Puranas
Purana
means "very old" or "ancient". The Puranas explain the creation and the dissolution aspect of the
universe, rules for living, descriptions of various worlds, and many of the
popular myths and stories. Puranas contain the description of all
the Manus and tell the history of
the important families along with their family successions and the dynasties of
kings etc.
The essence of Puranas is to introduce the feeling of bhakti and dedication towards a personal form of God. The Puranas clarify that the Grace of God is never at random and
also it is not the consequence of any amount of good actions or yoga or
austerity. It is automatically experienced when a soul lovingly and totally
submits himself to God. This loving submission is bhakti.
The Puranas, in general, are for all kinds of people, from an ordinary family man who is deeply attached to his family and friends and up to a renounced person who is longing to meet his Divine beloved God in His personal Divine form.
The Puranas, in general, are for all kinds of people, from an ordinary family man who is deeply attached to his family and friends and up to a renounced person who is longing to meet his Divine beloved God in His personal Divine form.
The Bhagavat Purana (Srimad Bhagavatam) is the most popular Purana. It consists of over 18,000
verses divided into twelve cantos (volumes). It specifically glorifies Lord Vishnu, His incarnations, and His
devotees. The tenth-canto is the Essence of Srimad Bhagavatam which contains the attractive stories of Lord Shri Krishna, both as the cowherd
boy of Vrindavan and later as the
powerful king of Dwaraka.
The Puranas are a vast literature of stories and parables. There are many books of Puranas but eighteen are considered to be MahaPuranas, or Great Puranas, and thus authoritative references on the Gods and Goddesses, religious rites and holy places. Along with MahaPuranas, there are other eighteen additional texts knows as UpaPuranas available in scriptures.
The Puranas are a vast literature of stories and parables. There are many books of Puranas but eighteen are considered to be MahaPuranas, or Great Puranas, and thus authoritative references on the Gods and Goddesses, religious rites and holy places. Along with MahaPuranas, there are other eighteen additional texts knows as UpaPuranas available in scriptures.
Major Classification of Puranas:
The Mahapuranas are
frequently classified according the three aspects of the divine Trimurti:
Vaishnava Puranas
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Brahma Puranas
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Shaiva Puranas
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Vishnu Purana
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Brahama Purana
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Shiva Purana
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Bhagavata Purana
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Brahmanda Purana
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Lina Purana
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Naradeya Purana
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Brahma Vaivarta Purana
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Linga Purana
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Garuda Purana
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Markaddeya Purana
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Skanda Purana
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Padma Purana
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Bhavishya Purana
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Agni Purana
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Varaha Purana
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Vayu Puran
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Vamana Purana
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Matsya Purana
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Kalki Purana
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According to the Padma Purana the Puranas may be classified in accordance
with the three gunas or qualities;
Sattva, Rajas and Tamas.
Sattva
(Truth, Purity)
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Rajas
(Dimness, Passion)
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Tama
(Darkness, Ignorance)
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Vishnu Purana
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Brahmanda Purana
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Matsya Purana
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Bhagavata Purana
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Brahma Vaivarta Purana
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Kurma Purana
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Naradeva Purana
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Markandeya Purana
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Linga Purana
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Garuda Purana
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Bhavishya Purana
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Shiva Purana
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Padma Purana
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Vamana Purana
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Skanda Purana
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Varaha Purana
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Brahma Purana
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Agni Purana
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Some of The Purans and their Content’s Summary: (Source: Various Websites)
Name
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Summary
of The Contents
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Bhagvata
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The
most celebrated and popular of the Puranas,
telling of Vishnu's ten Avatars.
Statistically it comprises twelve skandas (cantos or books) and some
18,000 verses The tenth canto narrates the activities of Lord Krishna. The intense and personal bhakti described in the Bhagavata is directed toward Lord Krishna as God in human form. It includes the most comprehensive collection
of stories (Lilas) about the life
of Lord Krishna, showing Him in all the stages of human life.
It also includes instruction in the practice of bhakti, an analysis of
bhakti, and descriptions of the different types of bhakti.
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Garuda
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Most
hallowed Purana regarding the
death and its aftermaths. It contains a dialogue between Lord Vishnu and his Vahana
Garuda, the King of Birds. This Purana deals with astronomy, medicine
and gemstone structure along with its qualities. It also contains details of
life after death, funeral rites and the background of reincarnation It is
recited as a part Antim Sanskar,
funeral rites.
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Padma
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It is
divided into five parts: In the first part, Sage Pulastya explains to Bhishma
(Famous for Mahabharta) about religion and the essence of
the religion. The second part describes in detail Prithvi (earth). In the third part, a description of the cosmos
is given. The fourth part describes the life and deeds of Lord Shri Rama. The fifth part is in form of a dialogue between Lord Shiva and his consort, Parvati, and it deals with the
essential knowledge about religion.
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Skanda
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This Purana, devoted mainly to the lilas
of Kartikeya, son of Lord Shiva and Parvati. It also contains a number of legends about Lord Shiva, and the holy places
associated with him. This Purana
was recited by Sage Vyas. Skanda Purana is treated as a
pilgrimage guide, containing geographical locations of pilgrimage centers,
with related legends, parables, hymns and stories.
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Brahma
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Shortest
among Puranas, comprise 246
chapters divided into two parts: namely the Purvabhaga (former part) and the Uttarabhaga (later part). The first part narrates the
story behind the creation of the cosmos, details the life and deeds of Lord Shri Rama and Lord Shri Krishna. Few chapters describe
the Glorification of the Godavari
River (Gautami Mahatmya).
The second part contains the details about the Purushottama Tirtha, which is one of the holy places. Brahma Purana is a Mahapurana in which the Rajas Guna prevails.
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Describes
worshipping protocols of Devis, Lord Shri
Krishna and Lord Ganesha. It
is divided into four parts. First part describes the creation of the universe
and all beings, the second part relates to description and histories of
different goddesses. The third part is mostly devoted to life and deeds of Lord Ganesha, and the last part details the life and deeds of Shri Krishna.
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Narada
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It
deals with the places of pilgrimages. It is in the style of dialogue between
the Sage Narada Muni and Sanatkumar. During the course of the
dialogue between the two, Narada
explains the major places of pilgrimages, their location, and significance.
It also contains the story of Markandeya,
a great devotee of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu grants a boon to Markandeya, that he will live
eternally and will survive the Pralaya
(End of cosmic cycle).
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Agni
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It contains descriptions and details of various
incarnations of Lord Vishnu. It
also has details account about Shri
Rama, Shri Krishna and Prithvi.
It has a number of verses mentioning about ritual worship, cosmology and astrology,
history, warfare, sections on medicine and martial arts etc. Statistically
this Purana divided into 383
chapters and was originally recited by Agni
Dev to the Sage Vasishta (Lord
Shri Rama’s Guru).
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Brahmanda Purana
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Brahmanda
means the "Biggest Globe".
It deals with the origin of the Universe
as told by Brahma and it is
believed to be uttama
(best) to give this book as a dana
(gift) to a brahmin. In the beginning, there was a golden egg, and the prapanca (Universe with its
activities) was formed out of it. This Purana also contains references
of Shrimati Radha and Shri
Krishna and the incarnation of ParashuRama.
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Bhavishya Purana
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The title Bhavishya
Purana signifies a work that contains prophecies regarding the future
and attributed to Sage Vyasa.
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Vayu Purana
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It is dedicated to the Vayu (the wind god), containing about 24,000 sholkas. The Vayu Purana deals with the following
topics: creation and re-creation of the universe; measurement of the Kala (time); origin of Agni,
Varuna and a number of gods; origin and descendants of Atri, Bhirgu and some
other sages, daityas, rakshasas, gandharvas and pitrs; origin of animals,
birds, trees and creepers; detailed geography of the earth divided into seven
dvipas; names and descritption of the seven Patalas (netherworlds);
description of the solar system and the movements of the celestial bodies;
description of the four yugas; duties of the people belong to different
castes and funeral rites
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Markandeya Purana
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It is written in the style of a dialogue
between the ancient sage Markandeya
and Jaimini, a disciple of Sage Vyasa. The text begins with the
four questions put forth by Jaimini to
Markandeya, after he approached the latter for the solution of some
doubts raised in his mind after studying the Mahabharata. Markandeya
refers him to the four wise birds living in the Vindhyas. The four birds were among the survival of Kurukshetra War (Mahabharta).
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Shiva Purana
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It is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It was recited by Sage Vyasa to his disciple Romaharshana.
It contains the essence of Vedanta
and the stories of this Purana are
meant to inspire the spiritual aspirant to follow the path of yoga and attain
the union with God. Its major
stories contains: the story of Linga,
the burning of Love God (Kaam Deva),
story of Nandi, story of Daksha Yajna, story of Lord Ganesha and Kartikeya dispute etc. It also contains the thousands name of Lord Shiva.
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Linga Purana
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It contains the description regarding the origin
of universe, origin of the Shiva Linga;
and emergence of Brahma, Lord Vishnu,
and all the Vedas from the Linga. In this Purana, Lord Shiva
directly tells the importance of worship of Shiva Linga and the correct rituals to be followed during the
worship (pooja) of the Linga.
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Vishnu Purana
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The most important Puranas and has been given the name Puranaratna (Gem of
Puranas). It is presented as a dialogue between Parashara and his disciple Maitreya
and divided into six parts. It contains the creation myths, stories of
battles fought between asuras and devas, the Avatars of Lord Vishnu, along with stories of
legendary kings. The first part contains the detailed stories of creation,
the concept of four Yugas, the tale of Rudra,
an elaborate story of the Samudra
Manthana (the churning of the ocean), the story of Dhurva (Devotee of Lord Vishnu).
The second part contains the famous story of Hiranyakashipu and
Prahlada. The third part describes the details of many rituals, also
describes the four stages of life. The fourth part gives the details of
famous kings of Solar and Lunar dynasties; along with prediction of kings
appear in the future, Kalyug. The
fifth section is major portion containing the details of the different events
in the life of Lord Sri Krishna,
starting from His birth, through His childhood, until the moment He left the
earth. The last sixth part discusses the impending age of Kali, the concepts
of universal destruction.
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Note: This post is based on reading of various articles
related to Puranas on Internet and some books. Still if it contains any mistake. Identify
and contact at muneshkumarkella@gmail.com .
Sources: Wikipedia, Google.com etc. (Next: Upanishads)