List of Hindu texts

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Hinduism is an ancient religion, with denominations such as Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism, among others. [1] [2] Each tradition has a long list of Hindu texts, with subgenre based on syncretization of ideas from Samkhya, Nyaya, Yoga, Vedanta and other schools of Hindu philosophy. [3] [4] [5] Of these some called Sruti are broadly considered as core scriptures of Hinduism, but beyond the Sruti, the list of scriptures vary by the scholar. [6]

Contents

Several lists include only the Vedas, the Principal Upanishads, the Agamas and the Bhagavad Gita as scriptures broadly accepted by Hindus. [6] [7] Goodall adds regional texts such as Bhagavata Purana and Yajnavalkya Smriti to the list. [6] Beyond the Sruti, Hindu texts include Smritis, Shastras, Sutras, Tantras, Puranas, Itihasas, Stotras, Subhashitas and others. [8] [9]

Most of these texts exist in Sanskrit, [10] [11] and Old Tamil, and also later in other Indic languages. In modern times, most have been translated into other Indian languages and some in Western languages. [12] [13] This list includes major Hindu texts, along with the Hindu scriptures.

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Shastra is a Sanskrit word that means "precept, rules, manual, compendium, book or treatise" in a general sense. The word is generally used as a suffix in the Indian literature context, for technical or specialized knowledge in a defined area of practice.

Hindu texts or Hindu scriptures are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. Some of the major Hindu texts include the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Itihasa. Scholars hesitate in defining the term "Hindu scriptures" given the diverse nature of Hinduism, but many list the Agamas as Hindu scriptures, and Dominic Goodall includes Bhagavata Purana and Yajnavalkya Smriti in the list of Hindu scriptures as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yajurveda</span> Scripture of Hinduism

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vedas</span> Oldest scriptures of Hinduism

The Vedas, sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.

<i>Isha Upanishad</i> One of the ancient Sanskrit scriptures of Hinduism

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<i>Shvetashvatara Upanishad</i> One of the ancient Sanskrit scriptures of Hinduism

The Shvetashvatara Upanishad is an ancient Sanskrit text embedded in the Yajurveda. It is listed as number 14 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. The Upanishad contains 113 mantras or verses in six chapters.

The following list consists of notable concepts that are derived from Hindu culture and associated cultures’ traditions, which are expressed as words in Sanskrit or other Indic languages and Dravidian languages. The main purpose of this list is to disambiguate multiple spellings, to make note of spellings no longer in use for these concepts, to define the concept in one or two lines, to make it easy for one to find and pin down specific concepts, and to provide a guide to unique concepts of Hinduism all in one place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dhyana in Hinduism</span>

Dhyāna in Hinduism means meditation and contemplation. Dhyana is taken up in Yoga practices, and is a means to samadhi and self-knowledge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Vaishnavism</span> One of the major Vaishnava traditions

Sri Vaishnavism is a denomination within the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism, predominantly practiced in South India. The name refers to goddess Lakshmi, as well as a prefix that means "sacred, revered", and the god Vishnu, who are together revered in this tradition.

The notion of a fifth Veda, that is, of a text which lies outside the four canonical Vedas, but nonetheless has the status of a Veda, is one that has been advanced in a number of post-Vedic Hindu texts, in order to accord a particular text or texts and their doctrines with the timelessness and authority that Hinduism associates with the Vedas. The idea is an ancient one, appearing for the first time in the Upanishads, but has over the centuries since then also been applied to more recent Sanskrit and vernacular texts.

<i>Brahman</i> Metaphysical concept, unchanging Ultimate Reality in Hinduism

In Hinduism, Brahman connotes the highest universal principle, the Ultimate Reality of the universe. In major schools of Hindu philosophy, it is the non-physical, efficient, formal and final cause of all that exists. It is the pervasive, infinite, eternal truth, consciousness and bliss which does not change, yet is the cause of all changes. Brahman as a metaphysical concept refers to the single binding unity behind diversity in all that exists.

<i>Shivarahasya Purana</i>

Shivarahasya Purana is one of the 'Shaiva Upapuranas' or ancillary Purana regarding Shiva and Shaivite worship and is also considered 'Indian epic poetry' (Itihāsa).

Hindu denominations, sampradayas, traditions, movements, and sects are traditions and sub-traditions within Hinduism centered on one or more gods or goddesses, such as Vishnu, Shiva, Shakti and so on. The term sampradaya is used for branches with a particular founder-guru with a particular philosophy.

<i>Devi Upanishad</i> A goddess-related Hindu text

The Devi Upanishad, is one of the minor Upanishads of Hinduism and a text composed in Sanskrit. It is one of the 19 Upanishads attached to the Atharvaveda, and is classified as one of the eight Shakta Upanishads. It is, as an Upanishad, a part of the corpus of Vedanta literature collection that present the philosophical concepts of Hinduism.

In Hinduism, Śāstra pramāṇam refers to the authority of the scriptures with regard to puruṣārtha, the objects of human pursuit, namely dharma, artha, kāma (pleasure) and mokṣa (liberation). Together with smṛti, ācāra, and ātmatuṣṭi, it provides pramana and sources of dharma, as expressed in Classical Hindu law, philosophy, rituals and customs.

References

  1. Flood 1996, pp. 113, 154.
  2. Michaels 2004, pp. 21–23.
  3. Mikel Burley (2012), Classical Samkhya and Yoga - An Indian Metaphysics of Experience, Routledge, ISBN   978-0415648875, page 39-41;
    Lloyd Pflueger, Person Purity and Power in Yogasutra, in Theory and Practice of Yoga (Editor: Knut Jacobsen), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN   978-8120832329, pages 38-39
  4. Knut Jacobsen (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga : 'Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN   978-8120832329, pages 77-78;
    Isaeva, Natalia (1993). Shankara and Indian Philosophy . State University of New York Press. pp.  79–80. ISBN   978-0-7914-1281-7.;
    Natalia Isaeva (1995). From Early Vedanta to Kashmir Shaivism: Gaudapada, Bhartrhari, and Abhinavagupta. State University of New York Press. pp. 137, 163, 171–178. ISBN   978-1-4384-0761-6.;
    C. J. Bartley (2013). The Theology of Ramanuja: Realism and Religion. Routledge. pp. 1–4, 52–53, 79. ISBN   978-1-136-85306-7.
  5. Matthew Clarke (2011). Development and Religion: Theology and Practice. Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 28. ISBN   9780857930736.
  6. 1 2 3 Dominic Goodall (1996), Hindu Scriptures, University of California Press, ISBN   978-0520207783, page ix-xi, xx-xxi
  7. RC Zaehner (1992), Hindu Scriptures, Penguin Random House, ISBN   978-0679410782, pages 1-11 and Preface
  8. Ludo Rocher (1986), The Puranas, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, ISBN   978-3-447-02522-5
  9. Moriz Winternitz (1996). A History of Indian Literature. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. xv–xvi. ISBN   978-81-208-0264-3.
  10. "Indian languages and the classical status".
  11. "Why is Sanskrit so controversial?". BBC News. 12 August 2014.
  12. Sargeant, Winthrop, Introduction to The Bhagavad Gita at 3 (New York, 1984) ISBN   0-87395-831-4
  13. Swami Nikhilananda, The Upanishads: A New Translation Vol. I, at 3 (5th Ed. 1990) ISBN   0-911206-15-9
  14. "Arya-Sidhantha". Sankalp India FOundation.
  15. Swarupananda, Swami (1909). "Foreword". Bhagavad Gita. Advaita Ashrama. pp. i–ii.
  16. Patrick Olivelle (2014), The Early Upanisads, Oxford University Press, ISBN   978-0195352429, page 3; Quote: "Even though theoretically the whole of vedic corpus is accepted as revealed truth [shruti], in reality it is the Upanishads that have continued to influence the life and thought of the various religious traditions that we have come to call Hindu. Upanishads are the scriptures par excellence of Hinduism".
  17. Wendy Doniger (1990), Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism, 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, ISBN   978-0226618470, pages 2-3; Quote: "The Upanishads supply the basis of later Hindu philosophy; they alone of the Vedic corpus are widely known and quoted by most well-educated Hindus, and their central ideas have also become a part of the spiritual arsenal of rank-and-file Hindus."
  18. Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Vol III. 118–120; Vol. I. 6–7.

Bibliography