Harivaṃśa
The Harivaṃśa, meaning "the dynasty of Hari," is a significant Sanskrit text often viewed as an appendix to the Mahābhārata, one of the great epics of ancient India. It primarily chronicles the legends of Krishna, a revered figure in Hinduism, and explores the Vrsni-Andhaka clan to which he belongs. In addition to these narratives, the Harivaṃśa also includes tales about the incarnations of Vishnu, reflecting the text's connection to broader themes of divine worship prevalent in Hindu traditions.
Scholars often categorize the Harivaṃśa alongside the Purāṇas, a class of texts that promote the veneration of deities such as Vishnu and Śiva, which remain integral to contemporary Hindu practices. Composed in a poetic dialect similar to that found in other epics like the Rāmāyaṇa, the Harivaṃśa features approximately 18,000 stanzas in its longest version, although recent editions present a shorter, potentially older variant. This text not only serves as a narrative source for Krishna’s exploits but also contributes to understanding the cultural and religious milieu of ancient India.
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Harivaṃśa
Related civilization: India.
Date: third or fourth century c.e.
Locale: India
Authorship: Composite; attributed to legendary author Vyāsa
Harivaṃśa
The Harivaṃśa—(hah-ree-VAHM-shah) “the dynasty (or lineage) of Hari,” the latter an epithet of either the god Vishnu (Viṣṇu) or Krishna—is most widely known as an appendix to the longer epic Mahābhārata (400 b.c.e.-400 c.e., present form by c. 400 c.e.; The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, 1887-1896). The earlier epic had dealt with a dynastic struggle in the clan of the Kurus, but the Harivaṃśa (translated in English as A Prose English Translation of Harivamsha, 1897) deals with the Vrsni-Andhaka clan to which Krishna belongs. Sometimes, however, the Harivaṃśa is said to belong to a later class of epic texts known collectively as the Purāṇas, whose contents promote the worship of Vishnu and Śiva, still prominent in modern Hinduism.
Besides the lengthy legend of the hero and deity Krishna, the Harivaṃśa contains other legends and myths, such as accounts of the incarnations of the god Vishnu. The text is composed in Sanskrit of roughly the same epic or poetic dialect as found in the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyaṇa (c. 500 b.c.e., some material added later; English translation, 1870-1889). In its longest version, the Harivaṃśa consists of about 18,000 stanzas, although its most recent editors have separated out a text one-third that length that they argue is significantly older than the remainder.
Bibliography
Brockington, John. The Sanskrit Epics. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1998.
Hiltebeitel, Alf. Rethinking India’s Oral and Classical Epics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.