Anasuya Anasuya (IAST: Anusūyā, अनसूया “free from envy and jealousy”), was wife of Rishi Atri. In Ramayana, she appears living with her husband in a small hermitage in the southern periphery of the forest of Chitrakuta. She was very pious and always practiced austerities and devotion. This allowed her to attain miraculous powers. When Sita and Rama visited her during their exile,…
Atri Atri (Sanskrit: अत्रि) is a Vedic sage, who is credited with composing a large number of hymns to Agni, Indra and other Vedic deities. Atri is one of the Saptarishis (seven great Vedic sages) in the Hindu tradition, and the one most mentioned in its scripture Rigveda. The fifth Mandala (Book 5) of Rigveda is called the…
Ashoka tree The Ashoka tree, literally, “sorrow-less” or Saraca asoca is a plant belonging to the Caesalpinioideae subfamily of the legume family. It is an important tree in the cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent and adjacent areas. It is sometimes incorrectly known as Saraca indica. The Ashoka is a rain-forest tree. Its original distribution…
Ashvattha Tree According to Hindu mythology, asvattha (Sanskrit: अश्वत्थ, IAST: aśvattha) that is, the Sacred Fig, is a sacred tree for the Hindus and has been extensively mentioned in texts pertaining to Hinduism, mentioned as ‘Peepul’ (Ficus religiosa) in Rig Veda mantra I.164.20 . Buddhist texts term the tree as Bodhi tree, a tree under which Gautam Buddha meditated and gained enlightenment. Ashvattha is…
AsuraAsuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are lord beings in the Hindu scriptures who compete for power with the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras). Asuras are described as powerful superhuman demigods or demons with good or bad qualities. Monier-Williams traces the etymological roots of Asura (असुर) to Asu (असु), which means life of the spiritual world or departed spirits. In the…
Amrita Amrita (Sanskrit: अमृत, IAST: amṛta), or Amrith, is a word that literally means “immortality” and is often referred to in texts as nectar. The word’s earliest occurrence is in the Rigveda, where it is one of several synonyms for soma, the drink of the Devas. Not only Amrita gives immortality to the Devas, but also by…
Ananta Anant is a Sanskrit term which means ‘endless’ or ‘limitless’, also means ‘eternal’ or ‘infinity’, in other words, it also means infinitude or an unending expansion or without limit. It is one of the many names of Lord Vishnu. Anant is the Shesha-Naga, the celestial snake, on which Lord Vishnu reclines. In the Mahabharata, Anant or…
Aruna Aruna literally means “red, ruddy, tawny”, and is the name of the charioteer of Surya. He is the personification of the reddish glow of the rising Sun. Aruna is the brother of Garuda, born of Rishi Kashyapa and Vinata. He was born prematurely and partially developed from an egg. Kashyapa’s wives – Vinata and Kadru…
AstikaAstika was an ancient Rishi, and both his parents had the same name – Jaratkaru. The father was Rishi Jaratkaru and the mother was Naga Jaratkaru, (also known as the serpent goddess Manasa), a sister of a great Naga Vasuki. Astika was born to release the virtuous snakes from extinction due to the curse…
Agni Agni (Sanskrit: अग्नि Agni) is the Rig Vedic deity of fire and the conveyor of sacrifices to the gods. He is also a god of divine knowledge, who leads man to the gods. He was one of the most important of the Vedic gods. Agni has three forms: ‘fire’,…