The term ‘Aryan’ means ‘noble’. It was used as a self designation by Indo-Iranian people. It was used in vedic period i India as an ethnic label for themselves as well as to refer noble class.
The Puranas is important as they were the main influence in the development from early Vedic religion to Hinduism
The Shastras contained works of science and philosophy
The Bhagvad Gita a later addition to the Mahabharata enshrines a philosophical doctrine and in it are described the three paths to salvation: karma, gyan and bhakti