Hinduism entails diverse systems of thought, marked by a range of shared concepts that discuss theology, mythology, among other topics in textual sources. Hindu texts have been classified into Śruti (lit.'heard') and Smṛti (lit.'remembered'). The major Hindu scriptures are the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Puranas, the Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita), the Ramayana, and the Agamas. Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include the karma (action, intent and consequences), the saṃsāra (the cycle of death and rebirth) and the four Puruṣārthas, proper goals or aims of human life, namely: dharma (ethics/duties), artha (prosperity/work), kama (desires/passions) and moksha (liberation/freedom from passions and ultimately saṃsāra). Hindu religious practices include devotion (bhakti), worship (puja), sacrificial rites (yajna), and meditation (dhyana) and yoga. Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many Hindus do not claim to belong to any denomination. However, scholarly studies notify four major denominations: Shaivism, Shaktism, Smartism, and Vaishnavism. The six Āstika schools of Hindu philosophy that recognise the authority of the Vedas are: Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mīmāṃsā, and Vedanta. (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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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 the Hindu goddess of aspirations, 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...)
Vaishnavism (/ʋə͡ɪʂɳəʋəsəmpɾəd̪ɑjəh/ ,Sanskrit: वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, romanized: Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole 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 Vaishnavas (IAST: Vaiṣṇava), and it includes sub-sects like Krishnaism and 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.
All the spiral-shaped towers have gold plated spires. The niches in the walls of the shrines are decorated with 300 well-crafted icons of gods and goddesses including those of Surya and Shiva, but most are particularly related to the life stories of Rama and Krishna. The paintings in the 15 panels of the main shrine are based on themes from Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavad Gita. The temple premises include a school and a library that preserves over 6,000 manuscripts in many Indian languages, with a notable collection of Sarada script Sanskrit manuscripts. (Full article...)
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The Bhikshuka Upanishad describes Hindu mendicants who seek spiritual liberation through the practise of yoga
The Upanishad describes four kinds of sannyasins (Hindu monks), their eating habits and lifestyle. Yoga is the path of spiritual liberation for all four. Of these, the Paramahamsa monks are discussed in this text at greater length, and described as loners who are patient with everyone, free from dualism in their thoughts, and who meditate on their soul and the Brahman. (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...)
Matsya (Sanskrit: मत्स्य, lit. 'fish') is the fish avatar of the Hindu godVishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu, from a great deluge. Matsya may be depicted as a giant fish, often golden in color, or anthropomorphically with the torso of Vishnu connected to the rear half of a fish.
The earliest account of Matsya is found in the Shatapatha Brahmana, where Matsya is not associated with any particular deity. The fish-saviour later merges with the identity of Brahma in post-Vedic era, and still later, becomes regarded with Vishnu. The legends associated with Matsya expand, evolve, and vary in Hindu texts. These legends have embedded symbolism, where a small fish with Manu's protection grows to become a big fish, and the fish saves the man who would be the progenitor of the next race of mankind. In later versions, Matsya slays a demon named Hayagriva who steals the Vedas, and thus is lauded as the saviour of the scriptures. (Full article...)
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Ganesha with consorts Riddhi (prosperity) and Siddhi (spiritual power), Painting titled "Riddhi Siddhi" by Raja Ravi Varma (1848–1906) The marital status of the Hindu deity 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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Maya (/ˈmɑːjə/; Devanagari: माया, IAST: māyā), literally "illusion" or "magic", has multiple meanings in Indian philosophies depending on the context. In later Vedic texts, māyā connotes a "magic show, an illusion where things appear to be present but are not what they seem"; the principle which shows "attributeless Absolute" as having "attributes". Māyā also connotes that which "is constantly changing and thus is spiritually unreal" (in opposition to an unchanging Absolute, or Brahman), and therefore "conceals the true character of spiritual reality".
In the Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy, māyā, "appearance", is "the powerful force that creates the cosmic illusion that the phenomenal world is real". In this nondualist school, māyā at the individual level appears as the lack of knowledge (avidyā) of the real Self, Atman-Brahman, mistakenly identifying with the body-mind complex and its entanglements. (Full article...)
The following are images from various Hinduism-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1Annaprashanam 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 4A Hindu cremation rite in Nepal. The samskara above shows the body wrapped in saffron on a pyre. (from Samskara (rite of passage))
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 6Samskaras 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 8Vaishnavism focuses on Vishnu or one of his avatars, such as his form as a human, lion, or boar. (from Hindu denominations)
Image 9A Hindu girl after her Karnavedha rite of passage (ear piercing) (from Samskara (rite of passage))
Image 10Upanayana 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 11Ishvara 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)
Image 12Indra 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 13A 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 14Goddess Durga and a pantheon of other gods and goddesses being worshipped during Durga Puja Festival in Kolkata. (from Hindu deities)
Image 15Six 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 17A 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))
Selected quote
agnim īļe purohitam| yajñasya devam ŗtvijam| hotāraM ratnadhātamam.||"
English: "I praise Agni, the priest of the house, the divine ministrant of sacrifice, the invoker, the best bestower of treasure.
Modi was born and raised in Vadnagar in northeastern Gujarat, where he completed his secondary education. He was introduced to the RSS at the age of eight. At the age of 18, he was married to Jashodaben Modi, whom he abandoned soon after, only publicly acknowledging her four decades later when legally required to do so. Modi became a full-time worker for the RSS in Gujarat in 1971. The RSS assigned him to the BJP in 1985 and he rose through the party hierarchy, becoming general secretary in 1998. In 2001, Modi was appointed chief minister of Gujarat and elected to the legislative assembly soon after. His administration is considered complicit in the 2002 Gujarat riots, and has been criticised for its management of the crisis. According to official records, a little over 1,000 people were killed, three-quarters of whom were Muslim; independent sources estimated 2,000 deaths, mostly Muslim. A Special Investigation Team appointed by the Supreme Court of India in 2012 found no evidence to initiate prosecution proceedings against him. While his policies as chief minister were credited for encouraging economic growth, his administration was criticised for failing to significantly improve health, poverty and education indices in the state. (Full article...)
Adi Shankara, the most prominent exponent of Advaita Vedānta tradition. "I am other than name, form and action. My nature is ever free! I am Self, the supreme unconditioned Brahman. I am pure Awareness, always non-dual." Adi Shankara, Upadesasahasri 11.7
Advaita Vedanta (/ʌdˈvaɪtəvɛˈdɑːntə/; Sanskrit: अद्वैत वेदान्त, IAST: Advaita Vedānta) is a Hindu tradition of Brahmanical textual exegesis and philosophy, and a monastic institutional tradition nominally related to the Daśanāmi Sampradaya and propagated by the Smarta tradition. Its core tenet is that jivatman, the individual experiencing self, is ultimately pure awareness mistakenly identified with body and the senses, and non-different ("na aparah") from Ātman/Brahman, the highest Self or Reality. The term Advaita literally means "non-secondness", but is usually rendered as "nonduality". This refers to the Oneness of Brahman, the only real Existent, and is often equated with monism.
Advaita Vedanta is a Hindusādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience. It states that moksha (liberation from 'suffering' and rebirth) is attained through knowledge of Brahman, recognizing the illusoriness of the phenomenal world and disidentification from body-mind and the notion of 'doership', and by acquiring vidyā (knowledge) of one's true identity as Atman/Brahman, self-luminous (svayam prakāśa) awareness or Witness-consciousness. This knowledge is acquired through Upanishadic statements such as tat tvam asi, "that['s how] you are," which destroy the ignorance (avidyā) regarding one's true identity by revealing that (jiv)Ātman is non-different from immortal Brahman. (Full article...)
Ramakrishna (18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886), also called Ramakrishna Paramahansa (Bengali: রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস, romanized: Ramôkṛṣṇo Pôromohôṅso; pronounced[ramɔkriʂnopɔromoɦɔŋʃo]ⓘ; IAST: Rāmakṛṣṇa Paramahaṃsa), born RamakrishnaChattopadhay, was an Indian Hindu mystic. He was a devotee of the goddess Kali, but adhered to various religious practices from the Hindu traditions of Vaishnavism, Tantric Shaktism, and Advaita Vedanta, as well as Christianity and Islam. His parable-based teachings advocated the essential unity of religions and proclaimed that world religions are "so many paths to reach one and the same goal". He is regarded by his followers as an avatar (divine incarnation). Ramakrishna was born in Kamarpukur, Bengal Presidency, India. He described going through religious experiences in childhood. At age twenty, he became a temple priest at the Dakshineshwar Kali Temple in Calcutta. While at the temple, his devotional temperament and intense religious practices led him to experience various spiritual visions. He was assured of the authenticity and sanctity of his visions by several religious teachers. (Full article...)
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 philosophical, theological, and mythological texts. They portray him in various perspectives: as a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, and the universal supreme being. His iconography reflects these legends and shows him in different stages of his life, such as an infant eating butter, a young boy playing a flute, a young boy with Radha or surrounded by female devotees, or a friendly charioteer giving counsel to Arjuna. (Full article...)
Meera, better known as Mirabai, and venerated as Sant Meerabai, was a 16th-century Hindumystic poet and devotee of Krishna. She is a celebrated Bhakti saint, particularly in the North Indian Hindu tradition. She is mentioned in Bhaktamal, confirming that she was widely known and a cherished figure in the Bhakti movement by about 1600. In her poems, she had madhurya bhava towards Krishna.
Most legends about Mirabai mention her fearless disregard for social and family conventions, her devotion to Krishna, and her persecution by her in-laws for her religious devotion. Her in-laws never liked her passion for music, through which she expressed her devotion, and they considered it an insult of the upper caste people. It is said that amongst her in-laws, her husband was the only one to love and support her in her Bhakti, while some believed him to have opposed it. She has been the subject of numerous folk tales and hagiographic legends, which are inconsistent or widely different in details. According to a legend, when her in-laws attempted to murder her with poison, Mirabai tied a thread on Krishna's idol, trusting in his divine protection, through which she was saved by Krishna through divine intervention. This legend is sometimes cited as the origin of the ritual of tying rakhi to God's idol. (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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