CULTURAL QA 07202407 Topic- Indian Epics. Base Quora QA –Compiled
Q1 What are some amazing short stories from Indian epics? KR Gopalkrishnan vomit through someone else’s mouth is ridiculous indeed. Even at this age he cannot write on his own his original Samudra manthanam!!!??? (Manthan also copied from the north?) Uvve Gopalakrishnan. Title from today. --------------------------- Now from Ramayana The oldest why it happened according to Vishwamitra? People wanted to be immortal so they wanted to get the elixir of Amirtham. Book I : Bala Kanda - The Youthful Majesties Sarga 45 in Prose The legend of churning Milk Ocean is narrated to Rama and Lakshmana when they reach and see a city named Vishaala. Vishvamitra narrates how Haalahala, the lethal poison as well as Amrita, the ambrosial elixir, emerged from the churning of Milk Ocean, and how Shiva contained the poison and how Vishnu helped the churning in His incarnation as Tortoise. On listening to Sage Vishvamitra's words, Rama went into a great astonishment along with Lakshmana and then spoke to Vishvamitra. "Oh, Brahman, highly amazing is this narration of yours about the extremely blessed alighting of Ganga and even that of Sagara's filling the ocean dug out by his sons... oh, enemy-inflamer, while thinking about legend in detail, entire night passed away as a moment for two of us... oh, Vishvamitra, while thinking about the auspicious narration, the whole night passed away to me along with Lakshmana..." Thus Rama is addressing Vishvamitra. Thereafter, in the next fresh dawn Raghava, the enemy-oppressor, spoke these words to Sage Vishvamitra, who by now performed his daily chores and an affluent one in asceticism. " 'Listened is the listenable excellent legend of Ganga and lapsed is the reverential night, [for it is filled with the light of glory of Ganga, thus it is reverential...] we now cross over the very same prominent, merited and tri-way-coursing River Ganga... on knowing that a venerable one like you has chanced here, this boat is fetched by those sages of august laurels, comfortably blanketing its deck with mats etc., so to speak..." Thus Rama spoke to Vishvamitra. On hearing the words of great-souled Raghava, Vishvamitra of Kusha dynasty, started to cross over the river along with assemblage of sages. On arriving at the northern bank of River Ganga, adored the assemblage of sages who ferried them up to here, then after a sojourn on the northern bank of Ganga, therefrom they have seen at the city, named Vishaala. Therefrom, that great Sage Vishvamitra started quickly along with Raghava to the city Vishaala, which is charming and comparable with the heaven, likewise. Then the highly intelligent Rama gesturing with folded palms [in supplication,] asked the great Sage Vishvamitra about that prominent city Vishaala. "Oh, great sage, which dynastic king is ruling from this city of Vishaala? I am interested to hear of it and indeed, I am highly inquisitive about it..." Thus Rama spoke to Vishvamitra. Then on hearing those words of Rama, that eminent Sage Vishvamitra started to narrate about the ancient legend of Vishaala. "Oh, Rama, I tell of the legend of Indra as I was told and listen to it as I tell... what really chanced in this country, oh, Raghava, that be listened in its quintessence... once in Krita era, oh, Rama, the sons of Lady Diti were extremely energetic ones in their brawniness, whereas the sons of her younger sister Lady Aditi were venerable, vigorous and highly righteous ones... Comment: Diti is the elder sister of Aditi and the first wife of Sage Kashyapa and her sons, originally called asura-s, whereas Aditi, the second wife of that sage gave birth to the progeny of sura-s gods. These two ladies are the daughters of Daksha Prajaapati. "Oh, tigerly-man, Rama, there was a thinking to those great-souls then, as to 'how we shall [thrive] deathless, ageless and wasteless...' Thus thought the sons of Diti and Aditi. For them who were thinking thus on that subject a thought occurred to those masterminds, 'on churning the Milky Ocean, therein we get its elixir, indeed... "Then on deciding to churn the Milky Ocean, they made Vasuki, the mighty King of Snakes, with thousand heads, as the churning rope and Mt. Mandara as stirrer and those who have unlimited energy started churning the Milky Ocean... "Then, after a thousand years from the heads of the serpent that is used as churning rope, namely the Thousand-headed serpent Vasuki, and when its fangs of Vasuki fanged the cliffs of Mt. Mandara, disgorged is a poisonous venom, which on melting the rocks of Mt. Mandara became the lethal and flaming haalahala... "Up-heaved is that fire-similar lethal poison haalahala,, and by it the whole universe is burnt down, together with gods, non-gods, and humans... Then the gods seeking shelter approached Rudra, the Cardinal God, Endower of Solace, and who husbands all the created animals, [inclusive of human-animals,] and they prayed 'save, save us...' This way when prayed by gods, the God of Gods and the Lord, Shiva appeared there immediately, and in the meanwhile, handling the disc and conch Vishnu also appeared there alone... "And spoke smilingly to Rudra, the Wielder of Trident, 'while gods churning the Milk Ocean, that which has emerged firstly... oh, Best God among gods, that is yours, for the reason of your being the Foremost God among gods and oh, Lord, staying here remotely, you are capable to oblige this poison, Haalahala, as a prime oblation... "Saying so Vishnu, the best one among gods disappeared there only... and Shiva on observing the scare of gods and also on listening the words of the Wielder of shaaranga bow, namely Vishnu, gulped that haalahala, the lethal poison, as if it is ambrosia and that God of Gods leavng those gods, left for His Abode, that God Hara, namely Shiva... "Then on the continued churning of gods and non-gods, oh, Rama, the joy of Raghu's dynasty, that Mt. Mandara, the loftiest mountain then caved in to the netherworld... Then the gods along with gandharva-s prayed to Madhusuudana, the other name of Vishnu, 'you alone are the recourse to all beings, specially to the dwellers in heavens... "Oh dextrous one, safeguard us, it will be apt of you elevate the mountain...' and Hrisheekesha, another name of Vishnu, on hearing thus from the prayers of all gods, adopting Himself into the form of a tortoise, Hari, namely Vishnu, was recumbent at the bottom of the Milky Ocean, on positioning Mt. Mandara on his back, viz., on tortoiseshell as a base, and that Cosmic-Soul, Keshava also reached out the peak of that mountain and held it uprightly with his hand... thus He that Supreme Person stayed amid gods churning the ocean... "Then after a thousand years a male personality and an epitome of Life Science, namely aayur veda... a highly righteous soul named Dhanvantari, with his arm-rest-stick and with his handy water-vessel, surfaced firstly, and also the Apsara-s with their remarkable elegance emerged later... "By the absolute churning of Milk Ocean's waters an elixir came out and from that elixir admirable females have come out, oh, Rama, the best one among men, thereby their genera became Apsara-s... oh, descendent of Kakutstha, those Apsara-s of amazing dazzle that emerged are in six hundred millions and innumerable are their maidservants, who emerged along with them and they are also of Apsara genera... All of them, the gods or demons, have not espoused them, and by not espousing they all are really reckoned as 'general' Apsara-females... Comment: In fact these Apsara-s are the nymphs who really did not bother to choose husbands either from gods or from demons and they wanted to be free and out of the institution of marriage. But later they alone have become breeding centres as in the case of Menaka-Vishvamitra et al. Because they have come out from apsu + rasa 'waters... elixir, 'those that emanated from the elixir of water....' they are called Apsara-s and etymologically this nomenclature 'seems more to be guided by the similarity of sound than anything else...' and 'we have a case of sound etymology par excellence [in Ramayana,] in sura, asura and the word asura is formed from the word asu with the addition of the suffix ra and means 'one full of ra spiritual life asu... and 'by curious process of semantic change came to means a demon...' Satya Vrat. "Oh, descendent of Raghu, then came up the heaven-sent Vaarunii, the presiding deity of hard liquors and also called as sura, the daughter of Varuna, the Rain-god, searching for her espousal... and oh, Rama, the sons of Diti have not espoused her, Vaaruni, the daughter of Rain-god, but oh brave one, the sons of Aditi have espoused that impeccable Vaaruni... Thereby the sons of Diti are asuraa-s and as such, the sons of Aditi are suraa-s and delighted and rejoiced are the gods on espousing Vaaruni... "Oh, Rama, the best among men, then emerged is the best horse called Ucchaishravaa... and then, a gem of a jewel, namely Kaustubha, and like that, amrita, the Supreme ambrosial elixir of gods...and oh, Rama, then there chanced a great ethnic havoc, caused by Ambrosia, for its possession, when the sons of Aditi have havocked the sons of Diti... and oh, brave Rama, all the asura-s and demons have arrived at a unity, and a ghastly war came to pass, which was perplexing to all the triad of universes viz., ethereal, real and surreal spheres... "When all are wading into annihilation then the ambidextrous Vishnu swiftly impounded Amrita, the Ambrosia, by assuming an illusory for of Mohini... Comment: Mohini literally means 'that which bewitches...' usually a feminine or neutral. Here Vishnu assumed a physique of such a voluptuous and bewitching seductress, marvellously limbed, and mantled in see-thru clothing, and thus maddened everybody around her. Then she started to serve Amrita/Ambrosia among the gods and demons on making them to sit on either side of her way. Even the age-old Brihaspati, the Jupiter, sitting in god's row, has come under her charm and started gazing her from top to toe, pruriently. When Brihaspati saw at the feet of that damsel, they appeared as male person's feet. He further looked at those two feet and beholding them as shrii caraNa, 'Reverential Divine Feet of Vishnu,' with which he covered the three spheres, Brihaspati's illusion is shattered and he venerated those feet, recognising this as Vishnu's Maya. "Whoever confronted that Eternal and Supreme Person, Vishnu, then he is pulverized by Vishnu, whose blaze is threefold, as manifest in the sun, fire and lightning, in that war... and in this horrendous war between the progeny of Diti, namely demons, and the progeny of Aditi, namely gods, the sons of Aditi being gods, have altogether massacred the demonic sons of Diti... "On eliminating the sons of Diti for they are demons, and on acquiring kingdom of heavens, that eliminator of enemy cities, namely Indra, ruled the worlds, that are inclusive of sages and caarana-s, happily..." Thus Vishvamitra continued his narration about Vishaala city and its emergence. he Churning of Milk Ocean Legend/puraaNa: Once, when Indra was riding his elephant Iravata, Sage Duurvasa came towards him and offered a garland, respecting Indra as the administrator of the universe. Indra decorated that garland on the head of his elephant and that elephant removed it and trampled. By this Duurvasa, who is an angry sage by himself, is angered and curses Indra to fall from the grace and all his luxurious paraphernalia be submerged in the ocean. Accordingly, Indra loses everything and becomes destitute, and he then approaches Vishnu. Vishnu reprimands Indra for ridiculing elderly sages like Duurvasa and then plans to churn the ocean to retrieve all the lost treasures. Thus, the legend and the churning are going on for ages. >From the kundalini / power of yoga point of view the churning of the ocean is continually going on in everyone's body. The body is the ocean and at its abyss, the triangle in the perineal or sacral plexus is the base of Mt. Mandara. The churning rod is the spinal cord in the rod like backbone and the churning strings are the ida, pingala, namely, the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. The churners are the air elements of vital forces on either side. This total system is held upright by Vishnu because He is naaraayaNa, nara + aayaNa 'one who conducts humans, say created beings, into being and leads them away, again into His own self...' When kundalini power is incited the first results are always negative like, haalaaha, 'the lethal poison...' and all all-ruinous ills befall on us. If this negativity is surrendered to someone who can handle it effortlessly, like Shiva, then the positivity results like Amrita/Ambrosia. Even if this elixir of life is readily available, there will be still better lures, lusts, and longings like Mohini and if enchanted by those instantaneous quirks, which are yet another kind of negativity, we will be lost completely, like the demons. Hence 'churn the correct way...' is the postulate of yoga. --------------------------------------------------------------K RAJARAM IRS 7724 8724 On Sun, 7 Jul 2024 at 08:28, 'gopala krishnan' via iyer123 < [email protected]> wrote: > *CULTURAL QA 07-2024-07* > > *Topic- Indian Epics. Base Quora QA –Compiled* > > *Q1 What are some amazing short stories from Indian epics?* > > A1 Sushma Aitha,9y > > ‘Samudra’ - Ocean and ‘Manthana’ – Churning. Samudra Manthan episode > occupies a very important place in our epics, Mahabharat, Ramayan and > Vishnu Puran. It is very popular being celebrated as ‘Kumbhmela’ every 12 > years. > > The story begins when King Indra, while on his Airavata came across sage > Durvasa who offered him with a garland. Indra accepted the garland and put > it on the trunk of Airavata. Airavata, irritated by its smell threw the > garland on the floor, thus enraging the sage, as the garland was gifted by > Lord Shiva. Sage Durvasa cursed Indra and all the deities to be divested by > their powers and strength. > > Indra and all the deities sought the help of Lord Vishnu, who advised them > to seek the help of demons to churn the ocean of milk for Amrit (elixir of > immortality), which would regain the powers of deities and make them > powerful again. > > As advised, deities approached demons and they agreed to do so for an > equal share of Amrit at the end of churning. Mount Mandara was used as a > churning stick and a five-headed serpent named Vasuki, was used as a > churning rope. Vasuki got wrapped around the Mount Mandara. The demons held > the head of the serpent while deities held the tail of the serpent while > churning the ocean. The demons and deities yanked the serpent back and > forth that caused rotating of the mountain in the ocean. At a point, Mount > Mandara started to sink in the ocean and was popped up again when Lord > Vishnu, in his Kurmavatara incarnation offered support to the giant > mountain. > > The process was said to last for a thousand years. Halahala (Poison) was > produced first from the ocean. The deities and demons were relieved of fear > after Lord Shiva came forward to accept it. He swallowed it while goddess > Parvathi stopped the poison in his throat allowing it not to pass all over > his body. The poison struck in his throat and so he was named as > ‘Neelakantha’ or ‘Vishakantha’. > > Fourteen gems (distributed equally among deities and demons), Lakshmi – > Goddess of wealth, Kaustubha - the most valuable jewel, Parijata - the > divine flowering tree, Varuni - goddess and creator of intoxicating > beverages, Chandra - the moon, Kalpavriksha - the wish-granting tree, > Airavata – Vehicle of King Indra, Apsaras – the celestial dancers of > Heaven, Uchhaishravas - the divine 7-headed horse, Sharanga - the bow of > Vishnu, Shankha - Vishnu's conch, Dhanvantari - the Heavenly Physician with > Amrita - the nectar of immortality were recovered during the churning. > > While the deities and demons were fighting for Amrit, a few drops of Amrit > spilled off at Prayag (Allahabad), Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik. This is the > reason behind Kumbh Mela, celebrated at these places every 12 years. > > Lord Vishnu disguised himself as a beautiful woman named Mohini to > distract demons, took Amrit and started to distribute among the deities. > The demons Rahu and Kethu took the form of deities and had Amrit. Surya and > Chandra noticed the switching of Rahu and Kethu and informed Mohini. Mohini > with her Sudarshana Chakra cut the heads of Rahu and Kethu before the Amrit > could pass from their throat into their body but their heads remained > immortal. > > *Q2 Why are only two Indian epics more popular than other > epics of India? Is it because they are the oldest Indian epics?* > > A2 Ratnakar Sadasyula, The epic that shows how a human being > must be like8y > > An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating > the feats of a deity or demigod (heroic epic) or other legendary or > traditional hero. -Epic as per Wiktionary. > > Ramayan and Mahabharat are not necessarily the oldest epics in India, I > believe that honor goes to the Battle of Ten Kings in Rigveda. And there > have been epics in other languages too, notably the The Five Great Epics of > Tamil Literature. > > But what makes Ramayan and Mahabharat the most popular of the lot, is the > universality of their themes, and pan Indian appeal. Both of them are > morality tales, the Ramayana tells us how to be an ideal human being, while > the Mahabharat is about doing the right thing under circumstances. And both > of them narrate stories that encompass a wide range of emotions- jealousy, > love, heartbreak, passion, treachery. Both the epics cover the concepts of > Dharma, Karma in a manner understandable by the layman. > > Also both of them were written in Sanskrit, which was the common language > in ancient India, and that enabled them to reach out to a larger section of > the populace. This is the reason why both these epics have been translated > into every Indian language. Ranging from the works of Kamban, Pothana, > Tulsidas, to the modern day adaptations, both these epics have been adapted > again and again. One more fact, is that both these epics have been open to > interpretation, and that has often accounted for the multiple versions, > each differing from the other. > > Both the epics have a pan Indian presence, almost every place in India, be > it in North, South, East or West professes some connect with them. Ram's > exile started from Ayodhya and went all the way till Southern tip of India. > While the Pandavas during their exile period, traversed all over India. > When you speak of Arjun, Ram, Laxman, Bheem, Krishna these characters are > known in all parts of India. Sita, Draupadi are revered in every part of > India, while the anti heroes like Ravan, Duryodhan, Karna are known in any > corner of India you go. In fact I would say, both these epics have played a > role in connecting India, with all it's diversities. Hanuman is as much > worshiped in the North as he is in the South or West. > > One more reason is both these epics have stories within themselves. > Mahabharat apart from the main story, also contains the stories about > Yayati, Uloopi, Chitrangada, Kacha-Devyani, Nala-Damayanti withn it. While > Ramayan has the stories about Mahiravana, Shravana Kumar, Bhagiratha. > > I really don't know any other epics that have such a vast scope, where not > just the main characters, but even the stories within a story are equally > popular. The stories of Kacha-Devyani, Nala-Damayanti, Bhagiratha are as > well known as those about Ram or Krishna. > > The Ramayana and Mahabharat are not just mere epics, both of them in a way > have framed out the concepts of Dharma and Karma, using characters and a > narrative. Both of them, cover a wide range of topics from philosophy to > administration to societal conduct to warfare. And that is the reason, why > those two epics remain an integral part of Indian ethos. > > *Q3 What is the authenticity of our Indian epics?* > > A3 Avinash Kumar Singh, Works at Madhya Pradesh Power > Generating Company ,Jabalpur6y > > If one really wish to verify, there may millions of proof what has been > narrated in ancient holy text. I wish to highlight few of them here. > > It is a well-known fact that Bhishma (from Mahabharata) has chosen the > auspicious day of Uttarayana to leave for his heavenly abode. As per the > boon granted to Devavrata (young Bheeshma), he could choose his time of > death and he chose this day, when the sun starts on its course towards the > northern hemisphere. The death anniversary of Bhishma Pitamah is observed > during Magha Shukla Ashtami which falls during start of February (4th Feb > 2017) or end of January (25th Jan 2018) but Uttarayana is Makar Sankranti > which falls near to 14-15 January. So why this difference? In fact, as of > now the Sun becomes Uttarayana not on ‘Makar Sankranti’ but around 22 > December. So why we celebrate Uttarayana on 14 Jan, because this date was > calculated around 1500 years back (Source : > http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/standpoint-why-do-we-celebrate-makar-sankranti-on-january-14-every-year-1968036). > By some back calculation, we can conclude that around 5100 years back, > Magha Shukla Ashtami was the date of Uttarayana. The age of ‘Kaliyuga’ is > around 5100 years. The Dwapar Yuga was end after few weeks/months of the > ‘Mahabharat War’, so we can easily conclude the truth. It has been further > verified by calculation of planetary positions mentioned in the text. > > In continuation to above, based on planetary position, the birth of ‘Lord > Krishna’ matches the above time frame. > > Presence of ‘Lord Hanuman’, and Which characters are featured both in the > Ramayana and the Mahabharata? Except standard Gods, what are some other > characters involved in both epics? > > The distance of Sun from the earth has been roughly indicated in ‘Shri > Hanuman Chalisa’ which was written during 16th century. (Source: Hanuman > Chalisa - Wikipedia) > > The ‘Ram Setu’ from Ramayan. (Source : Adam's Bridge - Wikipedia) The > list is endless so the faith is. > > *Q4 When was the Kaliyuga commenced according to the Indian > epics?* > > Nagaraju Gajula, Director at Telugu Film Industry (Tollywood)6y > > Beginning of Kali yuga: > > According to the Surya Siddhanta, Kali Yuga began at midnight (00:00) on > 18 February 3102 BCE. This is also considered the date on which Lord > Krishna left the earth to return to his heavenly abode. > > According to KD Abhyankar, the starting point of Kaliyuga is an extremely > rare planetary alignment, which is depicted in the Mohenjo-Daro seals. > Going by this alignment the year 3102 BCE is slightly off. The actual date > for this alignment is February 7 of 3104 BCE. > > There is also sufficient proof to believe that Vrdhha Garga knew of > precession at least by 500 BCE. Garga had calculated the rate of precession > to within 30% of what the modern scholars estimate. > > Birth of Kali purusha: > > The Mahabharata War and the decimation of Kauravas thus happened at the > Yuga-Sandhi, the point of transition from one yuga to another. > > The scriptures mention Sage Narada to have momentarily intercepted the > demon Kali on his way to the Earth when Duryodhana was about to be born in > order to make him an embodiment of 'arishadvargas' and adharma in > preparation of the era of decay in values and the consequent havoc. > > It indicates that Kali demon was born at the end of Dwapara yuga, during > transition period. Kali demon is the reigning lord of Kali Yuga and is > invisible (considered by many to be qualitative). He influences/hypnotizes > people to commit sins, and encourage lust, greed, anger and arrogance. > > End of Kali yuga: > > The Kali restricts his stay to four places at the beginning of Kali yuga: > brothels, liquor shops, slaughterhouses and gambling casinos. As per > Kalagnanam, when 4808 years of Kaliyuga get completed, god of Dharma would > be limiting his places of stay to sacred places on earth only. Sins and > sinners would rise like anything and would lead to many absurd disputes. > Considering the Kali yuga started in 3102 BCE, the 4808 years complete by > year 1706 AD. The British rule, world wars, partition of India etc > happened after this. > > Lord Kalki is said to be born after 5000 years of Kali yuga, which is > after the year 1898 AD. > > According to the prophecies, Lord Kalki was born in the year 1965 AD, and > will appear in December, 2024 AD which will be indicated by the presence > of a new star/comet. The Kali yuga will end after many calamities, and Lord > Kalki will rule the world from the year 2072 AD. This can be considered > the end of Kali yuga. > > These dates are supported by the Global warming, depleting natural > resources and exponential growth of population. We can’t expect the world > to sustain Thousands of years while destructing the nature aggressively. > > *Q5 What do you find interesting in Indian Epics?* > > A5-Ay,Lives in Secunderabad, Telangana, IndiaUpdated 1y > > I am glad you asked. Indian epics are not just stories they are the > essence of life. When you read any epic you just get to know about the > heros or what they do but when you read an Indian epic you not only read > about the person but you also learn a lot about life. I find Indian epics > fascinating. > > In an Indian epic every single thing that has a role in it, has there own > story. The Indian epics let you dive into there depths as deep as you want > to go. No matter how deep you go you can never tell that you know > everything about them. > > The greatest Indian epics has personally taught me a lot. It has shaped me > the way I am. They teach you to be a part of the big picture. They teach > you the five essential elements for having a balance in life. Knowledge, > love, justice, faith and dedication are those elements that bring a sense > of mercy and affection towards all the creations of the almighty. They > teach you to follow the path to finding inner peace. In short they are your > overall instructors irrespective of what you need answers for they know the > path to your needs. I hope I helped. > > I also hope that you enjoyed reading the answer as much as I did > presenting it.Keep exploring the depths of the Hinduism. > > Gopalakrishnan 7-7-2024 > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "iyer123" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/651505049.1509514.1720358779194%40mail.yahoo.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/651505049.1509514.1720358779194%40mail.yahoo.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CAL5XZooZvUiMK49LV2nkS-M9_6VBJV80J3JydimC%2BUoj-sLx0Q%40mail.gmail.com.
