Asuras are a class of beings in Indian religions. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Devas in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is translated as "titan" or "antigod".
Chandra, also known as Soma, is the Hindu god of the Moon, and is associated with the night, plants and vegetation. He is one of the Navagraha and Dikpala.
Vritra is a danava in Hinduism. He serves as the personification of drought, and is an adversary of the king of the devas, Indra. As a danava, he belongs to the race of the asuras. Vritra is also known in the Vedas as Ahi. He appears as a human-like serpent blocking the course of the Rigvedic rivers, and is slain by Indra with his newly-forged vajra.
Savitṛ, in Vedic scriptures is an Aditya of the Vedic primeval mother goddess Aditi. His name in Vedic Sanskrit connotes "impeller, rouser, vivifier."
Ribhus is an ancient Indian word whose meaning evolved over time. In early layers of the Vedic literature, it referred to a sun deity. It evolved to being a wind deity, thereafter referred to three male artisans whose abilities and austerities make them into divinities in later Vedic texts. Their individual names were Ribhu, Vaja and Vibhvan, but they were collectively called Rhibhus or Ribhus. Their name's meaning is "clever, skillful, inventive, prudent", cognate to Latin labor and Gothic arb-aiþs "labour, toil", and perhaps to English elf.
Angiras or Angira was a Vedic rishi (sage) of Hinduism. He is described in the Rigveda as a teacher of divine knowledge, a mediator between men and gods, as well as stated in other hymns to be the first of Agni-devas. In some texts, he is considered to be one of the seven great sages or Saptarishis, but in others he is mentioned but not counted in the list of seven great sages. In some manuscripts of Atharvaveda, the text is attributed to "Atharvangirasah", which is a compound of sage Atharvan and Angira. The student family of Angira are called "Angira", and they are credited to be the authors of some hymns in the first, second, fifth, eighth, ninth, and tenth books of the Rigveda. By the time of the composition of the Rigveda, the Angirases were an old Rishi clan, and were stated to have participated in several events.
Atri or Attri is a Vedic sage, who is credited with composing numerous hymns to Agni, Indra, and other Vedic deities of Hinduism. Atri is one of the Saptarishi in the Hindu tradition, and the one most mentioned in its scripture Rigveda.
The Shatapatha Brahmana is a commentary on the Śukla Yajurveda. It is attributed to the Vedic sage Yajnavalkya. Described as the most complete, systematic, and important of the Brahmanas, it contains detailed explanations of Vedic sacrificial rituals, symbolism, and mythology.
Deva means "shiny", "exalted", "heavenly being", "divine being", "anything of excellence", and is also one of the Sanskrit terms used to indicate a deity in Hinduism. Deva is a masculine term; the feminine equivalent is Devi. The word is a cognate with Latin deus ("god") and Greek Zeus.
In Hindu mythology, Sarama is a mythological dog being referred to as the female dog of the gods, or Deva-shuni. She first appears in one of Hinduism's earliest texts, the Rig Veda, in which she helps the king of the gods Indra to recover divine cows stolen by the Panis asuras. This legend is alluded to in many later texts, and Sarama is often associated with Indra. The epic Mahabharata, and some Puranas, also make brief reference to Sarama.
The Saraswata kingdom was an ancient kingdom, territory, or region on the banks of the Sarasvati River during the pre-historic ages. This region is mentioned in detail in as many as 20 chapters in the Mahabharata from (9:35) to (9:54). Balarama traced the Saraswati river through its partially dried up course from the ocean near Prabhasa to its origin in the Himalayas.
The Taittirīya Shakha, is a shakha of the Krishna (black) Yajurveda. Most prevalent in South India, it consists of the Taittirīya Samhita ('TS'), Taittirīya Brahmana ('TB'), Taittirīya Aranyaka ('TA'), and Taittirīya Pratisakhya ('TP').
Marichi or Mareechi or Marishi is the mind-born son of Brahma, and one of the Saptarishi in Hindu mythology. He is also the father of Kashyapa, and the grandfather of the devas and the asuras.
Mayabheda, (Sanskrit:मायाभेद:), means the breaching or removal of Avidya ("ignorance"). It means the destruction of the illusion caused by Maya which occurs coinciding with the gain/dawn of Right Knowledge, the knowledge of Brahman. The Rig Veda Sukta R.V.X.177 addressed to Mayabheda in its three Mantras in its own cryptic way serves this purpose. The central theme of this hymn is the discernment of Maya or illusion, the cause of material creation. Mayabheda is also one of the Rigvedic deities.
Astronomical chronology, or astronomical dating, is a technical method of dating events or artifacts that are associated with astronomical phenomena. Written records of historical events that include descriptions of astronomical phenomena have done much to clarify the chronology of the Ancient Near East; works of art which depict the configuration of the stars and planets and buildings which are oriented to the rising and setting of celestial bodies at a particular time have all been dated through astronomical calculations.
Svarbhānu is an asura traditionally held responsible for solar eclipses and lunar eclipses in Vedic mythology. The name is also used as an attribute of the asuras Rahu and Ketu in Puranic mythology, who are also connected to the solar eclipse and the lunar eclipse.
Kashyapa is a revered Vedic sage of Hinduism. He is one of the Saptarishis, the seven ancient sages of the Rigveda. Kashyapa is the most ancient and venerated rishi, along with the other Saptarishis, listed in the colophon verse in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.
The Rigveda or Rig Veda is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (sūktas). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (śruti) known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum.
Grahana refers to the Sanskrit term for an eclipse. Eclipses are regarded to be noteworthy phenomena in Hinduism, and legends involving their origin and purpose are featured in Hindu mythology.
Sankhyayana Brahmana is an ancient Brahmana text of Rigaveda. It is also called the Kaushitaki Brahmana. The text is associated with Baskala Shakha of Rigaveda. The text is attributed to the Vedic sage Kaushitaki and his disciple Sankhyayana.
