Holy Vedas : The First Hinduism Philosophical Guide

The Holy Vedas are the oldest and most respected scriptural Hindu writings. They were passed down orally for generations before finally being written in Sanskrit the ancient Indian language in 1500 BCE. This book contains the precise English translation of all four Vedas: namely Rig Veda Yajur Veda Atharva Veda and Sam Veda. These are four collections and feature poetry hymns prayers and religious thought. The Rig Veda is the oldest and pre-eminent out of the four and it alone contains over a thousand hymns. The hymns impart a deep understanding of Indian mythology and culture and are thus an enchanting introduction to Hinduism. The Rig Veda provides a detailed description of the Indian gods the most important of which are Agni (Fire) Indra (Heavens and War) Surya (Sun) Vayu (Wind) and Prithvi (Earth). Friedrich Max Müller was a founding figure of Vedic studies in Europe. He believed that a study of the oldest records of Vedic civilization was essential to understand the development of European faiths. To accomplish this he studied and translated the Rig-Veda the oldest of the Vedic writings from Sanskrit to English. The intention behind this was to preserve the spirit of the original Sanskrit mantras.