Vedic Age - Guide

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Vedic age 

is well-known for the creation and composition of Vedas, which are


considered sacred texts in Hinduism. The Vedic period was from c.1500 – to
c.500BCE, and the civilization was located in the northern to north-western region
of the Indian subcontinent. Vedic age is the creation sacred text of Hinduism.
The Vedas existed in oral form and were passed down from master to student for
generations until they were committed to writing between c. 1500 - c. 500 BCE (the
so-called Vedic Period) in India. They were carefully preserved orally as masters
would have students memorize them forwards and backwards with emphasis on
exact pronunciation in order to keep what was originally heard intact.
The Vedas are the religious texts which inform the religion of Hinduism (also
known as Sanatan Dharma meaning “Eternal Order” or “Eternal Path”). The
term veda means “knowledge” in that they are thought to contain the fundamental
knowledge relating to the underlying cause of, function of, and personal response to
existence.
The Vedas are the large bodies of religious text that is composed of Vedic Sanskrit
and originated in ancient India. They form the oldest scriptures of Hinduism
There are four types of Vedas:
 Rig Veda “Knowledge of the Verses”
 Sama Veda “Knowledge of the Chants”
 Yajur Veda “Knowledge of the Sacrifice”
 Atharvaveda “Knowledge of the Fire Priest”
The Sukta is a hymn and is composed of a set of Riks. 'Rik' means - an incantation
that contains praises and Veda means knowledge. The knowledge of the Suktas
itself is the literal meaning of Rigveda. The Rigveda Richas comprises mainly of
the praises of God.

Aryans And Their Mention In Vedas:

Aryans were people belonging to Central Asia, and in the early 1500 BC, these
people moved to India and transformed the social and religious beliefs of Indians.
The Aryans were a linguistic group of people who belonged to Indo-European
culture, following similar mixed culture and language. In the Vedic age, Aryans
brought the culture and customs of worshipping specific gods and goddesses.

The creation of Vedas was a part of certain religious practices. Rigveda is


considered the oldest Veda and attains special importance among Samaveda,
Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. The prayer methodology, including chants, hymns,
spells, and Sanskrit commentaries, emerged in the Vedic age and has become an
integral part of Indian culture till now.

Aryans Practices And Beliefs:

During the entry of Aryans in the Vedic age, the religious customs and beliefs
mentioned in Vedas were influenced by Indo-European culture, which also
comprises a distant relation with Greek and German culture. During this period,
worship of fire as God Agni with fire ceremonies became an integral part of Indian
worship culture and important ceremonies.

This trait was shared by the Iranian culture much before the Aryans entered India,
who are also considered sharing the similar root-like Indians. The concept of the
life cycle (period of life to death) with the reincarnation of a specific soul and
transfer of life on earth from one form to another emerged in this period. During
this period, God Indra is the leading god for worship, after God Agni. Many of the
religious practices, customs and stories are mentioned in Rigveda
and Atharvaveda.

Rigveda or Rig Veda is a collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (sktas) from ancient


India. It is one of the four revered Vedic books (ruti) that constitute the canonical
Hindu religion. The earliest known Vedic Sanskrit text is the Rigveda. Since the
second millennium BCE, Rigveda’s sounds and texts have been passed orally.

Rigveda

The Rigveda-Samhita, the entire text, is composed entirely of poems. The Mantras


intended to praise the gods are referred to as ‘Rik.’ As a result, the Rigveda-
Samhita is a collection of Riks (Samhita). Only the Shaakala cycle or school
(Shakha) of the Rigveda is now available. About 10552 Mantras, divided into ten
volumes called Mandalas, are found in the Rigveda Samhita. Anuvakas, several
sections, make up each Mandala.

☛ What Rigveda Deals With?


Each Anuvaka is composed of various hymns known as Suktas, and each Sukta is
composed of various verses known as riks.

 A Sukta consists of several Mantras.


 A Sukta can have any number of Mantras. There are certain Suktas with a few
mantras, while others with many.
 It’s crucial to remember that each Sukta contains a Rishi (a seer), a Devata (a
god), and a Chandas (a metre).
 The Rigveda’s Samhita has 10552 Mantras, 10 Mandalas, 85 Anuvakas, and
1028 Suktas. Typically, Anuvaka is not stated when referencing a Rigvedic
mantra.
Mandalas
The Rig veda is structured in ten “volumes”, or mandalas (“circles”), in different
age and length.
 1st Mandala (Volume I / Book I)consists of 191 suktas (hymns). Sukta 1.1 is talked
to Agni and the term “Agni” is the first word in the Rig veda. The rest of the hymns
are chiefly approached to Agni and Indra, Varuna, Mitra, the Ashvins, the Maruts,
Usas, Surya, Rbhus, Rudra, Vayu, Brihaspati, Vishnu, Heaven and Earth, and all
the Gods.
 
 2nd Mandala(Volume II/ Book II) constitutes 43 suktas, mostly to Agni and Indra. It
is mainly ascribed to the Rishi gṛtsamada śaunahotra.
 
 3rd Mandalais made up of 62 suktas, principally to Agni and Indra and the
Vishvedevas. The verse 3.62.10 explores true worth of Gayatri Mantra.
 
 4th Mandalais formed with 58 suktas, generally to Agni and Indra also Rbhus,
Ashvins, Brihaspati, Vayu, Usas, vāmadeva Gautama.
 
 5th Mandalahas 87 suktas, in the main to Agni and Indra, Atri clan,
the Vishvedevas (“all the gods’), the Maruts, the twin-deity Mitra-Varuna, and
the Asvins. Two hymns each is attributed to Ushas (the dawn) and to Savitr.
 
 6th Mandalais formed with 75 suktas, chiefly to Agni and Indra, all the gods, Pusan,
Ashvin, Usas, bārhaspatya family of Angirasas, etc.
 
 7th Mandalais made up of 104 suktas, dedicated to Agni, Indra, Indra-
Varuna, Varuna, vasiṣṭha maitravaruṇi,  the Visvadevas, the Maruts, Mitra-
Varuna, the Asvins, Ushas, Vishnu, Vayu (the wind), Sarasvati (ancient
river/goddess of learning), and to others.
 
 8th Mandalahas 103 suktas to numerous gods. Hymns 8.49 to 8.59 are about Sage
Valakhilya yet has not enough proof.  The Kanva clan is presented in hymns 1–48
and 60–66. The rest belong to Angirasa poets and sages.
 
 9th Mandalacontains 114 suktas (hymns), fully committed to Soma Pavamana, the
purification of the holy drink of the Vedic dogma.
 
 10th Mandala constitutes 191 Sukta (hymns), often in later speech, sermon
to Agni, Indra,and many other demigods. Nadistuti sukta of this volume adores
rivers, explains reconstruction of the geography of the Vedic sophistication and
the Purusha sukta is related to Vedic sociology. The Nasadiya sukta (10.129) dole
out with various conjectures about the creation of the universe. It also has the
wedding hymns (10.85) and the death hymns (10.10–18) which has been used in the
modern age too.

Sukta/ Hymn and prosody


The collection of hymns (Sukta) form each mandala. Sukta= Su+ Ukta where “Su”
means well and “Ukta” means recited. Sukta is a well-recited eulogy focused on
varieties of rites and rituals. The suktas are made up of distinct stanzas of praise,
which are in addition broke down into sections of verse known as pada (step or
foot).
The Rig veda has hymns with various poetic meters in Vedic Sanskrit such as
Gayatri (3 verses of 8 syllables), trishtubh (4×11), anushtubh (4×8), and jagati
(4×12).

Caste system of India


The caste system divides Hindus into four main categories - Brahmins, Kshatriyas,
Vaishyas and the Shudras. Many believe that the groups originated from Brahma,
the Hindu God of creation.
At the top of the hierarchy were the Brahmins who were mainly teachers and
intellectuals and are believed to have come from Brahma's head. Then came the
Kshatriyas, or the warriors and rulers, supposedly from his arms. The third slot
went to the Vaishyas, or the traders, who were created from his thighs. At the
bottom of the heap were the Shudras, who came from Brahma's feet and did all the
menial jobs.
For centuries, caste has dictated almost every aspect of Hindu religious and social
life, with each group occupying a specific place in this complex hierarchy.
Rural communities have long been arranged on the basis of castes - the upper and
lower castes almost always lived in segregated colonies, the water wells were not
shared, Brahmins would not accept food or drink from the Shudras, and one could
marry only within one's caste.

The system bestowed many privileges on the upper castes while sanctioning
repression of the lower castes by privileged groups.

In the picture there is Brahma on the left, the Hindu god of creation, whose body
parts are connected to a part of the colorful triangle in the middle of the picture:
Head- Brahmins (priests); upper body-Kshatryas (warriors); lower body-Vaishyas
(merchants); feet-Shudras (peasants). Under the triangle there are two other
categories explained: Adivasis- Indigenous people of South Asia. For self-
determination and political/cultural autonomy, they fights against the stripping of
their ancestral land and its natural resources. Dalits-Caste communities that were
forced by Caste apartheid into slave and bonded agricultural labour, and undignified
sanitation work like manual scavenging. Branded untouchable for jobs considered
spiritually polluting, they struggle against extreme violence and discrimination. On
the right side, and arrow from up (high) to down (low)indicates the level of
access/ownership to resources and opportunities.

Since the Hindu traditions and the Indian culture is so intertwined, this kind of
social order is not only a religious belief about the creation and classification of
humankind, but a more thousands years old model of a real, functioning society.

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