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Swami Vivekananda has claimed that the great Vedic scholar Sayanacharya, who wrote a commentary on the Vedas, had reincarnated as the infamous Max Muller.

Does this claim have any basis?

From what the Swami said, it appears that he guessed that Muller was the rebirth of Sayanacharya because Muller used Sayanacharya's commentary of the Vedas in his translation of the Vedas.

This is like claiming that Aurangzeb was the rebirth of Duryodhana because both were evil, killed people, oppressed Dharma, etc.

Ikshvaku
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    Are you asking - Does this claim have any basis in scripture? –  Feb 11 '19 at 15:58
  • @LazyLubber Does the claim have any basis in scripture, perception, reasoning, or yogic perception. All these pramanas count. It appears that Vivekananda simply guessed this face, since Muller used Sayana's commentary in his translation. – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 16:00
  • "You might as well claim that Duryodhana reincarnated as Aurangzeb, etc. " -- what is the purpose this line in the Q? – Rickross Feb 11 '19 at 16:10
  • @Rickross I updated question. Please check. – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 16:12
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    Must have been a fake Sayana in any case. Read this - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Müller "It was revealed that Max Muller had in fact usurped the full credit for the translation of the Rig veda which was actually not his work at all, but of another unnamed german scholar whom Muller had paid to translate the text. To quote from his obituary in Scientific American, "What he constantly proclaimed to be his own great work, the edition of the "Rig Veda," was in reality not his at all. A German scholar did the work, and Muller appropriated the credit for it" –  Feb 11 '19 at 16:13
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    @LazyLubber Lol, that's funny. That doesn't help Vivekananda's claim at all. – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 16:17
  • This question has no answer and i downvoted it –  Feb 11 '19 at 16:17
  • @Partha What do you mean it has no answer? I just posted it 22 minutes ago, that's why no one has answered it yet. Or do you mean it cannot be answered? – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 16:19
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    yes, it can NOT be answered.We do not have that Trikalajnas here –  Feb 11 '19 at 16:21
  • That means it can not be answered so he (Partha) is right .. @Ikshvaku – Rickross Feb 11 '19 at 16:23
  • @Partha Maybe there is a scriptural prophecy. – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 16:23
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    @Ikshvaku bhavishyapuran does not have it so far as i know and such forecasts are not found in the famous puranas.some allopanishad or similar puran can write something.yesterday i came to know about Ramakrishna-Upanishad which i was told is accepted by the mission. these are tomfooleries –  Feb 11 '19 at 16:26
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    I personally find it blasphemous (no offense to Vivekananda) to compare Max Mueller with Sayanacharya. Mueller dedicated his life to uproot Hinduism and establish Christianity in India. –  Feb 11 '19 at 16:34

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Swami Vivekananda just inferred as the original bengali version says :

"mone holo ki jaanis, Sayan i nijer bhashya nije uddhar korte Max Muller hoye jonmechhen,aamaar anek din hoitei oi dhaarana." (Swami-Sishya-Samvad, Sarachchandra Chakraborti, Udbodhan, page 56)

Meaning: Do you know what seemed to me? It was Sayana Himself who was born as Max Mueller to revive his commentaries. This is my "Dhaarana"(impression).

He did NOT make any claim that by using any yogic power He knew that Sayana was born as Max Muller. This was His personal impression or imagination only, which became stronger (vaddhamula) after meeting Max Muller.

But it was not a claim.

Manu writes "Antyaadapi param dharmam" and so learning from mlechchas is not denigrating.

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This is Vivekananda metaphorically predicting the future of Hinduism research/scholarship- its greatest scholars will be Western and its language of commentary and analysis will be English. I don't see Brererton and Jamison's Rig Veda translation being equaled by Hindu researchers/religious figures in the foreseeable future. The BORI critical edition of Mahabharata had significant input from Westerners.

Max Mueller was not an enemy of Hinduism. He has said both good and bad things about Hinduism and there are Max Mueller Bhavans in Indian big cities to promote Indo-German friendship.

S K
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    Mlecchas who make up interpretations about the Vedas are not the authority on Hinduism. From the Manusmriti: "Those Brāhmaṇas, by whom the Veda, along with its supplements, has been learnt in the right manner, and who are guided directly by the revealed texts,—shall be regarded as ‘cultured.’" And: "That which even a single Brāhmaṇa learned in the Veda decides to be the law, shall be understood to be the highest law,—and not what is asserted by ten thousand ignoramuses." – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 17:56
  • There are no "mlecchas" – S K Feb 11 '19 at 17:57
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    What do you mean there are no mlecchas? Mlecchas are non-Vedic people. – Ikshvaku Feb 11 '19 at 18:49
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    This is what Max Mueller said to Chevalier Bunsen in a letter dated August 25, 1856: “India is much riper for Christianity than Rome or Greece were at the time of St. Paul. The rotten tree has for some time had artificial supports… For the good of this struggle I should like to lay down my life, or at least to lend my hand to bring about this struggle. Dhulip Singh is much at Court, and is evidently destined to play a political part in India.” –  Feb 11 '19 at 18:56
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    In his view, caste:

    . . . which has hitherto proved an impediment to conversion of the Hindus, may in future became one of the most powerful engines for the conversion not merely of the individuals, but of whole classes of Indian society. (Dirks, 2004)

     – Lokesh Feb 11 '19 at 20:04
  • Manu Smriti clearly says that one learn from anybody .. u did not read this it seems? If a MLECCHA is competent and u are not then there is no SHAME in learning from him ... It's the effort or PURUSARTHA that matters not just birth .. Scriptures say even a Kita (an insect) can mount the heavens ... So, instead of criticizing others u shd make more efforts so that u can understand Vedas on ur own without relying on such translations @Ikshvaku – Rickross Feb 12 '19 at 06:20
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    @Rickross Yes, Manusmriti does say you can learn from any qualified person, but that is only for on any topic other than the Vedas, which Brahmanas are only allowed to teach. – Ikshvaku Feb 12 '19 at 11:16