The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page lxxxviii
GENERAL INTRODUCTION But it is true also that the Vedas teach, as pious duties, practices like lighting fire and burning oil, ghee and other such articles in it (Rig-Veda II. 10:4), and no doubt is left that oil, ghee, etc. , are food for Agni, the fire-god. If Agni is an attribute of God, what is the point in lighting fire and feeding it with expensive inflammables? The ceremonial must be a superstition even if Agni is only an attribute. If, on the other hand, Agni is regarded as God, and the ceremonial suggests that it is, then the whole thing, the ceremonial as well as the belief behind it, is nothing but rank superstition. In the Rig-Veda (II, 11:11) we have: Drink thou, O Hero Indra, drink the Soma; let the joy-giving juices make thee joyful. Now, Indra is the name either of God or of His angel. If Indra is the name of God, it is a most primitive thought which prompts one to offer Soma juice to God. If, on the other hand, Indra is the name of an angel or a spirit, even then the offering of Soma juice is a mean superstition. For God is hidden, and His angels are spiritual beings. They need no drinks. In the same place (11:15) we read: Let those enjoy in whom thou art delighted. Indra, drink Soma for thy strength and gladness. To think that Soma juice will bring power to God or His angels is ridiculous in the extreme. It is not one or two verses which teach superstitions of this kind. Hundreds of such verses can be quoted. We have, in some of them, descriptions of gods crossing the skies, mounted on clouds or on chariots. A large part of the Vedas consists of immoral suggestions. These pertain to matters of sex and are so brazen that we fear quotation would offend the reader's sense of decency. Sex impulses and sex organs are described with a detail which would be nauseating even in a book of medicine. For these reasons, we can say that though there are parts of the Vedas which point to their origin in divine revelation, there are others which prove that they have suffered from human fabrication. Because of this, the Vedas can no longer be treated as a guide for human conduct. We need, instead, a Book free from all such defects. That Book is the Quran. Contradictions in the Vedas Like the Bible, the Vedas contain interpolations made by different persons in different periods. No wonder there are many contradictions in their text, and here are some examples: lxii