বেদ - A brief description of the four Vedas - Rik, Sama, Yajur and Atharva. With that the famous Shiva mantra is explained.
त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम् । उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृत्योर्मुक्षीय मामृतात्
We worship Tryambaka (the three eyed, Rudra)
who spreads fragrance and increases nourishment.
May He release me, like the cucumber from its stem,
from mortal life, but not from immortality. (R VII 59-12)
गणानां त्वा गणपतिं हवामहे कविं कवीनामुपमश्रवस्तमम् ।
ज्येष्ठराजं ब्रह्मणां ब्रह्मणस्पत आ नः शृण्वन्नूतिभिः सीद सादनम् ॥
We call on Thee, Lord of hosts,
The Sage of Sages, the most reputed of all;
The Supreme King of spiritual knowledge, O Lord of spiritual wisdom!
Listen to us with thy graces, and sit in the place (of worship). (R II 23.1)
The Vedas are the fountainhead of Hinduism and its ultimate sacred scriptures. These sacred books are the most ancient preserved literature of the world. It is difficult to say when exactly these works were composed. According to educated guess, these are more than seven to 8,000 years old.
The contents of these books are the records of the spiritual realisation of the sages of that period. Some of the mantras of the Vedas, including the Gaytri mantra are quite popular and are recited regularly by millions.
Everything of Hinduism, the grand old religion of the world, flows out of these sacred books, organised in four -- Rik, Sama, Yajur and Atharva. Composed and preserved in an oral tradition since ancient times, these contain in full the four aspects of religion - philosophy, mythology, rituals, and ethics. Most importantly, these contain the Upanishads, popularly known as Vedanta, which is the greatest philosophical system in the world.
The Vedas contain more than 20, 000 verses of varied lengths. The language used is very old and the mantras have profound meaning. This series of talks tries to give a simple overview of these sacred books.
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