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Ishvara Gita
The Shiva Gita or ''Śivagītā'' ( sa, शिवगीता) is an ancient Hindu scripture philosophical text from Padma-Purana in the form of dialogue between Lord Shiva and Shri Rama that took place in Dandaka Aranya forest in Ramagiri mountain on the banks of Godavari river. It deals with topics such as Advaita metaphysics, Bhakti and others Structure ''Śiva-gītā'' consists of 11 chapters with over 768 verses which deals with topics such as worship of Siva Lingam, Advaita metaphysics, Omni-Potence of Śiva-Liṅga, Bhakti, Significance of OM, Theophany of Śiva (''śiva-prādurbhāva-ākhya''), forms of Shiva (''Aṣṭa Mūrtis'') and others Contents The Shiva Gita(''Śivagītā'') contains many new themes that are not found in The Bhagavad Gita, such as worship of Shiva Lingam and the idea that Śiva as the ultimate God. The Īśvara gītā also shows the influence of the 8-fold (ashtanga) yoga of Patanjali, and of the pashupata sect of Shaivism. Several comm ...
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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 ...
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Padma Purana
The ''Padma Purana'' ( sa, पद्मपुराण or पाद्मपुराण, or ) is one of the eighteen Major Puranas, a genre of texts in Hinduism. It is an encyclopedic text, named after the lotus in which creator god Brahma appeared, and includes large sections dedicated to Vishnu, as well as significant sections on Shiva and Shakti. The manuscripts of Padma Purana have survived into the modern era in numerous versions, of which two are major and significantly different, one traced to eastern and the other to western regions of India. It is one of the voluminous text, claiming to have 55,000 verses, with the actual surviving manuscripts showing about 50,000. The style of composition and textual arrangement suggest that it is likely a compilation of different parts written in different era by different authors. The text includes sections on cosmology, mythology, genealogy, geography, rivers and seasons, temples and pilgrimage to numerous sites in India – ...
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Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva is known as "The Destroyer" within the Trimurti, the Hindu trinity which also includes Brahma and Vishnu. In the Shaivite tradition, Shiva is the Supreme Lord who creates, protects and transforms the universe. In the goddess-oriented Shakta tradition, the Supreme Goddess ( Devi) is regarded as the energy and creative power (Shakti) and the equal complementary partner of Shiva. Shiva is one of the five equivalent deities in Panchayatana puja of the Smarta tradition of Hinduism. Shiva has many aspects, benevolent as well as fearsome. In benevolent aspects, he is depicted as an omniscient Yogi who lives an ascetic life on Mount Kailash as well as a householder with his wife Parvati and his three children, Ganesha, Kartikeya and A ...
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Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Being. Rama is said to have been born to Kaushalya and Dasharatha in Ayodhya, the ruler of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Though born in a royal family, their life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, ethical questions and moral dilemmas. Of all their travails, the most notable is the kidnapping of Sita by demon-king Ravana, followed by the determined and epic efforts of Rama and Lakshmana to gain her freedom and destroy the evil Ravana against great odds. The entire life story of Rama, Sita and their companions allegorically discusses duties, rights and social responsibil ...
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Dandakaranya
Dandakaranya is a historical region in India, mentioned in the Ramayana. It is identified with a territory roughly equivalent to the Bastar division in the Chhattisgarh state in the central-east part of India. It covers about of land, which includes the Abujhmar Hills in the west and the Eastern Ghats in the east, including regions of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Odisha states. It spans about from north to south and about from east to west. Dandakaranya roughly translates from Sanskrit to "The Jungle (aranya) of Punishment (dandakas"). The Balaghat district of Madhya Pradesh and Bhandara, Gondia and Gadchiroli districts of Maharashtra are part of the ancient region Dandakaranya. Etymology Dandaka-aranya, means the Dandak Forest, the abode of the demon Dandak. Dandaka ( sa, दंडक, IAST: ) is the name of a forest mentioned in the ancient Indian text '' Ramayana''. It is also known as ''Dandakaranya'', ''aranya'' being the Sanskri ...
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Godavari River
The Godavari (IAST: ''Godāvarī'' od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakeshwar, Nashik, Maharashtra. It flows east for , draining the states of Maharashtra (48.6%), Telangana (18.8%), Andhra Pradesh (4.5%), Chhattisgarh (10.9%) and Odisha (5.7%). The river ultimately empties into the Bay of Bengal through an extensive network of tributaries. Measuring up to , it forms one of the largest river basins in the Indian subcontinent, with only the Ganga and Indus rivers having a larger drainage basin. In terms of length, catchment area and discharge, the Godavari is the largest in peninsular India, and had been dubbed as the Dakshina Ganga (Ganges of the South). The river has been revered in Hindu scriptures for many millennia and continues to harbour and nourish a rich cultural heritage. In the past few decades, the riv ...
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Advaita Vedanta
''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' (literally "non-secondness", but usually rendered as "nondualism", and often equated with monism) refers to the idea that '' Brahman'' alone is ultimately real, while the transient phenomenal world is an illusory appearance ('' maya'') of Brahman. In this view, (''jiv) Ātman'', the experiencing self, and ''Ātman-Brahman'', the highest Self and Absolute Reality, is non-different. The ''jivatman'' or individual self is a mere reflection or limitation of singular ''Ātman'' in a multitude of apparent individual bodies. In the Advaita tradition, '' moksha'' (liberation from suffering and rebirth) is attained through recognizing this illusoriness of the phenomenal world and disidentification from the body-mind complex and the notion of 'd ...
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Bhakti
''Bhakti'' ( sa, भक्ति) literally means "attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith, love, devotion, worship, purity".See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. It was originally used in Hinduism, referring to devotion and love for a personal god or a representational god by a devotee.Bhakti
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' (2009)
In ancient texts such as the '''', the term simply means participation, devotion and love for any endeavor, while in the '''', it connotes one o ...
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Lingam
A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional image in Hindu temples dedicated to Shiva, also found in smaller shrines, or as self-manifested natural objects. It is often represented within a disc-shaped platform, the ''yoni'' – its feminine counterpart, consisting of a flat element, horizontal compared to the vertical lingam, and designed to allow liquid offerings to drain away for collection. Together, they symbolize the merging of microcosmos and macrocosmos, the divine eternal process of creation and regeneration, and the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence. The original meaning of ''lingam'' as "sign" is used in Shvetashvatara Upanishad, which says "Shiva, the Supreme Lord, has no liūga", liuga ( sa, लि‌ऊग ) meaning he is transcen ...
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Bhagavad Gita
The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic '' Mahabharata'' (chapters 23–40 of book 6 of the Mahabharata called the Bhishma Parva), dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE and is typical of the Hindu synthesis. It is considered to be one of the holy scriptures for Hinduism. The Gita is set in a narrative framework of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer Krishna. At the start of the dharma yuddha (or the "righteous war") between the Pandavas and the Kauravas, Arjuna is preoccupied by a moral and emotional dilemma and despairs about the violence and death the war will cause in the battle against his kin. Wondering if he should renounce the war, he seeks Krishna's counsel, whose answers and discourse constitute the Gita. Krishna counsels Arjuna to ...
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Patanjali
Patanjali ( sa, पतञ्जलि, Patañjali), also called Gonardiya or Gonikaputra, was a Hindu author, mystic and philosopher. Very little is known about him, and while no one knows exactly when he lived; from analysis of his works it is estimated that it was between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE. He is believed to be an author and compiler of a number of Sanskrit works. The greatest of these are the ''Yoga Sutras'', a classical yoga text. There is speculation as to whether the sage Patañjali is the author of all the works attributed to him, as there are a number of known historical authors of the same name. A great deal of scholarship has been devoted over the last century as to the issue of the historicity or identity of this author or these authors. lists ten separate authors by the name of "Patañjali." Amongst the more important authors called Patañjali are: * The author of the ''Mahābhāṣya'', an ancient treatise on Sanskrit grammar and linguistics, based on t ...
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Pashupata
Pashupata Shaivism (, sa, पाशुपत) is the oldest of the major Shaivite Hindu schools. The mainstream which follows Vedic Pasupata penance are 'Maha Pasupatas' and the schism of 'Lakula Pasupata' of Lakulisa. There is a debate about pioneership of this schism and the Goan school of Nakulish darshan believes that Nakulish was pioneer and Lakulish and Patanjalinath were his disciples while Gujarat school believes that Nakulish and Lakulish are one. Sarvadarśanasaṅgraha written by Vidyaranya (sometimes also known as Madhavacharya) mentions it as "Nakulish Darshan" not as "Lakulish Darshan". Both sub schools are still active in their own areas. The philosophy of the Pashupata sect was systematized by also called Nakulīśa) in the 2nd century CE. The main texts of the school are '' '' with Kauṇḍinya's ', and ' with Bhāsarvajña's '. Both texts were discovered only in the twentieth century. Prior to that, the major source of information on this sect was a chapter d ...
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