During the Later Vedic period the upper Ganga Doab was the centre of the Aryan culture.
This region is described as the land of Kuru-Panchalas.
The Vedic gods Agni and Indra lost their importance.
Prajapati became the main deity.
Rudra, the god of rituals, identified with Siva, became important.
The Satapatha Brahmana lists the names of Rudra as Pasunampatih, Sarva, Bhava and Bahikas.
Vishnu was conceived as the protector of people.
There is no reference to Vishnu’s incarnations.
Each varna had its own deities.
Rituals
Rituals became important in society.
It was believed that rituals and sacrifices could solve many problems.
The rituals became more complex, required more resources, and took longer time.
This indirectly reflects the demand for rituals and the formation of elite groups who could spend more resources on rituals and sacrifices.
The correct performance of rituals was stressed.
Stress was laid on paying dakshina.
Numerous rituals were prescribed for solving all kinds of day to day problems.
The resort to rituals and sacrifices as a solution for problems led to the view that material wealth could achieve anything.
The ideas in the Upanishads argue against such a view, and stress the importance of realising the atman or inner self.
Such degeneration of rituals and the material-oriented nature of the priests created dissension and led to the development of heterodox faiths such as Buddhism and Jainism which emphasized correct human behaviour and discipline.
Philosophy and Education
The disciplines of philosophy, literature and science developed in this period.
Various branches of learning such as literature, grammar, mathematics, ethics and astronomy developed.
Education was limited to males.
Teacher-pupil relationship was cultivated through person-oriented training.
The development of Vedic texts and the importance given to pronunciation, grammar and oral transmission suggest training in utterances and memorization, as part of the Vedic system of education.
The development of various types of texts could be considered as developing solutions for certain mundane issues and a quest for knowledge.
Araynakas are concerned with priests who were in the forests.
Upanishads (which means to sit nearby) texts with philosophical enquiries, were composed during this period.
They were also referred to as Vedanta, since they were attached as the last part of the Vedic texts.
Satyameva Jayate is from Mudaka Upanishad.
They lay stress on knowledge and the realization of the self or atman and Brahman (the Supreme Being), meditation, cycle of birth and death.
They convey the ideas of karma, and good conduct, self-restraint, mercy and generosity as virtues.
Despite the ritual dominated aspects of Vedic life, some seers were in pursuit of knowledge and virtuous conduct.
Dara Shukoh, the Mughal prince, translated the Upanishads into Persian in 1657, much before the colonial scholars developed any interest in ancient Indian literature.
Other aspects of Life
The Late Vedic culture has evidence of music and fine arts.
Music instruments such as lute, flute and drum are referred to in the texts.
With the development of cultivation and pastoralism, different types of food and drinks made of grains, milk and ghee and plants were consumed.
Evidence of the use of silk and ornaments of metal, gold and copper is found.
Metal mirrors were also used.
The archaeological sites have uncovered beads and ornaments and the fabrication of glass beads was also developed in the later part of the Vedic period.
Characteristics of Later Vedic Society
Later Vedic period is marked by lineages of clans, and small kingdoms developed in many parts of the Ganga valley, leading to the development of the state after 600 BCE.
The idea of janapada and rashtra as territorial units had developed.
The raja wielded much power and the social divisions began to strike deep roots.
The varna system had developed well and Sudra identity became more marked during this period.
