Vedas need no introduction and the whole world recognizes it as the first testimony of mankind. But what is in the Vedas largely remains a mystery. Here in this short text I would try and make it simpler what Vedas actually mean. The word VEDA is derived from the root word in Sanskrit known as VID which translates into knowledge. In simpler terms, the Vedas are the texts or ancient most tradition of knowledge passed on from generation to generations. The historicity of Vedas knowledge is hard to trace since time immemorial they were passed on by recitation and memorizing in a guru –shishya tradition.
vedas : What are the Vedas?
Hence the Vedas were completely preserved and carried on within the memories of the ancient sages and their disciples which came to be known as SHRUTI ( = which is spoken and heard). It was around not less than 5000 years back when the Vedic scriptures were written down and compiled by a group of sages in various books and scriptures. The necessity of writing down the Vedas was due to the fact that as time progressed the enormous memorizing potential of mankind slowly started to diminish. Vedas Yoga It is believed that the Vedic scriptures are of divine agency and have been passed on through divine intervention directly into the minds of enlightened souls of antiquity.
The Vedas which were finally written down was known as SMRITI ( = from the memory) and finally, we have four distinct Vedas which are also known as CHATURVEDA. The four Vedas in the sequence are:
1. RIG VEDA ( = RIG means to praise or glorify)
2. YAJUR VEDA ( = YAJUR means to worship)
3. SAMA VEDA ( = SAM means song and melody)
4. ATHARVA VEDA (ATHARVA = means ATHARVAN class of sages
The four Vedas are the fountain-head of physical, spiritual and eternal wisdom and is the treasure house of all forms of knowledge if one can comprehend.