Previous Year Question

The religious life of the Early Vedic or Rigvedic people was primarily characterised by the veneration of deities associated with natural and cosmic forces, together with the performance of yajnas. Therefore, among the given options, “worship of nature and yajnas” is the most appropriate answer.

The Rigveda contains hymns dedicated to numerous deities, including Indra, Agni, Varuna, Maruts, Ushas, Surya, Bhumi and Soma. The Government of India's Vedic Heritage Portal also lists these among the deities to whom Rigvedic hymns were addressed. Several of them are directly associated with natural phenomena—Agni with fire, Surya with the Sun, Ushas with dawn and the Maruts with storms.

However, “nature worship” should be understood with some qualification. Vedic deities were not merely simple personifications of natural objects; they could also possess moral, social and cosmic dimensions. Varuna, for instance, was associated with cosmic order, while Indra had associations with warfare, power and rain. Thus, “worship of nature” is a convenient summary used in the UPSC option rather than a complete description of Rigvedic theology.

Yajna occupied a central position in Vedic religious practice. This is evident from the very first hymn of the Rigveda, which is dedicated to Agni. The opening verses identify Agni with the sacrificial sphere, and Rigveda 1.1.4 explicitly refers to the yajna.

Other Rigvedic hymns similarly invoke deities in the context of sacrifice and Soma offerings. Rigveda 3.12, for example, invokes Indra and Agni in connection with yajna and Soma. This demonstrates the importance of hymns, offerings and sacrificial rituals in Early Vedic religion.

Option B is incorrect because image worship was not the defining mode of Early Rigvedic religious practice; the textual evidence places much greater emphasis on hymns, invocations and sacrifice.