1) What “Aryan & Vedic Age” covers in exam terms
This module covers the historical reconstruction of the Vedic period, primarily through:
- Vedic texts (especially Rig Veda and later Vedic literature)
- archaeology and comparative evidence (used cautiously)
- linguistic and cultural analyses
In CUET PG, questions focus on:
- chronology: Early/Rigvedic vs Later Vedic
- polity and society: tribe → kingdom, sabha/samiti, kingship
- economy: pastoralism → agriculture, iron use (later)
- social order: varna, jati beginnings, patriarchy
- religion and ritual: yajna, priests, deities, philosophical shifts
- key terms: jana, vis, grama, rashtra, rajanya/kshatriya, brahmana, yajamana, dakshina, etc.
2) Sources and methodological issues (conceptual clarity)
Vedic literature as source
Major categories:
- Samhitas (Rig, Sama, Yajur, Atharva)
- Brahmanas (ritual explanations)
- Aranyakas (forest texts, transitional)
- Upanishads (philosical inquiry into brahman/atman, karma)
Key caution:
- Texts are not straightforward “history.” They are religious-poetic and ritual-philosophical compositions.
- Reconstruction requires:
- internal textual analysis (terms, social references)
- relative chronology between texts
- correlation with archaeology (not one-to-one)
3) Early (Rigvedic) phase: society and polity
Political organization
- units: jana (people/tribe), vis (clan/settlement unit), grama (mobile or semi-settled group; meaning shifts)
- leadership: rajan (chief/king) with limited coercive state apparatus
- assemblies: sabha and samiti (often described as deliberative bodies; exact functions debated)
- dasa/dasyu appear in Rig Veda in complex ways—interpretations range from ethnic/linguistic to social/political categories.
Economy
- strongly pastoral: cattle as key wealth (“cattle raids,” gift economy)
- agriculture exists but is less central than later
- limited craft specialization; exchanges often through gifts and ritual distributions.