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Hindu Religious Texts
Related to country: India
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This is not a comprehensive list and is only meant to be indicative in nature. It may not be absolutely accurate.
Shruti (revealed truth) : The Vedas:
The Vedas c. 2000 BC (?) are the oldest Hindu religious texts. They are believed to be shruti or divinely heard / revealed and are therefore considered to be perfect. They are:
Rig Veda: Hymns of Praise
Yajur Veda: Formulae for the performance of sacrifices (yajna)
Sama Veda: Melodies to be sung during worship and yajna
Atharva Veda: Magic formulae largely outside the scope of yajna
Each Veda has four parts:
Sanhitas: metrical hymns (mantras)
Brahmanas : prose explaining the hymns
Aranyakas: 'forest books' / treatises for hermits and saints
Upanishads / Vedanta: philosophical treatises
The Aranyakas and Upanishads are sometimes considered appendices of the Brahmanas.
Supplementary literature related to the Vedas: The six Vedangas (sometimes considered smriti) expound the sciences required to understand and apply the Vedas.
Kalp (ritual) Srauta, Grihya, Dharma and Sulba by various sages
Siksha (pronunciation / phonetics) of Panini
Vyakaran (grammar) of Panini
Nirukti (etymology) of Yaska
Chandas (metre) of Pingalacharya
Jyotishi (astronomy/astrology) of Garga
The four Upavedas (usually considered smriti) deal with the four traditional arts and sciences.
Ayurved (medicine)
Gandharvaved (music and dance)
Dhanurved (warfare)
Shilpaved (architecture)
Smriti (realised truth) : Smriti is secondary and changeable. It is not as old as Shruti and is not entirely religious; it speaks of secular matters as well e.g. folklore etc.. It is authoritative only as far as it conforms to shruti and includes:
(a) Shastra: law books e.g. Manu Smriti c. 200 BC, Yajnavalkya Smriti c. 300 AD, Narada Smriti c. 400 AD), treatises on administration e.g. Arthashastra by Kautilya etc.
(b) Nibandh: commentaries on individual shastras c. 700 to 1700 AD
Itihas: histories or epics viz. the Mahabharata, Valmiki-Ramayana, Yogavasishtha, Harivamsa
Agam: mainly theological philosophy dealing with knowledge (jnan), ritual (kriya), concentration (yoga), worship (charya) and is of three kinds:
(a) Sakta Agamas or Tantras which glorify Devi (Goddess)
(b) Vaishnava Agamas or Pancharatra Agamas which glorify Lord Vishnu
(c) Saiva Agamas which glorify Lord ShivaSakta Agamas or Tantras which glorify Devi (Goddess)
Puran: history, legends and myths about Gods, sages and kings freely mixed. There are eighteen main Puranas and many subsidiary 'Upapuranas'. The main Puranas include Matsya Purana, Padma Purana, Naradiya Purana, Vishnu Purana, Varaha Purana, Vamana Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Brahma Purana, Shiva Purana, Devi Purana, Skanda Purana and Markandeya Purana.
(a) Sutra: proverbs etc. c. 800 BC to 200 BC e.g. Ashtadhyayi composed by Panini, Naradbhakti Sutra, Sandilyabhakti Sutra
(b) Vritti: a short explanation of a sutra e.g. is Bodhayana's Vritti on the Brahma Sutra
(c) Bhashya: an elaborate commentary on a Sutra e.g. Mahabhashya by Patanjali on the Vyakaran (grammar) Sutra of Panini
(d) Tippani: Less orthodox than Vritti, it explains difficult words and phrases in the original sutra. e.g. are Kaiyata's Tippani on the Mahabhashya of Patanjali
(e) Varttika: a critical analysis of a Bhashya e.g. Varttika of Katyayana on Panini's Sutra
Darshana constitute the six schools of Hindu philosophical thought.
1. Yoga by Patanjali
2. Nyaya by Gautama
3. Vaiseshika by Kanada
4. Sankhya by Kapila
5. Purva Mimamsa by Jaimini
6. Uttara Mimamsa or Vedanta by Badarayana or Vyasa
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| February 7, 2006 | 9:38 AM |
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Women in the Mirror of Indian Languages
Related to country: India
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http://www.languageinindia.com/jan2003/womeninindianlanguages.html
I just read this article by Basanti Devi which says some interesting things but which left me stunned by also saying, "The status of women in Assamese society is not as low as in many other states. Violence against women is not known," in spite of listing Assamese proverbs which say:
A stone keeps a knife in good form and beating keeps a woman in good form.
It is the same whether a daughter is taken away by Yama ( the Hindu god of Death) or by son-in-law.
Other Indian proverbs about women mentioned in the article include:
A lucky man's wife dies and an unlucky man's cow dies. (Bengali)
Rearing a woman is same as rearing a hen in a Muslim's house. (Bengali)
A woman's intellect lies below the knee. (Kannada)
Daal is good when pounded and as is a girl when under pressure. (Marathi)
There is no difference between a buffalo urinating and a woman weeping. (Punjabi)
If the wife dies, it is a blow on the ankle, if the husband dies it is a blow on the head. (Punjabi)
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| January 26, 2006 | 9:38 AM |
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Women in Hindu Texts
Related to country: India
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Though destitute of virtue, or seeking pleasure (elsewhere); or devoid of good qualities, (yet) a husband must be constantly worshipped as a god by a dutiful wife. [Manu V.154] (c. 200 CE)
He who addresses the wife of another man at a Tirtha, outside the village, in a forest, or at the confluence of rivers, suffer the punishment for adulterous acts (samgrahana). [Manu VIII:356]
When a woman, proud of her relations or abilities, deceives her husband with another man, the king should ensure that she be torn apart by dogs in place much frequented by people. [Manu VIII:371]
Earlier, if a husband accused his wife of infidelity she had to 'pass through fire' and any burns were a sign of guilt. This was based on Ram's conduct towards his wife, Sita as narrated at the end of the Ramayana.
A wife, a son, and a slave, these three are declared to have no property ; the wealth which they earn is (acquired) for him to whom they belong. [Manu VIII.416]
Her father protects her in childhood, her husband protects her in youth and her sons protect her in old age; a woman is never fit for independence. [Manu IX.3]
Manu allotted to women a love of their bed, seat and ornament, and impure desires, wrath, dishonesty, malice and bad conduct. [Manu IX.17]
Women have no business with the text of the veda. [Manu IX.18]
Though a man may have accepted a damsel in due form, he may abandon her if she be blemished, diseased or deflowered, and if she has been fraudulently given to him. [Manu IX.72]
The best partner for a man was one-third his age: A man, aged thirty years, shall marry a maiden of twelve who pleases him, or a man of twenty-four a girl of eight years of age; if (the performance of) his duties would otherwise be impeded, he must marry sooner. [Manu IX.94]
The following eight qualities are characteristic qualities of women. They are: uttering lies, unsteadiness, deceit, stupidity, greed, impurity, wickedness and rashness. [Sukra III.163]
The friendship of women does not last long. Their nature is like that of the hyena. [Rig Veda X.95.10]
And as women, Sudras and the inferior members of the twice-born classes were unfit for hearing the Veda and were infatuated with the blessings arising from the ceremonies, the muni, with a vision to their felicity, in his kindness, composed the narrative called the Mahabharata. [Bhag. Pur. I.4.25] (900 CE)
Hence they reject a female child when born, and take up a male. [Taittirya Samhita VI.5.10.3]
Let a female child be born somewhere else; here, let a male child be born. [Atharva Veda VI.2.3]
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| January 24, 2006 | 9:41 AM |
Types of Marriage
Related to country: India
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1. Brahma : The gift of a daughter wearing jewellery to a Brahmin whom the bride's father invites
2. Daiva : The gift of a daughter wearing jewellery to a priest who duly officiates at a sacrifice while the sacrifice is in progress
3. Arsha : The father gave away his daughter after receiving a cow and a bull or two pairs of cows from the bridegroom.
4. Prajapatya : A contract was signed with the husband and the bride's father said, "You two shall now practice your householders' duties together."
5. Asura : The bridegroom received a maiden after giving as much money as he could afford to the kinsmen of the bride and to the bride herself.
6. Gandharva : The voluntary union of a woman and her lover
7. Rakshasa : The forcible abduction of a maiden from her home
8. Paishacha : A man stealthily seduced a sleeping, intoxicated or mentally disordered girl and later married her
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| January 22, 2006 | 9:42 AM |
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