Purāṇas
The Purāṇas are a significant collection of ancient texts within Hinduism, believed to have emerged during the Gupta dynasty period (approximately the 4th to 6th centuries CE). They are often recognized as vital sources of mythology, religious instruction, and cultural history, encapsulating the beliefs and practices of Hindu society. Traditionally attributed to the sage Vyāsa and ancient bards known as sūtas, the Purāṇas are considered by adherents to be divinely inspired, emanating from sacred origins akin to the Vedas.
With a core set of eighteen major Purāṇas known as Mahāpurāṇas, these texts celebrate various deities, primarily focusing on Brahmā, Vishnu, and Śiva, which centralize the religious narratives within the sects of Vaishnavism and Śaivism. They not only convey the fundamental ideas of Hinduism through mythological tales but also address a wide range of topics, including cosmogony, genealogy, rituals, and moral teachings. Historically, the Purāṇas have played a crucial role in making religious knowledge accessible to lower castes, enriching the spiritual landscape of India. Their influence extends across various aspects of life, including art, festivals, and social practices, and they are regarded as essential texts that have shaped Hindu thought and culture for over two millennia.
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Subject Terms
Purāṇas
Related civilizations: Gupta Empire, India.
Date: fourth-sixth centuries c.e.
Locale: India
Authorship: Compilation attributed to the mythical sage Vyāsa
Purāṇas
The Purāṇas (pew-RAW-nahs) belong to the Gupta dynasty period of Indian history, when divergent sects, rituals, and theories fused into one neo-Brahmanical religion called Hinduism. These anthologies unified India religiously with a firm pantheon and mythology accepted throughout Hindu India. Long before the common era, the term purāṇa referred to “ancient tales and legends” of religious instructions. When the Purāṇas first appeared is difficult to ascertain. They claim great antiquity, and Vedic literature, recognizing their sacred origin, considered them the fifth Veda. Authorship was attributed to ancient sūtas, or bards, and compilation to the legendary sage Vyāsa. Orthodoxy considers the Purāṇas divinely inspired, with their chief narrators receiving their information through Vyāsa from god himself. Although the original Purāṇas can be traced back to the sixth century b.c.e., scholars believe that the existing works date from the golden age of the Guptas, the fourth to sixth centuries c.e., the dividing line between ancient and existing works.
Tradition dubbed eighteen purāṇas as Mahāpurāṇas; these along with a series of secondary works called Upapurāṇas formed a canon by the ninth century c.e. The Bhāgavata Purāṇas are devoted to Vishnu (Viṣṇu) and are the most significant, while the Vāyu, Linga, and Kūrma extol the god Śiva (Shiva).
Although the character and contents of the most ancient Purāṇas are a mystery, the chief Mahapurāṇas contain much of the old legendary material. They convey the fundamental ideas of Hinduism through the mythological tales that are also woven into the lives of the people in festivals, ceremonies, and temple artwork so visible throughout the Hindu world. As sectarian texts, they center on the lives and deeds of the triune gods Brahmā, Vishnu, and Śiva and their incarnations as developed in the two theistic sects of Vaishnavism and Śaivism (Shaivism). They brought into the mainstream of Indian religious thought deities and concepts from non-Brahmanical traditions and elevated the local cults to the level of Vedic religion. During the Vedic period, the Purāṇas became the religious belief system and literature of the lower castes, which were forbidden religious participation. The cosmogonic myths of the Purāṇas treat the formation of the world, the deeds of the gods, heroic figures of the past, genealogies of royal families and sages, festivals of the gods, prayer and proper manner of worship, deities of caste, and sacred sites and sanctuaries. They present a great insight into astrology, astronomy, politics, warfare, superstitions, medicine, agriculture, grammar, lexicography, and the Hindu social system. Considered the real Vedas for the masses, the Purāṇas exerted a profound influence on all aspects of life in Hindu India for at least two thousand years.
Bibliography
Dimmitt, Cornelia, and J. A. B. Van Buitenen, eds. and trans. Classical Hindu Mythology: A Reader in the Sanskrit Puranas. Philadelphia.: Temple University Press, 1978.
Hazra, R. C. Studies in the Puranic Records on Hindu Rites and Customs. Calcutta, India: University of Dacca, 1940.
Kulkami, S. D., ed. The Puranas: The Encyclopedia of Indian History and Culture. Bombay, India: Bhishma, 1993.
Zimmer, Heinrich. Myths and Symbols of Indian Art and Civilization. New York: Harper and Row, 1962.