Articles related to "Vedas"



More on the Vedas
The names of the Riga, Sama and Yajur Veda were derived from their content. The name of the Atharva Veda is derived differently.
derivation vedas functions propagation riga

Vedas: Purpose & Structure
Each of the four Vedas, Riga,Yajur, Sama and Atharva, has a different focus. This compilation was done by Veda Vyasa.
vedic scriptures vedas structure purpose

The Puranas
The main scriptures in Hinduism are the Vedas and Puranas. The Vedas contain the phlosophy, whereas the Puranas contain the mythology. In paricular the Puranas have a wealth of information on creation, cosmology, time cycles, incarnations of Gods and the genealogy of legendary kings. The Puranas complement the Vedas by describing the concepts in a simple manner with the help of tales and parables. The two epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, are also popular sources of mythological information.
bhagavad gita mahabharata vedas upanishads vid

Chapter 2: Yoga of Knowledge - Verse 44, 45 & 46
A knowledgable man seeking liberation only accepts that much extent from the Vedas that meets his purpose of salvation.
salvation liberation dharma

The Atharva Veda
The Atharva Veda is an amalgamation of the primitive religion that predated Vedic thought and the philosophy of the earlier Riga, Yajur and Sama Vedas.
atharva veda riga yajur sama

The Yajur and Sama Vedas
The Riga Veda is sublime and spiritual, whereas the Yajur and Sama Vedas and the Brahmanas of all four Vedas are ritualistic and mundane.
yajur sama riga vedas brahmanas

Chapter 2: Yoga of Knowledge - Verse 40, 41, 42 & 43
Ingnorant men are attracted to the eloborate ceremonies mentioned in the Vedas for attainment of material benefits.
veda sensual benefits material liberation

The Maruts
Diti wanted a son who would kill Indra. Kashyap granted her this wish but attached certain conditions. Diti was unable to fulfill these conditions and Indra entered her womb and cut the fetus into forty-nine pieces. These were born as the Maruts.
diti syamantapanchaka saraswati river ganga yamuna

Utanka - I
Utanka was sent by his mistress to obtain the earrings of the Queen of King Paushya. After some unusual encounters he got the earrings but also received a strange warning and an unmerited curse.
utanka veda paushya takshaka mahabharata

Utanka - II
Utanka is accosted by Takshaka, the king of the serpents, and loses the earrings to him. Through a strange string of events he recovers the earrings. He however wants revenge and puts in motion a plan that will enable him to end Takshaka's life.
utanka takshaka veda indra airavata

Veda Vyasa and Bhagavata Purana
Krishna Dwaipayana, popularly Veda Vyasa, was not satisfied after writing the Mahabharata. Narada inspired him to write the Srimad Bhagavata Purana.
krishna dwaipayana parashara satyavati kaliyuga vedas

Veda Vyasa and the Mahabharata
Veda Vyasa was the biological father of the brothers whose children fought against each other in the Great War. Later Vyasa dictated the epic to Ganesh.
krishna dwaipayana veda vyasa mahabharata satyavati shantanu

Vedanta
As recorded in the Upanishads, the final section of the Vedas, Vedanta means knowledge of God or the Absolute Reality.
vedanta brahman atman moksha vedas

Eyebrow Treatments and Services
Perfectly arched, complementary colored eyebrows subtract years from the face and create a polished, look.
eyebrows eyebrow tints spa services veda salons arches

From Polytheism to Monotheism
The hymns of the Riga Veda demonstrate the gradual transition from polytheism to monotheism in the Vedic society
hinduism vedic polytheism riga veda monotheism

Polytheism, Monotheism and Monism
Polytheism is the belief in many gods, Monotheism in one God and Monism in the existence of one reality with diverse manifestations. All these are found in The Riga Veda.
polytheism monotheism monism hinduism vedic

The All-pervasive Atma
Prajapati teaches Indra about what the Atma is, by telling him what it is not.
atma upanishads pervasive chandogya sama

The Humbling of Indra
Indra in his arrogance wants to build the greatest city ever. He is humbled when he learns that he is just one in a long line of Indras.
indra vritta viswakarma brahma vishnu

The Yaksha Starts His Questions
After getting Yudhishthir's consent the Yaksha began asking questions in sets of four. And Yudhishthir fired back his replies to the complete satisfaction of the Yaksha.
sun yaksha yudhishthir brahma soul

A Brief History of Yoga
A brief history of yoga before it came to North America for beginner yoga students.
yoga history brief history of yoga history of yoga rig veda vedas

Glossary Q to S
Writing on Hinduism necessitates the use of non-English words that occur often need to be explained. This glossary explains words beginning with Q to S.
radha riga veda vedas sama veda samhitas

The Birth of Krishna Dwaipayana
The sage Parashara is smitten by Satyavati the fisherman's daughter. Under very unusual circumstances they unite and Krishna Dwaipayana is born.
satyavati dashraja matsyagandha yamuna parashara

Matsya Avatar - The Fish Incarnation
The Fish Incarnation is the first incarnation of Vishnu in which he retrieves the Vedas from the demon Hayagriva and also saves the pious king Satyavrata from the deluge so that life and religion can be preserved for the next cycle.
matsya avatar fish incarnation vishnu manu satyavrata

Satyavati - I
Satyavati, the second wife of Shantanu, was born in an unusual way. She was accidentally conceived by a fish and given birth in human form. She was brought up by the leader of a fishing community. An encounter with the sage Parashara which resulted in the birth of Vyasa, set the stage for her tryst with Shantanu.
uparichara chedi apsara adrika brahma

Introduction to the Upanishads
The Upanishads represent knowledge obtained by sitting down near the feet of a guru, the focus of which is more the inner soul than the external reality.
upanishads vedas vedanta samhita brahmana

The Ten Incarnations of Vishnu the Preserver
The hindu mythology teaches that Vishnu, the Preserver of the universe, takes 10 incarnations. They are in the form of fish,tortoise,boar,half man half beast, dwarf, a not so perfect man, noble man, man-god, bhudda the god, finally kalki at the end of the universe, to create a new one.
interestingly these also are similar to the evolu from a fist->beast->half man-beast->dwarf->man wit

Introduction to Bhagavata Purana
The Bhagavata Purana as we have received it is narrated neither by Vyasa nor by Sukhdev, but by Suta Goswami.
naimisharanya shaunaka bhagavata purana suta goswami lomaharshana

Frogs
It is somewhat surprising that the frog is so important to Mythology and Folklore. Being an amphibean that transforms it is a symbol for birth, death and rebirth.
frog frog mythology frog folktales egyptian mythology christian mythology

Hinduism and the Aryan Influence
Hinduism originated with the Aryans who came to the Indian subcontinent long before Christ. A new culture began to evolve then and is still continuing to evolve.
hinduism aryan dravidians vedas vedic

Hinduism and the Environment
The pagan element in Hinduism advocated Sustainable Development by deification of nature as seen in the hymns of the Riga Veda dedicated to Surya, Indra, Agni and others.
sustainable development hinduism conservation natural resources environment degradation

India & Constellation Orion Myths
In ancient Hindu mythology, the constellation Orion was the god Prajapati, who had an incestuous relationship with the dawn.
orion constellation orion hindu mythology about orion hunter constellation myths about orion

The Four Ashrams or Life Stages
The human life span is divided into four ashrams. These are Brahmacharya, Grahasta, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa. The Vedas define a specific purpose for each ashram.
vedic philosophy vedas hinduism ashrams brahmacharya

The Reverse Aryan Invasion
The Vedic civilization was indigenous to India and existed on the banks of Saraswati in 6000 BC. The Aryans left the Indus valley and migrated to Persia after 2000 BC.
hinduism aryan invasion india iran

The Supreme Being in Hinduism
The perception of the Supreme Being in Hinduism has changed according to the nature of the enquiry and the needs of the society.
supreme being hinduism vedas upanishads epic

Yaksha Prashna
The episode of the Yaksha asking the questions to Yudhishthir is popularly known in Hindi as 'Yaksha Prashna', prashna being the Hindi word for questions.
sacrifice yaksha questions yudhishthir yaksha prashna

Hinduism: A Holistic Way of Life
Hinduism is not just a theology. It is a holistic way of life. The Vedas and Puranas deal with the arts and culture, medicine and health and other aspects of life.
hinduism holistic yoga sutra patanjali vedas

Mixing Religion And Politics
The USCIFR has planned a visit to India to probe the clash in Orissa, India, in which Christians were killed by Hindus. This has drawn protest from the Hindu community.
uscifr india orissa christians hindus

Hindu Conservatism,Hindu Conservatism
Every society contains elements of conservatism that reflect in its social behaviour. These Elements react strongly to winds of change generating social polarisation viz-a-viz modern reformist forces. Societies have to live through and survive this conflict. Since 1989, Hindu conservatism has become more vocal in India. Firstly, an aggressive articulation of their demand to conserve Hindu values has become evident. Secondly, they wish to impose their own interpretation of religious texts by claiming to be the sole vanguards of Hinduism. While doing so, they do not shrink from adopting antidemocratic techniques such as gagging liberal voices through hooliganism. ,Every society contains elements of conservatism that reflect in its social behaviour. These Elements react strongly to winds of change generating social polarisation viz-a-viz modern reformist forces. Societies have to live through and survive this conflict. Since 1989, Hindu conservatism has become more vocal in India. Firstly, an aggressive articulation of their demand to conserve Hindu values has become evident. Secondly, they wish to impose their own interpretation of religious texts by claiming to be the sole vanguards of Hinduism. While doing so, they do not shrink from adopting antidemocratic techniques such as gagging liberal voices through hooliganism.
hindu conservatism hindu conservatism

Apsaras I
Apsaras have been variously described as fairies, angels, nymphs and sirens. Actually they are celestial maidens of exquisite beauty and alluring charm, and have the power and will to use both.
apsaras indra gandharvas kashyap aditi

The Ten Incarntions
The ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu refer to his appearances on earth as some living creature in order to destroy evil and establish righteousness. As a side issue they reflect the theory of evolution.
vishnu incarnations bagwad gita arjuna krishna

The Bhavishya Purana
The Bhavishya Purana presents a picture of the future of "Bharat Varsha". It also deals with Sun worship, temple structure, marriages and other issues.
shatanika veda vyasa sumantu bhavishya purana hindu

The Itihasas and the Puranas
The Itihasas and the Puranas are full of stirring mythological narratives of avatars of the Supreme Being.
scriptures epic period itihasas puranas vedas

Creation in the Bhagavata Purana
Having created the universe Brahma populates it with living beings that include plants, animals, humans and the immortals.
puranas creation brahmavaivarta brahma creation myths

FAQs: scriptures, women and caste
Hinduism has a wide range of scriptures - philosophical, prescriptive and mythological. The role of women and the Caste System are some of the contentious issues.
hindu scriptures shruti smriti hinduism

Glossary A to B
Writing on Hinduism necessitates the use of non-English words that often need to be explained. This glossary explains words beginning with A to B.
adhisima krishnaagni aranyakas angiras arjun aryans

Glossary I to L
Writing on Hinduism necessitates the use of non-English words that occur often need to be explained. This glossary explains words beginning with I to L.
ila vaivasvata manu sudyumna buddh soma

Glossary M to P
Writing on Hinduism necessitates the use of non-English words that occur often need to be explained. This glossary explains words beginning with M to P.
madhu meru pushkar mahabharata pandavas

Somnath Jyotirlinga
Soma appeases Shiva in order to have a curse put on him removed and then builds a temple to his benefactor in gratitude.
somnath dwadasa jyotirlingas india antarctica sanskrit

The Brahmananda Purana
The Brahmananda Purana was originally narrated by Vayu Deva at the end of the yagna in which King Pururava was killed. It provides a graphic description of ancient India.
brahmananda purana scripture hinduism kurukshetra lomaharshana

The Incarnations of Vishnu
There are ten commonly known avatars of Vishnu. The Bhagavata Purana lists twenty-two and states that there are many more.
hinduism vishnu avatars incarnations bhagavata purana


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