Samaveda

Samaveda

"The Veda of Chants." (sāman – "ritual chant")

The third of the four Vedas. Samaveda is the oldest known form of Indian religious poetry.

In terms of sanctity and significance for the Samaveda ritual, it comes immediately after the Rigveda. Its metrical text consists of hymns, parts of hymns and individual verses, taken mainly from the Rigveda, arranged without connection with their original order to better correspond to the religious ceremonies in which they were to be used. The verses are intended for chanting by priests during important yagyas; they are sung to specially designated melodies using seven svaras (notes).