By James M. Rochford

Vedas

Vedas mean “knowledge.”[1] Hopfe writes, “The basic sacred scripture of Hinduism is the Vedic literature. These books are the source of the Hindu understanding of the universe, and all later material refers back to them and is seen as mere commentary upon them.”[2] Carmody and Carmody write, “To the traditional Hindu, the Vedic literature represents the highest intuitive knowledge that the rishis (holy persons or seers) had attained.”^[3]

There are four Vedas: the Rig Veda, the Sama Veda, the Yajur Veda, and the Arharva Veda. These are each broken into four parts. Carmody and Carmody write, “The Rig-Veda is the oldest, largest, and most important. It contains more than a thousand suktas… which are hymns to the gods, magical poems, riddles, legends and the like.”^[4] Hopfe writes, “There is dispute over the exact period in which the Vedas were written.”[5] It could be anywhere from 2,000 B.C. to the 500’s AD. Most put it anywhere between 1,500 B.C. and 400 B.C. This would be concurrent with the writing of the Old Testament.

While the Vedas were being composed, an entire priesthood arose within Hinduism. As the priesthood increased, this forced the people to come to them in order to please the gods, making the priests wealthy and powerful. Around 600 B.C., the people revolted against this system. They moved the focus from animal sacrifice and priestly service to personal and private meditation. Carmody and Carmody write, “For the Upanishadic thinkers, this realization was liberating because it avoided the priests’ multiplicity, externalism, and materialism that had sickened their souls. Though sacrifice and the gods continued to have a place in Upanishadic religion, they were quite subordinate to monism.”^[6]

Upanishads

The Upanishads are the fourth section of the Vedas. The Upanishads were written between 800 B.C. and 300 B.C. This is where Hindu pantheism originated. Halverson writes, “The Upanishads expound the idea that behind the many gods stands one Reality, which is called Brahman. Brahman is an impersonal, monistic (“all is one”) force.”^[7] Hopfe writes, “The Upanishads operate from a monistic presupposition. They assume that there is only one reality, the impersonal god-being called Brahman. All other beings are but an expression of Brahman. All that is not Brahman is an illusion (maya).”[8]

The Upanishads aren’t very popular in Hindu circles, because they are so difficult to understand.

Bhagavad-Gita

The Bhagavad-Gita is a Hindu holy book about a great battle of heroes and gods. It is found in the Mahabharata, and it was written sometime between 300 B.C. and AD 200.[9] In Western India, “movements arose that… forced changes from within Hinduism.”^[10] This led to interest in personal gods like Krishna, who is the featured god of the Bhagavata Gita. Carmody and Carmody write, “In later Hindu theology, Krishna became an avatar, or manifestation, of Vishnu.”^[11]

Shruti

This term literally means “that which is heard.” Carmody and Carmody write, “The technical term denoting such a state of wisdom is shruti, which translators often render as ‘revelation.’” However, this conception of revelation is much different from the Judeo-Christian view. Carmody and Carmody continue, “Shruti does not connote that divinities outside the human realm broke through the veil separating heaven and earth in order to impart light from above… Rather, shruti implies that the eminent holy person has perceived certain things in peak experiences (often induced by the ritual drink soma). Therefore, Vedic literature, representing what the rishis had seen, was considered the best and holiest presentation of knowledge.”^[12]

Smriti

This term is literally rendered “remembered.” These are secondary Scriptures that are similar to sacred commentaries or traditions.^[13] Halverson writes, “While the smriti scriptures are not as authoritative as the shruti scriptures, they have nevertheless exerted much more influence on the culture of India because of their popularity.”^[14] For instance, within the Mahabharata is the famous Bhagavad-Gita, whose main character is the god Krishna.