Hinduism/The Puranas

thumb|300px|The Goddess Ambika or Durga Leading the Eight Matrikas in Battle Against the Demon Raktabija, Folio from Devi Mahatmya, Markandeya Purana. The Puranas (Sanskrit: पुराण sa IAST purāṇa, "of ancient times") are Hindu religious texts. They contain narratives about the history of the Universe from creation to destruction and the genealogies of kings, heroes, sages, and deities. Some of the Puranas are discourses on cosmology, geography and Hindu philosophy. They are usually written in the form of a dialogue. The Puranas, along with the Smritis, were composed to elucidate the principles of vedanta and in form of stories for easy understanding of common folks and also to inculcate to ethical values.   Vyasa, the narrator of the Mahabharata, is traditionally considered the compiler of the Puranas.The Puranas by Swami Sivananda The earliest written versions were compiled during the time of the Gupta Empire (4 - 6 century CE) and much of the material may be dated, through historical references and comparative studies, to this period and the succeeding centuries. The texts were collected from all over India and because of the similarities that are found throughout the texts, it is not possible to trace the line of influence of one Purana upon another, so the corpus is best viewed as a synchronous whole.Flood 1996 359 The date of the earliest written texts does not define the date of origin of the Puranas.Johnson 2009 247 They were transmitted orally before being written down, while at the same time, they have been modified well into the 16th centurySingh 1997 2324 and beyond. Serious work on the Puranas began when the All India Kashiraj Trust was formed under the patronage and guidance of Dr. Vibhuti Narayan Singh, the Maharaja of Kashi, which, in addition to producing critical editions of the Puranas, also published the journal Puranam.Mittal 2004 657 Origins thumb|300px|An illustration of Varaha avatar based on the Bhagavata Purana An early reference is found in the Chandogya Upanishad (7.1.2). (c. 500 BCE.) The Brhadaranyaka Upanishad refers to purana as the "fifth Veda"Brhadaranyaka Upanisad 2.4.10, 4.1.2, 4.5.11. Satapatha Brahmana (SBE, Vol. 44, pp. 98, 369). Moghe 1997 160,249, sa IAST itihāsapurāṇaṃ pañcamaṃ vedānāṃ, reflecting the early religious importance of these myths, presumably then in oral form. The term also appears in the Atharvaveda 11.7.24Pargiter 1962 30-54Moghe 1997 249 and the Satapatha Brahmana 11.5.6.8. and 13.4.3.13. Sacred Books of the East|SBE Vol. 44, pp. 98, 369. According to Matysa Purana, Matsya Purana 53.65 they are said to narrate five subjects, called Pancha Lakshana sa IAST pañcalakṣaṇa ("five distinguishing marks"):Johnson 2009 248 Sarga: the creation of the universe. Pratisarga: secondary creations, mostly re-creations after dissolution. Vamśa: genealogy of the gods and sages. Manvañtara: the creation of the human race and the first human beings. The epoch of the Manus' rule, 71 celestial Yugas or 308,448,000 years. Vamśānucaritam: the histories of the patriarchs of the lunar and solar dynasties. Some scholars have suggested that these 'distinguishing marks' are shared by other traditional religious scriptures.Rao 1993 85-100 The Puranas also lay emphasis on keeping a record of genealogies. The Vayu Purana states that in ancient times the Sūta (Sanskrit:सूत bards of Puranic stories) preserved the genealogies of gods, rishis, glorious kings and the traditions of great men. According to Pargiter (1922), the "original Purana" may date to the time of the final redaction of the Vedas. and Pargiter (1979) Pargiter 1979 P.L. Bhargava 1971, India in the Vedic Age, Lucknow: Upper India Publishing; Talageri 1993, 2000; Subhash Kak, 1994, The astronomical code of the Rgveda Pargiter has argued that the Puranic Krta Yuga—in the Vayu Purana the four Yugas are divided into 4800, 3600, 2400, and 1200 years—"ended with the destruction of the Haihayas [by Rama Jamadagnya]; the Treta began approximately with Sagara and ended with Rama Dasarathi's destruction of the Raksasas; and the Dvapara began with his reinstatement at Ayodhya and ended with the Bharata battle".Pargiter 1922 177 In Arrian's Indica, Megasthenes (Greek Historian born c. 350 BC died c. 290) is quoted as stating that the Indians counted from Shiva (Dionysos) to Chandragupta Maurya (Sandracottus) "a hundred and fifty-three kings over six thousand and forty-three years."Pliny: Naturalis Historia 6:59; Arrian: Indica 9:9 The list of kings in Kalhana's Rajatarangini goes back to the 19th century BCE.Elst 1999, with reference to Bernard Sergent Nevertheless Gavin Flood (Professor of Oxford University, Hindu Studies and Comparative Religion) connects the rise of the written Purana historically with the rise of devotional cults centring upon a particular deity in the Gupta era: the Puranic corpus is a complex body of materials that advance the views of various competing cults. Although these texts are related to each other, and material in one is found in another, they nevertheless each present a view of ordering of the world from a particular perspective. They must not be seen as random collections of old tales, but as highly selective and crafted expositions and presentations of worldviews and soteriologies, compiled by particular groups of Brahmins to propagate a particular vision, whether it be focused on sa IAST Viṣṇu, sa IAST Śiva, or sa IAST Devī, or, indeed, any number of deities. The Puranas are available in vernacular translations and are disseminated by Brahmin scholars, who read from them and tell their stories, usually in Katha sessions (in which a travelling brahmin settles for a few weeks in a temple and narrates parts of a Purana, usually with a Bhakti perspective). Texts The Mahapuranas Of the many texts designated Puranas the most important are the sa IAST Mahāpurāṇas. These are always said to be eighteen in number, divided into three groups of six. Agni Purana (15,400 verses) Bhagavata Purana (18,000 verses). One of the most celebrated and popular of the Puranas,Monier-Williams 1899 752, column 3, under the entry Bhagavata. telling of Vishnu's ten Avatars. Its tenth and longest canto narrates the deeds of Krishna, introducing his childhood exploits, a theme later elaborated by many Bhakti movements.Hardy 2001 Bhavishya Purana (14,500 verses) Brahma Purana (24,000 verses) Brahmanda Purana (12,000 verses; includes Lalita Sahasranamam, a text some Hindus recite as prayer) Brahma Vaivarta Purana (18,000 verses) Garuda Purana (19,000 verses) Kurma Purana (17,000 verses) Linga Purana (11,000 verses) Markandeya Purana (9,000 verses; includes Devi Mahatmyam, an important text for Shaktas) Matsya Purana (14,000 verses) Narada Purana (25,000 verses) Padma Purana (55,000 verses) Shiva Purana (24,000 verses) Skanda Purana (81,100 verses), the longest Purana, it is an extraordinarily meticulous pilgrimage guide, containing geographical locations of pilgrimage centers in India, with related legends, parables, hymns and stories. Many untraced quotes are attributed to this text.Doniger 1993 59-83 Vamana Purana (10,000 verses) Varaha Purana (10,000 verses) Vishnu Purana (23,000 verses) The Mahapuranas are frequently classified according the three aspects of the divine Trimurti, Brahma Puranas: Brahma Purana, Brahmānda Purana, Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Mārkandeya Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Vishnu Puranas: Vishnu Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Nāradeya Purana, Garuda Purana, Padma Purana, Varaha Purana, Vāmana Purana, Kūrma Purana, Matsya Purana Shiva Puranas: Shiva Purana, Linga Purana, Skanda Purana, Agni Purana, Vāyu Purana The Puranic Encyclopedia According to the Padma Purana,Padma Purana, Uttara-khanda, 236.18–21 the texts may be classified in accordance with the three gunas or qualities; truth, passion, and ignorance: Sattva ("truth; purity"): Vishnu Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Naradeya Purana, Garuda Purana, Padma Purana, Varaha Purana Rajas ("dimness; passion"): Brahmanda Purana, Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Markandeya Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Vamana Purana, Brahma Purana Tamas ("darkness; ignorance"): Matsya Purana, Kurma Purana, Linga Purana, Shiva Purana, Skanda Purana, Agni Purana The Upapuranas The sa IAST Upapurāṇas are lesser or ancillary texts: these are sometimes also said to be eighteen in number, with still less agreement as to the canonical titles. Few have been critically edited. They include: Sanat-kumara, Narasimha, Brihan-naradiya, Siva-rahasya, Durvasa, Kapila, Vamana, Bhargava, Varuna, Kalika, Samba, Nandi, Surya, Parasara, Vasishtha, Devi-Bhagavata, Ganesha, Mudgala, and Hamsa.R. C. Hazra, Studies in the Upapuranas, vol. I, Calcutta, Sanskrit College, 1958. Studies in the Upapuranas, vol. II, Calcutta, Sanskrit College, 1979. Studies in Puranic Records on Hindu Rites and Customs, Delhi, Banarsidass, 1975. Ludo Rocher, The Puranas - A History of Indian Literature Vol. II, fasc. 3, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1986. The Ganesha and Mudgala Puranas are devoted to Ganesha.Thapan 1997 304Purana at Gurjari The Devi-Bhagavata Purana, which extols the goddess Durga, has become (along with the Devi Mahatmya of the Mārkandeya Purana) a basic text for Devi worshipers.Mackenzie 1990 There are many others all over the Indian subcontinent.`Verbal Narratives: Performance and Gender of the Padma Purana, by T.N. Sankaranarayana in Kaushal 2001 225-234 Sthala Puranas This corpus of texts tells of the origins and traditions of particular temples or shrines—the word sthala means "spot" in Sanskrit. There are numerous Sthala Puranas, most written in vernaculars, some with Sanskrit versions as well. Some appear in Sanskrit versions in the Mahapuranas or Upapuranas. Some Tamil Sthala Puranas have been researched by David Dean Shulman.Shulman 1980 Kula Puranas These Puranas deal with a caste's origin myth, stories, and legends (the word kula means "family" or "tribe" in Sanskrit). They are important sources for caste identity though usually contested by rival castes. This subgenre is usually in the vernacular and may at times remain oral.Handoo 1998 125-142 These have been little researched, though they are documented in the caste section of the British Census of India Report and the various Gazetteers.See for example Castes and Tribes of Southern India vol. I–V, Thurston Edgar. Cosmo Publication, Delhi. Jain Puranas Jain Puranas deal with Jain myths, history and legends and form a major part of early Kannada literature.Jaini, Padmanabh S. (1993). "Jaina Puranas: A Puranic Counter Tradition." in Doniger 1993 207-249 Cort, John E. (1993). "An Overview of the Jaina Puranas". in Doniger 1993 185–206 The best known is the Mahapurana of Acharya Jinasena. Notes References Bhargava, P.L. 1971. India in the Vedic Age. Lucknow: Upper India Publishing. Dimmitt Cornelia J. A. B. van Buitenen Classical Hindu Mythology: A Reader in the Sanskirt Puranas Temple University Press 1978 Philadelphia 8170305969 Doniger Wendy (editor) Wendy Doniger sa IAST Purāṇa Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts 1993 State University of New York Albany, New York 0-7914-1382-9 Handoo Jawaharlal (editor) Folklore in Modern India 81-7342-055-6 1998 Hardy Friedhelm Viraha-Bhakti - The Early History of Krsna Devotion in South India 0-19-564916-8 2001 </ref> Flood Gavin An Introduction to Hinduism Book 1996 Cambridge University Press 0521433045 Johnson W.J. A Dictionary of Hinduism Oxford University Press 2009 978-0-19-861025-0 Kaushal Molly (editor) Chanted Narratives - The Katha Vachana Tradition 81-246-0182-8 2001 R. C. Majumdar R. C. Majumdar A. D. Pusalker The history and culture of the Indian people 1: The Vedic age Bombay Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan 1951 Mackenzie Brwon The Triumph of the Goddess - The Canonical Models and Theological Visions of the DevI-BhAgavata PuraNa 0-7914-0363-7 1990 State University of New York Press </ref> Sushil Mittal The Hindu World Routledge 2004 978-0415215275 Moghe S. G. (editor) Professor Kane's contribution to Dharmasastra literature 1997 New Delhi D.K. Printworld (P) Ltd. 81-246-0075-9 Monier-Williams Monier Monier Monier-Williams A Sanskrit-English Dictionary 1899 Oxford University Press Pargiter F.E. 1922 Ancient Indian Historical Tradition London Oxford University Press Pargiter F. E. Ancient Indian historical tradition Original publisher Oxford University Press, London Motilal Banarasidass 1922 1962 Book Delhi 1068416 Rao Velcheru Narayana Purana Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts Purana as Brahminic Ideology 0-7914-1381-0 Doniger Wendy Book 2007-07-25 1993 State University of New York Press Albany David Dean Shulman Shulman David Dean Tamil Temple Myths: Sacrifice and Divine Marriage in the South Indian Saiva Tradition 0-691-06415-6 1980 Nagendra Kumar Singh Encyclopaedia of Hinduism 1997 8174881689 Thapan Anita Raina Understanding sa IAST Gaṇapati: Insights into the Dynamics of a Cult 1997 Manohar Publishers 1997 New Delhi 81-7304-195-4 Further reading Thurston Edgar. Castes and Tribes of Southern India (Vols I-V). Cosmo Publication, Delhi.