Journeys into Vedic Thought
Long-form, researched essays on the deities, language, ritual and history of the Rig Veda. All free to read.
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Why Read the Rig Veda Today? Six Reasons from Literature, Philosophy and Science
If you are not Hindu and not a Sanskritist, why bother with a 3,000-year-old anthology of ritual hymns? Six concrete reasons — literary, historical, linguistic, philosophical, scientific and cultural — each defensible without reference to religion.
The Rig Veda and the Avesta: Shared Indo-Iranian Heritage of Hindus and Zoroastrians
The Rig Veda and the Zoroastrian Avesta are sister texts. Their languages, gods, rituals and even individual poetic lines preserve a common Indo-Iranian heritage that predates the split into Vedic and Iranian religion.
Who Wrote the Rig Veda? Rishi Families and the Composition of the Veda
The Rig Veda was not the work of a single author. A close look at how the family Mandalas, the Pragatha Mandala (8), the Soma Mandala (9) and the late Mandalas (1 and 10) layer into the corpus we read today.
How to Read the Rig Veda: Mandala, Sukta and Rik Explained
A practical guide to navigating the Rig Veda — how the books, hymns and verses are numbered, how to cite a verse properly, and how to read across Sanskrit, romanisation and English.