The Vedas: An Overview

TEAM:-7

 Aghilan a
 Nithish.s
 Y.charan Krishna
 K.surya Venkata rajeev
 PRESENTATION ROADMAP

Kalpa & Conclusion

The Kalpa Sutras deal with the specific procedures for performing rituals
including such details as to the mantras to be chanted and the kinds of materials
to be offered during the various rituals. One, all‐pervasive Supreme Being who
Jyothisha (Astronomy and
may be worshipped through any form.
Astrology)
Jyotisha helps one determine the position of planets and stars at
any time. A Vedic ritual should be performed only at the time of
certain planetary configuration.
Nirukta (Etymology)
Yaska is the author of the Nirukta, a technical treatise on etymology, lexical category
and the semantics of Sanskrit words. Nirukta explains how certain words get to have
their meanings, especially in the context of interpreting the Vedic texts.

Chandas (Prosody)
Chandas refers to the meters (syllable count) in the Sanskrit language. The
Vedas arealso known as chandas because most of the mantras in the Vedas

Vyakarana (Grammar) are in a meter form

Vyakarana is the study of grammar. Sanskrit has a grammatical frame work for forming
varieties of compounds and nominal derivatives. A comprehensive work known as
‘Ashtadhyayi’ was written by Panini, in sixth century B.C.

Siksha (Phonetics)
Siksha is defined as ‘that by which one is taught’. Siksha refers to the text
dealing with instruction on phonetics.

The Six Vedangas

The Sanskrit word ‘Vedanga’ literally means ‘limb of the Vedas’. Even though the Vedanga
literature does not form a direct portion of the Vedas, these disciplines are complementary
for the proper understanding of the Vedic text. The Vedangas are six in number: Siksa,
Vyakarana, Chandas, Nirukta, Jyotisha and Kalpa. Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and
Upanishads
Each Veda has four parts: 1.Samhitas 2.Brahmanas
3.Aranyakas 4.Upanishads
THE FOUR
VEDAS
The great sage Vyaasa, (also known as Veda Vyaasa) compiled the four Vedas:
The Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Saama Veda and Atharvana Veda. The Rig Veda is
wholly in form of hymns in praise of various “devatas”‐aspects of God as
manifested in nature
INTRODUCTION
The Sanskrit word “vid” means to know. It means

The Vedas: An Overview

knowledge of truth. “Veda” may be termed as the “Book of
Knowledge”. The Vedas form the core of our ‘Sanatana
Dharma’
 The Veda's are the four holiest books of manking to the next
thousands of years.

 Veda's are written in vedic sanskrit.

 Veda... simply means " knowledge ". It is a sanskrit word from

the root " vid " which means finding, knowing, acquiring, or
understanding. The term veda as a common noun means
" knowledge ".

 The indian caste system is based on a table from the veda's

about the sacrifise of the diety purusha.

 The veda's were transmitted orally during the course of

numerous subsequent generations before finally being achieved
in written form.

3
Introduction Contd...
 Not much is known about the authors of the veda's, as the focus is
placed on the ideas found in vedic tradition rather than those who
originate the ideas.

 The laws of the veda's have regulated the social, legal, domestic,
religious customs of Hindu's upto the present day.

 As the ancient Hindu's seldom kept any historically record of their

religious, literacy, political realization. It is little difficult to determine
the period of the veda's with precision.

 Although the veda's are seldom read (or) understood today, even by the
devout, they no doubt from the bedrock of the universal religion (or) "
Sanathana Dharma " that all Hindu's follow.

 The veda's have guided ours religions direction for ages and will
continue to do so for generations to come.

4
Structure of the veda's :

 Each veda consists of four parts

• The Samhitha's ( hymns )

• The Brahmanas ( rituals )

• The Aranyakas ( theologies )

• The Upanishads ( philosophies )

5
Classification of the veda's :

 The veda's are classified into 4 types

• The Rig Veda, It's the earliest form of the veda.

• The Sama Veda, The earliest reference for

singing.

• The Yajur Veda, It is also called the book of

prayers.

• The Atharva Veda, The book of magic and

charms.

6
 RIG VEDA

7
 Rig means “Praise”. It explains various hymns praising the
elements of the nature and cosmos.

 The Rigveda was likely composed between roughly 1700-1100 BCE,

making it one of the oldest texts of any Indo - Iranian language, one
of the world’s oldest religious texts.

 It was preserved over centuries by oral tradition alone and was

probably not put in writing before the Early Middle Ages.

 The RigVeda is considered to be among the earliest religious

texts still reserved by a living tradition and it is estimated to
have been formed around 1500 - 1200 BCE.

 Its consists of 10117 rhymes composed in Vedic Sanskrit.

8
Composition

9
 Hymns and prosody
 Each mandala consists of hymns or sūktas (su- + ukta,
literally, "well recited, eulogy") intended for various
rituals.

 The hymns of the Rigveda are in different poetic

metres in Vedic Sanskrit.

10
 The Samhitha's ( hymns )
 The Rigvedic hymns are dedicated to various deities, chief
of whom are Indra, a heroic god praised for having slain
his enemy Vrtra; Agni, the sacrificial fire; and Soma, the
sacred potion or the plant it is made from.

 Also invoked are Savitr, Vishnu, Rudra, Pushan,

Brihaspati or Brahmanaspati, as well as deified natural
phenomena such as Dyaus Pita, Prithivi, Surya, Vayu
or Vata, Apas, Parjanya, Vac, many rivers.

11
 The Brahmanas ( rituals )
• Of the Brahmanas that were handed down in the schools of the
Bahvṛcas (i.e. "possessed of many verses"), as the followers of the
Rigveda are called, two have come down to us, namely those of
the Aitareyins and the Kaushitakins.

• They differ, however, considerably as regards both the

arrangement of this matter and their stylistic handling of it, with
the exception of the numerous legends common to both, in which
the discrepancy is comparatively slight.

• The last 10 adhyayas of the latter work are, however, clearly a

later addition though they must have already formed part of it at
the time of Pāṇini if, as seems probable, one of his grammatical
sutras, regulating the formation of the names of Brahmanas,
consisting of 30 and 40 adhyayas, refers to these two works.

12
Aranyakas and Upanishads
• Each of these two Brahmanas is supplemented by a "forest book",
or Aranyaka. The Aitareyaranyaka is not a uniform production.

• The last of these books, composed in sutra form, is, however,

doubtless of later origin, and is, indeed, ascribed by Hindu
authorities either to Shaunaka or to Ashvalayana.

• Again, the last four chapters of the second book are usually
singled out as the Aitareya Upanishad,[103] ascribed, like its
Brahmana (and the first book), to Mahidasa Aitareya; and the
third book is also referred to as the Samhita-upanishad.

• The remaining portions of the Aranyaka treat of the vital airs, the
internal Agnihotra, etc., ending with the vamsha, or succession of
teachers.

13
 YAJUR VEDA

14
Contents of Yajur Veda:
 Contained 109 branches , but now only 7
branches are found
 Serves as a guide for the priests to
perform ritual
 Agnihotra
 Gayathri manthra
 Somayoga
 Ashvamedha

15
Composition of Yajur Veda

16
 Science in Yajur Veda
‘Aum Ishe Tvorjai Tva Vayav Stha Devo Vah’ Yajur Veda 33.43

Ishe and Tva– A type of food “The sun moves in its own orbit in space
taking along with itself the mortal bodies like
Sthah – Earth earth through force of attraction.”

Devo – a type of sunlight The various rituals in Yajur Veda are

employing science
Vah – A type of water
 Agnihotra
 Pravargya
 Darsapurnamasa

17
 SAMA VEDA

18
Origin of Samaveda:

• Dates back to 1200 to 1000 BCE

• Sama – Melody Veda – Knowledge
• It is called as the Veda of Bhakti
• Jaiminiya the oldest surviving
chanting tradition
• Has around 1900 verses from Rig
Veda

19
Composition of Sama Veda
 Samaveda Samhita shouldn’t be read as
text.
It should be sung.
 Most of the verses praise Agni and Indra
 Music originated from Sama Veda.
 The three versions of Samaveda are
 Kauthuma
 Jaiminiya
 Ranayaniya
 Lord Krishna says “ Of all the Vedas, I am
Sama Veda”.
20
 Through cleanliness, you can keep away diseases
 A scholar of knowledge can defeat all his enemies
 Knowledge of scholars can help the ignorant to attain supremacy
 A man with self-control becomes the master
 A truthful person’s speech is like honey
 Never be in the company of those who hate knowledge
 Never listen to whatever is evil
 You fight a battle every day
 There are ten characteristics of “Dharma” – Stability of mind, Purity, Forgiveness, Abstinence,
Benevolence, Control of Senses, Intellect, Truth, Knowledge, and abstinence from anger
 Never fall prey to your pride

21
Samaveda Chanting - BrainMovie

22
 ATHARVA VEDA

23
Origin of Atharva Veda:

 Dates back to around 900 to 1200 BCE

 Brought to light by Atharvan.
 Also called as Atharvangirasa Veda.
 Also called as Brahma Veda – Brahma
Ritvik.
 Considered the origin of Ayurveda.
 Concerns both worldly happiness and
spiritual happiness.
24
 Composition of Atharva Veda

• 20 Books – 730 hymns

• Veda of magical formulas
1. Bhumi-Sukta
2. Brahmacarya-Sukta
3. Kala-Suktas
4. Vivaha-Sukta
5. Madhuvidya-Sukta
6. Samanasya-Sukta
7. Rohita-Sukta
8. Skambha-Sukla
25
26
Samhitas
The Samhita portion is the main text of the Veda. Brahmanas serve the purpose of a guidebook
or handy manual that explain the proper use of the mantras contained in the Samhita.

Etymology
Samhita is a Sanskrit word from the prefix sam (सम्), 'together', and hita (हित), the past participle
of the verbal root dha (धा) 'put'. The combination word thus means "put together, joined,
compose, arrangement, place together, union", something that agrees or conforms to a
principle such as dharma or in accordance with justice, and "connected with".[1] Saṃhitā (संहिता)
in the feminine form of the past participle, is used as a noun meaning "conjunction,
connection, union", "combination of letters according to euphonic rules", or "any methodically
arranged collection of texts or verses".
27
The four Samhitas are:
• Rig-Veda Samhita - the oldest veda, containing 1,028
hymns devoted to ancient gods.
• Yajur-Veda Samhita - a handbook for priests
performing sacrifices.
• Sama-Veda Samhita - chants and songs to sing during
sacrifices.
• Atharva-Veda Samhita - ancient spells and magical
charms that pre-date the Aryan influence.
It is believed that having been orally transmitted for so
many years, the Samhitas were brought to India by the
Aryans and took their present form sometime between
1200 to 200 B.C.E.

28
 Brahmanas
The Brahmanas (Sanskrit: ब्राह्मणम्, Brāhmaṇam)
are Vedic śruti works attached to the Samhitas
(hymns and mantras) of the Rig, Sama, Yajur,
and Atharva Vedas. They are a secondary layer
or classification of Sanskrit texts embedded
within each Veda, often explain and instruct
Brahmins on the performance of Vedic rituals
(in which the related Samhitas are recited). In
addition to explaining the symbolism and
meaning of the Samhitas, Brahmana literature
also expounds scientific knowledge of the
Vedic Period, including observational
astronomy and, particularly in relation to altar
construction, geometry. Divergent in nature,
some Brahmanas also contain mystical and
philosophical material that constitutes
Aranyakas and Upanishads.

29
30
Contents of the Brahmanas
Apastamba defines Brahmanas as ‘Karmacodana
Brahmanani’ meaning Brahmanas are injunctions for the
performance of sacrificial rites. According to him, these
texts deal with the following six topics:Vidhi Arthavada ,
Ninda, Prashansha , Purakalpa and Parakriti.

1. Vidhi means injunctions for the performance of

particular rites.
2. Arthavada comprises the numerous explanatory
remarks on the meaning of Mantras and particular
rites.
3. Ninda or censure consists in criticism and, refutation
of the opponents’ views.
4. Prashansha means eulogy, recommendation.
5. Purakalpa refers to the performance of sacrificial rites
in former times.
6. Parakriti means the achievements of others.

31
The main subject of the Brahmanas is injunction
(Vidhi), all other topics being subservient to it.
They may be classified differently. Shabara, in
his commentary, has summed up their subjects
into ten following heads:

Hetu – reasons
Nirvacana – etymology
Ninda – censure ,condemn
Prashansha – eulogy, praise
Sanshaya – doubt,uncertainty
Vidhi – injunction,sanction
Parakriya – feats/deeds of others
Purakalpa – legendary background
Vyavadharana– Kalpana – managerial
application
Upamana – illustration.

32
Classification of the Brahmanas
Originally, there were
numerous Brahmanas,
of which only a few
have survived to us.
There are a number of
lost Brahmanas which
are quoted in the
available Sanskrit
Literature.For each
Samhita, there are
corresponding
Brahmanas. Names of
the principal
Brahmanas of all the
Vedas are listed here

33
Aranyakas:-
The word ‘aranya’ means ‘forest’. After attaining mental
purity through the performance of actions or rituals, one
graduates to the study of the Aranyakas, in the quietness
of a forest like atmosphere, which lead further to the
Knowledge portion of the Vedas.
Yajna and other rituals are prescribed only for those who
live in homes and lead the life of house-holders. But it has
to be understood that Vedic rituals are intended to confer
not only material benefits but also mental purity by
constant discipline. Having obtained purity, one must
seek the solitude of forests for further concentration and
meditation.
The Brahmanas advocating the actual observances of the
sacrifices are meant for Grihastha and the Aranyakas
containing explanations of the rituals and allegorical
speculations thereon are meant for Vanprasthas, who
renounce family life residing in the forests for tapas and
other religious activities.
34
Contents of the Aranyakas:-
The major contents of the Aranyakas
are theosophy (Brahmavidya),
meditation (Upasana) and knowledge
of breath (Pranavidya). They describe
the secret meaning of the sacrifice and
the concept of Brahma as well. The
creation of the universe, the power of
the Almighty, Om, the soul and the
cycle of birth and death are explained
in Brihadaranyaka in a simple
manner.

35
Classification of the Aranyakas :-
Today only seven Aranyakas are available. There is no Aranyaka which belongs to the Atharvaveda.

(A) Aranyakas of the Rigveda:

1. Aitareya Aranyaka
2. Kaushitaki/ Shankhayana Aranyaka

(B) Aranyakas of the Samaveda:

1. Talavakara or Jaiminiya-Upanshad Aranyaka

2. Chandogya- Aranyaka

(C) Aranyaka of Shukla Yajurveda:

1. Brihadaranyaka

(D) Aranyakas of Krishna Yajurveda:

1. Taittiriya Aranyaka
2. Maitrayaniya Aranyaka
36
Upanishads :-
The Knowledge portion of the Vedas, that
deal profound questions on life and death
are called Upanishads. All the Vedic rituals
are not only meant for worldly gains, but
also for disciplining the mind and
attaining mental purity. On attainment of
this mental purity, the practitioner
becomes ready for the study of the
Upanishads and to meditate on the
ultimate reality. If the Samhita is the tree,
then the Brahmanas is the flowers,
Aranyakas are the unripe fruits, and the
Upanishads are the final ripened fruits.
Thus the Vedas are comprehensive and
cover the three aspects of Karma Kanda
(Work), Upasana Kanda (Worship) and
Jnana Kanda (Wisdom).

37
Division of the Upanishads
According to the Muktikopanishad 108 Upanishads are divided according to four Vedas are as follows:

 10 Upanishads from the Rigveda

 19 Upanishads from the Shukla-

Yajurveda

 32 Upanishads from the Krishna-

Yajurveda

 16 Upanishads from the Samaveda and

 31 Upanishads from the Atharvaveda.

38
39
Importance of the Upanishads :-
The Upanishads occupy a unique
place in the development of Indian
philosophical thought. They contain
the highest authority on which the
various systems of philosophy in
India rest. So Vedanta Philosophy is
directly related to the Upanishads.
Not only the Vedanta philosopher
professes his faith in the ends and
objects of the Veda, but the Sankhya,
the Vaisheshika, the Nyaya and
Yoga philosophers, all pretend to
find in the Upanishads some
warranty for their tenets.

40
Major Theme of the Upanishads
The Upanishads are religious and
philosophical treatises. They constitute the
last phase of the Vedic revelation. They
represent the knowledge of Brahman
(Brahma-Vidya). What is this world? Who am
I? What becomes of me after death? – Such
questions are asked and answered in these
Upanishads. The essential theme of the
Upanshads is the nature of the world and
God. Already in the hymns of the Rigveda,
we notice here and there a shift of emphasis
from the innumerable gods to the one Infinite
as in the famous passage. ‘Ekam sad vipra
bahudha vadanti ‘. This becomes more
pronounced in the Upanishads and is very
well illustrated here.

41
42
Siksha (Phonetics)
Siksha is defined as ‘that by which one is taught’. Siksha refers to the text dealing with instruction on
phonetics. These texts explain the rules of proper pronunciation of the Vedic mantras. Since the Vedas
employ words as a means of knowledge the words must reveal the meaning as intended by the Vedas.
Any alteration in the pronunciation of a word or its accent, swara; changes the meaning of the word, which
can alter the message communicated by the sentence. Therefore great care was taken to evolve a system of
phonetics that would protect the meaning of the word as intended by the Vedas. There are numerous
scholarly siksha texts containing rules of pronunciation. The two most comprehensive compilations are by
Panini and Yajnavalkya.

Some important Pratishakhyas are:

1. Rigveda-Pratishakhya of Rigveda
2. Taittiriya-Pratishakhya of Krishna Yajurveda
3. Vajasaneyi Pratishakhya of Shukla Yajurveda
4. Atharvaveda-Pratishakhya of Atharvaveda

43
Vyakarana :-
Vyakarana is the study of grammar. Sanskrit
has a grammatical frame work for forming
varieties of compounds and nominal
derivatives. A comprehensive work known as
‘Ashtadhyayi’ was written by Panini, in sixth
century B.C. Panini’s grammar provides 4,000
rules that describe the Sanskrit of his day
completely. This grammar is acknowledged to
be one of the greatest intellectual achievements
of all time.

44
Vyakarana :-
The great variety of language
mirrors, in many ways, the
complexity of nature. Success in
describing a language is as
impressive as a complete theory
of physics. Scholars have shown
that the grammar of Panini
represents a universal
grammatical and computing
system. From this perspective it
anticipates the logical framework
of modern computers.

45
Māheśvara Sūtras
The fourteen Māheśvara sūtras, so named because they have emanated from the drum of Lord Śiva during
his Cosmic dance, are:
a, i, u, ṇ |
ṛ, ḷ, k |
e, o, ṅ|
ai, au, c|
ha, ya, va, ra, ṭ |
la, ṇ |
ña, ma, ṅa, ṇa, na m|
jha, bha, ñ|
gha, ḍha, dha ṣ|
ja, ba, ga, ḍa, da, ś|
kha, pha, cha, ṭha, tha, ca, ṭa, ta, v|
ka, pa, y|
śa, ṣa, sa r|
ha, l|
The last letter in each of the sūtras is called an 'it' (rhymes with ‘with’) and is purely indicatory, not a part
of the sūtra itself.
46
Chandas (Prosody) :-
Chandas refers to the meters (syllable
count) in the Sanskrit language. The Vedas
are also known as chandas because most
of the mantras in the Vedas are in a meter
form. Every metric composition generally
has four padas or quarters and each pada
in a given meter has a specific number of
aksharas, syllables, each with a defined
length, matra.

47
Nirukta (Etymology)
Yaska is the author of the Nirukta, a
technical treatise on etymology, lexical
category and the semantics of Sanskrit
words. Nirukta is a Sanskrit word that means
“explained” or “interpreted.” It is one of the
six auxiliary disciplines known as the
Vedangas, which support the study of the
Vedas and other Hindu scriptures. Nirukta is
the study of etymology(The science dealing
with the origin and historical development of
words) and is concerned with proper
interpretation of the Sanskrit words, given
their context in the ancient texts. Nirukta
explains how certain words get to have their
meanings, especially in the context of
interpreting the Vedic texts.

48
Nirukta (Etymology)
It includes a system of rules for forming words
from roots, prefixes and suffixes, and formed the
basis for later dictionaries.The etymology of
Vedic words is traced by identifying the phonetic
and semantic history and evolution of a word.
Words in Sanskrit are typically formed by having
appropriate suffixes and prefixes to a particular
root. Consider for example the root word ‘vid’
which mean ‘to know’. From this root, we have
several words such as vidya (knowledge), avidya
(ignorance), vidyarthi (student), vidyapeetham
(university). Contrast this with the English
language where the words ‐ knowledge,
ignorance, student and university have not much
in common. New words can be formed in
Sanskrit using the rules of etymology.

49
 Jyothisha (Astronomy and Astrology)
Jyotisha helps one determine
the position of planets and stars
at any time. A Vedic ritual
should be performed only at the
time of certain planetary
configuration. Jyotisha enables
the Vedic rituals to be
performed at the most
propitious time. Jyotisha is used
even today to check the
compatibility of a proposed
matrimonial alliance and decide
the auspicious time of important
ceremonies. These treatises
reveal a great depth of
knowledge in astronomy.
50
 Kalpa (Know-how of Rituals)

The major texts of Kalpa Vedanga are

called Kalpa Sutras in Hinduism. The
scope of these texts includes Vedic
rituals, rites of passage rituals
associated with major life events such
as birth, wedding and death in
family, as well as personal conduct
and proper duties in the life of an
individual.
The Kalpa Sutras deal with the
specific procedures for performing
rituals including such details as to the
mantras to be chanted and the kinds
of materials to be offered during the
various rituals.

51
Conclusion
The seven main concepts of Vedic Indian culture are:

1. One, all‐pervasive Supreme Being who may be worshipped through any form.

2. Dharma, that which sustains the universe: an all‐encompassing term representing divine law, path of
righteousness, duty, responsibility, virtue, justice, goodness and truth.

3. The Universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution.

4. Karma, the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and
deeds.

5. The soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until the peace and bliss of moksha is attained through
knowledge of the Absolute Reality.

6. The belief that no religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others, but that all genuine paths are facets of
God’s Light, deserving tolerance and understanding.

7. An enlightened master, or Satguru, who is essential for gaining knowledge of the Absolute Reality.

52
“Moral and spiritual values are the factors which give strength, integrity and unity to a
nation. When that is gone, the nation also falls apart. India’s culture is spirituality. The
origin of spirituality, though it is beginningless, to speak in empirical terms, is the
Vedas. Therefore, to preserve, protect and spread the Vedic dharma is equal to
preserving, protecting and spreading the moral and spiritual values of the country
which will help to uplift and unify its people. This alone will protect the country from a
great downfall.” - Amma

53
THANK YOU- TEAM 7

54