Purans – Ancient Legends and Historical Accounts
Purans along with the Ramayan and the Mahabharat are a storehouse of Hindu spiritual tales and other assorted information. They address almost all aspects of life that constitute a civil society as well as the phases of human existence on earth and consequences of their actions. In everyday use, the term ‘Puran’ means ‘old’, an adjective, however in the context of spiritual literature, it refers to the ancient texts contained within a special group of books.
Origin – It is believed that after completing the Mahabharat, Krishna Dwaipayan Vyas composed the Purans. Purans are categorised as Mahapuran (major puran) and Upapuran (minor puran). The difference between them has been explained by scholars by the level of awareness the public has about them. A mahapuran is well known book accepted by traditional Indian throughout Bharat, and that which is lesser known is classified as an upapuran. The term mahapuran appears rarely in puranic literature, and is probably of later origin.
The term Puran is normally used for a mahapuran. There is consensus that there are eighteen purans, originally written in the Sanskrit language. Their listing is provided in the narrative of the purans. For example, the list of purans is provided at the beginning of the book in Kurma Puran, in the middle of the book in the Vishnu Puran and at the end of the book in the Bhagavat Puran and Markandeya Puran. The listing of upapurans has regional variations and there is no countrywide consensus about the list of upapuran. Although, it is accepted that there are eighteen upapurans.
In alphabetical order, the eighteen purans with the number of shloks (verses) as cited in the Matsya Puran are as follows: 1) Agni (15,400); 2) Bhagavat (18,000); 3) Brahma (10,000); 4) Brahmand (12,000); 5) Brahmavaivarta (18,000); 6) Garud, (19,000); 7) Kurma (17,000); 8) Linga (11,000); 9) Markandeya (9,000); 10) Matsya (14,000); 11) Narad (25,000); 12) Padma (55,000); 13) Shiv (24,000); 14) Skand (81,100); 15) Vaman (10,000); 16) Varah (24,000); 17) Vayu (24,000) and 18) Vishnu (23,000).
The number of shloks in the eighteen purans total over 409,000, which is about four times the number of verses in the Mahabharat.
Some include the Harivansh in the category of a Puran, although it is more correctly an addendum to the Mahabharat. Sometimes Bhavishya Puran (14,000) is also included and Vayu Puran is removed. Others include Vayu but exclude Agni. In some others, Narasimha and Vayu are included but Brahmand and Garud are excluded. The followers of the Shakta tradition include Devi Bhagavatam in the list of eighteen. Similar variances are also observed in the case of some other purans.
In Vishnu Puran section 3.6, it is stated that Vyas compiled the purans from myths and legends, verses and historical accounts. Then the great sage conferred this puranic compilation on his well-known disciple, Romaharshan the bard. Romaharshan had six disciples named Sumati, Agnivarchas, Mitrayu, Shamshapayan, Akritvrana and Savarni. Romaharshan along with three of his disciples were the creators of the four root puranic compilations.
Traditionally, all purans are credited to Vyas. it is said that after he composed them, his disciple Romaharshan taught these purans to his son Ugrashrava the Suati or Suta, a bard, who appears as the reciter in some of the present-day purans. Sutas still retain the right to recite them for their livelihood.
According to another version, Vyas composed an original core Puran, which was lost, and others elaborated it through additions.
Five Characteristics – To be classified as a Puran, a book has to meet five characteristics – Panch-Lakshan. That means book must discuss five topics known as sarga, pratisarga, vansha, manavantar and vanshanucharita.
Sarga means the original or primary creation. The opposite of sarga is universal destruction and dissolution or Pralaya. The period of sarga lasts for one Kalpa, which is one day of Brahma, the creator. When Brahma sleeps during the night, there is universal destruction. Pratisarga refers to smaller and secondary cycles of creation and destruction that occur within the cycle of primary creation and destruction.
Vansha relates to two distinguished dynasties that include the solar dynasty (Surya vansha) and lunar dynasty (Chandra vansha), and includes all the gods, sages, kings and great devotees born of these ancestries. Vanshanucharita is about the conduct of the great personalities of these two lineages.
A Manvantar is a vast cyclic period of time that represents a duration of a Manu, primeval human being. To understand this, it is necessary to be aware of the notion of a yug (era). There are four yugs known as satya yug, treta yug, dwapar yug and kali yug. The satya yug lasts for 4,000 years, treta for 3,000 years, dwapar for 2,000 years and kali yug for 1,000 years. The entire cycle from satya yug to kali yug is known as a mahayug (great era). However, at the beginning and the end of each yug, additional years are added.
These additional years number four hundred for satya yug, three hundred for treta yug, two hundred for dwapar yug and one hundred for kali yug. Thus, a mahayug stretches to 12,000 years with addition of years at the beginning and end of each yug. One thousand mahayugs constitute one kalpa (eon), which is a single day in the life of Brahma.
A kalpa is divided into fourteen manvantars. The present kalpa is known as the Svet-Varah Kalpa and the current manu is Vaivasvat, a son of solar deity the Sun. Manu is the first human and progenitor of humankind. Manu is a title. He changes from one manvantar to another, as do the gods, the ruler of the gods and the seven great sages (saptarshi). Indra is a title of the ruler of the gods. It is not a proper name. The present Indra is Purandar. Similarly, there are different gods and saptarshi in different manvantars.
Other than the five above-described attributes, the purans present a considerable amount of information on local geography, geological details and astronomy. The vast quantities of information included in the purans allow them to be described as encyclopaedias.
The purans expound and encourage pursuing four objectives of human existence that include dharma, Artha, kam and moksh. They also describe proper ways to living the four stages of life (Ashram) by all the social groups (Varna).
The general understanding and practice of Hindu tradition is based more heavily on the purans than on the Veds. Cultural traditions, notions of law, rituals, architecture and iconography are based on purans. They contain stotras, prayers, eulogies, lullabies and accounts of notable events.
Dating of Composition
The ancient Sanskrit texts exist in multiple versions and have evolved over many centuries. Usually, manuscripts were inscribed on palm leaves or birch bark, which did not survive long if left unprotected. They needed to be re-transcribed every few years. Each time a scribe sat down to copy an old manuscript, he or his sponsor may seek to improve the text by adding a story here or inserting a discourse there. Thus, purans like other ancient Sanskrit texts evolved under many hands over many generations, and hence it is not possible to exactly pinpoint the time, place and author of their composition.
Within a specific Puran, there are earlier sections as well as the later ones, which also contributes to the difficulty encountered in determining an exact time. Hence, only a range of time has been recognised. Scholars have suggested an extremely speculative dating as shown below.
1) Agni (800-1100 CE);
2) Bhagavat (500-1000 CE);
3) Brahma (700-1500 CE);
4) Brahmand (400-600 CE);
5) Brahmavaivarta (700-1500 CE);
6) Garud, (800-1100 CE);
7) Kurma (600-900 CE);
8) Linga (500-1000 CE);
9) Markandeya (250-700 CE);
10) Matsya (200-500 CE);
11) Narad (900-1600 CE);
12) Padma (400-1600 CE);
13) Shiv (1000-1400 CE);
14) Skand (600-1200 CE);
15) Vaman (450-900 CE);
16) Varah (1000-1200 CE);
17) Vayu (350-550 CE) and
18) Vishnu (300 BCE to 450 CE). According to this dating, the Vishnu Puran is the oldest Puran and some parts of Bhavishya Puran (not included in this list) are as recent as the nineteenth century. CE stands for Common Era and BCE for Before Common Era.
Critical edition
A critical edition is a scholarly and academic version of a text that reconstructs the original wording as closely as possible by comparing all surviving manuscripts and historical versions. The oldest available version forms the basis of the critical edition.
The initial process was oral transmission. The rendering to writing came later. It is likely that the same story was written differently in different ages and places by individual scribes. In that case, variation in the texts is not avoidable. This can be observed in many versions of specific purans found in different regions of India. Variation can also be observed in shlok numbers, sequence of narratives, and the use of synonym words.
To harmonise all editions, critical editions have been produced by scholars and research institutions for a number of purans, and for others, these versions are in progress or being explored. Successfully published critical editions include: Vaman Puran (1967), Kurma Puran (1971), Varah Puran (1981), Vishnu Puran in two volumes (1977 & 1999), Bhagavat Puran (1996-2002) and Markandeya Puran (2011). Number in brackets is the year of publication.
The critical editions contain lesser number of shloks than in other versions of the same Puran, partly due to standard numbering and removal of text which appears to be unnecessary or incorrectly inserted. For example, the critical edition of the Vishnu Puran is composed of 5,276 shloks while the surviving general manuscripts contain around 7,000 shloks and ancient tradition claim an original of 23,000 shloks.
Classification
Purans are classified in two ways. In Hindu tradition, Brahma is the creator, Vishnu the preserver and Shiv the destroyer. Together they form the trinity of gods. Puranas in which creation themes are prominent are identified with Brahma. These include Brahma, Brahmand, Brahmavaivarta and Markandeya. Purans in which Vishnu features prominently are identified as Vaishnav Purans. They include Bhagavat, Garud, Kurma, Matsya, Narad, Padma, Vaman, Varah and Vishnu.
Purans in which Shiv features predominantly are identified as Shaiv Purans. They are Agni, Linga, Shiv, Skand and Vayu. Despite being classified on the basis of the dominance of a particular god, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiv are all considered important and all three feature in each Puran.
The second classification is based on the three gunas (modes of material nature), including sattva (goodness), rajas (passion) and tamas (darkness), as mentioned in the Uttar Khand of Padma Puran. According to this classification, the purans characterised by sattva are Bhagavat, Garud, Narad, Padma, Varah, and Vishnu.
Those identified with rajas are Bhavishya, Brahma, Brahmand, Brahmavaivarta, Markandeya and Vaman. Those characterised as tamas are Agni, Kurma, Linga, Matsya, Skand and Shiv.
Importance
Purans have been influential in nurturing the minds of generations of Indian. Although purans were originally written in Sanskrit, selected sections or abridged versions can be found in all the major Indian languages. Very few amongst the general public and even the educated populations may have read the purans in Sanskrit, but most will have heard their stories through Katha Vachaks (story tellers). People recognise that their spiritual rites are based on the purans and hence they revere them. Usually the general public quote Ved-Puran together, when referring to any religious matter.
It should be noted that Veds were not easily understandable to the general public, but they listened to stories of the Ramayan, the Mahabharat and Purans, which could be easily grasped. It was and is easier for katha-vachaks to explain to lay-persons the specific points contained in the latter texts, with examples of a character or situation from the purans.
Some of the purans like the Bhagavat Puran, Devi Puran, Shiv Puran are so common that their stories can be heard in religious gatherings throughout India and overseas where people of Indian origin reside.
Major festivals including Holi, Diwali, Durga-puja and others have their roots in the puranic texts. Ancient kings, sages, deities and incarnations of gods are described in purans. Stories and legends that relate to festivals, fasting, Ekadashi, Trayodashi, Bat-Savitri can be found in them. Rituals performed during sacred worships and rites of passages, including births, transitions from childhood to adolescence, weddings and funerals are grounded on the purans. Purans provide credibility to mythical tales.
—Awadhesh Sharma
www.hinduguru.com.au.
