Final answer:
Yes, Vedic Sanskrit was passed down only orally for many centuries.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement "Vedic Sanskrit was passed down only orally for many centuries" is true.
The Vedas, which are the oldest Hindu scriptures, were composed between 1500 and 900 BCE and were recited orally. The Vedas were considered divinely inspired and were transmitted through generations by priests. It was in the later Vedic period, between 500 and 200 BCE, that the great epic poems, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, were composed.
Therefore, Vedic Sanskrit was indeed passed down orally for many centuries.