A Hindu temple or Mandir is a place of worship for followers of Hinduism. It can be a separate structure or a part of a building. A picture of most temples is the presence of murtis (images) of the Hindu deity to whom the temple is dedicated. They are usually dedicated to one primary deity, called the presiding deity, and other subordinate deities associated with the main deity. However, some temples are dedicated to several deities, and some have symbols instead of a murti.
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Hindu temples are known by different names in different parts of the world, depending upon the language. The word mandir or mandira is used in many languages, including Hindi, and is derived from a Sanskrit word, mandira, for 'house' (of a deity by implication). Temples are known as kō-yil - கோயில் (and occasionally, especially in modern formal speech, aalayam - ஆலயம்) in Tamil. The etymology is from kō - கோ, or lord, and il - இல் - home (note that besides meaning a deity's home, this term could also mean a King's home, since the term kō - கோ is used interchangeably for royalty and divinity). Temples are known as Devasthana or Gudi in Kannada, as Gudi, Devalayam or Kovela in Telugu and Mondir (মন্দির) in Bengali, as Kshetram or Ambalam in Malayalam.
During the ritual consecration of a temple, the presence of the universal all-encompassing Brahman, is invoked into the main stone deity of the temple, through ritual, thereby making the deity and the temple sacred and divine.
Kedarnath Temple dedicated to Shiva, in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand Tilla Jogian, Pakistan Most ordinary temples in North India ritual is very simple in stark contrast to South Indian temples which have elaborate ritual. Also North Indian temples often tend to be less orthodox and in many cases all and sundry are permitted to enter the innermost sanctum of the deity and worship the deity personally. In such cases, the deity will not be adorned with valuable jewellery. The innermost heart of the temple is the sanctum where the deity (usually of fixed stone) is present, followed by a large hall for lay worshippers to stand in and obtain "darshan" or divine audience. There may or may not be many more surrounding corridors, halls etc. However there will be space for devotees to go around the temple in clock wise fashion circumbulation as a mark of respect. In North Indian temples, the tallest towers are built over the sanctum sanctorum.
Temples often greatly vary in their appearance, rituals, traditions, festivals and customs from region to region. Temples in eastern and western India also have their distinctions. In the south, kerala temples are very different from temples in the other three states.
Dakshineswar Kali Temple, Kolkata. In Bengal, temple architecture has assumed a unique identity. Due to lack of suitable stone in the alluvial Gangetic delta, the temple makers had to resort to other materials instead of stone. This gave rise to using terra cotta as a medium for temple construction. Terra-cotta exteriors with rich carvings are a unique feature of Bengali temples. The town of Vishnupur in Bengal is renowned for this type of architecture.
Usually a part of the intended total motif was carved by hand on one side of a brick and then baked. While under construction, these carved bricks were arranged to make up the entire motif.
The Bengali style of temple is not luxurious. Rather, most are modeled on simple thatched-roof earthen huts used as dwellings by commoners. This can be attributed to the popularity of bhakti cults which taught people to view gods as close to themselves. Thus, various styles like do-chala, char-chala, and aat-chala sprang up. However, there is also a popular style of building known as Navaratna (nine-towered) or Pancharatna (five-towered) in Bengal which is more luxurious than the Chala buildings. A typical example of Navaratna style is the Dakshineswar Kali Temple.
Visitors and worshipers to Hindu temples are required to remove shoes and other footwear before entering them. Most temples have an area designated to store footwear.
The Hindu religion teaches that all life-forms are created by Brahma and that humankind needs to share the world with the animal kingdom. It is common to see stray dogs, sacred cows and various species of birds congregated at temples.
Worshipers in major temples typically bring in symbolic offerings for the prayer or 'puja'. This includes fruits, flowers, sweets and other symbols of the bounty of the natural world. Temples in India are typically surrounded by small stores called 'dukan' (Hindi) which offer them typically wrapped in organic containers such as banana leaves. Shiva Vishnu temple]] in Lanham, Maryland, United States. When inside the temple, it is typical to keep both hands folded together as a sign of respect. The worshipers approach the inner sanctum, recite sacred Sanskrit verses called 'mantras', follow the instructions of the priest called the 'pujari', meditate & pray called 'puja', and, present the offerings to the feet of the God-form 'the murthy' symbolising total submission and immersion into the All Loving Being. The 'murthy' is typically placed on a 'mandap' or pedestal surrounded by beautiful offerings such as colorful cloths, flowers, incense sticks or 'agarbati' and sounds such as from a conch or large bells.
The mantras spoken are typically "Om Namo Narayana" or "Om Namah Shivaya" which mean "Obeisance to Narayana( vishnu)" or "Salutations to Shiva". These are followed by a series of shlokas or verses from the holy texts such as the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads or Vedas. Upon the conclusion of the prayer, devotees get down on their knees or even fall flat on their stomach and bow before the symbol of the deity. If a priest or 'Pujari' is present, he is likely to provide sacred symbolically-blessed food called 'Prasad' to the devotee. He may also apply a holy red mark called ' Tilak ' to the forehead of the devotee symbolising blessings.
Finally the worshiper or visitor would walk clock-wise around the sanctum sanctorum , stop once on each side, close their eyes and pray to the All Loving Being. The worshipper may receive a sprinkling of the water from the holy river Ganges while the 'pujari' states "Om Shanti" which means "peace be unto all".
During religious holidays, temples may be swarmed with devotees chanting and praying loudly. There may be facilitators called 'paandaas' who help visitors navigate through the crowds and complete the 'puja' or prayer rituals quickly.
Temple management staff typically announce the hours of operation, including timings for special 'pujas'. For example the 'anjali' prayers are in the early-to-mid morning while 'arati' prayers are in the evening. There are also timings for devotional songs or music called bhajans,which are accompanied by a Dholak or Tabla soloist an/or Harmonium soloist. There are also dates and times for devotional dances such as the classical Bharata Natyam dance performed by accomplished dance performers.
The Hindu religion teaches compassion and tolerance towards the poor and weak. At the exit areas of the temples worshipers or visitors often distribute Prasad and give out spare change to beggars, mentally or physically challenged individuals, and destitute women and children .
In India, theoretically, a temple is managed by a temple board committee that administers its finances, management and events.
However since independence, the autonomy of individual Hindu religious denominations to manage their own affairs with respect to temples of their own denomination have been severely eroded. State governments of many states in India (and especially all the states in South India) have gradually increased their control over all Hindu temples. Over decades, by enacting various laws which have been fought both successfully and unsuccessfully up to the Supreme court of India, politicians of the ruling parties especially in the southern states control every aspect of temple management and functioning.
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Hindutash, also known as Hindu-tagh Pass, is the name of a historical mountain pass in the western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (formerly, Chinese Turkestan) of the People's Republic of China. The pass cuts through the Kunlun Mountains connecting the now-deserted town of Kangxiwar, formerly Kengshewar, (36° 11' 58 N, 78° 46' 50 E) in the Karakash River valley to the town of Pusha, (36.3833° N, 79° E), formerly Bushia, in the Yurungkash River valley, and also connects to the road to the city of Hotan, formerly Khotan. [1] (See maps on right.)
In 1857, the explorer Robert Schlagintweit crossed this pass from camping grounds in Sumgal ("three fords"), on the banks of the Karakash river, approximately 7 miles upstream from Kengshewar and estimated its height to be . At the top of the pass (36° 16' 23 N, 78° 46' 50 E), there is a steep glacier with many crevasses. The eastern Kunlun range, which is in the southern region of the Hotan prefecture of Xinjiang, is cut by two other passes: the Sanju Pass, near the small staging post of Xaidulla, formerly Shahidulla, northwest of Hindu-tagh, and the Ilchi Pass, southeast of Hindu-tagh, just north-east of the village of Dahongliutan, itself just north of the now disputed Aksai Chin area (see second map on right). The former pass had been much used historically, and provided the traditional means of entry from the south into the ancient Kingdom of Khotan. The latter was traversed in 1865 by W. H. Johnson of the Survey of India. "Hindu-tagh" means "Indian Mountain," and "Hindu-tash," "Indian stone" in the Uyghur dialect of Xinjiang.
<Gallery> Image:Chain-of-kuenluen-from-sumgal1857a.jpg|"The Chain of the Kuenlúen, from Súmgal, in Turkistán (Lat North 36° 8', Long. East of Green. 78° 5', Height 13, 215 Engl. feet)" by Hermann Schlagintweit, August 1856. Lithographed by Sabatier, printed in oil-colours by Lemereier, Paris. The Hindu-tagh Pass is the break in the mountains on the right. Image:IMG_0542.jpg|Karakash River in the Western Kunlun Range, seen from the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway Image:Kunlun_IMG_0541.jpg|View of Western Kunlun Range from the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway </Gallery>
<Gallery> Image:NWFP-Kashmir1909-a.jpg|A lower-resolution 1909 Map of the Princely State of Kashmir and Jammu. Sumgal at the base of the Hindu-tagh Pass, Chinese Turkestan, is shown in the top right corner. Image:China India western border 88.jpg|US State Department Map of Aksai Chin. Hindutash is just north of the town of Kangxiwar, Xinjiang shown at the top of the map, north of Aksai Chin. Image:Yangi-hindutash-aurel-stein-map-1911.jpg|Map of Aurel Stein (1911) based on that of the Survey of India showing the "Hindutash Dawan" in the Kunlun Mountains in Chinese Turkestan </Gallery> <Gallery> Image:Johnson-journey-ilchi1865-mapa.jpg|Map of W. H. Johnson showing the route of his trip to Khotan from Leh; in this map, Johnson refers to the pass as "Hindotak diwan Pass." He himself traveled through the Yangi diwan Pass, some 20 miles up-river from Hindutash, on his outward journey, and returned via the Sanju diwan Pass near Shahdula (modern Xaidulla). </Gallery>
Literature regarded as central to the Vedic Hindu literary tradition was predominantly composed in Sanskrit, Indeed, much of the morphology and linguistic philosophy inherent in the learning of Sanskrit is inextricably linked to study of the Vedas and other Vedic texts.
Vedic literature is divided into two categories: Śruti – that which is heard (i.e. revelation) and Smriti – that which is remembered (i.e. tradition, not revelation). The Vedas constituting the former category are considered scripture by many followers of Vedic religion. The post-Vedic scriptures form the latter category: the various shastras and the itihaases, or histories in epic verse. A sort of cross-over between the religious epics and Upanishads of the Vedas is the Bhagavad Gita, considered to be revered scripture by almost all Hindus today.
The Vedas form the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature[1] and the oldest sacred texts of Hinduism.[2]
According to Vedic tradition, the Vedas are "not human compositions"[3], being supposed to have been directly revealed, and thus are called śruti ("what is heard").[4][5] Vedic mantras are recited at Hindu prayers, religious functions and other auspicious occasions.
Philosophies and sects that developed in the Indian subcontinent have taken differing positions on the Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy which cite the Vedas as their scriptural authority are classified as "orthodox" (āstika). Two other Indian philosophies, Buddhism and Jainism, did not accept the authority of the Vedas and evolved into separate religions. In Indian philosophy these groups are referred to as "heterodox" or "non-Vedic" (nāstika) schools.[6]
The central focus of all the Vedas is the Vedic sacrifice, officiated by four priests, each in charge of one of the Vedas. This karmic ritual is mediated by the fire-demigod named Agni. Only through Agni can the priests (and thus the rest of society) gain access to the Devas.
The Vedas are four in number. The , Yajur-, and Atharva Vedas represent various , or branches, of knowledge. Depending on the branch, different commentaries and instructions are associated with each Veda.
Each of the four Vedas may be divided into two sections:
The , describing rules and purpose of Saṃhitās, are further divided:
While the Upanishads are indeed classed within the fold of the "Vedas", their actual importance to Hindu philosophy has far exceeded that of possibly any other set of Hindu scriptures, and even resulted in the Bhagavad Gita, which is a self-proclaimed yoga upanishad. Thus, they deserve a look that is independent from the samhitas and brahamans, against whose excessive ritualism the Upanishads famously rebelled. They form Vedanta and are the basis of much of Classical Hindu thought.
The Upanishads ("Sittings Near [a Teacher]") are part of the Hindu Shruti; these religious scriptures primarily discuss philosophy and "cosmic reality"; they also contain transcripts of various debates or discussions. There are 123 books argued to be part of the Upanishads; however, only 13 are accepted by all Hindus as primary. They are commentaries on the Vedas and their branch of Hinduism is called Vedanta. See Upanishads for a much more detailed look at the mystic backbone of Hinduism.
The Upanishads are acknowledged by scholars and philosophers from both East and West, from Schrödinger, Thoreau and Emerson to Rabindranath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi and Aurobindo Ghosh, to be superlatively beautiful in poetry and rich in philosophy.
The new books that appeared afterwards were called Smriti. Smrti literature includes Itihasas (epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata), Puranas (mythological texts), Agamas (theological treatises) and Darshanas (philosophical texts).
The Dharmashastras (law books) are considered by many to form part of the smrti. From time to time great law-givers (eg Manu, Yajnavalkya and Parashara) emerged, who codified existing laws and eliminated obsolete ones to ensure that the Hindu way of life was consistent with both the Vedic spirit and the changing times. However, it must be noted that the Dharmashastras have long been discarded by many groups of Hindus, namely those following Vedanta, Bhakti, bhakit and Tantra streams of Hinduism.
The Vedic philosophy reflected in the epics is the doctrine of avatar (appearance of God on the Earth). The two main avatars of Vishnu that appear in the epics are Rama, the hero of the Ramayana, and Krishna, the chief protagonist in the Mahabharata. Unlike the gods of the Vedic Samhitas and the more meditative, mystic and ethical Upanishadic ideas regarding the all-pervading and formless Brahman, the avatars in these epics are more developed personalities, loving and righteous descents of the Supreme Being among mortals.
Many followers of the Vedic religion or Sanatan Dharma has said that the most succinct and powerful abbreviation of the overwhelmingly diverse realm of Vedic thought is to be found in the Bhagavad Gita (also known simply "The Gita"). Essentially, it is a microcosm of Vedanta- Bhakti, Yogi, and Karmi aspect of Sanatan Dharma, or Vedic religion. Bhagavad Gita (literally: Song of the God) is a part of the epic poem Mahabharata and is revered in Hinduism. It speaks not only to Vaishnavas but to all people of all faiths, and it is accepted by the members of all Vedic streams as a seminal text. Indeed, the "tag line" of each chapter of the Bhagavad Gita refers to the book as the "Gita Upanishad" and as a "scripture of yoga," thereby establishing that in this text, Lord Krishna speaks the truths of yoga and the Upanishads for all.
What holds the devotee's mind foremost is Krishna's repeated injunction to abandon the mortal self to the infinite love of the Lord. He not only speaks to the mind and to the Atma, individual spirit's innate sense of Dharma, but calls for overwhelming love. By loving God one also loves the immortal Self, finds harmony in oneself, and finds oneself at peace with the entire cosmos. The Gita speaks of cultivating the intellect, properly using the body, and always remaining equipoised in relation to the greater Self. The Bhagavad Gita truly presents itself as a liberation scripture universal in its message
The Puranas are a vast literature of stories and allegory. Eighteen are considered to be Mahapuranas, or Great Puranas, and thus authoritative references on the Gods and Goddesses, religious rites and holy places (most of which are in the Indian subcontinent, known as Bharat).
The Tevaram is a body of remarkable hymns exuding Bhakti composed more than 1400-1200 years ago in the classical Tamil language by three Saivite composers. They are credited with igniting the Bhakti movement in the whole of India.
The Nalayira Divya Prabandha (or Nalayira(4000) Divya Prabhamdham) is a divine collection of 4,000 verses (Naalayira in Tamil means 'four thousand') composed before 8th century AD[1], by the 12 Alvars, and was compiled in its present form by Nathamuni during the 9th – 10th centuries. The work is the beginning of the canonization of the twelve Vaishnava poet saints, and these hymns are still sung extensively today. The works were lost before they were collected and organized in the form of an anthology by Nathamunigal. The Prabandha sings the praise of Sriman Narayana (or Vishnu) and his many forms. The Alvars sung these songs at various sacred shrines. These shrines are known as the Divya Desams.
In South India, especially in Tamil Nadu, the Divya Prabhandha is considered as equal to the Vedas, hence the epithet Dravida Veda. In many temples, Srirangam, for example, the chanting of the Divya Prabhandham forms a major part of the daily service. Prominent among the 4,000 verses are the 1,100+ verses known as the Thiru Vaaymozhi, composed by Nammalvar (Kaaril Maaran Sadagopan) of Thiruk Kurugoor.
Other famous texts of Hinduism include those of the bhakti yoga school (loving devotion to God) such as the Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas (an epic poem on the scale of Milton's Paradise Lost based on the Ramayana), the Gita Govinda of Jayadeva (a religious song of the divine love of Krishna and his consort Radha), Adi Shankara's commentaries and other works, Ramanujacharya's nine books including "Sri Bhasya", Madhvacharya's commentaries and the Devi Mahatmya (the tales of Devi, the Vedic mother goddess, in her many forms as Shakti, Durga, Parvati, etc.).
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