fo human growth: the ontological trasformation of Man, and consequently, the establishment of a new relation with life and the cosmos. Initiation is common to all ancient cultures and most world religions, but has been almost completely neglected in our modem society, even if it survives in the mystery of some rituals. Through initiation the sages hand down their teachings to new generations, transmitting the sense of the sacred, and the meaning of life and the cosmos.