The Yajurveda is generally divided into two broad divisions. The first one is "black" (Krishna) Yajurveda and the second one is "white" (Shukla) Yajurveda. Black implies the unorganized, miscellaneous collection of verses in Yajurveda, in contrast to the white, which implies the organized and easy to comprehend collection of verses in Yajurveda. The black Yajurveda has survived in four recensions, while two recensions of white Yajurveda have survived into the modern times.

The earliest found layer of Yajurveda Samhita has around 1,875 verses, they are distinctive in nature yet are borrowed and built upon the foundation of verses in Rigveda. The middle layer includes the Satapatha Brahmana, one of the largest Brahmana texts in the Vedic collection. The youngest layer of Yajurveda text includes the largest collection of primary Upanishads, influential to various schools of Hindu philosophy. These include the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, the Isha Upanishad, the Taittiriya Upanishad, the Katha Upanishad, the Shvetashvatara Upanishad and the Maitri Upanishad.

Yajurveda is a compound Sanskrit word, composed of Yajus and Veda. Yajus means religious reverence, worship, prayer, formula, particularly mantras muttered in a peculiar manner at a ritual. Veda means knowledge.

Yajurveda was the main Vedic script used by the priests in ancient India. Yajurveda seeks to create a deeper level of consciousness among people. It sets forth a yogic practice that purifies not just the body, but also the mind. This helps in awakening the inner consciousness, which opens up new avenues of learning and understanding of life and existence.