The Seeds of the Mind is a journey into the heart of one of the most neglected and misunder-stood texts of ancient Indian literature-the atharvaveda. It tries to establish that the atharvaveda is not merely a mystical or exotic compilation of mantras but, more importantly, a window into a vibrant world of folk beliefs and culture. Without being led by any specific ideology and based purely on close reading of the veda, this analysis gives a vivid picture of our fore-fathers-their hopes and fears, their wisdom and ignorance, their love for nature and instinct for poetry, their materialistic preoccupations and spiritual yearnings. And in tune with its focus on the life and expert-ences of an ancient community. The Seeds of the Mind adopts a simple style in order to reach the veda to the common man. The Vedas are among the oldest literary documents of mankind. Indian commentators from very old times have read them as sacred scripture and interpreted them from the religious and philosophical points of view. In modern times western scholars also have looked upon them as expressions of moral, philosophical and religious beliefs and attitudes. But in this book, Rati Saxena is making a fresh approach to read the Vedas as folk literature and to discover the worldly or secular values enshrined in them. The atharveda is the special focus of her attention. Her presentation affords new insight and brings out the literary beauties of one of the richest heritages of humanity. Her commentaries and translations provide hours of pleasant reading as well.
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