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Bhūmi
Bhumi (Sanskrit: भूमि, romanized: Bhūmi), also known as Bhudevi, Dharani, and Vasundhara, is a significant goddess in Hinduism, personifying the Earth. Her earliest form is reflected in the Vedic goddess Prithvi, though their roles and depictions are drastically different. Bhumi features prominently in the ''Mahabharata'' and various Puranas. According to Vaishnava tradition, she is the second consort of Vishnu, along with Sridevi and Niladevi. As per Hindu mythology, Varaha, the third avatar of Vishnu, saved her from the asura Hiranyaksha and later married her, making her one of his consorts. After this rescue, Varaha and Bhumi have a son named Mangala. Bhumi also bears Narakasura, an asura, due to Hiranyaksha's influence. In the epic ''Ramayana'', she is mentioned as the mother of Sita, the epic's female protagonist. Bhumi is described to be born as Satyabhama, the consort of Krishna, to assist in slaying Narakasura. The Alvar saint Andal is also considered an av ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sita
Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is the chief goddess of the Ramanandi Sampradaya and is the goddess of beauty and devotion. Sita's birthday is celebrated every year on the occasion of Sita Navami. Described as the daughter of Bhūmi (the earth), Sita is brought up as the adopted daughter of King Janaka of Videha. Sita, in her youth, chooses Rama, the prince of Ayodhya (Ramayana), Ayodhya as her husband in a swayamvara. After the Sita Swayamvara, swayamvara, she accompanies her husband to his kingdom but later chooses to accompany him along with her brother-in-law Lakshmana, in his exile. While in exile, the trio settles in the Dandaka forest from where she is abducted by Ravana, the Rakshasa king of Lanka. She is imprisoned in the garden of Ashoka Vatika, in Lanka, until she ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prithvi
Prithvi (Sanskrit: पृथ्वी, ', also पृथिवी, ', "the Vast One", also rendered Pṛthvī Mātā), is the Sanskrit name for the earth, as well as the name of the goddess-personification of it in Hinduism. The goddess Prithvi is an archetypal Mother Goddess, and one of the most important goddesses in the historical Vedic religion. She is depicted as a stable, fertile, and benevolent presence in the Vedas. She is frequently addressed as a mother, and a nurturing, generous goddess who provides sustenance to all beings living on her vast, firm expanse. While the ''Rigveda'' predominantly associates her with Dyaus ('Father Sky'), the ''Atharvaveda'' and later texts portray her as an independent deity. In classical Hinduism, the figure of Prithvi is supplanted by the goddess Bhumi, while the term Prithvi serves as one of her epithets. She becomes significantly associated with Vishnu, one of the most important gods in later Hinduism, and his avatars—Varaha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mangala
Mangala (, IAST: ) is the personification, as well as the name for the planet Mars, in Hindu literature. Also known as Lohita (), he is the deity of anger, aggression, as well as war. According to Vaishnavism, he is the son of Bhumi, the earth goddess, and Vishnu, born when the latter raised her from the depths of the primordial waters in his Varaha avatar. According to Shaivism, he was born from the god Shiva through a drop of his blood or sweat. Nomenclature Mars (Mangala) is also called: * Raktavarna (रक्तवर्ण) - whose color is like blood. * Bhauma (भौम) - son of Bhumi. * Lohitānga (लोहिताङ्ग) - red bodied (Loha also means Iron, so could also mean Iron Bodied). * Kuja (कुज) - he who is born from Earth. * Bha (भ) - shining. * Dharāputra (धरापुत्र) - son of Dharā. Iconography He is painted red or flame colour, four-armed, carrying a trident (), mace (), lotus (), and a spear (). His mount () is a ram. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gaia
In Greek mythology, Gaia (; , a poetic form of ('), meaning 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea (), is the personification of Earth. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenogenic—of all life. She is the mother of Uranus (Sky), with whom she conceived the Titans (themselves parents of many of the Olympian gods), the Cyclopes, and the Giants, as well as of Pontus (Sea), from whose union she bore the primordial sea gods. Her equivalent in the Roman pantheon was Terra.''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. Etymology The Greek name (''Gaia'' or ) is a mostly epic, collateral form of Attic (''Gē'' ), and Doric (''Ga'' ), perhaps identical to (''Da'' ), both meaning "Earth". Some scholars believe that the word is of uncertain origin. Beekes suggested a probable Pre-Greek origin. Robert S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, pp. 269–270 (''s.v.'' "γῆ"). M.L. West derives the na ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Mythology
Hindu mythology refers to the collection of myths associated with Hinduism, derived from various Hindu texts and traditions. These myths are found in sacred texts such as the Vedas, the Itihasas (the ''Mahabharata'' and the ''Ramayana''), and the Puranas. They also appear in regional and ethnolinguistic texts, including the Bengali ''Mangal Kavya'' and the Tamil '' Periya Puranam'' and ''Divya Prabandham''. Additionally, Hindu myths are also found in widely translated fables like the ''Panchatantra'' and the '' Hitopadesha'', as well as in Southeast Asian texts influenced by Hindu traditions. Meaning of "myth" Myth is a genre of folklore or theology consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. For folklorists, historians, philosophers or theologians this is very different from the use of "myth" simply indicating that something is not true. Instead, the truth value of a myth is not a def ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Varahi
Varahi (, IAST:) is one of the Matrikas, a group of seven mother goddesses in the Hindu religion who bears the head of a sow. In Nepal, she is called Barahi. In Rajasthan and Gujarat, she is venerated as Dandini. Varahi is more commonly venerated in the sect of the Goddess-oriented Shaktism, but also in Shaivism (devotees of Shiva) and Vaishnavism (devotees of Vishnu). She is usually worshipped at night, using secretive Vamamarga Tantric practices. Her forms can be seen in Buddhism as well, like the Buddhist goddesses Vajravārāhī and Marichi. Legend According to the Shumbha-Nishumbha story of the ''Devi Mahatmya'' from the '' Markandeya Purana'' religious texts, the Matrikas goddesses appears as ''shakti''s (feminine powers) from the bodies of the gods. The scriptures say Varahi was created from Varaha. She has a boar form, wields a chakra (discus) and fights with a sword. After the battle described in the scripture, the Matrikas dancedrunk on the demons' bloo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avatar
Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes used to refer to any guru or revered human being. The word ''avatar'' does not appear in the Vedic literature; however, it appears in developed forms in post-Vedic literature, and as a noun particularly in the Puranic literature after the 6th century CE. Despite that, the concept of an avatar is compatible with the content of the Vedic literature like the Upanishads as it is symbolic imagery of the Saguna Brahman concept in the philosophy of Hinduism. The ''Rigveda'' describes Indra as endowed with a mysterious power of assuming any form at will. The ''Bhagavad Gita'' expounds the doctrine of Avatara but with terms other than ''avatar''. Theologically, the term is most often associated with the Hindu god Vishnu, though the idea has been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andal
Andal (ISO 15919: Āṇḍāḷ), also known as Godhai, Nachiyar, and Godha Devi, is the only female Alvars, Alvar. (Orthodoxy posits the number of Alvars as ten, though there are other references that include Andal and Madhurakavi Alvar, making the number twelve.) She is an avatar, avatara of the earth goddess Bhumi (goddess), Bhumi, consort of the preserver god Vishnu. As with the other Alvars, she was affiliated with the Sri Vaishnavism, Sri Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. She was raised by Periyalvar in Srivilliputhur, where she grew up as an ardent devotee of Vishnu as Krishna. Active in the 8th-century CE, Andal is credited with two great Tamil language, Tamil works, ''Tiruppavai'' and ''Nachiyar Tirumoli'', which are still recited by devotees during the winter festival season of Margali. Andal is a prominent figure for women in South India and has inspired several women's groups such as Goda Mandali. History According to literary and religious tradition, Periyalv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niladevi
Niladevi (), also rendered as Neela Devi or Nappinnai, is a Hindu goddess, and a consort of the preserver deity Vishnu, along with Sridevi and Bhudevi. Niladevi is primarily revered in South India, particularly in Tamil culture, as one of Vishnu's consorts. In Sri Vaishnava tradition, all three consorts of Vishnu are regarded as aspects of Mahalakshmi. In Vishnu's avatar as Krishna, Niladevi is either regarded as Nagnajiti, the consort of Krishna in Dvārakā or in some accounts, as southern counterpart of Radha, the gopi consort of Krishna in North Indian traditions. 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 ''guna ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vaishnavism
Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole Para Brahman, supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, ''Mahavishnu''. It is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. Its followers are called Vaishnavites or ''Vaishnava''s (), and it includes sub-sects like Krishnaism and Ramanandi Sampradaya, Ramaism, which consider Krishna and Rama as the supreme beings respectively. According to a 2020 estimate by The World Religion Database (WRD), hosted at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs (CURA), Vaishnavism is the largest Hindu sect, constituting about 399 million Hindus. The ancient emergence of Vaishnavism is unclear, and broadly hypothesized as a History of Hinduism, fusion of various regional non-Vedic religions with worship of Vishnu. It is considered a merger of several popular non-Vedic theistic traditio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Puranas
Puranas (Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on "Puranas", , page 915) are a vast genre of Indian literature that include a wide range of topics, especially legends and other traditional lore. The Puranas are known for the intricate layers of symbolism depicted within their stories. Composed originally in Sanskrit and in Languages of India, other Indian languages,John Cort (1993), "An Overview of the Jaina Puranas" in ''Purana Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts,'' (Editor: Wendy Doniger), State University of New York Press, , pages 185-204 several of these texts are named after major Hindu deities such as Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, and Mahadevi, Devi. The Puranic genre of literat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
