Lord Brahma, while shedding light on various aspects of religion told sage Vyasa that a man should look at his sorrows (shoka) with a sense of aloofness and detachment, considering it as a passing phase. He also revealed to Vyasa that the ‘fire of sorrow’ consumed everything that came into…
On one particular occasion, Shiva addressed Parvati as ―Kali.‖ The word kali means dark and Parvati thought that Shiva referring to her dark complexion. She did not realize that Shiva was merely trying to tease her a bit. Greatly incensed at the imagined slight, Parvarti decided that she would meditate…
While Brahmanical ideology taught that killing a brahmin (brahmahatya) was the worst of sins and required loss of caste, Puranic mythology told of those who had killed a brahmin and escaped becoming outcaste (candala). This alternative view shifted the focus to devotion (bhakti) and its outward signs in gifts of…
In the Pancavimsa Brahmana the story is told that four devas began a sacrifice (yajna) with the agreement that the offering (havirbhaga) would be shared equally. They were Agni, Indra, Vayu, and Yajna. But Yajna stole the offering and drove the others away with a divine bow given by…
Havyaghna had a miraculous birth, being created from the smoke of a sacrificial ritual (yajna) of the sage Bharadvaja. Havyaghna (“leavings of the sacrifice”) began eating the leftovers (havis) of that yajna. Bharadvaja asked the demon why he would do this. Havyaghna explained that he was the Krishna that Brahma…
This appendix to the Mahabharata is said to be authored by Vyasa, as indicated in the Adi Parva (2.83-84) of the Mahabharata. The Harivamsa consists of glorifications of Vishnu and has about ten thousand verses. It is a rich source for the myths about the childhood of Krishna, as well…
