Key Texts Hinduism Flashcards
Aranyakas
each of a set of Hindu sacred treatises based on the Brahmanas, composed in Sanskrit c. 700 BC. Intended only for initiates, the Aranyakas contain mystical and philosophical material and explications of esoteric rites
Bhagavad Gita
Likely most influential of all Hindu scriptures. Does not official belong to the category of revealed scripture. “The song of the lord” teaches the purpose of existence
Brahmanas
Vedic ritual texts
Dharma Shastras
a genre of Sanskrit texts on law and conduct, and refers to the treatises (śāstras) on dharma. Unlike Dharmasūtra which are based upon Vedas, these texts are mainly based on Puranas. There are many Dharmashastras, variously estimated to be 18 to about 100, with different and conflicting points of view.[note 1] Each of these texts exist in many different versions, and each is rooted in Dharmasutra texts dated to 1st millennium BCE that emerged from Kalpa (Vedanga) studies in the Vedic era.[2][3]
The textual corpus of Dharmaśāstra were composed in poetic verses,[4] are part of the Hindu Smritis,[5] constituting divergent commentaries and treatises on duties, responsibilities and ethics to oneself, to family and as a member of society.[6][7] The texts include discussion of ashrama (stages of life), varna (social classes), purushartha (proper goals of life), personal virtues and duties such as ahimsa (non-violence) against all living beings, rules of just war, and other topics.[8][9][10]
Dharmaśāstra became influential in modern colonial India history, when they were formulated by early British colonial administrators to be the law of the land for all non-Muslims (Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs) in South Asia, after Sharia set by Emperor Aurangzeb, was already accepted as the law for Muslims in colonial India.
Epics
Long stories about heroes and gods
The Ramayana tells of the adventure of prince Rama. Who slays a demon that abducted his wife.
Laws of Manu
Text theat prescribes what constitutes righteous behaviour (dharma)
Mahabharata
one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa.[5] It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pāṇḍava princes and their successors.
It also contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four “goals of life” or puruṣārtha (12.161). Among the principal works and stories in the Mahābhārata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, the story of Shakuntala, the story of Pururava and Urvashi, the story of Savitri and Satyavan, the story of Kacha and Devayani, the story of Rishyasringa and an abbreviated version of the Rāmāyaṇa, often considered as works in their own right.
Puranas
a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends and other traditional lore.[2] The Puranas are known for the intricate layers of symbolism depicted within their stories. Composed originally in Sanskrit[3] and in other Indian languages,[4][5] several of these texts are named after major Hindu gods such as Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, and Adi Shakti.[6][7] The Puranic genre of literature is found in both Hinduism and Jainism.[5]
The Puranic literature is encyclopedic,[1] and it includes diverse topics such as cosmogony, cosmology, genealogies of gods, goddesses, kings, heroes, sages, and demigods, folk tales, pilgrimages, temples, medicine, astronomy, grammar, mineralogy, humor, love stories, as well as theology and philosophy.[2][4][6] The content is highly inconsistent across the Puranas, and each Purana has survived in numerous manuscripts which are themselves inconsistent.[5] The Hindu Maha Puranas are traditionally attributed to “Vyasa”, but many scholars considered them likely the work of many authors over the centuries; in contrast, most Jaina Puranas can be dated and their authors assigned.
Ramayana
a Sanskrit epic from ancient India, one of the two important epics of Hinduism, known as the Itihasas, the other being the Mahābhārata.[4] The epic, traditionally ascribed to the Maharishi Valmiki, narrates the life of Rama, a legendary prince of Ayodhya city in the kingdom of Kosala. The epic follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha, on the request of Rama’s stepmother Kaikeyi; his travels across forests in the Indian subcontinent with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, the kidnapping of Sita by Ravana – the king of Lanka, that resulted in war; and Rama’s eventual return to Ayodhya to be crowned king amidst jubilation and celebration.
Rig (Rg) Veda
Oldest of the Vedas
Samhitas
Are hymns of praise to a variety of Vedic gods and a few goddesses
Upanishads
are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.[2][3][note 1][note 2] They are the most recent part of the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, and deal with meditation, philosophy, consciousness, and ontological knowledge; earlier parts of the Vedas deal with mantras, benedictions, rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices.[6][7][8] While among the most important literature in the history of Indian religions and culture, the Upanishads document a wide variety of “rites, incarnations, and esoteric knowledge”[9] departing from Vedic ritualism and interpreted in various ways in the later commentarial traditions. Of all Vedic literature, the Upanishads alone are widely known, and their diverse ideas, interpreted in various ways, informed the later traditions of Hinduism.[2][10]
Vedas
are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.[5][6][7]
There are four Vedas: the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda.[8][9] Each Veda has four subdivisions – the Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), the Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices), the Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices), and the Upanishads (texts discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge).[8][10][11] Some scholars add a fifth category – the Upasanas (worship).[12][13] The texts of the Upanishads discuss ideas akin to the heterodox sramana-traditions
