144-589: The Kamakshi Amman Temple , also known as Kamakoti Nayaki Kovil , is a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess Kamakshi , one of the highest aspects of Adi Parashakti , the supreme goddess in Shaktism . The temple is located in the historic city of Kanchipuram , near Chennai , India . It may have been founded in the 5th-8th century CE by the Pallava kings, whose capital was in Kanchipuram. It may also have been built by
288-415: A citramekhala (also called mayura , peacock ) is shown beside the goddess. The peacock symbolizes colorful splendor, the celebration of dance, and – as the devourer of snakes – the alchemical ability to transmute the serpent poison of self into the radiant plumage of enlightenment . Many different avatars and forms of Sarasvati have been attested in scriptures. She is venerated as MahaSarasvati in
432-464: A pustaka (book or script), a mālā (rosary, garland), a water pot and a musical instrument ( vīnā ). The book she holds symbolizes the Vedas representing the universal, divine, eternal, and true knowledge as well as all forms of learning. A mālā of crystals, representing the power of meditation, inner reflection, and spirituality. A pot of water represents the purifying power to separate right from wrong,
576-517: A swan ( hamsa ). According to the Matsya Purana , Brahma generated Sarasvati, here also called by other names like Shatarupa , Savitri, Gayatri and Brahmani , out of himself for the purpose of creation. The Matsya Purana then describes how Brahma begins to desire her intensely and cannot stop looking at her. Noticing his amorous glances, she begins circumambulating him. Not wishing to keep turning his face to see her, Brahma produced faces on
720-489: A Hindu religious identity". Scholars state that Hindu, Buddhist and Jain identities are retrospectively-introduced modern constructions. Inscriptional evidence from the 8th century onwards, in regions such as South India, suggests that medieval era India, at both elite and folk religious practices level, likely had a "shared religious culture", and their collective identities were "multiple, layered and fuzzy". Even among Hinduism denominations such as Shaivism and Vaishnavism,
864-653: A common name for the country. Al-Biruni 's 11th-century text Tarikh Al-Hind , and the texts of the Delhi Sultanate period use the term 'Hindu', where it includes all non-Islamic people such as Buddhists, and retains the ambiguity of being "a region or a religion". The 'Hindu' community occurs as the amorphous 'Other' of the Muslim community in the court chronicles, according to the Indian historian Romila Thapar . The comparative religion scholar Wilfred Cantwell Smith notes that
1008-523: A consequence, religious groups have an interest in being recognised as distinct from the Hindu majority in order to qualify as a "religious minority". Thus, the Supreme Court was forced to consider the question whether Jainism is part of Hinduism in 2005 and 2006. Starting after the 10th century and particularly after the 12th century Islamic invasion, states Sheldon Pollock , the political response fused with
1152-556: A cow and a mother, and saw themselves as children sucking the milk of dhī from her. In Book 10 of the Rigveda , she is declared to be the "possessor of knowledge". In later sources, like the Yajur Veda , Sarasvati is directly identified with Vāc, becoming a deity called Sarasvatī-Vāc. In the Brahmanas , Sarasvati-Vac's role expands, becoming clearly identified with knowledge (which is what
1296-576: A diversity of beliefs, and seems to oscillate between Hindus holding a centralist and pluralist religious views. In the texts of Delhi Sultanate era, states Sharma, the term Hindu remains ambiguous on whether it means people of a region or religion, giving the example of Ibn Battuta's explanation of the name "Hindu Kush" for a mountain range in Afghanistan. It was so called, wrote Ibn Battuta, because many Indian slaves died there of snow cold, as they were marched across that mountain range. The term Hindu there
1440-566: A fixed set of religious beliefs within Hinduism. One need not be religious in the minimal sense, states Julius Lipner , to be accepted as Hindu by Hindus, or to describe oneself as Hindu. Hindus subscribe to a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but have no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, nor a single founding prophet; Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist. Because of
1584-497: A furious tirade against Ganga, accusing her of stealing Vishnu's love away from her. When Ganga appealed to her husband to help her, he opted to remain neutral, not wishing to participate in a quarrel between his three wives, whom he loved equally. When Lakshmi attempted to soothe Sarasvati's anger by reasoning with her, the jealous goddess grew angry with her as well, accusing her of disloyalty towards her. She cursed Lakshmi to be born as
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#17328524961781728-738: A huge structure of the Sri Yantra in a yoni shaped trough, in-front of the Kamakshi idol. Durvasa is thus the traditional teacher of Sri Vidya and foremost Gurus of the Sri Vidhya Parampara. Adi Shankara is credited for consecrating the current Sri Yantra sculpture. The deities who composed the Lalita Sahasranama can be seen around the Sri Yantra in the same positions as depicted in Manidvipa ,
1872-442: A metaphor for the pursuit of wisdom amidst the complexities of life, the ability to discriminate between good and evil, truth from untruth, essence from the outward show, and the eternal from the evanescent. Due to her association with the swan, Sarasvati is also referred to as Hamsavāhini , which means "she who has a hamsa as her vehicle". The swan is also a symbolism for spiritual perfection, transcendence and moksha . Sometimes
2016-401: A reasonable construction of history. However, the existence of non-textual evidence such as cave temples separated by thousands of kilometers, as well as lists of medieval era pilgrimage sites, is evidence of a shared sacred geography and existence of a community that was self-aware of shared religious premises and landscape. Further, it is a norm in evolving cultures that there is a gap between
2160-430: A result of Western influence during its colonial history. Scholars such as Fleming and Eck state that the post-Epic era literature from the 1st millennium CE amply demonstrate that there was a historic concept of the Indian subcontinent as a sacred geography, where the sacredness was a shared set of religious ideas. For example, the twelve Jyotirlingas of Shaivism and fifty-one Shaktipithas of Shaktism are described in
2304-653: A river on earth, and that another would later become the spouse of Brahma. In the Rigveda , Sarasvati is primarily depicted as a river goddess, embodying fertility and purity, and is revered as the personification of the Sarasvati River. Her role as the nurturing, life-giving force of the river is celebrated in hymns, where she is described as "the best of mothers, of rivers, and of goddesses." A Rigvedic prayer also describes her as 'the best of mothers, of rivers and of goddesses'. However, as Sarasvati’s association with knowledge, speech, and culture grew in prominence through
2448-625: A sacred pilgrimage site is documented in the Varanasimahatmya text embedded inside the Skanda Purana , and the oldest versions of this text are dated to 6th to 8th-century CE. The idea of twelve sacred sites in Shiva Hindu tradition spread across the Indian subcontinent appears not only in the medieval era temples but also in copper plate inscriptions and temple seals discovered in different sites. According to Bhardwaj, non-Hindu texts such as
2592-747: A saint. [...] When Khusraw stopped at his residence, [Arjan] came out and had an interview with [Khusraw]. Giving him some elementary spiritual precepts picked up here and there, he made a mark with saffron on his forehead, which is called qashqa in the idiom of the Hindus and which they consider lucky. When this was reported to me, I realized how perfectly false he was and ordered him brought to me. I awarded his houses and dwellings and those of his children to Murtaza Khan, and I ordered his possessions and goods confiscated and him executed. Sikh scholar Pashaura Singh states, "in Persian writings, Sikhs were regarded as Hindu in
2736-473: A sheltering tree in Rigveda 7.95.5, while in 6:49:7 cd she is said to provide "protection which is difficult to assail." In some passages she even takes a fiercesome appearance and is called a "slayer of strangers" who is called on to "guard her devotees against slander". Her association with the combative storm gods called Maruts is related to her fierce fighting aspect and they are said to be her companions (at Rigveda 7:96:2c.). Like Indra, Sarasvati
2880-476: A spiritual concept of a goddess that embodies knowledge, arts, music, melody, muse, language, rhetoric, eloquence, creative work and anything whose flow purifies the essence and self of a person. Sarasvati (Sanskrit: Sarasvatī ) is known by many names. Some examples of synonyms for Sarasvati include Sharada (bestower of essence or knowledge), Brahmani (power of Brahma), Brahmi (goddess of sciences), Bharadi (goddess of history), Vani and Vachi (both referring to
3024-581: A uniform civil code, where all citizens are subject to the same laws, everyone has equal civil rights, and individual rights do not depend on the individual's religion. In contrast, opponents of Hindu nationalists remark that eliminating religious law from India poses a threat to the cultural identity and religious rights of Muslims, and people of Islamic faith have a constitutional right to Islamic shariah -based personal laws. A specific law, contentious between Hindu nationalists and their opponents in India, relates to
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#17328524961783168-645: A unique and distinctly human quality. She becomes linked with the dimension of reality characterized by clarity and intellectual order. Within the goddess oriented Shaktism tradition, Sarasvati is a key figure and venerated as the creative aspect of the Supreme Goddess . She is also significant in certain Vaishnava traditions, where she serves as one of Vishnu 's consorts and assists him in his divine functions. Despite her associations with these male deities, Sarasvati equally stands apart as an independent goddess in
3312-598: A wedding or when a baby is born or cremation rituals. Some Hindus go on pilgrimage to shared sites they consider spiritually significant, practice one or more forms of bhakti or puja , celebrate mythology and epics, major festivals, love and respect for guru and family, and other cultural traditions. A Hindu could: In the Constitution of India , the word "Hindu" has been used in some places to denote persons professing any of these religions: Hinduism , Jainism , Buddhism or Sikhism . This however has been challenged by
3456-676: Is Maasi Pooram, which is the Avirbhava dhina of Lalitha Maha Tripura Sundari in Kanchi. Other than that, the chariot festival ( Ther ) and float festival, (Theppam) are held. Other festivals include Navaratri, Aadi and Aippasi Pooram, Sankara Jayanthi and Vasanta Utsavam in the Tamil month of Vaikasi. All Fridays are considered sacred, though the Fridays in the Tamil months of Adi (mid-July to mid-August) and Thai (mid-January to mid-February) are celebrated. The temple
3600-469: Is a controversial political subject, with no consensus about what it means or implies in terms of the form of government and religious rights of the minorities. There are 1.2 billion Hindus worldwide (15% of world's population), with about 95% of them being concentrated in India alone. Along with Christians (31.5%), Muslims (23.2%) and Buddhists (7.1%), Hindus are one of the four major religious groups of
3744-654: Is a key figure in the Indian goddess centered traditions which are today known as Shaktism . Sarasvati appears in the Puranic Devi Mahatmya ( Glory of the Goddess ), a central text for Shaktism which was appended to the Markandeya Purana during the 6th century CE. In this text, she is part of the "triple goddess" ( Tridevi ) along with Mahakali , and Mahalakshmi . In Shaktism, this trinity (the Shakta response to
3888-464: Is a term used to describe the culture and identity of Hindus and Hinduism , including the historic Vedic people . Hindu culture can be intensively seen in the form of art , architecture , history , diet , clothing , astrology and other forms. The culture of India and Hinduism is deeply influenced and assimilated with each other. With the Indianisation of southeast Asia and Greater India ,
4032-417: Is also called a slayer of Vritra , the snake like demon of drought who blocks rivers and as such is associated with destruction of enemies and removal of obstacles. The Yajur Veda sees her as being both the mother of Indra (having granted him rebirth through healing) and also as his consort. In Book 2 of Taittiriya Brahmana , Sarasvati is called "the mother of eloquent speech and melodious music". In
4176-431: Is also said to be a manifestation of the supreme Mahadevi. In Tantric Shakta sources, Sarasvati takes many forms. A key tantric form is Matangi , a deity considered to be the "Tantric Sarasvati". Mātaṅgī retains many attributes of Sarasvati, like music and learning, but is also associated with defeating enemies, disease, pollution/impurity, and outcasts ( chandalas ). She is often offered half eaten or leftover food and
4320-487: Is also the center for the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham . Hindu Traditional Hindus ( Hindustani: [ˈɦɪndu] ; / ˈ h ɪ n d uː z / ; also known as Sanātanīs ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism , also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma . Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for people living in
4464-651: Is ambivalent and could mean geographical region or religion. The term Hindu appears in the texts from the Mughal Empire era. Jahangir , for example, called the Sikh Guru Arjan a Hindu: There was a Hindu named Arjan in Gobindwal on the banks of the Beas River. Pretending to be a spiritual guide, he had won over as devotees many simple-minded Indians and even some ignorant, stupid Muslims by broadcasting his claims to be
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4608-474: Is an organic relation of Sikhs to Hindus, states Zaehner, both in religious thought and their communities, and virtually all Sikhs' ancestors were Hindus. Marriages between Sikhs and Hindus, particularly among Khatris , were frequent. Some Hindu families brought up a son as a Sikh, and some Hindus view Sikhism as a tradition within Hinduism, even though the Sikh faith is a distinct religion. Julius Lipner states that
4752-544: Is associated with wealth, abundance, health, purity and healing. In Book 10 (10.17) of the Rigveda , Sarasvati is celebrated as a deity of healing and purifying water. In the Atharva Veda , her role as a healer and giver of life is also emphasized. In various sources, including the Yajur Veda , she is described as having healed Indra after he drank too much Soma . Sarasvati also governs dhī (Rigveda 1:3:12c.). Dhī
4896-648: Is believed to have established the shrine by consecrating a Sri Yantra in front of the idol. He composed the Lalita Stavaratna , also called the Arya Dwishati , describing Manidvipa , the abode of Kamakshi. He also composed the Tripura Mahimna Stotra , a complete shastra in itself, and also the Para Shambho Mahima Stotra . Due to a curse by Saraswati , he was born as a deaf and mute man and
5040-494: Is communicated through speech) and as such, she is "the mother of the Vedas " as well as the Vedas themselves. The Shatapatha Brahmana states that "as all waters meet in the ocean...so all sciences (vidya) unite (ekayanam) in Vāc" (14:5:4:11). The Shatapatha Brahmana also presents Vāc as a secondary creator deity, having been the first deity created by the creator god Prajapati . She is
5184-631: Is documented in Islamic literature such as those relating to 8th century Muhammad bin-Qasim , 11th century Mahmud of Ghazni , the Persian traveler Al Biruni, the 14th century Islamic army invasion led by Timur, and various Sunni Islamic rulers of the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire. There were occasional exceptions such as Akbar who stopped the persecution of Hindus, and occasional severe persecution such as under Aurangzeb , who destroyed temples, forcibly converted non-Muslims to Islam and banned
5328-427: Is generally shown to have four arms, but sometimes just two. When shown with four hands, those hands symbolically mirror her husband Brahma's four heads, representing manas (mind, sense), buddhi (intellect, reasoning), citta (imagination, creativity), and ahamkāra (self consciousness, ego). Brahma represents the abstract, while she represents action and reality. The four hands hold items with symbolic meaning –
5472-468: Is green in color. Matangi is also part of the Shakta set of goddesses known as the ten Mahavidyas . Matangi is important in Shri Vidya Shaktism, where she is also known as the dark blue Shyamala ("dark in complexion") and is a manifestation of Lalita Tripurasundari 's Jñana Shakti (wisdom power), having arisen out of Lalita's sugarcane bow. She is celebrated in the holiday Syamala Navaratri and
5616-582: Is one of the most important centers of Shaktism in the state of Tamil Nadu . The Sri Kamakshi Amman Temple is dedicated to the goddess Kamakshi , one of the highest aspects of Adi Parashakti , the mighty goddess in Shaktism . Kamakshi is praised as 'Sri Mata' (respected mother) as the first name in the Lalitha Sahasranama . This temple is also one of the 18 main Shakti Peethas . The temple occupies an area of 5 acres (2.0 ha). The sanctum houses
5760-410: Is seen as Lalita's prime minister. There are various chants and odes ( stotras ) to this deity, perhaps the most important being the Śrī Śyāmalā Daṇḍakam by the great Indian Sanskrit poet Kalidasa . The goddess Sarasvati is often depicted as a beautiful woman dressed in pure white, often seated on a white lotus , which symbolizes light, knowledge and truth. She not only embodies knowledge but also
5904-419: Is the inspired thought (especially that of the rishis ), it is intuition or intelligence – especially that associated with poetry and religion. Sarasvati is seen as a deity that can grant dhī ( Rigveda 6:49:7c.) if prayed to. Since speech requires inspired thought, she is also inextricably linked with speech and with the goddess of speech, Vāc , as well as with cows and motherhood. Vedic seers compare her to
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6048-554: Is this Rama to be described.. who freed Varanasi from the mleccha (barbarian, Turk Muslim) horde, and built there a golden temple of Sarngadhara". Pollock notes that the Yadava king Ramacandra is described as a devotee of deity Shiva (Shaivism), yet his political achievements and temple construction sponsorship in Varanasi, far from his kingdom's location in the Deccan region, is described in
6192-570: The Brahmanda Purana (chapter 43). Sarasvati is tasked to reside on tip of the tongue of all beings, a river on the earth and as a part of Brahma. A legend in the Bhagavata Purana describes Sarasvati as originally being one of the three wives of Vishnu , along with Lakshmi and Ganga . In the midst of a conversation, Sarasvati observed that Ganga playfully kept glancing at Vishnu, behind Lakshmi and her back. Frustrated, Sarasvati launched
6336-491: The Cholas in the 14th century, and legend also says it was built as recent as 1783. The temple is one of the most important centers of Shaktism in the state of Tamil Nadu . The temple is dedicated mainly to Kamakshi, but also has a shrine for Vishnu , in his form of Varaha . Kamakshi is worshipped in the shrine in five forms. The temple is also the center for the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham . The temple may have been founded by
6480-487: The Hindu Sabhas (Hindu associations), and ultimately a Hindu-identity driven nationalism in the 1920s. The colonial era Hindu revivalism and mobilisation, along with Hindu nationalism, states Peter van der Veer, was primarily a reaction to and competition with Muslim separatism and Muslim nationalism. The successes of each side fed the fears of the other, leading to the growth of Hindu nationalism and Muslim nationalism in
6624-545: The Hindu epic Mahabharata , "Sarasvati appears above all as a sacred river, along which pilgrimages are made. She is also represented as goddess of speech and knowledge." She is called "the best of rivers and greatest of streams", and with calm and tranquil waters, in contrast to the mighty torrential Vedic Sarasvati. Her banks are filled with priests and sages ( rishis ) who practice asceticism and sacrifices on her banks. There are numerous depictions of people making pilgrimages to
6768-517: The Indian subcontinent . It is assumed that the term "Hindu" traces back to Avestan scripture Vendidad which refers to land of seven rivers as Hapta Hendu which itself is a cognate to Sanskrit term Sapta Sindhuḥ (This term Sapta Sindhuḥ is mentioned in RigVeda that refers to a North western Indian region of seven rivers and as an India whole). The Greek cognates of the same terms are " Indus " (for
6912-860: The Kural literature and its author Valluvar , she is referred to as Nāmagal and is believed to have composed the second verse. Outside Nepal and India, she is known in Burmese as Thurathadi ( သူရဿတီ , pronounced [θùja̰ðədì] or [θùɹa̰ðədì] ) or Tipitaka Medaw ( တိပိဋကမယ်တော် , pronounced [tḭpḭtəka̰ mɛ̀dɔ̀] ), in Chinese as Biàncáitiān ( 辯才天 ), in Japanese as Benzaiten ( 弁才天/弁財天 ) and in Thai as Suratsawadi ( สุรัสวดี ) or Saratsawadi ( สรัสวดี ). In Hinduism , Sarasvati has retained her significance as an important goddess, from
7056-571: The Pallava kings in the 5th-8th century, whose capital was in Kanchipuram. The temple is glorified by the 6th-9th century Vaishnavite Alvars (Tamil saint poets) in the Naalayira Divya Prabandham (compiled 9th century). It was modified in the fourteenth and seventeenth century. According to Babu, it was built by the Chola's in the 14th century. Koskoff refers to a legend about the golden statue of Kamakshi. According to this legend, after
7200-697: The Sarasvati River and is mentioned as one among several northwestern Indian rivers such as the Drishadvati . Sarasvati, then, connotes a river deity. In Book 2, the Rigveda describes Sarasvati as the best of mothers, of rivers, of goddesses. Her importance grows in the later Vedas composed after the Rigveda as well as in the later Brahmana texts, and the word evolves in its meaning from "waters that purify", to "that which purifies", to " vach (speech) that purifies", to "knowledge that purifies", and ultimately into
7344-565: The Sarasvati River , making her one of the earliest examples of a river goddess in Indian tradition. As a deity associated with a river, Sarasvati is revered for her dual abilities to purify and to nurture fertility. In later Vedic literature, particularly the Brahmanas , Sarasvati is increasingly identified with the Vedic goddess of speech, Vac , and eventually, the two merge into the singular goddess known in later tradition. Over time, her connection to
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#17328524961787488-470: The Tulasi plant upon the earth. Ganga, now enraged that Lakshmi had been cursed because she had defended her, cursed Sarasvati that she would be incarnated as a river on earth. Sarasvati issued the same curse against Ganga, informing her that sinful men would cleanse themselves of their sins with her water. As a result, Vishnu proclaimed that one part of Sarasvati would remain with him, that another would exist as
7632-578: The United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom . These together accounted for 99% of the world's Hindu population, and the remaining nations of the world combined had about 6 million Hindus as of 2010 . The word Hindu is an exonym . This word Hindu is derived from the Indo-Aryan and Sanskrit word Sindhu , which means "a large body of water", covering "river, ocean". It was used as
7776-813: The Upanishads . The Puranas and the Itihasa (mainly Ramayana and the Mahabharata ) are enduring traditions among Indonesian Hindus, expressed in community dances and shadow puppet ( wayang ) performances. As in India, Indonesian Hindus recognise four paths of spirituality, calling it Catur Marga . Similarly, like Hindus in India, Balinese Hindus believe that there are four proper goals of human life, calling it Catur Purusartha – dharma (pursuit of moral and ethical living), artha (pursuit of wealth and creative activity), kama (pursuit of joy and love) and moksha (pursuit of self-knowledge and liberation). Hindu culture
7920-613: The Vedic age up to the present day. She is praised in the Vedas as a water goddess of purification, while in the Dharmashastras , Sarasvati is invoked to remind the reader to meditate on virtue, and on the meaning ( artha ) of one's actions ( karma ). Sarasvati first appears in the Rigveda , the most ancient source of the Vedic religion . Sarawsati holds significant religious and symbolic value in
8064-399: The "lived and historical realities" of a religious tradition and the emergence of related "textual authorities". The tradition and temples likely existed well before the medieval era Hindu manuscripts appeared that describe them and the sacred geography. This, states Fleming, is apparent given the sophistication of the architecture and the sacred sites along with the variance in the versions of
8208-583: The 17th-century Bhakta Mala text using the phrase "Hindu dharma ". Scholar Arvind Sharma notes that the term "Hindus" was used in the 'Brahmanabad settlement' which Muhammad ibn Qasim made with non-Muslims after the Arab invasion of northwestern Sindh region of India, in 712 CE. The term 'Hindu' meant people who were non-Muslims, and it included Buddhists of the region. In the 11th-century text of Al Biruni, Hindus are referred to as "religious antagonists" to Islam, as those who believe in rebirth, presents them to hold
8352-767: The 1920s, as a reaction to the Islamic Khilafat Movement wherein Indian Muslims championed and took the cause of the Turkish Ottoman sultan as the Caliph of all Muslims, at the end of the World War I . Hindus viewed this development as one of divided loyalties of Indian Muslim population, of pan-Islamic hegemony, and questioned whether Indian Muslims were a part of an inclusive anti-colonial Indian nationalism. The Hindu nationalism ideology that emerged, states Jeffrelot,
8496-524: The 19th century as a response to British colonialism by Indian nationalists and neo-Hinduism gurus. Jaffrelot states that the efforts of Christian missionaries and Islamic proselytizers, during the British colonial era, each of whom tried to gain new converts to their own religion, by stereotyping and stigmatising Hindus to an identity of being inferior and superstitious, contributed to Hindus re-asserting their spiritual heritage and counter cross examining Islam and Christianity, forming organisations such as
8640-400: The 7th-century CE Chinese text Records on the Western Regions by the Buddhist scholar Xuanzang . Xuanzang uses the transliterated term In-tu whose "connotation overflows in the religious" according to Arvind Sharma . While Xuanzang suggested that the term refers to the country named after the moon, another Buddhist scholar I-tsing contradicted the conclusion saying that In-tu was not
8784-420: The European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. Other prominent mentions of 'Hindu' include the epigraphical inscriptions from Andhra Pradesh kingdoms who battled military expansion of Muslim dynasties in the 14th century, where the word 'Hindu' partly implies a religious identity in contrast to 'Turks' or Islamic religious identity. The term Hindu
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#17328524961788928-678: The Hindu identities, states Leslie Orr, lacked "firm definitions and clear boundaries". Overlaps in Jain-Hindu identities have included Jains worshipping Hindu deities, intermarriages between Jains and Hindus, and medieval era Jain temples featuring Hindu religious icons and sculpture. Beyond India, on Java island of Indonesia , historical records attest to marriages between Hindus and Buddhists, medieval era temple architecture and sculptures that simultaneously incorporate Hindu and Buddhist themes, where Hinduism and Buddhism merged and functioned as "two separate paths within one overall system", according to Ann Kenney and other scholars. Similarly, there
9072-523: The Hindu identity and religious response to Islamic invasion and wars developed in different kingdoms, such as wars between Islamic Sultanates and the Vijayanagara kingdom, and Islamic raids on the kingdoms in Tamil Nadu . These wars were described not just using the mythical story of Rama from Ramayana, states Chattopadhyaya, the medieval records used a wide range of religious symbolism and myths that are now considered as part of Hindu literature. This emergence of religious with political terminology began with
9216-413: The Hindu-majority post-British India. After the separation of India and Pakistan in 1947, the Hindu nationalism movement developed the concept of Hindutva in second half of the 20th century. The Hindu nationalism movement has sought to reform Indian laws, that critics say attempts to impose Hindu values on India's Islamic minority. Gerald Larson states, for example, that Hindu nationalists have sought
9360-701: The Hindus and intensely scrutinized them, but did not interrogate and avoided reporting the practices and religion of Mughal and Arabs in South Asia", and often relied on Muslim scholars to characterise Hindus. In contemporary era, the term Hindus are individuals who identify with one or more aspects of Hinduism , whether they are practising or non-practicing or Laissez-faire . The term does not include those who identify with other Indian religions such as Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism or various animist tribal religions found in India such as Sarnaism . The term Hindu, in contemporary parlance, includes people who accept themselves as culturally or ethnically Hindu rather than with
9504-450: The Indian subcontinent. In the 20th century, the sense of religious nationalism grew in India, states van der Veer, but only Muslim nationalism succeeded with the formation of the West and East Pakistan (later split into Pakistan and Bangladesh), as "an Islamic state" upon independence. Religious riots and social trauma followed as millions of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs moved out of the newly created Islamic states and resettled into
9648-403: The Indic religious culture and doctrines. Temples dedicated to deity Rama were built from north to south India, and textual records as well as hagiographic inscriptions began comparing the Hindu epic of Ramayana to regional kings and their response to Islamic attacks. The Yadava king of Devagiri named Ramacandra , for example states Pollock, is described in a 13th-century record as, "How
9792-413: The Kashmir Shakti Peetha, as Vidhya Sarasvati in Basara and Vargal, and as Sharadamba in Sringeri. In some regions, she is known by her twin identities, Savitri and Gayatri . In Shaktism , she takes her Matrika (mother goddess) avatar as Brahmani . Sarasvati is not just the goddess of knowledge and wisdom, but also the Brahmavidya herself, the goddess of the wisdom of ultimate truth. Her Mahavidya form
9936-515: The Puranic literature. According to Diana L. Eck and other Indologists such as André Wink, Muslim invaders were aware of Hindu sacred geography such as Mathura, Ujjain, and Varanasi by the 11th century. These sites became a target of their serial attacks in the centuries that followed. The Hindus have been persecuted during the medieval and modern era. The medieval persecution included waves of plunder, killing, destruction of temples and enslavement by Turk-Mongol Muslim armies from central Asia. This
10080-432: The Rigveda, as a deified entity embodying attributes of abundance and power. Primarily linked with the celestial domain of Waters (Apas) and the formidable Storm Gods ( Maruts ), this deity forms an integral triadic association alongside the sacrificial goddesses Ila and Bharati within the pantheon. Sarasvati is described as a loud and powerful flood who roars like a bull and cannot be controlled. According to Witzel, she
10224-611: The Sikhs and by neo-Buddhists who were formerly Hindus. According to Sheen and Boyle, Jains have not objected to being covered by personal laws termed under 'Hindu', but Indian courts have acknowledged that Jainism is a distinct religion. The Republic of India is in the peculiar situation that the Supreme Court of India has repeatedly been called upon to define "Hinduism" because the Constitution of India , while it prohibits "discrimination of any citizen" on grounds of religion in article 15, article 30 foresees special rights for "All minorities, whether based on religion or language". As
10368-480: The Sindhu river, therefore some assumptions that medieval Persian authors considered Hindu as derogatory is not accepted by practicing Hindus themselves as those references are much later to references used in pre-Islamic Persian sources, early Arab and Indian sources, all of them had positive connotation only as they either referred to region or followers of Hinduism. The historical development of Hindu self-identity within
10512-467: The Vadavagni in a pot to Sarasvati, and told her to originate from the plaksha tree. Sarasvati merged with the tree, and transformed into a river. From there, she flowed towards Pushkara . Sarasvati continued her journey towards the ocean, and stopped once at Pushkarini, where she redeemed humans from their sins. At last, she reached the end of her journey, and immersed the fire into the ocean. Sarasvati
10656-533: The Yavanas [Muslims], The Kali age now deserves deepest congratulations for being at the zenith of its power, gone is the sacred learning, hidden is refinement, hushed is the voice of Dharma . The historiographic writings in Telugu language from the 13th- and 14th-century Kakatiya dynasty period presents a similar "alien other (Turk)" and "self-identity (Hindu)" contrast. Chattopadhyaya, and other scholars, state that
10800-538: The abode of Kamakshi. Four worship services are offered each day. Every day the temple rituals start with the Gau Pooja and Gaja Pooja. There is a separate shed with elephants, which performs pooja to the deity by trumpeting every day early morning at 5 AM. The annual festival falls in Spring, in the Tamil month of Masi, which runs from mid-February to mid-March. During this Mahotsavam, the most important day to be celebrated
10944-526: The celebration of Hindu festivals such as Holi and Diwali . Other recorded persecution of Hindus include those under the reign of 18th century Tipu Sultan in south India, and during the colonial era. In the modern era, religious persecution of Hindus have been reported outside India in Pakistan and Bangladesh . Christophe Jaffrelot states that modern Hindu nationalism was born in Maharashtra , in
11088-412: The clean from the unclean, and essence from the inessential. In some texts, the pot of water is symbolism for soma – the drink that liberates and leads to knowledge. The most famous feature on Sarasvati is a musical instrument called a veena , represents all creative arts and sciences, and her holding it symbolizes expressing knowledge that creates harmony. Sarasvati is also associated with anurāga ,
11232-505: The consort of other gods, such as Vishnu. In various Puranas, rites for her worship are given, and she is mainly worshiped for her command over speech, knowledge, and music. Puranas like the Matsya also contain iconographic descriptions of Sarasvati, which provide the basis for her classic four armed form holding a book (representing the Vedas), mala , veena , and a water pot while being mounted on
11376-493: The creator deity offered each a boon. The devas pleaded with Brahma to not grant Kumbhakarna his boon. Brahma called upon his consort Sarasvati, and instructed her to utter that which the devas desired. She acquiesced, and when the rakshasa spoke to invoke his boon, she entered his mouth, causing him to say, "To sleep for innumerable years, O Lord of Lords, this is my desire!". She then left his form, causing him to reflect upon his misfortune. Sarasvati remains an important figure in
11520-565: The culture has also influenced a long region and other religions people of that area. All Indian religions , including Buddhism , Jainism and Sikhism are deeply influenced and soft-powered by Hinduism . Saraswati Saraswati ( Sanskrit : सरस्वती , IAST : Sarasvatī ), also spelled as Sarasvati , is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism , revered as the goddess of knowledge, education, learning, arts, speech, poetry, music, purification, language and culture. Together with
11664-431: The custom of distinguishing between Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs is a modern phenomena, but one that is a convenient abstraction. Distinguishing Indian traditions is a fairly recent practice, states Lipner, and is the result of "not only Western preconceptions about the nature of religion in general and of religion in India in particular, but also with the political awareness that has arisen in India" in its people and
11808-673: The day is marked by helping young children learn how to write the letters of the alphabet. In Buddhism , she is venerated in many forms, including the East Asian Benzaiten (辯才天, "Eloquence Talent Deity"). In Jainism , Sarasvati is revered as the deity responsible for the dissemination of the Tirthankaras ' teachings and sermons. Traditional Sarasvati is a Sanskrit fusion word of saras (सरस्) meaning "pooling water", but also sometimes translated as "speech"; and vati (वती), meaning "she who possesses". Originally associated with
11952-464: The deity is now placed inside the Kamakshi temple, in the belief that Vishnu is the brother of Kamakshi. A shrine dedicated to Hayagriva , an avatar of Vishnu and the sage Agastya can be seen in the third enclosure of the temple, at the location where Agastya learned the Lalita Sahasranamam from Hayagriva. The ancient story of Daksha yajna and Sati's self-immolation is the main theme in
12096-456: The earliest known shrines being Sharada Peeth (6th–12th centuries CE) in Kashmir . Sarasvati continues to be widely worshipped across India, particularly on her designated festival day, Vasant Panchami (the fifth day of spring, and also known as Sarasvati Puja and Sarasvati Jayanti in many regions of India), when students honor her as the patron goddess of knowledge and education. Traditionally,
12240-472: The early medieval era Puranas as pilgrimage sites around a theme. This sacred geography and Shaiva temples with same iconography, shared themes, motifs and embedded legends are found across India, from the Himalayas to hills of South India, from Ellora Caves to Varanasi by about the middle of 1st millennium. Shakti temples, dated to a few centuries later, are verifiable across the subcontinent. Varanasi as
12384-478: The events of the Tarakamaya War , the devas deposited their arsenal of weapons at the hermitage of Dadhichi . When they sought the return of these weapons, the sage informed them that he had imbibed all of their power with his penance, and offered his own bones instead, which could serve as the source of new weapons. Despite the objections of the deities, the sage sacrificed himself, and his bones were employed in
12528-433: The experience of the highest reality. Her iconography is typically in white themes from dress to flowers to swan – the colour symbolizing Sattwa Guna or purity, discrimination for true knowledge, insight and wisdom. Her dhyana mantra describes her to be as white as the moon, clad in a white dress, bedecked in white ornaments, radiating with beauty, holding a book and a pen in her hands (the book represents knowledge). She
12672-590: The fall of the Vijayanagar Empire in 1565 the statue had been carried throughout South India by attendants, seeking a permanent temple. From 1739 to 1781 it was enshrined in the Tiruvarur temple, and in 1783 the Kamakshi Amman temple was built for the idol. Sri Kamakshi Amman Temple, along with the goddesses Meenakshi at Madurai , and either Vishalakshi at Varanasi or Akhilandeshwari at Thiruvanaikovil ,
12816-414: The fire in the western ocean, in order to protect the universe. Sarasvati told Vishnu that she would only agree to assist them if her consort, Brahma , told her to do so. Brahma ordered her to deposit the Vadavagni in the western ocean. Sarasvati agreed, and accompanied by Ganga , she left Brahmaloka, and arrived at Sage Uttanka's ashrama . There, she met Shiva , who had decided to carry Ganga. He gave
12960-534: The first Muslim invasion of Sindh in the 8th century CE, and intensified 13th century onwards. The 14th-century Sanskrit text, Madhuravijayam , a memoir written by Gangadevi , the wife of Vijayanagara prince, for example describes the consequences of war using religious terms, I very much lament for what happened to the groves in Madhura , The coconut trees have all been cut and in their place are to be seen, rows of iron spikes with human skulls dangling at
13104-477: The flow of music/song, melodious speech, eloquent speaking respectively), Varnesvari (goddess of letters), Kavijihvagravasini (one who dwells on the tongue of poets). Other names include: Ambika, Bharati, Chandrika, Devi, Gomati, Hamsasana, Saudamini, Shvetambara, Subhadra, Vaishnavi, Vasudha, Vidya, Vidyarupa, and Vindhyavasini. In the Tiruvalluva Maalai , a collection of fifty-five Tamil verses praising
13248-569: The form of parrots , perching on champaka trees at the temple, since parrots always perch on the right hand of the goddesses Meenakshi and Kamakshi . Pleased with their penance, the goddess is said to have appeared through the Bila gate and killed Bhandasura. The Bila gate leading to the Bilakasha tree can be seen today in front of the Tapa Kamakshi shrine inside the sanctum. It is said that Shiva ,
13392-438: The goddess herself states that her knowledge and her beauty arise from gifts made in the sacrifice. The Mahabharata also describes her as the daughter of the creator god Brahma. Later she is described as the celestial creative symphony who appeared when Brahma created the universe. In the epic Ramayana , when the rakshasa brothers Ravana , Vibhishana and Kumbhakarna , performed a penance in order to propitiate Brahma,
13536-500: The goddesses Lakshmi and Parvati , she forms the trinity, known as the Tridevi . Sarasvati is a pan-Indian deity, venerated not only in Hinduism but also in Jainism and Buddhism . She is one of the prominent goddesses in the Vedic tradition (1500 to 500 BCE) who retains her significance in later Hinduism. In the Vedas , her characteristics and attributes are closely connected with
13680-486: The highest percentage of Hindus (in decreasing order) are Nepal , India , Mauritius , Fiji , Guyana , Bhutan , Suriname , Trinidad and Tobago , Qatar , Sri Lanka , Kuwait , Bangladesh , Réunion , Malaysia , and Singapore . The fertility rate, that is children per woman, for Hindus is 2.4, which is less than the world average of 2.5. Pew Research projects that there will be 1.4 billion Hindus by 2050. In more ancient times, Hindu kingdoms arose and spread
13824-598: The historical records in Vaishnavism terms of Rama, a deity Vishnu avatar. Pollock presents many such examples and suggests an emerging Hindu political identity that was grounded in the Hindu religious text of Ramayana, one that has continued into the modern times, and suggests that this historic process began with the arrival of Islam in India. Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya has questioned the Pollock theory and presented textual and inscriptional evidence. According to Chattopadhyaya,
13968-546: The image of Kamakshi in a seated posture and is flanked by the trinity of Shiva , Vishnu , and Brahma . There are smaller shrines of Bangaru (Golden) Kamakshi , Adi Shankara and Saraswati around the sanctum. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu . Goddess Kamakshi is worshipped in the shrine in five forms: In front of
14112-476: The influential Asiatick Researches founded in the 18th century, later called The Asiatic Society , initially identified just two religions in India – Islam, and Hinduism. These orientalists included all Indian religions such as Buddhism as a subgroup of Hinduism in the 18th century. These texts called followers of Islam as Mohamedans , and all others as Hindus . The text, by the early 19th century, began dividing Hindus into separate groups, for chronology studies of
14256-693: The inseparable husband of Shakti worshipped the goddess in the four yugas assuming the forms of the sages Krodha Bhattaraka in the Satya Yuga , Parashurama in the Treta Yuga , Dhaumya in the Dwapara Yuga , and Adi Shankara in the Kali Yuga . It is also said that Shiva assumed the form of Durvasa on her emergence from the tree and first worshipped her by chanting the Sri Vidya Tantra and consecrating
14400-630: The later Hindu texts, her direct connection with the physical river diminished. Despite this, the Puranas sustain Sarasvati's riverine character by incorporating new narratives that preserve her role as a cosmic river in addition to her expanded identity. The story of Sarasvati becoming a river is introduced in the Srishti Khanda of Padma Purana as well as in Skanda Purana . In the Skanda Purana, after
14544-438: The later medieval Puranic literature , where she appears in various myths and stories. Many Puranas relate the myth of her creation by the creator god Brahma and then describe how she became his consort. Sources which describe this myth include Markandeya Purana , Matsya Purana (which contains the most extensive account), Vayu Purana and Brahmanda Purana . Other Puranas give her slightly different roles and see her as
14688-486: The legal age of marriage for girls. Hindu nationalists seek that the legal age for marriage be eighteen that is universally applied to all girls regardless of their religion and that marriages be registered with local government to verify the age of marriage. Muslim clerics consider this proposal as unacceptable because under the shariah-derived personal law, a Muslim girl can be married at any age after she reaches puberty. Hindu nationalism in India, states Katharine Adeney,
14832-664: The local Indian population, in a religious or cultural sense, is unclear. Competing theories state that Hindu identity developed in the British colonial era , or that it may have developed post-8th century CE after the Muslim invasions and medieval Hindu–Muslim wars . A sense of Hindu identity and the term Hindu appears in some texts dated between the 13th and 18th century in Sanskrit and Bengali . The 14th- and 18th-century Indian poets such as Vidyapati , Kabir , Tulsidas and Eknath used
14976-414: The love for and rhythm of music, which represents all emotions and feelings expressed in speech or music. A hamsa – either a swan or a goose – is often shown near her feet. In Hindu mythology , the hamsa is a sacred bird, which if offered a mixture of milk and water, is said to have a unique ability to separate and drink the milk alone, and leave the water behind. This characteristic of the bird serves as
15120-407: The main shrine, is the shrine of Durvasa , considered to be an avatar of Shiva . There are thirty-two chief assistants of the goddess eg. Surya , Chandra , Kubera , etc. Among these, Kamadeva , Lopamudra and Durvasa are the chief assistants. Durvasa represents the sattva power of the goddess, used to protect and correct her devotees, and thus her limitless power and grace. It is Durvasa who
15264-493: The male trimurti of the other Hindu sects) is a manifestation of Mahadevi , the supreme goddess (and the highest deity out of which all deities, male or female, are born), which is also known by other names like Adi Parashakti ("Primordial Supreme Power"). According to the Devi Mahatmya , this supreme goddess is the primordial creator which is supreme formless (nirguna) consciousness (i.e. parabrahman , absolute reality) and
15408-442: The manufacture of new arms by Vishvakarma . The sage's son, Pippalada , upon hearing these events, sought to wreak his vengeance on the devas by performing a penance. A mare emerged from his right thigh, which in turn gave birth to a fiery man, Vadava, who threatened to be the doom of all of creation. Vishnu convinced Vadava that his best course of action would be to swallow the devas one by one, and that he should begin by consuming
15552-509: The memoirs of Chinese Buddhist and Persian Muslim travellers attest to the existence and significance of the pilgrimage to sacred geography among Hindus by later 1st millennium CE. According to Fleming, those who question whether the term Hindu and Hinduism are a modern construction in a religious context present their arguments based on some texts that have survived into the modern era, either of Islamic courts or of literature published by Western missionaries or colonial-era Indologists aiming for
15696-415: The mid-19th century, colonial orientalist texts further distinguished Hindus from Buddhists , Sikhs and Jains , but the colonial laws continued to consider all of them to be within the scope of the term Hindu until about mid-20th century. Scholars state that the custom of distinguishing between Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs is a modern phenomenon. At approximately 1.2 billion, Hindus are
15840-399: The military and political campaign during the medieval era wars in Deccan peninsula of India, and in the north India, were no longer a quest for sovereignty, they embodied a political and religious animosity against the "otherness of Islam", and this began the historical process of Hindu identity formation. Andrew Nicholson, in his review of scholarship on Hindu identity history, states that
15984-428: The most visited. According to legend, Tripura Sundari settled here after killing a demon . Tantric texts such as Tripura Rahasya, Bahvrucha Upanishad, as well as Puranas such Brahmanda Purana and Markandeya Purana discuss how Tripura Sundari resides in Kanchipuram. According to ancient scriptures, the gods were tormented by the demon Bhandasura , and performed penance to appease the goddess Adi Parashakti in
16128-611: The name of the Indus River and also referred to its tributaries. The actual term 'hindu' first occurs, states Gavin Flood, as "a Persian geographical term for the people who lived beyond the river Indus (Sanskrit: Sindhu )", more specifically in the 5th-century BCE, DNa inscription of Darius I . The Punjab region , called Sapta Sindhu in the Vedas, is called Hapta Hindu in Zend Avesta . The 6th-century BCE inscription of Darius I mentions
16272-485: The origin of Shakti Peethas. Shakti Peethas are the divine temples of Adi Parashakti . The cause of the presence of the goddess is due to the falling of body parts of the corpse of Sati , Shiva's first wife. The navel part of Sati's body is believed to have fallen here in Kanchipuram, giving the name Nabhi Peetham or Odhyana Peetham . There are 51 Shakti Peethas linked to the 51 alphabets in Sanskrit, out of which 18 are
16416-473: The pantheon, worshipped without a consort. She is portrayed as a serene woman with a radiant white complexion, dressed in white attire, representing the quality of sattva (goodness). She has four arms, each holding a symbolic object: a book, a rosary, a water pot, and a musical instrument known as the veena . Beside her is her mount, either a hamsa (white goose or swan) or a peacock. Hindu temples dedicated to Sarasvati can be found worldwide, with one of
16560-431: The phrase Hindu dharma (Hinduism) and contrasted it with Turaka dharma ( Islam ). The Christian friar Sebastiao Manrique used the term 'Hindu' in a religious context in 1649. In the 18th century, European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus , in contrast to Mohamedans for groups such as Turks, Mughals and Arabs , who were adherents of Islam. By
16704-511: The points, In the highways which were once charming with anklets sound of beautiful women, are now heard ear-piercing noises of Brahmins being dragged, bound in iron-fetters, The waters of Tambraparni , which were once white with sandal paste, are now flowing red with the blood of cows slaughtered by miscreants, Earth is no longer the producer of wealth, nor does Indra give timely rains, The God of death takes his undue toll of what are left lives if undestroyed by
16848-408: The primordial water of creation, which was the foremost of both the devas and the asuras. Vadava wished to be accompanied to the source of these waters by a virgin, and so Sarasvati was dispatched for his purpose, despite her reluctance. She took him to Varuna , the god of the ocean, who then consumed the being. For good measure, Sarasvati transformed into a divine river, flowing with five channels into
16992-433: The province of Hi[n]dush , referring to northwestern India. The people of India were referred to as Hinduvān and hindavī was used as the adjective for Indian language in the 8th century text Chachnama . According to D. N. Jha , the term 'Hindu' in these ancient records is an ethno-geographical term and did not refer to a religion. Among the earliest known records of 'Hindu' with connotations of religion may be in
17136-464: The religion and traditions across Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand , Nepal , Burma , Malaysia , Indonesia , Cambodia , Laos , Philippines , and what is now central Vietnam . Over 3 million Hindus are found in Bali Indonesia, a culture whose origins trace back to ideas brought by Hindu traders to Indonesian islands in the 1st millennium CE. Their sacred texts are also the Vedas and
17280-449: The religions have drawn their curved swords;" however, the date of this text is unclear and considered by most scholars to be more recent. In Islamic literature, 'Abd al-Malik Isami 's Persian work, Futuhu's-salatin , composed in the Deccan under Bahmani rule in 1350, uses the word ' hindi' to mean Indian in the ethno-geographical sense and the word ' hindu' to mean 'Hindu' in
17424-441: The river diminishes, while her association with speech, poetry, music, and culture becomes more prominent. In classical and medieval Hinduism , Sarasvati is primarily recognized as the goddess of learning, arts and poetic inspiration, and as the inventor of the Sanskrit language . She is linked to the creator god Brahma , either as his consort or creation. In this role, she represents his creative power ( Shakti ), giving reality
17568-417: The river or rivers known as Sarasvati, this combination, therefore, means "she who has ponds, lakes, and pooling water" or occasionally "she who possesses speech". It is also a Sanskrit composite word of sarasu-ati (सरसु+अति) which means "one with plenty of water". The word Sarasvati appears both as a reference to a river and as a significant deity in the Rigveda . In initial passages, the word refers to
17712-481: The river to perform sacrifices and bathe in her waters and she often appears in her human form to great seers like Vasishtha . The Mahabharata also commonly presents her as a goddess of knowledge in her own right and sees Vac as merely a feature of hers. She is called the mother of the Vedas in the Shanti Parva Book of the epic. Her beauty is also widely commented on by numerous passages and in one passage,
17856-623: The river) and " India " (for the land of the river). Likewise Hebrew cognate hōd-dū refers to India mentioned in Hebrew Bible ( Esther 1:1 ). The term " Hindu " also implied a geographic, ethnic or cultural identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent around or beyond the Sindhu (Indus) River . By the 16th century CE, the term began to refer to residents of the subcontinent who were not Turkic or Muslims . Since ancient times, Hindu has been used to refer to people inhibiting region beyond
18000-584: The sea, making the waters sacred. In the Padma Purana, it is stated that there was a terrible battle between the Bhargavas (a group of Brahmanas ) and the Hehayas (a group of Kshatriyas ). From this, an all-consuming fire called Vadavagni was born, which threatened to destroy the whole world. In some versions, a sage named Auva created it. Indra , Vishnu, and the devas visited Sarasvati, requesting her to deposit
18144-473: The sense of a follower of the Hindu religion". The poet Vidyapati 's Kirtilata (1380) uses the term Hindu in the sense of a religion, it contrasts the cultures of Hindus and Turks (Muslims) in a city and concludes "The Hindus and the Turks live close together; Each makes fun of the other's religion ( dhamme )." One of the earliest uses of word 'Hindu' in a religious context, in a European language (Spanish),
18288-443: The sense of non-Muslim Indians". However, scholars like Robert Fraser and Mary Hammond opine that Sikhism began initially as a militant sect of Hinduism and it got formally separated from Hinduism only in the 20th century. During the colonial era, the term Hindu had connotations of native religions of India, that is religions other than Christianity and Islam. In early colonial era Anglo-Hindu laws and British India court system,
18432-411: The sides and back of his head. Sarasvati then leapt into the sky and a fifth face emerged from Brahma, looking upwards. Unable to escape, Sarasvati marries him and they make love for one hundred years. Brahma felt shame and due to his incestuous act, the god loses his ascetic power ( tapas ) and his sons are left to create the world. The birth of Sarasvati from the mind of Brahma is also described in
18576-470: The term 'Hindu' retained its geographical reference initially: 'Indian', 'indigenous, local', virtually 'native'. Slowly, the Indian groups themselves started using the term, differentiating themselves and their "traditional ways" from those of the invaders. The text Prithviraj Raso , by Chand Bardai , about the 1192 CE defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan at the hands of Muhammad Ghori , is full of references to "Hindus" and "Turks", and at one stage, says "both
18720-408: The term Hindu referred to people of all Indian religions as well as two non-Indian religions: Judaism and Zoroastrianism. In the 20th century, personal laws were formulated for Hindus, and the term 'Hindu' in these colonial 'Hindu laws' applied to Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs in addition to denominational Hindus. Beyond the stipulations of British colonial law, European orientalists and particularly
18864-560: The tridevi are her main saguna ("with form", manifest, incarnated) emanations. MahaSarasvati is said to be creative and active principle (which is Rajasic , energetic and active), while Mahalakshmi is the sustainer ( sattvic , "goodness") and Mahakali is the destroyer ( tamasic , "darkness"). In other influential Shakta texts, such as the Devi Bhagavata Purana and the Devi Upanishad , Sarasvati (along with all Hindu goddesses)
19008-505: The various beliefs. Among the earliest terms to emerge were Seeks and their College (later spelled Sikhs by Charles Wilkins), Boudhism (later spelled Buddhism), and in the 9th volume of Asiatick Researches report on religions in India, the term Jainism received notice. According to Pennington, the terms Hindu and Hinduism were thus constructed for colonial studies of India. The various sub-divisions and separation of subgroup terms were assumed to be result of "communal conflict", and Hindu
19152-451: The vernacular literature of Bhakti movement sants from 15th to 17th century, such as Kabir , Anantadas, Eknath, Vidyapati, suggests that distinct religious identities, between Hindus and Turks (Muslims), had formed during these centuries. The poetry of this period contrasts Hindu and Islamic identities, states Nicholson, and the literature vilifies the Muslims coupled with a "distinct sense of
19296-475: The very instrument by which he created the world, flowing forth from him "like a continuous stream of water" according to the scripture. This is the basis for the Puranic stories about the relationship between Brahma (identified with Prajapati) and Sarasvati (identified with Vāc). In other Rigvedic passages, Sarasvati is praised as a mighty and unconquerable protector deity. She is offered praises and compared to
19440-424: The wide range of traditions and ideas covered by the term Hinduism, arriving at a comprehensive definition is difficult. The religion "defies our desire to define and categorize it". A Hindu may, by his or her choice, draw upon ideas of other Indian or non-Indian religious thought as a resource, follow or evolve his or her personal beliefs, and still identify as a Hindu. In 1995, Chief Justice P. B. Gajendragadkar
19584-472: The world's third-largest religious group after Christians and Muslims. The vast majority of Hindus, approximately 966 million (94.3% of the global Hindu population), live in India , according to the 2011 Indian census. After India, the next nine countries with the largest Hindu populations are, in decreasing order: Nepal , Bangladesh , Indonesia , Pakistan , Sri Lanka , the United States , Malaysia ,
19728-560: The world. Most Hindus are found in Asian countries. The top twenty-five countries with the most Hindu residents and citizens (in decreasing order) are India , Nepal , Bangladesh , Indonesia , Pakistan , Sri Lanka , United States , Malaysia , Myanmar , United Kingdom , Mauritius , South Africa , United Arab Emirates , Canada , Australia , Saudi Arabia , Trinidad and Tobago , Singapore , Fiji , Qatar , Kuwait , Guyana , Bhutan , Oman and Yemen . The top fifteen countries with
19872-521: Was associated with the Milky Way , indicating that she was seen as descending from heaven to earth. The goddess is mentioned in many Rigvedic hymns, and has three hymns dedicated to her (6:61 exclusively, and 7:95-96 which she shares with her male counterpart, Sarasvant). In Rigveda 2.41.16 she is called: "Best of mothers, the best of rivers, best of goddesses". As part of the Apas (water deities), Sarasvati
20016-673: Was codified by Savarkar while he was a political prisoner of the British colonial authorities. Chris Bayly traces the roots of Hindu nationalism to the Hindu identity and political independence achieved by the Maratha confederacy , that overthrew the Islamic Mughal empire in large parts of India, allowing Hindus the freedom to pursue any of their diverse religious beliefs and restored Hindu holy places such as Varanasi. A few scholars view Hindu mobilisation and consequent nationalism to have emerged in
20160-664: Was constructed by these orientalists to imply people who adhered to "ancient default oppressive religious substratum of India", states Pennington. Followers of other Indian religions so identified were later referred Buddhists, Sikhs or Jains and distinguished from Hindus, in an antagonistic two-dimensional manner, with Hindus and Hinduism stereotyped as irrational traditional and others as rational reform religions. However, these mid-19th-century reports offered no indication of doctrinal or ritual differences between Hindu and Buddhist, or other newly constructed religious identities. These colonial studies, states Pennigton, "puzzled endlessly about
20304-458: Was graced by Kamakshi with Anugraha Diksha , relieving a part of his curse. The temple also houses a shrine for Vishnu in the form of Varaha Perumal . The Tirukkalvanur Divya Desam is one of the 108 Divya Desams (Vishnu and Lakshmi temples that are mentioned in the works of the Alvars ). The original temple was a little further from the Kamakshi temple; due to the ruined state of the old shrine,
20448-435: Was later used occasionally in some Sanskrit texts such as the later Rajataranginis of Kashmir (Hinduka, c. 1450 ) and some 16th- to 18th-century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts, including Chaitanya Charitamrita and Chaitanya Bhagavata . These texts used it to contrast Hindus from Muslims who are called Yavanas (foreigners) or Mlecchas (barbarians), with the 16th-century Chaitanya Charitamrita text and
20592-442: Was quoted in an Indian Supreme Court ruling: Although Hinduism contains a broad range of philosophies, Hindus share philosophical concepts, such as but not limiting to dharma , karma , kama , artha , moksha and samsara , even if each subscribes to a diversity of views. Hindus also have shared texts such as the Vedas with embedded Upanishads , and common ritual grammar ( Sanskara (rite of passage) ) such as rituals during
20736-407: Was the publication in 1649 by Sebastio Manrique . In the Indian historian DN Jha 's essay "Looking for a Hindu identity" , he writes: "No Indians described themselves as Hindus before the fourteenth century" and that "The British borrowed the word 'Hindu' from India, gave it a new meaning and significance, [and] reimported it into India as a reified phenomenon called Hinduism." In the 18th century,
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