Key Points in this Book
The Vedic Saṃhitās are the most esteemed literary works of the Āryans.
The Atharva Veda contains hundreds of original hymns dealing with an assortment of topics with differing concerns from the other three Saṃhitās.
Some scholars speculate that most Vedic deities are male due to an Āryan patriarchal social structure.
Indologist Max Müller speculated on the origin of religion. However, such speculation is currently unpopular due to lack of evidence to support such theorizing.
The "cosmic order" was important to Āryan civilization, as was the degree to which all aspects of life were aligned with it.
Sacrificial rites (yajña) were elevated in the Brāhmaṇas to an importance that surpassed the gods, for it was believed that yajña itself maintained the cosmic order.
Tradition holds that any text with secret teachings is an Upaniṣad. The Āraṇyakas, forerunners of the Upaniṣads, have similar associations with secrecy and philosophical speculation.
The Upaniṣads are concerned primarily with the nature of Absolute Reality (Brahman), the true nature of the individual self (ātman), and the relationship between the two.
The four genres of Vedic literature that are appended to each other (namely, the Saṃhitās, Brāhmaṇas, Āraṇyakas, and Upaniṣads) are regarded as śruti (divinely revealed), whereas all other religious literature is regarded as smṛti (traditional).
By the fifth century BCE, texts developed that were classified as primary and secondary appendages (aṅga) to the Vedas, namely the Vedāṅgas and the Upāṅgas.
Since ancient Vedic times, astrology has been regarded as a vital supplement to the study of the Vedas themselves.
Āyurveda is considered supplemental to the Vedas, and this status ensures that Āyurvedic styles of medicine are well regarded and still widely practiced in India today.
