The Scientific Basis of Yajnas Along with Its Wisdom Aspect
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Research Paper Sociology Vamana–Trivikrama in Badami Chalukya Sculpture
Volume : 2 | Issue : 9 | Sept 2013 • ISSN No 2277 - 8160 Research Paper Sociology Vamana–Trivikrama In Badami Chalukya Sculpture Smt. Veena Muddi Research Scholar,Dept of Ancient Indian History and Epigraphy, Karnatak University, Dharwad Introduction Padma Purana Until the time of Vikramaditya I the rulers of the Chalukya dynasty of Vishnu was born as a son of Aditi. Knowing about sacrifice being per- Badami (543-757 CE) were the inclined towards Vaishnavism. The re- formed by Bali, Vishnu went to the place of sacrifice along with eight cords of Mangalesa (Padigar:2010:9-11,12-15) and Polekesi II (Padi- sages. Vamana told the reason for his arrival and asked for a piece of gar:2010:42-45) are vocal in describing them as parama-bhagavatas, land measured by his three steps. Sukracharya advised Bali not to grant ‘great devotees of Vishnu’. The fact that two of the four caves excavated Vamana’s request. But Bali would not listen to his guru. He washed the by them at their capital Badami, all of them dating from pre-620 CE feet of Lord and granted Vamana’s wish. After that Lord abandoned his period, are dedicated to god Vishnu is further evidence of the situation. dwarfish form, took the body of Vishnu, covered the whole universe In 659 CE Virkamaditya I was initiated into Mahesvara brand of Saivism and sent Bali to netherworld.(Bhatt:1991:3211-3215) through a ritual called Sivamandala-diksha. (Padigar:2010:67-70) Henceforth he came to be called a parama-Mahesvara, ‘a great devo- Narada Purana tee of Mahesvara or Siva’. -
Significance of Events During the Grand Celebrations
Significance of Events during the Grand Celebrations 1. What is the purpose of doing Sri Rama Seva? Answer: Sri Rama Seva is done for the following reasons: a. To learn about and aspire to live a life in the example of Sri Rama. b. Elevate oneself to a higher level of spiritual consciousness, harmony, and peace. c. To inculcate awareness of our Vedic culture in children. 2. What events does Sri Rama Seva include? Answer: Sri Rama Seva includes the following: Sri Rama Puja, Deepavali, Acharya Thirunakshatram, Sri Rama Krathuvu, and Sahasra Kalasa Abhishekam. 3. What’s unique about these grand celebrations? a. Swamiji will be in USA for the first time during His Holiness Thirunakshatram celebrations in Houston. b. Sahasra (1001) Kalasa Abhishekam will be performed to Swamiji’s aradhana perumal - Sri Ram parivar for the first time in USA, outside of India. Abhishekam will be performed by 40 qualified Ruthwiks. c. Sri Rama Krathuvu (Yagnam will be peformed by 40 Ruthwiks) for the first time at Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple. d. Devotees from all over the World will be coming to Houston to be part of these grand celebrations. 4. Why do we celebrate Deepavali? Answer: Deepavali, the Festival of Lights, signifies the removal of ignorance or darkness. Our Acharya’s guidance is necessary to lead us out of darkness and onto the path of spiritual enlightenment. This Deepavali is unique as Acharya Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji is going to be amidst us. Deepavali is also celebrated to mark the arrival of Lord Sri Rama back to Ayodhya after Ravana’s annihilation. -
Temple Prototype
The Axis and the Perimeter of the Temple Subhash Kak Canonical texts describing the plan of the Hindu temple allude to its astronomical basis, and in this Indian sacred geometry is not different in conception from the sacred geometry of other ancient cultures,1 although it has its own unique features. If astronomical alignments characterize ancient temples of megalithic Europe, Egyptians, Maya, Aztecs, and Javanese, they also characterize Indian temples. In some temples, the garbhagÅha (innermost chamber) is illuminated by the setting sun only on a specific day of the year, or the temple may deviate from the canonical east-west axis and be aligned with a nak¬atra (constellation) that has astrological significance for the patron or for the chosen deity of the temple. A part of the astronomical knowledge coded in the temple lay-out and form is canonical or traditional, while the rest may relate to the times when the temple was erected. The astronomy of the temple provides clues relevant not only to the architecture but also the time when it was built. In this article, we consider the broadest design related to the sacred space associated with the Hindu temple. There is continuity in Indian architecture that goes back to the Harappan period of the 3rd millennium B.C.E., as described in Michel Danino’s important work on the plan for the Harappan city of Dholavira.2 For this reason, we devote our attention to the earliest description of the temple in Indian literature, which goes back to the Vedic period. For a background to the earliest Indian art and architecture the reader might refer to an earlier paper by the author.3 Specifically, we look at the astronomical significance of the lengths of the axis and the perimeter. -
Temple Prototype
The Axis and the Perimeter of the Hindu Temple Subhash Kak Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge E-mail: [email protected] Śāstric texts describing the plan of the Hindu temple allude to its astronomical basis, and in this Indian sacred geometry is not different from the sacred geometry of other ancient cultures.1 If astronomical alignments characterize ancient temples of megalithic Europe, Egyptians, Maya, Aztecs, Javanese and Cambodians, they also characterize Indian temples. For example, the garbhagÅha of certain temples is illuminated by the setting sun only on a specific day of the year, or the temple may deviate from the canonical east-west axis and be aligned with a nak¬atra that has astrological significance for the patron or for the chosen deity of the temple. A part of the astronomical knowledge coded in the temple lay-out and form is canonical or traditional, while the rest relates to the times when the temple was erected. The astronomy of the temple provides clues relevant not only to the architecture but also the time when it was built. The Agnicayana altar, the centre of the great ritual of the Vedic times that forms a major portion of the narrative of the Yajurveda, is generally seen as the prototype of the Hindu temple and of Vāstu. The altar is first built of 1,000 bricks in five layers (that symbolically represent the five divisions of the year, the five physical elements, as well as five senses) to specific designs. The Agnicayana ritual is based upon the Vedic division of the universe into three parts, earth, atmosphere, and sky (Figure 1), that are assigned numbers 21, 78, and 261, respectively; these numbers add up to 360, which is symbolic representation of the year. -
Bhoga-Bhaagya-Yogyata Lakshmi
BHOGA-BHAAGYA-YOGYATA LAKSHMI ( FULFILLMENT AS ONE DESERVES) Edited, compiled, and translated by VDN Rao, Retd. General Manager, India Trade Promotion Organization, Ministry of Commerce, Govt. of India, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, currently at Chennai 1 Other Scripts by the same Author: Essence of Puranas:-Maha Bhagavata, Vishnu Purana, Matsya Purana, Varaha Purana, Kurma Purana, Vamana Purana, Narada Purana, Padma Purana; Shiva Purana, Linga Purana, Skanda Purana, Markandeya Purana, Devi Bhagavata;Brahma Purana, Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Agni Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Nilamata Purana; Shri Kamakshi Vilasa Dwadasha Divya Sahasranaama: a) Devi Chaturvidha Sahasra naama: Lakshmi, Lalitha, Saraswati, Gayatri; b) Chaturvidha Shiva Sahasra naama-Linga-Shiva-Brahma Puranas and Maha Bhagavata; c) Trividha Vishnu and Yugala Radha-Krishna Sahasra naama-Padma-Skanda-Maha Bharata and Narada Purana. Stotra Kavacha- A Shield of Prayers Purana Saaraamsha; Select Stories from Puranas Essence of Dharma Sindhu Essence of Shiva Sahasra Lingarchana Essence of Paraashara Smtiti Essence of Pradhana Tirtha Mahima Dharma Bindu Essence of Upanishads : Brihadaranyaka , Katha, Tittiriya, Isha, Svetashwara of Yajur Veda- Chhandogya and Kena of Saama Veda-Atreya and Kausheetaki of Rig Veda-Mundaka, Mandukya and Prashna of Atharva Veda ; Also ‘Upanishad Saaraamsa’ (Quintessence of Upanishads) Essence of Virat Parva of Maha Bharata Essence of Bharat Yatra Smriti Essence of Brahma Sutras Essence of Sankhya Parijnaana- Also Essence of Knowledge of Numbers Essence of Narada Charitra; Essence Neeti Chandrika-Essence of Hindu Festivals and Austerities- Essence of Manu Smriti*- Quintessence of Manu Smriti* - *Essence of Pratyaksha Bhaskara- Essence of Maha Narayanopanishad*-Essence of Vidya-Vigjnaana-Vaak Devi* Note: All the above Scriptures already released on www. -
THE AVATAR BUDDHA by Suhotra Swami
THE AVATAR BUDDHA by Suhotra Swami Siddhartha Gautama was the blessed and beautiful prince of the Sakyas, a royal family descended from the Suryavamsha (the Solar Dynasty of ancient Indian kings). He had always been carefully sheltered from the distresses of life by his father, King Shuddhodana. In Kapilavastu, his capital near the Himalayan foothills, the king built three palaces for his son, one specially designed to be comfortable in the cold season, another for the hot season, and the third for the monsoon. These palaces towered in ornate splendour above beautiful gardens adorned with lotus ponds. The prince was always surrounded by a host of lovely damsels who rendered him all kinds of personal service; they entertained him day and night with dance, music and games that were suited to every occasion and season. Prince Siddhartha wore only the finest cloth imported from Varanasi, a city which even today remains famous for its silk. His body was perfumed with the pulp of sandalwood. Day and night, a white parasol was held over his head. Even the servants in his palaces were fed sumptuously, so that the prince would not see want in others. The reason for all this pampering was that when the prince was born, a famous sage named Asita predicted that if Siddhartha became aware of the miseries of existence, he would renounce the world and establish a great religion (dharma). "Out of compassion for suffering humanity,", said Asita, ".....this prince will lead many people on the way to a holy life. Thus he will be a chakravartin, one who turns the wheel of dharma." King Shuddhodana, fearing the loss of his only son to asceticism, did his royal best to insure Siddhartha would never learn the meaning of the word suffering. -
South-Indian Images of Gods and Goddesses
ASIA II MB- • ! 00/ CORNELL UNIVERSITY* LIBRARY Date Due >Sf{JviVre > -&h—2 RftPP )9 -Af v^r- tjy J A j£ **'lr *7 i !! in ^_ fc-£r Pg&diJBii'* Cornell University Library NB 1001.K92 South-indian images of gods and goddesse 3 1924 022 943 447 AGENTS FOR THE SALE OF MADRAS GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS. IN INDIA. A. G. Barraud & Co. (Late A. J. Combridge & Co.)> Madras. R. Cambrav & Co., Calcutta. E. M. Gopalakrishna Kone, Pudumantapam, Madura. Higginbothams (Ltd.), Mount Road, Madras. V. Kalyanarama Iyer & Co., Esplanade, Madras. G. C. Loganatham Brothers, Madras. S. Murthv & Co., Madras. G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras. The Superintendent, Nazair Kanun Hind Press, Allahabad. P. R. Rama Iyer & Co., Madras. D. B. Taraporevala Sons & Co., Bombay. Thacker & Co. (Ltd.), Bombay. Thacker, Spink & Co., Calcutta. S. Vas & Co., Madras. S.P.C.K. Press, Madras. IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. B. H. Blackwell, 50 and 51, Broad Street, Oxford. Constable & Co., 10, Orange Street, Leicester Square, London, W.C. Deighton, Bell & Co. (Ltd.), Cambridge. \ T. Fisher Unwin (Ltd.), j, Adelphi Terrace, London, W.C. Grindlay & Co., 54, Parliament Street, London, S.W. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. (Ltd.), 68—74, iCarter Lane, London, E.C. and 25, Museum Street, London, W.C. Henry S. King & Co., 65, Cornhill, London, E.C. X P. S. King & Son, 2 and 4, Great Smith Street, Westminster, London, S.W.- Luzac & Co., 46, Great Russell Street, London, W.C. B. Quaritch, 11, Grafton Street, New Bond Street, London, W. W. Thacker & Co.^f*Cre<d Lane, London, E.O? *' Oliver and Boyd, Tweeddale Court, Edinburgh. -
A Dictionary of the Vedic Rituals
A DICTIONARY OF THE VEDIC RITUALS BASED ON THE SRAUTA AND GRHYA SUTRAS CHITRABHANU SEN nn CONCEPT PUBLISHING COMPANY UJlS DELHI Reprint 1982, 2001 First edition 1978 © Chitrabhanu Sen 1976 Chitrabhanu Sen ( b. 1927) Published and Printed by Ashok Kumar Mittal Concept Publishing Company A/15-16, Commercial Block, Mohan Garden New Delhi- 11 0059 (India) Phones: 5648039, 5649024 Fax: 091-(ll)-5648053 E-mail: [email protected] W TO THE MEMORY OF MY FATHER ARUN SEN, B.A. (CANTAB), BARRIS TER-A T-LA ACADEMICIAN AND LINGUIST WHO TAUGHT ME TO UNDERSTAND INDIA AND HER PEOPLE THROUGH THE CLASSICS CONTENTS Introduction 9 Acknowledgements 17 Abbreviations 18 List of Works and Authors 2! Transliteration and Order of the NagarrLette Arrangement of the Entries 27 Measurements 28 The Dictionary: Srauta Section 29 The Dictionary: Grhya Section 127 APPENDICES 16 9 Description of Plates Plates I - m Plans 1-9 INTRODUCTION Our knowledge of the vedic ritual is derived with a varying degree of accuracy from three sources: the Sarhhitas, the Brahmanas, the Srauta and Grhyasutras. But noncTf these books can be taken as the starting point of the vedic ritual. The earliest form of the vedic ritual remains unrecorded. BUt tl CarHcSt refcrencc t0 the vcdic "^1 ^ found in the Rgvedasamhita. r « , ?. The names of sacnficia. objects are mentioned : yupa, idhma, samidh, juhu, gravanah, drone, etc Ihe three savanas of the Soma „ sacrifice have been mentioned. The Rgveda also knew the existence of at least seven priests : Hotr , Potr, Nesfr, Agnidh, Prasastr, Adhvaryu and Brahman i A stage was reached when the hymns, as a poet claims, could only be understood by mcaTof ajaenfice » It « certain therefore that in the Rgvedic period the ritual was fairly extenswe {h °thCr hand 8 largC number ' of hvmns in the R • gveda which «„, « , ™' °J? l have no ?gVtt,a8aifahUa Was not a book of ^ ritual. -
ESSENCE of VAMANA PURANA Composed, Condensed And
ESSENCE OF VAMANA PURANA Composed, Condensed and Interpreted By V.D.N. Rao, Former General Manager, India Trade Promotion Organisation, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, Union Ministry of Commerce, Govt. of India 1 ESSENCE OF VAMANA PURANA CONTENTS PAGE Invocation 3 Kapaali atones at Vaaranaasi for Brahma’s Pancha Mukha Hatya 3 Sati Devi’s self-sacrifice and destruction of Daksha Yagna (Nakshatras and Raashis in terms of Shiva’s body included) 4 Shiva Lingodbhava (Origin of Shiva Linga) and worship 6 Nara Narayana and Prahlada 7 Dharmopadesha to Daitya Sukeshi, his reformation, Surya’s action and reaction 9 Vishnu Puja on Shukla Ekadashi and Vishnu Panjara Stotra 14 Origin of Kurukshetra, King Kuru and Mahatmya of the Kshetra 15 Bali’s victory of Trilokas, Vamana’s Avatara and Bali’s charity of Three Feet (Stutis by Kashyapa, Aditi and Brahma & Virat Purusha Varnana) 17 Parvati’s weds Shiva, Devi Kaali transformed as Gauri & birth of Ganesha 24 Katyayani destroys Chanda-Munda, Raktabeeja and Shumbha-Nikumbha 28 Kartikeya’s birth and his killings of Taraka, Mahisha and Baanaasuras 30 Kedara Kshetra, Murasura Vadha, Shivaabhisheka and Oneness with Vishnu (Upadesha of Dwadasha Narayana Mantra included) 33 Andhakaasura’s obsession with Parvati and Prahlaad’s ‘Dharma Bodha’ 36 ‘Shivaaya Vishnu Rupaaya, Shiva Rupaaya Vishnavey’ 39 Andhakaasura’s extermination by Maha Deva and origin of Ashta Bhairavaas (Andhaka’s eulogies to Shiva and Gauri included) 40 Bhakta Prahlada’s Tirtha Yatras and legends related to the Tirthas 42 -Dundhu Daitya and Trivikrama -
Vishvarupadarsana Yoga (Vision of the Divine Cosmic Form)
Vishvarupadarsana Yoga (Vision of the Divine Cosmic form) 55 Verses Index S. No. Title Page No. 1. Introduction 1 2. Verse 1 5 3. Verse 2 15 4. Verse 3 19 5. Verse 4 22 6. Verse 6 28 7. Verse 7 31 8. Verse 8 33 9. Verse 9 34 10. Verse 10 36 11. Verse 11 40 12. Verse 12 42 13. Verse 13 43 14. Verse 14 45 15. Verse 15 47 16. Verse 16 50 17. Verse 17 53 18. Verse 18 58 19. Verse 19 68 S. No. Title Page No. 20. Verse 20 72 21. Verse 21 79 22. Verse 22 81 23. Verse 23 84 24. Verse 24 87 25. Verse 25 89 26. Verse 26 93 27. Verse 27 95 28. Verse 28 & 29 97 29. Verse 30 102 30. Verse 31 106 31. Verse 32 112 32. Verse 33 116 33. Verse 34 120 34. Verse 35 125 35. Verse 36 132 36. Verse 37 139 37. Verse 38 147 38. Verse 39 154 39. Verse 40 157 S. No. Title Page No. 40. Verse 41 161 41. Verse 42 168 42. Verse 43 175 43. Verse 44 184 44. Verse 45 187 45. Verse 46 190 46. Verse 47 192 47. Verse 48 196 48. Verse 49 200 49. Verse 50 204 50. Verse 51 206 51. Verse 52 208 52. Verse 53 210 53. Verse 54 212 54. Verse 55 216 CHAPTER - 11 Introduction : - All Vibhutis in form of Manifestations / Glories in world enumerated in Chapter 10. Previous Description : - Each object in creation taken up and Bagawan said, I am essence of that object means, Bagawan is in each of them… Bagawan is in everything. -
About Yajna, Yaga & Homa
Mahabharata Series About Yajna, Yaga & Homa Compiled by: G H Visweswara PREFACE I have extracted these contents from my other comprehensive & unique work on Mahabharata called Mahabharata-Spectroscope. (See http://www.ghvisweswara.com/mahabharata-2/mahabharata-spectroscope-a-unique- resource/). Whereas the material in that was included in the order in which it appears in the original epic, in this compilation I have grouped them by meaningful Topics & Sub- topics thus making it much more useful to the student/scholar of this subject. This is a brief compilation of the contents appearing in the great epic Mahabharata on the topics of Yajna, Yaga & Homa. The compilation is not exhaustive in the sense that every para appearing in the great epic is not included here for the sake of limiting the size of this document. Some of the topics like japa-yajna have already been compiled in another document called Japa-Dhayana-Pranayama. But still most of the key or representative passages have been compiled here. The contents are from Mahabharata excluding Bhagavad Gita. I hope the readers will find the document of some use in their study on these topics. Please see http://www.ghvisweswara.com/mahabharata-2 for my other topic based compilations based on Mahabharata. G H Visweswara [email protected] www.ghvisweswara.com March 2017 About Yajna, Yaga & Homa in Mahabharata: G H Visweswara Page 1 Table of Contents About Yajna, Yaga & Homa in Mahabharata .......................................................................................... 4 Eligibility, -
Dasavatara in Puranas
Component-I (A) – Personal details: Prof. P. Bhaskar Reddy Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati. Prof. V. Venkata Ramana Reddy Director, O.R.I., S. V.University, Tirupati. Prof. V. Venkata Ramana Reddy Director, O.R.I., S. V.University, Tirupati. Prof. V. Kannan University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad. Component-I (B) – Description of module: Subject Name Indian Culture Paper Name Vedic, Epic and Puranic culture of India Module Name/Title Dasavatara in Puranas Module Id I C / VEPC / 33 Pre requisites Knowledge in Puranas and importance of Dashavataras of Vishnu To know about the general survey of Puranas, Objectives Meaning of Dashavatara, Types of Incarnation Dashavatara, Scientific analogy of Avataras and Darwinian Theory of Evolution Keywords Puranas / Dashavatara / incarnation / Vishnu E-text (Quadrant-I): 1. Introduction to Avatara(Incornation) The word 'avatara' means 'one who descends' (from Sanskrit avatarati). The descents of Vishnu from Vaikuntha to earth are his avatars or incarnations. The form in each time he descents will be different because the needs of the world each time are different. The different avatars thus balances and reinforce the dharma that rules and regulations that maintain order. They are harmed when the demands of evil clash with the good for order. As man's understanding of the world changes, desires change and so do concepts of order.. Social stability and peace on the earth must not be compromised, yet new ideas that are good for mankind must be respected. Vishnu's descents are not just about The word specifically refers to one who descends from the spiritual sky. The word 'incarnation' is can also mean as 'one who assumed flesh body’ 2.