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Vibhuti
In Hinduism, ''vibhuti'' (), also called ''bhasmam'' or ''tirunīru'', is sacred ash made of burnt dried wood, burnt cow dung and/or cremated bodies used in Agamic rituals. Devotees of Shiva apply ''vibhuti'' traditionally as three horizontal lines across the forehead (also known as '' tripundra)'' and other parts of the body. According to the '' Shiva Purana'', the particles of ash which cling to the skin when ''tripundra'' is applied are to be considered to be individual lingams. The scriptures further state that ''bhasma'' purifies the soul and elevates the devotee of Shiva, and that works done without wearing ''bhasma'' are fruitless. There are various methods for the application of the ashes, according to the ''Shiva Purana'', and various mantras to be recited during application. Other uses Another meaning of ''vibhuti'' is a 'glorious form', in contrast with avatar, a reincarnation of Brahman. In the third chapter of the Yoga Sutras, which is called ''vibhuti-pada'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brihajjabala Upanishad
The ''Brihajjabala Upanishad'' (, ) is one of the minor Upanishads, written in Sanskrit language. This Hindu text is attached to the ''Atharvaveda'', and is one of 14 Shaiva Upanishads. It describes the process of producing Vibhuti (Bhasma), or sacred ash, methods of using it for tilaka Tripundra on various parts of the body, and its meaning in Shaivism. The text also mentions Rudraksha as prayer beads. Klaus Klostermaier classifies the ''Brihajjabala Upanishad'' along with the ''Bhasmajabala Upanishad'', the ''Rudrakshajabala Upanishad'', the ''Kalagni Rudra Upanishad'' and the ''Akshamalika Upanishad'' as Shaiva texts that explain symbolism of rites and objects of worship in Shaivism. It is also spelled as ''Brihad jabala Upanishad'', ''Brihajjabalopanishad'' and ''Brihat Jabala Upanishad''. History The date of composition and the author of this text are unknown. It is likely a late medieval, post-12th century era Upanishad and it is neither part of the 17th century compi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali
The ''Yoga Sutras of Patañjali'' (IAST: Patañjali yoga-sūtra) is a compilation "from a variety of sources" of Sanskrit sutras (aphorisms) on the practice of yoga – 195 sutras (according to Vyasa, Vyāsa and Krishnamacharya) and 196 sutras (according to others, including BKS Iyengar). The ''Yoga Sutras'' were compiled in India in the early centuries CE by the sage Patanjali, who collected and organized knowledge about yoga from Samkhya, Buddhism, and older Yoga traditions, and possibly another compiler who may have added the fourth chapter. He may also be the author of the ''Yogabhashya'', a commentary on the ''Yoga Sutras'', traditionally attributed to the legendary Vedic sage Vyasa, but possibly forming a joint work of Patanjali called the ''Pātañjalayogaśāstra''. The ''Yoga Sutras'' draw from three distinct traditions from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE, namely Samkhya, Buddhism traditions, and "various older ascetic and religious strands of speculatio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tripundra
''Tripundra'' ( ''tripuṇḍra'' "three marks") is a Hindu Shaivite tilaka, worn by Shaivas as an indication of their affiliation with Shiva. It is also one of the tilakas worn by Smarta Hindus. It consists of three horizontal lines (and sometimes a dot) on the forehead, usually made with sacred ash, and has spiritual meanings in the Shaivite traditions of Hinduism. The Vaishnava counterpart of this tilaka, consisting of vertical lines, is called the Urdhva Pundra. History The practice is discussed in Hindu texts such as Bhasmajabala Upanishad, Brihajjabala Upanishad and Kalagni Rudra Upanishad. The allegorical significance of the "three ash lines", states Deussen, is that the tradition sees them as streaks of three Vedic fires, three audible syllables of ''AUM'', three Guṇas, three worlds, three Atmans, trayi Vedas, and three aspects of Shiva. Usage and significance The Tripuṇḍra, three horizontal lines, on the forehead as well as other body parts are symbols duri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhasmajabala Upanishad
''Bhasmajabala Upanishad'' () is one of the minor Shaiva Upanishads of Hinduism written in Sanskrit language. It is associated with the ''Atharvaveda''. The ''Bhasmajabala Upanishad'', in a manner similar to Brihajjabala Upanishad and Akshamalika Upanishad describes Vibhuti (Bhasma) or sacred ash, and Rudraksha beads as symbols and for body art. The text describes how the ash and beads are to be produced, its application on the body. The importance of holy city of Varanasi and its Shiva temple are mentioned in the text. Klaus Klostermaier classifies the text along with the ''Brihajjabala Upanishad'', the '' Rudrakshajabala Upanishad'', the ''Kalagni Rudra Upanishad'' and the '' Akshamalika Upanishad'' as Shaiva texts that explain symbolism of rites and objects of worship in Shaivism. History The date of composition and the author of this text are unknown. Like most sectarian Upanishads, the text is likely a late medieval, post-12th century era Upanishad and it is neither part ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoga Concepts
Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of Asana, physical, mental, and Spirituality#Asian traditions, spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with Yoga (philosophy), its own philosophy in History of India, ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various Soteriology, salvation goals, as practiced in the Hinduism, Hindu, Jainism, Jain, and Buddhism, Buddhist traditions. Yoga may have pre-Vedic period, Vedic origins, but is first attested in the early first millennium BCE. It developed as various traditions in the eastern Ganges basin drew from a common body of practices, including Vedas, Vedic elements. Yoga-like practices are mentioned in the ''Rigveda'' and a number of early Upanishads, but systematic yoga concepts emerge during the fifth and sixth centuries BCE in ancient India's sannyasa, ascetic and Śramaṇa movements, including Jainism and Buddhism. The ''Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'', the classical text on Hindu yoga, samkhya-based but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avatar
Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes used to refer to any guru or revered human being. The word ''avatar'' does not appear in the Vedic literature; however, it appears in developed forms in post-Vedic literature, and as a noun particularly in the Puranic literature after the 6th century CE. Despite that, the concept of an avatar is compatible with the content of the Vedic literature like the Upanishads as it is symbolic imagery of the Saguna Brahman concept in the philosophy of Hinduism. The ''Rigveda'' describes Indra as endowed with a mysterious power of assuming any form at will. The ''Bhagavad Gita'' expounds the doctrine of Avatara but with terms other than ''avatar''. Theologically, the term is most often associated with the Hindu god Vishnu, though the idea has been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rudraksha
A ''rudraksha'' (IAST: ') refers to the dried Pyrena, stones or seeds of the genus ''Elaeocarpus'' specifically, ''Elaeocarpus ganitrus''. These stones serve as prayer beads for Hinduism, Hindus (especially Shaivism, Shaivas) and Buddhism, Buddhists. When they are ripe, ''rudraksha'' stones are covered by a blue outer fruit so they are sometimes called "blueberry beads". The stones are associated with the Hindu deity Shiva and are commonly worn for protection and for chanting mantras such as Om Namah Shivaya (; ). They are primarily sourced from India, Indonesia, and Nepal for jewellery and japamala, malas (garlands) and valued similarly to semi-precious stones. ''Rudraksha'' can have up to twenty one "faces" (, ) or locules – naturally ingrained longitudinal lines which divide the stone into segments. Each face represents a particular deity. Etymology ''Rudraksha'' is a Sanskrit compound word consisting of "''Rudra''"() referring to Shiva and "'"() meaning "eye". Sanskri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samyama
''Samyama'' (from Sanskrit संयम saṃ-yama—holding together, tying up, binding, integration) is the combined simultaneous practice of dhāraṇā (concentration), dhyāna (meditation) and samādhi (union). Description Samyama is a tool to receive deeper knowledge of qualities of the object. It is a term summarizing the "catch-all" process of psychological absorption in the object of meditation. Sansonese, J. Nigro (1994). ''The Body of Myth: Mythology, Shamanic Trance, and the Sacred Geography of the Body''. Inner Traditions. . SourceGoogle Books p.26. For Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras, Pratyahara is the preceding stage to practicing and developing Samyama. See also Ashtanga yoga. Framework Samyama, as Patanjali's Yoga Sutras states, engenders prajñā. Adi Yoga or Mahasandhi discusses the ' mūla prajñā' of "listening/studying, investigation/contemplation, realization/meditation" which are a transposition of the triune of Samyama. These are activated subconscio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bindi (decoration)
A bindi (from Sanskrit '' bindú'' meaning "point, drop, dot or small particle") is a coloured dot or, in modern times, a sticker worn on the centre of the forehead, originally by Hindus, Jains and Buddhists from the Indian subcontinent. A bindi is a bright dot of some colour applied in the centre of the forehead close to the eyebrows or in the middle of the forehead that is worn in the Indian subcontinent (particularly amongst Hindus in India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka)Khanna 1979: p. 171 and Southeast Asia among Balinese, Javanese, Sundanese, Malaysian, Singaporean, Vietnamese, and Myanmar Hindus. A similar marking is also worn by babies and children in China and, as in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, represents the opening of the third eye. In Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism the bindi is associated with the ajna chakra, and Bindu (symbol), BinduMercier (2007). p. 267. is known as the third eye chakra. Bindu (symbol), Bindu is the point or dot around whic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Hindu Man With Tripundra Tilaka Forehead Markings
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version is often written in one of two forms: the double-storey and single-storey . The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English, '' a'' is the indefinite article, with the alternative form ''an''. Name In English, the name of the letter is the ''long A'' sound, pronounced . Its name in most other languages matches the letter's pronunciation in open syllables. History The earliest known ancestor of A is ''aleph''—the first letter of the Phoenician ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Carlyle
Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian, and philosopher. Known as the "Sage writing, sage of Chelsea, London, Chelsea", his writings strongly influenced the intellectual and artistic culture of the Victorian era. Carlyle was born in Ecclefechan, a village in Dumfriesshire. He attended the University of Edinburgh where he excelled in mathematics and invented the Carlyle circle. After finishing the arts course, he prepared to become a minister in the Burgher (Church history), Burgher Church while working as a schoolmaster. He quit these and several other endeavours before settling on literature, writing for the ''Edinburgh Encyclopædia'' and working as a translator. He initially gained prominence in English-language literary circles for his extensive writing on German Romanticism, German Romantic literature and philosophy. These themes were explored in his first major work, a semi-autobiographical philosophical novel entitled ''Sartor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tilaka
In Hinduism, the tilaka (), colloquially known as a tika, is a mark worn usually on the forehead, at the point of the Ajna, ''ajna chakra'' (third eye or spiritual eye) and sometimes other parts of the body such as the neck, hand, chest, or the arm. The ''tilaka'' may be worn daily for decorative purposes, as a symbol for religious affiliation, for rites of passage or for special spiritual and religious occasions, depending on regional customs. It is also used as an expression of honour or to welcome someone upon arrival.Axel Michaels (2015), Homo Ritualis: Hindu Ritual and Its Significance for Ritual Theory', Oxford University Press, , pp. 100-112, 327 Tilakas come in an assortment of styles or shapes and are adorned using various material such as "ash from sacrificial fire or cow dung, sandalwood paste, turmeric, clay, charcoal or red lead." Variations and meaning Different Hindu denominations use different materials and shapes to make the tilaka.Makhan Jha, ''Anthropology o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
