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Showing posts from December 28, 2018


Story of the Birth of Demons Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu

Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu were two powerful demons who were annihilated by Lord Vishnu. The story of the birth of Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu is found in the Srimad Bhagavad Purana. Diti once asked her husband Sage Kasyapa to make love to her at the Pradosh period of a day. Diti wanted to get a powerful son who would defeat sons of her sister Aditi. The pradosh period, which occurs in the evening, is a forbidden time for sexual act as per shastras. Sage Kashyapa could not resist his wife’s request and made love to her. However, Sage Kashyapa later warned her that she will give birth two cruel sons who will cause huge misery on all living beings and they will be annihilated by Bhagvan Vishnu. It must be noted here that Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu were also incarnations of the gatekeepers of Vishnu, Jaya and Vijaya, who were cursed to take several birth on earth. Related Stories Amba in Mahabharata – Story of Amba in the Mahabharata Story Of Sri Krishna And

Kim Purushas in Hinduism - Kimpurushas

Kim Purushas are semi-divine beings or minor deities mentioned in several Hindu scriptures. Kimpurushas are a combination of human, animal and supernatural traits. They have human figures and horse’s head. In some Hindu scriptures Kim Purushas are the same as Kinnaras . As per Mahabharata, they were the children of Pulaha Rishi. Some Puranas suggest that they were born from the limbs of Brahma. Kim Purushas lived near the Himalayas and their leader was Druma. As per some scriptures, they are attached to the service of Kubera , the treasurer of gods. They are also famous as celestial musicians.  As per Aitareya Brahmana 6.8, the Devas first obtained man as the sacrificial animal. From that man, the sacred part escaped and it entered the horse. Hence the horse became fit for sacrifice. They abandoned the man from whom the sacred part escaped, he became Kimpurusha.

Amba in Mahabharata – Story of Amba in the Mahabharata

Amba was the eldest daughter of the King of Kashi. She along with two of her sisters were forcibly be taken away by Bhishma from the Swayamvara to be the wives of King Vichitravirya. But on the day when the marriage was to be performed Amba informed Bhishma that she had given her mind to King of Salwa and she be sent to him. On realizing the mistake, Bhishma sent her to the King of Salwa. But the King of Salwa was not ready to accept a woman who had entered the home of another person. Amba had now nowhere to go. Bhishma would not marry her as he had taken the vow of celibacy. King Vichitravirya would not accept her as he was in love with someone else. She then took refuge in the jungle and performed intense austerities with the aim to avenge her insult. Amba was born again as Shikhandi and was responsible for the death of Bhishma in the Mahabharata war. Related Stories  King Janashruti And Cart Puller Raikva - Chandogya Upanishad  Hindu Stories - Sant Namdev And The

Upanishad Stories - A collection of Stories from the Upanishads

This is a collection of stories from the Upanishads.  A Story From Chandogya Upanishad Which Explains The One Behind The Many After studying for twelve years, Svetaketu returned home conceited and arrogant about the knowledge he had acquired. Seeing, this his father Aruni asked him if he had been taught about the ONE behind the many, seeing which one sees all, hearing which one hears all, and knowing which one knows everything. When Svetaketu confessed his ignorance, the father explained how knowing one sample of clay one knows all its modifications. Aruni then ordered his son to bring a fruit of the banyan tree and cut it open. ‘What do you see?’ asked the father. ‘Atom-like seeds’, said the son Aruni then asked the son to break one of the seeds and again asked ‘What do you see now?’ ‘Nothing whatever, said the son. ‘From this atom-like seed sprouts the huge banyan tree,’ Aruni explained. ‘In the same manner, from the atom-like subtle essence o

Sabara – Commentator on Mimamsa Sutra of Jaimini

Sabara, who is believed to have lived during 1st century BC, was a famous commentator on Mimamsa Sutra of Sage Jaimini. His Bhashya on Mimamsa Sutra is the most important work in this genre and all later Mimamsa literary works are based on it. Hence, Sabara is also referred as father of Mimamsa literature in Hinduism. Sabara, a great scholar of the Vedas, states that Dharma connects men with ultimate bliss. Sabara accepted six pramanas – pratyaksha, anumana, sabda, upamana, arthapatti, and anupalabdhi. He has explained them in his bhashya. It would have been very difficult to understand the Mimamsa Sutra of Jaimini without the commentary of Sabara. It is widely accepted that Sabara was the one who systematized and coordinated sutras in adhikaranas. Period of Sabara Scholars have no one opinion regarding the period of Sabara. 1st century BCE is the period given by M.Winternitz. The period around 57 BCE is suggested by Ganganath Jha. This is based on the