4. Vedas: India’s Greatest Treasure
• India, Bharatvarsha, Jambudvipa, Aryavrata and so much more
names have been assigned to ancient India. India has always been
a great land, for great people were born here who nurtured India
with their knowledge, bravery and valor.
• India is the land of rishis, who wrote one of the greatest texts ever
written, the Vedas.
• The vedas hold an important place in our culture and civilization,
and are written in praise of gods and goddesses.
• Hymns, also known as Sukta, which translates into “well said”
make up the Vedas.
5. FOUR KINDS OF VEDAS ARE :
• Rig Veda: Rig Veda is the oldest of the four Vedas, which is
said to be written in a Vedic language which later developed
into Sanskrit as we know today. It has ten divisions known as
mandalas, which has hymns and mantras used in worship
and rituals. It has 1028 hymns in total.
• Yajur Veda: The word “Yajur” means worship. Hymns
performed before the yajnas are listed in the Yajur Veda. It
has 1975 mantras.
• Sama Veda: Sama means “song”. The third of Vedas, the
Sama Veda is a liturgical text which has hymns in form of
chants and melodies. It has 1549 verses.
• Atharva Veda: Atharva Veda is very different from the above
mentioned Vedas, as it is a complete book on the everyday
procedures of our life. It has 5977 mantras.
6. Rigveda
It is the oldest Veda composed about 3500
years ago.
Three gods are important-
• Agni: the God of fire
• Indra: a warrior God
• Soma: a plant from which a special drink
was prepared.
7. •The Rigveda is in old or Vedic Sanskrit.
•The Rigveda was recited and heard rather than read.
•It was written down several centuries after it was first composed
and printed less than 200 years ago.
9. Themes of Hymns in the Rigveda
• There are many prayers for cattle, children (especially sons)
and horses.
• Battles were fought to capture cattle, land, water and for
people.
• A part of the wealth so obtained was then kept by the leaders,
some was given to the priests and the rest was distributed
amongst the people.
• Some wealth was also used for performing yajnas or
sacrifices.
• There was no regular army, but there were assemblies where
people met and discussed matters of war and peace.
11. Words to Describe People
• Brahmins: the priests who performed various rituals.
• Rajas: But they did not have capital cities, palaces or armies, nor
did they collect taxes. Generally, sons did not automatically
succeed fathers as rajas.
• Jana: the people or community as a whole.
• Vish: The word Vaishya comes from Vish.
• Sometimes, the people who composed the hymns described
themselves as Aryas and called their opponents Dasas or Dasyus.
• Dasas or Dasyus were people who did not perform sacrifices and
probably spoke different languages.
14. Megaliths
• Stone boulders carefully arranged by people and used to mark burial
sites are known as megaliths.
• The practice of erecting megaliths began about 3000 years ago and
was prevalent throughout the Deccan, south India, in the north-east
and Kashmir.
• Some megaliths are on the surface, while others are often
underground.
• Generally, the dead were buried with distinctive pots which are
called Black and Red Ware.
• Tools and weapons of iron, skeletons of horses, horse equipment and
ornaments of stone and gold were also found.
• Objects found with the skeletons were an indicator of the difference
in status amongst the people who were buried.
16. Special Burial at Inamgaon
• This site was occupied between 3600 and 2700
years ago.
• Adults were generally buried under the ground, laid
out straight, with the head towards the north.
• Sometimes burials were within the houses.
• Vessels that probably contained food and water
were placed with the dead.
17. Charaka Samhita
• About 2000 years ago, Charaka, a
famous physician wrote a book on
medicine known as the Charaka
Samhita.
• He states that the human body has
360 bones, a number much larger than
that recognised by modern anatomy.
• He arrived at this figure by counting
the teeth, joints and cartilage.
