Vedic Period

Lasting from 1750 BCE to 600 BCE, the vedic age began with the Aryan Invasion and decline of the Harappan Civilization. It forms an important part of ancient history. This new society was a rural one primarily relying on cattle. The philosophy, religion, society and social customs of Hindus which form the major population of India have their main source in the Vedic literature texts. It is divided into Early Vedic Age (1500 BC to 1000BC) and later vedic age (from 1000BC to 500BC).

The great Harappan or Indus Valley Civilisation declined as Aryans invaded India from the north west passages through Afghanistan. Thus began the Vedic age. This is called the Aryan Invasion Theory. When Aryans moved in Indian Subcontinent they came into conflict with people whom they referred to as Dasyus or Dasas. The Vedic people (Aryans) distinguished themselves from the non-Aryan people. These social divisions are considered to have arisen towards the end of the early Vedic period. Various professional groups such as warriors, priests, cattle-keepers, farmers, barbers are also mentioned. Thus, various varnas emerged: Brahmans from the mouth, Kshatriyas from the arms, Vaishyas from the thigh and the Sudra from the feet of the Purusha.

It is believed that the Vedic Civilization is a mixture of Indo-Aryans and Harappans. Much is known about this culture through the Vedas which were seminal texts of the time and also the source of much of Hindu religious practiced today. Various mention political and social life of the time. They speak about the armies and various battles fought among Aryans and natives.

Battle of ten kings (‘Dasrajanah’) happened between the Bharata clan and ten chiefs. The battle took place on the banks of the river Paurushni, identified with the river Ravi. In this battle, Sudas won and he became important leading to the dominance of Bharata clan. The Purus were one of the defeated clans. The Purus and Bharatas formed an alliance and later they formed Kuru clan. Kurus along with Panchalas established control over the Upper Ganga Valley leading to the Later Vedic Age from 1000 to 500 BCE.

Archaeological Sources: We get an elaborate picture of the vedic civilization from pottery and archaeological sites.

• Sites: Even though the archaeological evidence is less, certain sites are considered important such as Hastinapur, Rajghat, Atranjikhera, Kaushambi in Uttar Pradesh.
• Pottery: The main pottery associated with the Vedic Civilization are Painted Grey Ware (PGW), Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP), Black and Red Ware (BRW), Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW).

Aryans lived in the Sapta Sindhu area i.e. the land of seven rivers. These rivers are the Indus, Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, Chenab, Jhelum, and Saraswati. Rig Vedic literary sources mention many rivers, mountains and the ocean. In them, the Himalaya is called Himvant and the Hindu Kush mountains are called Munjavanta. 40 different rivers are mentioned such as Jamuna, ghaggar, ganga, saraswati, brahmaputra, etc giving us an idea of the spread of the Vedic Civilization.

• Oral History: No evidence of written records is found but knowledge about the time was spread through oral histories. Veda or the Samhita is the first Vedic literary source written many centuries later.
• Pastoral Society: The dominant occupation was cattle farming. Cattle was the chief estimate of wealth. Gavishti, Gavesana, Gavyat were the various terms used to define conflicts and wars. The Chief or the Rajan of the Early Vedic Age is called ‘Gomati’ (the protector of cows).
• Metals: Copper and gold were common and later it was supplemented by silver and iron, unlike the Indus Valley Civilzation where no iron was found.
• Family: The core of early vedic society is Family headed by Grihpati. Group of families make up a village and many villages together make up a tribal unit. Joint family system prevalent. Practice of Monogamy and there are instances of polygamy too but it was rare
• Warrior Race: The Aryan people are said to have technology and abilities like horses, swords, bows, helmets, coat of mail, chariots, etc which helped them defeat indigenous rulers.
• Egalitarianism: Vedic society was largely egalitarian that means women were treated equally with men and also varna system was not rigid and not based on birth.
• VARNA SYSTEM: The Aryan Society had only three castes originally, Brahmin (priest), Kshatriya (warrior), and Vaishya (commoner). But later Shudras (servants) were added. These were divided not based on birth, but based on occupation.

The term Veda comes from the root ‘vid’ (‘to know’) which means ‘knowledge’.

• There are four Vedas—Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva. Rig veda along with Yajur veda and Sama Veda is called the ‘Vedatrayi’, meaning trio of the Veda.
• Vedas are classified into Shruti Literature (that is heard) and Smriti (remembered).
• Shrutis are thoughts that are expressed by the Rishis in a meditative state or revealed by Gods to them.
• Smritis include the Vedangas (limbs of the Vedas), Puranas(sacred literature of Hinduism), Epics and Dharmashastras.
• Each Veda has four parts, i.e, the Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka, and Upanishad.
• Rig Veda: It is the oldest text of Hinduism also called the ‘First Testament of Mankind’. It was written between the period of 1500 BCE TO 1000 BCE.
• Yajur Veda: It is a ritualistic Veda and is mainly meant to explain sacrifices.
• Sama Veda: The Sama Veda is shortest of all vedas and consists of hymns used for rituals and can also be called the ‘Veda of Chants’.
• Athar Veda: Was the last veda to be written and is the oldest source of Indian medicine. It mentions Ayurveda.
• Samhitas It is a collection of Vedic hymns. It contains Brahmanas, which are comments on the hymns.
• Aranyakas are Forest books containing ritual instructions for sages.
• Upanishad or Vedanta There are a total of 108 Upanishads and the oldest is the Brihadaranyaka. The Mundaka Upanishad has mention of ‘Satyamev Jayate’.
• VEDANGAS: These are supplementaries to the Vedas for better understanding written in Sutra (thread) form.
• DHARMASHASTRAS It deals with the code of conduct and moral laws. It is further divided into Dharmasutras and Smritis.
• EPICS or Mahakavyas Mainly, there are two epics- Ramayana written by Valmiki and the Mahabharata by Ved Vyasa.
• UPAVEDAS It is described as technical literature or traditional sciences. E.g. Ayurveda for medicine and Arthaveda for science of craft and wealth.
• PURANAS: It is a mixture of tales, anecdotes, songs, ballads,etc.

Vedic knowledge gave insights into scientific, spiritual and psychological behaviour in the modern age. Thus, it is very important that people of the modern age should utilise the values of ancient Vedic sources to deal with spiritual and emotional loss and help build a balanced life.

• Rituals: Vedic Literature is very important for the understanding of ancient rituals.
• The Gurukul model of education of the Vedic Period helped develop leadership qualities, management skills, techniques of problem solving, managing ego, understanding of grammar, social science, mathematics, science, etc.
• Science: The subjects related to astronomy, cosmology, space research, universe, medicine, thermodynamics, etc are mentioned in the Vedic sources.

After the decline of the urban Indus Valley Civilization a new rural settlement began in the Early Vedic Age. Later as trade developed towns began to rise. Vedic Culture forms the base of the Hindu religion and the oldest texts of Hinduism can be traced from this period such as the Rig Veda, Upanishads, etc. The codification of laws and the system of establishing a powerful kingdom with a standing army was for the first time introduced during this period.

As the Vedic Age went into decline, the Aryan Society gave way to urban settlements and laid the foundation of the Mahajanapadas. The Mahajanapada era was also called the Second Urbanization, after the Harappan Civilization being the first