The Mahābhārata is one of the two major Smriti texts and Sanskrit epics of ancient India revered in Hinduism, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succession between two groups of princely cousins, the Kauravas and the Pāṇḍavas.
Krishna is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is widely revered among Hindu divinities. Krishna's birthday is celebrated every year by Hindus on Krishna Janmashtami according to the lunisolar Hindu calendar, which falls in late August or early September of the Gregorian calendar.
Balarama is a Hindu god, and the elder brother of Krishna. He is particularly significant in the Jagannath tradition, as one of the triad deities. He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Baladeva, Balabhadra, and Sankarshana.
Jagannatha is a deity worshipped in regional Hindu traditions in India as part of a triad along with his (Krishna's) brother Balabhadra, and sister, Subhadra. Jagannath, within Odia Hinduism, is the supreme god, Purushottama, and the Para Brahman. To most Vaishnava Hindus, particularly the Krishnaites, Jagannath is a form of Krishna, sometimes as the avatar of Vishnu. To some Shaiva and Shakta Hindus, he is a symmetry-filled tantric form of Bhairava, a fierce manifestation of Shiva associated with annihilation.
Subhadra is a princess of Dvārakā mentioned in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. She is the sister of deities Krishna and Balarama in Hindu mythology. Subhadra married Arjuna, one of the Pandava brothers and had a son named Abhimanyu.
Puri district is a coastal district of the Odisha state of India. It has one sub-division, 11 tahasils and 11 blocks and comprises 1722 revenue villages. Puri is the only municipality of the district. Konark, Pipili, Satyabadi, Gop, Kakatpur and Nimapada are the NACs in this district while Brahmagiri being a semi-urban town.
The Jagannath Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Jagannath, a form of Vishnu in Hinduism. It is located in Puri in the state of Odisha, situated on the eastern coast of India. As per temple records, King Indradyumna of Avanti built the main temple of Jagannath at Puri. The present temple was rebuilt from the tenth century onwards, on the site of the pre-existing temples in the compound, but not the main Jagannath temple, and begun by Anantavarman Chodaganga, the first king of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. Many of the temple rituals are based on Oddiyana Tantras which are the refined versions of Mahayana Tantras as well as Shabari Tantras which are evolved from Tantric Buddhism and tribal beliefs respectively. The local legends link the idols with aboriginal tribes and the daitapatis (servitors) claim to be descendants of the aboriginals. The temple is one of the 108 Abhimana Kshethram of the Vaishnavite tradition.
Ganjifa, Ganjapa or Gânjaphâ, is a card game and type of playing cards that are most associated with Persia and India. After Ganjifa cards fell out of use in Iran before the twentieth century, India became the last country to produce them. The form prevalent in Odisha is Ganjapa.
The Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple is a Hindu temple located near Aranmula, a village in Pathanamthitta District, Kerala, South India. It is dedicated to the Lord Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, who is worshipped as Parthasarathy. Constructed in the Kerala style of architecture, it is one of the "Divya Desams", the 108 temples of Vishnu revered by the Alvar saints.
Krishnaism is a term used in scholarly circles to describe large group of independent Hindu traditions—sampradayas related to Vaishnavism—that center on the devotion to Krishna as Svayam Bhagavan, Ishvara, Para Brahman, who is the source of all reality, not simply an avatar of Vishnu. This is its difference from such Vaishnavite groupings as Sri Vaishnavism, Sadh Vaishnavism, Ramaism, Radhaism, Sitaism etc. There is also a personal Krishnaism, that is devotion to Krishna outside of any tradition and community, as in the case of the saint-poet Meera Bai. Leading scholars do not define Krishnaism as a suborder or offshoot of Vaishnavism, considering it at least a parallel and no less ancient current of Hinduism.
Salabega was an Odia religious poet of India in the early 17th century who wrote Jagannatha bhajanas. He was Muslim by birth but his devotion for the Hindu God made Lord Jagannath stop his Ratha Jātrā in Odisha for him to get darshan. His famous Bhajan 'Ahe Nila Saila' lives to this day.
Odisha is one of the 28 states of India, located on the eastern coast. It is surrounded by the states of West Bengal to the northeast, Jharkhand to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west and northwest, and Andhra Pradesh to the south and southwest. Odia is the official and most widely spoken language, spoken by 33.2 million according to the 2001 Census. The modern state of Odisha was established on 1 April 1936, as a province in British India, and consisted predominantly of Odia-speaking regions. April 1 is celebrated as Odisha Day.
The Char Dham, or the Chatur Dhama, is a set of four Hindu pilgrimage sites in India, consisting of Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri and Rameswaram. Badrinath, Dwarka, and Puri are shrines of Vishnu, whereas Rameswaram is a shrine of Shiva.
Patachitra or Pattachitra is a general term for traditional, cloth-based scroll painting, based in the eastern Indian states of Odisha, West Bengal and parts of Bangladesh. Patachitra artform is known for its intricate details as well as mythological narratives and folktales inscribed in it. Pattachitra is one of the ancient artworks of Odisha, originally created for ritual use and as souvenirs for pilgrims to Puri, as well as other temples in Odisha. Patachitras are a component of an ancient Bengali narrative art, originally serving as a visual device during the performance of a song.
Gotipoop
Purushottama is an epithet of the Hindu preserver deity, Vishnu. According to Vaishnavism, Vishnu is the source of moksha, the liberator of sins, the fount of knowledge, and the highest of all beings.
The Vimala Temple or Bimala Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to goddess Vimala or Bimala (ବିମଳା), located within the Jagannath Temple complex in Puri in the Indian state of Odisha. It is generally regarded as a Shakta pitha, among the holiest temples dedicated to the Hindu Goddess.
Vishvarupa, also spelt as Vishwaroopa and known as Virāḍrūpa, is an iconographical form and theophany of a Hindu deity, most commonly associated with Vishnu in contemporary Hinduism. Though there are multiple Vishvarupa theophanies, the most celebrated is in the Bhagavad Gita, given by Krishna in the epic Mahabharata, which was shown to Pandava prince Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra in the war between the Pandavas and Kauravas. Vishvarupa is considered the supreme form of Vishnu, where the whole universe is described as contained within him.
Ganjapa are the traditional playing cards from the Indian state Odisha. It can also refer to the trick-taking card game that they are used for. It is played with circular shaped Pattachitra painted cards. Originated in the 16th century, Ganjaku is a recreational game for male members of the Odia society, primarily villagers, kings and their courtmen. Ganjapa is played as "Charirangi", "Atharangi", "Dasarangi", "Bararangi", "Chaudarangi" and "Sohalarangi". The variation of this game influenced by Persian card game Ganjifeh is known as "Mughal Ganjifa". The game is popular in Puri and Ganjam district of Odisha. As a result of the relative isolation of Odisha in the past, Ganjapa developed very differently from the Ganjifa found in the rest of India. Odisha has by far the largest community of Ganjifa players and manufacturers.
Dashabatar Cards or Dashavatari Ganjifa are playing cards from West Bengal used to play certain games. They first originated in Bishnupur, a town in Bankura District. King Bir Hambir is attributed to the invention of these cards in the 16th century. The ten avatars of Bishnu are featured in the cards. It is a unique example of Bengal’s folk art.
