Today’s new moon brings Day 1 of the 9 day long festivity period ‘Navratri’. A festival dedicated to Goddess Durga, it is celebrated with immense devotion and passion across India. In today’s post we share a brief overview of this festival. Navratri is derived from the Sanskrit words “nava” which means nine and “ratri” which …
What do Holika, Dhundhi, Pootana and Kaama Deva have in common? Well, one festival which connects all these is the festival of colors, Holi. In this post we will look at all the legends associated with Holi. 1. Holika The most ‘popular’ event associated with Hoil is the burning of the demoness Holika. Infact the …
As the second part of the Thor movie series releases this week, we present our first article on the Norse mythology. For starters, Norse mythology (also referred to as Scandinavian mythology) is the body of mythology of the North Germanic people stemming from Norse paganism and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia and into the …
Every year around this time, Barsana, a small town in the Mathura district of the state of Uttar Pradesh comes alive; tourists from around the world flock the city; everyone who sees the sight is mesmerised at this event which has no such parallel in the world. I am talking about the Lath Maar Holi which …
Om Tryambakam Yajamahe Sugandhim Pushtivardhanam Urvarukamiva Bandhanan Mrityor Mukshiya Maamritat Meaning – We meditate on the Three-eyed reality which permeates and nourishes all like a fragrance. May we be liberated from death for the sake of immortality, even as a cucumber is severed from bondage to the creeper. Maha Shivratri is a Hindu festival celebrated …
“It is the clearest image of the activity of God which any art or religion can boast of.” In June 2004, an unusual new landmark was unveiled at CERN, the European Center for Research in Particle Physics in Geneva — a 2m tall statue of Lord Shiva in his Nataraja form. The statue, symbolizing Shiva’s …
As discussed in the previous post, the Devtas were greatly depleted of their powers due to the curse on Indra by Sage Durvasa. The Asuras thought of this as the most opportune time to strike and attacked Swarga. The Devtas were outclassed by the Asuras on the battlefield and had to flee to save their …
Rishi Durvasa holds a special place in the many lores of Hindu mythology. To begin with he was the ‘avatar’ of Lord Shiva born to Atri and Anasuya. He was extremely feared for his short temper. He didn’t think twice before giving a shraap (curse) to anyone who didn’t please him. Right from Ambaraisha to Shakuntala and even Lakshman …
Makar Sankranti is one of the most auspicious occasions for the Hindus, and is celebrated in almost all parts of India with different customs and names; but with the same spirit everywhere. Makar Sankranti as a Harvest Festival Makar Sankranti is a major harvest festival celebrated in various parts of India. According to the lunar …
Lohri is essentially a festival dedicated to fire and the sun god. It is the time when the sun moves towards the north. When is Lohri celebrated? According to the Bikram calendar, Lohri falls in the month of Paush i.e. around 13 January, as per the Gregorian calendar. It is, actually, celebrated a day before …
Let’s find out the astrology behind when and where Kumbh Mela is held based on astrological calculations as given in Hindu scriptures. According to the astrological calculations, event of Kumbh (a festival occurring every 12 years) takes place in 4 ways as follows: 1. In the event of entrance of Jupiter in Aquarius (Zodiac sign) and …
Kumbh Mela is the greatest pilgrimage and festival in the Hindu religion. Derived from Kumbha meaning ‘pitcher’ and Mela meaning ‘festival’, Kumbh Mela is celebrated four times every 12 years, the site of the observance rotating between four pilgrimage places on four sacred rivers: at Haridwar on the Ganges River, at Ujjain on the Kshipra, …
Amongst all the holy tirthas, Gaya in Bihar has a special place. This is the story of the demon after whom the city is named. A demon named Gayasura once started to perform tapasya. Such was the power of his tapasya that the Devtas started to worry about the intentions behind this extreme penance. They …
From being called the “disease of language” (Max Müller) to being referred to as “Myth=Mithya” (Devdutt Pattanaik), mythology has always been a very misunderstood term. The word mythology is derived from Greek “mythos”, which has a range of meanings from “word,” through “saying” and “story,” to “fiction”. It is said that it originally meant “speech” …
A very significant ritual of an Indian wedding is the ‘Griha Pravesh’. This is the first time when the bride enters her husband’s home ‘officially’. This is an auspicious moment wherein a kalash or jar of rice is kept at the threshold of the home. The bride pushes and topples this jar with her right foot while …
One of the products that came out of the Samudra Manthan was Halaha (poison). The poison was so powerful that it could annihilate the entire universe. And it was the Maha Yogi, Lord Shiva who came to the rescue of everyone and inhaled the poison. As a result, the color of Lord Shiva’s neck turned blue … Continue reading
In Japanese mythology, the Japanese creation myth, Tenchikaibyaku (“Creation of Heaven and Earth”), is the story that describes the legendary birth of the celestial and earthly world, the birth of the first Gods and the birth of the Japanese archipelago. Two books namely Kojiki, the first book written in Japan (712 AD), and the Nihon … Continue reading
There is an interesting tale describing how sage Vashishtha had brought down Gomti from the heaven to earth. At the time of deluge when the whole world had submerged in water, a lotus flower manifested from Lord Vishnu’s navel on which was seated Brahma. Lord Vishnu instructed him to perform his duty as a creator … Continue reading
One of the most intriguing questions pertaining to Hindu mythology is that why Lord Brahma is not worshipped as much as the other two Lords in the holy trinity? Why does Brahma have a handful of temples dedicated to him while Vishnu and Shiva have infinite? Let’s find out all the legends associated with this … Continue reading
After the initial setbacks, Brahma was more than ever determined to create further. This resulted in the following 10 creations from Brahma’s body and mind – Marici – from his mind Atri – from his eyes Angira – from his mouth Pulastya – from his ears Pulaha – from his navel Kratu – from his … Continue reading
Before the Kumaras, Lord Brahma first created the five forms of agyaan (ignorance) : 1) andhatamisra – the idea that one would die 2) tamisra – indignation 3) maha–moha – craving of infatuation 4) moha – delusion of errors 5) tamas – absence of knowledge about one’s own engagements Seeing such a misleading creation as a … Continue reading
At the beginning of the process of creation, Lord Brahma created the ‘Four Kumaras’ or the ‘Catursana’. As the Four Kumaras were born from the mind (manas) of Brahma they are referred to as his Manasaputras. Their names are : Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana and Sanat Kumara. When the four Kumaras came into existence, they were … Continue reading
One of the foremost concepts in Hinduism is that of the Trimurti. According to this concept, the ‘functions’ of creation, maintenance, and destruction are performed by the following 1) Brahma – the creator 2) Vishnu – the maintainer or preserver 3) Shiva – the destroyer or transformer This trio is often addressed as “Brahma-Vishnu-Maheshwara”. But … Continue reading
: A scene of the Hari-ki-Pauri in Haridwar on the occasion of Karthik Poornima Kartik Poornima , as the names implies , is celebrated on the full moon day of Kartika month. It lies on the fifteenth lunar day of the Kartika (November-December). It is known by multiple names, few of them are Tripuri poornima, … Continue reading
“There is but One God, His name is Truth, He is the Creator, He fears none, He is without hate, He never dies, He is beyond the cycle of births and death, He is self illuminated, He is realized by the kindness of the True Guru, He was True in the beginning, He was True … Continue reading
Mythnosis 