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Showing posts from March 16, 2017


What Is Panchaloha Idol (murti)? – Components And Percentage Of Metals Used?

Panchaloha idol (murti) as the name indicates consists of five metals. Pancha means five and loha means metal. Panchaloha idols are found in many Hindu temples in India especially in South India . Panchaloha consists of Gold, Silver, Brass, Copper and Iron. The percentage of metals used is 4 portions of silver, 1 portion of gold, 8 portions of brass, 8 portions of copper and a small quantity of iron. This percentage is only to give a general idea and might vary from region to region. Today, the main constituent in Panchaloha idol is copper, brass and lead.  Large quantity of copper is mainly used in idols that are sold in large-scale like the Nataraja statue. But the idols made for temples strictly follow the tradition and contain gold and silver. Note - Idol is a wrong word to use. The word that should be used is murti. Related What is an Ashtadhatu Idol? - Importance of Ashtadhatu Murti

Story - Sita Daughter Of Mandodari In Adbhuta Ramayana

The story of Mata Sita as daughter of Mandodari is found in the Adbhuta Ramayana – a Sanskrit version of Ramayan associated with the tantric Shakti cult. This text mentions that Sita was the daughter of Mandodari, wife of Ravana , the demon king. As per Adbhuta Ramayana, Mandodari was a pious woman and she was unhappy with the demonic ways of Ravana. She was also saddened by the fact that Ravana showed no interest in her and neglected her. Ravana had collected the blood of Rishis (holy saints) to perform some ritual. He had warned Mandodari not to touch it as it was poisonous. One day fed up with the attitude of Ravana, Mandodari decided to end her life and drank the blood of Rishis believing it was poison. She did not die but few days later she realized that she had become pregnant due to drinking the blood. She then removed the undeveloped foetus and buried it in a paddy field. The undeveloped foetus was protected and nurtured by mother earth. When it bec

Difference between Astra and Sastra

Both Astra and Sastra are terms used to refer to weapons in Hindu Puranas, epics and other texts. But there is a difference between them. Astra refers to weapons that are associated with mantra or chant. Thus even a blade of grass can become an astra when it is infused with the power of mantra. Most of the arrows used in the Mahabharata and Ramayana fall in the category of astra. Shastra, or Sastra, refers to conventional weapons like sword, mace, discus etc. The most famous astras are Brahmastra, Pashupatastra, Agneyastra, Nagapasha , Yamastra etc. Related Brahmastra