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The Vedas (Sanskrit: वेद) are a large corpus of texts originating in Ancient India. They are the oldest scriptural texts of Hinduism. Today, Vedic texts are revered by Hindus around the world. Their verses are recited at prayers, religious functions and other auspicious occasions. In modern times, Vedic studies are crucial in the understanding of Indo-European linguistics, as well as ancient Indian history.

According to strict orthodox Hindu interpretation the Vedas are apaurusheya ("not human compositions"), being supposed to have been directly revealed, and thus are called śruti ("what is heard"). Hinduism, sometimes known as Sanatana Dharma ("Eternal Law"), refers to this belief in the ageless nature of the wisdom it embodies.

Philosophies and sects that developed in the Indian subcontinent have taken differing positions on the Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy which cite the Vedas as their scriptural authority are classified as "orthodox" (āstika). Two other Indian philosophies, Buddhism and Jainism, did not accept the authority of the Vedas and evolved into separate religions. In Indian philosophy these groups are referred to as "heterodox" or "non-Vedic" (nāstika) schools.

Dating

(For detailed discussion of dating see: Vedic period)

The Vedas are arguably the oldest surviving scriptures that are still used. Most Indologists agree that an oral tradition existed long before some of them were written down only during the second century BCE. The Vedic texts were composed or recorded, and orally transmitted, in Sanskrit for many hundreds of years before they were written down. The oldest surviving manuscripts are dated in the 11th century BCE. Radhakrishnan & Moore (1957, pp. xvii–xviii) sum up some of the older academic view by saying: "The Vedic Period is dimmed by obscurity, but it may be placed approximately between 2500 and 600 B.C." As used by these authors, the term "Vedic Period" includes the long period of gradual pre-literary cultural developments which eventually gave rise to written texts. Flood (1996, p. 37) refers to the "more sober chronology" of 1500 to 1200 BCE proposed by Max Müller for the earliest portions of the texts. Michael Witzel believes that the Vedic texts were orally composed between c. 1500 BCE and c. 500-400 BCE.

However, dating for the Vedas has become intertwined, for more than a hundred years, with various other controversial elements such as the Aryan Invasion Theory, the Out of India theory and the historicity of the Mahabharata among others.

Etymology

The word veda signifies "wisdom" or "knowledge". More generally it means "Sacred knowledge, holy learning, the scriptures of the Hindus." Monier-Williams defines it more specifically as "N. of certain celebrated works which constitute the basis of the first period of the Hindu religion." It is derived from the root vid-, Sanskrit for "to know". This is in turn reconstructed as being derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*weid-", meaning "see" or "know".

Categories of Vedic texts

Vedic texts are traditionally categorized into four classes: the Saṃhitās, Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads.

• The Samhita (Sanskrit saṃhitā, "collection"), are collections of hymns, mantras, and chants. There are four "Vedic" Samhitas: the Rig-Veda, Sama-Veda, Yajur-Veda, and Atharva-Veda, most of which are available in several recensions (śākhā). In some contexts, the term Veda is used to refer to these Samhitas.

• The Brahmanas are prose texts that discuss, in technical fashion, the solemn sacrificial rituals as well as comment on their meaning and many connected themes. Each of the Brahmanas is associated with one of the Samhitas or its recensions. The Brahmanas may either form separate texts or can be partly integrated into the text of the Samhitas. They may also include the Aranyakas and Upanishads.

• The Aranyakas, or "wilderness texts", are the concluding part of the Brahmanas that contain discussions and interpretations of dangerous rituals (to be studied outside the settlement) and various sorts of additional materials.

• The Upanishads are largely philosophical works in dialog form. They discuss question of nature philosophy and the fate of the soul, and contain some mystic and spiritual interpretations of the Vedas. For long, they hav been regarded as their putative end and essence, and are thus known as Vedānta ("the end of the Vedas"). Taken together, they are the basis of the Vedanta school.

This group of texts is called shruti (Sanskrit: śruti; "the heard"). Since post-Vedic times it has been considered to be revealed wisdom, as distinct from other texts, collectively known as smriti (Sanskrit: smṛti; "the remembered"), that is texts that are considered to be of human origin. This system of categorization was developed by Max Müller and, while it is subject to some debate, it is still widely used. As Axel Michaels explains:

These classifications are often not tenable for linguistic and formal reasons: There is not only one collection at any one time, but rather several handed down in separate Vedic schools; Upanişads ... are sometimes not to be distinguished from Āraṇyakas...; Brāhmaṇas contain older strata of language attributed to the Saṃhitās; there are various dialects and locally prominent traditions of the Vedic schools. Nevertheless, it is advisable to stick to the division adopted by Max Müller because it follows the Indian tradition, conveys the historical sequence fairly accurately, and underlies the current editions, translations, and monographs on Vedic literature."

Michael Witzel regards the ritual sutras, which are regarded as belonging to the smriti, but which are late Vedic in language and content, as part of the Vedic texts.

Works such as the Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads often interpret the polytheistic and ritualistic Samhitas in philosophical and metaphorical ways to explore abstract concepts such as the Absolute (Brahman), and the soul or the self (Atman); later Upanishad also discuss the Lord (God) (Ishvara),.

In common usage the term Vedas can refer to:

• The four Vedas meaning the Rig-Veda, Sama-Veda, Yajur-Veda, and Atharva-Veda Samhitas.

• The corpus of all of the above categories of Vedic scriptures.

The Four Vedas

A traditional view given in the Vishnu Purana (fourth century CE.) attributes the current arrangement of four Vedas to the mythical sage Vedavyasa..

The Five Vedas

There are various narrations about the Vedas being 5 in number and there are various assumptions about the Yajur Veda itself being the 5th Veda, as according to some the Yajur Veda is divided into two. But the Vishwabrahmins follow the 5 Vedas with the 5th named Pranava veda.

The Rig-Veda

The Rig-Veda Samhita is the oldest significant extant Indian text. It is a collection of 1,028 Vedic Sanskrit hymns and 10,600 verses in all, organized into ten books (Sanskrit: mandalas). The hymns are dedicated to Rigvedic deities.

The books were composed by sages and poets from different pristly groups over a period of at least 500 years, which Avari dates as 1400 BCE to 900 BCE, if not earlier According to Max Müller, based on internal evidence (philological and linguistic), the Rigveda was composed roughly between 1700–1100 BCE (the early Vedic period) in the Punjab (Sapta Sindhu) region of the Indian subcontinent. Michael Witzel believes that the Rig Veda must have been composed more or less in the period 1450-1350 BCE.

There are strong linguistic and cultural similarities between the Rigveda and the early Iranian Avesta, deriving from the Proto-Indo-Iranian times, often associated with the early Andronovo culture of ca. 2000 BCE, when the earliest horse-drawn chariots have been found (at Sintashta, near the Ural mountains).

The Yajur-Veda

The Yajur-Veda ("Veda of sacrificial formulas") consists of archaic prose mantras and also in part of verses borrowed from the Rig-Veda. Its purpose was practical, in that each mantra must accompany an action in sacrifice but, unlike the Sama-Veda, it was compiled to apply to all sacrificial rites, not merely the Soma offering. There are two major recensions of this Veda known as the "Black" and "White" Yajur-Veda. The origin and meaning of these designations are not very clear. The White Yajur-Veda contains only the verses and sayings necessary for the sacrifice, while explanations exist in a separate Brahmana work. It differs widely from the Black Yajurveda, which incorporates such explanations in the work itself, often immediately following the verses. Of the Black Yajurveda four major recensions survive, all showing by and large the same arrangement, but differing in many other respects, notably in the individual discussion of the rituals but also in matters of phonology and accent.

The Sama-Veda

The Sama-Veda (Sanskrit sāmaveda ) is the "Veda of chants" or "Knowledge of melodies". The name of this Veda is from the Sanskrit word sāman which means a metrical hymn or song of praise. It consists of 1549 stanzas, taken entirely (except 78) from the Rig-Veda. Some of the Rig-Veda verses are repeated more than once. Including repetitions, there are a total of 1875 verses numbered in the Sama-Veda recension published by Griffith. Two major recensions remain today, the Kauthuma/Ranayaniya and the Jaiminiya.

Its purpose was liturgical and practical, to serve as a songbook for the "singer" priests who took part in the liturgy. A priest who sings hymns from the Sama-Veda during a ritual is called an udgātṛ, a word derived from the Sanskrit root ud-gai ("to sing" or "to chant"). A similar word in English might be "cantor". The styles of chanting are important to the liturgical use of the verses. The hymns were to be sung according to certain fixed melodies; hence the name of the collection.

The Atharva-Veda

The Artharva-Veda is the "Knowledge of the (and Angirasa)". The Artharva-Veda or Atharvangirasa is the text 'belonging to the Atharvan and Angirasa' poets. Apte defines an atharvan as a priest who worshipped fire and Soma. The etymology of Atharvan is unclear, but according to Mayrhofer it is related to Avesta athravan (āθrauuan); he denies any connection with fire priests. Atharvan was an ancient term for a certain Rshi even in the Rigveda. (The older literature took them as priests who worshipped fire).

The Atharva-Veda Saṃhitā has 760 hymns, and about one-sixth of the hymns are in common with the Rig-Veda. Most of the verses are metrical, but some sections are in prose.

It was compiled around 900 BCE, although some of its material may go back to the time of the Rig Veda, and some parts of the Atharva-Veda are older than the Rig-Veda.

The Atharvana-Veda is preserved in two recensions, the Paippalāda and Śaunaka. According to Apte it had nine schools (shakhas). The Paippalada version is longer than the Saunaka one; it is only partially printed and remains untranslated.

Unlike the other three Vedas, the Atharvana-Veda has less connection with sacrifice. Its first part consists chiefly of spells and incantations, concerned with protection against demons and disaster, spells for the healing of diseases, and for long life.

The second part of the text contains speculative and philosophical hymns. R. C. Zaehner notes that:

"The latest of the four Vedas, the Atharva-Veda, is, as we have seen, largely composed of magical texts and charms, but here and there we find cosmological hymns which anticipate the Upanishads, -- hymns to Skambha, the 'Support', who is seen as the first principle which is both the material and efficient cause of the universe, to Prāna, the 'Breath of Life', to Vāc, the 'Word', and so on.

The famous mantra Om (ॐ) first appeared in the Atharva-Veda, and later was identified with absolute reality (brahman) in the Taittitrīya Upanishad.

In its third section, the Atharvaveda contains Mantras used in marriage and death rituals, as well as those for kingship, female rivals and the Vratya (in Brahmana style prose).

Gavin Flood discusses the relatively late acceptance of the Atharva-Veda as follows:

"There were originally only three priests associated with the first three Saṃhitās, for the Brahman as overseer of the rites does not appear in the Ṛg Veda and is only incorporated later, thereby showing the acceptance of the Atharva Veda, which had been somewhat distinct from the other Saṃhitās and identified with the lower social strata, as being of equal standing with the other texts."

The Pranava-veda

The Pranava-veda is a fascinating treatise that tells about the creation of the universe and the ancient science of the cosmic life force.

Theological traditions

Study of the extensive body of Vedic texts has been organized into a number of different theological schools or branches (Sanskrit śākhā, literally "branch" or "limb") each of which specialized in learning certain texts. Multiple recensions are known for each of the Vedas, and each Vedic text may have a number of schools associated with it. Elaborate methods for preserving the text were originally based on memorizing by heart instead of writing. Specific techniques for parsing and chanting the texts were used to assist in the memorization process. (See also: patha)

Exegetical literature developed in the Vedic schools but comparatively few early medieval commentaries have survived. Sayana, from the 14th century, is known for his elaborate commentaries on the Vedic texts. While some evidence suggests that every member of the upper three classes (varna) was allowed to study the Vedas and that none but a few Vedic authors (Rishis) were women, the later dharmashastras, from the Sutra age, dictate that women and Shudras were neither required nor allowed to study the Veda. These dharmashastras regard the study of the Vedas a religious duty of the three upper varnas (Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas).

Vedanga and Upaveda

Six technical subjects related to the Vedas are traditionally known as "limbs of the Veda" (Sanskrit: vedāṅga). V. S. Apte defines this group of works as:

"N. of a certain class of works regarded as auxiliary to the Vedas and designed to aid in the correct pronunciation and interpretation of the text and the right employment of the Mantras in ceremonials."

• Phonetics (Śikşā)
• Meter (Chandas)
• Grammar (Vyākaraṇa)
• Etymology (Nirukta)
• Astronomy (Jyotiṣa)
• Ritual Practices (Kalpa)

The term upaveda ("secondary knowledge") is used in traditional literature to designate the subjects of certain technical works. They have no relation to the Vedas, except as subjects worthy of study despite their secular character. Lists of what subjects are included in this class differ among sources. Examples include:

• Medicine (Āyurveda)
• Archery, Military science (Dhanurveda) (see: Indian martial arts).
• Music and sacred dance (Gāndharvaveda)
• Architecture, Mechanics (Sthāpatyaveda)

Notes

1. Radhakrishnan & Moore 1957, p. 3
2. Apte 1965, p. 887
3. For revealed nature of the works, in an introductory lecture on the origin of the Vedas to Europeans in 1865, the German Indologist Max Muller said, "In no country, I believe, has the theory of revelation been so minutely elaborated as in India. The name for revelation in Sanskrit is Sruti, which means hearing; and this title distinguished the Vedic hymns and, at a later time, the Brahmanas also, from all other works, which however sacred and authoritative to the Hindu mind, are admitted to have been composed by human authors. The Laws of Manu, for instance, are not revelation; they are not Sruti, but only Smriti, which means recollection of tradition. If these laws or any other work of authority can be proved on any point to be at variance with a single passage of the Veda, their authority is at once overruled. According to the orthodox views of Indian theologians, not a single line of the Veda was the work of human authors. The whole Veda is in some way or the other the work of the Deity; and even those who saw it were not supposed to be ordinary mortals, but beings raised above the level of common humanity, and less liable therefore to error in the reception of revealed truth. The views entertained by the orthodox theologians of India are far more minute and elaborate than those of the most extreme advocates of verbal inspiration in Europe. The human element, called paurusheyatva in Sanskrit, is driven out of every corner or hiding place, and as the Veda is held to have existed in the mind of the Deity before the beginning of time..." For quotation see: "Chips from a German Workshop" by Max Muller, Oxford University Press, 1867 - Chapter 1: "Lecture on the Vedas or the Sacred Books of the Brahmans, Delivered at Leeds, 1865", pages 17-18.
4. Flood 1996, p. 82
5. For written texts during second century BCE see: Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69.
6. For composition and oral transmission for "many hundreds of years" before being written down, see: Avari 2007, p. 76.
7. Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 68
8. Radhakrishnan & Moore 1957, p. 3.
9. Apte 1965, p. 887.
10. Apte 1965, p. 887.
11. Monier-Williams 2006, p. 1015.
12. Monier-Williams 2006, p. 1015.
13. Apte 1965, p. 856
15. For other cognates, Greek (w)oida, English wit, witness, and German wissen see: Flood 2003, p. 68.
16. Michaels 2004, p. 51.
17. Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69.
18. Michaels 2004, p. 51.
19. Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69.
20. For a table of all Vedic texts see Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 100–101.
21. Flood 1996, p. 111.
22. Vishnu Purana, translation by Horace Hayman Wilson, 1840, Ch IV, http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp078.htm
23. By Mysore (India : State), "Mysore State Gazetteer:", Printed by the Director of Print., Stationery and Publications at the Govt. Press, Page 220
24. By Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute "Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute", Poona, Published 1928, Page 130, 131, 132
25. For Rig Veda as the "oldest significant extant Indian text" see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
26. For 1,028 hymns and 10,600 verses and division into ten mandalas, see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
27. For characterization of content and mentions of deities including Agni, Indra, Varuna, and Surya, see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
28. For composition over 500 years dated 1400 BCE to 900 BCE, see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
29. India: What Can It Teach Us: A Course of Lectures Delivered Before the University of Cambridge by F. Max Müller; World Treasures of the Library of Congress Beginnings by Irene U. Chambers, Michael S. Roth.
30. Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 68.
31. Drews, Robert (2004). Early Riders: The beginnings of mounted warfare in Asia and Europe. New York: Routledge. p. 50.
32. Apte 1965, p. 981.
33. Michaels 2004, p. 51.
34. For 1875 total verses, see numbering given in Ralph T. H. Griffith edition. Griffith's introduction mentions the recension history for his text. Repetitions may be found by consulting the cross-index in Griffith pp. 491-99.
35. Apte 1965, p. 271.
36. Apte 1965, p. 37.
37. Mayrhofer, EWAia I.60
38. Michaels 2004, p. 56.
39. Michaels 2004, p. 56.
40. Flood 1996, p. 37.
41. Michaels 2004, p. 56.
42. Michaels 2004, p. 56.
43. Apte 1965, p. 37.
44. Flood 1996, p. 36.
45. Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 76.
46. Radhakrishnan & Moore 1957, p. 3.
47. Michaels 2004, p. 56.
48. Zaehner 1966, p. vii.
49. Flood 1996, p. 222.
50. Flood 1996, p. 42.
51. Flood 1996, p. 39.
52. Monier-Williams 2006, p. 1016.
53. Apte 1965, p. 387.
54. Monier-Williams 2006, p. 207. Accessed 5 April 2007.
55. Apte 1965, p. 293.

References

• Apte, Vaman Shivram (1965), The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary (4th revised & enlarged ed.), Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0567-4 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help).
• Avari, Burjor (2007), India: The Ancient Past, London: Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-35616-9 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Flood, Gavin (1996), An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-43878-0 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Flood, Gavin, ed. (2003), The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism, Malden, MA: Blackwell, ISBN 1-4051-3251-5 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Michaels, Axel (2004), Hinduism: Past and Present, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-08953-1
• Monier-Williams, Monier, ed. (2006), Monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary, Nataraj Books, ISBN 18-81338-58-4.
• Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli; Moore, Charles A., eds. (1957), A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy (12th Princeton Paperback ed.), Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01958-4.
• Zaehner, R. C. (1966), Hindu Scriptures, London: Everyman's Library {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

See also

• Hindu Philosophy
• Pandit
• Vedic chant
• Vedic civilization/EB 1911
• Shakha

External links

Electronic texts:

• The Vedas at sacred-texts.com
• Vedas: Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Artharva

• Hindu texts
• Sanskrit texts
• Vedas
• Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
• Indo-European mythology