🔆 Vedic and Associated Literature

📍 Shruti: "That which is heard"; the authoritative religious texts of Hinduism, including the four Vedas and their embedded texts: Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads.

📍 Smriti: "Remembered texts"; includes Vedangas, Puranas, epics, Dharmashastras, and Nitishastra.

📍 Vedas: The four ancient Sanskrit texts:
✅ Rig Veda
✅ Yajur Veda
✅ Sama Veda
✅ Atharva Veda

📍 Samhita: A collection of hymns associated with the Vedas.
📍 Brahmanas: Ritualistic texts explaining Vedic sacrifices.
📍 Aranyakas: "Forest books" forming part of the Vedic corpus.
📍 Vedangas: "Limbs of the Veda"; auxiliary texts.
📍 Gayatri Mantra: Verses from the Rig Veda invoking wisdom and enlightenment.
📍 Puranas: Hindu texts containing the history of various dynasties.
📍 Itihasa-Purana: Texts claiming to refer to past events.
📍 Dharmasutras: The earliest Dharmashastras, written in aphoristic style.
📍 Dharma-Shastra: Texts codifying social and ritual duties within the Varna system.

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