|
Srauta Religion
The Srauta Religion is based on Hindu traditions and is based on the Vedic religion which is based on Sruti literature. The religion is now small and is practiced in a few places in India. Traditions recognized today are:
The Srauta tradition as per the Vedas lays more emphasis on practice of the rituals rather than having a set of beliefs. The practices of the Srauta tradition mainly consist of Yajnas. The Yajnas are divided into two categories, namely: nitya-karma and kaamya karma. Nitya-karma refers to those Yajnas that have to be performed daily or as per occasion. Kaamya-karma refers to those Yajnas performed with a particular purpose such as wishing for rain, cattle or for a son.
Adherents believe in various gods and goddesses, known as Devas who represent natural forces or deified social concepts. The word Srauta is derived from the word Śruti meaning that which is heard. The Srauta tradition of transmitting the Vedas consisted solely of oral tradition from the Guru (teacher) to the Shishya (student). Vedic scholars have made use of manuscripts in order to teach the Vedas to their students at least since the Middle Ages, and of printed books since the advent of Western philology in British India, but the use of writing has always been clearly secondary to the commitment of the texts to memory.
|
