Vedic periodThe Vedic period, or the Vedic age (1500-500 BCE), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (1500–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation, which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain 600 BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of the influential Brahmanical ideology, which developed in the Kuru Kingdom, a tribal union of several Indo-Aryan tribes.
RigvedaThe Rigveda or Rig Veda (ऋग्वेद , from "praise" and "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (sūktas). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (śruti) known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum. The Rigveda is the oldest known Vedic Sanskrit text. Its early layers are among the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language.
Taittiriya ShakhaThe Taittirīya Shakha (Sanskrit, loosely meaning 'Branch or School of the sage Tittiri'), is a shakha (i.e. 'branch', 'school', or rescension) of the Krishna (black) Yajurveda. Most prevalent in South India, it consists of the Taittirīya Samhita ('TS'), Taittirīya Brahmana ('TB'), Taittirīya Aranyaka ('TA'), and Taittirīya Pratisakhya ('TP'). The 'Taittiriya Shakha' can be loosely translated as 'Branch or School of (the sage) Tittri' or 'Branch or School of Taittiriya' or 'School of the pupils of Tittiri'.
Samskara (rite of passage)Samskara (IAST: , sometimes spelled samskara) are sacraments in Hinduism and other Indian religions, described in ancient Sanskrit texts, as well as a concept in the karma theory of Indian philosophies. The word literally means "putting together, making perfect, getting ready, to prepare", or "a sacred or sanctifying ceremony" in ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts of India.
SamavedaThe Samaveda (सामवेद, from "song" and "knowledge"), is the Veda of melodies and chants. It is an ancient Vedic Sanskrit text, and part of the scriptures of Hinduism. One of the four Vedas, it is a liturgical text which consists of 1,875 verses. All but 75 verses have been taken from the Rigveda. Three recensions of the Samaveda have survived, and variant manuscripts of the Veda have been found in various parts of India.
ŚrutiShruti (श्रुति, , ɕrʊtɪ) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" and refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism. Manusmriti states: Śrutistu vedo vijñeyaḥ (Devanagari: श्रुतिस्तु वेदो विज्ञेयः) meaning, "Know that Vedas are Śruti". Thus, it includes the four Vedas including its four types of embedded texts—the Samhitas, the Upanishads, the Brahmanas and the Aranyakas. Śrutis have been variously described as a revelation through anubhava (direct experience), or of primordial origins realized by ancient Rishis.
Vedic SanskritVedic Sanskrit, also simply referred as the Vedic language, is an ancient language of the Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European language family. It is attested in the Vedas and related literature compiled over the period of the mid-2nd to mid-1st millennium BCE. It is orally preserved, predating the advent of writing by several centuries. Extensive ancient literature in the Vedic Sanskrit language has survived into the modern era, and this has been a major source of information for reconstructing Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Indo-Iranian history.
VedasThe Vedas (ˈveɪdəz or ˈviːdəz, , वेदः) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism. There are four Vedas: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda. Each Veda has four subdivisions – 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 (texts discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).
AtharvavedaThe Atharva Veda (अथर्ववेदः, from and veda, meaning "knowledge") or Atharvana Veda (अथर्वणवेदः, ) is the "knowledge storehouse of atharvāṇas, the procedures for everyday life". The text is the fourth Veda, and is a late addition to the Vedic scriptures of Hinduism. The language of the Atharvaveda is different from Rigvedic Sanskrit, preserving pre-Vedic Indo-European archaisms. It is a collection of 730 hymns with about 6,000 mantras, divided into 20 books.
