Hinduism is an ancient religion, with denominations such as Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism, among others.[1][2] Each tradition has a long list of Hindu texts, with subgenre based on syncretization of ideas from Samkhya, Nyaya, Yoga, Vedanta and other schools of Hindu philosophy.[3][4][5] Of these some called Sruti are broadly considered as core scriptures of Hinduism, but beyond the Sruti, the list of scriptures vary by the scholar.[6]
Most of these texts exist in Sanskrit,[10][11] and Old Tamil, and also later in other Indic languages. In modern times, most have been translated into other Indian languages and some in Western languages.[12][13] This list includes major Hindu texts, along with the Hindu scriptures.
Amuktamalyada (Telugu: ఆముక్తమాల్యద): A Telugu epic poem composed by Krishnadevaraya, the ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire, in the early 16th century. It describes the legendary wedding of the Hindu deity Ranganayaka, an avatar of Vishnu, and Andal, one of the poet-saints called the Alvars, at Srirangam.
Andhra Mahabharatam (Telugu: ఆంధ్ర మహాభారతం): The Telugu version of Mahabharatha written by the Kavitrayam (Trinity of poets), consisting of Nannayya, Tikkana and Yerrapragada (also known as Errana). The three poets translated the Mahabharata from Sanskrit into Telugu over the period of the 11–14th centuries CE.
Aranyaka (आरण्यक): Part of the Vedas, the third layer embedded inside them.
Arthashastra: Ancient treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy written by Chanakya (Vishnugupta).
Basava Purana: A 13th-century Telugu epic poem written by Palkuriki Somanatha. It is a sacred text of Lingayat. The epic poem narrates the life story of philosopher and social reformer Basava (1134–1196 CE), the founder of Lingayat.
Bījagaṇita: Ancient Indian mathematics, algebra textbook by Indian mathematician Bhāskara II
Brahmana: one of the parts into which the Vedas are divided, and are its second layer.
Brahmasphuṭasiddhanta: written by ancient mathematician Brahmagupta in which hindu number system, zero, Brahmagupta's Bijganit, algebra with arithmetic is mentioned.
Brihat Samhita: An encyclopedic work by Varāhamihira on architecture, temples, planetary motions, eclipses, timekeeping, astrology, seasons, cloud formation, rainfall, agriculture, mathematics, gemology, perfumes and many other topics.
Gopalavimshati: A Sanskrit hymn by Vedanta Desika in praise of Krishna.
Gunamala (Assamese: গুণমালা) is a scripture written by 15th–16th century Assamese polymath: a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, social-religious reformer Sankardev within one night at the request of Koch kingNara Narayan in 1552.
Itihasas – meaning history. In Hindu religious context this term refers to the Mahabharata and the Ramayana because writer of the story has themselves witnessed the stories of both epics.
Khaṇḍakhādyaka (meaning "edible bite; morsel of food") is an astronomical treatise written by Indian mathematician and astronomer Brahmagupta in 665 A.D.
Kirtan Ghosha (কীৰ্ত্তন) It is a collection of poetical works, primarily composed by the medieval saint Srimanta Sankardev meant for community singing in the Ekasarana religion.
Malla Purana: An ancient text on Malla-yuddha, an ancient form of Indian combat wrestling, which describes techniques of wrestling, types of exercises etc.
Meghadūta: Poem by Classical Sanskrit author, playwright and dramatist Kālidāsa.
Naalayira Divya Prabhandham (Tamil: நாலாயிர திவ்ய பிரபந்தம்) is a collection of 4,000 Tamil verses (Naalayira in Tamil means 'four thousand') composed before 8th century AD,[1] by the 12 Alvars, and was compiled in its present form by Nathamuni during the 9th – 10th centuries. The work is the beginning of the canonization of the 12 Vaishnava poet saints, and these hymns are still sung extensively even today. The works were lost before they were collected and organized in the form of an anthology by Nathamuni.
Natyashastra: Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts, attributed to ancient Indian theatrologist and musicologist sage Bharata Muni. It consists of 36 chapters with a cumulative total of 6000 poetic verses describing performance arts.
Padma Purana: Sanskrit scripture, One of the 18 major Puranas.
Paduka Sahasra: A Sanskrit hymn by Vedanta Desika in praise of the sandals of Rama.
Purana (पुराण): Purana meaning "ancient" or "old" is the name of a genre (or a group of related genres) of Indian written literature (as distinct from oral literature). Its general themes are history, tradition and religion. It is usually written in the form of stories related by one person to another.
Periya Puranam (பெரியபுராணம்): The Periya Puranam (Tamil: பெரிய புராணம்), that is, the great puranam or epic, sometimes called Tiruttontarpuranam ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam", the Purana of the Holy Devotees), is a Tamil poetic account depicting the legendary lives of the sixty-three Nayanars, the canonical poets of Tamil Shaivism. It was compiled during the 12th century by Sekkizhar. It provides evidence of trade with South Indian. The Periya Puranam is part of the corpus of Shaiva canonical works.
Parasurama Kalpasutra (परशुरामकल्पसूत्रम्)): Parashurama Kalpasutra is authored by Parasurama, the fifth avatar of Lord Vishnu and a disciple of Guru Dattatreya. It is a sacred text for the Shri Vidya worshippers of Goddess Lalita Devi, who is considered to be a manifestation of the Divine Mother (Shakti), and the text is therefore used in the worship of Ganesha, Bala Tripurasundari, Raja Shyamala, Varahi as well. This text has its origins in the Dattatreya Samhita and is compiled by Sumedha, a disciple of Guru Dattatreya.
Ranganatha Ramayanamu (Telugu: శ్రీ రంగనాథ రామాయణము): A rendition of Valmiki's Rāmāyaṇa in Telugu language. It was written by the poet Ranganatha—also known as Gona Budda Reddy—between 1300 and 1310 CE.
Shiva Sutras of Vasugupta – a collection of seventy seven aphorisms that form the foundation of Kashmir Shaivism, attributed to the sage Vasugupta of the 9th century C.E.
Sri Navnath Bhaktisar: The "Navnath Bhaktisar" also known as the"Navnath pothi" narrates the Navnaths' births, their lives and deeds.
Śruti (श्रुति): A canon of Hinduscriptures. Shruti is believed to have no author; rather a divine recording of the "cosmic sounds of truth", heard by rishis.
Sūtra (सूत्र): Sūtra refers to an aphorism or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a book or text. 'Sutras' form a school of Vedic study, related to and somewhat later than the Upanishads.
Swara yoga: An ancient science of pranic body rhythms. It explores how prana can be controlled through the breath.
Tantras (तंत्र): The esoteric Hindu traditions of rituals and yoga. Tantra can be summarised as a family of voluntary rituals modeled on those of the Vedas, together with their attendant texts and lineages.
Tirumurai – an important Tamil twelve volumes compendium that consists of Shaivite hymns.
Tevaram – An important Tamil Shaivite scripture and devotional poetry.
Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam – a Tamil Shaivite scripture written by Paranjothi that describes the 64 divine plays of Shiva in Madurai as the spouse of the goddess Meenakshi.
Vasishtha Samhita: Yoga text, one of the first to describe non-seated hatha yoga asanas ascribed to the sage Vasishtha.
Veda (वेद): Vedas are texts without start and end, stated Swami Vivekananda, and they include "the accumulated treasury of spiritual laws discovered by different persons in different times."[18] Collectively refers to a corpus of ancient Indian religious literature that are considered by adherents of Hinduism to be Śruti (that which is heard).
Vachanamrut: (IAST: Vacanāmṛta, lit. "immortalising ambrosia in the form of words") is a sacred Hindu text consisting of 273 religious discourses delivered by Swaminarayan from 1819 to 1829 CE and is considered the principal theological text within the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. Compiled by five of his senior disciples, Swaminarayan edited and approved the scripture
Yoga Vasistha, the discourse of sage Vasistha to prince Rama. It is an important text of Yoga as well as Advaita Vedanta. The book consists of around thirty thousand slokas as well as numerous short stories and anecdotes.
^Mikel Burley (2012), Classical Samkhya and Yoga - An Indian Metaphysics of Experience, Routledge, ISBN978-0415648875, page 39-41; Lloyd Pflueger, Person Purity and Power in Yogasutra, in Theory and Practice of Yoga (Editor: Knut Jacobsen), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN978-8120832329, pages 38-39
^Patrick Olivelle (2014), The Early Upanisads, Oxford University Press, ISBN978-0195352429, page 3; Quote: "Even though theoretically the whole of vedic corpus is accepted as revealed truth [shruti], in reality it is the Upanishads that have continued to influence the life and thought of the various religious traditions that we have come to call Hindu. Upanishads are the scriptures par excellence of Hinduism".
^Wendy Doniger (1990), Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism, 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, ISBN978-0226618470, pages 2-3; Quote: "The Upanishads supply the basis of later Hindu philosophy; they alone of the Vedic corpus are widely known and quoted by most well-educated Hindus, and their central ideas have also become a part of the spiritual arsenal of rank-and-file Hindus."
