Hindu texts to an author, as a derivative work they are considered less authoritative than "Sruti" in Hinduism. The Smrti literature is a vast corpus of diverse texts, and includes but is not limited to Vedāngas, the Hindu epics, the Sutras and Shastras, the texts of Hindu philosophies, the Puranas, the Kāvya or poetical literature, the "Bhasyas", and numerous "Nibandhas" (digests) covering politics, ethics, culture, arts and society. Many ancient and medieval Hindu texts were composed in Sanskrit, many others in regional Indian languages. In modern times, most ancient texts have been translated into other Indian languages and some in Western languages.
Aranyaka Aranyaka The Aranyakas (; Sanskrit: "" ) constitutes the philosophy behind ritual sacrifice of the ancient Indian sacred texts, the Vedas. They typically represent the later sections of Vedas, and are one of many layers of the Vedic texts. The other parts of Vedas are the Samhitas (benedictions, hymns), Brahmanas (commentary), and the Upanishads (spirituality and abstract philosophy). "Aranyakas" describe and discuss rituals from various perspectives, but some include philosophical speculations. For example, the Katha Aranyaka discusses rituals connected with the "Pravargya". The Aitareya Aranyaka includes explanation of the "Mahavrata" ritual from ritualisitic to symbolic meta-ritualistic points of view. "Aranyakas",