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Chitra Pournami (festival)
Chaitra Pournami is an multi-sect multi-community Hindu festival observed on Purnima day of Chaitra month. It is celebrated across various parts of South Asia observed on full moon day in the month of Chithirai, corresponding in the Gregorian calendar to a day in April or May. In some parts of India, The festival is dedicated to Chitragupta, a Hindu god who is believed to record humans' good and bad deeds for Yama, the Hindu god of death and the underworld. On this day, devotees ask Chitragupta to forgive their sins. On the festival day, many devotees bathe in rivers or other water bodies to symbolise their sins being washed away. This is especially popular at the river Chitra in the district of Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, India. In Kerala's capital, Thiruvananthapuram, there is an old temple of Chitra Pournami Valiya Thottam Bhagavathi at Pachalloor en-route Kovalam. Here, this festival has been celebrated for the last 200 years. The temple belongs to Melanganathil Veedu-Valiya ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamil People
The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethno-linguistic group who trace their ancestry mainly to India’s South India, southern state of Tamil Nadu, union territory of Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry and to Sri Lanka. Tamils who speak the Tamil Language and are born in :Social groups of Tamil Nadu, Tamil clans are considered Tamilians. Tamils constitute 5.9% of the population in India (concentrated mainly in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), 15% in Sri Lanka (excluding Sri Lankan Moors), 7% in Tamil Malaysians, Malaysia, 6% in Tamil Mauritians, Mauritius, and 5% in Indian Singaporeans, Singapore. From the 4th century BCE, urbanisation and mercantile activity along the western and eastern coasts of what is today Kerala and Tamil Nadu led to the develo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhagavathi
Bhagavatī (Devanagari: भगवती, IAST: Bhagavatī), is a Hindu epithet of Sanskrit origin, used as an honorific title for female deities in Hinduism. It is primarily used to address one of the Tridevi: Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Parvati. The male equivalent of Bhagavatī is Bhagavān.Sarah Caldwell (1998), Bhagavati, in Devi: Goddesses of India (Editors: John Stratton Hawley, Donna Marie Wulff), Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 195-198 The term is an equivalent of Devi and Ishvari. Bhagavati Temples India Bhagavati temples can also be found all over Mumbai, for example, * Bhagavati Devi Sansthan Deosari, Umarkhed, Yavatmal District, Maharashtra. * Bhagavati temple at Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. * Bhagawati Temple at Reotipur, Uttar Pradesh. * Bhagawati Temple at Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh. Karnataka Bagavathi temple Sasihitlu Mangalore. Famous temple in Karnataka on the bank of Arabian sea. Guliga is the main Daiva here. Bhagavathi temple in Ullal, Mangalore Kerala Shrines of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Worship
Worship in Hinduism is an act of religious devotion usually directed to one or more Hindu deities. A sense of Bhakti or devotional love is generally invoked. This term is probably a central one in Hinduism, but a direct translation from the Sanskrit to English is difficult. Worship takes a multitude of forms depending on geography and language. Worship is not confined to any place of worship, and it will often incorporate personal reflection, music, dance and poetry. Hindus usually perform worship in temples or at home to achieve some specific end or to integrate the body, mind and spirit. The aim is to live a pure life in order to help the performer reincarnate into a higher being. Deities Within Hinduism many personal gods (Ishvaras) are worshipped as murtis. These beings are either aspects of the supreme Brahman, Avatars of the supreme being, or significantly powerful entities known as devas. The exact nature of belief in regards to each deity varies between differing Hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Festivals
Across the globe, Hindus celebrate a diverse number of festivals and celebrations, typically marking events from ancient Indian, ancient India and often coinciding with seasonal changes. These celebrations take place either on a fixed annual date on the solar calendar, or on a specific day of the lunisolar calendar. There is some regional variation with the observance of the festivals, and numerous festivals that are primarily celebrated by specific sects or in certain regions of the Indian subcontinent. Terminology Utsava ''Utsava'' is the Sanskrit word for festivals. The Sanskrit word ''Utsava'' comes from the word "''ut''" meaning "removal" and "''sava''" which means "worldly sorrows" or "grief". Observance periods (''tithi'') Hindu calendar dates are usually prescribed according to a lunisolar calendar. In Vedic timekeeping, a ''māsa'' is a lunar month, a ''pakṣa'' is a lunar fortnight and a tithi, ''tithi'' is a lunar day. Two definitions of the lunar month prevail: Hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meenakshi Temple, Madurai
Arulmigu Meenakshi Sundaraswarar Temple is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is dedicated to the goddess Meenakshi, a form of Parvati, and her consort, ''Sundareshwarar'', a form of Shiva. The temple is at the center of the ancient temple city of Madurai mentioned in the Tamil Sangam literature, with the goddess temple mentioned in 6th-century-CE texts. This temple is one of the Paadal Petra Sthalams. The Paadal Petra sthalams are 275 temples of lord Shiva that are revered in the verses of Tamil Saiva Nayanars of 6th-9th century CE. The west tower (gopuram) of the temple is the model based on which the Tamil Nadu State Emblem is designed. Overview Madurai Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple was built by Pandya dynasty, Pandayan Emperor Sadayavarman Kulasekaran I (1190 CE–1205 CE). He built the main Portions of the three-storeyed Gopuram at the entrance of Sundareswarar Shrine and the central ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madurai
Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in Tamil Nadu after Chennai and Coimbatore and the 44th most populated city in India. Located on the banks of River Vaigai, Madurai has been a major settlement for two millennia and has a documented history of more than 2500 years. It is often referred to as "Thoonga Nagaram", meaning "the city that never sleeps". Madurai is closely associated with the Tamil language. The third Tamil Sangam, a major congregation of Tamil scholars said to have been held in the city. The recorded history of the city goes back to the 3rd century BCE, being mentioned by Megasthenes, the Greek ambassador to the Maurya empire, and Kautilya, a minister of the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya. Signs of human settlements and Roman trade links dating back to 3 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brihaspati
Brihaspati ( sa, बृहस्पति, ), also known as Guru, is a Hindu deity. In the ancient Vedic scriptures of Hinduism, Brihaspati is a deity associated with fire, and the word also refers to a rishi (sage) who counsels the devas (gods). In some later texts, the word refers to the largest planet of the solar system, Jupiter, and the deity is associated with the planet as a Navagraha. Sage Brihaspati appears in the Rigveda (pre-1000 BCE), such as in the dedications to him in the hymn 50 of Book 4; he is described as a sage born from the first great light, the one who drove away darkness, is bright and pure, and carries a special bow whose string is ''Rta'' or "cosmic order" (basis of dharma). His knowledge and character is revered, and he is considered Guru (teacher) by all the Devas. In the Vedic literature and other ancient texts, sage Brihaspati is also called by other names such as Bramanaspati, Purohita, Angirasa (son of Angiras) and Vyasa; he is sometimes identifie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indra
Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> Indra's myths and powers are similar to other Indo-European deities such as Jupiter, Perun, Perkūnas, Zalmoxis, Taranis, Zeus, and Thor, part of the greater Proto-Indo-European mythology. Indra is the most referred deity in the ''Rigveda''. He is celebrated for his powers, and as the one who killed the great evil (a malevolent type of asura) named Vritra, who obstructed human prosperity and happiness. Indra destroys Vritra and his "deceiving forces", and thereby brings rains and sunshine as the saviour of mankind. He is also an important deity worshipped by the Kalash people, indicating his prominence in ancient Hinduism. Indra's significance diminishes in the post-Vedic Indian literature, but he still plays an important role in various m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam
The ''Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam'' (; ) is a collection of sixty-four 16th-century Shaivite devotional epic stories by Paranjothi Munivar. They describe the actions (and antics) of Lord Shiva on Earth in a number of disguises to test and help his devotees. Contents There are sixty-four stories in the ''Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam''. It is divided into three cantos, namely Maduraikandam, Koodarkandam and Thirualavaikandam. Tiruvilayadal Purana is viewed to be one of the 18 Thalapuranas. It is also revered as one of the Mahapuranas (Periyapurana – the right eye of God Shiva, Tiruvilayadal Purana – the left eye and Kanda Purana – the third eye). It was authored by Saint Paranjothi, estimated 300 years ago. It narrates the 64 Tiruvilayadals (Leelas in Sanskrit), loosely translated as the ''"playful miracles of God (Shiva) himself"''. It describes the legends and prevalent in the Pandyan Kingdom in South India and covers a period of more than 500 years during the reign of fifty-two ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kartikeya
Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha and a god whose legends have many versions in Hinduism. Kartikeya has been an important deity in the Indian subcontinent since ancient times, worshipped as Mahasena and Kumara in North India and is predominantly worshipped in the state of Tamil Nadu and other parts of South India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, and Malaysia as Murugan. Murugan is widely regarded as the "God of the Tamil people". It has been postulated that the Tamil deity of Murugan was syncretised with the Vedic deity of Subrahmanya following the Sangam era. Both Muruga and Subrahmanya refer to Kartikeya. The iconography of Kartikeya varies significantly; he is typically represented as an ever-youthful man, riding or near an Indian peafowl, called Paravani, bearing a vel and so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shaiva Siddhanta
Shaiva Siddhanta () (Tamil: சைவ சித்தாந்தம் "Caiva cittāntam") is a form of Shaivism that propounds a dualistic philosophy where the ultimate and ideal goal of a being is to become an enlightened soul through Shiva's grace. It draws primarily on the Tamil devotional hymns written by Shaiva saints from the 5th to the 9th century, known in their collected form as ''Tirumurai''. Meykandadevar (13th century) was the first systematic philosopher of the school. The normative rites, cosmology and theology of Shaiva Siddhanta draw upon a combination of Agamas and Vedic scriptures. This tradition is thought to have been once practiced all over India. However the Muslim subjugation of North India restricted Shaiva Siddhanta to the south, where it merged with the Tamil Saiva movement expressed in the bhakti poetry of the Nayanmars.Flood, Gavin. D. 1996. An Introduction to Hinduism. P.168 It is in this historical context that Shaiva Siddhanta is commonly cons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaumaram
__NOTOC__ Murugan is a Hindu denomination that primarily venerates the Hindu deity of war, ''Kumaran'', also known as Murugan (in South India), ''Kandan'', or ''Kadamban'', or '' Kartikeya, aarumugan,'' . Most devotees of Kumaran also revere members of his family: Parvati, Shiva, and Ganesha, as well his consorts, Devasena and Sundaravalli, the daughters of Vishnu in Tamil tradition. The important theological texts relating to Kumara are a part of the Shaiva agama canon. This sub-tradition is found among the Tamils, Kannadigas, and the Vedda, in South India, Sri Lanka, and among the Tamil diaspora worldwide. The love story of Kumara/Murugan and his wife Valli, a girl from a local tribe, is popular in Tamil Nadu, where Kumara acquired the status of a national god. See also * Arunagirinathar * Deivayanai * Idumban * Mayura (mythology) * Six Abodes of Murugan * Vel Vel ( ta, வேல், lit=Vēl) is a divine javelin or spear associated with Murugan, the Hindu god of war. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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