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Agnikaryam
Agnikaryam () or Agnikarya is the act of offering oblations to the sacrificial fire of a yajna (ritual-fire ceremony) performed by brahmacharis (celibate bachelors). Description The agnikaryam is dedicated to and named after the god of fire, Agni. The fire of the agnikaryam is conceptualised as a cosmic element during the performance of the rite. It is featured in the text Sarasvati Suktam. The agnikaryam is performed with the help of ''samits'' or small wooden sticks or twigs usually of ''arali'' (''Ficus religiosa'') tree. This homa is performed daily twice: once in the morning and again in the evening. These two are respectively called the ''pratah agnikaryam'' and the ''sayam agnikaryam''. The agnikaryam is also known as ''samidadhanam''. The method and mantras of performing the agnikaryam are different for the Rigveda and the Yajurveda The ''Yajurveda'' (, , from यजुस्, "worship", and वेद, "knowledge") is the Veda primarily of prose mantras for w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yajna
In Hinduism, ''Yajna'' or ''Yagna'' (, Help:IPA/Sanskrit, [jɐd͡ʒɲə], ) also known as Hawan, is a ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras. Yajna has been a Vedas, Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature called Brahmanas, as well as Yajurveda. The tradition has evolved from offering oblations and libations into sacred fire to symbolic offerings in the presence of sacred fire (Agni). Yajna rituals-related texts have been called the ''Karma-kanda'' (ritual works) portion of the Vedic literature, in contrast to the ''Jnana-kanda'' (knowledge) portion found in the Vedic Upanishads. The proper completion of Yajna-like rituals was the focus of Mimansa school of Hindu philosophy. Yajna have continued to play a central role in a Hindu's rites of passage, such as weddings. Modern major Hindu temple ceremonies, Hindu community celebrations, or monastic initiations may also include Vedic Yajna rites, or alternatively be based on Āgama (Hinduism), A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brahmacharis
''Brahmacharya'' (; Sanskrit: Devanagari: ब्रह्मचर्य) is the concept within Indian religions that literally means "conduct consistent with Brahman" or "on the path of Brahman". Brahmacharya, a discipline of controlling the senses, is seen as a way to liberation. Though sexual restraint is a part of brahmacharya, brahmacharya encompasses all striving toward a passionless state. In one context, ''brahmacharya'' is the first of four '' ashrama'' (age-based stages) of a human life. The ''brahmacharya'' (bachelor student) stage of life – from childhood up to twenty-five years of age – was focused on education and included the practice of celibacy. In this context, it connotes chastity during the student stage of life for the purposes of learning from a ''guru'' (teacher), and during later stages of life for the purposes of attaining spiritual liberation or moksha. In the Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist monastic traditions, ''brahmacharya'' implies, among othe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agni
Agni ( ) is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of fire. As the Guardians of the directions#Aṣṭa-Dikpāla ("Guardians of Eight Directions"), guardian deity of the southeast direction, he is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu temples. In the Hindu cosmology, classical cosmology of Hinduism, fire (''Agni'') is one of the five inert impermanent elements (''Pancha Bhuta, Pañcabhūtá'') along with sky (''Ākāśa''), water (''Apas''), air (''Vāyu'') and earth (''Pṛthvī''), the five combining to form the empirically perceived material existence (''Prakṛti''). In the Vedas, Agni is a major and most invoked god along with Indra and Soma (deity), Soma. Agni is considered the mouth of the gods and goddesses and the medium that conveys offerings to them in a ''homa (ritual), homa'' (votive ritual). He is conceptualized in ancient Hindu texts to exist at three levels, on earth as fire, in the atmosphere as lightning, and in the sky as the sun. This triple presence accords ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ficus Religiosa
''Ficus religiosa'' or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, bo tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipala tree or ashvattha tree (in India and Nepal). The sacred fig is considered to have a religious significance in four major religions that originated on the Indian subcontinent: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Hindu and Jain ascetics consider the species to be sacred and often meditate under it. Gautama Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment under a tree of this species. The sacred fig is the state tree of the Indian states of Odisha, Bihar and Haryana. Description ''Ficus religiosa'' is a large dry season-deciduous or semi-evergreen tree up to tall and with a trunk diameter of up to . The leaves are cordate in shape with a distinctive extended drip tip; they are long and broad, with a petiole. The fruits are small ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Homa (ritual)
In Indian religions, a homa (Sanskrit: होम), also known as havan, is a fire ritual performed on special occasions. In Hinduism, by a Hindu priest usually for a homeowner (" grihastha": one possessing a home). The grihasth keeps different kinds of fire including one to cook food, heat a home, among other uses; therefore, a Yajna offering is made directly into the fire. A homa is sometimes called a "sacrifice ritual" because the fire destroys the offering, but a homa is more accurately a " votive ritual". The fire is the agent, and the offerings include those that are material and symbolic such as grains, ghee, milk, incense, and seeds. It is rooted in the Vedic religion, and was also adopted in ancient times by Buddhism and Jainism. The practice spread from India to Central Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. Homa rituals remain an important part of many Hindu ceremonies, and variations of homa continue to be practiced in current-day Buddhism, particularly in parts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mantra
A mantra ( ; Pali: ''mantra'') or mantram (Devanagari: मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words (most often in an Indo-Iranian language like Sanskrit or Avestan) believed by practitioners to have religious, magical or spiritual powers. Feuerstein, Georg (2003), ''The Deeper Dimension of Yoga''. Shambala Publications, Boston, MA Some mantras have a syntactic structure and a literal meaning, while others do not. ꣽ, ॐ (Aum, Om) serves as an important mantra in various Indian religions. Specifically, it is an example of a seed syllable mantra ( bijamantra). It is believed to be the first sound in Hinduism and as the sonic essence of the absolute divine reality. Longer mantras are phrases with several syllables, names and words. These phrases may have spiritual interpretations such as a name of a deity, a longing for truth, reality, light, immortality, peace, love, knowledge, and action. Examples of lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rigveda
The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from wikt:ऋच्, ऋच्, "praise" and wikt:वेद, वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian Miscellany, collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Shakala Shakha, Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum. The ''Rigveda'' is the oldest known Vedic Sanskrit text. Its early layers are among the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language. Most scholars believe that the sounds and texts of the ''Rigveda'' have been orally transmitted with precision since the 2nd millennium BCE, through Indian mathematics#Styles of memorisation, methods of memorisation of exceptional complexity, rigour and fidelity, though the dates are not confirmed and remain contentious till concrete evidence surfaces. Philolog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yajurveda
The ''Yajurveda'' (, , from यजुस्, "worship", and वेद, "knowledge") is the Veda primarily of prose mantras for worship rituals.Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in ''The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism'' (Editor: Gavin Flood), Blackwell, , pages 76–77 An ancient Vedic Sanskrit text, it is a compilation of ritual-offering formulas that were said by a priest while an individual performed ritual actions such as those before the yajna fire. Yajurveda is one of the four Vedas, and one of the scriptures of Hinduism. The exact century of Yajurveda's composition is unknown, and estimated by Witzel to be between 1200 and 800 BCE, contemporaneous with Samaveda and Atharvaveda. The Yajurveda is broadly grouped into two – the "black" or "dark" (''Krishna'') Yajurveda and the "white" or "bright" (''Shukla'') Yajurveda. The term "black" implies "the un-arranged, unclear, motley collection" of verses in Yajurveda, in contrast to the "white" which implies ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yajna
In Hinduism, ''Yajna'' or ''Yagna'' (, Help:IPA/Sanskrit, [jɐd͡ʒɲə], ) also known as Hawan, is a ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras. Yajna has been a Vedas, Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature called Brahmanas, as well as Yajurveda. The tradition has evolved from offering oblations and libations into sacred fire to symbolic offerings in the presence of sacred fire (Agni). Yajna rituals-related texts have been called the ''Karma-kanda'' (ritual works) portion of the Vedic literature, in contrast to the ''Jnana-kanda'' (knowledge) portion found in the Vedic Upanishads. The proper completion of Yajna-like rituals was the focus of Mimansa school of Hindu philosophy. Yajna have continued to play a central role in a Hindu's rites of passage, such as weddings. Modern major Hindu temple ceremonies, Hindu community celebrations, or monastic initiations may also include Vedic Yajna rites, or alternatively be based on Āgama (Hinduism), A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Rituals
Samskara (Sanskrit: संस्कार, IAST: , sometimes spelled ''samskara'') are sacraments in Hinduism and other Indian religions, described in ancient Sanskrit texts, as well as a concept in the karma theory of Indian philosophies. The word literally means "putting together, making perfect, getting ready, to prepare", or "a sacred or sanctifying ceremony" in ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts of India. In the context of karma theory, samskaras are dispositions, characters or behavioural traits that exist as default from birth or prepared and perfected by a person over one's lifetime, that exist as imprints on the subconscious according to various schools of Hindu philosophy such as the yoga (philosophy), Yoga school. These perfected or default imprints of karma within a person, influences that person's nature, response and states of mind.Stephen H. Phillips (2009), Yoga, Karma, and Rebirth: A Brief History and Philosophy, Columbia University Press, , Chapter 3 In another ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
