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Dayashataka
The ''Dayashataka'' () is a Sanskrit hymn composed by the Hindu philosopher Vedanta Desika. Comprising one hundred verses in ten decads, the hymn was written in praise of Venkateshvara, a form of Vishnu who is the principal deity of the Venkateshvara Temple, Tirupati. Etymology ''Dayshataka'' is Sanskrit for "centum on mercy". Content The first decad of this work is composed in the ''anustubh'' metre of Sanskrit poetry. The poet offers his obeisance to the Venkata hill, upon which the Venkateshvara Temple stands, as well as his preceptors and the major deities of the Sri Vaishnava tradition. The second decad is composed in the ''giti'' metre and describes the ''ati-bhogya-tva'', the enjoyable qualities of God. The third decad is composed in the ''upachandasika'' metre, centred around the ''śubhā-śubhaga-tanuḥ'', the auspicious and attractive body of the deity. The fourth decad is composed in the ''malini'' metre, addressing the ''atiśaya'', the excellence o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garuda Dandaka
The ''Garuda Dandaka'' () is a Sanskrit hymn written by the Hindu philosopher Vedanta Desika. Comprising six stanzas composed in the ''dandaka'' metre, the hymn eulogises Garuda, the '' vahana'' (mount) of the Hindu deity Vishnu. Legend According to the Sri Vaishnava narrative, a snake-charmer once challenged Vedanta Desika at the town of Kanchipuram to prove his multifaceted reputation by defeating him in the art of snake-charming. Vedanta Desika agreed on the persuasion of his pupils, drawing seven lines on the ground and asking the snake-charmer to show the power of his snakes. When the snake-charmer released a number of his venomous snakes ( cobras) upon the ground, they perished after crossing the first and the second lines; when more venomous snakes were released, they died after crossing the fifth and the sixth lines. The snake-charmer then set loose his most venomous snake, called Saṃkhapāla. Saṃkhapāla crossed all seven of the lines and was poised to strike ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global population, known as Hindus. The word ''Hindu'' is an exonym, and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, many practitioners refer to their religion as '' Sanātana Dharma'' ( sa, सनातन धर्म, lit='the Eternal Dharma'), a modern usage, which refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond human history, as revealed in the Hindu texts. Another endonym is ''Vaidika dharma'', the dharma related to the Vedas. Hinduism is a diverse system of thought marked by a range of philosophies and shared concepts, rituals, cosmological systems, pilgrimage sites, and shared textual sources that discuss theology, metaphysics, mythology, Vedic yajna, yoga, agamic rituals, and temple building, among other to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aiśvarya
Aishvarya ( Sanskrit: ऐश्वर्य) means lordship or sovereignty, prosperity or royal or exalted rank. Prosperity, power and recognition by society are the three aspects of a man’s life that constitute ''aishvarya'' which term also refers to the ''aishvarya'' or greatness of God and of Brahman. Overview The word ''Aishvarya'' is derived from the word ईश meaning supreme, powerful, lord or master or God as in the phrase - ईशावास्यमिदं सर्वं – God certainly resides in all this (Isha Upanishad Mantra 1). It is directly connected with one’s ego at the individual level, and with the assumed nature of God. Basic understanding of the term Prosperity, power and recognition by society are the three aspects of a man’s life that constitute ''aishvarya''. They are the basic needs and aspirations of a man about which he dreams and he plans and for achieving which objectives he performs varying deeds. He also eagerly strives to know abo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vaishnava Texts
Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the sole supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, i.e. ''Mahavishnu''. Its followers are called Vaishnavites or ''Vaishnava''s (), and it includes sub-sects like Krishnaism and Ramaism, which consider Krishna and Rama as the supreme beings respectively. According to a 2010 estimate by Johnson and Grim, Vaishnavism is the largest Hindu sect, constituting about 641 million or 67.6% of Hindus. The ancient emergence of Vaishnavism is unclear, and broadly hypothesized as a fusion of various regional non-Vedic religions with Vishnu. A merger of several popular non-Vedic theistic traditions, particularly the Bhagavata cults of Vāsudeva-krishna and ''Gopala-Krishna'', and Narayana, developed in the 7th to 4th century BCE. It was integrated wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Texts
Hindu texts are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. A few of these texts are shared across these traditions and they are broadly considered Hindu scriptures. These include the Puranas, Itihasa and Vedas. Scholars hesitate in defining the term "Hindu scriptures" given the diverse nature of Hinduism,Dominic Goodall (1996), Hindu Scriptures, University of California Press, , page ix-xliii but many list the Bhagavad Gita and the Agamas as Hindu scriptures,Klaus Klostermaier (2007), A Survey of Hinduism: Third Edition, State University of New York Press, , pages 46–52, 76–77 and Dominic Goodall includes Bhagavata Purana and Yajnavalkya Smriti in the list of Hindu scriptures as well. History There are two historic classifications of Hindu texts: ''Śruti'' – that which is heard, and ''Smriti'' – that which is remembered. The ''Shruti'' refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Suprabhatam
Suprabhatam ( sa, सुप्रभातम्, lit=auspicious dawn, translit=Suprabhātam) is a Sanskrit prayer of the ''Suprabhātakāvya'' genre. It is a collection of hymns or verses recited early morning to awaken the deity in Hinduism. The metre chosen for a Suprabhātam poem is usually ''Vasantatilaka''. The most well-known Suprabhātam work is the Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam recited to awaken the deity Venkateswara. A rendition of the poem by renowned Carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi is extremely popular which is played daily in many homes and temples (especially Tirumala Tirupati) in the wee hours of morning. History The genre of Suprabhātakāvya traces its origin to a single verse (1.23.2) in the Bālakāṇḍa of Vālmīki's Rāmāyaṇa, where Viśvāmitra calls out to Rāma to wake up. Devanagari कौसल्यासुप्रजा राम पूर्वा संध्या प्रवर्तते । उत्तिष्ठ नरश ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chatuh Shloki
The ''Chatuh Shloki'' () is a Sanskrit hymn by the Hindu philosopher Yamunacharya Yamunacharya (IAST: Yamunāchārya), also known as Alavandar and Yamunaithuraivan, was a Vishistadvaita philosopher based in Srirangam, Tamil Nadu, India. He is best-known for being a preceptor of Ramanuja, one of the leaders of the Sri Vai ... of the Sri Vaishnava tradition. Comprising four verses, the ''Chatuh Shloki'' extols Lakshmi, the consort of the deity Vishnu. Etymology ''Chatuh Shloki'' is Sanskrit for "four verses". Description The four stanzas of the work describe the various attributes of the goddess Lakshmi, her greatness and mercy, the grace she offers to her devotees, and her inseparability in form from her consort Vishnu ( Lakshmi Narayana) respectively. Lakshmi is represented as an intermediary between a devotee and Vishnu; she is described to present a devotee's piety to her consort, offering her consort's grace to the devotee in turn. The work is regarded to be a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tirumala
Tirumala is a spiritual town in Tirupati district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the suburbs of the Tirupati, Tirupati urban agglomeration. The town is a part of Tirupati Urban Development Authority and located in Tirupati (rural) mandal of Tirupati revenue division. It is a hill town where Tirumala Venkateswara Temple is located, which is the abode of Venkateswara, Vishnu. The town is strictly vegetarian. Geography Tirumala is located above sea level and covers an area of approximately . Surrounding the hills are seven peaks of Seshachalam range, Eastern Ghats namely Seshadri, Neeladri, Garudadri, Anjanadri, Vrushabadri, Narayanadri and Venkatadri. The temple of Sri Venkateswara is on the seventh peak (Venkata (hill), Venkatadri). At the point on the Tirumala ghat roads, Tirupati – Tirumala Ghat road, there is a major discontinuity of stratigraphic significance that represents a period of remarkable serenity in the geological history of the Earth. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murti
In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. Thus, not all Hindu images of gods and saints are ''murti'', for example, purely decorative sculptures in temples and on the streets. A ''murti'' is itself not a god in Hinduism, but it is a shape, embodiment, or manifestation of a deity. ''Murti'' are also found in some nontheistic Jain traditions, where they serve as symbols of revered mortals inside Jain temples, and are worshiped in ''murtipujaka'' rituals. A ''murti'' is typically made by carving stone, wood working, metal casting or through pottery. Ancient era texts describing their proper proportions, positions and gestures include the Puranas, Agamas, and Samhitas.Klaus Klostermaier (2010), ''A Survey of Hinduism'', State University of New York Press, , pages 264–267 The expressio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lakshmi
Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Along with Parvati and Saraswati, she forms the Tridevi of Hindu goddesses. Within the goddess-oriented Shaktism, Lakshmi is venerated as the prosperity aspect of the Mother goddess. Lakshmi is both the consort and the divine energy (''shakti'') of the Hindu god Vishnu, the Supreme Being of Vaishnavism; she is also the Supreme Goddess in the sect and assists Vishnu to create, protect, and transform the universe. She is an especially prominent figure in Sri Vaishnavism, in which devotion to Lakshmi is deemed to be crucial to reach Vishnu. Whenever Vishnu descended on the earth as an avatar, Lakshmi accompanied him as consort, for example, as Sita and Radha or Rukmini as consorts of Vishnu's avatars Rama and Krishna, respectively. The eight ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niladevi
Niladevi (), also rendered as Neela Devi, is a Hindu goddess, and a consort of the preserver deity Vishnu, along with Sridevi and Bhudevi. Niladevi is regarded to be one of Vishnu's consorts, named Nagnajiti, in his avatar as Krishna, along with Sridevi as Rukmini, and Bhudevi as Satyabhama. In other accounts, she is the southern counterpart of Krishna's companion, Radha, from the North Indian tradition. She is primarily revered in South India, particularly in Tamil culture, as one of Vishnu's consorts. In Sri Vaishnava tradition, all three consorts are regarded as aspects of Lakshmi. Legend According to regional traditions, Niladevi took the incarnation of Nagnajiti, a wife of Krishna. In Sri Vaishnavism, Nagnajiti is also called Nappinnai (Pinnai, a favourite gopi of Krishna in Tamil tradition). Niladevi appears in the ''Vaikhanasa Agama text.'' Some texts mention that Vishnu's '' iccha shakti'' takes three forms: Sridevi, Bhudevi, and Niladevi, representing the three ''g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhumi (goddess)
Bhumi ( sa, भूमि, Bhūmi), also known as Bhudevi and Vasundhara, is a Hindu goddess who is the personification of the Earth. She is a consort of the god Vishnu. According to Vaishnava tradition, she is the second aspect of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi, along with the aspects of Sridevi and Niladevi. Varaha, the third avatar of Vishnu, saved her from the demon Hiranyaksha and later married her, making her one of his consorts. She is regarded as the mother of Narakasura, Mangala, and Sita. Etymology and iconography The name "Bhūmi" is Sanskrit word for "earth". The version "Puhumi" is the equivalent in Old Awadhi. She is known by various names such as Bhuvati, Bhuvani, Bhuvaneshwari, Avni, Prithvi, Varahi, Dharti, Dhaatri, Dharani, Vasudha, Vasundhara, Vaishnavi, Kashyapi, Urvi, Ira, Mahi, Ela, Vasumati, Dhanshika, Vasumati, Hema, and Hiranmaya. Bhudevi is depicted as seated on a platform that rests on the back of four elephants, representing the four cardinal directions. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
