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Vajrasuchi
The ''Vajrasuchi Upanishad'' (, IAST: Vajrasūcī Upaniṣad) is an important Sanskrit text and an Upanishad of Hinduism. It is classified as one of the 22 Samanya (general) Upanishads, and identified as a Vedanta text. It is attached to the Samaveda. The text discusses the four varnas also called 'caste'. It is notable for being a systematic philosophical work against the division of human beings, and for asserting that any human being can achieve the highest spiritual state of existence. History The date as well as the author of ''Vajrasūchi Upanishad'' is unclear. The Upanishad is attributed to Sankaracharya in the manuscripts discovered by early 1800s.Theodor Aufrecht (1892), , University of Bonn, Germany, page 2 see entry 8 Sankaracharya, also known as Adi Shankara, was an Advaita Vedanta scholar, but given the Indian tradition of dedicating and attributing texts to revered historical scholars, there is uncertainty whether texts attributed to Adi Shankara were actually co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upanishad
The Upanishads (; , , ) are late Vedic and post-Vedic Sanskrit texts that "document the transition from the archaic ritualism of the Veda into new religious ideas and institutions" and the emergence of the central religious concepts of Hinduism. They are the most recent addition to the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, and deal with meditation, philosophy, consciousness, and ontological knowledge. Earlier parts of the Vedas dealt with mantras, benedictions, rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices.A Bhattacharya (2006), ''Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology'', , pp. 8–14; George M. Williams (2003), Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, , p. 285Jan Gonda (1975), ''Vedic Literature: (Saṃhitās and Brāhmaṇas)'', Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, While among the most important literature in the history of Indian religions and culture, the Upanishads document a wide variety of "rites, incantations, and esoteric knowledge" departing from Vedic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lancelot Wilkinson
Lancelot Wilkinson (22 June 1805 – 13 November 1841) was a British political officer and civil servant who worked in the service of the East India Company in India in Bhopal, in the Bombay Presidency. He was also an Indologist, publishing translations of Indian works including the '' Siddhanta Shiromani'', an astronomical text, and ''Vajrasuchi'', an ancient text against Brahminism. Biography Wilkinson was born in Crosby-Ravensworth, Cumbria, son of James and Nanny née Eggleston and went to India after receiving training at Haileybury College. He started working in India Writer from 1822, an assistant to the collector of south Konkan from 1824, an assistant Resident at Nagpur from 1826, and lastly as a Political Agent in Bhopal from 1836. He was a proponent of education in Indian languages and opposed William Bentinck on anglicism. He interacted with Indian scholars and came to learn of Bhaskara's 12th century '' Siddhanta Shiromani'', an astronomical text and worked on t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muktikā
Muktikā (Sanskrit: मुक्तिका) refers to the Sanskrit-language anthology of a canon of 108 Upaniṣhads. The date of composition of each is unknown, with the oldest probably from about 800 BCE. The Principal Upanishads were composed in the 1st millennium BCE, most Yoga Upanishads composed probably from the 100 BCE to 300 CE period, and seven of the Sannyasa Upanishads composed before the 3rd century CE. The canon is part of a dialogue between Rama and Hanuman dealing with the inquiry into in the Muktikā Upanishad (108 in the list). The other collections of Upanishads include ''Oupanekhat'', a Persian language anthology of 50 Upanishads; the Colebrooke Collection of 52 Upanishads, and the 52 Upanishad Collection of Nārāyana. The canon The canon is part of a dialogue between Rama and Hanuman. Rama proposes to teach Vedanta, saying "Even by reading one verse of them ny Upanishadwith devotion, one gets the status of union with me, which is hard to get even by s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Varna (Hinduism)
Varna (, ), in the context of Hinduism, refers to a social class within a hierarchical traditional Hindu society. The ideology of varna is epitomized in texts like '' Manusmriti'', which describes and ranks four varnas, and prescribes their occupations, requirements and duties, or '' Dharma''. *Brahmins: Vedic scholars, priests or teachers. * Kshatriyas: Rulers, administrators or warriors. * Vaishyas: Agriculturalists, farmers or merchants. * Shudras: Artisans, labourers or servants. This quadruple division is a form of social stratification, quite different from the more nuanced system of '' Jātis'', which correspond to the term "caste". The varna system is discussed in Hindu texts, and understood as idealised human callings. The concept is generally traced back to the '' Purusha Sukta'' verse of the Rigveda. In the post- Vedic period, the varna division is described in the '' Mahabharata,'' ''Puranas'' and in the '' Dharmashastra literatures''. The commentary on the Varna ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subaji Bapu
Subaji Bapu (IAST: Subājī Bāpū) was an early 19th-century Hindu astrologer (''jyotisha'') and astronomer from British India. Under the influence of the British civil servant Lancelot Wilkinson, he gave up his belief in Hindu cosmology, Puranic cosmography in favour of the Copernican heliocentrism, Copernican system. He argued that the Siddhanta (astronomy), Siddhantic cosmography of ancient Indian astrologers was more accurate than the Puranic cosmography, and wrote ''Siddhānta-siromani-prakāsa'' (1836) and ''Avirodha-prakasha'' (1837) to justify his views, amid opposition from the orthodox pandits. Subaji was a Hindu apologetics, Hindu apologist and defended the Indian caste system, caste system in ''Laghu-tamka'' (1839). He is also identified with Somanātha, the author of ''Mata-parīkṣā-śikṣā'', a Hindu response to the Christian writer John Muir (indologist), John Muir's ''Mataparīkṣā''. Career Astrology and astronomy Subaji Bapu was a Marathi language ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). The traditional occupation of Brahmins is that of priesthood (purohit, pandit, or pujari) at Hindu temples or at socio-religious ceremonies, and the performing of rite of passage rituals, such as solemnising a wedding with hymns and prayers.James Lochtefeld (2002), Brahmin, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing, , page 125 Traditionally, Brahmins are accorded the supreme ritual status of the four social classes, and they also served as spiritual teachers (guru or acharya). In practice, Indian texts suggest that some Brahmins historically also became agriculturalists, warriors, traders, and had also held other occupations in the Indian subcontinent.GS Ghurye (1969), Caste and Race in India, Popular Prakasha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kanishka
Kanishka I, also known as Kanishka the Great, was an emperor of the Kushan dynasty, under whose reign (–150 CE) the empire reached its zenith. He is famous for his military, political, and spiritual achievements. A descendant of Kujula Kadphises, founder of the Kushan Empire, Kushan empire, Kanishka came to rule an empire extending from Central Asia and Gandhara to Pataliputra on the Gangetic plain. The main capital of his empire was located at history of Peshawar, ''Puruṣapura'' (Peshawar) in Gandhara, with another major capital at Mathura. Coins of Kanishka were found in Tripuri (present-day Jabalpur). Although he never converted to the religion, his conquests and patronage of Buddhism played an important role in the development of the Silk Road, and in the Silk Road transmission of Buddhism, transmission of Mahayana Buddhism from Gandhara across the Karakoram range to China. Around 127 CE, he replaced Koine Greek, Greek with Bactrian language, Bactrian as the official l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samaveda
The ''Samaveda'' (, , from '' सामन्'', "song" and ''वेद'', "knowledge"), is the Veda of melodies and chants. It is an ancient Vedic Sanskrit text, and is one of the sacred scriptures in Hinduism. One of the four Vedas, it is a liturgical text which consists of 1,875 verses. All but 75 verses have been taken from the Rigveda. Three recensions of the ''Samaveda'' have survived, and variant manuscripts of the Veda have been found in various parts of India. While its earliest parts are believed to date from as early as the Rigvedic period, the existing samhita text dates from the post-Rigvedic Mantra period of Vedic Sanskrit, between c. 1200 and 1000 BCE or "slightly rather later," roughly contemporary with the Atharvaveda and the Yajurveda. Along with the Samhita layer of text, the ''Samaveda'' includes Brahmana texts, and a final layer of the text that covers philosophical speculations (Upanishads). These layers of the compilation date from the post-Rigvedic Man ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
