The Taittiriya Shakha is a notable shakha

Shakha

A shakha , is a Hindu theological school that specializes in learning certain Vedic texts, or else the traditional texts followed by such a school. An individual follower of a particular school or recension is called a ...

("rescension") of the Black Yajurveda. The Vishnu Purana

Vishnu Purana

The Vishnu Purana is a religious Hindu text and one of the eighteen Mahapuranas. It is considered one of the most important Puranas and has been given the name Puranaratna...

 attributes it to a pupil of Yaska

Yaska

' ) was a Sanskrit grammarian who preceded Pāṇini , assumed to have been active in the 5th or 6th century BC.He is the author of the Nirukta, a technical treatise on etymology, lexical category and the semantics of words...

 named Tittiri. It is most prevalent in south India

South India

South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

. The shakha consists of:

• The Taittiriya Samhita— (TS) which consists of 8 books or kaandas, subdivided in chapters or prapathakas, further subdivided into individual hymns. Some individual hymns in this Samhita have gained particular importance in Hinduism
  Hinduism
  Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
  
  ; e.g. TS 4.5 and TS 4.7 constitute the Shri Rudram Chamakam
  Shri Rudram Chamakam
  Sri Rudram , to which the Chamakam is added by scriptural tradition, is a Hindu stotra dedicated to Rudra , taken from the Yajurveda . Shri Rudram is also known as Sri Rudraprasna, , and Rudradhyaya. The text is important in Vedanta where Shiva is equated to the Universal Brahman...
  
  , while 1.8.6.i is the Shaivaite Tryambakam mantra.
• The Taittiriya Brahmana (having three kaandas). Part of kathaka
  Katha
  Katha may refer to:* The Sanskrit for "speech, narration, story, fable", see Katha * The Kaṭha or Caraka-Katha school of the Black Yajurveda** Katha Upanishad, a Hindu text associated with the Katha school...
  
   shakha brahmana
  Brahmana
  The Brāhmaṇas are part of the Hindu śruti literature. They are commentaries on the four Vedas, detailing the proper performance of rituals....
  
   is also included in this shakha.
• the Taittiriya Aranyaka
  Aranyaka
  The Aranyakas are part of the Hindu śruti, the four Vedas; they were composed in late Vedic Sanskrit typical of the Brahmanas and early Upanishads; indeed, they frequently form part of either the Brahmanas or the Upanishads....
  
   (having seven prashnas)
  • The Taittiriya Upanishad
    Taittiriya Upanishad
    The Taittiriya Upanishad is one of the older, "primary" Upanishads commented upon by Shankara. It is associated with the Taittiriya school of the Yajurveda...
    
     (having three prashnas or vallis - Sheeksha valli, Ananda valli and Bhrigu valli)
  • The Mahanarayana Upanishad
    Mahanarayana Upanishad
    Mahānārāyaṇa is the name of several upanishads.* The tenth chapter of the Taittiriya Aranyaka is also known as the Mahanarayana Upanishad of the Yajurveda...
    
    
• The Apastamba Shrautasutra/The Bodhayana Shrautasutra/The Vaikhanasa Shrautasutra/The Hiranyakeshi Shrautasutra

The Taittiriya Upanishad and Mahanarayana Upanishad are considered to be the seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth prashnas of the Taittiriya Aaranyaka. The words prapaathaka and kaanda (meaning sections) are interchangeably used in the Vedic literature. Prashna and valli refer to sections of the Aaranyaka.

Editions

• Albrecht Weber, Die , Leipzig, Indische Studien 11-12, Brockhaus (1871, 1872) etext