Out of all Hindu Scriptures and the Vedas are the most sacred. They also came first directly from the mouth of Sri Bhagwan. The word Ved means knowledge. They are so sacred that they have to be chanted with a specific tone and in the correct pattern. The Vedas are not for everyone to just open up and start reading. They have to be taught and explained very carefully. If it is not taught by a Guru who has proper understanding then it can be destructive as it was in the days when Bhagwan Buddh came to earth. Bhagwan Buddh rejected the Vedas and taught a different path to GOD. This new religion we know today as Buddhism. The reason Buddha rejected Vedas at that time was because the Hindu scholars did not have proper knowledge of Vedas and they were taught in the most incorrect way. Brahmins were doing animal sacrifice in the name of Vedas. It was after when Lord Buddha left and sent Bhagwan Shiv Shankar as Adi Shankracharya to teach and preach the Vedas in the most correct way. Adi Shankracharya is said to be the incarnation of Bhagwan Shiv Shankar. It was Adi Shankracharya who taught the symbolic meaning in the Vedas. The animal sacrifice are symbolic for removing the animosity within the individual performing the yagya. The Vedas were put in written form by Maharishi Ved Vyas. He divided the Vedas into 4 different parts. Rig Ved, Sam Ved, Athar Ved and Yajur Ved.