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Kartik Purnima
Kartika Purnima (), also known as Kartika Pournami, is a Hindu, Sikh, and Jain cultural festival that is celebrated on ''purnima'' (full moon day), the 15th day of the lunar month Kartika. It falls on November or December of the Gregorian calendar and is also known as Tripurari Purnima or Deva-Deepavali, the gods's festival of lights. Karthika Deepam is a related festival that is celebrated in South India and Sri Lanka on a different date. It follows Diwali by about 15 days. Significance Radha-Krishna In Vaishnavite tradition, this day is considered significant and special for the worship of both Radha and Krishna. It is believed that on this day, Radha-Krishna performed rasalila with their gopis. At Jagannath Temple, Puri and all other Radha-Krishna temples, a sacred vow is observed throughout Kartika month, and performances of raaslila are organized on the day of Kartika Purnima. According to Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Krishna worshipped Radha on this day. Sh ...
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Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent. It is assumed that the term ''"Hindu"'' traces back to Avestan scripture Vendidad which refers to land of seven rivers as Hapta Hendu which itself is a cognate to Sanskrit term ''Sapta Sindhuḥ''. (The term ''Sapta Sindhuḥ'' is mentioned in Rig Veda and refers to a North western Indian region of seven rivers and to India as a whole.) The Greek cognates of the same terms are "''Indus''" (for the river) and "''India''" (for the land of the river). Likewise the Hebrew cognate ''hōd-dū'' refers to India mentioned in Hebrew BibleEsther 1:1. The term "''Hindu''" also implied a geographic, ethnic or cultural identifier for ...
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Diwali
Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual victory of ''Dharma'' over ''Adharma'', light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.Jean Mead, ''How and why Do Hindus Celebrate Divali?'', Diwali is celebrated during the Hindu calendar, Hindu lunisolar months of Ashvin (month), Ashvin (according to the Hindu calendar#amanta, amanta tradition) and Kartika (month), Kārtikabetween around mid-September and mid-November.''The New Oxford Dictionary of English'' (1998) – p. 540 "Diwali /dɪwɑːli/ (also Diwali) noun a Hindu festival with lights...". The celebrations generally last five or six days. Diwali is connected to various religious events, deities and personalities, such as being the day Rama returned to his Kosala, kingdom in Ayodhya (Ramayana), Ayodhya with h ...
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Tripurantaka
Tripurantaka () or Tripurari is a manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva. This form of the deity is featured in a Puranic legend in which he destroys the three cities of the asuras, called Tripura, with a single arrow. Legend According to the ''Padma Purana'', the asura Taraka had three sons named Tarakaksha, Kamalaksha (or Virayavana), and Vidyunmali. These asura princes performed severe penance towards the creator-god Brahma and obtained the boon of immense power. Brahma, on being pleased with them, presented each of them with an aerial fortress revolving in the sky, one each of gold, silver, and iron built by Mayasura. The boon granted the provision that they would reign for a millennium and could be destroyed only by an arrow that could merge the three forts into one, and set them ablaze. The asuras, armed with this boon, wreaked havoc on the universe. The asuras well-entrenched in their aerial cities would mount attacks on the devas (gods) and the rishis (sages), and harass t ...
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Shiva
Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, [mɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh]) and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva is known as ''The Destroyer'' within the Trimurti, the Hinduism, 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 Shaktism, 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, Smarta tradition of Hinduism. Shiva has many aspects, benevolent as well as fearsome. In benevolent aspects, he is depicted as an Omniscience, omniscient yogi who lives an Asceticism#Hinduism, ascetic life on Kailasa as well as a house ...
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Tārakāsura
Tarakasura () is a powerful asura in Hindu mythology. He is the son of the asura Vajranga and his wife Vajrangi. Taraka had three sons: Tarakaksha, Vidyunmali, and Kamalaksha, who were known as the Tripurasura. He is slain by Kartikeya. Legend Birth Diti, ever jealous of her sister Aditi, asked for her consort Kashyapa to provide her a son who would be capable of defeating the devas, who were the sons of Aditi. Consenting, Kashyapa granted his son Vajranga, possessing vajra(a very hard substance or compound in hindu history) limbs, who performed her bidding by capturing Indra and the devas and punishing them. When Aditi protested, Brahma urged Vajranga to release his captives, who acquiesced, stating that he had only done what his mother had instructed. Pleased, Brahma created a wife for him known as Vajrangi, who was both alluring and loving. When he offered her a boon, she asked him to grant her a son who would capture the three worlds, and cause misery to Vishnu. Dumbst ...
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Tripurasura
Tripurasura (Sanskrit: त्रिपुरासुर) is a trio of asura brothers named Tarakaksha, Vidyunmāli and Kamalaksha, who were the sons of the asura Tarakasura. These three began to perform severe tapasya. They were then granted boons by Brahma to have three forts: gold, silver, and iron, which angered the Devas. Vishnu then made a new religion to make them evil, and the objective of killing the asuras was taken upon by Shiva, which took three days on the battlefield, finally killing Tripurasura and destroying the three cities. This occurred on the full moon day in the Kartik month and therefore the day is celebrated as Tripurari Pournima. Legends Taittirīya Samhita The legend of the Tripurasuras is first mentioned in the Taittirīya Samhita of the Krishna Yajurveda: Itihāsas and Purānas This legend is later told in the Itihāsas and Purānas with more detail. The three brothers began to perform tapasya. They meditated for a hundred years, standing only ...
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Brahma Vaivarta Purana
The ''Brahmavaivarta Purana'' (; ) is a voluminous Sanskrit text and one of the major Puranas (''Maha-purana'') of Hinduism. It is an important Vaishnava text. This Purana majorly centers around the Hindu deities Radha and Krishna. Although a version may have existed in late 1st millennium CE, its extant version was likely composed in the Bengal region of Indian subcontinent in 15th-16th century. Later, it was likely revised somewhere in South India. Numerous versions of this Purana exist and are claimed to be the part of manuscripts of the ''Brahmavaivarta Purana'' or the ''Brahmakaivarta Purana''. The text is notable for identifying Krishna as the supreme reality and asserting that all gods such as Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Ganesha are one and the same and in fact, all are the incarnations of Krishna. Goddesses like Radha, Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Savitri are asserted to be equivalent and are mentioned as the incarnations of Prakruti in this text, with legends similar ...
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Jagannath Temple, Puri
The Jagannath Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Jagannath, a form of Vishnu in Hinduism. It is located in Puri in the state of Odisha, situated on the eastern coast of India. As per temple records, King Indradyumna of Avanti built the main temple of Jagannath at Puri. The present temple was rebuilt from the eleventh century onwards, on the site of the pre-existing temples in the compound, but not the main Jagannath temple, and begun by Anantavarman Chodaganga, the first king of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. Many of the temple rituals are based on Oddiyana Tantras which are the refined versions of Mahayana Tantras as well as Shabari Tantras which are evolved from Tantric Buddhism and tribal beliefs respectively. The local legends link the idols with aboriginal tribes and the daitapatis (servitors) claim to be descendants of the aboriginals. The temple is one of the 108 '' Abhimana Kshethram'' of the Vaishnavite tradition. The temple is famous for its annual Rat ...
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Gopi
Gopi (, ) or Gopika in Hinduism are commonly referred to the group of milkmaids of Braj. They are regarded as the consorts and devotees of Krishna and are venerated for their unconditional love and devotion (''Bhakti'') to him as described in ''Bhagavata Purana'' and other Puranic literature. Gopis are often considered as the expansion of Radha, the chief consort of Krishna. The Raslila of gopis with Krishna has inspired various traditional performance art forms and literatures. Gopi (, ) when used as a male name of Indian origin is a short form of the name Gopala Krishna, literally translates to "cow-protector Krishna" or "Krishna the cowherd". While traditionally used for both genders, it's more commonly used as a male name, especially within the Indian diaspora and communities. According to Indian philosopher Jiva Goswami, gopis are considered as the eternal beloved and manifestations of the internal spiritual potency of Krishna. Among the gopis, Radha is the chief gopi ...
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Raslila
The Raslila (), also rendered the Rasalila or the Ras dance, is part of a traditional story described in Hindu texts such as the Bhagavata Purana and Gita Govinda, where Krishna dances with Radha and the gopis of Braj. Rasalila has also been a popular theme for other India classical dances including Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Manipuri Raas Leela, Kuchipudi, and Kathak. The Indian classical dance of ''Kathak'' and ''Manipuri Raas leela'' are evolved from the rasalila of Braj. Kathak, also known as ''Natwari Nritya'', was revived in the 1960s by the Kathak dancer, Uma Sharma. Etymology The term ''raslila'' is derived from the Sanskrit words ''ras'' which means "nectar", "emotion" or "sweet taste" and '' lila'' meaning "act," "play" or "dance." Thus, it is more broadly defined as the "Dance of Divine Love" or "Sweet act of Krishna." Legend The Raslila takes place one night when the gopis of Vrindavana, upon hearing the sound of Krishna's flute, sneak away from their household ...
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Radha-Krishna
Radha-Krishna (IAST , ) is the combined form of the Hindu god Krishna with his chief consort and ''shakti'' Radha. They are regarded as the feminine as well as the masculine realities of God, in several Krishnaite traditions of Vaishnavism. In Krishnaism, Krishna is referred to as ''Svayam Bhagavan'' and Radha is illustrated as the primeval potency of the three main potencies of God, ''Hladini'' (immense spiritual bliss), ''Sandhini'' (eternality), and ''Samvit'' (existential consciousness), of which Radha is an embodiment of the feeling of love towards Krishna (''Hladini''). With Krishna, Radha is acknowledged as the Supreme Goddess. Krishna is said to be satiated only by devotional service in loving servitude, personified by Radha. Various devotees worship her to attain Krishna via her. Radha is also depicted to be Krishna himself, split into two for the purpose of his enjoyment. As per scriptures, Radha is considered as the complete incarnation of Mahalakshmi. It is believ ...
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Krishna
Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is widely revered among Hindu divinities. Krishna's birthday is celebrated every year by Hindus on Krishna Janmashtami according to the lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Hindu calendar, which falls in late August or early September of the Gregorian calendar. The anecdotes and narratives of Krishna's life are generally titled as ''Krishna Līlā''. He is a central figure in the ''Mahabharata'', the ''Bhagavata Purana'', the ''Brahma Vaivarta Purana,'' and the ''Bhagavad Gita'', and is mentioned in many Hindu philosophy, Hindu philosophical, Hindu theology, theological, and Hindu mythology, mythological texts. They portray him in various perspectives: as a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, ...
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