The notion of a fifth Veda (Sanskrit pañcama veda), that is, of a text which lies outside the four canonical Vedas, but nonetheless has the status of a Veda, is one that has been advanced in a number of post-Vedic texts, in order to accord a particular text or texts and their doctrines with the timelessness authority associated with the Vedas.

The idea is an ancient one, appearing for the first time in the Upanishads, has over the centuries since then also been applied to more recent Sanskrit and vernacular texts.