Hindu Texts

"The composers of the Puranas are either accomplished yogis or seekers of Truth. The Knowledge and spiritual realisations obtained by their sadhana remain recorded in the respective Puranas. The Vedas and the Upanishads are the fundamental scriptures of the Hindu religion, the Puranas are commentaries on these scriptures."

"Vyasa is the compiler of the Puranas from age to age; and for this age, he is Krishna-Dvaipayana, the son of Parasara."

"The Puranas are the most important among the “Smritis”. The spiritual knowledge contained in the Upanishads has, in the Puranas, been transformed into fiction and metaphors; we find in them much useful information on Indian history, the gradual growth and expression of the Hindu dharma, the condition of the society in ancient times, social customs, religious ceremonies, Yogic methods of discipline and ways of thinking."

"If the Purana written by Vyasa were still existing, then it would be honoured as a “Sruti”. In the absence of this Purana and the one written by Lomaharshana, the eighteen Puranas that still exist cannot all be given the same place of honour; among them, the Vishnu and the Bhagwata Purana composed by accomplished yogis are definitely more precious and we must recognise that the Markandeya Purana written by a sage devoted to spiritual pursuits is more profound in Knowledge than either the Shiva or the Agni Purana."

"The 18 Mahapuranas (great Puranas), as the origins of the Puranas, may have overlapped to some extent with the Vedas, but their composition stretched forward into the 4th-5th centuries,... the earliest parts of the Puranic genealogies are either entirely or partly w:Mythicalmythical. The oldest of the Puranas are the Matsya, Vayu and the Brahmanda and for our purposes, the Vishnu Purana, somewhat later than the first three … the Vedic link also goes back to the earlier statement that the itihasa-purana was the fifth Veda."

"According to Puranas, there are five characteristic features or subjects dealt with in each Maha Purana and these are: Sarga – the process of creation of Universe; Pratisarga – the periodical process of destruction and creation; Manvantara – the various eras; Vamsa – the histories of the solar and lunar dynasties; and Vamsanucharita – the royal lineage."

"The Shiva Puranas are Shiva Purana, Linga Purana, Kurma Purana, Markandeya Purana, Skanda Purana, and Varaha Purana."

"The Brahma Puranas that glorify Brahma are Brahma Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Agni Purana, Brahmavaivarta Purana, Brahmanda Purana, and Padma Purana."

"The Puranas are post-Vedic texts which typically contain a complete narrative of the history of the Universe from creation to destruction, genealogies of the kings, heroes and demigods, and descriptions of Hindu cosmology and geography. There are 18 canonical Puranas, divided into three categories, each named after a deity: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. There are also many other works termed Purana, known as 'Upapuranas."

"The Vasihnva Puranas are Vishnu Purana, Naradiya Purana, Vamana Purana, Matsya Purana, Garuda Purana, and Shrimat Bhagavata Purana."

"The Mahapuranas contain 400,000 slokas. They are four times the size of Mahabharata. In these, six are Satvic or Vaishnava Puranas and glorify Lord Vishnu, six are Rajasic or Brahma Puranas and glorify Lord Brahma, and six are Tamasic or Shiva Puranas and glorify Lord Shiva."

"In Puranas, the supreme truth is made known to one and all, including ordinary men, in a very simple manner....There are many Puranas. It is believed that there were approximately 64 Puranas consisting of 18 Mahapuranas, 18 primary Upa Puranas and the rest secondary Upa Puranas."

"The Puranas, the Tantras, and all the other books, even the Vyasa Sutras, are of secondary, or tertiary authority, but primary are the Vedas."

"The Puranas are of the same class as the Itihasas (the Ramayana, Mahabharata, etc.). They have five characteristics (Pancha Lakshana), viz., history, cosmology (with various symbolical illustrations of philosophical principles), secondary creation, genealogy of kings, and of Manvantaras (the period of Manu’s rule consisting of 71 celestial Yugas or 308,448,000 years). All the Puranas belong to the class of Suhrit-Sammitas, or the Friendly Treatises, while the Vedas are called the Prabhu-Sammitas or the Commanding Treatises with great authority."

"In the month of Magha the cows are slain, in Phalguni she is wed (AV XIV.1.13)."

"She who bears plants endowed with many varied powers, may Prithivī for us spread wide and favour us. In whom the sea, and Sindhu, and the waters, in whom our food and corn-lands had their being."

"God is really one, only one."

"Whoever knows Atharva Veda knows all."

"The Atharva Veda is a Vedic-era collection of spells, prayers, charms, and hymns. There are prayers to protect crops from lightning and drought, charms against venomous serpents, love spells, healing spells, hundreds of verses, some derived from the Rig Veda, all very ancient."

"A King should address the Assembly thus: Let the leader of the Assembly abide by the just laws passed by the Assembly, let other members do the same."

"O, men, let the man among you alone be made a king the President of the Assembly – who is a powerful conqueror of foes, is never beaten by them, has the capacity to become the paramount sovereign, is most enlightened, is worthy of being made a President, who possess noble qualities, accomplishments, character and disposition, who is thoroughly worthy of the homage, trust and respect of all."

"Who gave to whom?Desire gave to desire. Desire is the giver and receiver; Desire entered the ocean; With desire, I accept you; this is for you, for desire."

"In Atharva Veda, kama is associated with the broad range of human desire; wanting enemies to be defeated; wanting lovers to reciprocate feelings of infatuation, lust, affection, wanting more money and more power; in short wanting to be successful in love and work."

"The person who mistreats a noble woman does bad towards a friend, he who is senior but is ignorant is known as a degraded person. A person should refrain from all those things that take him towards, fallacy, misery and degradation."

"Destroy all those who are lustful, angry, greedy, enticed, proud and jealous."

"Water of river, well, pond, etc., if used and managed efficiently will reduce the intensity of drought and water scarcity;"

"In the heart of the waters, O, King Varuna, your golden home is built; Varuna is considered to be a deity associated with water."

"Earth is mother. Firmament the father. Earth is my mother, I am her son."

"May the waters from the snowy mountains bring health and peace to all people? May the spring waters calmness to you; may the swift currents be pleasing to you; and may the rains be a source of tranquility to all. May the waters of Oasis in the desert be sweet to you; and so be the waters of ponds and lakes. May the waters from the wells dug by humans be good to them, and may the healing powers of water be available to all human beings."

"Set me, O Earth. Amidst what is thy center and thy navel, and visualizing forces that emanate from the body Purify us from all sides. Earth is my mother; her son am I; and Heaven my father :may he fill us with plenty..."

"Aum, We pray for; Peace in the Devaloka, Peace in the pace and on the Earth;Peace in the Waters, peace in the Herbs, the Vegetation and the Forests, Peace among the Rulers of the World, Peace in the Divine, Peace everywhere and in every Thing, Peace, True and Real Peace, Let that Peace be in my mind Peace, Peace, Peace."

"The whole world is like one nest."

"Who is the wife of the year, may she be auspicious to us. Who is the replica of the year, we worship you as that night (AV Ill. 10.2-3)."

"Easy to invoke, oh Agni, may the Krittikas and Rohini be, auspicious Mrigashira and peaceful Ardra. Graceful be Punarvasu, beautiful Pushya, bright Aslesha, with the solstice at Magha for me. Virtuous be Purva Phalguni and Uttara, Hasta and Chitra peaceful and may Swati give me joy. Bounteous Vishakha, easy to invoke, Anuradha, the best Nakshatra Jyeshta, I invoke, and Mula. May Purva Ashadha provide me nourishment and Divine Uttara Ashadha give me strength. May Abhijit provide virtue, as Shravana and Shravishta grant beauty. May Shatabhishak give me greatness for expansion, and the two Proshtapadas give protection. May Revati and Ashwayujaur give me fortune and Bharani grant me wealth (AV XIX.7.2-4)."

"Peaceful for us be the planets and the Moon, peaceful the Sun and Rahu (AV XIX.9.10)."

"The bridal train of the Sun Goddess comes, which the Sun God has set in motion. In Magha (Leo) the cows are slain, in the Phalgunis (Virgo) she is wed."

"From which case we have taken the Veda, within that we place it (AV XIX.72.1)."

"At the place of the ship's descent at the top of the Himalayas, there resides the vision of immortality from which the Kushta plant was born; which the Ikshwakus previously knew (AV XIX.39.8-9)."

"The Earth is the Mother, I am her Son."

"The earth upon whom the noisy mortals sing and dance, upon whom they fight, upon whom resounds the roaring drum, shall drive forth our enemies, shall make us free from rivals!"

"To the earth upon whom are food, and rice and barley, upon whom live these five races of men, to the earth, the wife of Parganya, that is fattened by rain, be reverence!"

"The earth upon whose ground the citadels constructed by the gods unfold themselves, every region of her that is the womb of all, Pragapati shall make pleasant for us!"

"The earth that holds treasures manifold in secret places, wealth, jewels, and gold shall she give to me; she that bestows wealth liberally, the kindly goddess, wealth shall she bestow upon us!"

"The earth that holds people of manifold varied speech, of different customs, according to their habitations, as a reliable milch-cow that does not kick, shall she milk for me a thousand streams of wealth! (Bloomfieldís translation)."

"In the villages and in the wilderness, in the assembly-halls that are upon the earth; in the gatherings, and in the meetings, may we hold forth agreeably to thee!..."

"Gentle, fragrant, kindly, with the sweet drink (kÓlala) in her udder, rich in milk, the broad earth together with (her) milk shall give us courage!"

"O mother earth, kindly set me down upon a well-founded place! With (father) heaven cooperating, O thou wise one, do thou place me into happiness and prosperity!"

"The Supreme Being is called neither the second, nor the third, nor yet the fourth. He is called neither the fifth, nor the sixth, nor yet the seventh; he is called neither the eighth nor the ninth nor yet the tenth. He is the One, One alone and only One."

"After having been recited, the Veda is put back in a chest."

"God is verily great."