Reliability Of Tradition

Here's a comprehensive summary of Johannes Bronkhorst's "The Reliability of Tradition," based on the provided text excerpts:

The book "The Reliability of Tradition" by Johannes Bronkhorst explores the complex nature of traditions, particularly within the context of classical Indian culture. Bronkhorst begins by defining tradition as a cultural feature passed down from the past, emphasizing that traditions often implicitly claim to preserve an earlier state of affairs. This claim is what makes the reliability of a tradition a subject of study. He notes that traditions can be newly created and thus unreliable, and that they often serve present-day purposes such as nationalistic movements or expressions of group identity, rather than being purely innocent survivals. This highlights a crucial distinction: the study of traditions is not the same as the study of history, as traditions can offer information about the past that requires verification.

Bronkhorst asserts that in classical Indian culture, traditions are central and are meticulously preserved. These traditions are deeply intertwined with a vision of India's past, with the Vedic tradition holding a particularly foundational role. Many other traditions, such as the Mahabharata, Natyasastra, and Ayurveda, either explicitly claim to be a "Veda" or link themselves to it, seeking to enhance their prestige.

In Brahmanical circles, the Veda is considered the origin of all things. Traditional Vedic orthdoxy (Mimamsakas) posits the Veda as beginningless and eternal, mirroring the idea of a world that also has no beginning. Other views suggest the Veda predates the current world's creation, with creation itself occurring in accordance with Vedic words. This timelessness extends to Sanskrit, the language of the Veda, which is seen as eternal and unchangeable, with all other languages being corruptions.

Bronkhorst observes that this perception of the Veda's antiquity and fundamental importance has persisted even into modernity, influencing popular imagination and leading to expectations of scientific discoveries within its texts. He then critiques modern Indological scholarship, pointing out that it has sometimes adopted similar presuppositions, particularly in its early European phase. The discovery of Sanskrit coincided with European ideas of India as the cradle of civilization, leading to the view of Sanskrit as the parent-language of Indo-European. While these extreme views were later revised with archaeological discoveries like the Indus Valley Civilization placing the Veda in a more recent historical context, other aspects have unexpectedly bolstered the idea of Vedic tradition's reliability.

For instance, the study of phonological texts like the Rgvedaprātisākhya has revealed the remarkable accuracy of oral transmission of Vedic texts over millennia, seemingly vindicating the classical Indian belief in the Veda's unchangeable nature. However, Bronkhorst warns against a lingering tendency in modern scholarship to uncritically trace the origins of various classical Indian cultural features directly to the Veda, even when non-Vedic influences are plausible. He uses the example of Sanskrit drama, where the Greek presence in ancient India, a source of courtly drama, is often overlooked in favor of searching for hypothetical Vedic roots, despite Vedic culture lacking such drama.

Bronkhorst also challenges the monolithic understanding of "Aryans" and Vedic culture. He argues that the "Aryans" (those who used the Vedic texts) were likely a minority group among the broader Indo-Aryan speakers and that their ideology (the "arya ideology") may not be representative of all Indo-Aryan speakers. He highlights the importance of the Śramana tradition, distinct from the Vedic tradition, which gave rise to movements like Buddhism and Jainism. He criticizes the tendency to speculate about the Śramana tradition's origins or to see it as a mere fringe element of Vedic culture, emphasizing that it was a separate and identifiable culture with no visible links to Vedic culture. Bronkhorst argues that certain foundational concepts like karma and rebirth, often attributed solely to Vedic Upanishads, may have independent origins or at least co-existed with Vedic thought.

In essence, Bronkhorst's work questions the uncritical acceptance of traditions as direct windows into the past. He calls for a more nuanced approach that acknowledges the dynamic construction of traditions, their potential for self-serving claims about the past, and the importance of considering diverse and often overlooked influences, particularly the distinct Śramana tradition, in understanding the richness and complexity of Indian culture.