Vedic Age

The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (c. 1500 – c. 500 BCE), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the Urban Indus Valley civilization and second urbanization which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain c. 600 BCE.

 The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of modern-day Hinduism, which also developed in the Kuru Kingdom. 

The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute the primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Vedic culture to be traced and inferred.

The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted in this period. The Vedic society was patriarchal and patrilineal. Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centered in Punjab, organized into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life.

 Aryans came from:

• Tibet: Dayanand Saraswati
• Arctic region: B. G. Tilak
• Max Muller: Central Asia
•  This is proved by some Aryan names mentioned in the Kassite inscriptions of 1600 BC and the Mitanni inscriptions of the fourteenth century BC, found in Iraq which suggests that from Iran a branch of the Aryans moved toward the west.
•  Zenda Avesta (Persian)
•  The Aryans are the original inhabitants of Central Asia.  They arrived in India around 1500 BC, though there is an ongoing debate.
•  The region where the Aryans settled in India was called Sapta Sindhu (also referred to as the Brahmavarta) Indus +5 + Ghaggar
•  The Aryans established themselves in India by defeating the natives whom they called Dasas or Dasyus
•  The period when the Aryans first settled in India, is known as the Early Vedic Period (1500 BC to 1000 BC)
•  The Aryans spread to Indo-Gangetic plains in the Later Vedic Period and this region came to be known as Aryavarta (1000 BC to 600 BC) The Aryans were the first people in India to know the use of iron and brought horses along with them.

Tribal Polity

•  The chief was the protector of the tribe or Jana
• However, he did not possess unlimited powers for he had to reckon with the tribal assemblies Sabha, Samiti, Vidhata, and Gana were the tribal assemblies. Of these, Vidhata was the oldest. These assemblies exercised deliberative, military, and religious functions.
• The two most important assemblies were the Sabha and Samiti. Samiti was general in nature and less exclusive than Sabha.
• Women attended Sabha and Vidhata in Rig Vedic times. few non-monarchical states (ganas) are described whose head was Ganapati or Jyestha.

Rivers Mentioned in Rig Veda

• Gomati Gomal
• Kurumi Kurram
• Kumbha Kabul
• Suvastu Swat
• Sindhu Indus
• Drishadvari Ghaggar /Chiang
• Saudi Satluj
• Vipers Beas
• Parish Ravi
• Asian Chenab
• Vitasta Jhelum

Socio-Economic Life in Rig Vedic Period

Tribal Organization:

•  Kinship was the basis of social structure.
•  People gave their primary loyalty to the tribe, which was called Jana.
•   Another important term that stands for the tribe in the Rig Veda is vis.
•   The term for family (kula) is mentioned rarely in the Rig Veda.
•  It seems that family in the early Vedic Phase was indicated by the term griha. Status of Women:
•  The institution of marriage was established, although symbols of primitive practices survived.
•  We also notice the practice of levirate and widow remarriage in the Rig Veda.
• The status of women was equal to men and they received Upanayana and education, studied Vedas and some of them even rose to the rank of seers composing Vedic hymns.
•  Monogamy was established, though polygamy and polyandry were also known.

Varna System:

•  Varna was the term used for color and it seems that the Aryans were fair and the indigenous inhabitants were dark in complexion.
•  The dasas and days, who were conquered by the Aryans, were treated as slaves and Sudras.
•  Gradually, the tribal society was divided into 3 groups-warriors, priests, and the people.
•  The fourth division called the Shudras appeared towards the end of the Rig Veda period.
•  In the age of Rig Veda, divisions based on occupations had started. But this division was not very sharp. 

Occupation:

•  Their earliest life seems to have been mainly pastoral, agriculture being a secondary occupation.
• The Aryans did not lead a settled life. Although they used several animals, the horse played the most significant role in their life.
•  The Rig Vedic people possessed better knowledge of agriculture. Plowshare is mentioned in the earliest part of the Rig Veda though some consider it an interpolation.
•  The term for war in the Rig Veda is gavisthi or 'search for cows'. The Rig Veda mentions such artisans as the carpenter, the chariot-maker, the weaver, the leather worker, the potter, etc. This indicates that they practiced all these crafts.
•  The term, ayas used for copper or bronze shows that metalworking was known.

Metals Known to Rig Vedic People

Gold - Hiranya

Iron- Shyama

Copper- Ayas

Early Vedic Religion

•  Did not believe in idol worship
•  Worshipped the forces of nature as the manifestation of one Supreme God
•  Vedic Gods have been classified into 3 categories -Terrestrial, Atmospheric, and Celestial
•  Indra, Agni, and Varuna were important Gods
•  Prithvi, Saraswati, Usha, and Aditi were female deities. They were not given the same position as male Gods.
•  People did not worship for spiritual reasons but for the welfare of Praja & Pashu Recitation of prayers, chanting of Vedic hymns, and sacrifices or yajnas were an important part of the worship.

Rig Vedic Gods

Indra:

•  He was the most important divinity.
•  He played the role of a warlord, leading the Aryan soldiers to victory against the demons.
•  250 hymns are devoted to him in the Rig Veda.
•  He was associated with thunder and storm and is addressed by various names: Ratheshtha, Jitendra Somapa, Purandara, Varitrahan, and Maghayam

Agni:

• He was the second important divinity.
•  He was an intermediary between Gods and men.
•  200 hymns of the Rig Veda are devoted to him.

Varuna:

•  He was the upholder of Rita or cosmic order or natural order.
•  He personified water. Soma:
•  He was considered to be the God of plants. An intoxicant drink was also called soma.

Yama:

•  He was the guardian of the world of the dead.
• Later Vedic Polity and Economy

Political Organization:

•  In later Vedic times, the data completely disappeared. The Sabha and Samiti continued to hold their ground, but their character changed.
•  Women were no longer permitted to sit in the Sabha, and it was now dominated by nobles and Brahmanas.
•  The formation of wider kingdoms made the king more powerful.
•  Tribal authority tended to become territorial. The term Rashtra, which indicates territory, first appears in this period.
•  The King performed the Rajasuya sacrifice, which was supposed to confer supreme power to him. He performed the Asvamedha, which meant unquestioned control over an area in which the royal house ran uninterrupted. He also performed the Vajapeya or the chariot race, in which the royal chariot was made to win the race against his kinsmen.
•  During this period of collection of taxes and tributes, the king's officer was called Sangrihitri.
•   Even in later Vedic times, the king did not possess a standing army. Tribal units were mustered in times of war, and, according to one ritual for success in war; the king had to eat along with his people from the same plate

Imp Ratnins/Officials in the Later Vedic Period

Purohit -Chief Priest, also sometimes referred to as Rashtragopa

Senani- Supreme Commander of the army

Prajapati -Officer-in-Charge of pasture land

Jivagribha- Police Officer

Spaces/Dutas- Spies who also sometimes worked as messengers

Gramin -Head of the village

Kulapati- Head of the family

Madhyamasi -Mediator on disputes

Bhagadugha -Revenue collector

Sangrahitri- Treasurer

Mahishi -Chief Queen

Suta -Charioteer and court minstrel

Occupation:

•  The Aryans now lived a sedentary life, domesticated animals, and cultivated on a greater scale than earlier sugarcane.
•  Cattle still constituted the principal form of movable property.
•  Wheat was also cultivated during this period along with barley.
•  Rice is mentioned in sources but was not an important crop at this time. Beans and Sesame and pulses such as Moong, Urad, etc. were also known.
•  New arts, artists, and craftsmen also emerged i.e. smelters, ironsmiths, carpenters, weavers, leather workers, jewelers, dyers, and potters. 

Social Organization:

•  The later Vedic society came to be divided into 4 varnas called the Brahmanas, rajanyas or Kshatriyas, vaishyas, and Shudras, each Varna was assigned its duty.
•  All the 3 higher varnas shared one common feature, they were known as Dvijas (twice-born), i.e., they were entitled to upanayana or investiture with the sacred thread according to the Vedic mantras.
• The fourth Varna was deprived of the sacred thread ceremony, and with it began the imposition of disabilities on the Shudras.

Gotra System:

•  The institution of gotra appeared in later Vedic times.
•  Literally, it means the cow pen or place where cattle belonging to the whole clan are kept.
•  The gotra has been regarded as a mechanism for widening the socio-political ties, as new relationships were forged between hitherto unrelated people.
•  People began to practice gotra exogamy. No marriage could take place between persons belonging to the same gotra or having the same ancestor.

Vedic Age previous year question prelims 

1. With reference to the difference between the culture of Rigvedic Aryans and Indus Valley people, which of the following statements is/are correct?

(1) Rigvedic Aryans used the coat of mail and helmet in warfare whereas the people of the Indus Valley Civilization did not leave any evidence of using them.

(2) Rigvedic Aryans knew gold, silver, and copper whereas Indus Valley people knew only copper and iron.

(3) Rigvedic Aryans had domesticated the horse whereas there is no evidence of Indus Valley people having been aware of this animal.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3