PURANAS

PURANAS means ‘old’, composed by Vyasa.

 

There are 18 Mahapuranas (great Puranas), and many more Upapuranas (secondary Puranas). 

18 Mahapuranas includes the Vishnu, Narada, Bhagavata, Garuda, Padma, Varaha, Matsya, Kurma, Linga, Shiva, Skanda, Agni, Brahmanda, Brahmavaivarta, Markandeya, Bhavishya, Vamana, and Brahma. 

The origins of the Puranas may have overlapped to some extent with the Vedas, but their composition stretched forward into the 4th– 5th centuries CE, and in some cases, even later.

Puranas are supposed to have 5 characteristics (pancha-lakshanas), i.e

1. Creation of the world (sarga); 

2. Re-creation (pratisarga); 

3. The periods of the various Manus ; 

4.The genealogies of gods & rishis & 

5. Royal dynasties, including the Suryavamshi and Chandravamshi kings, whose origin is traced to the sun and the moon.

VEDAS literally mean, ‘to know’ & ‘source of knowledge’. There are four Vedas—Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva. 

Vedas have the status of #Shruti (means heard).

#Smriti (remembered) texts includes the Vedanga, Puranas, epics, Dharmashastra, & Nitishastra. 

Each Veda has 4 parts, the last three of which sometimes blend into each other— the Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka & Upanishad

#SAMHITA

Rig Veda Samhita is a collection of 1,028 hymns arranged in 10 books. 

Sama Veda consists of 1,810 verses, mostly borrowed from the Rig Veda, arranged according to the needs of musical notation. 

Yajur Veda deals with the details of the performance of rituals. 

Atharva Veda is the latest Veda and contains hymns, but also spells and charms which reflect aspects of popular beliefs and practices. 

BRAHMANAS are prose explanations of the Samhita portions & give details and explanations of sacrificial rituals and their outcome. 

#ARANAYAKAS interpret sacrificial rituals in a symbolic & philosophical way. 

 UPNISHADS: There are 108 Upanishads, among which 13 are considered the principal ones.