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b. The Tantras, Parvati, Sati/Parvati, Siva

Mahanirvana Tantra

The Tantras are texts that deal with an assortment of ritual methods used to control and manipulate the cosmic powers, belonging to the literature of the Saktas. The Tantras deal with a wide variety of subject matter such as yoga practice, dharma behavior, the prescribed stages of life, the realms of heaven and hell, and importantly, worship ritual. The Mahanirvana Tantra was composed in the 18th century and is the most well-known Tantra in the west (Payne 53-55). It is regarded as the revelation of Siva, the destroyer of the world and god of the Yogis, to his wife, Parvati, at the summit of Mount Kailasa.

It was on Mount Kailasa that Parvati found her husband, Siva, described sitting silently on the mountain surrounded by a beautiful landscape. The text begins with Parvati asking Siva a question relating to the liberation of beings. Siva’s answer to Parvati is then answered in the chapters of the Mahanirvana Tantra. Siva begins the first four chapters by relating the importance of worshiping Brahman, the ultimate reality. Siva explains when good is done to the universe, He will be pleased, as He is the soul of the universe and it depends on Him (Avalon 3). Siva tells her that by worship of Brahman, there will be no need for any other religious observances (Avalon 4). Due to Siva’s strong affection to Parvati, he tells her more about the Supreme Brahman, and the secrets of worshiping Him by prescribed mantra to attain siddi, the enlightenment and understanding possessed by a siddah, or accomplished one. Siva states that liberation “does not come from the recitation of hymns, sacrifice or a hundred fasts… man is liberated by the knowledge that he is Brahman himself” (Payne 10). Pleased by what Siva has bestowed on her, Parvati asks another question concerning worship of Supreme Prakrti in union with Supreme Brahman. This delights Siva and he spoke unto Parvati how everything in the universe owes its origins and manifestations to the Supreme Prakrti and Supreme Brahman in motion with each other (Avalon 5). He relates the Supreme Prakrti to the Deva herself, informing her that she is everything in all forms and manifestations, and everything is her. Siva explains that success is solely achieved by Kaulika worship, the most supreme doctrine, and the merit achieved by honoring a Kaulika, is enough to protect one from all the harm the Kali Age has to offer (Avalon 5).

In the fifth chapter of the Mahanirvana Tantra, Siva speaks to his wife of the formation of mantras, composed of single letters, syllables, a word, or an entire phrase to make a sacred sound (Feuerstein 191) and the preparatory acts to be done each day. Mantras are creative forces that act upon one’s consciousness when empowered and communicated to a disciple (Feuerstein 191). Siva explains to Parvati that there are countless mantras for worship, presented in the various Tantras but he only states twelve of them, because these twelve are for the pleasure and benefit of all humanity (Avalon 6). After presenting the twelve mantras to Parvati, he moves on to explain worship of Sakti by the five elements, wine, meat, fish, grain, and union of man and woman to attain the position of vira (Bhattacharyya 121). After which he describes placing of the jar, which is called a kalasa, because Visva-karma, son of Brahma, composed it from various parts of each of the Devatas (Avalon 6). He explains the measurements in fingers, and that it is to be made of gold, silver, copper, metal, mud, stone or glass free from any imperfections and on the left side a hexagon enclosed by a circle, enclosed by a square. In detail Siva speaks of the proper worshipping and mantras to be recited important in all power of creation, preservation and destruction of the universe.

The sixth chapter of the text Parvati asks Siva about the Pancha-tattvas and the appropriate worship of the Deva. The Pancha-tattvas, or five elements, are given in sacrifice to propitiate the Deva (Avalon 7). Siva declares that there are three kinds of wine, made from molasses, rice, or the juices and flowers of plants, that are first tattva and no matter how it has been made, is equal in the worship of the Deva. The second tattva is meat from three kinds of animals, those of the earth, sky and water. Siva explains that to please the Deva it does not matter where or by whom the animal was killed, so long as the animal being decapitated is male and not female (Avalon 7). The third tattva is three kinds of fish, ranked in superiority and quality due to their bones. Fish with the most amount of bones, considered inferior, must be well fried before being offered to the Devi. Parched food is the fourth tattva and contains three categories. Superior food is white rice, barley and wheat all fried in butter, the middle being a fried paddy, and the most inferior food consists of any fried grain that is not contained in the superior category (Avalon 7). After explaining the first four features, Siva looks unto Parvati and says “O Great Devi! when the weakness of the Kali Age becomes great, one’s own Shakti or wife should alone be known as the fifth tattva”(Avalon 7). Thus, making sexual union between man and women the fifth and final Pancha-tattva. Before revealing the mantras to Parvati, Siva warns her that man who offers these sacrifices to the Devas without proper purification will not please the gods and one will go to hell for it (Avalon 7).

The seventh chapter of the Mahanirvana Tantra Siva addresses the Goddess Kali as the supreme yogini, for at the end of time she devours Siva, the devourer of time himself (Feuerstein 35). Kali, who’s name relates to the words “time” and “death”, is the dark goddess and the Destroyer. Siva recites a hymn to Parvati, containing the Hundred Names of Kali, all beginning with the letter Ka, entitled Adya-Kali-Svarupa. By worshiping Kali and repeating her Hundred Names, one will enjoy a happy life and becomes suffused with the presence of the Devi (Avalon 8). Only when one is in the presence of the Goddess, does he reach the hearts of women, attain his desires, conquer his enemies, master his caste and enjoy good fortune. For once she suffuses him “there is ever victory, and defeat never” (Avalon 8).

Parvati asks Siva in the eighth chapter to hear of the castes, the prescribed stages in life, and the mode they should be observed in, having just heard the different dharmas and union with the Supreme. Siva tells her in the Kali age, there are five castes, Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra and Samanya (Avalon 9) and each of these castes has two stages of life. He begins first by describing the householder stage, with devotion to Brahman. He tells Parvati the importance of pleasing one’s mother and father, raising obedient and educated children, being kind to neighbors and cherishing his wife, so she will be ever devoted to him. Siva after explains the exclusive mantras to be performed only by the twice-born, and the other mantras to be used for the lower castes. Siva relates to Parvati the duties of the king, that he is to watch his subjects and protect his people and describes the manner in which he should present himself. The king is to be the courage of his warriors, highly knowledgeable, discriminatory, and honorable, but never arrogant, when awarding both reward and punishment (Avalon 8). Agriculture and trade, are only appropriate for the vaishya class and all acts of negligence, laziness, untruthfulness and deceit should be avoided. Finally, servants should be clean, skillful, alert and careful, they should treat their master with the uttermost respect as the servant should be aspiring for happiness in this world and their next incarnation.

In the ninth chapter of the Mahanirvana Tantra Siva explains the ten kinds of Purificatory Rites, or sangskaras to Parvati. He tells her that each caste has their own specific rites that need to be performed to purify the body. These ten ceremonies deal with the events of conception, pregnancy, birth of the child, naming of the child, the child’s first view of the sun, its first eating of rice, tonsure, investiture and marriage (Avalon 10). Following the introduction of the events for the ceremonies, Siva recites all the sangskara mantras to Parvati. After listening to the mantras, she inquires about the rites dealing with funerals, Vriddhi Shraddha and Purnabhisheka, thus beginning the tenth chapter of the Mahanirvana Tantra. Siva informs Parvati of the importance of offering Pinda, a cooked ball of flour, butter and seeds, along with repeating the mantras to please the ancestors. The Vriddhi Shraddha is the ritual performed during special occasions to get the blessings of the ancestors, and the Purnabhisheka is the rite of initiation (Avalon 11). Siva presents the funeral rites and mantras to Parvati, explaining the period of uncleanliness dependent on the caste system. Brahmanas are unclean for ten days, Kshatriyas twelve days, Vaishyas a fortnight, Shudras and Samanyas are unclean for an entire month (Avalon 11).

In chapter eleven Siva introduces the expiatory rites, and explains to Parvati the types of sins and their accompanying punishments. Siva tells her that there are two types of sin, both which lead to pain, sorrow and disease. The first sin is one that leads to injury of one’s own self, and the second being one which leads to injury of others. Siva informs Parvati that men who sin and who are not purified by the form of punishment or expiation will be doomed to hell, and will not be incarnated into the next world (Avalon 12). In this chapter of the Mahanirvana Tantra Siva recites no mantras to Parvati, alternately he explains each sinful act one could perform and the accompanying punishment for each caste. The twelfth chapter entitled “An Account of the Eternal Immutable Dharmma” is the outline for the regulations which deal with property, inheritance and wealth. Siva explains to Parvati of the inheritance hierarchy, and how it is to be distributed among the living members of the family or the spouse’s family. Siva tells her of the rules in agriculture, mercantile transactions and other monetary dealings so that they may be deemed Dharmmic (Avalon 13). At the close of the chapter, to enforce the greater purpose of the accounts of Dharmma, Siva claims “The Lord protects this universe… Therefore should one act for the good of the world” (Avalon 13).

In the final two chapters of the Mahanirvana Tantra Siva reveals the installation and worship of the Devata and Shiva-linga. Siva tells Parvati that all beings have qualities of the goddess Kali, and to worship Kali one must form images in adherence to her. Siva says that there are two types of men, those who act with a view to the fruits of action, and those who act without a view to the fruits of action and the latter will attain final liberation (Avalon 14). He recites the mantras of this chapter to Parvati, dealing with the worship and meditation of Vastu and Dhyana. Siva concludes the thirteenth chapter by telling Parvati that by worshipping the gods with immense devotion and act, without a view of reward, will be released from rebirth (Avalon 14). In the final chapter, Parvati asks Siva to tell her of the distinct features of the four classes of Avadhutas. There are two kinds of Shaivavadhutas and Brahmavadhutas, either purna or apruna, meaning perfect and imperfect, respectively. The first three classes practice yoga, have enjoyment, and are liberated. The fourth chaste is known as the hangsa, and does not touch metal nor women (Avalon 15).

The Mahanirvana Tantra is described as noble work, probably produced in the latter half of the eighteenth century in Bengal, and belongs to the left hand school (Payne 55). Until the twentieth century, the Tantras had not been seriously studied or translated in the west, and there was little access to the religious materials in them. The Mahanirvana Tantra was translated to English by Arthur Avalon in 1913, and has since gained much more recognition in western cultures. The Mahanirvana Tantra is known as the Great Tantra because it contains all the Dharmmas, while the others deal with one subject only. The Lord Siva tells Parvati in the conclusion of the Tantra that man who knows the book, knows also the three worlds of past, present and future, and by worship of the Tantra will be liberated (Avalon 15). “What further shall I tell Thee of the greatness of the Mahanirvana Tantra? Through the knowledge of it one shall attain to Brahma-nirvana” (Avalon 15).

Bibliography

Avalon, Arthur (2010) Mahanirvana Tantra of The Great Liberation. Whitefish: Kessinger Publishing.

Avalon, Arthur (1918) Shakti and Shakta. London: Luzac & Company.

Bhattacharyya, N.N. (1987) History of the Tantric Religion. New Delhi: Manohar Publications.

Feuerstein, Georg (1998) Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy. Boston: Shambhala Publications.

Payne, Ernest A. (1997) The Saktas: An Introductory and Comparative Study. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Woodroffe, John (1980) Introduction to Tantra Sastra. Madras: Ganesh & Company.

Related Readings

Avalon, Arthur (2010) Mahanirvana Tantra of The Great Liberation. Whitefish: Kessinger Publishing.

Hugh B. Urban (2001) “The Path of Power: Impurity, Kingship, and Sacrifice in Assamese Tantra.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion. Vol. 69, No. 4 pp. 777-816. Oxford: Oxford University Press

Pechilis, Karen (2016) “Bhakti and Tantra intertwined: the explorations of the Tamil Poetess Karaikkal Ammaiyar.” International Journal of Dharma Studies 4: 2. doi:10.1186/s40613-016-0024-x

Related Research Topics

  • The Saktas
  • Hindu God Siva
  • Hindu Goddess Parvati
  • The Tantras

Related Websites

www.hinduwebsite.com

http://hinduonline.co

http://yoniversum.nl

This article was written by: Emily Sim (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for this content

b. The Mahabharata, Major Characters of the Mahabharata

Duryodhana

The rivalry between cousins, the Pandavas and the Kauravas, is depicted in one of the longest documented Hindu epics, the Mahabharata. The author, “the sage Vyasa intended it to be a treatise on life itself, including religion and ethics (dharma sastra), polity and government (artha sastra), philosophy and the pursuit of salvation (moksa sastra)” (Narasimhan XIX). Duryodhana, being the eldest son of king Dhrtarastra and wife Gandhari and thus the eldest of the Kauravas, was regarded with great importance and plays a key role in the events that occurred in the Mahabharata. It is said that during Duryodhana’s time of birth bad ominous noises were heard from crows and beasts of prey. Seeing this Dhrtarastra’s brother Vidura and the present Brahmanas warned the king of his first born to be the exterminator of his race, hence needing to be abandoned. The strong emotions and love for his son forced the king not to adhere to the given advice (Narasimhan 19).

Caught of in the act of jealousy and hatred, Duryodhana hatched a plan of assassinating the Pandavas. Hastinapura’s king Dhrtarastra had convinced the Pandavas to visit the city of Varanavata for the festival of Pasupati (a festival for Siva). That’s when Duryodhana, along with close friend, Karna, and uncle, Sakuni, plotted to create a flammable palace in which the Pandavas would reside. All the arrangements were made and the Pandavas had reached the palace (Narasimhan 28). However, Pandavas brothers Yudhisthira and Bhima had been suspicious from the very beginning, thus not taking them long to figure out the true outcome of their trip. The Pandavas contacted their uncle, Vidura, who sent a close friend that would dig an underground tunnel for the Pandavas and their mother Kunti to use as an escape route during the fire. Duryodhana and his companions believed the Pandavas to be dead (Narasimhan 29). After some time, the Pandavas reencounter Duryodhana at Draupadi’s svayamvara where Arjuna won her as his wife.

Following a series of events in which the Pandavas were given half of the Kingdom, Duryodhana is invited to go to Indraprastha to attend Yudhisthira’s Rajasuya Yajna (an inauguration sacrifice performed by the king to become the emperor of the world). Duryodhana became mesmerized by the palace and had a hard time recognizing the Maya present. A representation of this is when Duryodhana lifted up his clothes to prevent them from getting wet while mistaking land for water and falling in puddles while believing that he was walking on land (Narasimhan 47). Draupadi, laughing and ridiculing him after the series of embarrassing moments, deeply hurt his ego (Mohan 167). “Symbolically when intellect begins to laugh at the failures of a wicked mid, the negative forces get angry. The evil forces never like to be openly observed and ridiculed. So they launch an all out offensive to get the intellect demanded” (Mohan 167).

Duryodhana’s self pride and ego did not let him live these incidents down. The embarrassment made him want to seize everything that Yudhisthira owned, including his property, kingdom, wealth, and pride. Duryodhana let his cunning uncle, Sakuni, create a master plan that would help him fulfill his wishes and take revenge on the Pandavas. Duryodhana and his companions, which included his younger brother Duhsasana, Sakuni, and Karna, planned to invite Yudhisthira to Hastinapura for a “friendly” game of dice, while being well aware of his natural inclination for gambling. “By cleverly suggesting that it is only a harmless pastime of the royalty, a game for the brave and finally prodding his vanity, Sakuni was able to make Yudhisthira agree to play the game. Consequently Yudhisthira loses everything, including his freedom to him self, his siblings, and worst of all, Draupadi also” (Mohan 172).

Soon after Duryodhana orders Duhsasana to bring Draupadi to the great hall. Duhsanana’s efforts of disrobing Draupadi in the middle of the hall were to vain because she prayed to Lord Krsna by repeatedly chanting the word/name Govinda. Individuals other than Duryodhana, Sakuni, Karna and the Kauravas in the great hall felt extreme remorse and pitied Draupadi (Narasimhan 53). Duryodhana invited Draupadi to sit on his lap by removing the cloth of his thigh. Responding to that Draupadi gave the whole Kuru clan a terrible oath, which terrified the kings present to such an extent that they had to offer the Pandavas their kingdom back. Sakuni’s sharp mind intrigued Yudhisthira into playing another game of dice that would direct the Pandavas to a 13-year exile into the forest. During this time period Duryodhana would be in charge of the kingdom and handling the responsibility of hunting the Pandavas in the 13th year (Mohan 172).

After the vain efforts of finding the Pandavas in their 13th year of exile Duryodhana refused to give them their half kingdom according to their deal. This ultimately destroyed any last chances of settlement and amendment. At this stage, war was inevitable (Duckworth 90). The following task for both groups was to retrieve as many allies as possible, for this both Duryodhana and Arjuna rushed to meet Krsna. Duryodhana reached before Arjuna and sat behind Krsna as he was sleeping. Arjuna, walking in later sat at Krsna’s feet. Waking up Krsna laid eyes on Arjuna first thus giving him the first choice on whether he would like to attain “his army of ten million gopas, each of whom is capable of slaying [him]” (Narasimhan 91). The other alternative was to choose Krsna himself, unarmed. “Arjuna unhesitatingly chose Krsna, who was not to fight the battle. And Duryodhana for his part choose the whole of that army” (Narasimhan 92).

During the war great warriors fell on either side. A time came when the Pandavas had to kill Duryodhana in order to win the war. Duryodhana seeing the empty battlefield filled decided to flee to a near by lake and use his power of wizardry to hide him self from the Pandavas. The Pandavas not being able to locate Duryodhana them selves sent out spies and quickly learned of his where about. Yudhisthira ultimately gave him an option to which he could still win the battle. All he would have to do is defeat one of the Pandavas brothers in a one on one battle with a weapon of his choice. Duryodhana chose to use the mace as his weapon and Bhima as his opponent (Narasimhan 171-172). “The duel then began. Duryodhana and Bhima fought like two bulls attacking each other with their horns. The clash of their maces produces loud peals like those of thunderbolts” (Narasimhan 172). The close battle worried Arjuna, he discussed the probability of Bhima winning with Krsna who stated that Bhima would not be able to win by battling fairly as Duryodhana is much more skilled than he is. Arjuna than striking his left signaled Bhima to hit Duryodhana below the belt (Narasimhan 172-173). “The mace, hurled by Bhima, broke the thighs of Duryodhana, and he fell down, so that the earth resounded” (Narasimhan 173). Balarama, Krsna’s elder brother, seeing the unfair attack approached the warriors and acknowledged Bhima as an unfair fighter and stated that the righteous Duryodhana will receive eternal blessedness (Narasimhan 173).

Later that night when the Pandavas were at peace and slept in their camps expecting no attacks form the opposition Asvatthaman promised Duryodhana to take revenge from the Pandavas by killing all of their remaining children. Duryodhana appointed Asvatthaman as the general for the remaining Kauravas army. Asvatthaman along with his companion slaughtered them that very night. Only one charioteer managed to escape and was able to report the incident to the Pandavas (Mehendale 3). Duryodhana was able to die with contentment; while the Pandavas felt like they had lost the war even thought they had won it (Mehendale 3).

This article was written by: Raina Sharma (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for its content.

References and related articles:

Mohan, S.Ram (2005) “Delineation of Evil in the “Mahabharata” and ‘the Gang of

Four'” Indian Literature 49, no. 1 (225): 162-72. 

MEHENDALE, M.A. (2000) “MESSAGE OF THE MAHĀBHĀRATA.” Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute 60/61: 3-13. Accessed March 28th, 2017

Narasimhan, C.V., and de Bary William Theodore. (1998) The Mahabharata: an English version based on selected verses. New York: Columbia University Press.

Duckworth, George E. (1961) “Turnus and Duryodhana.” Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 92 : 81-127. doi:10.2307/283804. Accessed Mrch 28th, 2017.

Mohanty, Prafulla Kumar. (2005) “The “Mahabharata”: A Reading in Political Structuring.” Indian Literature 49, no. 1 (225): 146-51. 

This article was written by Raina Sharma (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for its content.

a. Puja, f. Worship Rituals and Festivals, Mahadevi Durga

The Durga Puja

Durga Puja is an annual festival that celebrates the Great Goddess, better known as Durga. Although the true origin of the worship of Durga is still unknown, today’s form of the Durga Puja festival can be dated back to the 16th century, during the Mughal era (Banerjee 31). During this time, the mythical figure of Rama and his worship of Durga in the Ramayana were brought to the center of attention. The Ramayana says that Rama wanted to destroy the evil demon, Ravana, but needed aid because he was not strong enough to kill the demon on his own. By worshipping Durga, she provided him with the strength he needed to win against Ravana (Ghosha 14). This epic brought a large amount of influence to Raja Udaynarayan and he held the first Durga Puja to show his strength against the Mughals. Although many historians believe that he was not successful against the Mughals, the festival began to spread and quickly became one of the most important festivals (Banerjee 31-32). Many believe that the reason this epic had such a great influence was due to the resistance many kingdoms, on the Indian sub-continent, had against Mughal rule (Rodrigues 19). This epic also changed the time when the festival was to be held. It is said that Rama worshipped the Great Goddess during the autumn instead of the spring months, done by King Suratha (Banerjee 2). Therefore Raja Udaynarayan held the festival in autumn in the16th century causing the festival to be held in the autumn month of Asvina, during the nine-day Navaratri festival, today.

Puja, a form of devotional worship, is normally only performed for one or two days; the Durga Puja spans over a four-five day period (Banerjee 18). During this period, many complex rituals are held in the worship of Durga. The Great Goddess is not a particular goddess but is a single supreme form of divine femininity. This causes the Great Goddess to have many names; for example the most popular names used are Devi, Ma, or Sakti (Rodrigues 17). Therefore, all goddesses are worshipped during this time and every temple that houses a goddess is lively and closely attended too. Expensive home pujas are also put within each home for personal worship. Clay images (murti) and temporary shrines (pandals) are even more closely attended to and observed at this time because they are the focal points for worship (Rodrigues 10). Many pujas, forms of worship, are needed each day during this festival for ritual worship. Each day has a different assortment or food, cloth and puja items, such as flowers, iron, shells, or bark. These items are needed each day to invoke the Great Goddess her for aid among the people and the community.

This time is also known as an important to restore old items and relationships; it is an important time built on caring for others, sharing when one is in need, and keeping a strong bond with family members (Banerjee 61). Many married daughters are able to come home to their parents and spend time with their families; most women live with their husband’s family, once they are married, due to Hindu tradition (Rodrigues 28). Much time is spent worshipping the Great Goddess hoping to invoke her upon the things that not only a single person needs but also the things others and the community is in need of. One of the most important figures during these rituals is the purohita, the central role to the entirety of the pujas (Rodrigues 29). The purohita prepares and purifies water (jala suddhi), flowers (puspa suddhi), his seat (asana suddhi), and the elements (bhuta suddhi) as his preliminary duties in preparing for the rituals to come (Rodrigues 38). The purohita uses this purification ritual to create a link with the divine nature and enables the Great Goddess to manifest in the purohita; he then transfers her into different abodes (Rodrigues 277). This creates a strong bond between the Great Goddess and the people observing and worshipping her.

Another sacred ritual is that of an animal sacrifice in order to keep cosmic stability. This ritual is used as a re-enactment of the battle between Durga and Mahisa in which the cosmos was regulated by Durga once she slayed the beast (Kinsley 112). In today’s Durga Puja, blood sacrifice is disappearing and many communities are substituting fruits, such as melons, for animals. Even though melons are used, Hindus go to great lengths to change the melons, such as put vermilion paste and effigy on them, to ensure it represents a blood sacrifice. Blood sacrifice is also representative of the most important food offering to the Great Goddess. Even though true blood is not always spilt, it is meant to symbolically represent the beheading of Mahisa (Rodrigues 278).

As Durga Puja spans over four to five days during the Navaratri festival, it adds two very different central roles to the Great Goddess and why she is being worshipped at this time. This most popular depiction of Durga is that of a strong warrior, wielding many weapons and is victorious over evil. One of the most popular legends that this depiction arises from is of Durga battling the powerful buffalo-headed demon, Mahisa, to regulate the cosmos, which she comes out victorious by killing him. This depiction causes many people to associate the worship of Durga with military success and victory of good over evil. Military success is also attributed to the month of Asvina itself because it occurs at the end of the rainy season, in which the season of warfare begins. During this season of warfare, the worship of weapons, ayudha-puja, and the worship as Aparajita are conducted. The ayudha-puja takes place in the temples of Devi and is done by soldiers and military rulers, as it marks the beginning of military campaigns. Durga is also worshipped as Aparajita, she who is invincible, to invoke the power of Durga that cannot be conquered or controlled to ensure military success among the people (Rodrigues 290). Durga in all forms in representative of formidable power and how it is to be wielded; to battle adversity and conquer what is in the way of ones path to succession (Rodrigues 289).

Durga is symbolically represented in many different forms; the most important of these forms are the jar (ghata), the cluster of nine plants (navapatrika), the clay image, and the virgin girl (kumari). The jar (ghata) is the most recognizable of these forms and Devi’s embodiment in the jar resembles a pregnant woman. The jar is composed of two natural elements, the earth and the divine waters; these elements have been associated with the Great Goddess for a long period of time. This natural element within the jar and the representation of the pregnant woman symbolize Durga as the form of the mother of creation and she is giving birth to the cosmos. Other elements, such as flowers, earth, fruit, water, and fragrant paste, are placed around or on this form of Durga to be served as the beauty of nature that comes from creation (Rodrigues 262). Next, the cluster of nine plants (navapatrika) and a wood-apple tree branch, to serve as the breasts of the Great Goddess, are placed with the jar for worship within the house. Where as the wood-apple branch symbolizes Durga herself, the cluster of plants represents the different aspect of the Great Goddess and the feminine identity. These aspects incorporate different goddesses and their symbols as aspects of the Great Goddess such as the Nim tree and the Tulasi plant that serve as an embodiment of goddesses (Rodrigues 264).

The most striking and influential of these forms is the clay image. The clay image is the Great Goddess as a young and beautiful goddess. She has a strong and beautiful body that showcases the femininity of her character but she also wields the weapons of the male gods with her ten arms to exemplify her unconquerable power. In the clay image is also the human form of Mahisa as Durga impales him with her spear (Rodrigues 265). A large amount of blood is also portrayed in this image and shows the importance the blood sacrifice and to re-enact the spilling of the evil blood. Ganesa and Kartikeya are also presented within the clay image as aspects of the Great Goddess. Ganesa is worshipped as the Lord of Obstacles and Kartikeya is worshipped as the divine warrior. These aspects put together are representative of Durga as a strong warrior that is a great obstacle that stands in the way of her opponents (Rodrigues 266). This clay image in very complex and represents the whole of the different aspects of Durga. The last form of Durga is served as a virgin girl. Any pure, young girl can serve as this form of Durga and is used as a vehicle for the manifestation of Durga in human form. The use of a virgin girl is also linked to the blood sacrifice and gathering of women. During this time, women of all ages, including married daughters, come together to celebrate this festival. This showcases all the stages of a woman, from a virgin girl, to a young married woman, to an older mother or grandmother. The blood sacrifice is also representative of the stages in a woman’s life as well. Whereas a young virgin girl represents youth, the blood sacrifice also represents the fertility to come into the girl’s life, as she grows older. This is represented by Durga during the virgin girl embodiment as well as she is a young beautiful girl that causes the flow of blood (Rodrigues 297).

These rituals create a bond with Durga, the divine, and the people. As Durga embodies these different forms it creates a high level of devotional worship among the devotees. The embodiment of a virgin girl creates a strong link between the Great Goddess and the people because they recognize Durga as a daughter and someone they have a strong relationship with (Banerjee 87). This festival also brings families together once again to celebrate fertility, power, and success together. The Durga Puja is one of the few festivals that adjust to the changing times and but also keeps and passes down the sacred rituals to ensure the festival remains.

REFERENCES AND FURTHER RECOMMENDED READING

Banerjee, Sudeshna (2004) Durga Puja: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Rupa and Co, Calcutta.

Ghosha, Pratapachandra (1871) Durga Puja: With Notes and Illustrations. Calcutta: Hindoo Patriot Pres.

Kinsley, David (1987) Hindu Goddesses. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.

Rodrigues, Hilary Peter (2003) Ritual Worship of the Great Goddess: The Liturgy of the Durga Puja with Interpretations. Albany: State University of New York Press.

RELATED TOPICS FOR FUTHER INVESTIGATION

Durga

Devi

Sakti

Puja

Rama

Ramayana

Ravana

Ganesa

Kartikeya

NOTEWORTHY WESITES RELATED TO THE TOPIC

http://www.durga-puja.org

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga_Puja

https://www.thoughtco.com/ten-days-with-the-mother-goddess-1770197

Article written by: Kaitlynn Poworoznyk (March 2017) who is solely responsible for this content.

a. The Puranas

Markandeya Purana

There are eighteen or nineteen major Puranas also referred to as Mahapuranas in the hindu texts (see Rodrigues 207). There are also other Puranas which are referred to as upapurana, there are many more of these puranas compared to the major puranas. The Markandeya Purana is known to be one the Mahapuranas. All of the Puranas are claimed to deal with five distinctive subjects which includes the creation, renewal, genealogies, and manvantara or the periods of Manu(see Rodrigues 208). These five subjects apply to all of the Puranas including Markandeya Purana. The Markandeya Purana is one of major hindu texts, it is named after the rsi (sage) Markandeya who is said to be credited for this Purana. This Purana is also translated by many religious scholars including scholars like Manmatha Nath Dutt, and Frederick Eden Pragiter. This text is also highly studied for the section about the Devi-Mahatmaya in the text.

The Markandeya Purana like any other Puranas is written in a form of dialogue where one is the one questioning while the other answering. All the Mahapuranas are classed into three different groups: Satwika, Tamasa, and the Rajasa. All three referring to three different gods, but the section that the Markandeya Purana belongs to is the Rajasa which refers to the stories of the Brahma. The Rajasa Puranas also said to be oriented towards the Shaktas, worshippers of the female principle Sakti (see Dutt 3). This Purana has approximately six thousand and nine hundred verses, also not many prayers are seen in this text for the dities compared to the other Puranas (Dutt 3-4). This shows that the text is more oriented towards the narrative aspect compared to the bhakti aspect with less prayers and more myths. The author of the Purana is said to be Brahma himself because it is said to have come from Brahma’s mouth.

The text has been said to be specifically divided into five different parts, each part referring to something different than the other. For example, Chapters 1-9 are indicating the talk between Markandeya and Jaimini in which sage Markandeya refers to the wise birds to answer four questions asked by Jaimini. The other parts refer to 14 manvantaras, the Devi-Mahatmaya and many other conversations and tales (see Pargiter iv). This text also brings along the fact that unlike most Puranas this text is not credited to rsi Vyasa but to the sage Markandeya. Jaimini is said to be a disciple of Vyasa and but is seeking answers for his questions from rsi Markandeya (Wilson xxxiv). So coming back to the four questions asked by Jaimini, these questions are “Why was Vásudeva born as a mortal? How was it that Draupadí was the wife of the five Páńd́us? Why did Baladeva do penance for Brahmanicide? and why were the children of Draupadí destroyed, when they had Krishńa and Arjuna to defend them?” quoted from The Visnu Purana translated by Wilson. To answer these questions Markandeya tells Jaimini about some sapient birds from the Vindhya mountain (see Wilson xxxv) This is all in the first part of the Purana. The other parts of this text includes stories about the Devi-Mahatmaya, and the 14 Periods of Manu. The last part of the text is a conversation between Markandeya and Kraustuki. Kraustuki is a disciple of Markandeya, the conversation between them carries on in chapters 93-136 (Pargiter iv). The Purana also describes the Vedas and also gives information on the origins of the patriarchal families (Dutt 4).

The Markandeya Purana is important in a way for the fact that it criticizes the Mahabharata and also for the inclusion of the Devi-Mahatmaya. The Mahabharata is an important text for the production of the Puranas, one of the reasons for this can be the fact that it is credited to sage Vyasa who is also given credit for the epic Mahabharata (Rocher 83). As mentioned in the four questions by Jaimini most of the characters indicated are from this epic. This leads to the inclusion of the epic in the text frequently. The Purana doesn’t just criticize but also tries to explain some unanswered questions in the epic. The questions are answered through the reference of the wise birds in the text. The Purana (Pargiter iii-xxii). Another important aspect of the text is the Part indicating the Devi-Mahatmaya (Pargiter iii-xxii). The Chandipatha in this part is said to be the most important section. This contains about seven hundred verses which describes the actions and avatars of the goddess Chandi while it combats demons and the ‘evil’ (Dutt 4). The Devi-Mahatmaya is studied a lot compared to the purana itself, it shows the importance of the Sakti the female principle (Dutt 3-4). This is different from the male centered texts in Hindusim.

The Markadeya Purana is hard to date according to the many scholars because most of the Sanskrit text are undated and uncertain (Dutt 3, Pragiter xiii). The Purana includes the Mahabharata therefore it is dated after that but also prior to the Brahma, Padma, Naradiya, and Bhagvata Puranas (Pragiter xiii-xiv). This is later modified and the Puranas are said to have been composed much earlier. This is provided through Jain writings because it has literature that has been composed after the Puranas. This makes the scholars date the text closer to the 5th or 6th century A.D (Pargiter xiii-xxii). As the Puranas are composed with a similar intent therefore they have probably been dated close to each other. These Puranas are dated using the “religious and philosophical ideas embodied in it” (Pargiter xiii-xxii).

According to Pargiter this literature is known to have originated from the Western India. To get to these results different aspects have been considered from the text itself. One of the aspects that were considered were the fact about what regions some of the characters were from from the text. For example using the fact that Markandeya was a Bhargava, which gives information about the region Markandeya came from (Pargiter viii-xiii). This then gives the insight on what region is to be considered while giving a place of origin for the Purana. This is not the only aspect that has been considered, another aspect that is considered is the types of plants, birds and animals that are found in the text (Pargiter viii-xiii). This then gives further information on the area where the text originates because they can be specified by certain areas as well. This helps the scholars find an area that is described by the text.

The Markandeya Purana as described before is also said to be different than other texts because of the fact that it is not a bhakti oriented text with less prayers. Another conclusion that can be came upon is the fact that it lies parallel with the Vedas and the Epics because the Markandeya Purana is trying to explain many things from the Epics and the Vedas. An example of this was given while describing the four questions asked by Jaimini. This Purana also puts Vyasa and Markandeya as equals because of the fact that Jaimini, Vyasa’s disciple is seeking answers from the sage Markandeya.

REFRENCES AND FURTHER RECOMMENDED READING

Dutt, Manmathanath (1896) A Prose English Tanslation of Markandeya Purana. Kolkata: Elysium Press.

Pargiter, Frederick (1904) The Markandeya Purana. Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal.

Rocher, Ludo (1986) The Purana. Virginia: Otto Harrasowitz Verlag.

Rodrigues, Hillary (2016) Hinduism-The Ebook. Toronto: Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books, Ltd.

Wilson, Horace (1840) The Vishnu Purana. Santa Cruz: Evinity Publishing Inc.

Related Topics for Further Investigation

Arjuna

Baldeva

Chandi

Chandipatha

Devi-Mahatmaya

Draupadi

Epics

Jaimini

Krsna

Mahabharata

Manvantaras

Markandeya

Padma Purana

Pandus

Puranas

Rajasa

rsi

Satwika

Tamasa

Vasudeva

Vedas

Vyasa

Noteworthy Websites Related to the Topic

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/hindu2/2014/09/markandeya-purana-pdf-english-hindi-sanskrit/

http://hinduonline.co/Scriptures/Puranas/MarkandeyaPurana.html

http://www.allaboutbharat.org/post/Markandeya-Puran-Download-PDF

http://www.kamakoti.org/kamakoti/details/markandeyapurana5.html

Article written by: Neer Patel (Spring 2017) who is solely responsible for its content

b. The Mahabharata, k. The Rsis of Ancient Indian Tradition

Veda Vyasa, The Great Indian Sage

Vyasa was a central and admired figure of the Hindu Tradition. He was a famous Rsi in the longest epic (Rodrigues 177), The Mahabharata, and was also credited for the Epic (Rodrigues, 145).

Vyasa’s Birth and Family

According to the mythic sources, Vyasa was the son of Satyavati, the Daughter of a fisherman and Parashara who was a wandering sage. Satyavati used to row boats for passengers from one end of the shore to another. That was where Parashara and Satyavati met. Since Satyavati was the daughter of a fisherman, she smelled of fish hence Parashara gave her a boon that she would never smell like she had been around fishes ever again, she then gave birth to Krishna Dvaipayana on the shore of River Yamuna. At birth, he was given the name Krishna Dvaipayana (Ramesh 1-2). The name Krishna Dvaipayana came from his dark complexion meaning Krishna and Dvaipayana-came from the place he was born. He was born on the shore of Yamuna (which is a river in India) Dvipa (meaning island). He was married to the daughter of Rsi Jabali, named Vaachika. After marriage, he entered the stage of Grahasthashram and then fathered a son named Shuka.

Vyasa’s Achievements

According to legends, Veda Vyasa was the type of character that always had full loyalty and faith for the Vedas meaning he had Veda Niṣṭha. We know that he had full faith on the Vedas since at a very young age he had mastered Vedas as well as the Sastras, literature, mythology, history and other branches of knowledge. Another meaning of Nistha is steadiness, we see that he had steadiness in his life, he was always successful in what he wanted to do, we don’t see many obstacles coming in the way of his success in his lifetime. Later, then went on to Badarikashrama to perform ‘tapas’ meaning meditation. According to Vyasa, the Veda was not stabilized, since there was only one Veda, they weren’t separate at the time, it was hard for people to understand it due to which not many people would be able to read them. This caused the essence of the Veda to go down in society therefore the Veda was not stable. Vyasa wanted to restore Vedic Saahitya (literature) by doing the punar uddhar (revival) of the Vedas. To stabilize the Vedas, he decided to divide the Vedas into four sections. The Vedas were divided in such a way that all the hymns were grouped based on their requirements in the sacrificial rites. Each of the four Vedas were given to four different Rsis. Vyasa taught these four Vedas to his four disciples. Rg Veda was given to Paila Rsi, Atharva Veda was given to Sumanthu Rsi, Sama Veda was given to Jaimini Rsi and lastly Yajur Veda was given to Vaishampayana Rsi. As the Vedas were divided, the respective Rsis taught their part of the Vedas to their disciples who then passed down the knowledge to the society, and restoring the values and information of the Vedas among the society. It was easier to pass on the knowledge of the Vedas now since they were all divided (Sullivan 11-15). Two events took place after Vyasa had divided the Vedas. First was when he got the name Veda Vyasa; until then he was known as Krishna Dvaipayana. Second even was when Vyasa decided to write the Puranas. The Puranas were a way to spread the thoughts of the Vedas in the form of stories to the general people. Puranas contain stories about the Vedas for easier understanding, since the Vedas are too complex to understand by general people. There is a total of 18 Puranas, Vyasa did Sansodhana (research) and Adhyayana (study) in detail to achieve his goal. It takes such immense knowledge for a person to achieve so many achievements in life, like writing such great Epics that are still known till date. After writing the Puranas, he started writing the Brahma Sutra. The Brahma Sutra consists of four chapters, 16 Padas, and 555 Sutras. The Brahma Sutras are part of the Vedantas, which include Sankara’s Radical Non-dualism, Ramanujan’s Qualified Non-Dualism and Madhava’s dualism (Rodrigues 155-159).

It is said that Vyasa first composed the entire story of The Mahabharata in his head for years, after which he was encouraged by Lord Brahma that Vyasa should now write the story (Rodrigues 2016, 177). Vyasa asks Ganesha to aid him in writing the text, but Ganesha imposed a condition that he would do so only if Vyasa narrated the story without pause. Vyasa replied with a counter-condition, that Ganesha must understand the verse before he wrote it. Thus, Vyasa narrated the entire Mahabharata and all the Upanishads and the 18 Puranas, while Lord Ganesha wrote. At one point while writing, Ganesa ran out of ink, therefore he broke one of his tusk and continued writing The Mahabharata (Rodrigues 224). He had also composed the Great Bharata, which tells the story of Janamejaya’s, Pariksit’s son and Arjuna’s grandson. The book talked about Janamejaya’s ancestors, the descendants of King Bharata (Rodrigues 182).

What is The Mahabharata about?

The reason that The Mahabharata is a great epic is that it enlightens the 5 main aspects of human life, namely: psychology, sociology, economics, politics and philosophy. It also offers a vision on the four goals of life: Righteousness (Dharma), Wealth (Artha), Enjoyment (Kama) and Salvation (Moksa) (Ramesh 1). Vyasas way of representing these qualities to the society was through the characters of the Epic. The Mahabharata has characters such as Bhiṣma, Krṣṇa, Draupadi, The Paṇḍava and The Kaurava. Rsi Vyasa’s characters are said to be Padachyuta and Dhyeyachyuta. This means that none of them lost their focus from their goals. If we look at The Paṇḍava’s, their goal was to keep the kingdom of Hastinapura with the help of Dharma in place, whereas The Kaurava’s goal was to keep the kingdom of Hastinapura using Adharma. Even if all these characters were on opposite sides, they all stuck to their goals, no matter the situation and stayed focused on that goal. These characters teach us that we should stay focused to achieve our goal. They are the types of characters that even if death was headed their way, they stay focused and loyal to their beliefs. An example can be Abhimanyu (son of Arjuna). During the big Kurukṣetra war, there was a point that the Kauravas were planning an evil game to hurt the Paṇḍava’s, but despite no proper knowledge of how to escape the trap known as the ‘Chakra-Vyooha’ (Chaturvedi 5-6) which the Kauravas had set, he went into that trap and fought against all the evil until his last breath. He knew he was not coming out alive, before going in, but he still went in and fought for Dharma. All these characters make us feel like we can achieve something in life if we stay focused. They also show us the true meaning of Tyaga (sacrifice). The characters that were on the side of Dharma made many sacrifices to do the establishment of Dharma, no matter what the situation. These are the types of character that Vyasa gave us and through them we can learn many lessons in life. There is something to learn from every character despite them being evil or good and Dharmic (Righteous) or Adharmic (Non-Righteous), all characters were able to keep their goals through the Epic, this shows us their loyalty towards their goals and that they can go to any level to stay focused on their goals.

Vyasa’s involvement in Politics

In Ancient Indian Culture Legislation was in the hands of Rsi, and the execution was with the king. There are some examples from Vyasa’s life where we can see how he was related to politics.

One example was about the almost extinct Hastinapura kingdom. Satyavati (Vyasa’s mother) had two other sons Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. Vichitravirya was married to Ambika (had a maid named Parishrama) and Ambalika. Vichitravirya dies leaving the kingdom of Hastinapura without a heir. This was when Vyasa was called by Satyavati because at that time, if anyone other than the Rsi wife had a child with a Rsi, it was considered big. Vyasa decided to surrogately father the heirs of Hastinapura (Rodrigues 177). Vyasa visits the three queens of Vichitravirya. Since he was a Rsi, he had a beard, long hair with a bun on top. He was there to grant the three queens a boon so they can have children, and the boon was dependent on how the queens react when they see Vyasa. When the first queen Ambika saw Vyasa, she closed her eyes, which meant that her son was going to be born blind who came to be known as Dhritarastra, father of the Kauravas. Then, when the second queen Ambalika saw Vyasa, she got sick meaning her son would stay unfit for life; her son was Pandu, father of the Pandavas (Rodrigues 177). Since the two queens were not able to give birth to kids that will be very suitable for the throne, due to their disabilities, he decided to give a boon to Ambika’s maid as well. When Parishrama (the maid of Ambika) saw Vyasa, she didn’t react in a bad way, she was herself and gave birth to a son, Vidura, who was normal and was brilliant. However, he would never be considered to rule the throne since he was the son of a maid. This was the political step taken by Vyasa to save a dynasty from becoming extinct (Ramesh 3). With no descendant, there will be no king therefore Satyavati called Vyasa, even though he was a Rsi. Vidura, despite being a maid’s son, was honest and was against injustice. Therefore, according to Vyasa’s ‘political move’, Vidura was one of the ministers in the kingdom so he can give honest advice to the king. This shows his involvement in politics and since the legislation was in the hand of Vyasa he was authorized to punish the king, if king made any mistakes.

Another story about his involvement in politics was that when the Paṇḍava’s had grown up, he sent them to Drupada’s kingdom, where the swayamwara of Draupadi was going on (Rodrigues 179). His intention was that the Pandavas should have a wife like Draupadi who would be a great strength for the Paṇḍavas. He always wanted a powerful woman like Draupadi behind the Paṇḍavas, because she was the type of person who could stand up against injustice, as well as she was the daughter of the Agni. Draupadi was said to be the daughter of Lord Agni, since she came out of the fire pit. After Arjuna had won Draupadi in the swayamwara, Vyasa’s wanted Draupadi to be the wife of all five Paṇḍava’s, not just Arjuna’s wife. At a time when The Mahabharata took place, people thought what a female could not have more than one husband. But once Vyasa made the decision that Draupadi will have five husbands, no one had the audacity to say anything against Vyasa. He also wanted to keep all the brothers together, and so his strategy to make Draupadi the wife of the Pandavas was so that there will be no rift between them in the future. This incident shows us that Vyasa was given great respect from the people of the villages that they did not say anything about what he had done. Their culture did not allow such a practice, but their trust in Vyasa was so deep that they did not utter a word against him. This incident also shows Vyasa’s vision in favor of Dharma and the Pandavas, because if Draupadi was married to Pandavas her father kingdom will support Pandavas in the final battle for Dharma. Thus, by sending the Pandavas to the swayamwara, he had already played his ‘political move’ for the betterment of the Hastinapura kingdom, and the fact that he made Draupadi the wife of all the Pandavas would bring positive changes to the society where women will be given respect, not just considered lower than men, which is the M-1B state (Rodrigues 90).

The third example can be seen when the Pandavas were in exile for thirteen years, and in disguise for one year (Rodrigues 180). This was when Vyasa goes to give them a visit in the forest. When Vyasa paid the Pandavas a visit, he was furious at them for just sitting around, and not preparing for the future war of The Mahabharata in advance. Vyasa already knew there was going to be a war and to prepare the Pandavas he sent Arjuna to do Tapa (tenacity). This was his ‘political move’, by sending Arjuna to sit in meditation for Lord Siva, and by doing the meditation Arjuna would be able to impress Lord Siva, so when Arjuna impressed Siva, Siva gave Arjuna some Celestial weapons that would be useful for the war (Rodrigues 180).

What is the importance Guru Purnima and why is it celebrated?

This day dedicated to the great Sage Vyasa. A Guru is someone who removes our ignorance. The meaning of Guru comes from ‘Gu’ meaning ignorance and ‘Ru’ meaning remover of ignorance. Guru (teacher) Purṇima (full moon day) is also known as Vyasa Purnima because on that day Vyasa was born as well as he started writing the Brahma Sutras. Vyasa is considered as the original Guru of the Hindus. This festival is a symbol of the Guru and Sisya (student) relationship. Gurus are considered a link between the individual and the immortal. This festival falls in the Hindu month of Ashad (July-August). This is the day for the disciples to pay respect to their Gurus, since Gurus are given great importance in Hinduism. On this day, the disciples or devotees provide seva (service) to their Gurus which grants the disciples their Guru’s grace for their spiritual progress. If the Guru has passed away, then their portrait is worshipped instead. We pick our Guru based on their Gyan (knowledge) and Shraddha (faith) not the age. The word Upanishad also means sitting down with a Guru to gain knowledge. A famous philosopher Adi Sankaracharya has said that “If a person, despite possessing a disease-free body, fame, wealth, and studied the Vedas and Scriptures, and even if he wrote many scriptures, but has not surrendered himself to a Guru, then he would have achieved nothing” (Tumuluru 17-20). A Guru is someone who guides his disciple on the path of self-realization and strengthens their faith. On this day, Bhajans (songs for festivals and special occasions) and performances are organized by ashrams (hermitage). Kabir (Indian poet) said that “If we put God and Guru side by side, we have to pray the Guru first because he is the one through who you can realize God” (Tumuluru 17-20).

The study of the text the Guru Gita (Tumuluru 17-20) is recommended on this day as well as meditation at the Guru’s feet by waking up at 4am to obtain God’s grace. After waking up to do the meditation the devotees place flowers by the Guru’s picture and light a lamp, some may even keep moun (silence).

This day is observed by Monks when they give offerings to the Guru, they also start a four-month seclusion period (a four-month rainy season period) known as the Chatur Masa where they stay at a selected spot and have discourses. This is also an important day for Farmers because it marks the start of rainy season. This festival is also celebrated by Buddhists because it is the day that the Buddha gave his first sermon.

The best way to worship a Guru is to follow their teachings and do their seva by helping the Guru achieving their mission, by spreading the message of their teachings.

Bibliography:

Chaturvedi, B.K. (2002) Abhimanyu. New Delhi: Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd.

Ramesh, Sri B.G. (2012) Vyasa: Volume 3. Karnataka: Sapna Book House (P) Ltd.

Rodrigues, Hillary (2016) Hinduism—The Ebook. Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books, Ltd.

Sullivan, Bruce (1990) Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa and the Mahabharata: A New Interpretation. Leiden: E.J.Brill.

Tumuluru, Kamal Kumar (2015) Hindu Prayers, Gods and Festivals. Haryana:Partridge Publishing India.

Related Research Topics for Veda Vyasa:

History and Family

Involvement in the Mahabharata

The types of characters he wrote about compared to Shakespeare

Guru Purnima

What kind of politics did Vyasa play throughout Mahabharata

His Achievements- Vedas, Puranas, and Brahma Sutras

Related Websites for the Topic:

http://hinduism.about.com/od/gurussaintsofthepast/fl/Maharshi-Veda-Vyasa.htm

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Guru-Purnima-A-day-to-express-respect-gratitude/articleshow/14626193.cms

This article is written by: Aastha Patel (Spring 2017), and I am entirely responsible for the content.

3. Kama, Kama and Kama Sutras and Shastras

Kamasutra Book 3: Virgins

The Kamasutra is an ancient Hindu text composed by Vatsyayana. The Kamasutra is believed to be a manual of sexual intercourse positions by most western societies, but the Kamasutra is a guide that helps people to achieve moral and noble lifestyles. The text discusses the nature of love, family lifestyles, forms of marriage, duties of a wife, behavior a man and woman should exhibit, traits to consider when choosing a partner and ways to develop physical attraction (Doniger 2007:66).

Marriage is the union of two people as partners in a legal relationship recognized by law. According to Rig Veda, marriage is the union of a male to a female virgin of the same class system. When a female is married to a male of equal class, the Dharma and Artha are satisfied based on the holy writing. They will be blessed with offspring and everlasting love. A man must become responsible and find a girl who comes from a noble and respected family, whose parents are alive, and is two or three years younger than himself. The female virgin must come from wealth, well connected, have stable and firm relationships with relatives and friends, good health and all her overall self must be beautiful. The man should, of course, also possess these qualities that the female virgin has (Doniger 2007).

Book three of the Kamasutra text, named Virgins, emphasizes exclusively on marriage, how to create confidence in a girl, on courtship and the display of the feelings by gesture and signs, things to be done only by the man on the acquisition of the girl, what a girl should do to win over a man and make him subject to her and forms of marriage (Doniger and Sudhir 2002).

There are five chapters in the text, Virgins, which focuses on the aspects of marriage. These five chapters are: (1) Courting the girl, (2) Winning a virgin’s trust, (3) Making advances to a young girl, (4) Advances a man makes on his own, (5) Devious devices for weddings.

Courting the Girl

When a man decides to court a beautiful girl from a respectable, well-connected and wealthy family with lucky marks on her body who is in good health., he has acquired both Dharma and Artha (Doniger and Sudhir 75). His parents and friends helps him court the girl especially the mutual friends of both his parents. The male friends tend to point out faults about the girl’s other suitors, and boost their friend’s good qualities to please the girl’s parents especially the girl’s mother. His friends dress like a fortune teller, and declare the future good fortune and wealth of the couple by showing the existence of all the lucky omens and signs, the good influence of planets, the auspicious entrance of the sun into a sign of the Zodiac, propitious stars and fortunate marks on his body (Doniger and Sudhir 75). However, girls who are pregnant, have a disgusting name like the name of one of the twenty-seven stars, or the name of a tree, or of a river, and whose name ends in ‘r’ or ‘l (Doniger and Sudhir 76)., are sick, betrothed to another, sweat a lot and are pimply should be avoided. The girl’s family dresses her up elegantly to events during the time of courtship. The girl’s family receive the man’s family who has come to court her (Doniger and Sudhir 77). Both family come to decision on how long they will wait to test the working of fate from the gods before giving her away. A man must marry by a wedding in the way of Brahma.

Winning a Virgin’s Trust

The Kamasutra prescribes that after the first three nights of the marriage, the couple should sleep on the floor, refrain from any sexual union and not eat any food that has salt or spices. The next seven days, they bathe with musical instrument playing, dress well, eat together, go to events together and visit their relatives. This is required to persons of all class systems. On the tenth night, the husband can begin gentle advances towards his wife when they are alone at night, thereby creating confidence in the girl. Babhravya followers say that when the husband does not initiate talk for three days with her, she assumes he is spiritless like pillar and begins to despise him (Doniger and Sudhir 78). Vatsyayana advices that the husband should slowly seduce her to win her trust and create confidence in his wife, by not forcing her but by gentle persuasion (Doniger and Sudhir 78-79). The husband should use tactics which she would like and become more confident with him. These tactics are as follows (Doniger and Sudhir 79):

He should embrace her the way she likes but not make it last a long time.

He should start by embracing her with the upper part of his body because it easier. He can embrace in the light if she is older and they are familiar with one another, but embrace in the dark if she younger.

When his wife accepts the embrace, the man should put a betel leaf in her mouth and if she does not accept it, he should use appeasing words, promises, and kneeling at her feet to seduce her. He should then begin by giving her some soft kisses, without making a sound. He should then encourage her to talk and ask him questions, which he will pretend to not know or answer with a few words (Doniger and Sudhir 79). He should not scare her if she does not talk but keep asking her if she has any questions over again and over again in a sweet manner, and he should urge her to talk if she does not after that. When she pestered again, she should reply by shaking her head.

When he asks her if she wants him or not, she should remain silent for a long time and when at last importuned to reply, should give him a promising answer by a nod of her head. He could call in the favor of a female friend, who they both trust, to continue the conversation (Doniger and Sudhir 79). When she engages in putting in scented oil near him or ties it in his upper cloth after becoming accustomed to him without talking, the man should touch her young breasts. If she prevents him from doing this, he should tell to her, I will not do it again if you will embrace me (Doniger and Sudhir 80)., thereby causing her to embrace him. While embracing, he should caress her whole body tenderly to gain her consent and when she does not give consent, he can scare her by saying, I shall impress marks of my teeth and nails on your lips and breasts, and then make similar marks on my own body, and shall tell my friends that you did them. What will you say then (Doniger and Sudhir 80). By doing this, he seduces her to gain her trust. On the second and third night, there is increase with confidence and she begins to trust him more, he can then begin to engage more sexual intercourse with his wife. He demonstrates his love to her by promising to be faithful to her in the future, and that she should dismiss all her fears with respect to any rival women (Doniger and Sudhir 81). He then begins to enjoy her in a way that does not scare her.

Making Advances to a Young Girl

A man with no money, no opportunity, a neighbor, dependent on his family, seen as a child or a guest, should not court a virgin. He can court a virgin if she falls in love with him from childhood (Doniger and Sudhir 82). Only men living with their uncle’s can try to gain over uncle daughter or some other girl, even if she is promised to another. When a man has decided the girl, he wants to court, he begins by spending time with her and her friends. He pleases her by playing various games with her, buying her flowers, cooking meals for her and playing six pebbles. He must become kind to the daughter of the girl’s nurse to gain her trust because she can affect the union between him and the girl he loves. The daughter can also talk about his good qualities to the girl’s parents and relatives. He should work hard to grant the girl’s wishes and buy gifts for her, so she sees him as someone who would do anything for her in the future. These gifts can be given privately or publicly. His reason for giving her gifts in private, is the fear that parents of both of them might be displeased (Doniger and Sudhir 84). When her love for him grows, he should amaze her with magic tricks, storytelling, music, moonlight festival and gifts like jewelry. To inform the girl of his sexual experience, he teaches the daughter of the girl’s nurse the sixty-four means of pleasure practiced by men. He finds out if she has sensual feelings for him by observing her gestures and signals like: She never looks the man in the face and becomes embarrassed when she is looked at by him, show some parts of her body to him, speaks to her attendants in an unusual way to gain his attention when she is far away from him, talks to her lover’s friends, shows gentleness to his servants and being sad when any other suitor is mentioned by her parents (Doniger and Sudhir 85).

Advances a Man Makes on His Own

After gestures and signals have been displayed, the man should gain various ways to make advances towards her like:

He should initiate hand holding whenever they are playing a game, engage in touching embrace, and giving her pair of human being couples cut out of a leaf a tree (Doniger and Sudhir 86).

He should dive close to her when playing water sports and tell her about his beautiful dream about her, but using other women’s names.

He sits near her during events and caress her foot and whenever he gives anything to her or takes anything from her, he should show her by his gesture how much he loves her (Doniger and Sudhir 87).

When he comes to know the depth of her feelings for him, he should pretend to be ill and invite her to his house to talk, and tell her that only she can make the medicine for him and nobody else. This pretense must last three days and three nights during which whenever she comes to visit, they should have long discussions. After the girl if finally won over, he may begin to enjoy her fully. The daughter of the girl’s nurse, or a female friend in which she trusts, comes handy when the man does not know how make advances to the girl.

When a girl makes advances towards a man she loves, she does so visiting him regularly with her friends or the daughter of her nurse. She offers him flowers and perfumes, talk to him about his hobbies, she should take care of him and engage in talks about ways to win a girl love. When a girl offer herself because of love, she loses her self-respect and is rejected. She should only be kind to a man who wishes to court her, and she may change her demeanor towards him but oppose when he tries to kiss her or ask for sexual union. If he agrees to not urge her, it proves her lover is devoted to her and she tells him to marry her soon, so that she would give herself to him. She should tell friends that she trusts when she loses her virginity.

Devious devices for weddings

When a girl’s love is won over, the man should cause fire to be brought from the house of a Brahman and spread the kusha grass upon the ground and make an offering of oblations to the fire, then he can marry her according to the guidelines the religious law (Doniger and Sudhir 92). After doing this ritual, he can inform his parents and her parents. The relatives both the girl and man should become familiar of the affair and the girl relatives should be told in a way that allows the marriage, and they should be offered gifts. A man should marry the girl according Gandharva form of marriage (Doniger and Sudhir 92). When the girl cannot make up her mind to marry him, he must come up with ways to make her marry him. The following ways are:

Using her female friends who he trusts and her family trusts, ask them to bring the girl to his house surprisingly, and he would then bring fire from the house of a Brahmin, and proceed as before described.

When the marriage of the girl to another suitor is drawing close, the man should mock the suitor’s future to the mother of the girl, and then have the girl to come to see him, with her mother’s consent, in a neighboring house, he would bring fire from the house of a Brahmin, and proceed as above.

The man should form a bond with the girl’s brother and ask for his help and bribe him with gifts. He tells the brother about his love for his sister and since young men will do anything for a fellow man with the same age, the brother finds a way to bring his sister to some secure place, and the man will bring fire from the house of a Brahmin and proceed as before.

The man can give the daughter of the girl’s nurse, an alcoholic substance to give the girl, and then she will be brought under pretense to a secure place for business, and before she recovers from her woozy state, the man should bring fire from the house of a Brahmin, and proceed as before.

The man should, with the help of the daughter of the nurse, take the girl away from her house while she is asleep, before she recovers from her sleep, the man should bring fire from the house of a Brahmin, and proceed as before.

When the girl visit some village in the neighborhood, the man should, with his friends, scare away her guards and forcibly carry her off, and proceed as before.

 

 

Bibliography

Doniger, Wendy (2002) “On the Kamasutra.” Daedalus 131:126-29.

Doniger, Wendy (2007) “Reading the “Kamasutra”: The Strange & the Familiar.” Daedalus

Sharma, Shailja (2002) “Kamasutra.” Counterpoints 169:103-07

Vatsyayana (2002) Kamasutra. Translated by Doniger Wendy and Sudhir Kakar. New York: Oxford University Press.

 

Related Topics for Further Investigation

Artha

Dharma

Ghandharva

Confidence

Caste system

Ghotakamukha

Babhravya

Vatsyayana

Game of six pebbles

Betel leaves

Brahman

Kusha grass

 

Noteworthy Websites Related to the Topic

http://www.sacred-texts.com/sex/kama/kama201.htm

http://www.novelguide.com/kama-sutra/summaries/part3-4

http://www.sacred-texts.com/sex/kama/kama301.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kama_Sutra

 

Article written by: Trust In God Odudu (March 2017) who is solely responsible for its content.

b. The Mahabharata, f. Puranic Mythology and Other Hindu Deities, g. Sati and the Status of Widows

The Savitri and Satyavat Myth

The myth of Savitri and Satyavat is the fictional love story of a Hindu wife following her husband through death and saving him with her great dharmic wisdom. The origin of the story dates back to the Mahabharata. The sage Vyasa had written the Mahabharata with the help of the god Ganesa to give to the world as a gift. Within Vyasa’s telling of the Mahabharata the ideology of dharmic character is clarified and expanded on through side stories such at Savitri and Satyavat. The Mahabharata tells the epic story of the Pandavas and the Kauravas were battling each other, and at one point, the Pandavas were exiled to live in the forest for 13 years. During this time, the brothers meet with the rishi Markandeya. The most dharmic brother, Yudhisthira, was lamenting the kidnapping of Draupadi, the Pandava’s wife, as she had been taken by Jaydratha (Anand 2). He asked the rishi if he had ever met a more dharmic woman than Draupadi. The rishi responded with the myth of Savitri and Satyavat, answering his question by telling of the most dharmic woman possible.

The king Asvapati of the land Mudra had no heirs. Worried that he would die before his bloodline would be carried on, he devoted himself to prayers and sacrifices, asking the gods for many sons. After eighteen years, the sun Goddess Savitri answered Asvapati’s hundred thousand hymns to her (Narayan 182). The goddess explained that although she knew he requested for many sons, she would instead bless him with a single daughter, for whom he should be grateful (Anand 3). Soon after, Asvapati’s eldest wife gave birth to a baby girl, whom he named Savitri after the goddess. When Savitri had grown up, her beauty was so astounding that suitors would not ask for her hand in marriage. When the king requested a reason, they responded she must be an incarnation of a goddess and could not be married. The princess Savitri then began a penance, as she waited for a proposal. However, none appeared. The king decided Savitri must be married, and came up with a plan for her to find a husband. Savitri was told to search for her own husband that was well suited and that was as good to her as she was to her father (Narayan 183). Savitri was unsure how to do so, but agreed to do his bidding. The king sent an assembly of his men to accompany his daughter who were under the order not to interfere with her decision.

A year later, she returned to her father who was with the heavenly sage Narada. Narada did not understand why she did not have a husband yet, but the king was ready to receive her answer. Savitri reported that she named Satyavat her husband [often called Satyavan]. Narada strongly advised against her decision. He explained that although Satyavat was perfectly suitable, he was cursed to die in exactly one year from that day. Asvapati tried to persuade his daughter to find another husband, but Savitri refused. Satyavat was her first and only choice for husband, and she would not choose again.

Satyavat was son of the exiled, blind king Dyumatsena, and he took care of him and his mother in their forest hermitage. Before the wedding, Asvapati asked the exiled king for his blessing on the marriage (Nadkarni 2012:np). Dyumatsena was hesitant but agreed. Once the blessing was given, Savitri married Satyavat and joined him in his forest home. Savitri was the ideal wife and daughter in-law, and brought joy to the household (Narayan 185). However, she always remembered the curse and silently counted down the days. When four days were left before the cursed day, Savitri began a triratra vow, a severe penance of fasting, praying, and standing, for three days and nights. Her parents in-law were worried for her and insisted she end this penance, but Savitri refused. On the fourth day, when Satyavat was to begin his daily journey into the forest, Savitri begged him to allow her to join him. Satyavat was hesitant but agreed only if Savitri gained approval from her in-laws. Asking her parents in-law, they granted her wish as Dyumatsena knew she had never asked for anything before (Narayan 186). Travelling deep into the forest, Satyavat was unaware of his fate, but Savitri could not focus on anything else (Narayan 186). As Satyavat was swinging the axe to cut trees, he suddenly felt fatigued. Savitri went to his aid and brought him to rest his head in her lap. She realized this must be the hour that Narada had foretold. Satyavat soon fell into a deep sleep. Savitri continued to hold him when a figure came to hover over them. As Savitri focused on this figure, she saw that it was the God of Death, Yama, coming to take Satyavat’s soul. Savitri rested Satyavat’s head on the ground, and rose to address the God of Death. Savitri asked the God why he himself had come (Dutt 423). Yama answered that because Satyavat was such a distinguished person, he wanted to honour Satyavat in his death by bringing him to death’s halls himself. Yama recognized Savitri as an auspicious wife with a rare gift of being extraordinarily sensitive. But unwavering, Yama continued to take Satyavat’s soul to his kingdom against Savitri’s requests.

However, Savitri had begun to follow him to the land of death, a place where she could not go. Yama tried to persuade her to turn back, but Savitri was refused, knowing that where her husband went, she went, as it was her dharmic duty as a wife to accompany her husband through life and death. Impressed by her knowledge of dharma, Yama told her to ask for any boon other than the life of her husband and he shall grant it (Nadkarni 2012:np). Savitri asked for the return of her father in-law’s sight. They continued their conversation and Yama is repeatedly impressed, granting 3 more boons. Savitri asked for Dyumatsena’s kingdom to be restored, her father to have a hundred noble sons and for a hundred sons for herself and Satyavat. Yama granted these, but then realized too late that for the final boon to be granted Satyavat must be returned to earth. Yama kept his word and gave his blessing and Satyavat’s soul back to Savitri to return to his body (Nadkarni 2012:np).

Restoring his soul to his body, Savitri and Satyavat hurried home to his parents’ hermitage as they were late to return. Dyumatsena, with his sight recently restored, and his wife were worried when Satyavat and Savitri had not returned at their normal time. Neighbours had come to comfort them. When Savitri and Satyavat finally arrived, a celebration was thrown in their honour. Questioned on their reason for such a late arrival, Savitri began her story of all the transpired events, beginning with Narada’s prophecy up until their return home. She explained in detail her interactions with Yama, the God of Death, and the boons he had granted her (Dutt 429). The next day, Dyumatsena was informed his enemy, who had seized the throne, had been killed by the hands of one of his own ministers. Dyumatsena was once again declared king of the Shalwa kingdom. Savitri and Satyavat had their 100 sons who were brave, noble, and never fled from war (Dutt 430). Asvapati was also blessed with 100 sons who kept his bloodline and lineage strong for generations.

Savitri is used as the example of the ideal Hindu wife; a woman who is willing to follow her husband through death and back. Savitri symbolizes the dharmic wisdom that overcomes death (Anand 2). The perfect wife is to maintain her position beside her husband for all of time. In each dharmic marriage the man has the responsibility to take care of his family in all the physical aspects of life, while the wife “embodies the power to sustain their existence” (Rodrigues 125). She must maintain this power by being as auspicious as possible, and by being loyal by following orders from her husband. This enhances her personal spiritual power, or sakti. Her whole family depends on this spiritual power for their survival. By having this power, she is responsible to take part in sati, the ritual where the wife is required to lie on her deceased husband’s pyre, showing that she is willing to die with him and to use her sakti to cleanse his soul in a spiritual sense (Pitchman 26). Savitri is the ideal wife because when she completed sati she brought Satyavat back to life with her, proving she was purely dharmic. Her higher understanding of the dharmic teaching and her commitment to Satyavat is what brought her husband back to life (Verma 67). As they are two parts of a whole, both the husband and wife rely on each other to live a dharmic life. Their devotion to each other, especially Savitri’s, deems her the ideal wife in Hindu culture.

REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDED READING

Anand, Subhash (1988) Savitri and Satyavat: A Contemporary Reading. Pune: Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute

Dutt, Manmatha Nath (1895) A Prose English Translation of the Mahabharata: (translated Literally from the Original Sanskrit Text). H.C. Dass.

Nadkarni, Mangesh V. (2012) Savitri-The Golden Bridge, The Wonderful Fire: An introduction to Sri Aurobindo’s epic. Auroville: Savitri Bhavan

Narayan, R. K. (1964) Gods, Demons, and Others. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press

Pintchman, Tracy (2011) Woman and Goddess in Hinduism: Reinterpretations and Re-envisionings. New York: Palgrave Macmillan

Rodrigues, Hillary (2016) Hinduism–The e-Book. Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books, Ltd.

Verma, K.D. (1977) Myth and Symbol in Aurobindo’s “Savitri”: A Revaluation. Michigan: Asian Studies Center, Michigan State University

Related Topics for Further Investigation

dharma

Draupadi

Ganesa

Kauravas

Mahabharata

Markandeya

Narada

Pandavas

sakti

sati

Sati

Vyasa

Yama

Noteworthy Websites Related to the Topic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savitri_and_Satyavan

http://www.hindupedia.com/en/Aśvapati

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narada

http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m03/index.htm

https://books.google.ca/books?id=wFtXBGNn0aUC&redir_esc=y

http://www.rsvidyapeetha.ac.in/mahabharatha/summary/eng/3.pdf

http://www.freeindia.org/biographies/vyasa/page10.htm

Article written by: Abby Neudorf (Spring 2017) who is solely responsible for its content.

b. The Mahabharata, f. Puranic Mythology and Other Hindu Deities, g. Sati and the Status of Widows

Savitri and Satyavan

The Hindu myth of Savitri and Satyavan, found in the Mahabharata, is a tale of the love and devotion a Hindu wife was expected to have for her husband. In the Hindu tradition women are expected to show this devotion to their husbands above all else, and the tale of Savitri’s devotion is one of the most poignant and significant examples of this.

The story begins with Aswapati, a king, who was virtuous and lived what could be considered a perfect dharmic lifestyle. Despite this, Aswapati could not conceive a male heir; as he grew older this became more and more of a concern. After 18 years of a perfect dharmic lifestyle, including performing ten thousand oblations daily and reciting Mantras in honour of Savitri, Aswapati was visited by the goddess Savitri herself, who is also called Gayatri. Savitri could not grant him a son, but instead granted him a daughter, who the king named Savitri after the goddess. In some versions Savitri did not grant him the child herself, but informed Aswapati that Brahma was granting him a child (Sarma 329). Savitri grew up to become a beautiful woman, compared by the people to a goddess, and because of her intimidating beauty none would marry her. Aswapati sent her off in search of a husband, as none in his land would marry her. (Ganguli 570-571)

When she returned, she tells her father of another king, Dyumatsena. Dyumatsena was a wise, virtuous kshatriya king. Dyumatsena grew blind, and thus his kingdom was overthrown by an old enemy, ousting Dyumatsena and his family and forcing them into a hermitage. Dyumatsena’s only son, Satyavan, grew up in this state of hermitage. Savitri met the adult Satyavan, and chose him as the one she would marry. She praised his virtues to her father, listing his energy, wisdom, bravery, and forgiveness. She compared his noble attributes to those of various gods, to further emphasize just how perfect a match Satyavan was. Her father’s counselors, who accompanied Savitri on this journey supported her statements. The king asked his trusted advisor if this seemingly perfect youth had any defects, and it is revealed that Satyavan was to die exactly one year from this meeting. Aswapati urged Savitri to choose another, but she had already made up her mind and refused to change it, stating that she had already selected Satyavan and will not select again. The king relented on seeing the full extent of her devotion, and the two were wed. (Ganguli 572-574)

As the day of Satyavan’s death approached, Savitri offered prayers and ascetic observances for the three days prior to Satyavan’s preordained demise. Savitri and Satyavan went out in the woods on the day in question to pick fruits and cut down tree branches. Satyavan began to feel weak, and Savitri laid him on the ground with his head in her lap. The next moment, Yama, the god of death, appeared to Savitri. He had come to personally take Satyavan’s soul. He did so and departed, but Savitri proceeded to follow him out of her devotion to her husband. She spoke to Yama of Satyavan’s virtues, and he was impressed by her words and her devotion and granted her a boon, anything she wanted except Satyavan’s life. She requested that her father-in-law, Dyumatsena, regain his eyesight and his strength. Yama granted this, and continued on his way. Savitri followed him still, telling Yama more of Satyavan. Yama granted her a second boon, and she asked for Dyumatsena to regain his kingdom. She continued to follow him, this time speaking of mercy, and Yama granted her a third boon. She asked to beget children to continue her father’s line, and Yama granted her that she may have a hundred sons. She proceeded to speak about justice. Yama had heretofore been very impressed with Savitri’s devotion and extensive wisdom, and he granted her a fourth boon. She asked for a century of sons, begat by her and Satyavan, and Yama granted this before realizing the implication. He realized Savitri had tricked him and, impressed with her cunning, granted Satyavan’s life back, as she could not father sons with him if he was dead. This differs, as in some versions it is not by Savitri’s cunning, but by her continued devotion that she convinced Yama to give Satyavan back (Sarma 334). When Savitri and Satyavan returned, they found Dyumatsena’s eyesight and strength had returned, and he ascended once again to his rightful place at the head of his kingdom. Savitri and Satyavan had many children, and all was well (Ganguli 576-585).

Savitri’s devotion to her husband is the key theme of this myth. Even before they are married, she is unshakeable in her conviction to stand by Satyavan despite his impending death, and this devotion is what impresses her father so much that he allows the two to be wed. This is especially significant due to the inauspicious status of widows in the Hindu tradition, and the prohibition of remarriage (Rodrigues 127-128). She also shows devotion towards her husband’s family, who in the Hindu tradition essentially becomes her new primary family. Her requests of Yama to return her father-in-law’s sight, strength, and kingdom exemplify this ideal. Lastly, her devotion to Satyavan even in death is impressive. She follows Yama, death himself, and he grants her multiple divine boons, eventually even giving her Satyavan back. It is interesting to note however, that Savitri is not a helpless damsel following Yama because she is incapable of anything without her husband. If anything, after Satyavan’s death she shows her many other impressive characteristics in convincing Yama to bring Satyavan back.

The ideal of pativrata is described by Rodrigues as “ascetic dedication to [the woman’s] husband” (Rodrigues 124). It is the highest vrata, or ascetic observance, that Hindu women follow. The pativrata is closely related to sakti, spiritual power, and the husband was dependent on this spiritual power for his survival and strength. The story of Savitri exemplifies this, as Savitri’s devotion is very closely tied to her husband’s strength and survival, literally bringing him back from death. Savitri initially tries to prevent his death, performing vrata for three days just prior to the promised time. When this fails, she follows Yama, an extraordinary display of ascetic devotion, and her spirituality is a key factor in convincing Yama to bring Satyavan back.

Some scholars explore the similarities and differences between Savitri and Draupadi. Indeed, the entire reason this myth was told in the Mahabharata was in response to Yudhisthira asking if there had ever been a woman whose devotion matched Draupadi’s (Ganguli 570). Weiss looks at Savitri’s marriage as a sort of inversion of Draupadi’s. Savitri is an ascetic wife, while Draupadi is married to five men, both deviations from the Hindu norm. As Weiss states: “Savitri lowers her social status by an act that creates social discontinuity (ascetic practices terminate social lineage), and Draupadi limits the natural capacities of her husbands by marrying all of them.” (Weiss 268-269).  The feminist scholar Lohia gently criticizes Savitri in comparison to Draupadi, stating that loyalty was important, but only as a single aspect of a woman’s personality (Yadav 110). Ultimately, both women represent distinct aspects of the Hindu ideal.

The story of Savitri and Satyavan exemplifies Hindu ideals of a wife’s devotion to her husband. Savitri marries the man she chooses regardless of his impending death, and refuses to let him go. When he does die, it is her devotion and strength of character that brings him back to life. In my opinion, she epitomizes the ideal of pativrata, and is an example of how the Hindu epics teach how one should live through tales with simple moral principles.

Bibliography

Ganguli, Kisari Mohan (1990) The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Vol.III (5th Edition). New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers.

Rodrigues, Hillary (2016) Hinduism – The eBook. Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books, Ltd.

Sarma, Bharadvaja (2008) Vyasa’s Mahabaratam. Academic Publishers.

Weiss, Brad (1985) “Mediations in the Myth of Savitri.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion Vol. 53, No. 2: 259-270. www.jstor.org/stable/1464922

Yadav, Kumkum (2010) “Draupadi or Savitri: Lohia’s Feminist Reading Of Mythology.” Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 45, No. 48: 107–112. www.jstor.org/stable/25764190

Related Research Topics

pativrata

sakti

sati

Aswapati

Dyumatsena

Yama

Gayatri (goddess)

Brahma

Yudhisthira

Draupadi

Mahabharata

kshatriya

Related Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savitri_and_Satyavan

http://www.apamnapat.com/entities/Savitri.html

http://www.aaronshep.com/stories/006.html

http://www.kidsgen.com/fables_and_fairytales/indian_mythology_stories/satyavan_and_savitri.htm

This article was written by Thomas Hill (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for its content.


3. Kama, Kama and Kama Sutras and Shastras

A Summary of Book 6 of the Kama Sutra

The Kamasutra is an ancient Hindu text on the art of attainting kama, or pleasure, one of the three prescribed goals for twice born males in the Hindu tradition (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana XI). It was composed by Vatsyayana Mallanaga, possibly in the third century CE and has since been the subject of commentaries, criticisms, and translations. Vatsyayana drew on many scholars before him, and this text is certainly not the only of its kind. In the west, the book is often perceived as a catalogue of sex positions. For Hindus, it is a unique and elaborate text containing several books on topics such as finding and pleasing a wife, and the use of drugs and other substances to enhance kama.

For many years, the translation by Sir Richard Burton, published in the 19th century stood as the western world’s best understanding of the erotic Kamasutra (Burton and Vatsyayana, 1981). However, a more recent translation by Wendy Doniger and Sudhir Kakar provides a fresh insight into the discussions of the Kamasutra, its nature, its function as a religious text, and the argument of whether it is to be a descriptive versus prescriptive text. Of course, in ancient India and even today, the reader should decide with discretion. The 2002 translation by Doniger and Kakar was used for this summary.

An important aspect of the Kamasutra is that its audience was most likely male, but according to Wendy Doniger in her book, Redeeming the Kamasutra, the Kamasutra can be useful to women (Doniger 93). In Doniger and Kakar’s translation, Vatsyayana suggests nuns and courtesans are the only women in Hindu society who are truly [socially] free (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana XIV); Book 6 of the Kamasutra is dedicated entirely to the courtesan (a high class entertainer for men), which exposes an attitude towards courtesan’s that is very different from the popular opinion in the west. Vatsyayana’s text suggests that courtesans have long played an important role in the Hindu social order. What sets Book 6 apart from the other books of the Kamasutra is that it appears to be written by the courtesan, for the courtesan. She appears to be faithful and affectionate towards her lover at all times, yet she is often involved with more than one man. The courtesan’s main concern is profit, although she makes it appear to her lover that he is her top priority (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 137).

Chapter one of book six explores how the courtesan “decides on a friend, an eligible lover, and an ineligible lover” (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 131-136). Men trust women who are driven by desire, sex, and passion, and this is how the courtesan poses herself. Vatsyayana suggests that every woman possesses these traits to an extent, and because the courtesan’s main goal is to make money, she is a natural born tradesperson. She exhibits no greed as she displays herself as goods for purchase, always beautiful but secretive (Doniger, Kakar, and Vatsyayana 131). The courtesan may choose the men with whom it is appropriate to keep company, particularly what kind of company, as she has the whole community at her disposal. Policemen and powerful individuals may offer protection, “ward off loses” and “get money” for her. These men should be considered friends; men who sell goods that aid in the seduction of lovers could also be considered friends because they can ultimately bring her greater wealth and more lovers with their services and connections (Doniger, Kakar, and Vatsyayana 131). Even when choosing a lover, there are certain guidelines that deem whether or not a man is suitable: some lovers are good only for money (jealous, greedy, or impotent men), while other men possess good qualities (knowledgeable, poetic, generous men) and are, therefore, considered the prescribed lovers (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 133-135). The courtesan should stay away from sick men, old men, and men who are devoted to their wives.

Hindu social norms dictate a woman should be intelligent, honest, of sound mind and body; she should only speak when spoken too, and be knowledgeable enough in the Kamasutra to please her man. Additionally, a courtesan must be all these things, as well as being beautiful, young, versed in the arts, and of course, have a sexual nature (Doniger, Kakar, and Vatsyayana 133-134). These traits will make her a suitable lover.

There are various reasons for taking a lover that Vatsyayana’s predecessors suggested, including passion, fear, gain, religion, and future prospects. Vatsyayana suggests, for the courtesan, that “gain, warding off loses, and love” are reasons she may take a lover; however, gain should come first for her, as her goal is to make money, but she should use her judgement and consider other reasons as well (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 135).

Before a courtesan engages a lover, she must get his attention and learn about him. Even if he has propositioned her, the courtesan remembers that men want most what is difficult to attain. A courtesan may utilize her friendships to send gifts to her potential lover, in an attempt to mediate the beginnings of the relationship. After this, the courtesan may meet with her prospective lover, and attempt to seduce him (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana, 135-136).

The second chapter of the Kamasutra discusses how the courtesan properly entertains her lover by giving him what he desires (Doniger, Karkar, and Vatsyayana 137-142). She may act as a wife does, infatuated with him, inquiring about his interests and behaving as if he is the centre of her life, suggesting that she may even become ill if he does not make love to her. Of course, this is all a façade, as the courtesan must act attached even though she is not (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 137 lies). If questions of infidelity arise, the courtesan may refuse to eat in order to show that she is upset and remains dedicated to her lover. At the same time, she is known to be deceptive—such as inventing a demanding mother to whom the courtesan is obligated or devoted—when she is to meet with another man.

The traditional Hindu wife, as depicted in the Kamasutra via the perspective of Vatsyayana and the courtesan, is that of a devoted, infatuated woman, who speaks only of things her husband knows and prays for him while he is away, even taking up ritual responsibilities in order to honour him. She affirms his intelligence and proclaims a love that will last beyond life itself. A courtesan may actually engage in some or all of these practices, but she most definitely portrays herself as a loving devotee to her man—as Vatsyayana comments at the end, however, this is the nature of the courtesan, as she is really just playing a part.

Of course, as previously mentioned, the courtesan has a goal, which is to make money. According to chapter three of Book 6 in the Kamasutra, there are natural and contrived ways in which a courtesan may be able to extort money from her lover (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 142-147). Vatsyayana disagrees with previous scholars when he says that the courtesan can heavily increase her profits if she uses contrived means. She may create debts to creditors, or even terrible scenarios, such as being robbed of her jewellery, or a fire that burned down her home and all of her belongings, in order to gain sympathy and ‘reimbursement’ from her lover (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 142-143). She may even pretend to need money in order to bring gifts to him, or help friends of his/hers that are in need. The courtesan may also then express to her lover how much his kindness has helped her and made her happy. The lover often obliges and gives the woman money or gifts, as it is implied throughout Book 6 of the Kamasutra that this is how a man shows attachment, or at least this is his understanding of showing attachment.

Occasionally, her lover may shows signs that his passion is fading or that he is no longer interested, and the courtesan is a master at picking up on these signs (Doniger, Karkar, and Vatsyayana 145). He may portray his receding desire through his body language or his actions, by giving her too much or too little money, sleeping elsewhere, or breaking his promises. A courtesan knows that a devoted man does not act in this way, and because her affection is only manufactured for profit, she’ll make one final attempt to hustle what remains of his money from him, and then she will get rid of him. In Doniger’s commentary text, she suggests that this may reflect the courtesan’s attitudes and point of view (Doniger 105).

There is an entire section of chapter three dedicated to getting rid of a lover (Doniger, Karkar, and Vatsyayana 145-147). The courtesan needs very few reasons to abandon her lover; if he is depleted of funds to give her, if he desires another woman, or if his passion diminishes, she will leave. In Redeeming the Kamasutra, Doniger suggests that the courtesan “employs…passive-aggressive behavior to indicate that it is time to [end the affair]” (Doniger 105). This includes refusing to sleep with him, showing contempt for his interests, making herself seem unattractive and uninterested in him. This will often result in the ending of the relationship. At the end of this section, Vatsyayana includes a verse that summarizes the job of the courtesan: she is to enchant man, take his money, and then release him (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 147).

A courtesan may, after careful consideration, get back together with an ex-lover. There are conditions, of course, she must consider, which are outlined in chapter four of the sixth book of the Kamasutra (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 147-151). In fact, there are six different scenarios that the courtesan should consider, and then there are suggestions as to how to deal with these different scenarios. Essentially, the courtesan should only get back together with her ex-lover if he still has money or has made more money, if he is still interested in/attached to her, and/or can continue to provide the courtesan with a source of income. She should reject him if he is fickle or ungenerous. If the relationship rekindles, a courtesan will begin courting her lover again. She may bring back her demanding mother to make her lover believe that it was the mother who was keeping them apart all along. A messenger may suggest to her man that even though she has a new lover, she is not in love, and only desires this one man. At the end of the chapter, Vatsyayana once again disagrees with his predecessors when he suggests that, between a new lover and an old one, a new lover is more aligned with her goals. He then comments that this can be dependent on the nature of the man (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 150).

In the fifth chapter, Vatsyayana discusses how the courtesan may weigh or prioritize her profits, posing it as a discussion between himself and past scholars. A courtesan should not limit herself to one lover if she feels she can make more money this way, but there are scenarios to consider. In the choice between lovers, Vatsyayana suggests that the one who gives gold is preferable to the one who gives her what she wants, because gold is most valuable and can give her the greatest monetary return. Vatsyayana elaborates on other scenarios, but the answer is always the same. However, he does suggest that there are certain situations in which avoiding conflicts or losses can be more beneficial to the courtesan than monetary profit.

The sixth chapter in the Kamasutra’s sixth book contains methodological approaches to calculating gains and losses, consequences, and doubts (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 155-159). Losses are the result of fate, or of some fault of character or decision making. These losses may have terrible consequences and should therefore be carefully avoided. As a business person, a courtesan should focus on gains. Vatsyayana says that there are three losses: money, religious merit, and hatred; and three gains: money, religious merit, and pleasure (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 155). Vatsyayana suggests a formula that considers doubt as either pure or mixed, and consequences as having one sided, two sided, or group results. This formula can help the courtesan control her losses. The discussion that follows is one of contemplation, and suggests that gains and losses of the three types can occur depending on the level of doubt that is present. Essentially, because the courtesan wants to maximize gains and minimize losses, she should consider these arguments for the purpose of her business.

The last chapter of book six, entitled “Types of courtesans” (Doniger, Kakar and Vatsyayana 159-160) suggests that there are certain women more suited to this profession than others. In contrast to women who are virgins, courtesans may be women known for dancing, artistry, or simply for being an intelligent member of an upper class. These women may be more inclined to money than passion (as opposed to virgins and wives), and could therefore be considered for this particular kind of work.

Ultimately, Book 6 of the Kamasutra depicts courtesans as intelligent, masters of deceit and feminine sexuality. They are not portrayed as shameful women who are degraded in society; instead, they are respectable business women who play a major role in cultivating a Hindu man’s sexual experience. They reverse the conventional gender norms that Doniger discusses in her commentary; instead of being passive and innocent, she is active and powerful (Doniger 109). The Kamasutra and the courtesan are similar in this way, neither are well known [in the west] for their religious and social functions in Hindu society. At the end of the second chapter of Book 6, Vatsyayana writes a verse that could be used to sum up the portrayal of women, mostly courtesans, in this book of the Kamasutra:

Because of the subtlety and excessive greed of women,

And the impossibility of knowing their nature,

The signs of their desire are hard to know,

Even for those who are its object.

Women desire and they become indifferent,

They arouse love and they abandon,

Even when they are extracting all the money,

They are not really known (Doniger, Karkar, and Vatsyayana 142).

 

 

REFERENCES AND FURTHER RECOMMENDED READING

Burton, R. and Vatsyayana (1981) The Kama Sutra: The Richard Burton Classic Translation. London: Unwin Paperbacks.

Doniger, Wendy (2016) Redeeming the Kamasutra. New York: Oxford University Press.

Doniger, W., Sudhir Kakar, and Vatsyayana (2002) Kamasutra: Oxford world’s classics. New York: Oxford University Press Inc.

 

Related Readings & Websites

 

Doniger, Wendy (2002) “On the Kamasutra.” Daedalus 131: 126-129.

Doniger, Wendy (2007) “Reading the ‘Kamasutra’: the strange & the familiar.” Daedalus 136: 66-78

Courtesans: https://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/rschwart/hist255-s01/courtesans/defining-the-courtesan.htm

Courtesans, Kamasutra: http://www.indianetzone.com/37/part_vi__about_courtesans_kama_sutra.htm

Kamasutra Summary: http://www.gradesaver.com/kama-sutra/study-guide/summary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This article was written by: Jessica Freehill (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for its content.

3. Kama, Kama and Kama Sutras and Shastras

The Kamasutra: Book Three

The Kamasutra is the most widely known document within the Kamasastra genre of books in the Hindu tradition. This text deals with Kama, one of the four worthy goals in life, according to Hindus, and how to pursue it. Kama can be described as desire, sensory pleasure, and the fulfillment of sexually pleasurable human needs (Rodrigues 114-117). This goal is to be pursued within the householder life stage to help love between the married couple flourish (Rodrigues 117). The Kamasutra explains many aspects of the sexual experience, as well as other elements that are involved in enhancing the erotic occasion. The first book describes how a single man should behave, the second explains the many sexual positions, and the third clarifies exactly what kind of woman the man should be pursuing (Doniger 20). The fourth book depicts the man’s marriage and how he should live with his chosen mate(s), the fifth details the ways in which the man could woo the wives of other men (Doniger 20-21). Lastly, the sixth book explains courtesans and their place within desire, and the seventh book talks about magic used to enhance the sexual experience (Doniger 21). Book three is the main focus here and this section focuses on a man’s attention being directed toward virgins; mainly discussing how to pick one and what it takes to seduce her. This book, however, does have a small section dedicated to instructing virgins on the techniques to use when seducing a man (Doniger 21).

Book three’s first chapter goes into detail about the qualities a man should search for in a virgin, as well as qualities that should be avoided, and the various techniques that could be used to court the right girl (Doniger and Kakar 75-78). In this chapter, viable virgins are under scrutiny in regard to their looks and other personal qualities. She, for instance, should not be “pimply, like a bull, or promiscuous” (Doniger and Kakar 76) among other unsatisfactory qualities, she must come from a good family, and many of her traits cannot be excessive nor insufficient (Doniger and Kakar 75). The ideal qualities are normally described in regard to what a woman should not be. In this chapter there is mention of the woman being “like any other piece of merchandise,” (Doniger and Kakar 77) and therefore should be displayed as such (Doniger and Kakar 76-77). This union between two individuals is also about the union of two families, so both families should be happy and fully satisfied with the prospective wedding (Doniger and Kakar 78). After presenting what kind of women a man should be looking for, chapter two establishes exactly how said virgin should be charmed and led to trust the man attempting to woo her (Doniger and Kakar 78-82). She must first be able to trust him in order to proceed sexually with him, or else she may begin to feel scared of the entire process and men in general (Doniger and Kakar 81). This chapter explains that a man can provide too much attention and affection, or he can offer too little, and that he should attempt to avoid both extremes (Doniger and Kakar 78-81).

After the virgin begins to trust him, he may begin to make greater sexual advances involving her, like those that are laid out in chapter three (Doniger and Kakar 82-86). These advances include: playing games with her, giving her gifts, impressing her, and having sex with her foster-sister (Doniger and Kakar 83-84). These advancements will lead to responses from her, and those are also laid out in the third chapter to ensure that the man will be able to understand how she is feeling in regard to his actions (Doniger and Kakar 85-86). Many of the advances that a man can carry out are with the help of other women communicating with the one he wants. These conversations normally involve confessions of his good qualities, or their own established love for him, in order to make the desired woman also want to love him (Doniger and Kakar 83). The fourth chapter discusses how consistent a man should be with his particular advances to eventually wear her down, and it also specifies how a virgin can advance toward a man she desires (Doniger and Kakar 86-90). In order to wear her down he has to invest in a regime of touching her whenever possible, especially her feet and toes. He is encouraged to touch her toes enough “so that she eventually tolerates it,” (Doniger and Kakar 87) and then he can continue to touch her feet and eventually the rest of her. The few techniques that he can carry out alone are explained in chapter four, alongside the advances that the virgin can make toward him (Doniger and Kakar 87-89). In this portion of the Kamasutra, the woman is able to become an active agent in the courting process. This is accomplished by the fact that she is able to decide when the man can take her virginity because she is already interested in this event occurring with him (Doniger and Kakar 89).

The second, third, and fourth chapters all develop different features of the courting process, whereby the man uses the methods described in the book to seduce a virgin into marriage and bed with him. The fifth and last chapter entails the devious ways the man can acquire the woman he desires, and help the virgin desire him as he desires her (Doniger and Kakar 90-93). This last chapter is interesting because it defends rape as a viable marriage device in order for the man to get the woman he desires (Doniger and Kakar 93). This chapter is about the methods that a man should employ if he is not winning the virgin over. Aside from rape he can persuade other women to talk to his desired woman about all his good qualities along with the terrible qualities of other suitors (Doniger and Kakar 92). He may also talk to the girl’s mother, or to her brother in order to become the most favourable suitor and stamp out the competition (Doniger and Kakar 92). In all these situations, he will begin a wedding ceremony with the woman he desires, after whichever conversation occurs, therefore creating a circumstance that cannot be avoided or stopped (Doniger and Kakar 92). This is the beginning of a “love-match wedding,” (Doniger and Kakar 92) where a certain fire ritual initiates the ceremony and cannot be taken back (Doniger and Kakar 92).

There are many people around the world who view the Kamasutra as a sex textbook containing only the sex positions and other notions about sex (Doniger 18). This is not entirely true as there is just one book entirely focused on sex and sexual positions, but even that book eludes to other arts besides sex that are necessary for Kama. Book three, for instance, is focused on how to marry the right woman. This is accomplished by allowing a virgin to slowly trust him and any advances that would precede marriage and sex. The third book also examines how these advances could influence the desired woman negatively and/or positively. The Kamasutra was able to lay out and control sexual practices, and allow Hindu people to explore Kama and their erotic pleasures alongside love and Dharma (Gautam 4-6). The Kamasutra as a whole has also been viewed as a text that does not fully explore both genders sexually, especially in regard to women’s pleasures, but that has been disputed through a newer translation release (Doniger 18). This newer translation is able to give a better idea of how women were able to be active in many aspects of Kama, like what is described in sections of book three even when they are being courted.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RELATED READINGS

Doniger, Wendy, and Sudhir Kakar (2002) Vatsyayana Kamasutra. New York: Oxford University Press.

Doniger, Wendy (2003) “The “Kamasutra”: It Isn’t All About Sex.” The Kenyan Review 25(1):18-37. Accessed February 6, 2017.

Gautam, Sanjay K. (2014) “The Courtesan and the Birth of Ars Erotica in the Kamasutra: A History of Erotics in the Wake of Foucault.” Journal of the History of Sexuality 23(1):1-20. Accessed February 6, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.7560/JHS23101.

Rodrigues, Hillary (2016) Hinduism – The eBook: An Online Introduction. Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books, Ltd.

Related Topics for Further Investigation

Kama
Kamasastras
Kamasutra Book One
Kamasutra Book Two
Kamasutra Book Four
Kamasutra Book Five
Kamasutra Book Six
Kamasutra Book Seven
Householder stage
Marriage
Rape
Feminist influences on Kama
Cultural influences on Kama

Websites Related to the Topic

http://mahavidya.ca/category/hindu-social-organization-and-values/kama-and-kama-sutras-and-shastras/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kama_Sutra

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Kama_Sutra

http://www.spaceandmotion.com/kamasutra.htm

http://www.sacred-texts.com/sex/kama/index.htm

https://prelectur.stanford.edu/lecturers/doniger/

Article written by: Justine Fisher (Spring 2017), who is entirely responsible for its content.