VEGA
319
VEGA
are not independent poems, but laudatory stanzas
appended to some ordinary hymn, and in which the
poet gives thanks for generosity shown to him by
some prince. Some six or seven hymns deal with
cosmogonic speculations. It is significant that some
of the hymns, chiefly in book X, are cast in the form
of a dialogue. Here we may possibl}' discern the
beginnings of the Sanskrit drama. The poetry of the
Rig-Veda is neither popular nor primitive, as it has
been erroneously considered, but is the production of
a refined sacerdotal class and the result of a long
period of cultural development. It was intended
primarily for use in connexion with the Soma sacrifice,
and to accompany a ritual, which, though not so com-
plicated as at the time of the Brahmanas, was far from
simple. The Rig-^'eda has come down to us in only
one recension, that of the Shakala school. Originally
there were several schools: the "Mahabhashya"
(great commentary), about the second century B.C.,
knows of twenty-one, while some later writings know
of two only. In these schools the transmission of the
hymns was most carefully attended to; a most elabo-
rate mnemonic system wa.s devised to guard against
any changes in the sacred text, which has thus come
down to us practically without variants.
Editions of the Rig-Veda were published by Max Miiller, "Rig-Veda-Samhita with the Commentary of Sayanacharj-a " ((i vols., London, 1849-74; 2nd ed., 4 vols., 1890-95); "The Hymns of the Rig-Veda in the Samhita and Pada Texts" (2nd ed., 2 vols., London, 1877); .\ufrecht, "Samhita Text", in Roman char- acters (2nd ed., Bonn, 1877); selections in Lanman's •Sanskrit Reader" (Boston, 1884); Bothlingk, "Sunskrit-Chrestomathie" (3rd ed., Leipzig, 1897); Windisch, "Zwolf Hj-mnen des Rig-Veda", with Sayana's commentary (Leipzig, 1883). Translations were made into: English verse by Griffith (2 vols., Benares, 1896-97); selections in prose by Max Miiller in "Sacred Books of the East", XXXII (Oxford, 1891); continued by Oldenburg, ibidem, XLVI (1897); German verse by CJrassmann (2 vols., Leipzig, 1876-77) ; German prose by Ludwig (6 vols., Prague, 1876-88). On the Rig-Veda in general see: Kaegi, "The Rig- Veda", tr. Arrowsmith (Boston, 1886); Oldenberg, "Rig-Veda", books I-VI, in "Gottinger Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften", new series, XI (Berhn, 1909).
II. The S.\ma-Veda ("vedaof chants") consists of 1549 stanzas, taken entirely (except 75) from the Rig- Veda, chiefly from books VlII and IX. Its purpo.se was purely practical, to serve as a text-book for the urigalar or priest who attended the Soma sacrifice. The arrangement of the verses is determined solely by their relation to the rites attending this function. The hymns were to be sung according to certain fixed melodies; hence the name of the collection. Though only two recensions are known, the number of schools for this veda is known to have been very large. The Sama-Veda was edited: (with German tr.) by Benfey (Leipzig, 1848); by Satyavrata SamasliramI in Bibl. Ind. (Calcutta, 1873); Engl. tr. by Griffith (Benares, 1893).
III. TheYajur-Veda ("veda of sacrificial prayers") consists also largely of verses borrowed from the Rig- Veda. Its purpose wa.s also practical, but, unlike the Sama-Veda, it was compiled to ajjply to the entire sacrificial rite, not merely the Soma offering. There are two recensions of this Veda known as the "Black" and "White" Vajur-Veda. The origin and meaning of these designations are not clear. The White Yajur- Veda contains only the verses and sayings necessary for the sacrifice, while all explanations exist in a separate work; the Black incorporates explanations and directions in the work itself, often immediately following the verses. Of the Black there are again four recensions, all showing the same arrangement, but differing in many other respects, notably in
matters of phonology and accent. By the Hindus
the Yajur-Veda was regarded as the most important
of all the Vedas for the practice of the sacrificial rites.
The four recensions of the Yajur-Veda have been
separately edited: (1) "Vajasaneyi Samhita" by
Weber (London and Berlin, 1852), tr. Griffith (Be-
nares, 1899); (2) "Taittiriva.S." bv Weber in " Indische
Studien", XI, XII (BerUn, 1871-72); (3) "Mai-
trayanl S." by von Schroeder (Leipzig, 1SS1-S6);
"Kathaka S." by von Schroeder (Leipzig, 1900-09).
IV. The Atharva-Veda ("veda of the atharvans
or fire priests") differs widely from the other Vedas
in that it is not essentially religious in character and
not connected with the ritual of the Soma sacrifice.
It consists chiefly of a variety of spells and incanta-
tions, intended to curse as well as to bless. There are
charms against enemies, demons, wizards, harmful
animals hke snakes, against sickness of man or beast,
against the oppressors of Brahmans. But there are
also charms of a positive character to obtain benefits,
to insure love, happy family-life, health and longevity,
protection on journeys, even luck in gambling.
Superstitions from primitive ages were evidently
current among the ma.sses. To some of the spells
remarkably close parallels can be adduced from
Germanic and Slavic antiquity. The Atharva-Veda
is preserved in two recensions, which, though differing
in content and arrangement, are of equal extent, com-
prising 730 hjTnns and about tiOOO stanzas, distributed
in twenty books. Many of the verses are taken from
the Rig- Veda without change; a considerable part
of the sayings is in prose. The books are of differ-
ent age; the first thirteen are the oldest, the last two
are late additions. Book XX, consisting entirely of
hj-mns in praise of Indra, all taken from the Rig-
Veda, was undoubtedly added to give the .-^tharva a
connexion with the sacrificial ceremonial and thus to
insure its recognition as a canonical book. But this
recognition was attained only after a considerable
lapse of time, and after the period of the Rig-Veda.
In the "Mahabharata" the canonical character of the
Atharva is distinctly recognized, references to the
four Vedas being frequent. Though as a whole this
collection must have come into existence later than
the Rig-Veda, much of its material is fully as old and
perhaps older. For the history of religion and civili-
zation it is a document of priceless value. The
Atharva-Veda has been edited by Roth and Whitney
(Berlin, 1856); Engl. tr. in verse by Griffith (2 vols.,
Benares, 1S97) ; prose by Bloomfield in "Sacred Books
of the Ea.'it", XLII; by Whitney, revised by Lanman
(2 vols., Cambridge, Mass., 1905). Con.sult Bloom-
field, "The Atharvaveda" in "Grundriss der Indo-
arischen Philologie", II (Stra.sburg, 1899).
On tbe Ved.'w in general consult: Macdonnell, History of Sanskril Lileralure (New York, 1900), 29-201, bibl. 439-42; B.lCMGARTNER, Gesch. der Wrlllileralur. II (Freiburg, 1902); WiNTERNiTZ. Gcsch. tier indischen Literatur, I Der Veda (Leip- zig. 1905); PiscHEL, Die indische Literatur in KuUur der Gegen- u-art I, VII (Berlin and Leipzig, 1906), 164-174, bibl. 212.
Arthur F. J. Re.my.
Ve^a, .\ndreas de, theologian and Franciscan Observantine, b. at Segovia in Old Castile. Spain, at unknown dale; d. at Salamanca probably in 1,560. He studied at the I'niversity of Salamanca, and was a professor there when he became an Observantine of the Franci.scan Order. He continued his work as a teacher in the monastery of the Observantines where the learned Alphon.so de Castro also taught. Both were distinguished in speculative theology. Vega was a moderate Scotist who at the same time held to St. Bonaventure. The Emperor Charles V sent Vega .as theologian together with other scholars to the Council of Trent. At Trent he came into con- nexion with Cardinal Petrus Pacheco, Bishop of Jaen (consequently called "Giennensis"), who was a patron of the Franciscan Order. Vega wa,s conspicu- ous in t he preliminary discussions on the canon of the
