A Brief overview of

Vedas
Vedas are the word of God; they are the source book of all the tenets of Hinduism

Just as science is a compendium of knowledge about which no one can boast to

be a father, but is a treasure of knowledge of this objective world to which so many
scientists the world over have contributed, so also the facts of life coming down to us as
Vedic philosophy does not have any one person from who is said to be its sole author.
There were thinkers & seers, all equally great, who have together contributed to it being
what it is. If at all we have to say who is the father of this treasure of knowledge then the
finger obviously is turned to that one non-dual reality, which has manifested the truth
through the medium of these various dedicated seers. Almost every mantra in Vedas have
their respective Rishis who was said to be the one who realized that fact. Even today we
have all the details of each and every Rishi - the seer. The treasure of knowledge thus
brought about is today called as VEDAS. Vedas are the basis of Sanatan Dharma. Just as
today there is great respect towards science, and therefore the moment someone says that
this is what science says then the whole way of looking at something changes, so also there
was a time when the people of India looked up to Vedas. It commanded so much respect
that to say something is written in Vedas was tantamount to taking that as real & truth. Sri
Veda Vyasji is said to have compiled and organized the various mantras in what is today
known as Vedas. On the basis of its chanting methodologies the mantras were compiled in
four volumes called the Four Vedas. The Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharvana Vedas. The
followers of Sanatan Dharma believe that Vedas have been revealed by God himself at the
beginning of creation, but the western scholars believe that Rig Vedas was revealed
somewhere in between 5000 to 10000 years BC, and it thus becomes the oldest available
literature to man.

From the point of view of the subject matter of Vedas they have three distinct
parts. They are Mantra Section, Brahmana Section, and the final Upanishad Section. The
Mantra Section comprises the revelations of the great Rishis, the Brahmana Section deals
with the application of mantras for our day to day use; they thus deal with elaborate rituals,
do's & don’ts etc, while the last section of Upanishad deals with the philosophy of the
Vedas. Upanishads do not prescribe any do's & don’ts, they rather ask a person to just
relax and thoroughly understand the things of life deeply & thoroughly. Upanishads are in
the form of dialogue between a teacher and his disciple. They being the last section of the
Vedas they are also called as the - Vedanta.