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Mitrotsavam
Mitrotsavam (Mitrolsavam, Mitra Ulsavam) is a Hindu festival worshipping the Sun god Surya, whose orderly traversal of the sky is ensured by Mitra-Varuna, the guardians of cosmic order () in Rig Veda 8.25.8 and elsewhere.THE CALL OF THE VEDAS by A C Bose, Bombay, Bhavan's Book University, 1970. 3rd edition. On Mitrotsavam, devotees worship the Sun for prosperity, health and courage. Surya is glorified in Vedic mantras as the expeller of darkness and evil. The most sacred Gayatri mantra, composed by Sage Vishvamitra, worships the Sun as Savita. Additionally, the Sun is honored by recitation of the Aditya Hridayam— according to a legend in the Ramayana, Lord Rama was initiated into the worship of Surya with that hymn, which then gave him strength and the power to vanquish evil. Devotees also perform the Surya Namaskara, recite 108 names of Surya, and pray for help to ward off evil, infirmity and disease. At the same time, devotees extoll Mitra (Vedic Mitra-Varuna) as the ''Prat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mitra (Vedic)
Mitra (Sanskrit ') is a divinity of Indic culture, whose function changed with time. In the Mitanni inscription, Mitra is invoked as one of the protectors of treaties. In the Rigveda, Mitra appears primarily in the ''dvandva'' compound ''Mitra-Varuna'', which has essentially the same attributes as Varuna alone, e.g. as the principal guardian of "Truth, Order". In the late Vedic texts and the ''Brahmana''s, Mitra is increasingly associated with the light of dawn and the morning sun (while Varuna becomes associated with the evening, and ultimately the night). In the post-Vedic texts – in which Mitra practically disappears – Mitra evolved into the patron divinity of friendship, and because he is "friend", abhors all violence, even when sacred. Onomastics The Indo-Iranian common noun *''mitra'' means "(that which) causes trato bind i-, hence Sanskrit ''mitram'', "covenant, contract, oath", the protection of which is Mitra's role in both the Rigveda and in the Mitan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Surya
Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a means to realise Brahman. Other names of Surya in ancient Indian literature include Aditya, Arka, Bhanu, Savitr, Pushan, Ravi, Martanda, Mitra, Bhaskara, Prabhakara, Kathiravan, and Vivasvan. The iconography of Surya is often depicted riding a chariot harnessed by horses, often seven in number which represent the seven colours of visible light, and the seven days of the week. During the medieval period, Surya was worshipped in tandem with Brahma during the day, Shiva at noon, and Vishnu in the evening. In some ancient texts and art, Surya is presented syncretically with Indra, Ganesha, and others. Surya as a deity is also found in the arts and literature of Buddhism and Jainism. In the Mahabharata and Ramayana, Surya is represented as the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Varuna
Varuna (; sa, वरुण, , Malay: ''Baruna'') is a Vedic deity associated initially with the sky, later also with the seas as well as Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is found in the oldest layer of Vedic literature of Hinduism, such as hymn 7.86 of the ''Rigveda''. He is also mentioned in the Tamil grammar work '' Tolkāppiyam'', as Kadalon the god of sea and rain. He is said to be the son of Kashyapa (one of the seven ancient sages). In the Hindu Puranas, Varuna is the god of oceans, his vehicle is a Makara (crocodile) and his weapon is a Pasha (noose, rope loop). He is the guardian deity of the western direction. In some texts, he is the father of the Vedic sage Vasishtha. Varuna is found in Japanese Buddhist mythology as Suiten. He is also found in Jainism. Etymology In Hindu tradition, the theonym ''Váruṇa'' (Devanagari: वरुण) is described as a derivation from the verbal root ''vṛ'' ("to surround, to cover" or "to restrain, bind") by means ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rig Veda
The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum. The ''Rigveda'' is the oldest known Vedic Sanskrit text. Its early layers are among the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language. The sounds and texts of the ''Rigveda'' have been orally transmitted since the 2nd millennium BCE. Philological and linguistic evidence indicates that the bulk of the ''Rigveda'' Samhita was composed in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent (see) Rigvedic rivers), most likely between 1500 and 1000 BCE, although a wider approximation of 19001200 BCE has also been given. The text is layered, consisting of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gayatri
Gayatri (Sanskrit: गायत्री, IAST:Gāyatrī) is the personified form of the Gayatri Mantra, a popular hymn from Vedic texts. She is also known as Savitri, and bears the epithet of ''Vedamata'' (mother of the Vedas). Gayatri is often associated with Savitr, a solar deity in the Vedas. According to the Skanda Purana, Gayatri is another name of Saraswati, and is the consort of Brahma. Shaivite texts identify Mahagayatri as the consort of Shiva, in his highest form of Sadasiva, with five heads and ten hands. Origin Gayatri was the name initially applied to a metre of the Rig Veda consisting of 24 syllables. In particular, it refers to the Gayatri Mantra and the Goddess Gāyatrī as that mantra personified. The Gayatri mantra composed in this triplet form is the most famous. Most of the scholars identify Gayatri as the feminine form of Gayatra, another name of the Vedic Solar god which is also one of the synonyms of Savitri and Savitr. According to the Puranas, Gaya ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vishvamitra
Vishvamitra ( sa, विश्वामित्र, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Mantra. The Puranas mention that only 24 rishis since antiquity have understood the whole meaning of —and thus wielded the whole power of — the Gayatri Mantra. Vishvamitra is supposed to have been the first, and Yajnavalkya the last. Before renouncing his kingdom and royal status, Brahmarishi Vishvamitra was a king, and thus he retained the title of Rajarshi, or 'royal sage'. Textual background Historically, Viśvāmitra Gāthina was a Rigvedic rishi who was the chief author of Mandala 3 of the Rigveda. Viśvāmitra was taught by Jamadagni Bhārgava. He was the purohita of the Bharata tribal king Sudās, until he was replaced by Vasiṣṭha. He aided the Bharatas in crossing the Vipāś and Śutudrī rivers (modern Beas and Sutlej ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aditya Hridayam
Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a means to realise Brahman. Other names of Surya in ancient Indian literature include Aditya, Arka, Bhanu, Savitr, Pushan, Ravi, Martanda, Mitra, Bhaskara, Prabhakara, Kathiravan, and Vivasvan. The iconography of Surya is often depicted riding a chariot harnessed by horses, often seven in number which represent the seven colours of visible light, and the seven days of the week. During the medieval period, Surya was worshipped in tandem with Brahma during the day, Shiva at noon, and Vishnu in the evening. In some ancient texts and art, Surya is presented syncretically with Indra, Ganesha, and others. Surya as a deity is also found in the arts and literature of Buddhism and Jainism. In the Mahabharata and Ramayana, Surya is represented as the sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages extending up to the 3rd century CE. ''Ramayana'' is one of the two important epics of Hinduism, the other being the ''Mahabharata, Mahābhārata''. The epic, traditionally ascribed to the Maharishi Valmiki, narrates the life of Sita, the Princess of Janakpur, and Rama, a legendary prince of Ayodhya city in the kingdom of Kosala. The epic follows his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha, on the request of Rama's stepmother Kaikeyi; his travels across forests in the South Asia, Indian subcontinent with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, the kidnapping of Sita by Ravana – the king of Lanka, that resulted in war; and Rama's eventual return to Ayodhya to be crowned kin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Surya Namaskara
Sun Salutation, also called Surya Namaskar(a) or Salute to the Sun (), is a practice in yoga as exercise incorporating a flow sequence of some twelve gracefully linked asanas. The asana sequence was first recorded as yoga in the early 20th century, though similar exercises were in use in India before that, for example among wrestlers. The basic sequence involves moving from a standing position into Downward and Upward Dog poses and then back to the standing position, but many variations are possible. The set of 12 asanas is dedicated to the Hindu solar deity, Surya. In some Indian traditions, the positions are each associated with a different mantra. The precise origins of the Sun Salutation are uncertain, but the sequence was made popular in the early 20th century by Bhawanrao Shriniwasrao Pant Pratinidhi, the Rajah of Aundh, and adopted into yoga by Krishnamacharya in the Mysore Palace, where the Sun Salutation classes, not then considered to be yoga, were held next door to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pratyaksha
''Pratyaksha'' in Hinduism is one of the three principal means of knowledge, it means that which is present before the eyes clear, distinct and evident. Meaning Pratyaksha (Sanskrit: प्रत्यक्ष IAST: pratyakṣa) literally means that which is perceptible to the eye or visible, in general usage it refers to being present, present before the eye i.e. within the range of sight, cognizable by any sense organ, distinct, evident, clear, direct, immediate, explicit, express, corporeal; it is a Pramana, mode of proof. The Nyaya School recognizes ''Pratyaksha'' (perception) as a kind of ''pramana'' along with '' Anumana'' (inference), ''Upamana'' (comparison) and Shabda (verbal testimony); this school recognizes these four kinds only. The Sankhya School does not recognize ''Upamana'' as a ''pramana''. To these four auxiliaries which help illuminate things the Vedantins and the Mimamsakas also add ''Anupalabdhi'' (non-apprehension) and ''Arthapatti'' (presumption)as valid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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