The Shruti reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Shruti

Shruti ("what is heard") refers to a canon of Hindu religious scripture; the earliest of which have existed (in written form) since as early as 1500 BC, with most scholarship favoring between 1200 and 800 BC.

Shruti is said to have no author; but rather, are the divine recordings of "cosmic sounds of truth", heard by rishis.

There are several contesting divisions for Shruti. The most common is to identify the 4 Vedas as the Shruti:

• Rig Veda (probably the oldest)
• Atharva Veda
• Sama Veda
• Yajur Veda

Another grouping takes sub-divisions within the Vedas, such as the Aranyakas, Brahmanas, and Upanishads; and adds that collection to the 4 Vedas listed above.

Note: The Mahabharata (an Itihasa or History, also part of the "friendly scripture" class) is sometimes considered to be Shruti and is sometimes called the fifth Veda. Additionally, the Bhagavad Gita, a chapter within the Mahabharata, is also sometimes separately considered as worthy of the Shruti status.

See also: Smriti.

Early Hinduism | Hinduism | Hindu Philosophy

Primary Scriptures: Vedas | Upanishads | Bhagavad Gita | Itihasa | Tantras | Sutras

Concepts: Brahman | Dharma | Karma | Moksha | Maya | Punarjanma | Samsara

Schools & Systems: Vedanta | Yoga | Tantra | Bhakti

Rituals: Aarti | Darshan | Puja | Satsang | Thaal | Yagnya

Hindu Teachers/Gurus and Saints: Sankara | Ramakrishna | Vivekananda | Aurobindo | Ramana Maharshi | Sivananda

Denominations: Vaishnavism | Shaivism | Shaktism | Neo- and quasi-Hindu movements

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