A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism Klaus K Klostermaie

enouncer/renunciation 152
and author of the standard work L’Inde
classique (three volumes).
renouncer/renunciation
See SAMNYÄSA/SAMNYÄSI; TYÄGA/TYÄGI.
revelation
See SÄKÆÄTKÄRA; ŸRUTI.
Øgveda
The oldest of the Vedic saƒhitäs
(collections), consisting of 1017 hymns
(süktas) divided into ten books (or into
eight a•flakas or khaæõas) with an
appendix of 11 so-called Välakhïlyas,
written in an archaic Sanskrit (‘Vedic’).
There are widely differing opinions
regarding its age: since the time of Max
MÜLLER (end of the 19th century) it has
become customary to assign to it (fairly
arbitrarily) the date of c. 1500–1200
BCE; many Indian scholars postulate a
much earlier date (c. 4000–3000 BCE)
based on astronomical markers in the
texts. The hymns themselves are
ascribed to various ø•is (sages) and
addressed to a variety of devatas
(deities). About a quarter are hymns to
INDRA, next in frequency come AGNI
hymns. While early Western Indologists
considered them a kind of nature poetry,
often clumsy and prosaic, modern
scholars admit to not being able to
understand most of what the süktas are
about. Some contemporary Indian
scholars believe them to be an astronomical
code, embedding the observations
of the ancient Vedic Indians,
which were used to construct fire
ALTARS and to determine the times of
SACRIFICES (yajñas). According to many
Hindu schools of thought the Øgveda
was not created by any human nor conceived
by any deity but pre-existed
from eternity and was arranged in its
present shape by the mythical scholar
VYÄSA. For many centuries it was orally
transmitted from generation to
generation by means of elaborate and
complicated mnemonic devices. It was
not to be divulged to strangers or to
low-caste people. Only brahmins were
authorized to teach and to recite it.
Vedic hymns are still used in connection
with SAßSKÄRAS (rites of passage),
especially at weddings and funerals.
The beliefs expressed in the Øgveda
have largely been superseded by more
recent Puräæic ones. But nominally
adherence to the infallibility of the
Veda is still the criterion of orthodoxy
in Hinduism.
Øg-vidhäna
Texts that deal with magical effects of
reciting the hymns of the Øgveda,
attributed to ŸAUNAKA.
righteousness
See DHARMA.
rites of passage
See SAßSKÄRAS.
ritual (kriyä)
Hinduism is strongly shaped by ritual:
a brahmin’s entire life is accompanied
by ritual. Some of it is obligatory
(nitya), i.e. non-performance for one
year would lead to a loss of CASTE.
Some is optional (naimittika) and performed
for particular purposes
(kämya). Devotional Hinduism and
tantric Hinduism have developed additional
rituals that are deemed essential
for their followers. Rituals are believed
to be the means of joining the spiritual
world and participating in the rhythms
of the cosmos. Ritual initiation
(UPANAYANA) is a prerequisite for membership
in Hindu society; without it all
works would be in vain. Similarly it is
through ritual that a valid MARRIAGE is
entered into, and through ritual alone a
person can hope to find peace after
death. (See also WORSHIP.)