Shukla Yajurveda

There are two (nearly identical) shakhas or recensions of the Shukla (White) Yajurveda, both known as Vajasaneyi-Samhita (VS):

• Vajasaneyi Madhyandiniya (VSM), originally of Mithila (Bihar)
• Vajasaneyi Kanva of originally of Kosala (VSK)

The former is popular in North India, Gujarat, parts of Maharashtra (north of Nashik) and thus commands a numerous following. The Kanva Shakha is popular in parts of Maharashtra (south of Nasik), Orissa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Sureshvaracharya, one of the four main disciples of Jagadguru Adi Shankara, is said to have followed the Kanva shakha. The Guru himself followed the Taittiriya Shakha with the Apastamba Kalpasutra. The Vedic rituals of the Ranganathaswamy Temple atSrirangam, the second biggest temple in India, are performed according to the Kanva shakha. Raghu vamsam; Dasaratha and Sri Rama's clan follows the Shukla Yajurveda branch. The White Yajurveda has two Upanishads associated with it: the Ishavasya and the Brihadaranyaka Upanishads. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad is the most voluminous of all Upanishads.

The VS has forty chapters or adhyayas (but 41 in Orissa), containing the formulas used with the following rituals:

1.-2.: New and Full Moon sacrifices

3.: Agnihotra

4.-8.: Somayajna

9.-10.: Vajapeya and Rajasuya, two modifications of the Soma sacrifice

11.-18.: construction of altars and hearths, especially the Agnicayana

19.-21.: Sautramani, a ritual originally counteracting the effects of excessive Soma-drinking

22.-25.: Ashvamedha

26.-29.: supplementary formulas for various rituals

30.-31.: Purushamedha

32.-34.: Sarvamedha

35.: Pitriyajna

36.-39.: Pravargya

40.: the final adhyaya is the famous Isha Upanishad

[edit]Krishna Yajurveda

There are four recensions of the Krishna Yajurveda:

• Taittirīya saṃhita (TS) originally of Panchala
• Maitrayani saṃhita (MS) originally of the area south of Kurukshetra
• Caraka-Katha saṃhita (KS) originally of Madra and Kurukshetra
• Kapiṣṭhala-Katha saṃhita (KapS) of the southern Panjab, Bahika

Each of the recensions has or had a Brahmana associated with it, and most of them also have associated Shrautasutras, Grhyasutras,Aranyakas, Upanishads and Pratishakhyas.

The Taittiriya Shakha: The best known and best preserved of these recensions is the TS, named after Tittiri, a pupil of Yaska. It consists of 7 books or kandas, subdivided in chapters or prapathakas, further subdivided into individual sections (anuvakas). Some individual hymns in this Samhita have gained particular importance in Hinduism; e.g. TS 4.5 and TS 4.7 constitute the Rudram Chamakam, while 1.8.6.i is theShaivaite Tryambakam mantra. The beejas bhūr bhuvaḥ suvaḥ prefixed to the (rigvedic) Savitur Gayatri mantra are also from the Yajurveda. The Taittiriya recension of the Black Yajurveda is the shakha now most prevalent in southern India. Among the followers of this Shakha, the Apastamba Sutras are the common. The Taittiriya Shakha consists of Taittiriya Samhita (having seven kandas), Taittiriya Brahmana (having three kandas), Taittiriya Aranyaka (having seven prashnas) (See Aranyaka Literature), Taittiriya Upanishad (having three prashnas or vallis - Shiksha valli, Ananda valli and Bhrigu valli) and the Mahanarayana Upanishad. The Taittiriya Upanishad and Mahanarayana Upanishad are considered to be the seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth prashnas of the Aranyaka. The words prapathaka and kanda (meaning sections) are interchangeably used in Vedic literature. Prashna and valli refer to sections of the Aranyaka.

There is another Short tract apart from the above and that is commonly known as Ekagni Kanda which mainly consists of mantra-s used in the marriage and other rituals.