There are lots of unsolved mysteries in the Rig Veda, the oldest book in the world. One of the unsolved mystery is the word “PANCHA JANAAHA”. It means FIVE PEOPLES. As usual the foreign “scholars” stood like Nava Grahas looking at different directions with different views. Even among the Hindu scholars Yaska and Sayana, there is a difference of opinion. It is very interesting to study various explanations.
The Vedic Index by Keith and Macdonell says:
Panca-janaah, the five peoples, are mentioned under various names in Vedic literature. Who were meant by the five is very uncertain.
The Aitareya Brahmana explains the five to be gods, men, Gandharvas and Apsarasses, snakes/Nagas and the Fathers/departed souls.
Aupamanyava (in the Yaska’s Nirukta 3-8) held that the four castes and the Nisadas made up the five, and Sayana (on RV 17,9)is of the same opinion. Yaska thinks that the five are the Gandharvas, Fathers/departed people, Gods, Asuras and Rakshasas (Nirukta).
No one of these explanations can be regarded as probable.
Foreigners’- interpretations
Roth and Geldner think that all the peoples of the earth are meant; just as there are four quarters, there are peoples to the four quarters with the Aryan folk in the middle.
Zimmer opposes this view on the ground that the inclusion of all peoples in one expression is not in harmony with the distinction so often made between Aryan and Dasa. After long explanation he concludes that they are five tribes of the Anus, Druhyus, Yadus, Turvasas, and Purus who are all mentioned in one or two hymns of the Rig Veda (1-108-8; 7-18).
Hopkins has combated Zimmer’s view, but his own opinion rests mainly on his theory that there was no people named Turvasa, but only the King of the Yadus called Turvasa and that theory is not very probable.
My comments:
No two clocks agree; no two foreigners agree on Vedic matters. So we must rely on Yaska the earliest person to explain the word. He lived around 850 BCE. Moreover he was the one who knew the culture and lived nearer to the Vedic times. Another point is that the meaning may change in course of time. For instance we in our Panchayajna, give offerings to Brahma/ Vedic recitation, Deva/god, Manusya/guests, Pitru/ departed souls, and Bhuta/Living beings (animals).
More over the very grouping of five tribes or five sets of people show that they have been living together for long in the same place. Otherwise the phrase “five peoples” is not possible to use in so many places.
In the Satapata Brahmana and the Aitareya Brahmana, the five people are opposed to the Bharatas, and in the former work seven people are alluded to.
Shrikant G.Talageri in his book Rig Veda – A Historical Analysis makes a passing reference:
Traditional history knows of many different streams of peoples, but the two main streams are of those belonging to the Solar race of the Ikshvakus, and those belonging to the Lunar race of the Ailas. The Ailas are further divided into five main branches: the Yadus, Turvasas, Druhyus, Anus and Purus (but Talageri did not mention anything about Pancajanah here).
A.Kalyanaraman in his scholarly work “Aryatarangini”, says
“Apart from the Bharatas, four other principal Aryan clans inhabited the Sapta Sindhu and were collectively known as Panchajanah. These were Trustus, the Anus, the Druhyus and the Turvasas or Yadus.
Kalhana’s Rajatarangini says
Commentary on verse 3-353 (ruler of Pacajanah)
This is an intriguing word with many possible meanings. It may mean
1).The four castes with the barbarians as the fifth, see the exposition in Saarirabhaasya on Brahmasutras 1-4, 2-13
2).The Five classes of beings viz. the gods, men, Gandharvas, Nagas and the Pitr (departed souls)
3).Or does it possibly mean the Panchayats as we know them.
(it shows that even in the 12th century CE, people were not sure about the meaning)
P T Srinivasa Iyengar in his book, “The History of the Tamils” has a long shot at this word:
“One Vedic phrase seems reminiscent of the division of the people into five regional tribes and that is Pancajanah. This mysterious phrase has been attempted to be explained by various writers, ancient and modern, but by none satisfactorily. I have made the conjecture that it must refer to the five tribes of pre-Aryan times, but scholars who know nothing of Tamil literature and who refuse to consider the necessity of historical continuity between pre Aryan India and Arya India have been unable to appreciates the value of this conjecture.
Panchajana and Paanchajanya
Krishna’s victorious conch has a special name PANCHAJANYA. It is in the Bhagavad Gita. The story is that there was a demon called Panchajana in the sea. He lived in the form of a conch shell. He seized the son of Sandipani under whom Krishna had his School education. He learnt the use of arms in Sandipani School. When he learnt that his teacher’s son was abducted, he swung into action, killed the demon and rescued Sandipani’s son. Then he used the conch shell of the demon. That is called Paanchajanya. Krishna had fought several naval battles from his naval base at Dwaraka in Gujarat. I have explained his naval battles with sea pirates, Nivata kavachas in another article (See Hindu Gods’ Naval attacks against Pirates, posted by me on 26 April 2012).
Panchajanah still remains a Mystery!
Written by London swaminathan: 26 June 2015
