Arya Samaj Queensland
Importance of The Vedas
The Vedas are almost the oldest written documents in the world. The Vedas are the highest and most important religious texts of the Hindu religion. Veda means “knowledge” in common language.
Basically, science is the light that destroys the darkness of ignorance in the human mind. The Vedas have been called a source of history, an endless repository of knowledge and science. The word Veda is derived from the Sanskrit word Vid, which means all kinds of knowledge contained in this one word. The sages of ancient India, called Mantradrishtas, after knowing, understanding, meditating and experiencing the deep secrets of mantras, compiled that knowledge in writings and presented it to the world, these ancient texts are called “Vedas”. It is believed that these mantras were brought by God to the ancient sages. Hence Vedas are also called Shruti.
The Vedas contain a tradition of worshiping only one God, a message of one religion – ‘Manav Dharma’. The Vedas teach people humanity, equality, friendship, kindness, love, unity, non-violence, truth, contentment, non-stealing, non-lordship, celibacy, purity of conduct, thought, conduct, purity of food and drink and consolidation of austerity – sacrifice – Active work in life.
Vedas are the basis of religion; Vedas are full of all knowledge. The true knowledge of this world, this life and the great Father God is “Veda”.
Vedas are those texts of Indian culture which are full of knowledge related to almost all subjects like astrology, mathematics, science, religion, medicine, nature, astronomy etc. Vedas are the backbone of our Indian culture. They contain remedies related to evil and remedies to achieve the desired result. But just as any work requires hard work, similarly, only by studying these gems like Vedas diligently can a person obtain the knowledge contained in them.
Compilation of Veda Mantras and Number of The Vedas
It is believed that initially there was only one Veda, and it was divided into four parts for the convenience of reading. This is evident from a verse mentioned in Shrimad Bhagwat. There are thousands of mantras and compositions in these Vedas which were probably not composed at one time and neither by a single sage. They were composed of sages from time to time and they kept getting collected.
According to the verse of Shatapath Brahman, Agni, Vayu and Surya performed penance and obtained Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharvaveda.
The first three Vedas have been associated with Agni, Vayu and Surya. They have been related to the sages of these three names, because the reason for this is that Agni destroys the darkness which is the darkness of ignorance. Due to this, it has become a symbol of knowledge. Air is usually in motion; its work is to flow.
It means to keep doing work or action. Therefore, it is related to work. The sun is the most radiant one, to whom everyone bows down and worships him. Therefore, it is said that he is worthy of worship. According to a text, the four Vedas originated from the four mouths of Brahmaji.
1. Rigveda
Rigveda is the first Veda; it contains knowledge of the things of creation. It describes the qualities of God, living beings and nature, ideal principles of life and practical knowledge.
• This Veda has 1028 verses (mantras) and 10 mandalas (chapters). The verses of Rigveda describe prayers, praises of the gods and their status in Devlok.
2. Yajurveda
Yajurveda mainly describes rituals. That is, how a man should use his acquired knowledge to get his desired results and salvation.
• This Veda has two branches, Shukla and Krishna. There are 1975 mantras in 40 chapters.
3. Samveda
Samveda describes the ways of praising God, worshiping Him and spiritual advancement. Sam means transformation and music. It contains devotional and peaceful prayers, which are very helpful in mental and spiritual development.
• This Veda contains the musical form of the verses (om mantras) of the Rigveda. It is basically the worship of music. It contains 1875 mantras.
4. Atharvaveda
Atharvaveda contains science and technical knowledge. Such as – psychology, economics, sociology, politics, agriculture, Ayurveda, cosmology, mathematics, astrology, physics, chemistry, military science etc.
• This Veda is the largest, it has 5687 mantras in 20 chapter. Reference: https://elibrary.thearyasamaj.org/browse/authors.
