The vedas are collectively called Sruti in Sanskrit; for they were only heard,  revealed or rediscovered by yogic powers, not remembered as a written work. The piece Sruti-gItA occurs in the 87th chapter of the tenth book of Srimad-BhAgavatam. King Parikshit asks a legitimate question: How at all do the vedas talk of the attributeless brahman while their main concern throughout is the detailed description of the Gods with their attributes, qualities,  deeds and of the sacrifices which link the humans  with the divines? In answer to this, sage Suka narrates a story.
It appears once Narada went to the sage Narayana in badarikASrama, and asked the same question. In answer to it Narayan quoted what he said was Sanandana's answer to the same question in a celestial seminar (referred to as brahma-satram, that is, the yajna performed to understand the brahman)in the world of jano-loka, when Narada was away in another portion of the world, called Sveta-dvIpa. According to Sanandana, the vedas sang the praise of the Lord in his nirguNa (=attributeless) state at the beginning of creation, even before the creator Brahma had been created.  It was actually done by the Sruti to wake up the Lord from His yoga-nidrA (Cosmic Sleep) at the beginning of the kalpa. The 28 verses (Nos.14 to 41 of chapter 87 of Book X) that pour forth in this connection from the Sruti form a gold mine of vedantic hymns, which are, in the content of their meaning as well as in the language of their expression, as profound and authentic as would befit the prestigious stature of the very vedas that  constitute the ultimate source for everything in Hinduism, its philosophy and metaphysics. Incidentally the verses are in a very rare metre, called narkuTaka metre.
The whole passage shows an all-embracing humility, which recalls to one's mind the reference to Sruti in lalitA-sahasra-nAma through the name:

Sruti-sImanta-sindUrI-kRta-pAdAbja-dhUlikA.

The word Sruti is feminine in Sanskrit. The Sruti personified as women are said to bow down at the  feet of the divine Mother.  This prostration is what is referred to here. When Sruti falls at the feet of the Mother of the universe, her head naturally

Sep.20, 99  ©Copyright  V. Krishnamurthy  Home  Contents  Next