RAS question
The 'Shatapatha Brahmana' is associated with which Veda?
Correct answer: (A) Yajurveda.
The Shatapatha Brahmana is associated with the Shukla, or White, Yajurveda.
Explanation
Shatapatha Brahmana belongs to the Yajurveda, specifically the Shukla Yajurveda. Each Veda has Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka and Upanisad portions, with Brahmanas giving instructions for ritual performance. The Yajurveda is widely concerned with yajna, or rituals, and is found in prose form. The Yajurveda is separated into Krishna Yajurveda and Shukla Yajurveda, and the famous available Brahmana of the Shukla Yajurveda is the Shatapatha Brahmana. Shatapatha Brahmana is an important prose text attached to the White Yajurveda and deals with Vedic ritual material, along with accounts such as the great flood and the Prajapati creation myth.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Rigveda is not correct because Aitareya Brahmana and Shankyayana Brahmana are the available Brahmanas of the Rigveda, not Shatapatha Brahmana.
- (C) Samaveda is not correct because Sama-Brahmanas include Daivatam, Vamshabrahmanam and Tandyam, while Shatapatha Brahmana belongs to the Shukla Yajurveda.
- (D) Atharvaveda is not correct because Gopatha Brahmanam is the only available Brahmana of the Atharvaveda, not Shatapatha Brahmana.
Concept
The Vedic literature map links each Brahmana text to a specific Veda. RAS ancient-history MCQs often turn on precise source-text associations rather than broad chronology alone.