Vedas: The Sacred Hindu Scriptures

By Tharini Ilanchezhian

Vedas dates back to the beginning of the Kali-Yuga, almost 2500 years old, these sacred texts defines the truth for Hindus. Vedas are considered to be the oldest texts of Hinduism that were written in 3000 BCE. There are totally four Vedas, The Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda and Atharva Veda among which the Rig-Veda is the oldest of all Hindu writings.

The Rig-Veda, the most important and ancient Veda, has been divided into ten books called 'Mandalas' and consists of 1028 hymns and praises of various deities. The gods of worship of this Veda includes Indra, Agni, Vishnu, Rudra, Varuna and the early Vedic gods. The famously "Gayathri Mantra" and the Purusha Shukta which means the story of a primal man is also contained in this Veda.

The Yajur-Veda is a handbook of the priests who perform Vedic sacrifices. The book is divided into two parts, significantly known as 'black' which is of the earlier period and 'white' which is the more recent one. The Sama-Veda is the Vedic scripture that consists of the melodies and chants that are sung during the worship of god and performance of Yajnas.

The Atharva-Veda consists of the spells, charms and the magical formulae that dates back to the period before the Aryan influence in the state. The Vedas are written in the language of Vedic Sanskrit which is the mother of all languages in the world. It was only orally transmitted from one to another for a period of hundred years before it was finally written down. Each and every mantra of the Veda has its own meaning that defines spiritual, social and physical existence of humans.

The interesting fact is that Vedas contain the fundamental knowledge of all forms- physics, chemistry, sociology and medicines. Vedas propagate equality as are strongly against any type of discrimination on the basis of gender, creed or caste. Vedas also insist on respecting all lives and is totally against killing of any being for selfish motives. The Vedas are highly relatable to the geography the whole world and all periods.