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Santanu
Shantanu (Sanskrit: शंतनु) is a character in the Mahabharata, described as the ruler of the Kuru Kingdom with his capital at Hastinapura. He was a descendant of the Bharata race, a forebear of the lineage of the Lunar dynasty, and the great-grandfather of the Pandavas and the Kauravas. The ruler was the youngest son of King Pratipa of Hastinapura and had been born during the latter's latter years. His eldest brother, Devapi, had leprosy, and had given up his inheritance to become a hermit. The middle son, Bahlika, (or Vahlika) abandoned his paternal kingdom, and had started living with his maternal uncle in Balkh, subsequently inheriting his kingdom. Shantanu, thus, ascended the throne of Hastinapura. He is best known for being the father of Bhishma (also known as Devavrata), among the mightiest warriors of the epic. Etymology The meaning of the name can be explained by nirukti available in Adi Parva, through which Sri Nityānanda Miśra elaborates its mea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satyavati
Satyavati ( sa, सत्यवती, ; also spelled Satyawati) was the queen of the Kuru. She is the wife of king Shantanu of Hastinapura, and the great-grandmother of the Pandava and Kaurava princes (The principal characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''). She is also the mother of the seer Vyasa, author of the epic. Her story appears in the ''Mahabharata'', the '' Harivamsa,'' and the '' Devi Bhagavata Purana''. Satyavati is the daughter of a fisherman chieftain, Dasharaja and was brought up as a commoner on the banks of the river Yamuna. Another legend says that she is the biological daughter of the Chedi king Uparichara Vasu (Vasu) and a cursed '' apsara'' (celestial nymph), who was turned into a fish called Adrika. Due to the smell emanating from her body, she was known as ''Matsyagandha'' ("She who smells like fish"), and helped her father, Dasharaja, in his job as ferryman and fisherman. As a young woman, Satyavati met the wandering rishi (sage) Parasha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ganga (goddess)
Ganga ( sa, गङ्गा or गंगा, Gaṅgā) is the personification of the river Ganges, who is worshipped by Hindus as the goddess of purification and forgiveness. Known by many names, Ganga is often depicted as a fair, beautiful woman, riding a divine crocodile-like creature called the makara. Some of the earliest mentions of Ganga are found in the Rigveda, where she is mentioned as the holiest of the rivers. Her stories mainly appear in post-Vedic texts such as the ''Ramayana'', ''Mahabharata,'' and the '' Puranas''. The Ramayana describes her to be the firstborn of Himavat, the personification of the Himalayas, and the sister of the mother goddess Parvati. However, other texts mention her origin from the preserver deity, Vishnu. Legends focus on her descent to earth, which occurred because of a royal-sage Bhagiratha, aided by the god Shiva. In the epic Mahabharata, Ganga is the mother of the warrior Bhishma in a union with the Kuru king Shantanu. In Hindui ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhishma
Bhishma ( Sanskrit: भीष्म, , ), also known as Pitamaha, Gangaputra, and Devavrata, played an integral role in Mahabharata. He was the supreme commander of the Kaurava forces during the Kurukshetra War mentioned in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the only character who witnessed the entirety of the Mahabharata, beginning from the reign of his father, King Shantanu of the Kuru kingdom. Bhishma was the step-brother of Vyasa, the grandfather of both the Pandavas and the Kauravas. He was a prominent statesman of the Kuru Kingdom. He was born as the elder son of the illustrious King Shantanu and Ganga. Originally named Devavrata, he was made the heir-apparent of his kingdom. However, he ceded his throne for his father's happiness and took the vow of lifelong celibacy. Owing to this selfless decision, he came to be known as Bhishma and was blessed to live as long as he wanted, by his father, Shantanu. He played a major role in the political affairs of the Kuru k ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ganges In Hinduism
Ganga ( sa, गङ्गा or गंगा, Gaṅgā) is the personification of the river Ganges, who is worshipped by Hindus as the goddess of purification and forgiveness. Known by many names, Ganga is often depicted as a fair, beautiful woman, riding a divine crocodile-like creature called the makara. Some of the earliest mentions of Ganga are found in the Rigveda, where she is mentioned as the holiest of the rivers. Her stories mainly appear in post-Vedic texts such as the ''Ramayana'', ''Mahabharata,'' and the '' Puranas''. The Ramayana describes her to be the firstborn of Himavat, the personification of the Himalayas, and the sister of the mother goddess Parvati. However, other texts mention her origin from the preserver deity, Vishnu. Legends focus on her descent to earth, which occurred because of a royal-sage Bhagiratha, aided by the god Shiva. In the epic Mahabharata, Ganga is the mother of the warrior Bhishma in a union with the Kuru king Shantanu. In Hinduism, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pratipa
Pratipa ( sa, प्रतीप, translit=Pratīpa) is a legendary king in Hinduism. He is the king of Hastinapura and a member of the Lunar dynasty. He is the father of Shantanu and the grandfather of Bhishma, Chitrangada, and Vichitravirya. The king is mentioned in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Legend Origin According to the Puranas, Pratipa was the great-grandson of Bhimasena and son of Dilipa. However, according to the Mahabharata, he was the son of king Bhimasena and princess Sukumari of the Kaikeyas. He married Sunanda of the Shibis, on whom he begot Devapi, Bahlika and Shantanu. Meeting with Ganga Once, when King Pratipa was meditating on the banks of the river Ganges and chanting prayers to Surya, the goddess Ganga appeared after receiving a curse from Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rajasuya
Rajasuya () is a Śrauta ritual of the Vedic religion. It is ceremony that marks a consecration of a king. According to the Puranas, it refers to a great sacrifice performed by a Chakravarti - universal monarch, in which the tributary princes may also take part, at the time of his coronation, as a mark of his undisputed sovereignty. Description The rajasuya is associated with the consecration of a king and is prescribed as a means to establish a king's sovereignty. It is described in the Taittiriya corpus, including Apastamba Srauta Sutra 18.8–25.22. It involves ''soma'' pressing, a chariot drive, the king shooting arrows from his bow, and a brief "cattle raid". The newly anointed king seizes cattle belonging to his relative, and then gives part of his property to that relative. There is a telling of the tale of Shunahshepa, a boy who was nearly sacrificed to Varuna on behalf of the sonless king Harishchandra. Also included is a game of throwing dice with the Adhvaryu priest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adi Parva
The ''Adi Parva'' or ''The Book of the Beginning'' is the first of eighteen books of the Mahabharata. "Adi" ( आदि, Ādi) is a Sanskrit word that means "first". Adi Parva traditionally has 19 parts and 236 adhyayas (chapters). The critical edition of Adi Parva has 19 parts and 225 chapters. Adi Parva describes how the epic came to be recited by Ugrasrava Sauti to the assembled rishis at the Naimisha Forest after first having been narrated at the ''sarpasatra'' of Janamejaya by Vaishampayana at Taxila. It includes an outline of contents from the eighteen books, along with the book's significance. The history of the Bhāratas and the Bhrigus are described. The main part of the work covers the birth and early life of the princes of the Kuru Kingdom and the persecution of the Pandavas by Dhritarashtra. Structure and chapters The Adi Parva consists of 19 ''upa-parva''s or parts (also referred to as little books). Each part is also called a ''parva'' and is further subdivided int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sukha
''Sukha'' (Pali and ) means happiness, pleasure, ease, joy or bliss. Among the early scriptures, 'sukha' is set up as a contrast to 'preya' (प्रेय) meaning a transient pleasure, whereas the pleasure of 'sukha' has an authentic state happiness within a being that is lasting. In the Pāli Canon, the term is used in the context of describing laic pursuits and meditation. Etymology According to Monier-Williams (1964), the etymology of ''sukha'' is "said to be ''su'' good'+ ''kha'' aperture'and to mean originally 'having a good axle-hole'"; thus, for instance, in the Rig Veda ''sukha'' denotes "running swiftly or easily" (applied, e.g., to chariots). Monier-Williams also notes that the term might derive alternatively as "possibly a Prākrit form of ''su-stha'', q.v.; c.f. ''duh̩kha''", literally meaning ''su'' good'+ ''stha'' standing' ''Sukha'' is juxtaposed with ''dukha'' (Sanskrit; Pali: '' dukkha''; often translated as "suffering"), which was established as th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ikshvaku Dynasty
The Solar dynasty (IAST: Suryavaṃśa or Ravivaṃśa in Sanskrit) or the Ikshvaku dynasty was founded by the legendary king Ikshvaku.Geography of Rigvedic India, M.L. Bhargava, Lucknow 1964, pp. 15-18, 46-49, 92-98, 100-/1, 136 The dynasty is also known as ("Solar dynasty" or "Descendants of the Sun") which means that this dynasty prays to the Sun as their God and their originator (the Gayatri Mantra is a prayer offered to the Sun God as the Sun is the main deity of the Solar Dynasty), and along with Lunar dynasty comprises one of the main lineages of the Kshatriya Varna. The first ''Tirthankara'' of Jainism, Rishabhdeva himself was King Ikshvaku. Further, 21 Tirthankaras of Jainism were born in this dynasty. According to Buddhist texts and tradition, Gautama Buddha descended from this dynasty. Many later kings of the Indian subcontinent claimed to be of Suryavamsha descent. The important personalities belonging to this royal house are Mandhatri, Muchukunda, Ambarisha, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ashvamedha
The Ashvamedha ( sa, अश्वमेध, aśvamedha, translit-std=IAST) was a horse sacrifice ritual followed by the Śrauta tradition of Vedic religion. It was used by ancient Indian kings to prove their imperial sovereignty: a horse accompanied by the king's warriors would be released to wander for a year. In the territory traversed by the horse, any rival could dispute the king's authority by challenging the warriors accompanying it. After one year, if no enemy had managed to kill or capture the horse, the animal would be guided back to the king's capital. It would be then sacrificed, and the king would be declared as an undisputed sovereign. The best-known text describing the sacrifice is the '' Ashvamedhika Parva'' ( sa, अश्वमेध पर्व), or the "Book of Horse Sacrifice," the fourteenth of eighteen books of the Indian epic poem ''Mahabharata''. Krishna and Vyasa advise King Yudhishthira to perform the sacrifice, which is described at great length. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deva (Hinduism)
''Deva'' (; Sanskrit: , ) means "shiny", "exalted", "heavenly being", "divine being", "anything of excellence", and is also one of the Sanskrit terms used to indicate a deity in Hinduism.Monier Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary” Etymologically and Philologically Arranged to cognate Indo-European Languages, Motilal Banarsidass, page 492 ''Deva'' is a masculine term; the feminine equivalent is '' Devi''. In the earliest Vedic literature, all supernatural beings are called ''Devas''George Williams (2008), A Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, , pages 90, 112 and '' Asuras''. The concepts and legends evolved in ancient Indian literature, and by the late Vedic period, benevolent supernatural beings are referred to as ''Deva-Asuras''. In post-Vedic Hindu texts, such as the Puranas and the Itihasas of Hinduism, the ''Devas'' represent the good, and the ''Asuras'' the bad. In some medieval works of Indian literature, ''Devas'' are also referred ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yagna
Yajna ( sa, यज्ञ, yajña, translit-std=IAST, sacrifice, devotion, worship, offering) refers in Hinduism to any ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras.SG Nigal (1986), Axiological Approach to the Vedas, Northern Book, , pages 80–81 Yajna has been a Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature called Brahmanas, as well as Yajurveda. The tradition has evolved from offering oblations and libations into sacred fire to symbolic offerings in the presence of sacred fire (Agni). Yajna rituals-related texts have been called the ''Karma-kanda'' (ritual works) portion of the Vedic literature, in contrast to ''Jnana-kanda'' (knowledge) portion contained in the Vedic Upanishads. The proper completion of Yajna-like rituals was the focus of Mimansa school of Hindu philosophy. Yajna have continued to play a central role in a Hindu's rites of passage, such as weddings. Modern major Hindu temple ceremonies, Hindu community celebrations, or monastic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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