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Saraswati Dressed in white, Saraswati holds a mala and a palmleaf scroll, indicating knowledge. Saraswati usually rides a swan and sometimes a peacock, while playing music on a veena. The Vilma Vashi temple in Dilwara is dedicated to Saraswati. Students worship Saraswati to perform well in examinations. |
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Hanumana Some say Hanuman was born as the son of the King and Queen of the Monkeys. To others, he is the son of Anjana, an female Apsara who had been transformed into a monkey by a curse, and Vayu, the wind god. It is also said that from his father Vayu Hanuman received the ability to fly. As soon as Hanuman was born he felt hungry and his mother could not satisfy him. Then he caught sight of the Sun and thinking it was a fruit he leapt after it. The Sun took flight but Hanuman chased him as far as Indra's heaven. Here however, Indra intervened and injured Hanuman's jaw with his thunderbolt. But his father was quick to avenge him and entered the bodies of all gods and gave them colic. Indra apologized to Vayu and agreed that Hanuman should become immortal. All the gods came together to bless young Hanuman in a cave. As a young monkey god, Hanuman was quite naughty and abused his powers to pester the saints living in the nearby forest. On this painting Hanuman can be seen creating a whirlwind with his breath, drinking offered water, pulling a supporting stick with his tail, pulling a beard and dousing a sacred fire. Finally all the gods prayed to Brahma to find a solution. Thus a curse was created to protect the world from the mischief that young Hanuman created, by removing his knowledge of his powers. The Power of Hanuman - of which becoming big is just one example - only became available again when Jambavant, King of the bears, remembered Hanuman that he has that power. And that power was really great. Hanuman could easily fight an elephant for example, since he could become much bigger than the elephant at will. At the time of the Ramayana, Hanuman was send as an advance spy to Lanka. To reach the island he had to fly over the sea but there was blocked by Sursa, who wanted to test him. She had a boon that everybody who comes before her must pass through her mouth. However, when she wanted to swallow Hanuman, he became bigger and bigger so she also had to become bigger and bigger. Then Hanuman suddenly became very small and went in through her ear, coming out of her mouth, thus fulfilling the boon. In the Ashokvatika or forest of Ashoka trees on Lanka, Hanuman spies on Ravana, who is trying in vain to press Sita into becoming his wife. Later he contacted Sita in the gardens of Ravana's palace, told her of the plans being made for her deliverance and gave her Rama's signet ring as a token. Pleased with his succes, Hanuman fought the demon Meghnaath, son of Ravana, in the gardens of the palace of Lanka. He won over Meghnaath, but was finally captured by Ravana's demons. Brought before the demon king, Ravana ordered that while as a messenger of Rama he could not be killed, his tail could be set afire with cloth and oil. But Hanuman used his powers to enlarge his tail indefinitely, untill the demons had no cloth left to cover it. While they still tried to put fire to his tail, Hanuman became suddenly very small and escaped from his ropes. Trailing his burning tail behind him, Hanuman then set fire to all of Lanka and flew back to the mainland. He rejoined Rama and gave him valuable information on Ravana's forces. The army crossed a bridge to Lanka that was made by another monkey leader and master architect called Nala. During the mighty battle that followed, Hanuman defeated the Demon Lankini, who was the principal guard of the city of Lanka. Hanuman's greatest feat during the battle of Lanka however was to bring back the herb that cured Lakshman from a fatal wound. He flew al the way to the Himalayas to find it, harassed by many demons, such as Kalanemi. Because Indra was confusing him, Hanuman could not find the herb and finally brought the entire mountain to Lanka. Ravana was defeated by Ram and Ram and Sita were crowned King and Queen of Ayodhya. Obviously Hanuman was present, remained Ram's favorite general and continued his life in service to him. When Rama offered him any boon that he cared to name, he asked to live for as long as men spoke of the deeds of Rama. |
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| Hindu God and GoddessHindus view cosmic activity of the Supreme Being as comprised of three tasks: creation, preservation, and dissolution and recreation. Hindus associate these three cosmic tasks with the three deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Lord Brahma brings forth the creation and represents the creative principle of the Supreme Being. Lord Vishnu maintains the universe and represents the eternal principle of preservation. Lord Shiva represents the principle of dissolution and recreation. These three deities together form the Hindu Trinity. Hindu religion is often labeled as a religion of 330 million gods. According to the Hindu scriptures, living beings are not apart from God, since He lives in each and every one of them in the form of atman (BG 10.39). The number 330 million was simply used to give a symbolic expression to the fundamental Hindu doctrine that God lives in the hearts of all living beings. Hinduism is supposed to be 'apauruseya', i.e., of impersonal origin & so also are the Gods of Hinduism. They are eternal & though the deities appear to be different & independent, they are really facets of the same Brahman, the Supreme God. As Sri Ramakrishna says, there can be as many spiritual paths as there are spiritual aspirants & similarly there can really be as many Gods as there are devotees to suit the moods, feelings, emotions & social background of the devotees. The Hindu scriptures were eloquent while describing the qualities of God. He is all-knowing & all powerful. He is the very personification of justice, love & beauty. He is ever ready to shower His grace, mercy & blessings on His creation. |
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From the Rig Veda, we come to
know of the vedic gods eight Vasus, eleven Rudras, twelve Adityas, Indra
& Prajapathi, being the Gods of earth, the heavens & the space.
The main Hindu Gods as we accept today can be broadly classified as Saiva Gods (Siva, His consort, His sons, His other forms), Vaishnava Gods (Vishnu, His consort, His various avatharams)& Sakthi or Saktha (Forms of Goddess Sakthi). |
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In one of the inscription the goddess of royal fortune is said to have chosen him as her lord, having discarded the other princes. The full import of this passage is obscure. It is, however, certain that the superior ability and prowess of Skandagupta in a time of crisis led to his choice as ruler in preference to other possible claimants. Proud of his success against the barbarians, Skandagupta assumed the title of Vikramaditya.But the continuous attack of the Huns weakened the Gupta empire. Skandagupta died in AD 467. After his death, the Gupta empire began to decline.
Samudragupta was not a only a great warrior but also a great patron of
art and literature. He gathered around himself a galaxy of poets and
scholars, the most prominent ones being Harishena, Vasubandhu and
Asanga. He himself was a great poet and musician. In one of his coins,
he is shown playing the Veena. Samudragupta was a staunch believer of
Hinduism and was a worshiper of Lord Vishnu. He also respected other
religions like Buddhism and also allowed the Buddhist king of Ceylon
to build a monastery at Bodh-Gaya.
The Kushans were a branch of the nomadic Yeuhchi tribe of China. The
Yeuhchi tribe was in conflict with another tribe and so was forced to
leave China. They came to Central Asia and then spread to Bactria,
Paritha and Afghanistan. Gradually they were divided into five
branches. One of these branches -- Kouel Chougang (Kushans) -- was
superior to all. The Kushans under Kujala attacked the Parithans, took
possessions of Ki-pin and Kabul and became the complete master of the
Indian borderland.
Kanishka was the most famous of the Kushan kings. It is not known how he
became the king but he ascended the throne in AD 120. When Kanishka
ascended the throne, his empire consisted of Afghanistan, Sind, Punjab
and portions of the former Parithan and Bactrian kingdoms.
His empire extended from the north-west and Kashmir, over most of the
Gangetic valley. He annexed three provinces of the Chinese empire,
namely, Tashkand, Khotan and Yarkhand. He was the only king who ruled
over these territories. He had two capitals at Purushpura (Peshawar
now in Pakistan) and at Mathura in west Uttar Pradesh. Kanishka proved
that he was a great conqueror.
Kanishka embraced Buddhism towards the middle of his reign. He is said
to have been Zoroastrian before he became Buddhist. He spent his
resources in spreading Buddhism. Mahayana was the new form of Buddhism
that was followed during this period where the Buddha was worshipped
as God. Old monastries were repaired and many new ones were built.| 89-105 AD | Kushan king repulsed by the Chinese General Pan Chao | ||
| 148-170AD | An-Shih-Kao translates a work by Kanishka's Chaplain | ||
| 152 AD | China loses Khotan | ||
| 230 AD | The Yueh chi king Vasudeva sends an embassy to China | ||
| 276-293AD | Sassanian conquest of parts of North-West India |
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