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07. Scriptures
Just like the Bible and Quran are the fundamental scriptures for Christianity and Islam, the Vedas are Hinduism’s oldest and most important scriptures. Vedas are meditations that explore the nature of reality, or the “Truth”, and are classified into 4 books. Each of the 4 Vedas have 4 sections:
- Samhitas – Hymns
- Brahmanas – Priestly Manuals
- Aranyakas – Forest treatises
- Upanishads – Enlightened Discourses
Upanishads are also known as Vedanta, that which comes at the end of the Vedas. They are the metaphysical discourses that are usually in an entertaining story format, with a teacher and a student, exploring the nature of “Truth”.
Upanishad, the word literally means “come sit near”. The seers of the Vedic age were used to giving public talks (similar to the stories of the Buddha giving large sermons). However, not all the secrets can be revealed to a crowd. If Einstein were asked to explain the Theory of Relativity to a crowd at the Madison Square Garden, he would likely give a lighter-weight TED-talk on his findings. Crowds do not understand nuance.
The Truth (ultimate truth) is subtle. Understanding the truth requires a preparation of the body, mind and spirit. When the student is ready, the teacher would ask the student to “come sit near”, so the truth may be revealed with clarity and precision. The Upanishads record the Truth with nuance, clarity and precision. It is best to approach these texts with reverence and a reasonable estimation of one’s readiness.
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Other reading material: Book-The Upanashads by Eknath Easwaran,
Relevant videos:
Contributor: Madhu
Location of this post (7b): https://www.hinduspeakers.org/ufaqs/what-are-the-upanishads-about/
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07. Scriptures
Vedas are the most authoritative and the root scripture from which others are derived. Vedanta is the end part of the Vedas that consist of the philosophical aspects of vedic teachings. Itihasa and Purana show the practical aspects of how people lived in alignment with Vedic teachings. As questions emerged in the society about the practical aspects of vedas, they were allowed to freely question, meditate, debate and determine a common course/understanding. Summary of such common understanding of the practical aspects of Vedas were then documented in the Smriti’s.
Sri Aurobindo Ghose (1872-1950), Indian mystical and philosopher, put it this way: Hinduism is the most skeptical and the most believing of all religions. It is most skeptical because it has questioned and experimented the most and the deepest, rejecting nothing but insisting on testing and experiencing everything. From this come our scriptures and our beliefs: the Vedas, the Vedanta, the Gita, the Upanishads…But the most authoritative scripture is the heart, where the Eternal has His dwelling.
If you are new to Hinduism or exploring it, the best scripture to start with is Holy Gita. However, the most authoritative are the Vedas.
Other reading material:
Relevant videos: 10 min summary on Gita,
Author; Dilip Amin
Location of this post (7d): https://www.hinduspeakers.org/ufaqs/which-one-is-the-most-authoritative-scripture/
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07. Scriptures