A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature, so far as it illustrates the Primitive Religion of the Brahmans c10.53

c10.53

Although we see from these indications that the collection of the hymns which we possess in the Rig-veda took place during a period when the influence of the Brahmans, as a priestly caste, had made itself felt in India, we must claim, nevertheless, for this collection a character not yet exclusively ceremonial. Not only is the order of the hymns completely independent of the order of the sacrifices, but there are numerous hymns in our collection which could never have been used at any sacrifice. This is not the case with the other Vedas. Every hymn, every verse, every invocation in the Sanhitâs of the Sâma and Yajur-vedas are employed by the Udgâtris and Adhvaryus, whereas the hymns of the Rig-veda are by no means intended to be all employed by the Hotri priests. If we speak of the sacred poetry of the Brahmans, that of the Sâma and Yajur-vedas is sacred only because it is used for sacrificial purposes, that of the Rig-veda is sacred, because it had been handed down as a sacred heir-loom from the earliest times within the memory of man. The sacredness of the former is matter of system and design, that of the latter is a part of its origin.