|
Syamantaka
Syamantaka (Sanskrit: श्यामन्तक) is perhaps the most famous jewel featured in the Hindu scriptures, supposed to be blessed with magical powers. It is described to be a ruby. The jewel is described to protect its owner if they were virtuous and good, but bring evil to them if they were not. Origin The story of Syamantaka appears in the Vishnu Purana and the Bhagavata Purana. The jewel originally belonged to the God of the Sun, Surya, who wore it around his neck. It was said that whichever land possessed this jewel would never encounter any calamities such as droughts, floods, earthquakes or famines, and would always be full of prosperity and plenitude. Wherever the jewel remained, it would produce for the keeper eight ''bhāras'' of gold daily. ("Four rice grains are called one guñjā; five guñjās, one paṇa; eight paṇas, one karṣa; four karṣas, one pala; and one hundred palas, one tulā. Twenty tulās make up one bhāra.") Since there are about 3,700 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satrajita
Satrajit (), also rendered Satrajita, is a Yadava king in Hinduism. He is the father of the goddess Satyabhama, Krishna's third wife. He is described to be a great devotee of Surya, the sun god. He is known for his role in the legend of the Syamantaka jewel. Legend Gaining the Syamantaka The Bhagavata Purana narrates that Satrajit was a great devotee of sun god, Surya. Greatly pleased, Surya offered him the dazzling Syamantaka as a present, which had the power of conferring great wealth upon its owner. When Satrajit wore the jewel, its brilliance was such that he was mistaken as the sun god himself. During a meeting, Krishna asked Satrajit to let King Ugrasena have the jewel, so that it could be used for the good of all. Proud of his possession, Satrajit refused to part with the Syamantaka. Disappearance of the jewel One day, Satrajit's brother, Prasena, borrowed the jewel from Satrajit, and went into a forest for hunting. However, a lion killed him, took the jewel, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satrajit
Satrajit (), also rendered Satrajita, is a Yadava king in Hinduism. He is the father of the goddess Satyabhama, Krishna's third wife. He is described to be a great devotee of Surya, the sun god. He is known for his role in the legend of the Syamantaka jewel. Legend Gaining the Syamantaka The Bhagavata Purana narrates that Satrajit was a great devotee of sun god, Surya. Greatly pleased, Surya offered him the dazzling Syamantaka as a present, which had the power of conferring great wealth upon its owner. When Satrajit wore the jewel, its brilliance was such that he was mistaken as the sun god himself. During a meeting, Krishna asked Satrajit to let King Ugrasena have the jewel, so that it could be used for the good of all. Proud of his possession, Satrajit refused to part with the Syamantaka. Disappearance of the jewel One day, Satrajit's brother, Prasena, borrowed the jewel from Satrajit, and went into a forest for hunting. However, a lion killed him, took the jewel, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jambavati
Jambavati () is chronologically the second ''Ashtabharya'' of the Hindu god Krishna. She is the only daughter of the bear-king Jambavan. Krishna marries her when he defeats her father, Jambavan, in his quest to retrieve the stolen Syamantaka jewel. Nomenclature Jambavati, a patronymic, means daughter of Jambavan. Sridhara, a commentator on the ''Bhagavata Purana'', identifies her with Krishna's wife Rohini. However, another commentator Ratnagarbha disagrees. The ''Harivamsa'' also suggests that Rohini may be an alternate name of Jambavati. Jambavati is also given the epithets Narendraputri and Kapindraputra. Legend In the epic ''Mahabharata'', Jambavan is introduced as Jambavati's father. The ''Bhagavata Purana'' and the ''Harivamsa'' calls him the king of bears. Jambavati is an incarnation of the goddess Lakshmi, along with the junior wives of Krishna, as well as the Ashtabharya. Marriage to Krishna The marriage of Jambavati and Satyabhama to Krishna is closely linked w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akrura
Akrura () is a Yadava prince in Hinduism, best known for being the uncle of the deity Krishna. The son of Śvaphalka and Gandini, a daughter of the king of Kashi,Garg, pp. 305-306. he is instructed by Kamsa to drive his nephews, Krishna and Balarama, to a Dhanuryāga (festival of arms) at Mathura, where they were to be slain. He bears witness to the vishvarupa (theophany) of Krishna during this journey. Akrura becomes the owner of the Syamantaka jewel after the death of its previous owner, Satrajit. He is slain during the internecine Yadu massacre at Prabhasa. Legend According to the Harivamsha, Akrura marries Ugraseni, the daughter of Ugrasena, who gives birth to two sons, Sudeva and Upadeva. F.E. Pargiter states that Akrura weds Sutanu, the daughter of Ahuka, and with her he had two sons, Devaka and Updevaka. He is said to have reigned at Dvaraka, and Pargiter believes that the family's chiefdom stretched as far back as Vrishni. Charioteer of Krishna and Balarama Akrura's c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kritavarma
Kritavarma ( sa, कृतवर्मा, translit=Kṛtavarmā) is a Yadava warrior in Hinduism. He appears as a minor character in the Mahabharata, fighting in the Kurukshetra war for the Kauravas. According to F.E. Pargiter, he was the son of Hṛidika, born in the Andhaka clan of the Yadu dynasty.Pargiter, F.E. (1972). ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p.105. Legend Syamantaka theft Kritavarma is said to have encouraged, or in some accounts, participated in the theft of the legendary Syamantaka jewel from King Satrajit. Along with his friend Akrura, he is said to have caused Shatadhanva to murder Satrajit, and steal the jewel for himself. Shatadhanva was subsequently slain by Krishna, though he no longer had the jewel, having given it to Akrura and Kritavarma for safekeeping. When a famine broke out in Dvaraka, or in other accounts, due to the discovery of Akrura's possession of the Syamantaka, both Kritavarma and he were summoned to t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhagavatam
The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sanskrit language, Sanskrit by Vyasa, Veda Vyasa, it promotes ''bhakti'' (devotion) towards Krishna, integrating themes from the Advaita (monism) philosophy of Adi Shankara, the Vishishtadvaita (qualified monism) of Ramanujacharya and the Dvaita (dualism) of Madhvacharya. It is widely available in almost all Indian languages. The ''Bhagavata Purana'', like other puranas, discusses a wide range of topics including cosmology, astronomy, genealogy, geography, legend, music, dance, yoga and culture. As it begins, the forces of evil have won a war between the benevolent ''Deva (Hinduism), devas'' (deities) and evil ''asuras'' (demons) and now rule the universe. Truth re-emerges as Krishna, (called "Hari#Usage in Indian religion and mythology, Har ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhagavata Purana
The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sanskrit by Veda Vyasa, it promotes ''bhakti'' (devotion) towards Krishna, integrating themes from the Advaita (monism) philosophy of Adi Shankara, the Vishishtadvaita (qualified monism) of Ramanujacharya and the Dvaita (dualism) of Madhvacharya. It is widely available in almost all Indian languages. The ''Bhagavata Purana'', like other puranas, discusses a wide range of topics including cosmology, astronomy, genealogy, geography, legend, music, dance, yoga and culture. As it begins, the forces of evil have won a war between the benevolent ''Deva (Hinduism), devas'' (deities) and evil ''asuras'' (demons) and now rule the universe. Truth re-emerges as Krishna, (called "Hari#Usage in Indian religion and mythology, Hari" and "Vāsudeva" in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yadava
The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and Satvatas, who all worshipped Krishna. They are listed in ancient Indian literature as the segments of the lineage of Yadu (''Yaduvamsha'').Thapar, Romila (1978, reprint 1996). ''Ancient Indian Social History: Some Interpretations'', New Delhi: Orient Longman, , p.223 At various times there have been a number of communities and royal dynasties of the Indian subcontinent that have claimed descent from the ancient Yadava clans and legendary Yadava personalities, thus describing themselves as the Yadavas. The sociologist M. S. A. Rao and historians such as P. M. Chandorkar and T. Padmaja say that epigraphical and historical evidence exists for equating the Ahirs with the ancient Yadava clan. The Yadavas of the Mahabharata period were known to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satyabhama
Satyabhama, also known as Satrajiti, is a Hindu goddess and the third queen-consort of the Hindu god Krishna. Satyabhama is described as the incarnation of Bhudevi, the goddess and the personification of the earth. She aided Krishna in defeating the asura Narakasura. Legend Marriage to Krishna Satyabhama was the daughter of Yadava King Satrajita, the royal treasurer of Dwaraka, who was the owner of the Syamantaka jewel. Satrajit, who secured the jewel from the sun-god Surya and would not part with it even when Krishna, the king of Dvaraka, asked for it saying it would be safe with him. Shortly thereafter, Prasena, the brother of Satrajita, went out hunting wearing the jewel but was killed by a lion. Jambavan, known for his role in the Ramayana, killed the lion and gave the jewel to his daughter Jambavati. When Prasena did not return, there were accusations of Krishna murdering Prasena for stealing the jewel for himself. Krishna, in order to remove the stain on his reput ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jambavan
Jambavan (Devanagari: जाम्बवान्), also known as Jambavanta (Devanagari: जाम्बवत्), is the king of the bears in Hindu texts. He emerges out of the mouth of Brahma when the creator deity yawns. He assists the Rama avatar of Vishnu in his struggle against the rakshasa king Ravana. In the Ramayana, he helps Hanuman realise his potential, just before his famous leap over to the island of Lanka.Patricia Turner, Charles Russell Coulter. ''Dictionary of ancient deities''. 2001, page 248 Jambavan was present at the Churning of the Ocean, and is supposed to have circled Vamana 21 times in a single leap, when he was acquiring the three worlds from Mahabali. Jambavan, together with Parashurama and Hanuman, is considered to be one of the few to have been present for both the Rama and the Krishna avataras. His daughter Jambavati was married to Krishna. Nomenclature Jambavan is also known as: * Jambavantan * Jambavanta (জাম্বৱন্ত, Assam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the dynasty and the empire itself became indisputably Indian. The interests and futures of all concerned were in India, not in ancestral homelands in the Middle East or Central Asia. Furthermore, the Mughal empire emerged from the Indian historical experience. It was the end product of a millennium of Muslim conquest, colonization, and state-building in the Indian subcontinent." For some two hundred years, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus river basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of present-day Assam and Bangladesh in the east, and the uplands of the Deccan Plateau in South India. Quote: "The realm so defined and governed was a vast territory of some , rang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Koh-i-Noor
The Koh-i-Noor ( ; from ), also spelled Kohinoor and Koh-i-Nur, is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, weighing . It is part of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. The diamond is currently set in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. There are multiple conflicting legends on the origin of the diamond. However, in the words of Theo Metcalfe there is 'very meager and imperfect' evidence of the early history of the Koh-i-Noor before the 1740s, that can directly tie it to any ancient diamond. There is no record of its original weight, but the earliest attested weight is 186 old carats (191 metric carats or 38.2 g). The first verifiable record of the diamond comes from a history by Muhammad Kazim Marvi of the 1740s Invasion of Northern India. Marvi notes that the Koh-i-Noor as being one of many stones on the Mughal Peacock Throne that Nader Shah looted from Delhi. The diamond then changed hands between various empires in south and west Asia, until being ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
