Atharvaveda

The Atharvaveda or Atharva Veda () is one of the four Vedas in Hinduism. It is known as the “knowledge storehouse of procedures for everyday life."Laurie Patton (2004), Veda and Upanishad, in The Hindu World (Editors: Sushil Mittal and Gene Thursby), Routledge, , page 38 This Veda is the fourth one and was added later to the Vedic scriptures.Carl Olson (2007), The Many Colors of Hinduism, Rutgers University Press, , pages 13–14Laurie Patton (1994), Authority, Anxiety, and Canon: ys in Vedic Interpretation, State University of New York Press, , page 57 The language of the Atharvaveda is different from the Rigveda. It has 730 hymns with about 6,000 mantras, divided into 20 books. Some parts of it are taken from the Rigveda. There are two versions of the text -  and .Frits Staal (2009), Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights, Penguin, , pages 136-137 A well-preserved version of the  was found in Odisha in 1957. 

The Atharvaveda is sometimes referred to as the "Veda of magical formulas," but the description is hardly apt.Jan Gonda (1975), Vedic Literature: Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas, Vol 1, Fasc. 1, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, , pages 277–280, Quote: "It would be incorrect to describe the Atharvaveda Samhita as a collection of magical formulas". It has rituals for daily life, such as learning, marriage, and funerals, as well as royal rituals and duties of court priests. It was compiled probably around 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE, concurrently with the Samaveda and Yajurveda. It too carries philosophical texts and three vital Upanishads known as Mundaka, Mandukya, and Prashna Upanishads.Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 2, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 605–609Max Muller, The Upanishads, Part 2, Prasna Upanishad, Oxford University Press, pages xlii–xliii

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Category:Hinduism
Category:Vedas
Category:Hindu texts