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Brahma Puran

The Brahma Purana (Brahma Pura in Sanskrit) is one of the eighteen main Puranas genre of Hindu scriptures written in Sanskrit. It is also known as Adi Purana since it is included as the first Maha-Purana in all anthologies. Many of its verses are based on those found in other Puranas.


The Brahma Purana (Sanskrit: Brahma Pura) is one of the eighteen main Puranas (Hindu scriptures written in Sanskrit). It is also known as Adi Purana since it is included as the first Maha-Purana in all anthologies


Date of composition

There is no precise date for the writing of the Brahma Purana.

Significance

The Brahma Purana (Sanskrit: Brahma Pura) is one of the eighteen main Puranas (Hindu scriptures written in Sanskrit). It is also known as Adi Purana since it is included as the first Maha-Purana in all anthologies.

Structure

There are four Khandas in the book (parts). Ganesha-khanda or Ganapati-khanda is the name of the third khanda. According to tradition and other Puranas, this Purana has 18,000 verses.

Versions

Puranas - All 18 Maha Puranas(English): Vishnu, Naradiya, Padma, Garuda, Varaha, Bhagavata, Matsya, Kurma, Linga, Shiva, Skanda, Agni, Brahmanda, Brahmavaivarta, Markandeya, Bhavishya, Vamana, Brahma Kindle Edition.

Contents (Summary)

The Brahma Purana (Brahma Pura in Sanskrit) is one of the eighteen main Puranas genre of Hindu scriptures written in Sanskrit. Because it is included as the first Maha-Purana in all anthologies, it is also known as Adi Purana. Because it contains many chapters about Surya, or the Sun god, this text is also known as the Saura Purana. The Brahma Purana is a collection of geographical Mahatmya (travel guides) and sections on various subjects. The current Brahma Purana is most likely not the original. R. C. Hazra came to the conclusion that it is an upapurana, as it was known until the 16th century.Many of its verses are based on those found in other Puranas. Only a little portion of it, according to Moriz Winternitz, belongs to the earlier one. Most of the chapter on pilgrimage sites in Orissa couldn't have been written before the 13th century, because it cites the existence of the Konark Sun Temple, which was erected in 1241. There are 245 chapters in the manuscripts that have survived. It is split into two sections: the Purvabhaga (older portion) and the Uttarabhaga (newer part) (latter part). There are several versions of the text, each with substantial variations, and the text was constantly changed throughout time. Furthermore, several sections from other Hindu scriptures such as the Mahabharata and Puranas such assuch as the Vishnu, Vayu, Samba, and Markandeya the Brahma Purana are believed to have been borrowed.The book is remarkable for devoting more than 60% of its chapters to describing the topography and holy sites of the Godavari river area, as well as regions in and around modern-day Odisha and tributaries of the Chambal river in Rajasthan. This section, which resembles a tour guide, is non-sectarian and honours places and temples associated with Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, and Surya. The coverage of Jagannatha (Krishna, Vishnu-related) temples, on the other hand, is greater than the other three, leading academics to believe that the writers of surviving manuscripts were Vaishnavism-affiliated authors. It is noteworthy for its depiction of the Konark Sun Temple.The Brahma Purana has 18 chapters that include cosmology, mythology, genealogy, manvantara (cosmic time cycles), and other themes that are necessary for a work to be classified as Puranic literature. Other chapters include Sanskara (rite of passage), a description of Dharmasastra and its ideas on world geography, a review of Hindu philosophy's Samkhya and Yoga theories, and other topics. While several chapters of the Brahma Purana glorify temples and pilgrimages, chapters 38-40, which are part of the embedded Saura Purana, provide arguments that are harshly critical of the 13th-century Madhvacharya and Dvaita Vedanta sub-theistic school's ideas and devotional worship suggestions.Atman is Shiva (soul, self). —From the Brahma Purana Brahma Purana is classified as a Rajas Purana by the Padma Purana, indicating that the work is linked to Brahma. However, surviving manuscripts have nothing to do with Brahma. Scholars believe the Sattva-Rajas-Tamas categorization to be "completely fictitious," and nothing in the text really supports this classification. The manuscripts of this Purana's trip guide to the Godavari-river region are named Gautami-mahatmya or Godavari-mahatmya, whereas the one relating to the Rajasthan region is called Brahmottara Purana.The Brahmottara Purana supplement adds between 2,000 and 3,000 verses depending on different versions of the same text, according to tradition and other Puranas. The surviving manuscripts contain between 7,000 and 8,000 verses exclusive of the Brahmottara Purana supplement, which adds between 2,000 and 3,000 verses depending on different versions of the same text. In 1989, Sohnen and Schreiner released a Brahma Purana summary

Pages

Diamond Books (1 January 2012)

160 pages

Chaukhambha (1 January 2016)

1447 page

Size

20 x 14 x 4 cm

Language

Sanskrit language

Writer

The Adhyatma-ramayana, the most important embedded collection of chapters in the existing copies of the Purana, is credited to Ramananda, the Advaita philosopher and founder of the Ramanandi Sampradaya, Hinduism's and Asia's biggest monastic organisation in contemporary times.

Publisher

HINDI SAHITYA SAMMELAN, ALLAHABAD

Publishing date

Chaukhambha (1 January 2016)

Diamond Books (1 January 2012)