VEDIC CHANT |
| Background |
| The oral preservation of the Vedas has been the right and duty of brāhman adult males
since before the beginning of recorded history in South Asia. Women and
castes other than brahmans, kshatriyas, and vaisyas (the "twice-born") have only limited access to the Vedas. |
| Each brāhman belongs to a particular Vedic school (svaśākhā) by birthrite and recites
only the verses of that school. Boys begin learning this oral tradition between the
ages of 5 and 12 following their induction into Aryan society with the upanāyana ceremony at which special clothing and
symbols emphasize the importance of the duty. |
| Preservation of the Vedas
during the first couple of millennia of their existence was apparently
strictly an oral tradition (svadhyaya). Preservation has emphasized
the actual sound of the Vedas over their meaning and interpretation.
Written versions appear towards end of first millennium, C.E. and printed
versions appear during 19th century. |
| In modern times two principal
recentions (śākhās) coexist. (1) The Western/Northern tradition (Maharashtra, Saurashtra,
and Uttarpradesh) emphasizes the Śukla Yajurveda and some fo the Atharvaveda.
(2) The Southern (Madras, Andhra Pradesh, and Mysore) is generally richer
and stronger and focuses on Krsna Yajurveda while omitting the Atharvaveda. |
| Each Veda has four possible
parts, but these vary in detail according to the often geographically
specific recention. (1) Samhitā-pātha, (2) Brāhmana [an appendage to the original Vedas], (3) Aranyaka, (4) Upanisad. |
| Ksatriyas and brāhmans
probably composed the last two when they formed secret societies to promote
henotheistic beliefs over natural personification and monism over ritual-oriented
worship. Eventually other dwija accepted these as the Vedānta ("conclusion of the Vedas"). |
|
| The Vedas |
| The Vedas, [veda Sanskrit "knowledge," especially "supreme sacred knowledge" or "wisdom"] includes
religious verses (mantras), the earliest portions of which date from the end of the
2nd millennium, BCE, (possibly as early as 1500 BCE) composed by various "poets, seers, sages, and
ritualists" of the Aryan tribes of central Asia (Staal 1969:1a). Others believe these verses to be of divine origin. |
| The Vedas represent the oldest texts associated with Hinduism, but not all Hindus recognize all of them, and certainly do not value them all the same. |
| The three most widely accepted "books" — the Rg, Yajur, and Sāma Vedas — are inter-related. |
| The Rgveda contains the oldest
original hymns of praise and sacred songs in this collection and represents the core of theVedas. |
The Yajurveda contains of sacrificial formulae (yajumsi) for prayoga ("specific application"). Two versions of the Yajurveda coexist.
The Krsna ["black"] Yajurveda consists of both verses from the Rgveda and ceremonial instructions on how to apply these verses in ritual contexts.
The Śukla ["white"] Yajurveda is a purely poetic
form of the Yajurveda, but probably of later origin. |
| The Sāmaveda is
a set of mantras (sāmans) used by priests who act as
the cantors or preceptors at sacrifices. These three Vedas form the core of verses used in Vedic sacrifice and ritual. Sāmans are unique in that they take verses from the Rgveda and set them to pitch, a process that transforms the text. |
| The Atharvaveda contains myths, legends, and magical formulae of archaic origin collected
after the creation of the Yajurveda and Sāmaveda, but
some of which have origins that seem to be as ancient as the Rgveda but not created by Brahmans. |
|
| Presentation |
| The Vedas have had
two different forms of presentation. |
| 1. |
In the samhitā-pātha ["continuous recitation"] [pATha] form, brahmans recite the text without any special
morphological changes. |
| 2. |
In the pada-pātha ["word-for-word
recitation"] form the priest recites the text so that each word breaks
into its constituent syllables. This approach avoids the loss of syllabic
content through euphonic combination (sandhi), sometimes through
special formulae or vikrti. The oldest of these, the kramapātha is about 2500 years old. The mnemonic device "as a means of preserving
the sacred text gradually became an end in itself" (Staal 1969:5b). Four
of the best-known vikriti are: |
| |
| – |
samhitā (a b c d
e . . . . ) |
| – |
pada (a / b / c /
d / e / . . . ) |
| – |
krama (ab / bc /
cd / de / . . . ) |
| – |
jatā (abbaab / bccbbc
/ cddccd / deedde / . . . ) |
| – |
ghana (abbaabccbaabc
/ bccbbcddcbbcd / cddccdeedccde / . . . ) |
|
|
|
| Vedic Sanskrit and Accent |
| Vedic Sanskrit (the language
of the Vedas) employs accented syllables, udātta ("raised").
In written Tamil Brahman presentation, a lower pitch, the anudātta (marked by a line under the syllable), precedes the udatta, which
in turn precedes a higher pitch, the svarita (marked by
a vertical line over the syllable). |