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Sanskrit
- Vedas
Yajurveda
is the Veda of yajana or worship. It refers to acts of worship such
as oblations made into Agni or Fire. It has two branches, Krishna
or Black and Shukla or White. While both contain mantras
or incantations to be chanted at rituals, Black Yajurveda also has many
explanations. The recensions of Black Yajurveda are Taittirya, Katthaka,
Maitrayani and Kapishtthala. Those of White Yajurveda are Madhyanadina
and Kanva. The literary value of Yajurveda is mostly for its prose,
which consists of short terse sentences full of meaning and cadence.
The Veda that is also the most important text for priests, because it
concerns itself with the correct performance of sacrifices. This rests
on the belief that the order of the universe, including the deities,
can be affected by mistakes or any display of disrespect. The priests
of this Veda are known as Adhwaryus. While the hymns are mainly from
the Rig Veda, there is a variation in content and arrangement. The passages
in prose are definitely those of the Yajur Veda itself. Due to the subject-matter,
there are many sakhas (schools) associated with this work.
The two Sanhitas are the Taittiriya Sanhita or the Black Yajur, and
the Vajasaneyi Sanhita or the White Yajur. The former is not as systematic
as the latter, in part because the Mantra and Brahmana portions are
not as separate as they should be. The prosaic view holds that the White
Yajur is a consequence of the need for a more organized Sanhita, while
legend holds otherwise.
A Motted Veda!
According to the Vishnu Purana and the Vayu Purana, Vaisampayana taught
the Yajur text (of twenty seven different schools) to his pupil Yajyawalkya.
However, the latter refused to participate in the appropriate penance
for the guru who had accidently killed a child. On being asked by an
enraged guru to return the knowledge he had imparted, Yajyawalkya vomited
out the text stained with blood! The other pupils turned into partridges
(tittira) and partook of the Yajur text! This became the Taittiriya
Yajur. Yajyawalkya departed and through severe penance, compelled the
Sun (Surya) to teach him those of the Yajur texts not imparted to him
by his guru. The Sun, in the shape of a horse (Vajin) communicated the
desired knowledge to him. Hence, the Vajasaneyi or White Yajur.
Essentially, the contents of both are one and the same, although the
White Yajur does contain some matter not in the Black Yajur. The latter
was well-known in the third century BC.
The Black Yajur is divided into seven kandas (books) of forty four prasnas
(chapters) and each of 651 anuvakas (sections). There are 2198 kandikas
(pieces, each piece comprising fifty words). The White Yajur consists
of forty adhyays (chapters), three hundred and three anuvakas (sections)
and 1975 kandikas.
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