Sanskrit scripture, One of the eighteen major Puranas
The
Naradiya Purana
(
Sanskrit
:
?????? ?????
,
Naradiya Purana
) or
Narada Purana
(
Sanskrit
:
???? ?????
), are two
Vaishnavism
texts written in Sanskrit language. One of the texts is termed as a Major Purana, also called a
Mahapurana
, while the other is termed as a Minor Purana (
Upapurana
), also referred as
Brihannaradiya Purana.
Unlike most Puranas that are encyclopedic, the Brihannaradiya text is focussed almost entirely on
Vishnu
worship, while the Naradiya text is a compilation of 41 chapters (20%) on Vishnu-worship and rest of the chapters (80%) cover a wide range of topics including a large compilation of
Mahatmya
(travel guides)
to temples and places along the river
Ganges
and neighbouring regions.
[4]
The
Naradiya Purana
is notable for dedicating eighteen chapters on other Puranas, one entire chapter summarizing each Major Purana.
It is also notable for its verses extolling
Buddha
in chapter 1.2.
[6]
History
[
edit
]
Manuscripts of nearly all the major puranas acknowledge the existence of a major purana named either Narada or Naradiya, suggesting it was an important text in Hindu history.
Yet, unlike other Puranas which either appear in the major or minor purana lists, the Naradiya text appears in both lists.
This caused significant confusion to 19th and early 20th century Indologists.
The confusion was compounded by the fact that the content of the text manuscripts they found seemed to follow similar scope and focus, except that the
Brihannaradiya Purana
text with about 3,500 verses was slightly bigger than the other with about 3,000 verses.
Later discovered manuscripts and scholarship established that the Narada or Naradiya is the major purana, Brihannaradiya is the
Upapurana
.
The
Naradiya Purana
consists of two
bhagas
(parts), with the first called
Purvabhaga
and second called
Uttarabhaga
.
The
Purvabhaga
has four
padas
with the total of 125 chapters.
The
Uttarabhaga
has 82 chapters, which embeds the
Rukmangada-carita
.
[11]
The
Brihannaradiya Purana
has no parts or padas, and a total of 38
adhyayas
(chapters).
The
Naradiya Purana
texts, like other Puranas, exist in numerous versions, but with less variation than other Puranas.
Wilson states that both texts are of likely recent composition, probably 16th or 17th century, because the five manuscripts he reviewed had verses mentioning certain events after Islamic invasion and control of the Indian subcontinent.
The other unusual part of the manuscripts he examined, states Wilson, is that the descriptions of ritual worship of Vishnu in the text are "puerile inventions, wholly foreign to the more ancient" ideas in the Purana genre of Hindu texts.
Rajendra Hazra, in contrast, states that the core verses of the texts were likely first composed over various centuries, as follows: he dates the Vishnu-bhakti focussed text
Brihannaradiya Purana
to the 9th-century; he places the first 41 chapters of
Purvabhaga
and the first 37 chapters of
Uttarabhaga
to have been composed before the 11th century; and, the rest he states is of likely a comparatively later origin.
The
Naradiya Purana
, states Hazra, was likely composed after the
Brihannaradiya Purana
.
It is unknown, adds Hazra, whether the extant manuscripts of the Naradiya Puranas are same as the 9th and 10th-century originals,
but we know that the verses quoted in medieval Hindu Smriti texts with these texts cited as source, are missing from the currently surviving manuscripts.
Rocher states that the composition date of each Purana remains unclear.
Dimmitt and van Buitenen state that it is difficult to ascertain when, where, why and by whom the major and minor Puranas were written:
As They Exist Today, The Puranas Are A Stratified Literature. Each Titled Work Consists Of Material That Has Grown By Numerous Accretions In Successive Historical Eras. Thus, No Purana Has A Single Date Of Composition. (...) It Is As If They Were Libraries To Which New Volumes Have Been Continuously Added, Not Necessarily At The End Of The Shelf, But Randomly.
?
Cornelia Dimmitt and
J.A.B. van Buitenen
,
Classical Hindu Mythology: A Reader in the Sanskrit Puranas
The
Padma Purana
categorizes Naradiya Purana as a
Sattva
Purana (which represents goodness and purity).
Scholars consider the
Sattva-Rajas-Tamas
classification as "entirely fanciful" and there is nothing in this text that actually justifies this classification.
Contents
[
edit
]
Brihannaradiya Purana
[
edit
]
The
Brihannaradiya Purana
(also
Brihannarada Purana
) is focussed on
bhakti
(devotion) towards
Vishnu
.
It describes the festivals and ritual ceremonies of
Vaishnavism
.
Many chapters of the text are part of the
Mahatmya,
glorifying the river Ganges, pilgrimage and travel centers such as the
Pray?ga
(the confluence of the rivers Yamuna and Ganges), and
Kashi
(a sacred city).
The text also includes chapters on ethics and duties of members of various
varna
s
and
ashrama
s
,
vrata
s
,
and summaries on the
samskara
s
.
Naradiya Purana
[
edit
]
The
Narada Purana
(also
Naradiya Purana
) follows the style of the
Brihannaradiya Purana
in the first 41 chapters of
Purvabhaga
, but the rest of the first part and second part are encyclopedic covering a diverse range of topics.
The encyclopedic sections discuss subjects such as the six
Vedangas
,
moksha
,
dharma
,
adhyatma-jnana
(monastic life),
Pashupata
philosophy, a secular guide with methods of worship of
Ganesha
,
Narasimha
,
Hayagriva
,
Rama
,
Krishna
,
Hanuman
,
Shiva
, and
Lakshmi
.
The text also glorifies goddess
Radha
as the
mulaprakriti
, one whose soul and love manifests all other Hindu goddesses.
[22]
The text's secular description and verse of praises are not limited to different traditions of Hinduism, but also other traditions. For example, chapter 1.2 extols
Buddha
.
[6]
This contrasts with
Kurma Purana
which is disdainful of
Buddhism
without mentioning
Buddha
,
[23]
but similar to the praise of Buddha in other major Puranas such as chapter 49 of the
Agni Purana
, chapter 2.5.16 of the
Shiva Purana
, chapter 54 of the
Matsya Purana
and various minor Puranas.
[24]
Chapters 92 through 109 of
Purvabhaga
are notable for summarizing the 18 major Puranas, one entire chapter dedicated to each.
This has been an important benchmark in comparison studies, and as evidence that the Puranas were revised after the composition of
Naradiya Purana
, since the summary in these 18 chapters is significantly different from the extant manuscripts of the major Puranas.
[25]
Other topics covered in the verses of Uttarabhaga include flora and fauna, food, music, dance, dress, jewellery, weapons, and theories on war.
The
Naradiya Purana
also contains
Rukmangadacarita
, a legend of king named
Rukmangada
, whose belief in Vishnu is repeatedly tested by an enchantress in the form of an
apsara
named Mohini,
[28]
one that became subject of plays and dance arts in Indian culture.
After
Rukmangadacarita
, the text predominantly is a compilation of geographic
Mahatmyas
or travel guides for pilgrimage along river Ganges starting with
Haridwar
,
[4]
through
Banaras
(Kashi) towards
Bengal
, and nearby regions such as
Gaya
in Bihar and Nepal.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
James Lochtefeld (2009).
Gods Gateway: Identity and Meaning in a Hindu Pilgrimage Place
. Oxford University Press. pp. 30?34.
ISBN
978-0-19-974158-8
.
- ^
a
b
Parmeshwaranand 2001
, p. 253.
- ^
Hazra, R.C. (1962).
The Puranas
in S. Radhakrishnan ed.
The Cultural Heritage of India
, Vol.II, Calcutta: The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture,
ISBN
81-85843-03-1
, p.262
- ^
Pintchman, Tracy (8 April 2015).
Rise of the Goddess in the Hindu Tradition, The
. State University of New York Press. p. 159.
ISBN
978-1-4384-1618-2
.
Radha is said to be produced from half of Krishna's body and she manifest as Mulaprakriti Isvari, the Primordial Goddess Prakriti.
- ^
Parmeshwaranand 2001
, p. 254.
- ^
Parmeshwaranand 2001
, pp. 254?255.
- ^
Parmeshwaranand 2001
, pp. 204, 207, 278, 321.
- ^
Jagannathan, Maithily (2005).
South Indian Hindu Festivals and Traditions
. Abhinav Publications. p. 57.
ISBN
978-81-7017-415-8
.
Bibliography
[
edit
]