Shakha Totally Explained

Everything about Shakha totally explained

The Sanskrit term shakha (IAST ), literally "branch" (as of a tree) or "arm", is used to refer either to a school of the Vedas, or to the traditional texts followed by a school. Monier-Williams defines it as "a branch or school of the Veda, each adhering to its own traditional text and interpretation)". That is, a shakha is a theological school that specializes in learning certain Vedic texts chosen from the extensive Vedic corpus. The related term, which in general means "conduct of life" or "behavior", is also used to refer to a school or branch of any of the Vedas. Monier-Williams says that "although the words and are sometimes used synonymously, yet properly applies to the sect or collection of persons united in one school, and to the traditional text followed, as in the phrase, he recites a particular version of the Veda."
An individual follower of a particular school or recension is called a "follower" . This term is also used in Hindu philosophy to refer to an adherent of a particular orthodox system. The schools have different points of view on some things, which are described as "difference of (Vedic) school" .
In traditional Hinduism affiliation with a specific school is an important aspect of class identity. By the end of the Rig Vedic period the term [[Brahmin|]] had come to be applied to all members of the priestly class, but there were subdivisions within this order based both on caste and on the shakha (branch) with which they were affiliated. A [[Brahmin|]] who changed his own school of the Vedas would be called "a traitor to his śākhā" .

Summary of schools

A Vedic text may have a number of theological schools associated with it. For each school, adherents would learn a specific Vedic (one of the "four Vedas" properly so-called), as well as its associated Brahmana, Aranyakas, Shrautasutras, Grhyasutras and Upanishads.
The traditional source of information on the shakhas of each Veda is the, of which two mostly similar versions exist: the 49th of the Atharvaveda, ascribed to Shaunaka, and the 5th of the Śukla (White) Yajurveda, ascribed to Kātyāyana. These have lists of the numbers of recensions that were believed to have once existed as well as those still extant at the time the works were compiled. Only a small number of recensions have survived.

Rig

Monier-Williams says that 's lists five shakhas for the Rig Veda, the,,,, and, but that only one, the, is now extant.

Uncited notes:
ť *The Rigveda is known in the Shakala-shakha only (with surviving Bashkala fragments),

ť *The Bashkala recension of the Rigveda has the Khilani which are not present in the Shakala text.

ť *Rigveda: The Shakala has the Aitareya-Brahmana, The Bashkala has the Kausitaki-Brahmana.

Yajur

Monier-Williams says that 's lists forty-two or forty-four out of eighty-six shakhas for the Yajur Veda, but that only five of these are now extant, with a sixth partially extant.

Uncited notes:
ť *for the Yajur Veda the five (partially in six) shakhas are the (Vajasaneyi Madhandina, Kanva; Taittiriya, Maitrayani, Caraka-Katha, Kapisthala-Katha).

ť *Yajurveda: The Yajurvedin shakhas are divided in "White" and "Black" schools. The White recensions have separate Brahmanas, while the Black ones have their Brahmanas interspersed between the Mantras.

:*White Yajurveda: (VSM), (VSK): Shatapatha Brahmana (ShBM, ShBK) ť :*Black Yajurveda: (TS) with an additional Brahmana, Taittiriya Brahmana (TB), (MS), (KS), (KapS).

Sama

Monier-Williams says that 's lists twelve shakhas for the Sama Veda out of a thousand that are said to have once existed, but that of these only one or perhaps two are still extant.

Uncited notes:
ť *The two Samaveda recensions are the Jaiminiya and Kauthuma.

ť *Samaveda: The Kauthuma shakha has the PB, SadvB, the Jaiminiya shakha has the Jaiminiya Brahmana.

Atharva

Apte says there are nine shakhas and five kalpas for the Atharvaveda.

Monier-Williams says that only one shakha of an original nine is now extant for the Atharvaveda.

Uncited notes: ť *The Shaunaka is the only shakha of the Atharvaveda for which both printed texts and an active oral tradition are known to still exist.

ť *For the Atharvaveda, both the Shaunakiya and the Paippalada traditions contain textual corruption, and the original text of the Atharvaveda may only be approximated from comparison between the two.

ť *The Paippalada tradition was discontinued, and its text is known only from manuscripts collected since the 19th century.

ť *No Brahmana is known for the Shaunaka shakha.

ť *The Paippalada is possibly associated with the Gopatha Brahmana.

Rig Veda

Shakha	Samhita	Brahmana	Aranyaka	Upanishad
Shakala	Oral and Printed	Printed (=Aitareya Brahmana) and Oral (?)	Printed (Aitareya Aranyaka) and Oral (?)	Printed (Aitareya Upanishad) and Oral (?)
Ashvalayana	Manuscript exists, with accents and Padapatha.	Same as Shakala	Same as Shakala	Same as Shakala
Kaushitaki	-	Printed (=Kaushitaki Brahmana) and Oral	Manuscript exists	Printed (=Kaushitaki Upanishad)
Bashkala	Manuscript exists with accents and Padapatha.	Same as Kaushitaki	Same as Kaushitaki	Same as Kaushitaki
Shankhayana	Manuscript exists with accents and Padapatha.	Printed (=Shankhayana Brahmana)	Printed (=Shankhyana Aranyaka)	Printed as a part of the Aranyaka
Paingi	-	Manuscript might exist	‘Rahashya Brahmana’ lost.	-

Yajur Veda

White

Shakha	Samhita	Brahmana	Aranyaka	Upanishad
Madhyandina (VSM)	Oral and Printed	Madhyandina Shatapatha (SBM)	Oral and Printed (=Shatapatha XIV.1-8) with accents	Brihadaranyaka Upanishad = SBM XIV. 3-8) with accents.
Kanva (VSK)	Oral and Printed	Kanva Shatapatha (SBK)	Oral and Printed (Book XVII of SBK)	Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

Black

Shakha	Samhita	Brahmana	Aranyaka	Upanishad
Katyayana	Manuscript (?)	Manuscript (only first 6 books, rest lost)	-	-
Taittiriya	TS	Taittiriya Brahmana (TB) and Vadhula Br. (part of Vadhula Srautrasutra)	Taittiriya Aranyaka (TA)	Taittiriya Upanishad (TU)
Maitrayani	MS	-	Maitrayani Aranyaka	virtually same as Aranyaka
Caraka-Katha	KS. Accents survive only on 1/3 on the text.	Fragments printed and in manuscript)	Katha Aranyaka (almost the entire text from a solitary manuscript)	Kathaka Upanishad, Katha Shiksha Upanishad
Kapishthala	KapS (fragmentary manuscript, unaccented)	Small fragment extant in manuscript	-	-

Sama Veda

Shakha	Samhita	Brahmana	Aranyaka	Upanishad
Kauthuma	Samhita and Samans printed/recorded	Printed (8 Brahmanas in all). Accents lost long back.	None. The Samhita itself has the ‘Aranyaka’.	The famous Chhandogya Upanishad with numerous commentaries
Ranayaniya	Manuscripts of Samhita exist. Samans recorded but not printed	Same as Kauthuma with minor differences.	None. The Samhita itself has the ‘Aranyaka’.	Same as Kauthuma.
Jaiminiya/Talavakara	Samhita published. Two distinct styles of Saman recitation, partially recorded and published.	Brahmana published (without accents) – Jaiminiya Brahmana, Arsheya Brahmana	Tamil Nadu version of Talavakara Aranyaka (=Jaiminiya Up. Brahmana) published	Kena Upanishad
Shatyayana	(traditions might be similar to Jaminiya SV)	Manuscript (?)	-	-

Atharva Veda

Shakha	Samhita	Brahmana	Aranyaka	Upanishad
Paippalada	Two versions: Kashmirian (published) and Orissan (partly published, in manuscript, unaccented)	Lost	-	Prashna Upanishad, Sharabha Upanishad etc. – all published.
Shaunaka	Printed and Oral traditions alive	Fragmentary Gopatha Brahmana (extant and published). No accents.	-	Mundaka Upanishad (?) published.

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