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Vānaprastha
''Vānaprastha'' () literally meaning 'way of the forest' or 'forest road', is the third stage in the 'Chaturasrama' system of Hinduism. It represents the third of the four ''ashramas'' (stages) of human life, the other three being Brahmacharya (bachelor student, 1st stage), Grihastha (married householder, 2nd stage) and Sannyasa (renunciation ascetic, 4th stage).RK Sharma (1999), Indian Society, Institutions and Change, , pages 28, 38–39 ''Vānaprastha'' is part of the Vedic ashrama system, which starts when a person hands over household responsibilities to the next generation, takes an advisory role, and gradually withdraws from the world. This stage typically follows ''Grihastha'' (householder), but a man or woman may choose to skip householder stage, and enter ''Vānaprastha'' directly after Brahmacharya (student) stage, as a prelude to Sannyasa (ascetic) and spiritual pursuits. Vānaprastha stage is considered as a transition phase from a householder's life with greater ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grihastha
''Gṛhastha'' (Sanskrit: गृहस्थ) literally means "being in and occupied with home, family" or "householder". It refers to the second phase of an individual's life in a four age-based stages of the Hindu asrama system. It follows celibacy (bachelor student) life stage, and embodies a married life, with the duties of maintaining a home, raising a family, educating one's children, and leading a family-centred and a dharmic social life. This stage of ''Asrama'' is conceptually followed by ''Vānaprastha'' (forest dweller, retired) and ''Sannyasa'' (renunciation).RK Sharma (1999), Indian Society, Institutions and Change, , page 28 Combined with other three life stages, Hindu philosophy considers these stages as a facet of Dharma concept, something essential to completing the full development of a human being and fulfilling all the needs of the individual and society. Ancient and medieval era texts of Hinduism consider ''Gṛhastha'' stage as the most important of all st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sannyasa
''Sannyasa'' (), sometimes spelled ''sanyasa'', is the fourth stage within the Hinduism, Hindu system of four life stages known as ''ashrama (stage), ashramas'', the first three being ''brahmacharya'' (celibate student), ''Gṛhastha, grihastha'' (householder) and ''Vānaprastha, vanaprastha'' (forest dweller, retired). ''Sannyasa'' is traditionally conceptualized for men or women in the last years of their life, but young ''brahmachari''s have the choice to skip the householder and retirement stages, renounce worldly and materialistic pursuits and dedicate their lives to spiritual pursuits. ''Sannyasa'', a form of asceticism marked by renunciation of material desires and prejudices, is characterized by a state of disinterest in and detachment from material life, with the purpose of spending one's life in peaceful, spiritual pursuits. An individual in Sanyasa is known as a ''sannyasi'' (male) or ''sannyasini'' (female) in Hinduism. Sannyasa shares similarities with the Sadhu a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baudhayana
The (Sanskrit: बौधायन सूत्रस् ) are a group of Vedic Sanskrit texts which cover dharma, daily ritual, mathematics and is one of the oldest Dharma-related texts of Hinduism that have survived into the modern age from the 1st-millennium BCE. They belong to the ''Taittiriya'' branch of the Krishna Yajurveda school and are among the earliest texts of the genre.. In relative chronology, they predate Apastamba, Āpastamba, which is dated by Robert Lingat to the ''sutra'' period proper, between c. 500 to 200 BCE. Robert Lingat, The Classical Law of India, (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt Ltd, 1993), p. 20 The Baudhayana sūtras consist of six texts: # the Baudhayana Shrauta Sutra, , probably in 19 (questions), # the in 20 (chapters), # the in 4 , # the Grhyasutra, Grihyasutra in 4 , # the Dharmasutra, in 4 and # the Sulba Sutras, in 3 . The ' is noted for containing several early mathematical results, including an approximation of the squ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abhijñānaśākuntalam
''Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (Devanagari: अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम्, IAST: ''Abhijñānaśākuntalam''), also known as ''Shakuntala'', ''The Recognition of Shakuntala'', ''The Sign of Shakuntala'', and many other variants, is a Sanskrit play by the ancient Indian poet Kālidāsa, dramatizing the story of Śakuntalā told in the epic ''Mahābhārata'' and regarded as the best of Kālidāsa's works. Its exact date is uncertain, but Kālidāsa is often placed in the 4th century CE. Origin of Kālidāsa's play Plots similar to the play appear in earlier texts. There is a story mentioned in the ''Mahābhārata''. A story of similar plot appear in the Buddhist Jātaka tales as well. In the Mahābhārata the story appears as a precursor to the Pāṇḍava and Kaūrava lineages. In the story King Duṣyanta and Śakuntalā meet in the forest and get estranged and ultimately reunited. Their son Bharata is said to have laid the foundation of the dynast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ramayana
The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics of Hinduism known as the ''Itihasas'', the other being the ''Mahabharata''. The epic narrates the life of Rama, the seventh ''avatar'' of the Hindu deity Vishnu, who is a prince of Ayodhya (Ramayana), Ayodhya in the kingdom of Kosala. The epic follows Exile of Lord Rama, his fourteen-year exile to the forest urged by his father King Dasharatha, on the request of Rama's stepmother Kaikeyi; his travels across the forests in the Indian subcontinent with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana; the kidnapping of Sita by Ravana, the king of Lanka, that resulted in bloodbath; and Rama's eventual return to Ayodhya (Ramayana), Ayodhya along with Sita to be crowned as a king amidst jubilation and celebration. Scholarly estimates for the earliest stage ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Markandeya Purana
The ''Markandeya Purana'' (; IAST: ) is a Sanskrit text of Hinduism, and one of the eighteen major Puranas. The text's title Markandeya refers to a sage in Sanatana Dharma, who is the central character in two legends, one linked to Shiva and other to Vishnu. The Markandeya text is one of the Puranas that lacks a sectarian presentation of ideas in favor of any particular god, and it is rare to read any deity being invoked or deity prayers in the entire text. The Markandeya Purana is probably one of the oldest in Purana genre of Hindu texts, Hindu Literature, among the most interesting and important, states Ludo Rocher. It is famous for including the Devi Mahatmya within it, the oldest known treatise on Devi (Goddess) as the Supreme Truth and Creator deity, Creator Of The Universe. The text is considered as a central text of the Hindu Goddess-related Shaktism tradition, with an extraordinary expression of reverence for the feminine. The Markandeya Purana's Devi Mahatmya is often ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yudhishthira
Yudhishthira (Sanskrit: युधिष्ठिर, ud̪ʱiʂʈʰiɾᵊ IAST: ''Yudhiṣṭhira''), also known as Dharmaputra, is the eldest among the five Pandavas, and is also one of the central characters of the ancient Indian epic ''Mahabharata''. He was the king of Indraprastha and later the King of Kuru Kingdom in the epic. Yudhishthira was the son of Kunti, the first wife of King Pandu, fathered by the god Yama due to Pandu's inability to have children. Yudhishthira held a strong belief in ''dharma'' (morals and virtues) and was chosen as the crown prince of Kuru. But after the Lakshagriha incident, he was presumed dead and his cousin Duryodhana was appointed as the new heir. The kingdom was split in half due to a succession dispute between Yudhishthira and Duryodhana. Yudhishthira received the barren half, which he later transformed into the magnificent city of Indraprastha. Yudhishthira and his brothers had a polyandrous marriage with Draupadi, the princess ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shanti Parva
The Shanti Parva (; IAST: ''Śānti parva)'' ("Book of Peace") is the twelfth of the eighteen ''parvas'' (books) of the Indian epic ''Mahabharata''. It traditionally has three parts and 365 chapters.Ganguli, K.M. (1883–1896)Shanti Parva in ''The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa'' (12 Volumes). Calcutta.Dutt, M. N. (1903). ''The Mahabharata (Volume 12): Shanti Parva''. Calcutta: Elysium Press The critical edition has three parts and 353 chapters. It is the longest book among the eighteen books of the epic. The book is set after the war is over— the two sides have accepted peace and Yudhishthira starts his rule of the Pandava kingdom. The Shanti parva recites the duties of the ruler, ''dharma'' and good governance, as counseled by the dying Bhishma and various ''Rishis''. The parva includes many fables such as that of "the fowler and pigeons". The book also provides what some have described as a "theory of varna" as well as a comparative discussion between a rule of truth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succession between two groups of princely cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandava, Pāṇḍavas. It also contains Hindu philosophy, philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four "goals of life" or ''puruṣārtha'' (12.161). Among the principal works and stories in the ''Mahābhārata'' are the ''Bhagavad Gita'', the story of Damayanti, the story of Shakuntala, the story of Pururava and Urvashi, the story of Savitri and Satyavan, the story of Kacha (sage), Kacha and Devayani, the story of Rishyasringa and an Ramopakhyana, abbreviated version of the ''Rāmāyaṇa'', often considered as works in their own right. Traditionally, the authorship of the ''Mahābhārata'' is attributed to Vyasa, Vy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patrick Olivelle
Patrick Olivelle is an Indologist. A philologist and scholar of Sanskrit Literature whose work has focused on asceticism, renunciation and the dharma, Olivelle has been Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin since 1991. Early life Olivelle was born in Sri Lanka. He received a B.A. (Honours) in 1972 from the University of Oxford, where he studied Sanskrit, Pali and Indian religions with Thomas Burrow and R.C. Zaehner. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1974 for a thesis containing the critical edition and translation of Yadava Prakasa's ''Yatidharmaprakasa'' under the supervision of Ludo Rocher. Between 1974 and 1991, Olivelle taught in the Department of Religious Studies at Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dharma
Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear Untranslatability, translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold'' or ''to support'', thus referring to law that sustains things—from one's life to society, and to the Universe at large. In its most commonly used sense, dharma refers to an individual's moral responsibilities or duties; the dharma of a farmer differs from the dharma of a soldier, thus making the concept of dharma a varying dynamic. As with the other components of the Puruṣārtha, the concept of ''dharma'' is pan-Indian. The antonym of dharma is ''adharma''. In Hinduism, ''dharma'' denotes behaviour that is considered to be in accord with ''Ṛta''—the "order and custom" that makes life and universe possible. This includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and "right way of living" according to the stage of life or social posi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
