A lithograph on Kartikeya with Devasena seated on his lap
Devasena (Sanskrit: देवसेना, lit. 'Army of the devas', IAST: Devasenā, Tamil: தேவசேனா, romanized: Tēvacēṉā) is a Hindu goddess of aspiration, and the consort of the war god Kartikeya (Murugan). She is also known as Devayanai, Deivanai, and Deivayanai in Tamil texts. Her name is also spelled as Teyvanai or Tevayanai (Teyvāṉai).
Devasena is described as the daughter of the PrajapatiDaksha in the Mahabharata, while some Sanskrit scriptures consider her as the daughter of Indra, the king of the devas (gods), and his wife Shachi. In the Tamil iteration of the Skanda Purana, she is portrayed as the daughter of the god Vishnu, who is later adopted by Indra. She is betrothed to Kartikeya by Indra, when he becomes the commander-in-chief of the devas. In Tamil accounts, Devasena is generally depicted as an antithesis of Valli, her sister-wife; together they complete the deity. Devasena is generally depicted with Murugan, and is often also accompanied by Valli. (Full article...)
The mosque was located on a hill known as Ramkot ("Rama's fort"). According to Hindu nationalists, Baqi destroyed a pre-existing temple of Rama at the site. The existence of this temple is a matter of controversy. The Archaeological Survey of India conducted an excavation of the disputed site on the orders of the Allahabad High Court. The excavation period was short due to court time constraints, lasting only 15 days. The report of the excavation concluded that there were ruins of "a massive structure" beneath the ruins of the mosque which was "indicative of remains which are distinctive features found associated with the temples of north India", but found no evidence that the structure was specifically demolished for the construction of the Babri Masjid. The report received both praise and criticism, with some other archaeologists contesting the results of the report. (Full article...)
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The Yogatattva Upanishad (Sanskrit: योगतत्त्व उपनिषत्, IAST: Yogatattva Upaniṣhad), also called as Yogatattvopanishad (योगतत्त्वोपनिषत्), is an important Upanishad within Hinduism. A Sanskrit text, it is one of eleven Yoga Upanishads attached to the Atharvaveda, and one of twenty Yoga Upanishads in the four Vedas. It is listed at number 41 in the serial order of the Muktika enumerated by Rama to Hanuman in the modern era anthology of 108 Upanishads. It is, as an Upanishad, a part of the corpus of Vedanta literature collection that present the philosophical concepts of Hinduism.
Two major versions of its manuscripts are known. One has fifteen verses but attached to Atharvaveda, while another very different and augmented manuscript exists in the Telugu language which has one hundred and forty two verses and is attached to the Krishna Yajurveda. The text is notable for describing Yoga in the Vaishnavism tradition. (Full article...)
The deities of Hinduism have evolved from the Vedic era (2nd millennium BCE) through the medieval era (1st millennium CE), regionally within Nepal, Pakistan, India and in Southeast Asia, and across Hinduism's diverse traditions. The Hindu deity concept varies from a personal god as in Yoga school of Hindu philosophy, to thirty-three major deities in the Vedas, to hundreds of deities mentioned in the Puranas of Hinduism. Illustrations of major deities include Vishnu, Lakshmi, Shiva, Parvati, Brahma and Saraswati. These deities have distinct and complex personalities, yet are often viewed as aspects of the same Ultimate Reality called Brahman. From ancient times, the idea of equivalence has been cherished for all Hindus, in its texts and in early 1st-millennium sculpture with concepts such as Harihara (Half Vishnu, Half Shiva) and Ardhanārīshvara (half Shiva, half Parvati), with myths and temples that feature them together, declaring they are the same. Major deities have inspired their own Hindu traditions, such as Vaishnavism, Shaivism and Shaktism, but with shared mythology, ritual grammar, theosophy, axiology and polycentrism. Some Hindu traditions, such as Smartism from the mid 1st millennium CE, have included multiple major deities as henotheistic manifestations of Saguna Brahman, and as a means to realizing Nirguna Brahman. In Samkhya philosophy, Devata or deities are considered as "natural sources of energy" who have Sattva as the dominant Guna. (Full article...)
The Badami cave temples are a complex of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain cave temples located in Badami, a town in the Bagalkot district in northern part of Karnataka, India. The caves are important examples of Indian rock-cut architecture, especially Badami Chalukya architecture, and the earliest date from the 6th century. Badami is a modern name and was previously known as "Vataapi", the capital of the early Chalukya dynasty, which ruled much of Karnataka from the 6th to the 8th century. Badami is situated on the west bank of a man-made lake ringed by an earthen wall with stone steps; it is surrounded on the north and south by forts built during Early Chalukya and in later times.
The Badami cave temples represent some of the earliest known examples of Hindu temples in the Deccan region. They along with the temples in Aihole transformed the Mallaprabha River valley into a cradle of temple architecture that influenced the components of later Hindu temples elsewhere in India. (Full article...)
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Rama holding arrows, early 19th century depiction
Rama (/ˈrɑːmə/; Sanskrit: राम, IAST: Rāma, Sanskrit:[ˈraːmɐ]ⓘ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (maryādapuruṣottama), Rama is the male protagonist of the Hindu epic Ramayana. His birth is celebrated every year on Rama Navami, which falls on the ninth day of the bright half (Shukla Paksha) of the lunar cycle of Chaitra (March–April), the first month in the Hindu calendar.
According to the Ramayana, Rama was born to Dasaratha and his first wife Kausalya in Ayodhya, the capital of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Born in a royal family, Rama's life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes, such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, and challenges of ethical questions and moral dilemmas. The most notable story involving Rama is the kidnapping of Sita by the demon-king Ravana, followed by Rama and Lakshmana's journey to rescue her. (Full article...)
Ganesha with consorts Riddhi (prosperity) and Siddhi (spiritual power), Painting titled "Riddhi Siddhi" by Raja Ravi Varma (1848–1906) The marital status of Ganesha varies widely in mythological stories and the issue has been the subject of considerable scholarly review. Several patterns of associations with different consorts are identifiable. One pattern of myths identifies Ganesha as an unmarried brahmacārin with no consorts. Another mainstream pattern associates him with the concepts of Buddhi (intellect), Siddhi (spiritual power), and Riddhi (prosperity); these qualities are sometimes personified as goddesses who are considered to be Ganesha's wives. Another pattern connects Ganesha with the goddess of culture and the arts, Sarasvati. In the Bengal region he is linked with the banana tree, Kala Bo (or Kola Bou). Usually Ganesha's consort is portrayed as his shakti, a personification of his creative energy.
Some of the differences between these patterns can be understood by looking at regional variations across India, the time periods in which the patterns are found, and the traditions in which the beliefs are held. Some differences pertain to the preferred meditation form used by the devotee, with many different traditional forms ranging from Ganesha as a young boy (Sanskrit: बाल गणपति; bālagāņapati) to Ganesha as a Tantric deity. (Full article...)
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Endless knot
Karma (/ˈkɑːrmə/, from Sanskrit: कर्म, IPA:[ˈkɐɾmɐ]ⓘ; Pali: kamma) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called the principle of karma, wherein individuals' intent and actions (cause) influence their future (effect): Good intent and good deeds contribute to good karma and happier rebirths, while bad intent and bad deeds contribute to bad karma and worse rebirths. In some scriptures, however, there is no link between rebirth and karma. Karma is often misunderstood as fate, destiny, or predetermination.
The concept of karma is closely associated with the idea of rebirth in many schools of Indian religions (particularly in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism), as well as Taoism. In these schools, karma in the present affects one's future in the current life as well as the nature and quality of future lives—one's saṃsāra. This concept has also been adopted in Western popular culture, in which the events that happen after a person's actions may be considered natural consequences of those actions. (Full article...)
Image 3A Hindu girl after her Karnavedha rite of passage (ear piercing) (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 4Indra is a Vedic era deity, found in south and southeast Asia. Above Indra is part of the seal of a Thailand state. (from Hindu deities)
Image 5The ten avatars of Vishnu, (Clockwise, from top left) Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Vamana, Krishna, Kalki, Buddha, Parshurama, Rama and Narasimha, (in centre) Radha and Krishna. Painting currently in Victoria and Albert Museum. (from Hindu deities)
Image 6A Tamil Hindu girl (center) in 1870 wearing a half-saree, flowers and jewelry from her Ritu Kala samskara rite of passage (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 7Upanayana samskara ceremony in progress. Typically, this ritual was for eight-year-olds in ancient India, but in the 1st millennium CE it became open to all ages. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 8Samskaras are, in one context, the diverse rites of passage of a human being from conception to cremation, signifying milestones in an individual's journey of life in Hinduism. Above is annaprashana samskara celebrating a baby's first taste of solid food. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 9A new born's Namakarana ceremony. The grandmother is whispering the name into the baby's ear, while friends and family watch. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 10Vaishnavism focuses on Vishnu or one of his avatars, such as Krishna above (from Hindu denominations)
Image 11Annaprashanam is the rite of passage where the baby is fed solid food for the first time. The ritual has regional names, such as Choroonu in Kerala. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 12Goddess Durga and a pantheon of other gods and goddesses being worshipped during Durga Puja Festival in Kolkata. (from Hindu deities)
Image 13Six Hinduism deities. Surya, Parvati, Hanuman, Lakshmi, Vishnu, and Indra. All of these statues came from India, except Vishnu (from the Thai-Cambodian border). Various eras. National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh (from Hindu deities)
Image 14A Hindu cremation rite in Nepal. The samskara above shows the body wrapped in saffron on a pyre. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 15Ishvara is, along with Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, one of the 17 deities commonly found in Indonesian Surya Majapahit Hindu arts and records. However, Ishvara represents different concepts in various Hindu philosophies. (from Hindu deities)
The Hindu religion is the only one of the world's great faiths dedicated to the idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion in which the time scales correspond, to those of modern scientific cosmology. Its cycles run from our ordinary day and night to a day and night of Brahma, 8.64 billion years long. Longer than the age of the Earth or the Sun and about half the time since the Big Bang. And there are much longer time scales still.
Shri Madhvacharya's idol at his birth place Pajaka, Udupi
Madhvacharya (IAST: Madhvācārya; pronounced[mɐdʱʋaːˈtɕaːrjɐ]; 1199–1278 CE or 1238–1317 CE), also known as Purna Prajna (IAST: Pūrṇa-Prajña) and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the Dvaita (dualism) school of Vedanta. Madhva called his philosophy Tattvavāda meaning "arguments from a realist viewpoint".
Madhvacharya was born at Pajaka near Udupi on the west coast of Karnataka state in 13th-century India. As a teenager, he became a Sanyasi (monk) joining Brahma-sampradaya guru Achyutapreksha, of the Ekadandi order. Madhva studied the classics of Hindu philosophy, and wrote commentaries on the Principal Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras (Prasthanatrayi), and is credited with thirty seven works in Sanskrit. His writing style was of extreme brevity and condensed expression. His greatest work is considered to be the Anuvyakhyana, a philosophical supplement to his bhasya on the Brahma Sutras composed with a poetic structure. In some of his works, he proclaimed himself to be an avatar of Vayu, the son of god Vishnu. (Full article...)
Born and raised in a Hindu family in coastal Gujarat, Gandhi trained in the law at the Inner Temple in London and was called to the bar in June 1891, at the age of 22. After two uncertain years in India, where he was unable to start a successful law practice, Gandhi moved to South Africa in 1893 to represent an Indian merchant in a lawsuit. He went on to live in South Africa for 21 years. There, Gandhi raised a family and first employed nonviolent resistance in a campaign for civil rights. In 1915, aged 45, he returned to India and soon set about organising peasants, farmers, and urban labourers to protest against discrimination and excessive land-tax. (Full article...)
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Painting of Adi Shankara, exponent of Advaita Vedanta with his disciples by Raja Ravi Varma
Adi Shankara (8th c. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya (Sanskrit: आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, romanized: Ādi Śaṅkara, Ādi Śaṅkarācārya, lit. 'First Shankaracharya', pronounced[aːd̪iɕɐŋkɐraːt͡ɕaːrjɐ]), was an Indian Vedic scholar, philosopher and teacher (acharya) of Advaita Vedanta. Reliable information on Shankara's actual life is scanty, and his true impact lies in his "iconic representation of Hindu religion and culture," despite the fact that most Hindus do not adhere to Advaita Vedanta. Tradition also portrays him as the one who reconciled the various sects (Vaishnavism, Shaivism, and Saktism) with the introduction of the Pañcāyatana form of worship, the simultaneous worship of five deities – Ganesha, Surya, Vishnu, Shiva and Devi, arguing that all deities were but different forms of the one Brahman, the invisible Supreme Being.
While often revered as the most important Indian philosopher, the historical influence of his works on Hindu intellectual thought has been questioned. Until the 10th century Shankara was overshadowed by his older contemporary Maṇḍana Miśra, and there is no mention of him in concurring Hindu, Buddhist or Jain sources until the 11th century. The popular image of Shankara started to take shape in the 14th century, centuries after his death, when Sringeri matha started to receive patronage from the kings of the Vijayanagara Empire and shifted their allegiance from AdvaiticAgamic Shaivism to Brahmanical Advaita orthodoxy. Hagiographies dating from the 14th-17th centuries deified him as a ruler-renunciate, travelling on a digvijaya (conquest of the four quarters) across the Indian subcontinent to propagate his philosophy, defeating his opponents in theological debates. These hagiographies portray him as founding four mathas ("monasteries"), and Adi Shankara also came to be regarded as the organiser of the Dashanami monastic order, and the unifier of the Shanmata tradition of worship. The title of Shankaracharya, used by heads of certain monasteries in India, is derived from his name. (Full article...)
The publication in 1973 of I Am That, an English translation of his talks in Marathi by Maurice Frydman, brought him worldwide recognition and followers, especially from North America and Europe. (Full article...)
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Sivaya Subramuniyaswami
Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (born Robert Hansen; January 5, 1927 – November 12, 2001) was an American Hindu religious leader known as Gurudeva by his followers. Subramuniyaswami was born in Oakland, California and adopted Hinduism as a young man. He was the 162nd head of the self claimed Nandinatha Sampradaya's Kailasa Parampara and Guru at Kauai's Hindu Monastery which is a 382-acre (155 ha) temple-monastery complex on Hawaii's Garden Island.
In 1947, at the age of 20, he journeyed to India and Sri Lanka and in 1949, was initiated into sannyasa by the renowned siddha yogi and worshiper of Lord Shiva, Jnanaguru Yogaswami of Jaffna, Sri Lanka who was regarded as one of the 20th century's remarkable mystics. In the 1970s he established a Hindu monastery in Kauai, Hawaii and founded the magazine Hinduism Today. In 1985, he created the festival of Pancha Ganapati as a Hindu alternative to December holidays like Christmas. He was one of Shaivism's Gurus, the founder and leader of the Saiva Siddhanta Church. (Full article...)
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Neem Karoli Baba (Hindi: नीम करौली बाबा, romanized: nīm karaulī bābā) or Neeb Karori Baba (Hindi: नीब करौरी बाबा, romanized: nīb karaurī bābā) (c. 1900 – 11 September 1973), also known to his followers as 'Maharaj-ji', was a Hinduguru and a devotee of the Hindu deityHanuman. He is known outside India for being the spiritual master of a number of Americans who travelled to India in the 1960s and 1970s. (Full article...)
He is considered the chief proponent of the Vedantic philosophy of Achintya Bheda Abheda. However, the concept of inconceivable difference in non-difference, known as achintya-bhedabheda, was developed later by Jiva Gosvami in his book Bhagavat Sandharbha. (Full article...)
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