Talk:Divya

By Swami Harshananda

Divya literally means ‘divine’, ‘supernatural’.Though the word 'divya' generally means ‘divine,’ the dharmaśāstras have used it in a more technical sense and have defined it as ‘that which decides a matter in dispute, not determined by human means of proof’.

Usage in Judgements

When a king is unable to decide whether a particular person had committed a crime or not, especially when the reliable evidences like eye-witness or strong circumstantial evidences were not conclusive, he could take recourse to ‘divya’ or supernatural mode of evidence. The suspect is subjected to an ordeal and is declared innocent if he comes out unharmed. The Chāndogya Upaniṣad refers to the ordeal of holding a heated axe in hand by a suspected thief. If he is not scalded, he is considered innocent and freed.

Types of Divyas

The details of the tests are described in the dharmaśāstra works. Such divyas can range from two to nine and include:

1. Visa - administering poison
2. Kośapāna - drinking holy water, used for bathing an image in worship
3. Phāla - licking a red-hot plough-share
4. Taṇḍula - swallowing rice-grains specially prepared
5. Taptamāṣa - taking out heated gold pieces with bare fingers

Query on Authenticity of Divya

Physical laws of nature are inexorable, so how they can fail such tests. For this objection, the writers of the dharamaśāstras explain that even the normal processes of strong evidence have sometime failed to prove guilt. And even now supernatural things and unexplained mysteries happen.

References

• The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore