RIGVEDA
("https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rigveda_MS2097.jpg")
What does the English word “wit” share with the oldest Hindu scripture?
Around 1500–1200 B.C. · Northern India
The Rigveda, the oldest of the Hindu scriptures, dates back to the early Aryan invasions of northern India. The Sanskrit word veda is the remote ancestor of the English word wit and the German word wissen. It is most readily translated today as “knowledge.”
One root: knowledge
- Also spelled: Rig Veda
- Place in Hinduism: The oldest of the Hindu scriptures
- Language: Sanskrit
- Meaning of veda: Knowledge, specifically the sort that will help a man win the favor of the gods
- Length: More than a thousand verses
What kind of knowledge did the Rigveda set down?
Hover or tap each idea to look closer
- Winning the Gods’ FavorSpecifically, veda refers to the sort of knowledge that will help a man win the favor of the gods.
- Virtue and CharityThe verses are replete with examples of virtue and charity.
- Duties of the PowerfulThe verses define the responsibilities of the wealthy and powerful to the poor.
- Spirits of NatureVerses of a more earthly orientation extol spirits of nature and their deeds. These tend to follow the pattern of the pantheistic mythologies of other Indo-European peoples.
- The Creation of the WorldOne particular verse shows remarkable philosophic depth in its depiction of the creation of the world, which is very much like that in Genesis.
The oldest of the Hindu scriptures.
Altogether there are more than a thousand verses in the Rigveda. Among them, one shows remarkable philosophic depth in its depiction of the creation of the world, very much like that in Genesis. Its very name echoes in the English wit and the German wissen.
Jamison, Stephanie W., and Joel P. Brereton. The Rigveda: The Earliest Religious Poetry of India. Oxford University Press, 2014.
Doniger, Wendy. The Rigveda: Complete. Penguin Classics, 2005.
Talageri, Shrikant G. The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis. Aditya Prakashan, 2000.
Hopkins, Thomas J. The Rigveda: A New Translation. Oxford University Press, 1993.
Griffith, Ralph T. H. The Rig Veda. Elysium Press, 1896.
("1500-1200 BCE Rigveda, manuscript page sample i, Mandala 1, Hymn 1 (Sukta 1), Adhyaya 1, lines 1.1.1 to 1.1.9, Sanskrit, Devanagari." Wikimedia Commons. Pre-1890. Accessed October 5, 2025.)
Sample page from an ancient Rigveda manuscript in Devanagari script, featuring lines from Mandala 1, Hymn 1 (Sukta 1), dedicated to Agni, showcasing early Vedic hymnography.
("1500-1200 BCE, Rigveda manuscript page sample iii, Sanskrit, Devanagari." Wikimedia Commons. Pre-1890. Accessed October 5, 2025.)
Manuscript page from the Rigveda in Sanskrit Devanagari script, displaying a sample of Vedic poetry with visible aging and traditional notation.
("1500-1200 BCE, Vivaha sukta, Rigveda 10.85.16-22, Sanskrit, Devanagari, manuscript page." Wikimedia Commons. Pre-1890. Accessed October 5, 2025.)
Page from the Vivaha Sukta (Rigveda 10.85.16-22), a wedding hymn in Sanskrit on Devanagari manuscript, highlighting ritualistic verses from the ancient text.