Journeys into Vedic Thought
Long-form, researched essays on the deities, language, ritual and history of the Rig Veda. All free to read.
No articles match your search. Clear →
The Rigveda Has No Word for West
Sanskrit's ordinary word for west, paścimā, never appears in the Rigveda. Its poets located themselves with a different set of words: in front, behind, above, below, and the right hand. The result is a map of the world drawn from a standing body facing the sunrise.
Hymns to Nouns: The Rigveda's Gods of Faith, Fury and the Fee
Late in the Rigveda, poets stop addressing rivers and storms and start addressing qualities. There are hymns to Fury, to Trust, and to the priest's honorarium. This is where Indian abstraction begins, and it happens in the vocative case.
The Price of Praise: The Dānastuti and the Gift Economy of the Rigveda
At the end of dozens of Rigvedic hymns the poets stop praising gods and start counting cattle. These 'praise of the gift' verses record what a patron paid for a song, and they are among the most revealing lines in the whole collection.