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Ved, Yajur

One of the four Ved, Ved are most ancient scriptures of Hindoo. Each Ved consists of a Sanhitaa which is the main book and attached to it are several ancillary books classified as Braahman, Aaranyak, and Upanishad. Yajur Ved Sanhitaa consists of hymns to be used for Yagya. Unfortunately, unlike Rig Ved its text has differed from priest-family to priest-family. Each different text is called a rescension. However these rescensions can be classified into two groups, called Shukla Yajur Ved and Krishn Yajur Ved. Shukla Yajur Ved is also known as Vaajsaneyee Sanhitaa. Its Madhyandeen Rescension of Shukla Yajur Ved Sanhitaa is more popular among the North Indian priests; while Tattireeya Sanhitaa of Krishn Yajur Ved is more popular with South Indian priests.

Among many worshippers of Shiv, the Rudra Prashn, as given in Taittireeya Sanhitaa is very popular throughout India. Many Hindoo people have memorized it. It is especially chanted on Shiv Raatri day.
[Aangiras, p 297]

The Yajur Ved ("Wisdom of the Sacrifices") is a liturgical collection that was made to meet the demands of a ceremonial religion. They contain sacred formulas, invocations and spells used by the Hindoo priests who performed the sacrificial rites. The Yajur Ved serves as a guidebook for the priests who execute sacrificial acts muttering simultaneously the prose prayers and the sacrificial formulae ('yajus').

The Yajur Ved consists of two recessions, both of them are written partly in prose and partly in verse and both contain roughly the same material but differently arranged. They contain sacrificial formulas (in Sanskrit it is called "Yagya", means "sacrifices"). This Ved was used by the Adhwaryu, priests who recited appropriate formulas from the Yajur Ved while actually performing the sacrificial rites.

There are six complete recessions of Yajur Ved - Madhyandeen, Kanva, Taittiriya, Kathak, Maitreyanee and Kapishthalaa. Yajur Ved consists of two schools or traditions making a Sanhitaa each: Krishn Yajur Ved and Shukla Yajur Ved. Krishn Yajur Ved follows the Brahma Sampradaaya (the school of Brahm) and is said to be famous in the Southern parts of India. It was supposed to be having 82 Shaakhaa (branches) out of which only 4 are available now. While Shukla Yajur Ved follows the Aaditya Aampradaaya (the school called Aaditya) and is prevalent in the Northern India. Out of the 17 Shaakhaa in this school, only 2 are available to the mankind now.

Yajur Veda is more concerned with the actual methods of rituals. It involves invocations to the sacrificial instruments themselves which were believed to symbolize aspects of Brahm.

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