Describe the Vedic Literature and Throw Light on the Geographical Area Known to Vedic Text
Essay Preview: Describe the Vedic Literature and Throw Light on the Geographical Area Known to Vedic Text
Report this essay
DESCRIBE THE VEDIC LITERATURE AND THROW LIGHT ON THE GEOGRAPHICAL AREA KNOWN TO VEDIC TEXT
The settlements of the Indus civilisation were either destroyed or abandoned by about 1750 B.C. to be rediscovered only three thousand years later. What happened after the collapse of this rich civilisation is one of the most intriguing questions of human history and centres around the Aryan problem. Who were the Aryans where did they come from, what was their original language – these are questions over which there have been many debates and much written. But more the debate, more the mystery seems to deepen. One of the major question regarding the Aryans in India revolves around whether they arrived from outside or were indigenous people According to some scholars, we nee not look outside India for their origin and that the Aryans predated and not succeeded the people of the Indus civilisation According to others, including Max Muller the Aryans had their original home in Central Asia from where they migrated due to climatic and other reasons. In support of their theory, they point out the similarity be tween the language of the Rig veda.
On the other hand, Bai Gangadhar Tilak, on the basis of astronomical evidence, came to the conclusion that the Aryans had their original home in the Arctic region or some where around the North pole.
Whatever may be the truth one wonders if it will ever be established authoritatively it seems nearly certain that the Aryans had established themselves in India by about 1500 B.C. and that their earliest the Rig Vedia had been composed somewhere between 1500-1200 B.C..
VEDIC LITERATURE
As we have seen earlier the Indus civilisation and developed some sort of a script as we see on their seals, but there is no evidence of a literature development by these people. On the other hand, script was a much later development with the Aryans while their literature flowered at a very early stage.
The Vedas from which this civilisation takes its name are the earliest literary compositions of all humanity. These are essentially four: the Rig Veda, the Samaveda, Yajurveda, and the Atharvaveda.
The Rig Veda is not only the oldest but also the most important source for portraying the life and the struggle of the people of the time. It is basically a collection of hymns addressed to various objects of worship – the sun, moon, fire, wind, rain, the dawn and other deities either seeking their help or praising them, these hymns (suktas) 1028 in number (1017 according to some scholars) are grouped into ten books (mandalas) of unequal size. Of these, the core of the entire work consists of Books II -VII which are known as Family Books having been composed by families of sages and known as such.
Described as “the first outpourings of the human spirit” there is much that is today complex and incomprehensible in the Rig Veda but much that is sheer beauty bordering on the sublime. Rabindranath Tagore described the Vedic hymns as a apoetic testament of a peoples collective reaction to the wonder and awe of existence.
The Samaveda grew out of the Rig Veda and is a compilation of hymns in the nature of musical compositions. The Yajurveda is ritualistic in nature consisting of mantras meant for sacrificial occasions.
The Atharvaveda is different in nature from the earlier three and is a composition of a later date. Here we find magical incantations and mantras dealing with ailments and healing. Divided into twenty mandalas, the Atharvaveda has an atmosphere of simple animism and sympathetic magic on a lower cultural level than that of the Rigveda,
The four Vedas form the main body of Vedic literature and though there have been later interpolations in the texts, these have been relatively minor ones so that the Vedas have come down to us more or less in their original form. Though they were reduced to writing centuries after their composition, the Brahmins evolved rules of learning the Veda through memory, which were so strict so as to discourage any change or innovation. This was indeed a remarkable achievement and once again testifies to the element of continuity in Indian culture.
The Vedas were accompanied by a large corpus of ancillary literature. Among these are the Brahmanas, which constitute a sort of commentary on the Vedas. The more important of these are the Aitareya Brahman, the Satpatha Brahman, the Jaiminiya Brahman, and the Gopatha Brahman associated with the Rig. Yajur, Sama and the Atharva Vedas respectively. In this category of commentaries on the Vedas are also the Aranayakas. The word is derived from aranayaka meaning “forest” and the Aranayakas were texts meant for the hermits. Among the important Aranayakas are the Aitariya, the Taitaniya and the Maitrayani. The Aranayakas are marked by speculative thought and deep meditations on philosophical questions.
The class of Vedic literature which carries human thought to its pinnacle are the Upanishads. “In the whole world” said the German philosopher Schopenhauer, “there is no study so beneficial and so elevating as that of the Upanishads. It has been the solace of my death”. Composed between 800-500 B.C. the upanishads – 108 in number start questioning and some times ridicule the rigidity and the rituals propagated by the Vedas. The most remarkable feature of the Upanishads, however, is the spirit of inquiry and the constant probing to get to the essence of things, enshrined in the famous invocation:, Lead me from the unreal to the reall Lead me from darkness to light Lead me from death to immortality; (Brihadaranyaka Upanishad).
GEOGRAPHICAL AREA KNOWN TO VEDIC TEXTS
Although the origin of the Aryan people is shrouded in mystery, the corpus of Vedic literature, and more especially