Hinduism: Case Study of Religion

The Rig Veda is one of four collections of hymns, collectively called the Vedas, brought to the IndusValley region of the Indian Subcontinent by the Aryan people around 1500 BCE. Among these four Vedas, the Rig Veda is the most important and oldest of all, containing over one thousand hymns. Since the Aryans did not have a formal writing system, the Vedas were transmitted orally in priestly families. The Vedic hymns expressed the religion of the Aryan people. It consisted of worshipping gods through sacrifice, petition and praise (Ludwig 35). The Rig Veda speaks of many gods who live in the three realms; the sky, the atmosphere and the earth. The Rig Veda is filled with devotional hymns dedicated to the worship of these various gods who manifest their power through natural phenomenon, such as creation of life, growth, wind, fire, speech, consciousness and other facets of existence (Ludwig 37). The Rig Veda also lays down creation stories, and a mythology about the gods and the world. It was thought of as a sacred liturgical source, and the hymns were often recited, chanted and performed as a means of worship (Ludwig 36). It is upon this Veda that all worship of the sacred gods was based.