Textual taxonomy
A reader's map of the Śāstras
The Śāstras divide into layers of textual authority. Śruti stands as direct revelation, Smṛti as remembered tradition, and the Vedāṅgas as auxiliary disciplines. Understanding these tiers is the first step to reading any passage with care.
The canonical divisions
Four bodies of authority
Each division carries its own primary editions and scope. Begin with the tier that governs your question, then move outward through its related texts.
Śruti & Upaniṣads
Vedas and Upaniṣads
The Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur and Atharva Vedas, with the Upaniṣads as their philosophical culmination. Read the Saṃhitā text first, then the Brāhmaṇa and Āraṇyaka layers that frame it.
Smṛti
Itihāsa and Purāṇas
The Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata and the Purāṇic corpus. These works are remembered tradition rather than revelation, and their regional recensions differ, so compare editions before drawing conclusions.
Darśanas & Āgamas
Philosophical and ritual traditions
The six Darśanas of systematic philosophy alongside the Āgama traditions of temple worship. Each school argues from its own premises, so read a text within its own framework.
Our research standard
Every passage, set in full
A verse appears in Devanāgarī, then in IAST transliteration, then in English. Each line carries an exact chapter reference, so you can check our reading against the source yourself.
Where editions disagree, we say so and name the recension behind each reading.