Difference between revisions of "Soma (सोमः)"

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"Veda" and "Vedic" redirect here. For other uses, see Veda (disambiguation) and Vedic (disambiguation).
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CHAPTER V- SOMA-GAYATRI
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Part of a series on
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In the Vedas, Soma is mentioned as the Devata of Prithvi. In yagnas, the Somayagna  is of superior quality.  Soma has been described as anna (grain) by the devatas. This soma is also compared to a creeper. The Vedas describe Lord Indra, the king of the Devas, drinking Somarasa (Soma juice). Often it is described that Soma deva would reside but Garuda brought him to bhumi in the form of Gayatri. Soma is also addressed as Pavamana (wind) in the Vedas. Soma is called Samudra Raja (ocean king) as it is considered as the king of all rivers. Soma is addressed as the source of water as it provides rain and resides in water. It is said Whoever partakes of Soma, will become immortal and develop the capacity to perform superhuman activities. Therfore, it is compared to “amrith” (nectar) or even described as “amrith.” Sometimes, Soma is compared to the Sun as it is seen as the dispeller of darkness and provider of light, one who spreads his rays towards the earth and Sky. Soma is known for giving benediction of teja (), success, and eternality. Soma is the source of all aushadhi (medicine). He can cure all disease, restore vision to the blind and enable the lame to walk. He is all pervading and protects the human body. Soma essential dharma is to increase satya in us by removing our sins, which are ingrained in us.  
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Hindu scriptures and texts
 
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Vedas[show]
 
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Related Hindu texts
 
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v t e
 
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The Vedas (/ˈveɪdəz, ˈviː-/;[1] Sanskrit: वेद véda, "knowledge") are a large body of texts originating in ancient Indian subcontinent. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.[2][3] Hindus consider the Vedas to be apauruṣeya, which means "not of a man, superhuman"[4] and "impersonal, authorless".[5][6][7]
 
  
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Vedas are also called śruti ("what is heard") literature,[8] distinguishing them from other religious texts, which are called smṛti ("what is remembered"). The Veda, for orthodox Indian theologians, are considered revelations seen by ancient sages after intense meditation, and texts that have been more carefully preserved since ancient times.[9][10] In the Hindu Epic the Mahabharata, the creation of Vedas is credited to Brahma.[11] The Vedic hymns themselves assert that they were skillfully created by Rishis (sages), after inspired creativity, just as a carpenter builds a chariot.[10]
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Soma enhances our speech and pronunciation just as the boatman who plies the boat in the waters seamlessly, and is therefore known as Vacaspati (expert in the art of speech). It can invoke powerful feelings within our mind and directs us to Prarthana (prayers). He is the master amongst poets, Rishi amongst the brahamanas and the brahamanas worship him as the king. He is the heart of the Yagna and the distributor of knowledge. In the battle between Indra and Vritrasura, he was the cause of Indra’s victory as He is the thunder weapon (Vajra) of Indra, hence known as the soul of Indra.  Or he a.  He gave birth to Surya in the water, and he causes sunrise. e himself is warrior, he has never lost battle, those warriors who worship him, and he offers them anything they desire.  Those Brahmanas who drink somarasa, have the power to burn their enemies simply by the glance.  In earthly planet he resides in mountains.  He has birds eyes view over every one.  Anything, and any one has connection to soma is generally called as somya in vedic language.
  
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There are four Vedas: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda.[12][13] Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), the Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices), the Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices), and the Upanishads (text discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).[12][14][15] Some scholars add a fifth category – the Upasanas (worship).[16][17]
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The western Indologist, who are bereft of Vedic wisdom and Indians who have no pride in the Vedas go by the Whiteman’s version of सोम which is an intoxicating beverage. This is deeply revealing of their malicious intentions to portray our scriptures as and our sages in denigrating and frivolous terms.  According to them “suktadarshi” is not rishi, they mention that the sage being intoxicated tends to thinl of himself as a Rishi. One Christian priest (Religion of Rig veda by H.D. Graiswald, page 214-215)) who may himself be under the influence of ordinar intoxicant rashly concludes that there is no difference between liquor and Soma rasa. The difference is one is used for Yagna and other is used for general purpose of consuming. He further comes up with the fanciful theory that Somarasa helps in increasing sexual appetite. His profound knowledge of our great culture is based merely on two incidents.
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Àt a camp, when he asked a drunk cobbler as to why he drank, the cobbler replied, “ if I do not drink, how will I produce children?
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In 1890, the same Christian priest met an Indian, who told this priest, if he did not drink whisky then he would have been dead long back.  The equation of the sacred Soma to alcohol (introduced along with opium into India and China by the East India Company nations itself to destroy Bharat) and also that Indian were drunkards is not only vicious but false propaganda.This pathetic scholarship reveals the malafide intentions of the White traders to not only denigrate our knowledge systems but also impose falsehoods and non-existent discriminatory systems that were not part of our Vedic traditions. An example of this was the oppositional categories: gods-demons, fire-blood, man-woman, twice-born-shudra, purity-pollution, death-immortality.
  
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The various Indian philosophies and denominations have taken differing positions on the Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy which cite the Vedas as their scriptural authority are classified as "orthodox" (āstika).[note 1] Other śramaṇa traditions, such as Lokayata, Carvaka, Ajivika, Buddhism and Jainism, which did not regard the Vedas as authorities are referred to as "heterodox" or "non-orthodox" (nāstika) schools.[19][20] Despite their differences, just like the texts of the śramaṇa traditions, the layers of texts in the Vedas discuss similar ideas and concepts.[19]
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In the introduction itself he clarifies that he does not comprehend the Vedas as he cannot understand the feeling of words or cannot explain the words, but has borrowed the meaning from elsewhere, mostly from secondary sources. Ironically, he  indicates not only his ignorance of our systems but also his audacity at studying us from a position of superiority. But that this was accepted and has become the explanation for our knowledge systems indicates the hegemony of the West on our academic, health, and all our systems. And the most significant factor is that these conlusions reign till date and determine our discourse and actions. Also our glorious heritage has completely been blamked out leaving the people of Bharat completly without connection to their roots as we pursue systems that are not only dysfunctional but alien.
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A logical question would be that if the dharmic rishis were Somarasa drunkards as insinuated by Western evangelists, the Rig veda (XI, all 114 suktas) would not eulogise [[सोम|Soma]] and the rishis would not have performed yagna while honouring [[सोम|Soma]]. If it was an alcoholic beverage, why would drinking it only be restricted to three times a day. [[सोम|Soma]] is not a ordinary beverage, it is the symbol of divinity and only the most qualified brahamanas were able to drink (तत्त्वपणा|tattvapana) it, this is the conclusion of vedas.
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Somam manyate papivana yat sam pimashanti aushadhim
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Somam yam brahamanyo viduh natasyashnati kaschana (X-85-3)
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The Sayana Bhashya claims that those who desire sexual appetite, should consider Somarasa as an intoxication and extract its juice thrugh the chemical method and drink it. Such persons consider [[सोमरस|Somarasa]] as ordinary juice, but the wise Brahamanas (brahmagyaani) and the [[ऋत्विग्जमनास|ritvigyjyamanaas]] understood the real essence of सोम. In other words, the soma is not some ordinary juice extracted from the creeper as explained in the Vedas. Those who have actually honored the [[सोम|Soma]], the brahamvadini, mahajnanis, those who are immersed in Brahman, explained the [[सोम|Soma]] differently;
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Apama somamamrta abhumaganma jyotir vidama devan
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Kim nunamasman krnavadaratih kimdhurtiramrta martyasya
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“We have honored soma rasa, we have become immortal, achieved the param jyoti (highest light), have understand all the devas, what can the enemies do to us? Hey [[सोम|Soma]], what can the enemies who are wicked to do me, even though I am mortal? (VIII-48-3 Rik samhita).
  
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Contents  [hide]  
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Such people who are ignorant and demean [[सोम|Soma]] are ignorant of the Vedas and its profound wisdom and false keepers of our knowledge systems.
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1 Etymology and usage
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2 Chronology
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Similarly, the great  Vamadeva Rishi, who drank the [[सोम|Soma]], says, “I have realised the secret behind the birth of Indra and others, previously my body which was like iron shackles did not allow me, to experience [[Brahman]], because of being bound. Since i who took the dress of Garuda, I was split open the covering of body (since I drank soma rasa). Even though this body binds me, but I am not covered with ignorance, illusion, even the pain of being in the womb has been overcome by my power of wisdom. The ईश्वर|Isvara, who is in the form of [[सोम|Soma]]) has helped me to conquer my enemies of the womb, he helped me to cross all the layers of air in the womb, that Isvara, is complete, and the source and inspirer of the entire cosmos.  One who speak such profound words, Vamadeva, should he be considered insane or a great brahma jnani?
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2.1 Ancient universites
 
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3 Categories of Vedic texts
 
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3.1 Vedic Sanskrit corpus
 
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3.2 Shruti literature
 
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4 Vedic schools or recensions
 
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5 Four Vedas
 
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5.1 Rigveda
 
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5.2 Samaveda
 
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5.3 Yajurveda
 
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5.4 Atharvaveda
 
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5.5 Embedded Vedic texts
 
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5.5.1 Brahmanas
 
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5.5.2 Aranyakas and Upanishads
 
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6 Post-Vedic literature
 
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6.1 Vedanga
 
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6.2 Parisista
 
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6.3 Upaveda
 
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6.4 "Fifth" and other Vedas
 
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6.5 Puranas
 
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7 Western Indology
 
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8 See also
 
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9 Notes
 
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10 References
 
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10.1 Bibliography
 
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11 Further reading
 
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12 External links
 
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Etymology and usage
 
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The Sanskrit word véda "knowledge, wisdom" is derived from the root vid- "to know". This is reconstructed as being derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *u̯eid-, meaning "see" or "know".[21]
 
  
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The noun is from Proto-Indo-European *u̯eidos, cognate to Greek (ϝ)εἶδος "aspect", "form" . Not to be confused is the homonymous 1st and 3rd person singular perfect tense véda, cognate to Greek (ϝ)οἶδα (w)oida "I know". Root cognates are Greek ἰδέα, English wit, etc., Latin videō "I see", etc.[22]
 
  
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The Sanskrit term veda as a common noun means "knowledge", but can also be used to refer to fields of study unrelated to liturgy or ritual, e.g. in agada-veda "medical science", sasya-veda "science of agriculture" or sarpa-veda "science of snakes" (already found in the early Upanishads); durveda means "with evil knowledge, ignorant".[23]
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Even small children can understand this in India.  One more thing is expressed by Wamadeva; to prove his complete surrender, he compares himself to body and the supreme being as the soul, hence it shows the paramatama’s complete body. (this is explained in the brahamasutras in regards to indrapranadhikaran “shastra dhristhyatu upadesha wamadevatah” Vedavyasa explained exactly in the above fashion)  “ I was Manu, Sun god, Rishi Kashikavana, Arjuna,Kutsa and also krantadarshi, who is rishi named, Ushanasa.  Hey all humans, please understand me who is very wonder.  i gave earth to Manu, I was the one who gave rain to man who is engaged in yagna.  I am the originator of rivers.  All the devas follow my sankalpa(resolve) I was the one who became Indra, and gave protectin to Divodasa rishi, who was from royal family. By my power he destroyed 99 towns of demon Shambarasura,and settled in 100th town. In this way(one who provided energy to me and divodasa) Garuda who brought the grain of devatas  who are personified in Soma, from the planet brahma loka, in the fomr of “suparna,”  for this reason let it become elevated( Rik sam VI- 26-27)
  
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A related word Vedena appears in hymn 8.19.5 of the Rigveda.[24] It was translated by Ralph T. H. Griffith as "ritual lore",[25] as "studying the Veda" by the 14th century Indian scholar Sayana, as "bundle of grass" by Max Müller, and as "with the Veda" by H.H. Wilson.[26]
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Then who is the soma, we will see this in the future pages.
  
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Vedas are called Maṛai or Vaymoli in parts of South India. Marai literally means "hidden, a secret, mystery".[27][28] In some south Indian communities such as Iyengars, the word Veda includes the Tamil writings of the Alvar saints, such as Divya Prabandham, for example Tiruvaymoli.[29]
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Garuda, who was in the sauparna form(bird?) brought madhu( Soma) who was in the third position of Trivikrama, this story is there in the many part of Vedas, indicating symbolic meaning.  This story specifically mentioned in Rigveda's aitarey brahmana, 13th chapter.  It can be summarised;
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Once upon time soma resided only in other word(para Loka). The devas and Rishis, who were always loyal to the principle of Yagna were contemplating to  bring Soma to lower planets, they decided some plan;  chandasas vmcan bring him down(Chandas are the language which are used to cover the essential meaning of the Vedas) since the Veda aphorism have the power to reveal Param brahma to the world, hence the devas and Rishis decided to use Chandas is clearly delineated. Hence they prayed to Chandasas.  The Chandasas agreed to undertake this endeavour. Since Param pada was  very high, they decided to choose those being who had strong wings and very able,,hence they chose few chandasas who disguised as birds.  They were Jagati, Trishtuoa and Gayatri. First Jagati tried to steal soma but being only four words for every pada, therefore had come back being exhausted.  In this adventure Jagati  lost three of its letters and when retuned with only one of his letter, the wealth of Tapasya was transformed  into animal prosperity.  Hence it is called as" Jagata hi pashavah" the Trishtapu was this capable to only produce cattle prosperity.  
  
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Chronology
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Second was the turn of Tristhupa chandas, it was tired half way through the journey and lost one of its letter and when it came back, it brought the Yagna ingredient, Dakshina alone with it.
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Main article: Vedic period
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Devatas then requested Gayatri to bring soma.  They also chanted some mantras called " svastyayana" which consisted of " Pra" and "cha"  So that Gayatri's journey would be free from obstacles.  Eventually Gayatri was able to being Soma, first by reaching there and by lifting him by her feet and mouth. Gayatri also brought back the four letter which were lost by other two chandasas while scaring the the protectors of soma named Somapla. The somapalas who were 7 in number and one of the Krshaan, cut of the left feet's nail, this became the porcupine's thorn and porcupine itself. The blood which came for the feet became dried that became cow. bones became (;??)snakes. The soma which was captured from Gayatri's right foot became pratah savan( morning oblation?). It is the most prosperous in all the shavanas.   One who understand this is the best amongst the Yajna performers. Soma's part which was captured by the left foot became "madyandin savan". But because it slipped it was not as great as " pratah savana".    That part of Soma which was captured by Gayatri in the mouth became " tritiya savan". Because it was drunk while flying in the form of Garuda  hence it was less powerful than other two "savan".  
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The Vedas are among the oldest sacred texts.[30][31] The Samhitas date to roughly 1700–1100 BC,[32] and the "circum-Vedic" texts, as well as the redaction of the Samhitas, date to c. 1000-500 BC, resulting in a Vedic period, spanning the mid 2nd to mid 1st millennium BC, or the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age.[33] The Vedic period reaches its peak only after the composition of the mantra texts, with the establishment of the various shakhas all over Northern India which annotated the mantra samhitas with Brahmana discussions of their meaning, and reaches its end in the age of Buddha and Panini and the rise of the Mahajanapadas (archaeologically, Northern Black Polished Ware). Michael Witzel gives a time span of c. 1500 to c. 500-400 BC. Witzel makes special reference to the Near Eastern Mitanni material of the 14th century BC the only epigraphic record of Indo-Aryan contemporary to the Rigvedic period. He gives 150 BC (Patañjali) as a terminus ante quem for all Vedic Sanskrit literature, and 1200 BC (the early Iron Age) as terminus post quem for the Atharvaveda.[34]
 
  
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Transmission of texts in the Vedic period was by oral tradition, preserved with precision with the help of elaborate mnemonic techniques. A literary tradition is traceable in post-Vedic times, after the rise of Buddhism in the Maurya period,[note 2] perhaps earliest in the Kanva recension of the Yajurveda about the 1st century BC; however oral tradition of transmission remained active. Witzel suggests the possibility of written Vedic texts towards the end of 1st millennium BCE.[36] Some scholars such as Jack Goody state that "the Vedas are not the product of an oral society", basing this view by comparing inconsistencies in the transmitted versions of literature from various oral societies such as the Greek, Serbia and other cultures, then noting that the Vedic literature is too consistent and vast to have been composed and transmitted orally across generations, without being written down.[37] However, adds Goody, the Vedic texts likely involved both a written and oral tradition, calling it a "parallel products of a literate society".[37][35]
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[[Upanishads]] describe [[Brahma vastu]] as "Rasa" and the one who enjoys it is called ‘Anandi’  from the same perspective.  
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||  raso vai sah, rasaggam hevayam labdhva Nandi bhavati||
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Due to the ephemeral nature of the manuscript material (birch bark or palm leaves), surviving manuscripts rarely surpass an age of a few hundred years.[38] The Sampurnanand Sanskrit University has a Rigveda manuscript from the 14th century;[39] however, there are a number of older Veda manuscripts in Nepal that are dated from the 11th century onwards.[40]
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The Vedas attach great importance to Soma, Garuda and Gayatri. Paramatma is called as [[Anandamaya (full of bliss)]] in the language of the Vedas. Indra, the King of the Gods (?) partakes of [[Soma rasa]].  Being central to the Vedas, the Soma tattva is relished by the Brahmanas at three times in the form of Gayatri is not surprising. Hence Soma is called as "Pavamana" the purifier. Being representation of brahmana nda, the Brahmanas are offering the prayer to this soma Deva, " Oh pavamana Soma, please place me in the land where there is the brightness of Sun, light is eternal, to that nectar and inexhaustible land. That place where Vivaswanta's son and the pure water of Ganga and other water reside, there I would desire to be immortal. The place where the Paramatma, traverse with his three Pada( feet) and best amongst them, the place of Son god's light eminates without any hindrance or freedom, the place where all the planets are established brightly, in those places make me immortal. Where all the desires are fulfilled, where all the ambitions are attained, the action place of Aditya, full of purity, the place where satisfaction and Anna is there to that place you settle me. The place where there is ceaseless brahmananda, happiness, satisfaction,
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Ancient universites
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As much as we desire, please place me there. ( ix-11-;3) with such background prayer, one should accept Soma rasa as he is. This Soma was born  Trivijrama's third foot.  Puranas extols how the shiva by carrying in his jatha and made him " somashelhar". This very significant.  Soma has been described as king for the Brahmanas, in this way the soma tattva is famous for giving. giving spiritual import.
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The Vedas, Vedic rituals and its ancillary sciences called the Vedangas, were part of the curriculum at ancient universities such as at Taxila, Nalanda and Vikramashila.[41][42][43][44]
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Categories of Vedic texts
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Once Gayatri came back from getting Soma, the Trishthupa and Jagati, requested Gayatri to returned their letters. Gayatri argued that it belongs to her.  The devas sided Gayatri.  In this way Gayatri became "astaksharmtaka( 8 lettered) Trishthupa became "trysksharatmaka( three lettered) and Jagati became ekaksharatmaka( one lettered). At the end other two chandasas became qualified in taking part in the Savanas.   One who understand these tattva( concepts) he or she will attain glory and power and with grace of Chandasas one will attain all prosperity.
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Rigveda manuscript in Devanagari
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The same story is also narrated in Taittiriya samhita's 6 kanda ( section) here is the summary.  
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The term "Vedic texts" is used in two distinct meanings:
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Kashyapa and his two wives kadru and suparna these two had competition in regards their beauty. This is basically a  symbol of conflict between the iha( in this world) and para( higher realm)  to prove who is greater.  This is an eternal transaction.  Vedas illustrates it very beautifully. The earth is kadru, antariksha( higher realm) is Suparna. Chandasas are the children of suparna.  Suparna lost in the competition. Kadru made Suparna her servant.  Kadru put some condition to free Suparna.  She wanted the Soma from the heaven's third division. The sons of Suparna, Chandasasa decided to help and free their mother's woe. The Jagati and Trishthupa failed in their attempt( the letters are different from the previous story. But at last Gayatri was able to accomplish with the help of "Aja" who was in the shape or form of jyoti(light). Who flew along with Gayatri to get soma. Gayatri brought Soma and other letters which were left behind by two other Chandasas.  Even though Gayatri is the smallest amongst the Chandasas but because he brought the soma which main oblation for Yagna, he attained superior position amongst the Chandasas.  This the opinion of the brahma dais. The most part of Rigveda is in the Gayatri, Trishthupa and Jagati chandasas, in other words they are complied with these Chandasas. There are also other thirteen Chandasas. But Gayatri has primary position. ( almost 2500 are in this Chandasas). This story is very famous and symbolically indicates enmity between Garuda and snakes. Hose who have brhamabhuti can understand the import of this story as the conflict between mundane and divine consciousness and their reject the conclusion of those who claim it is only clash between two race.
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Texts composed in Vedic Sanskrit during the Vedic period (Iron Age India)
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In this way Gayatri has been considered as Garuda, in the Vedas and pancharatra sastras. It makes clear indication that the Lord Narayana who is carried by Garuda is the( pratipadya) and Param brahma vastu.  The faithful has to understand whatever had been compiled in the Vedas, Puranas is the same principle but defined in different ways. The story of Garuda bringing nectar is nothing but Gayatri brining soma. Soma is indicated as brahma experience. Soma creeper is physical self and the squeezing the creeper to stone is the suffering of this world.
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Any text considered as "connected to the Vedas" or a "corollary of the Vedas"[45]
 
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Vedic Sanskrit corpus
 
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The corpus of Vedic Sanskrit texts includes:
 
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The Samhitas (Sanskrit saṃhitā, "collection"), are collections of metric texts ("mantras"). 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. This is the oldest layer of Vedic texts, apart from the Rigvedic hymns, which were probably essentially complete by 1200 BC, dating to c. the 12th to 10th centuries BC. The complete corpus of Vedic mantras as collected in Bloomfield's Vedic Concordance (1907) consists of some 89,000 padas (metrical feet), of which 72,000 occur in the four Samhitas.[46]
 
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The Brahmanas are prose texts that comment and explain the solemn rituals as well as expound on their meaning and many connected themes. Each of the Brahmanas is associated with one of the Samhitas or its recensions.[47][48] 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.
 
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The Aranyakas, "wilderness texts" or "forest treaties", were composed by people who meditated in the woods as recluses and are the third part of the Vedas. The texts contain discussions and interpretations of ceremonies, from ritualisitic to symbolic meta-ritualistic points of view.[49] It is frequently read in secondary literature.
 
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Older Mukhya Upanishads (Bṛhadāraṇyaka, Chandogya, Kaṭha, Kena, Aitareya, and others).[50][51]
 
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The Vedas (sruti) are different from Vedic era texts such as Shrauta Sutras and Gryha Sutras, which are smriti texts. Together, the Vedas and these Sutras form part of the Vedic Sanskrit corpus.[51][52][53]
 
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While production of Brahmanas and Aranyakas ceased with the end of the Vedic period, additional Upanishads were composed after the end of the Vedic period.[54]
 
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The Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads, among other things, interpret and discuss the Samhitas in philosophical and metaphorical ways to explore abstract concepts such as the Absolute (Brahman), and the soul or the self (Atman), introducing Vedanta philosophy, one of the major trends of later Hinduism. In other parts, they show evolution of ideas, such as from actual sacrifice to symbolic sacrifice, and of spirituality in the Upanishads. This has inspired later Hindu scholars such as Adi Shankara to classify each Veda into karma-kanda (कर्म खण्ड, action/ritual-related sections) and jnana-kanda (ज्ञान खण्ड, knowledge/spirituality-related sections).[16][55]
 
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Shruti literature
 
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Main article: Śruti
 
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The texts considered "Vedic" in the sense of "corollaries of the Vedas" is less clearly defined, and may include numerous post-Vedic texts such as the later Upanishads and the Sutra literature. Texts not considered to be shruti are known as smriti (Sanskrit: smṛti; "the remembered"), or texts of remembered traditions. This indigenous system of categorization was adopted by Max Müller and, while it is subject to some debate, it is still widely used. As Axel Michaels explains:[50]
 
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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."[50]
 
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The Upanishads are largely philosophical works, some in dialogue form. They are the foundation of Hindu philosophical thought and its diverse traditions.[56][57] Of the Vedic corpus, they alone are widely known, and the central ideas of the Upanishads are at the spiritual core of Hindus.[56][58]
 
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Vedic schools or recensions
 
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Main article: Shakha
 
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The four Vedas were transmitted in various śākhās (branches, schools).[59][60] Each school likely represented an ancient community of a particular area, or kingdom.[60] Each school followed its own canon. Multiple recensions are known for each of the Vedas.[59] Thus, states Witzel as well as Renou, in the 2nd millennium BC, there was likely no canon of one broadly accepted Vedic texts, no Vedic “Scripture”, but only a canon of various texts accepted by each school. Some of these texts have survived, most lost or yet to be found. Rigveda that survives in modern times, for example, is in only one extremely well preserved school of Śåkalya, from a region called Videha, in modern north Bihar, south of Nepal.[61] The Vedic canon in its entirety consists of texts from all the various Vedic schools taken together.[60]
 
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Each of the four Vedas were shared by the numerous schools, but revised, interpolated and adapted locally, in and after the Vedic period, giving rise to various recensions of the text. Some texts were revised into the modern era, raising significant debate on parts of the text which are believed to have been corrupted at a later date.[62][63] The Vedas each have an Index or Anukramani, the principal work of this kind being the general Index or Sarvānukramaṇī.[64][65]
 
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Prodigous energy was expended by ancient Indian culture in ensuring that these texts were transmitted from generation to generation with inordinate fidelity.[66] For example, memorization of the sacred Vedas included up to eleven forms of recitation of the same text. The texts were subsequently "proof-read" by comparing the different recited versions. Forms of recitation included the jaṭā-pāṭha (literally "mesh recitation") in which every two adjacent words in the text were first recited in their original order, then repeated in the reverse order, and finally repeated again in the original order.[67] That these methods have been effective, is testified to by the preservation of the most ancient Indian religious text, the Rigveda, as redacted into a single text during the Brahmana period, without any variant readings within that school.[67]
 
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The Vedas were likely written down for the first time around 500 BC.[68] However, all printed editions of the Vedas that survive in the modern times are likely the version existing in about the 16th century AD.[69]
 
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Four Vedas
 
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Part of a series on Hindu scriptures
 
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Vedas and their Shakhas
 
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Om
 
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Rigveda[show]
 
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Samaveda[show]
 
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Krishna Yajurveda[show]
 
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Shukla Yajurveda[show]
 
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Atharvaveda[show]
 
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Hinduism portal
 
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v t e
 
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The canonical division of the Vedas is fourfold (turīya) viz.,[70]
 
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Rigveda (RV)
 
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Yajurveda (YV, with the main division TS vs. VS)
 
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Samaveda (SV)
 
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Atharvaveda (AV)
 
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Of these, the first three were the principal original division, also called "trayī vidyā", that is, "the triple science" of reciting hymns (Rigveda), performing sacrifices (Yajurveda), and chanting songs (Samaveda).[71][72] The Rigveda is the oldest work, which Witzel states are probably from the period of 1900 to 1100 BC. Witzel, also notes that it is the Vedic period itself, where incipient lists divide the Vedic texts into three (trayī) or four branches: Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva.[60]
 
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Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), the Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies such as newborn baby's rites of passage, coming of age, marriages, retirement and cremation, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices), the Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices), and the Upanishads (text discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).[12][14][15] The Upasanas (short ritual worship-related sections) are considered by some scholars[16][17] as the fifth part. Witzel notes that the rituals, rites and ceremonies described in these ancient texts reconstruct to a large degree the Indo-European marriage rituals observed in a region spanning the Indian subcontinent, Persia and the European area, and some greater details are found in the Vedic era texts such as the Grhya Sūtras.[73]
 
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Only one version of the Rigveda is known to have survived into the modern era.[61] Several different versions of the Sama Veda and the Atharva Veda are known, and many different versions of the Yajur Veda have been found in different parts of South Asia.[74]
 
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Rigveda
 
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Main article: Rigveda
 
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Nasadiya Sukta (Hymn of non-Eternity):
 
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Who really knows?
 
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Who can here proclaim it?
 
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Whence, whence this creation sprang?
 
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Gods came later, after the creation of this universe.
 
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Who then knows whence it has arisen?
 
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Whether God's will created it, or whether He was mute;
 
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Only He who is its overseer in highest heaven knows,
 
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He only knows, or perhaps He does not know.
 
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—Rig Veda 10.129.6-7[75]
 
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The Rigveda Samhita is the oldest extant Indic text.[76] It is a collection of 1,028 Vedic Sanskrit hymns and 10,600 verses in all, organized into ten books (Sanskrit: mandalas).[77] The hymns are dedicated to Rigvedic deities.[78]
 
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The books were composed by poets from different priestly groups over a period of several centuries from roughly the second half of the 2nd millennium BC (the early Vedic period), starting with the Punjab (Sapta Sindhu) region of the northwest Indian subcontinent.[79] The Rigveda is structured based on clear principles – the Veda begins with a small book addressed to Agni, Indra and other gods, all arranged according to decreasing total number of hymns in each deity collection; for each deity series the hymns progress from longer to shorter ones; yet, the number of hymns per book increases; finally, the meter too is systematically arranged from jagati and tristubh to anustubh and gayatri as the text progresses.[60] In terms of substance, the nature of hymns shift from praise of deities in early books to Nasadiya Sukta with questions such as, "what is the origin of the universe?, do even gods know the answer?",[75] the virtue of Dāna (charity) in society,[80] and other metaphysical issues in its hymns.[81]
 
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There are similarities between the mythology, rituals and linguistics in Rigveda and those found in ancient central Asia, Iranian and Hindukush (Afghanistan) regions.[82]
 
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Samaveda
 
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Main article: Samaveda
 
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The Samaveda Samhita[83] consists of 1549 stanzas, taken almost entirely (except for 75 mantras) from the Rigveda.[50][84] The Samaveda samhita comprises two major parts. The first part include four melody collections (gāna, गान) and the second part three verse “books” (ārcika, आर्चिक).[84] A melody in the song books corresponds to a verse in the arcika books. Just like Rigveda, the early sections of Samaveda typically begin with Agni and Indra hymns but shift to abstract, and their meters too shifts in a descending order. The later sections of the Samaveda have least deviation from substance of hymns they derive from Rigveda into songs.[84]
 
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In Samaveda, some of the Rigvedic verses are repeated more than once.[85] Including repetitions, there are a total of 1875 verses numbered in the Samaveda recension translated by Griffith.[86] Two major recensions have survived, the Kauthuma/Ranayaniya and the Jaiminiya. Its purpose was liturgical, and they were the repertoire of the udgātṛ or "singer" priests.[87]
 
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Yajurveda
 
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Main article: Yajurveda
 
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The Yajurveda Samhita consists of prose mantras.[88] It is a compilation of ritual offering formulas that were said by a priest while an individual performed ritual actions such as those before the yajna fire.[88]
 
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The earliest and most ancient layer of Yajurveda samhita includes about 1,875 verses, that are distinct yet borrow and build upon the foundation of verses in Rigveda.[89] Unlike the Samaveda which is almost entirely based on Rigveda mantras and structured as songs, the Yajurveda samhitas are in prose and linguistically, they are different from earlier Vedic texts.[90] The Yajur Veda has been the primary source of information about sacrifices during Vedic times and associated rituals.[91]
 
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There are two major groups of texts in this Veda: the "Black" (Krishna) and the "White" (Shukla). The term "black" implies "the un-arranged, motley collection" of verses in Yajurveda, in contrast to the "white" (well arranged) Yajurveda.[92] The White Yajurveda separates the Samhita from its Brahmana (the Shatapatha Brahmana), the Black Yajurveda intersperses the Samhita with Brahmana commentary. Of the Black Yajurveda, texts from four major schools have survived (Maitrayani, Katha, Kapisthala-Katha, Taittiriya), while of the White Yajurveda, two (Kanva and Madhyandina).[93][94] The youngest layer of Yajurveda text is not related to rituals nor sacrifice, it includes the largest collection of primary Upanishads, influential to various schools of Hindu philosophy.[95][96]
 
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Atharvaveda
 
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Main article: Atharvaveda
 
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The Artharvaveda Samhita is the text 'belonging to the Atharvan and Angirasa poets. It has about 760 hymns, and about 160 of the hymns are in common with the Rigveda.[97] Most of the verses are metrical, but some sections are in prose.[97] Two different versions of the text – the Paippalāda and the Śaunakīya – have survived into the modern times.[97][98] The Atharvaveda was not considered as a Veda in the Vedic era, and was accepted as a Veda in late 1st millennium BC.[99][100] It was compiled last,[101] probably around 900 BC, although some of its material may go back to the time of the Rigveda,[102] or earlier.[97]
 
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The Atharvaveda is sometimes called the "Veda of magical formulas",[103] an epithet declared to be incorrect by other scholars.[104] The Samhita layer of the text likely represents a developing 2nd millennium BC tradition of magico-religious rites to address superstitious anxiety, spells to remove maladies believed to be caused by demons, and herbs- and nature-derived potions as medicine.[105][106] The text, states Kenneth Zysk, is one of oldest surviving record of the evolutionary practices in religious medicine and reveals the "earliest forms of folk healing of Indo-European antiquity".[107] Many books of the Atharvaveda Samhita are dedicated to rituals without magic, such as to philosophical speculations and to theosophy.[104]
 
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The Atharva veda has been a primary source for information about Vedic culture, the customs and beliefs, the aspirations and frustrations of everyday Vedic life, as well as those associated with kings and governance. The text also includes hymns dealing with the two major rituals of passage – marriage and cremation. The Atharva Veda also dedicates significant portion of the text asking the meaning of a ritual.[108]
 
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Embedded Vedic texts
 
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Brahmanas
 
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Further information: Brahmanas
 
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The Brahmanas are commentaries, explanation of proper methods and meaning of Vedic Samhita rituals in the four Vedas.[109] They also incorporate myths, legends and in some cases philosophy.[109][110] Each regional Vedic shakha (school) has its own operating manual-like Brahmana text, most of which have been lost.[111] A total of 19 Brahmana texts have survived into modern times: two associated with the Rigveda, six with the Yajurveda, ten with the Samaveda and one with the Atharvaveda. The oldest dated to about 900 BC, while the youngest Brahmanas (such as the Shatapatha Brahmana), were complete by about 700 BC.[112][113] According to Jan Gonda, the final codification of the Brahmanas took place in pre-Buddhist times (ca. 600 BC).[114]
 
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The substance of the Brahmana text varies with each Veda. For example, the first chapter of the Chandogya Brahmana, one of the oldest Brahmanas, includes eight ritual suktas (hymns) for the ceremony of marriage and rituals at the birth of a child.[115][116] The first hymn is a recitation that accompanies offering a Yajna oblation to Agni (fire) on the occasion of a marriage, and the hymn prays for prosperity of the couple getting married.[115][117] The second hymn wishes for their long life, kind relatives, and a numerous progeny.[115] The third hymn is a mutual marriage pledge, between the bride and groom, by which the two bind themselves to each other. The sixth through last hymn of the first chapter in Chandogya Brahmana are ritual celebrations on the birth of a child, and wishes for health, wealth and prosperity with a profusion of cows and artha.[115] However, these verses are incomplete expositions, and their complete context emerges only with the Samhita layer of text.[118]
 
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Aranyakas and Upanishads
 
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Further information: Vedanta, Upanishads, and Aranyakas
 
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The Aranyakas layer of the Vedas include rituals, discussion of symbolic meta-rituals, as well as philosophical speculations.[17][49]
 
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Aranyakas, however, neither are homogeneous in content nor in structure.[49] They are a medley of instructions and ideas, and some include chapters of Upanishads within them. Two theories have been proposed on the origin of the word Aranyakas. One theory holds that these texts were meant to be studied in a forest, while the other holds that the name came from these being the manuals of allegorical interpretation of sacrifices, for those in Vanaprastha (retired, forest-dwelling) stage of their life, according to the historic age-based Ashrama system of human life.[119]
 
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The Upanishads reflect the last composed layer of texts in the Vedas. They are commonly referred to as Vedānta, variously interpreted to mean either the "last chapters, parts of the Vedas" or "the object, the highest purpose of the Veda".[120] The concepts of Brahman (Ultimate Reality) and Ātman (Soul, Self) are central ideas in all the Upanishads,[121][122] and "Know your Ātman" their thematic focus.[122][123] The Upanishads are the foundation of Hindu philosophical thought and its diverse traditions.[56][124] Of the Vedic corpus, they alone are widely known, and the central ideas of the Upanishads have influenced the diverse traditions of Hinduism.[56][125]
 
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Aranyakas are sometimes identified as karma-kanda (ritualistic section), while the Upanishads are identified as jnana-kanda (spirituality section).[16][126] In an alternate classification, the early part of Vedas are called Samhitas and the commentary are called the Brahmanas which together are identified as the ceremonial karma-kanda, while Aranyakas and Upanishads are referred to as the jnana-kanda.[127]
 
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Post-Vedic literature
 
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Vedanga
 
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Main article: Vedanga
 
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The Vedangas developed towards the end of the vedic period, around or after the middle of the 1st millennium BC. These auxiliary fields of Vedic studies emerged because the language of the Vedas, composed centuries earlier, became too archaic to the people of that time.[128] The Vedangas were sciences that focused on helping understand and interpret the Vedas that had been composed many centuries earlier.[128]
 
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The six subjects of Vedanga are phonetics (Śikṣā), poetic meter (Chandas), grammar (Vyākaraṇa), etymology and linguistics (Nirukta), rituals and rites of passage (Kalpa), time keeping and astronomy (Jyotiṣa).[129][130][131]
 
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Vedangas developed as ancillary studies for the Vedas, but its insights into meters, structure of sound and language, grammar, linguistic analysis and other subjects influenced post-Vedic studies, arts, culture and various schools of Hindu philosophy.[132][133][134] The Kalpa Vedanga studies, for example, gave rise to the Dharma-sutras, which later expanded into Dharma-shastras.[128][135]
 
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Parisista
 
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Main article: Parisista
 
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Pariśiṣṭa "supplement, appendix" is the term applied to various ancillary works of Vedic literature, dealing mainly with details of ritual and elaborations of the texts logically and chronologically prior to them: the Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Sutras. Naturally classified with the Veda to which each pertains, Parisista works exist for each of the four Vedas. However, only the literature associated with the Atharvaveda is extensive.
 
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The Āśvalāyana Gṛhya Pariśiṣṭa is a very late text associated with the Rigveda canon.
 
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The Gobhila Gṛhya Pariśiṣṭa is a short metrical text of two chapters, with 113 and 95 verses respectively.
 
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The Kātiya Pariśiṣṭas, ascribed to Kātyāyana, consist of 18 works enumerated self-referentially in the fifth of the series (the Caraṇavyūha) and the Kātyāyana Śrauta Sūtra Pariśiṣṭa.
 
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The Kṛṣṇa Yajurveda has 3 parisistas The Āpastamba Hautra Pariśiṣṭa, which is also found as the second praśna of the Satyasāḍha Śrauta Sūtra', the Vārāha Śrauta Sūtra Pariśiṣṭa
 
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For the Atharvaveda, there are 79 works, collected as 72 distinctly named parisistas.[136]
 
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Upaveda
 
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The term upaveda ("applied knowledge") is used in traditional literature to designate the subjects of certain technical works.[137][138] Lists of what subjects are included in this class differ among sources. The Charanavyuha mentions four Upavedas:[139]
 
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Archery (Dhanurveda), associated with the Rigveda
 
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Architecture (Sthapatyaveda), associated with the Yajurveda.
 
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Music and sacred dance (Gāndharvaveda), associated with the Samaveda
 
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Medicine (Āyurveda), associated with the Atharvaveda .[140][141]
 
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"Fifth" and other Vedas
 
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Some post-Vedic texts, including the Mahabharata, the Natyasastra[142] and certain Puranas, refer to themselves as the "fifth Veda".[143] The earliest reference to such a "fifth Veda" is found in the Chandogya Upanishad in hymn 7.1.2.[144]
 
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Let drama and dance (Nātya, नाट्य) be the fifth vedic scripture. Combined with an epic story, tending to virtue, wealth, joy and spiritual freedom, it must contain the significance of every scripture, and forward every art. Thus, from all the Vedas, Brahma framed the Nātya Veda. From the Rig Veda he drew forth the words, from the Sama Veda the melody, from the Yajur Veda gesture, and from the Atharva Veda the sentiment.
 
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— First chapter of Nātyaśāstra, Abhinaya Darpana [145][146]
 
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"Divya Prabandha", for example Tiruvaymoli, is a term for canonical Tamil texts considered as Vernacular Veda by some South Indian Hindus.[28][29]
 
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Other texts such as the Bhagavad Gita or the Vedanta Sutras are considered shruti or "Vedic" by some Hindu denominations but not universally within Hinduism. The Bhakti movement, and Gaudiya Vaishnavism in particular extended the term veda to include the Sanskrit Epics and Vaishnavite devotional texts such as the Pancaratra.[147]
 
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Puranas
 
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Main article: Puranas
 
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The Puranas is a vast genre of encyclopedic Indian literature about a wide range of topics particularly myths, legends and other traditional lore.[148] Several of these texts are named after major Hindu deities such as Vishnu, Shiva and Devi.[149][150] There are 18 Maha Puranas (Great Puranas) and 18 Upa Puranas (Minor Puranas), with over 400,000 verses.[148]
 
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The Puranas have been influential in the Hindu culture.[151][152] They are considered Vaidika (congruent with Vedic literature).[153] The Bhagavata Purana has been among the most celebrated and popular text in the Puranic genre, and is of non-dualistic tenor.[154][155] The Puranic literature wove with the Bhakti movement in India, and both Dvaita and Advaita scholars have commented on the underlying Vedanta themes in the Maha Puranas.[156]
 
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Western Indology
 
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Further information: Sanskrit in the West
 
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The study of Sanskrit in the West began in the 17th century. In the early 19th century, Arthur Schopenhauer drew attention to Vedic texts, specifically the Upanishads. The importance of Vedic Sanskrit for Indo-European studies was also recognized in the early 19th century. English translations of the Samhitas were published in the later 19th century, in the Sacred Books of the East series edited by Müller between 1879 and 1910.[157] Ralph T. H. Griffith also presented English translations of the four Samhitas, published 1889 to 1899.
 
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Voltaire regarded Vedas to be exceptional, he remarked that:
 
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The Veda was the most precious gift for which the West had ever been indebted to the East.[158][159]
 
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Rigveda manuscripts were selected for inscription in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register in 2007.[160]
 
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See also
 
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Hindu philosophy
 
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Historical Vedic religion
 
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Pyramid Texts
 
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Shakha
 
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Vedic chant
 
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Notes
 
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Jump up ^ Elisa Freschi (2012): The Vedas are not deontic authorities in absolute sense and may be disobeyed, but are recognized as an deontological epistemic authority by a Hindu orthodox school;[18] (Note: This differentiation between epistemic and deontic authority is true for all Indian religions)
 
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Jump up ^ The early Buddhist texts are also generally believed to be of oral tradition, with the first Pali Canon written many centuries after the death of the Buddha.[35]
 
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References
 
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Jump up ^ "Veda". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.
 
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Jump up ^ see e.g. Radhakrishnan & Moore 1957, p. 3; Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 68; MacDonell 2004, pp. 29–39; Sanskrit literature (2003) in Philip's Encyclopedia. Accessed 2007-08-09
 
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Jump up ^ Sanujit Ghose (2011). "Religious Developments in Ancient India" in Ancient History Encyclopedia.
 
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Jump up ^ Vaman Shivaram Apte, The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary, see apauruSeya
 
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Jump up ^ D Sharma, Classical Indian Philosophy: A Reader, Columbia University Press, ISBN , pages 196-197
 
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Jump up ^ Jan Westerhoff (2009), Nagarjuna's Madhyamaka: A Philosophical Introduction, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195384963, page 290
 
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Jump up ^ Warren Lee Todd (2013), The Ethics of Śaṅkara and Śāntideva: A Selfless Response to an Illusory World, ISBN 978-1409466819, page 128
 
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Jump up ^ Apte 1965, p. 887
 
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Jump up ^ Sheldon Pollock (2011), Boundaries, Dynamics and Construction of Traditions in South Asia (Editor: Federico Squarcini), Anthem, ISBN 978-0857284303, pages 41-58
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Hartmut Scharfe (2002), Handbook of Oriental Studies, BRILL Academic, ISBN 978-9004125568, pages 13-14
 
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Jump up ^ Seer of the Fifth Veda: Kr̥ṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa in the Mahābhārata Bruce M. Sullivan, Motilal Banarsidass, pages 85-86
 
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^ Jump up to: a b c Gavin Flood (1996), An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521438780, pages 35-39
 
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Jump up ^ Bloomfield, M. The Atharvaveda and the Gopatha-Brahmana, (Grundriss der Indo-Arischen Philologie und Altertumskunde II.1.b.) Strassburg 1899; Gonda, J. A history of Indian literature: I.1 Vedic literature (Samhitas and Brahmanas); I.2 The Ritual Sutras. Wiesbaden 1975, 1977
 
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^ Jump up to: a b A Bhattacharya (2006), Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology, ISBN 978-0595384556, pages 8-14; George M. Williams (2003), Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195332612, page 285
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Jan Gonda (1975), Vedic Literature: (Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas), Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447016032
 
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^ Jump up to: a b c d A Bhattacharya (2006), Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology, ISBN 978-0595384556, pages 8-14
 
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^ Jump up to: a b c Barbara A. Holdrege (1995), Veda and Torah: Transcending the Textuality of Scripture, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791416402, pages 351-357
 
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Jump up ^ Elisa Freschi (2012), Duty, Language and Exegesis in Prabhakara Mimamsa, BRILL, ISBN 978-9004222601, page 62
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Flood 1996, p. 82
 
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Jump up ^ "astika" and "nastika". Encyclopædia Britannica Online, 20 Apr. 2016
 
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Jump up ^ Monier-Williams 2006, p. 1015; Apte 1965, p. 856
 
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Jump up ^ see e.g. Pokorny's 1959 Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch s.v. u̯(e)id-²; Rix' Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, u̯ei̯d-.
 
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Jump up ^ Monier-Williams, Monier (1899), A Sanskrit-English dictionary : etymologically and philologically arranged with special reference to cognate Indo-European languages, Oxford: Clarendon Press, retrieved January 2016
 
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Jump up ^ Sanskrit: यः समिधा य आहुती यो वेदेन ददाश मर्तो अग्नये । यो नमसा स्वध्वरः ॥५॥, ऋग्वेद: सूक्तं ८.१९, Wikisource
 
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Jump up ^ K.F. Geldner, Der Rig-Veda, Harvard Oriental Series 33-37, Cambridge 1951
 
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Jump up ^ HH Wilson, Rig-veda Sanhita Sixth Ashtaka, First Adhayaya, Sukta VII (8.19.5), page 291, Trubner London
 
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Jump up ^ Vasudha Narayanan (1994), The Vernacular Veda: Revelation, Recitation, and Ritual, University of South Carolina Press, ISBN 978-0872499652, pages 194
 
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^ Jump up to: a b John Carman (1989), The Tamil Veda: Pillan's Interpretation of the Tiruvaymoli, University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226093055, pages 259-261
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Vasudha Narayanan (1994), The Vernacular Veda: Revelation, Recitation, and Ritual, University of South Carolina Press, ISBN 978-0872499652, pages 43, 117-119
 
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Jump up ^ Sagarika Dutt (2006). India in a Globalized World. Manchester University Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-84779-607-3.
 
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Jump up ^ Gabriel J. Gomes (2012). Discovering World Religions. iUniverse. p. 54. ISBN 978-1-4697-1037-2.
 
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Jump up ^ Lucas F. Johnston, Whitney Bauman (2014). Science and Religion: One Planet, Many Possibilities. Routledge. p. 179.
 
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Jump up ^ Gavin Flood sums up mainstream estimates, according to which the Rigveda was compiled from as early as 1500 BC over a period of several centuries. Flood 1996, p. 37
 
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Jump up ^ Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 68
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Donald S. Lopez Jr. (1995). "Authority and Orality in the Mahāyāna". Numen (Brill Academic) 42 (1): 21–47.
 
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Jump up ^ Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69; For oral composition and oral transmission for "many hundreds of years" before being written down, see: Avari 2007, p. 76.
 
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^ Jump up to: a b Jack Goody (1987). The Interface Between the Written and the Oral. Cambridge University Press. pp. 110–121. ISBN 978-0-521-33794-6.
 
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Jump up ^ Brodd, Jefferey (2003), World Religions, Winona, MN: Saint Mary's Press, ISBN 978-0-88489-725-5
 
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Jump up ^ Jamison, Stephanie W.; Brereton, Joel P. (2014). The Rigveda. vol. 1. Oxford University Press. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-19-972078-1.
 
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Jump up ^ "Cultural Heritage of Nepal". Nepal-German Manuscript Preservation Project. University of Hamburg. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
 
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Jump up ^ Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Jr., Donald S. (2013). The Princeton dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400848058. Entry on "Nālandā".
 
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Jump up ^ Frazier, Jessica, ed. (2011). The Continuum companion to Hindu studies. London: Continuum. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-8264-9966-0.
 
−
Jump up ^ Walton, Linda (2015). "Educational institutions" in The Cambridge World History Vol. 5. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-521-19074-9.
 
−
Jump up ^ Sukumar Dutt (1988) [First published in 1962]. Buddhist Monks And Monasteries of India: Their History And Contribution To Indian Culture. George Allen and Unwin Ltd, London. ISBN 81-208-0498-8. pg. 332-333
 
−
Jump up ^ according to ISKCON, Hindu Sacred Texts, "Hindus themselves often use the term to describe anything connected to the Vedas and their corollaries (e.g. Vedic culture)".
 
−
Jump up ^ 37,575 are Rigvedic. Of the remaining, 34,857 appear in the other three Samhitas, and 16,405 are known only from Brahmanas, Upanishads or Sutras
 
−
Jump up ^ Klaus Klostermaier (1994), A Survey of Hinduism, Second Edition, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791421093, pages 67-69
 
−
Jump up ^ Brahmana Encyclopedia Britannica (2013)
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c Jan Gonda (1975), Vedic Literature: (Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas), Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447016032, page 424-426
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c d Michaels 2004, p. 51.
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69.
 
−
Jump up ^ For a table of all Vedic texts see Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, pp. 100–101.
 
−
Jump up ^ The Vedic Sanskrit corpus is incorporated in A Vedic Word Concordance (Vaidika-Padānukrama-Koṣa) prepared from 1930 under Vishva Bandhu, and published in five volumes in 1935-1965. Its scope extends to about 400 texts, including the entire Vedic Sanskrit corpus besides some "sub-Vedic" texts. Volume I: Samhitas, Volume II: Brahmanas and Aranyakas, Volume III: Upanishads, Volume IV: Vedangas; A revised edition, extending to about 1800 pages, was published in 1973-1976.
 
−
Jump up ^ Flood 2003, pp. 100–101
 
−
Jump up ^ Edward Roer (Translator), Shankara's Introduction at Google Books to Brihad Aranyaka Upanishad at pages 1-5; Quote - "The Vedas are divided in two parts, the first is the karma-kanda, the ceremonial part, also (called) purva-kanda, and treats on ceremonies; the second part is the jnana kanda, the part which contains knowledge, also named uttara-kanda or posterior part, and unfolds the knowledge of Brahma or the universal soul."
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c d Wendy Doniger (1990), Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism, 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226618470, pages 2-3; Quote: "The Upanishads supply the basis of later Hindu philosophy; they alone of the Vedic corpus are widely known and quoted by most well-educated Hindus, and their central ideas have also become a part of the spiritual arsenal of rank-and-file Hindus."
 
−
Jump up ^ Wiman Dissanayake (1993), Self as Body in Asian Theory and Practice (Editors: Thomas P. Kasulis et al.), State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791410806, page 39; Quote: "The Upanishads form the foundations of Hindu philosophical thought and the central theme of the Upanishads is the identity of Atman and Brahman, or the inner self and the cosmic self.";
 
−
Michael McDowell and Nathan Brown (2009), World Religions, Penguin, ISBN 978-1592578467, pages 208-210
 
−
Jump up ^ Patrick Olivelle (2014), The Early Upanisads, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195352429, page 3; Quote: "Even though theoretically the whole of vedic corpus is accepted as revealed truth [shruti], in reality it is the Upanishads that have continued to influence the life and thought of the various religious traditions that we have come to call Hindu. Upanishads are the scriptures par excellence of Hinduism".
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Flood 1996, p. 39.
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c d e Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu", Harvard University, in Witzel 1997, pp. 261–264
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Jamison and Witzel (1992), Vedic Hinduism, Harvard University, page 6
 
−
Jump up ^ J. Muir (1868), Original Sanskrit Texts on the Origin and History of the People of India - their religion and institutions at Google Books, 2nd Edition, page 12
 
−
Jump up ^ Albert Friedrich Weber, Indische Studien, herausg. von at Google Books, Volume 10, pp 1-9 with footnotes (in German); For a translation, Original Sanskrit Texts at Google Books, page 14
 
−
Jump up ^ For an example, see Sarvānukramaṇī Vivaraṇa Univ of Pennsylvania rare texts collection
 
−
Jump up ^ R̥gveda-sarvānukramaṇī Śaunakakr̥tāʼnuvākānukramaṇī ca, Maharṣi-Kātyayāna-viracitā, OCLC 11549595
 
−
Jump up ^ (Staal 1986)
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b (Filliozat 2004, p. 139)
 
−
Jump up ^ Avari 2007, pp. 69–70
 
−
Jump up ^ Michael Witzel, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 69, Quote: "... almost all printed editions depend on the late manuscripts that are hardly older than 500 years"
 
−
Jump up ^ Radhakrishnan & Moore 1957, p. 3; Witzel, Michael, "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in: Flood 2003, p. 68
 
−
Jump up ^ Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, pp. 257–348
 
−
Jump up ^ MacDonell 2004, pp. 29–39
 
−
Jump up ^ Jamison and Witzel (1992), Vedic Hinduism, Harvard University, page 21
 
−
Jump up ^ Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, p. 286
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b
 
−
Original Sanskrit: Rigveda 10.129 Wikisource;
 
−
Translation 1: Max Müller (1859). A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature. Williams and Norgate, London. pp. 559–565.
 
−
Translation 2: Kenneth Kramer (1986). World Scriptures: An Introduction to Comparative Religions. Paulist Press. p. 21. ISBN 0-8091-2781-4.
 
−
Translation 3: David Christian (2011). Maps of Time: An Introduction to Big History. University of California Press. pp. 17–18. ISBN 978-0-520-95067-2.
 
−
Jump up ^ see e.g. Avari 2007, p. 77.
 
−
Jump up ^ For 1,028 hymns and 10,600 verses and division into ten mandalas, see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
 
−
Jump up ^ For characterization of content and mentions of deities including Agni, Indra, Varuna, Soma, Surya, etc. see: Avari 2007, p. 77.
 
−
Jump up ^ see e.g. Avari 2007, p. 77 Max Müller gave 1700–1100 BC, Michael Witzel gives 1450-1350 BC as terminus ad quem.
 
−
Jump up ^ Original text translated in English: The Rig Veda, Mandala 10, Hymn 117, Ralph T. H. Griffith (Translator);
 
−
C Chatterjee (1995), Values in the Indian Ethos: An Overview, Journal of Human Values, Vol 1, No 1, pages 3-12
 
−
Jump up ^ For example,
 
−
Hymn 1.164.34, "What is the ultimate limit of the earth?", "What is the center of the universe?", "What is the semen of the cosmic horse?", "What is the ultimate source of human speech?"
 
−
Hymn 1.164.34, "Who gave blood, soul, spirit to the earth?", "How could the unstructured universe give origin to this structured world?"
 
−
Hymn 1.164.5, "Where does the sun hide in the night?", "Where do gods live?"
 
−
Hymn 1.164.6, "What, where is the unborn support for the born universe?";
 
−
Hymn 1.164.20 (a hymn that is widely cited in the Upanishads as the parable of the Body and the Soul): "Two birds with fair wings, inseparable companions; Have found refuge in the same sheltering tree. One incessantly eats from the fig tree; the other, not eating, just looks on.";
 
−
Sources: (a) Antonio de Nicholas (2003), Meditations Through the Rig Veda: Four-Dimensional Man, ISBN 978-0595269259, pages 64-69;
 
−
Jan Gonda, A History of Indian Literature: Veda and Upanishads, Volume 1, Part 1, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447016032, pages 134-135;
 
−
Rigveda Book 1, Hymn 164 Wikisource
 
−
Jump up ^ Michael Witzel, The Rigvedic religious system and its central Asian and Hindukush antecedents, in The Vedas - Texts, Language and Ritual, Editors: Griffiths and Houben (2004), Brill Academic, ISBN 978-9069801490, pages 581-627
 
−
Jump up ^ (from sāman, the term for a melody applied to metrical hymn or song of praise, Apte 1965, p. 981.
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, pp. 269–270
 
−
Jump up ^ M Bloomfield, Rig-veda Repetitions, p. 402, at Google Books, pages 402-464
 
−
Jump up ^ For 1875 total verses, see numbering given in Ralph T. H. Griffith. Griffith's introduction mentions the recension history for his text. Repetitions may be found by consulting the cross-index in Griffith pp. 491-99.
 
−
Jump up ^ Annette Wilke and Oliver Moebus (2011), Sound and Communication: An Aesthetic Cultural History of Sanskrit Hinduism, Walter de Gruyter, ISBN 978-3110181593, page 381
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism (Editor: Gavin Flood), Blackwell, ISBN 0-631215352, pages 76-77
 
−
Jump up ^ Antonio de Nicholas (2003), Meditations Through the Rig Veda: Four-Dimensional Man, ISBN 978-0595269259, pages 273-274
 
−
Jump up ^ Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, pp. 270–271
 
−
Jump up ^ Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, pp. 272–274
 
−
Jump up ^ Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120814684, pages 217-219
 
−
Jump up ^ Michaels 2004, p. 52 Table 3
 
−
Jump up ^ CL Prabhakar (1972), The Recensions of the Sukla Yajurveda, Archív Orientální, Volume 40, Issue 1, pages 347-353
 
−
Jump up ^ Paul Deussen, The Philosophy of the Upanishads, Motilal Banarsidass (2011 Edition), ISBN 978-8120816206, page 23
 
−
Jump up ^ Patrick Olivelle (1998), Upaniṣhads, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-282292-6, pages 1-17
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c d Michaels 2004, p. 56.
 
−
Jump up ^ Frits Staal (2009), Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights, Penguin, ISBN 978-0143099864, pages 136-137
 
−
Jump up ^ Frits Staal (2009), Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights, Penguin, ISBN 978-0143099864, page 135
 
−
Jump up ^ Alex Wayman (1997), Untying the Knots in Buddhism, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120813212, pages 52-53
 
−
Jump up ^ "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." Zaehner 1966, p. vii.
 
−
Jump up ^ Flood 1996, p. 37.
 
−
Jump up ^ Laurie Patton (2004), Veda and Upanishad, in The Hindu World (Editors: Sushil Mittal and Gene Thursby), Routledge, ISBN 0-415215277, page 38
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Jan Gonda (1975), Vedic Literature: Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas, Vol 1, Fasc. 1, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447016032, pages 277-280, Quote: "It would be incorrect to describe the Atharvaveda Samhita as a collection of magical formulas".
 
−
Jump up ^ Kenneth Zysk (2012), Understanding Mantras (Editor: Harvey Alper), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120807464, pages 123-129
 
−
Jump up ^ On magic spells and charms, such as those to gain better health: Atharva Veda 2.32 Bhaishagykni, Charm to secure perfect health Maurice Bloomfield (Translator), Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 42, Oxford University Press; see also chapters 3.11, 3.31, 4.10, 5.30, 19.26;
 
−
On finding a good husband: Atharva Veda 4.2.36 Strijaratani Maurice Bloomfield (Translator), Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 42, Oxford University Press; Atharvaveda dedicates over 30 chapters to love relationships, sexuality and for conceiving a child, see e.g. chapters 1.14, 2.30, 3.25, 6.60, 6.78, 6.82, 6.130-6.132; On peaceful social and family relationships: Atharva Veda 6.3.30 Maurice Bloomfield (Translator), Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 42, Oxford University Press;
 
−
Jump up ^ Kenneth Zysk (1993), Religious Medicine: The History and Evolution of Indian Medicine, Routledge, ISBN 978-1560000761, pages x-xii
 
−
Jump up ^ Witzel, M., "The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools : The Social and Political Milieu" in Witzel 1997, pp. 275–276
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Klaus Klostermaier (1994), A Survey of Hinduism, Second Edition, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791421093, pages 67-69
 
−
Jump up ^ Brahmana Encyclopædia Britannica (2013)
 
−
Jump up ^ Moriz Winternitz (2010), A History of Indian Literature, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802643, pages 175-176
 
−
Jump up ^ Michael Witzel, "Tracing the Vedic dialects" in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, 1989, 97–265.
 
−
Jump up ^ Biswas et al (1989), Cosmic Perspectives, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521343541, pages 42-43
 
−
Jump up ^ Klaus Klostermaier (1994), A Survey of Hinduism, Second Edition, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791421093, page 67
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c d Max Müller, Chandogya Upanishad, The Upanishads, Part I, Oxford University Press, page LXXXVII with footnote 2
 
−
Jump up ^ Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120814684, page 63
 
−
Jump up ^ The Development of the Female Mind in India, p. 27, at Google Books, The Calcutta Review, Volume 60, page 27
 
−
Jump up ^ Jan Gonda (1975), Vedic Literature: (Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas), Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447016032, pages 319-322, 368-383 with footnotes
 
−
Jump up ^ AB Keith (2007), The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120806443, pages 489-490
 
−
Jump up ^ Max Müller, The Upanishads, Part 1, Oxford University Press, page LXXXVI footnote 1
 
−
Jump up ^ Mahadevan 1956, p. 59.
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b PT Raju (1985), Structural Depths of Indian Thought, State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0887061394, pages 35-36
 
−
Jump up ^ WD Strappini, The Upanishads, p. 258, at Google Books, The Month and Catholic Review, Vol. 23, Issue 42
 
−
Jump up ^ Wiman Dissanayake (1993), Self as Body in Asian Theory and Practice (Editors: Thomas P. Kasulis et al), State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0791410806, page 39; Quote: "The Upanishads form the foundations of Hindu philosophical thought and the central theme of the Upanishads is the identity of Atman and Brahman, or the inner self and the cosmic self.";
 
−
Michael McDowell and Nathan Brown (2009), World Religions, Penguin, ISBN 978-1592578467, pages 208-210
 
−
Jump up ^ Patrick Olivelle (2014), The Early Upanisads, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195352429, page 3; Quote: "Even though theoretically the whole of vedic corpus is accepted as revealed truth [shruti], in reality it is the Upanishads that have continued to influence the life and thought of the various religious traditions that we have come to call Hindu. Upanishads are the scriptures par excellence of Hinduism".
 
−
Jump up ^ See Shankara's Introduction at Google Books to Brihad Aranyaka Upanishad at pages 1-5; Quote - "The Vedas are divided in two parts, the first is the karma-kanda, the ceremonial part, also (called) purva-kanda, and treats on ceremonies; the second part is the jnana kanda, the part which contains knowledge, also named uttara-kanda or posterior part, and unfolds the knowledge of Brahma or the universal soul." (Translator: Edward Roer)
 
−
Jump up ^ Stephen Knapp (2005), The Heart of Hinduism: The Eastern Path to Freedom, Empowerment and Illumination, ISBN 978-0595350759, pages 10-11
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b c Patrick Olivelle 1999, pp. xxiii.
 
−
Jump up ^ James Lochtefeld (2002), "Vedanga" in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A-M, Rosen Publishing, ISBN 0-8239-2287-1, pages 744-745
 
−
Jump up ^ Annette Wilke & Oliver Moebus 2011, pp. 391-394 with footnotes, 416-419.
 
−
Jump up ^ Harold G. Coward 1990, pp. 105-110.
 
−
Jump up ^ The Encyclopaedia Britannica: A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 1911. p. 161.
 
−
Jump up ^ Annette Wilke & Oliver Moebus 2011, pp. 472-532.
 
−
Jump up ^ Harold G. Coward 1990, p. 18.
 
−
Jump up ^ Rajendra Prasad (2009). A Historical-developmental Study of Classical Indian Philosophy of Morals. Concept. p. 147. ISBN 978-81-8069-595-7.
 
−
Jump up ^ BR Modak, The Ancillary Literature of the Atharva-Veda, New Delhi, Rashtriya Veda Vidya Pratishthan, 1993, ISBN 81-215-0607-7
 
−
Jump up ^ Monier-Williams 2006, p. 207. [1] Accessed 5 April 2007.
 
−
Jump up ^ Apte 1965, p. 293.
 
−
Jump up ^ "Upaveda". Oxford University Press. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
 
−
Jump up ^ "ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF AYURVEDA: (A BRIEF HISTORY)". US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. Anc Sci Life. 1981 Jul-Sep; 1(1): 1–7.
 
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Jump up ^ Frawley, David; Ranade, Subhash (2001). Ayurveda, Nature's Medicine. Lotus Press. p. 11. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
 
−
Jump up ^ Paul Kuritz (1988), The Making of Theatre History, Prentice Hall, ISBN 978-0135478615, page 68
 
−
Jump up ^ Sullivan 1994, p. 385
 
−
Jump up ^ Sanskrit original: Chandogya Upanishad, Wikisource;
 
−
English translation: Chandogya Upanishad 7.1.2, G Jha (Translator), Oriental Book Agency, page 368
 
−
Jump up ^ "Natyashastra" (PDF). Sanskrit Documents.
 
−
Jump up ^ Coormaraswamy and Duggirala (1917). "The Mirror of Gesture". Harvard University Press. pp. 2–4.
 
−
Jump up ^ Goswami, Satsvarupa (1976), Readings in Vedic Literature: The Tradition Speaks for Itself, S.l.: Assoc Publishing Group, pp. 240 pages, ISBN 0-912776-88-9
 
−
^ Jump up to: a b Greg Bailey (2001), Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy (Editor: Oliver Leaman), Routledge, ISBN 978-0415172813, pages 437-439
 
−
Jump up ^ Ludo Rocher (1986), The Puranas, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447025225, pages 1-5, 12-21
 
−
Jump up ^ Nair, Shantha N. (2008). Echoes of Ancient Indian Wisdom: The Universal Hindu Vision and Its Edifice. Hindology Books. p. 266. ISBN 978-81-223-1020-7.
 
−
Jump up ^ Ludo Rocher (1986), The Puranas, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN 978-3447025225, pages 12-13, 134-156, 203-210
 
−
Jump up ^ Greg Bailey (2001), Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy (Editor: Oliver Leaman), Routledge, ISBN 978-0415172813, pages 442-443
 
−
Jump up ^ Dominic Goodall (1996), Hindu Scriptures, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520207783, page xxxix
 
−
Jump up ^ Thompson, Richard L. (2007). The Cosmology of the Bhagavata Purana 'Mysteries of the Sacred Universe. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. p. 10. ISBN 978-81-208-1919-1.
 
−
Jump up ^ Dominic Goodall (1996), Hindu Scriptures, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520207783, page xli
 
−
Jump up ^ BN Krishnamurti Sharma (2008), A History of the Dvaita School of Vedānta and Its Literature, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120815759, pages 128-131
 
−
Jump up ^ Müller, Friedrich Max (author) & Stone, Jon R. (author, editor) (2002). The essential Max Müller: on language, mythology, and religion. Illustrated edition. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-29309-3. Source: [2] (accessed: Friday May 7, 2010), p.44
 
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Jump up ^ "A Critical Study of the Contribution of the Arya Samaj to Indian Education", p. 68. by Pandit, Saraswati S
 
−
Jump up ^ "Lectures on the science of language, delivered at the Royal institution of Great Britain in 1861 [and 1863], Volume 1", by Max Müller, p. 148
 
−
Jump up ^ http://hinduism.about.com/od/scripturesepics/a/rigveda.htm
 
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Bibliography
 
−
Apte, Vaman Shivram (1965), The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary (4th revised & enlarged ed.), Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0567-4.
 
−
Avari, Burjor (2007), India: The Ancient Past, London: Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-35616-9
 
−
Harold G. Coward (1990). Karl Potter, ed. The Philosophy of the Grammarians, in Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies 5. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-81-208-0426-5.
 
−
Filliozat, Pierre-Sylvain (2004), "Ancient Sanskrit Mathematics: An Oral Tradition and a Written Literature", in Chemla, Karine; Cohen, Robert S.; Renn, Jürgen; et al., History of Science, History of Text (Boston Series in the Philosophy of Science), Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, ISBN 9781402023200
 
−
Flood, Gavin (1996), An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-43878-0
 
−
Flood, Gavin, ed. (2003), The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism, Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell, ISBN 1-4051-3251-5
 
−
Holdrege, Barbara A. (1995). Veda and Torah. SUNY Press. ISBN 0-7914-1639-9.
 
−
MacDonell, Arthur Anthony (1900), A History of Sanskrit Literature, New York: D. Appleton and Co, OCLC 713426994 (full text online)
 
−
Mahadevan, T. M. P (1952), Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan; Ardeshir Ruttonji Wadia; Dhirendra Mohan Datta, eds., History of Philosophy, Eastern and Western, George Allen & Unwin, OCLC 929704391
 
−
Michaels, Axel (2004), Hinduism: Past and Present, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-08953-1
 
−
Monier-Williams, Monier, ed. (1851), Dictionary, English and Sanskrit, London: Honourable East-India Company, OCLC 5333096 (reprinted 2006 as ISBN 1-881338-58-4)
 
−
Muir, John (1861). Original Sanskrit Texts on the Origin and Progress of the Religion and Institutions of India. Williams and Norgate.
 
−
Müller, Max (1891). Chips from a German Workshop. New York: C. Scribner's sons..
 
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Patrick Olivelle (1999). Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-283882-7.
 
−
Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli; Moore, Charles A., eds. (1957), A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy (12th Princeton Paperback ed.), Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01958-4
 
−
Staal, Frits (1986), The Fidelity of Oral Tradition and the Origins of Science, Mededelingen der Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie von Wetenschappen, North Holland Publishing Company
 
−
Smith, Brian K. (1992), "Canonical Authority and Social Classification: Veda and 'Varṇa' in Ancient Indian Texts", History of Religions (The University of Chicago Press), pp. 103–125, doi:10.2307/1062753
 
−
Sullivan, B. M. (Summer 1994), "The Religious Authority of the Mahabharata: Vyasa and Brahma in the Hindu Scriptural Tradition", Journal of the American Academy of Religion 62 (1): 377–401, doi:10.1093/jaarel/LXII.2.377
 
−
Annette Wilke; Oliver Moebus (2011). Sound and Communication: An Aesthetic Cultural History of Sanskrit Hinduism. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-018159-3.
 
−
Witzel, Michael (ed.) (1997), Inside the Texts, Beyond the Texts. New Approaches to the Study of the Vedas, Harvard Oriental Series, Opera Minora vol. 2, Cambridge: Harvard University Press
 
−
Zaehner, R. C. (1966), Hindu Scriptures, London: Everyman's Library
 
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Further reading
 
−
Overviews
 
−
J. Gonda, Vedic Literature: Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas, A History of Indian literature. Vol. 1, Veda and Upanishads (1975), ISBN 978-3-447-01603-2.
 
−
J. A. Santucci, An Outline of Vedic Literature (1976).
 
−
S. Shrava, A Comprehensive History of Vedic Literature — Brahmana and Aranyaka Works, Pranava Prakashan (1977).
 
−
Concordances
 
−
M. Bloomfield, A Vedic Concordance (1907)
 
−
Vishva Bandhu, Bhim Dev, S. Bhaskaran Nair (eds.), Vaidika-Padānukrama-Koṣa: A Vedic Word-Concordance, Vishveshvaranand Vedic Research Institute, Hoshiarpur, 1963–1965, revised edition 1973-1976.
 
−
Conference proceedings
 
−
Griffiths, Arlo and Houben, Jan E. M. (eds.), The Vedas : texts, language & ritual: proceedings of the Third International Vedic Workshop, Leiden 2002, Groningen Oriental Studies 20, Groningen : Forsten, (2004), ISBN 90-6980-149-3.
 
−
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Revision as of 14:47, 13 July 2016

CHAPTER V- SOMA-GAYATRI In the Vedas, Soma is mentioned as the Devata of Prithvi. In yagnas, the Somayagna is of superior quality. Soma has been described as anna (grain) by the devatas. This soma is also compared to a creeper. The Vedas describe Lord Indra, the king of the Devas, drinking Somarasa (Soma juice). Often it is described that Soma deva would reside but Garuda brought him to bhumi in the form of Gayatri. Soma is also addressed as Pavamana (wind) in the Vedas. Soma is called Samudra Raja (ocean king) as it is considered as the king of all rivers. Soma is addressed as the source of water as it provides rain and resides in water. It is said Whoever partakes of Soma, will become immortal and develop the capacity to perform superhuman activities. Therfore, it is compared to “amrith” (nectar) or even described as “amrith.” Sometimes, Soma is compared to the Sun as it is seen as the dispeller of darkness and provider of light, one who spreads his rays towards the earth and Sky. Soma is known for giving benediction of teja (), success, and eternality. Soma is the source of all aushadhi (medicine). He can cure all disease, restore vision to the blind and enable the lame to walk. He is all pervading and protects the human body. Soma essential dharma is to increase satya in us by removing our sins, which are ingrained in us.

Soma enhances our speech and pronunciation just as the boatman who plies the boat in the waters seamlessly, and is therefore known as Vacaspati (expert in the art of speech). It can invoke powerful feelings within our mind and directs us to Prarthana (prayers). He is the master amongst poets, Rishi amongst the brahamanas and the brahamanas worship him as the king. He is the heart of the Yagna and the distributor of knowledge. In the battle between Indra and Vritrasura, he was the cause of Indra’s victory as He is the thunder weapon (Vajra) of Indra, hence known as the soul of Indra. Or he a. He gave birth to Surya in the water, and he causes sunrise. e himself is warrior, he has never lost battle, those warriors who worship him, and he offers them anything they desire. Those Brahmanas who drink somarasa, have the power to burn their enemies simply by the glance. In earthly planet he resides in mountains. He has birds eyes view over every one. Anything, and any one has connection to soma is generally called as somya in vedic language.

The western Indologist, who are bereft of Vedic wisdom and Indians who have no pride in the Vedas go by the Whiteman’s version of सोम which is an intoxicating beverage. This is deeply revealing of their malicious intentions to portray our scriptures as and our sages in denigrating and frivolous terms. According to them “suktadarshi” is not rishi, they mention that the sage being intoxicated tends to thinl of himself as a Rishi. One Christian priest (Religion of Rig veda by H.D. Graiswald, page 214-215)) who may himself be under the influence of ordinar intoxicant rashly concludes that there is no difference between liquor and Soma rasa. The difference is one is used for Yagna and other is used for general purpose of consuming. He further comes up with the fanciful theory that Somarasa helps in increasing sexual appetite. His profound knowledge of our great culture is based merely on two incidents. Àt a camp, when he asked a drunk cobbler as to why he drank, the cobbler replied, “ if I do not drink, how will I produce children? In 1890, the same Christian priest met an Indian, who told this priest, if he did not drink whisky then he would have been dead long back. The equation of the sacred Soma to alcohol (introduced along with opium into India and China by the East India Company nations itself to destroy Bharat) and also that Indian were drunkards is not only vicious but false propaganda.This pathetic scholarship reveals the malafide intentions of the White traders to not only denigrate our knowledge systems but also impose falsehoods and non-existent discriminatory systems that were not part of our Vedic traditions. An example of this was the oppositional categories: gods-demons, fire-blood, man-woman, twice-born-shudra, purity-pollution, death-immortality.

In the introduction itself he clarifies that he does not comprehend the Vedas as he cannot understand the feeling of words or cannot explain the words, but has borrowed the meaning from elsewhere, mostly from secondary sources. Ironically, he indicates not only his ignorance of our systems but also his audacity at studying us from a position of superiority. But that this was accepted and has become the explanation for our knowledge systems indicates the hegemony of the West on our academic, health, and all our systems. And the most significant factor is that these conlusions reign till date and determine our discourse and actions. Also our glorious heritage has completely been blamked out leaving the people of Bharat completly without connection to their roots as we pursue systems that are not only dysfunctional but alien.

A logical question would be that if the dharmic rishis were Somarasa drunkards as insinuated by Western evangelists, the Rig veda (XI, all 114 suktas) would not eulogise Soma and the rishis would not have performed yagna while honouring Soma. If it was an alcoholic beverage, why would drinking it only be restricted to three times a day. Soma is not a ordinary beverage, it is the symbol of divinity and only the most qualified brahamanas were able to drink (तत्त्वपणा|tattvapana) it, this is the conclusion of vedas.

Somam manyate papivana yat sam pimashanti aushadhim Somam yam brahamanyo viduh natasyashnati kaschana (X-85-3)

The Sayana Bhashya claims that those who desire sexual appetite, should consider Somarasa as an intoxication and extract its juice thrugh the chemical method and drink it. Such persons consider Somarasa as ordinary juice, but the wise Brahamanas (brahmagyaani) and the ritvigyjyamanaas understood the real essence of सोम. In other words, the soma is not some ordinary juice extracted from the creeper as explained in the Vedas. Those who have actually honored the Soma, the brahamvadini, mahajnanis, those who are immersed in Brahman, explained the Soma differently;

Apama somamamrta abhumaganma jyotir vidama devan Kim nunamasman krnavadaratih kimdhurtiramrta martyasya

“We have honored soma rasa, we have become immortal, achieved the param jyoti (highest light), have understand all the devas, what can the enemies do to us? Hey Soma, what can the enemies who are wicked to do me, even though I am mortal? (VIII-48-3 Rik samhita).

Such people who are ignorant and demean Soma are ignorant of the Vedas and its profound wisdom and false keepers of our knowledge systems.

Similarly, the great Vamadeva Rishi, who drank the Soma, says, “I have realised the secret behind the birth of Indra and others, previously my body which was like iron shackles did not allow me, to experience Brahman, because of being bound. Since i who took the dress of Garuda, I was split open the covering of body (since I drank soma rasa). Even though this body binds me, but I am not covered with ignorance, illusion, even the pain of being in the womb has been overcome by my power of wisdom. The ईश्वर|Isvara, who is in the form of Soma) has helped me to conquer my enemies of the womb, he helped me to cross all the layers of air in the womb, that Isvara, is complete, and the source and inspirer of the entire cosmos. One who speak such profound words, Vamadeva, should he be considered insane or a great brahma jnani?


Even small children can understand this in India. One more thing is expressed by Wamadeva; to prove his complete surrender, he compares himself to body and the supreme being as the soul, hence it shows the paramatama’s complete body. (this is explained in the brahamasutras in regards to indrapranadhikaran “shastra dhristhyatu upadesha wamadevatah” Vedavyasa explained exactly in the above fashion) “ I was Manu, Sun god, Rishi Kashikavana, Arjuna,Kutsa and also krantadarshi, who is rishi named, Ushanasa. Hey all humans, please understand me who is very wonder. i gave earth to Manu, I was the one who gave rain to man who is engaged in yagna. I am the originator of rivers. All the devas follow my sankalpa(resolve) I was the one who became Indra, and gave protectin to Divodasa rishi, who was from royal family. By my power he destroyed 99 towns of demon Shambarasura,and settled in 100th town. In this way(one who provided energy to me and divodasa) Garuda who brought the grain of devatas who are personified in Soma, from the planet brahma loka, in the fomr of “suparna,” for this reason let it become elevated( Rik sam VI- 26-27)

Then who is the soma, we will see this in the future pages.

Garuda, who was in the sauparna form(bird?) brought madhu( Soma) who was in the third position of Trivikrama, this story is there in the many part of Vedas, indicating symbolic meaning. This story specifically mentioned in Rigveda's aitarey brahmana, 13th chapter. It can be summarised; Once upon time soma resided only in other word(para Loka). The devas and Rishis, who were always loyal to the principle of Yagna were contemplating to bring Soma to lower planets, they decided some plan; chandasas vmcan bring him down(Chandas are the language which are used to cover the essential meaning of the Vedas) since the Veda aphorism have the power to reveal Param brahma to the world, hence the devas and Rishis decided to use Chandas is clearly delineated. Hence they prayed to Chandasas. The Chandasas agreed to undertake this endeavour. Since Param pada was very high, they decided to choose those being who had strong wings and very able,,hence they chose few chandasas who disguised as birds. They were Jagati, Trishtuoa and Gayatri. First Jagati tried to steal soma but being only four words for every pada, therefore had come back being exhausted. In this adventure Jagati lost three of its letters and when retuned with only one of his letter, the wealth of Tapasya was transformed into animal prosperity. Hence it is called as" Jagata hi pashavah" the Trishtapu was this capable to only produce cattle prosperity.

Second was the turn of Tristhupa chandas, it was tired half way through the journey and lost one of its letter and when it came back, it brought the Yagna ingredient, Dakshina alone with it. Devatas then requested Gayatri to bring soma. They also chanted some mantras called " svastyayana" which consisted of " Pra" and "cha" So that Gayatri's journey would be free from obstacles. Eventually Gayatri was able to being Soma, first by reaching there and by lifting him by her feet and mouth. Gayatri also brought back the four letter which were lost by other two chandasas while scaring the the protectors of soma named Somapla. The somapalas who were 7 in number and one of the Krshaan, cut of the left feet's nail, this became the porcupine's thorn and porcupine itself. The blood which came for the feet became dried that became cow. bones became (;??)snakes. The soma which was captured from Gayatri's right foot became pratah savan( morning oblation?). It is the most prosperous in all the shavanas. One who understand this is the best amongst the Yajna performers. Soma's part which was captured by the left foot became "madyandin savan". But because it slipped it was not as great as " pratah savana". That part of Soma which was captured by Gayatri in the mouth became " tritiya savan". Because it was drunk while flying in the form of Garuda hence it was less powerful than other two "savan".

Upanishads describe Brahma vastu as "Rasa" and the one who enjoys it is called ‘Anandi’ from the same perspective. || raso vai sah, rasaggam hevayam labdhva Nandi bhavati||

The Vedas attach great importance to Soma, Garuda and Gayatri. Paramatma is called as Anandamaya (full of bliss) in the language of the Vedas. Indra, the King of the Gods (?) partakes of Soma rasa. Being central to the Vedas, the Soma tattva is relished by the Brahmanas at three times in the form of Gayatri is not surprising. Hence Soma is called as "Pavamana" the purifier. Being representation of brahmana nda, the Brahmanas are offering the prayer to this soma Deva, " Oh pavamana Soma, please place me in the land where there is the brightness of Sun, light is eternal, to that nectar and inexhaustible land. That place where Vivaswanta's son and the pure water of Ganga and other water reside, there I would desire to be immortal. The place where the Paramatma, traverse with his three Pada( feet) and best amongst them, the place of Son god's light eminates without any hindrance or freedom, the place where all the planets are established brightly, in those places make me immortal. Where all the desires are fulfilled, where all the ambitions are attained, the action place of Aditya, full of purity, the place where satisfaction and Anna is there to that place you settle me. The place where there is ceaseless brahmananda, happiness, satisfaction, As much as we desire, please place me there. ( ix-11-;3) with such background prayer, one should accept Soma rasa as he is. This Soma was born Trivijrama's third foot. Puranas extols how the shiva by carrying in his jatha and made him " somashelhar". This very significant. Soma has been described as king for the Brahmanas, in this way the soma tattva is famous for giving. giving spiritual import.


Once Gayatri came back from getting Soma, the Trishthupa and Jagati, requested Gayatri to returned their letters. Gayatri argued that it belongs to her. The devas sided Gayatri. In this way Gayatri became "astaksharmtaka( 8 lettered) Trishthupa became "trysksharatmaka( three lettered) and Jagati became ekaksharatmaka( one lettered). At the end other two chandasas became qualified in taking part in the Savanas. One who understand these tattva( concepts) he or she will attain glory and power and with grace of Chandasas one will attain all prosperity.

The same story is also narrated in Taittiriya samhita's 6 kanda ( section) here is the summary.

Kashyapa and his two wives kadru and suparna these two had competition in regards their beauty. This is basically a symbol of conflict between the iha( in this world) and para( higher realm) to prove who is greater. This is an eternal transaction. Vedas illustrates it very beautifully. The earth is kadru, antariksha( higher realm) is Suparna. Chandasas are the children of suparna. Suparna lost in the competition. Kadru made Suparna her servant. Kadru put some condition to free Suparna. She wanted the Soma from the heaven's third division. The sons of Suparna, Chandasasa decided to help and free their mother's woe. The Jagati and Trishthupa failed in their attempt( the letters are different from the previous story. But at last Gayatri was able to accomplish with the help of "Aja" who was in the shape or form of jyoti(light). Who flew along with Gayatri to get soma. Gayatri brought Soma and other letters which were left behind by two other Chandasas. Even though Gayatri is the smallest amongst the Chandasas but because he brought the soma which main oblation for Yagna, he attained superior position amongst the Chandasas. This the opinion of the brahma dais. The most part of Rigveda is in the Gayatri, Trishthupa and Jagati chandasas, in other words they are complied with these Chandasas. There are also other thirteen Chandasas. But Gayatri has primary position. ( almost 2500 are in this Chandasas). This story is very famous and symbolically indicates enmity between Garuda and snakes. Hose who have brhamabhuti can understand the import of this story as the conflict between mundane and divine consciousness and their reject the conclusion of those who claim it is only clash between two race. In this way Gayatri has been considered as Garuda, in the Vedas and pancharatra sastras. It makes clear indication that the Lord Narayana who is carried by Garuda is the( pratipadya) and Param brahma vastu. The faithful has to understand whatever had been compiled in the Vedas, Puranas is the same principle but defined in different ways. The story of Garuda bringing nectar is nothing but Gayatri brining soma. Soma is indicated as brahma experience. Soma creeper is physical self and the squeezing the creeper to stone is the suffering of this world.

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