Changes

Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types<ref name=":02222">A Bhattacharya (2006), Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0595384556</nowiki>, pages 8-14</ref> <ref name=":02">Swami Sivananda, All About Hinduism, Page 29</ref>  

Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types<ref name=":02222">A Bhattacharya (2006), Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0595384556</nowiki>, pages 8-14</ref> <ref name=":02">Swami Sivananda, All About Hinduism, Page 29</ref>  

* Samhitas (mantras and prayers)

* Samhitas (mantras and prayers)

* [[Brahmana|Brahmanas]] (explanation of mantras and rituals)

* [[Brahmana (ब्राह्मणम्)|Brahmanas]] (explanation of mantras and rituals)

* [[Aranyaka|Aranyakas]] (texts which give philosophical interpretation of the rituals)

* [[Aranyaka (आरण्यकम्)|Aranyakas]] (texts which give philosophical interpretation of the rituals)

* [[Upanishads]] (texts discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge)

* [[Upanishads]] (texts discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge)

A collective study of Vedas and later text suggests that the compendium of ''Samhitas'' and associated Vedic texts were far larger than currently available. However, most have been lost at some point or over a period of Indian history.

A collective study of Vedas and later text suggests that the compendium of ''Samhitas'' and associated Vedic texts were far larger than currently available. However, most have been lost at some point or over a period of Indian history.

Every ''Mantra'' has a ''Rishi (Mantra Drashta),'' a ''Devata (deity)'' and a ''Chandas (meter)''.   

Every ''Mantra'' has a ''Rishi (Mantra Drashta),'' a ''Devata (deity)'' and a ''Chandas (meter)''.   

Rigveda mantras are metered and chanted by the [[Hota (होता)|होता || Hota]] (the Rigveda priest), to invoke the deities to the यज्ञः ॥ [[Yagya (यज्ञ)|yajna]].    

Rigveda mantras are metered and chanted by the होता || Hota (the Rigveda priest), to invoke the deities to the यज्ञः ॥ [[Yajna (यज्ञः)|yajna]].    

Important Rigvedic deities are अग्निः ॥ [[Agni (आग्निः)|Agni]], इन्द्रः ॥ [[Indra (इन्द्रः)|Indra]], वरुणः ॥ [[Varuna]], उषस् ॥ [[Usha (उषा)|Ushas]], सविता ॥ [[Savita (सविता)|Savita]], पूषा ॥ [[Pushan|Pusha]], मित्रः ॥ [[Mitra (Vedic)|Mitra]], विष्णुः ॥ [[Vishnu]], रुद्रः ॥ [[Rudra (रुद्रः)|Rudra]], मरुत् ॥ [[Maruts|Marut]] and पर्जन्यः ॥ [[Parjanya (पर्जन्यः)|Parjanya]]. गायत्री ॥ Gayatri, जगती ॥ Jagati, बृहती ॥ Bruhati, पङ्क्ती ॥ Pankti and त्रिष्टुभ् ॥ Trishtubh and अनुष्टुभ् ॥ Anustubh are widely used meters (Page No 6 of Reference 8<ref name=":2232222">Gopal Reddy, Mudiganti and Sujata Reddy, Mudiganti (1997) ''[https://archive.org/stream/SAMSKRUTAKAVIJEEVITAMULUByMALLADISURYANARAYANASASTRIGARU/SAMSKRUTA%20SAHITYA%20CHARITRA%20BY%20MUDUGANTI%20GOPALA%20REDDI%26SUJATA%20REDDI%20#page/n33/mode/2up Sanskrita Saahitya Charitra] (Vaidika Vangmayam - Loukika Vangamayam, A critical approach)'' Hyderabad : P. S. Telugu University</ref>).   

Important Rigvedic deities are अग्निः ॥ [[Agni (आग्निः)|Agni]], इन्द्रः ॥ [[Indra (इन्द्रः)|Indra]], वरुणः ॥ [[Varuna]], उषस् ॥ Ushas, सविता ॥ Savita, पूषा ॥ [[Pushan|Pusha]], मित्रः ॥ [[Mitra (Vedic)|Mitra]], विष्णुः ॥ [[Vishnu]], रुद्रः ॥ [[Rudra (रुद्र)|Rudra]], मरुत् ॥ Marut and पर्जन्यः ॥ Parjanya. गायत्री ॥ Gayatri, जगती ॥ Jagati, बृहती ॥ Bruhati, पङ्क्ती ॥ Pankti and त्रिष्टुभ् ॥ Trishtubh and अनुष्टुभ् ॥ Anustubh are widely used meters (Page No 6 of Reference 8<ref name=":2232222">Gopal Reddy, Mudiganti and Sujata Reddy, Mudiganti (1997) ''[https://archive.org/stream/SAMSKRUTAKAVIJEEVITAMULUByMALLADISURYANARAYANASASTRIGARU/SAMSKRUTA%20SAHITYA%20CHARITRA%20BY%20MUDUGANTI%20GOPALA%20REDDI%26SUJATA%20REDDI%20#page/n33/mode/2up Sanskrita Saahitya Charitra] (Vaidika Vangmayam - Loukika Vangamayam, A critical approach)'' Hyderabad : P. S. Telugu University</ref>).   

=== विषयविभागः ॥ Vishayavibhaga ===

=== विषयविभागः ॥ Vishayavibhaga ===

Taittriya Samhita emphasizes that practicing of karmas as prescribed procedures given by Rks is stronger and those practiced by following the साम and यजुः will disintegrate.<ref name=":4">Pt. Baldev Upadhyaya (1958) ''[https://archive.org/details/VaidikSahityaBaldevUpadhyaya1958 Vaidik Sahitya]''. </ref>  

Taittriya Samhita emphasizes that practicing of karmas as prescribed procedures given by Rks is stronger and those practiced by following the साम and यजुः will disintegrate.<ref name=":4">Pt. Baldev Upadhyaya (1958) ''[https://archive.org/details/VaidikSahityaBaldevUpadhyaya1958 Vaidik Sahitya]''. </ref>  

It begins with a sukta to Agni and concludes with a sukta to the same deity. Agni sukta (01.01.01)<ref name=":03">Sri Sri Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamiji, (2000) ''[http://www.kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part19/chap6.htm Hindu Dharma (Collection of Swamiji's Speeches between 1907 to 1994)]''Mumbai : Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan</ref>

It begins with a sukta to Agni and concludes with a sukta to the same deity. Agni sukta (01.01.01)<ref name=":03">Sri Sri Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamiji, (2000) ''[http://www.kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part19/chap6.htm Hindu Dharma (Collection of Swamiji's Speeches between 1907 to 1994)]''Mumbai : Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan</ref>

Rushi : Madhucchanda Visvamitra, Devata : Agni, Chandas: Gayatri goes as follows<blockquote>अग्निसूक्तम् in प्रथमं मण्डलम्।</blockquote><blockquote>९ मधुच्छन्दा वैश्वामित्रः । अग्निः।  गायत्री। </blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निमी॑ळे पु॒रोहि॑तं य॒ज्ञस्य॑ दे॒वमृ॒त्विज॑म् । होता॑रं रत्न॒धात॑मम् ॥१</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निः पूर्वे॑भि॒र्ऋषि॑भि॒रीड्यो॒ नूत॑नैरु॒त । स दे॒वाँ एह व॑क्षति ॥२</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निना॑ र॒यिम॑श्नव॒त् पोष॑मे॒व दि॒वेदि॑वे । य॒शसं॑ वी॒रव॑त्तमम् ॥३</blockquote><blockquote>अग्ने॒ यं य॒ज्ञम॑ध्व॒रं वि॒श्वत॑: परि॒भूरसि॑ । स इद् दे॒वेषु॑ गच्छति ॥४</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निर्होता॑ क॒विक्र॑तुः स॒त्यश्चि॒त्रश्र॑वस्तमः । दे॒वो दे॒वेभि॒रा ग॑मत् ॥५</blockquote><blockquote>यद॒ङ्ग दा॒शुषे॒ त्वमग्ने॑ भ॒द्रं क॑रि॒ष्यसि॑ । तवेत् तत् स॒त्यम॑ङ्गिरः ॥६</blockquote><blockquote>उप॑ त्वाग्ने दि॒वेदि॑वे॒ दोषा॑वस्तर्धि॒या व॒यम् । नमो॒ भर॑न्त॒ एम॑सि ॥७</blockquote><blockquote>राज॑न्तमध्व॒राणां॑ गो॒पामृ॒तस्य॒ दीदि॑विम् । वर्ध॑मानं॒ स्वे दमे॑ ॥८</blockquote><blockquote>स न॑: पि॒तेव॑ सू॒नवे ऽग्ने॑ सूपाय॒नो भ॑व । सच॑स्वा नः स्व॒स्तये॑ ॥९</blockquote>As seen in the above example, the Vedic mantras are notated with lines above and below the letters which indicate the svara or tone of the particular letter in which it has to be uttered. The [[Gayatri mantra]] is among the famous Hindu mantras. It is found in Rig Veda Samhita.  

Rushi : Madhucchanda Visvamitra, Devata : Agni, Chandas: Gayatri goes as follows<blockquote>अग्निसूक्तम् in प्रथमं मण्डलम्।</blockquote><blockquote>९ मधुच्छन्दा वैश्वामित्रः । अग्निः।  गायत्री। </blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निमी॑ळे पु॒रोहि॑तं य॒ज्ञस्य॑ दे॒वमृ॒त्विज॑म् । होता॑रं रत्न॒धात॑मम् ॥१</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निः पूर्वे॑भि॒र्ऋषि॑भि॒रीड्यो॒ नूत॑नैरु॒त । स दे॒वाँ एह व॑क्षति ॥२</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निना॑ र॒यिम॑श्नव॒त् पोष॑मे॒व दि॒वेदि॑वे । य॒शसं॑ वी॒रव॑त्तमम् ॥३</blockquote><blockquote>अग्ने॒ यं य॒ज्ञम॑ध्व॒रं वि॒श्वत॑: परि॒भूरसि॑ । स इद् दे॒वेषु॑ गच्छति ॥४</blockquote><blockquote>अ॒ग्निर्होता॑ क॒विक्र॑तुः स॒त्यश्चि॒त्रश्र॑वस्तमः । दे॒वो दे॒वेभि॒रा ग॑मत् ॥५</blockquote><blockquote>यद॒ङ्ग दा॒शुषे॒ त्वमग्ने॑ भ॒द्रं क॑रि॒ष्यसि॑ । तवेत् तत् स॒त्यम॑ङ्गिरः ॥६</blockquote><blockquote>उप॑ त्वाग्ने दि॒वेदि॑वे॒ दोषा॑वस्तर्धि॒या व॒यम् । नमो॒ भर॑न्त॒ एम॑सि ॥७</blockquote><blockquote>राज॑न्तमध्व॒राणां॑ गो॒पामृ॒तस्य॒ दीदि॑विम् । वर्ध॑मानं॒ स्वे दमे॑ ॥८</blockquote><blockquote>स न॑: पि॒तेव॑ सू॒नवे ऽग्ने॑ सूपाय॒नो भ॑व । सच॑स्वा नः स्व॒स्तये॑ ॥९</blockquote>As seen in the above example, the Vedic mantras are notated with lines above and below the letters which indicate the svara or tone of the particular letter in which it has to be uttered. The Gayatri mantra is among the famous Hindu mantras. It is found in Rig Veda Samhita.  

:: ॐ भूर्भुवस्व: | तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम् | भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि | धियो यो न: प्रचोदयात् (Rig Veda 3.62.10)

:: ॐ भूर्भुवस्व: | तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम् | भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि | धियो यो न: प्रचोदयात् (Rig Veda 3.62.10)

:: ''Oṁ Bhūr Bhuva~Swah', Tat savitur varenyam, Bhargo devasya dhīmahi, Dhiyo yo nah prachodayāt (Rig Veda 3.62.10)''  

:: ''Oṁ Bhūr Bhuva~Swah', Tat savitur varenyam, Bhargo devasya dhīmahi, Dhiyo yo nah prachodayāt (Rig Veda 3.62.10)''  

=== देवताः छन्दसः ऋत्विक् च ॥ Devatas, Chandas and Rtvik ===

=== देवताः छन्दसः ऋत्विक् च ॥ Devatas, Chandas and Rtvik ===

The devatas praised in Yajurveda are the same as in Rigveda because a majority of mantras in Yajurveda are drawn from there. The Yajurvedic procedural details are recited and conducted by '''[[Adhvaryu (अध्वर्युः)|अध्वर्युः || Adhvaryu]]''' for the proper performance of Yajnas. In Shukla Yajurveda, the mantras have the same chandas as in Rigveda from where they have been taken.   

The devatas praised in Yajurveda are the same as in Rigveda because a majority of mantras in Yajurveda are drawn from there. The Yajurvedic procedural details are recited and conducted by '''अध्वर्युः || Adhvaryu''' for the proper performance of Yajnas. In Shukla Yajurveda, the mantras have the same chandas as in Rigveda from where they have been taken.   

In the context of Rishis in Yajurveda, 3 types of categories are seen   

In the context of Rishis in Yajurveda, 3 types of categories are seen   

* The Yajurveda is also important for its presentation of philosophical doctrines. It preaches the concept of ''Prana'' and ''Manas'' also.  

* The Yajurveda is also important for its presentation of philosophical doctrines. It preaches the concept of ''Prana'' and ''Manas'' also.  

* Depicting religious and social life of the Vedic people, it is also known for giving certain geographical data.

* Depicting religious and social life of the Vedic people, it is also known for giving certain geographical data.

Whether Krishna or Shukla, both the shakhas of Yajurveda deal primarily with the कर्मकाण्डः ॥ karmakanda and are also called यज्ञकाण्डः ॥ yajnakanda<ref name=":02223">Topic : Yajus samhita from ''Vaidika Vangmayasya itihasa bharatiya samskriti cha, Volume: Vedaparichaya'' by Rastriya Samskrit Samsthan. </ref>. All the shakha texts deal with detailed descriptions of श्रौतयज्ञाः ॥ Shrauta yajnas like राजसूयः ॥ [[Rajasuya]], वाजपेयः ॥ [[Vajapeya (वाजपेयः)|Vajapeya]], सोमयागः ॥ [[Somayaga (सोमयागः)|Somayaga]] etc. Krishna Yajurveda is considered older than the Shukla Yajurveda.<ref name=":12223">Regmi, Sri Rishiramji. Article : [http://vedicheritage.gov.in/flipbook/ved_vedang_gp_15/#book/ ''Yajurved ka Sankshipth Parichay''] available in Vedic Heritage Portal.</ref>  

Whether Krishna or Shukla, both the shakhas of Yajurveda deal primarily with the कर्मकाण्डः ॥ karmakanda and are also called यज्ञकाण्डः ॥ yajnakanda<ref name=":02223">Topic : Yajus samhita from ''Vaidika Vangmayasya itihasa bharatiya samskriti cha, Volume: Vedaparichaya'' by Rastriya Samskrit Samsthan. </ref>. All the shakha texts deal with detailed descriptions of श्रौतयज्ञाः ॥ Shrauta yajnas like राजसूयः ॥ [[Rajasuya]], वाजपेयः ॥ Vajapeya, सोमयागः ॥ Somayaga etc. Krishna Yajurveda is considered older than the Shukla Yajurveda.<ref name=":12223">Regmi, Sri Rishiramji. Article : [http://vedicheritage.gov.in/flipbook/ved_vedang_gp_15/#book/ ''Yajurved ka Sankshipth Parichay''] available in Vedic Heritage Portal.</ref>  

For example, in माध्यन्दिन-संहिता ॥ Madhyandina samhita, the yajna kriyas for दर्शपूर्णमासः ॥ [[Darshapurnamasa (दर्शपूर्णमासः)|Darshapurnamasa]], अग्निहोत्रम् ॥ [[Agnihotra (अग्निहोत्रम्)|Agnihotra]], चातुर्मास्यम् ॥ [[Chaturmasya (चातुर्मास्यम्)|Chaturmasya]], अग्निष्टोमः ॥ [[Agnistoma (अग्निष्टोमः)|Agnistoma]], Nirudhapasubandha, Chayanayaga, Sautramani, अश्वमेधः ॥ [[Ashvamedha (अश्वमेधः)|Ashvamedha]], वाजपेयः ॥ Vajapeya, राजसूयः ॥ Rajasuya etc among other yajnas and इष्टि-s ॥ [[Ishti (इष्टिः)|ishtis]] are present. Due to excessive intake of Soma, Indra the chief of devatas, developed some afflictions which was cured by Asvini devatas by conducting Sautramini yajna. Thus we see that yajnas were conducted with some desires like regaining lost kingdoms, cattle and progeny (kamyakarma). Asvamedha yajna was performed by kings to attain the position of Chakravarti (emperor).<ref name=":4" />

For example, in माध्यन्दिन-संहिता ॥ Madhyandina samhita, the yajna kriyas for दर्शपूर्णमासः ॥ Darshapurnamasa, अग्निहोत्रम् ॥ [[Agnihotra (अग्निहोत्रम्)|Agnihotra]], चातुर्मास्यम् ॥ Chaturmasya, अग्निष्टोमः ॥ Agnistoma, Nirudhapasubandha, Chayanayaga, Sautramani, अश्वमेधः ॥ Ashvamedha, वाजपेयः ॥ Vajapeya, राजसूयः ॥ Rajasuya etc among other yajnas and इष्टि-s ॥ ishtis are present. Due to excessive intake of Soma, Indra the chief of devatas, developed some afflictions which was cured by Asvini devatas by conducting Sautramini yajna. Thus we see that yajnas were conducted with some desires like regaining lost kingdoms, cattle and progeny (kamyakarma). Asvamedha yajna was performed by kings to attain the position of Chakravarti (emperor).<ref name=":4" />

=== प्रसिद्धाः मन्त्राः ॥ Famous Mantras ===

=== प्रसिद्धाः मन्त्राः ॥ Famous Mantras ===

* The popular mantras in praise of Lord Siva - श्रीरुद्रप्रश्नः || SriRudraprashna – finds a place in this Veda (Adhyaya 16).  

* The popular mantras in praise of Lord Siva - श्रीरुद्रप्रश्नः || SriRudraprashna – finds a place in this Veda (Adhyaya 16).