Ancient Indian epics. Indian mythology
The two great epic poems, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, are the true encyclopedias of Indian life. Ramayana, like the Greek "Iliad" and "Odyssey" and in modern times The Finnish “Kalevala” is composed of separate rhapsodies - fragmentary songs that were originally preserved orally, and then, in connection, as a whole, put in some order and set out in writing.
It is impossible to determine the time to which its origin belongs: judging by the content, the Ramayana refers to that primitive era in the life of the people, when the supernatural and the ordinary, fictions and real incidents, myths and undoubted facts inseparably merge into one and are intertwined in the most bizarre arabesques. , When inner life a person develops, mainly under the influence of imagination, when his mind presents objects not as they are, but as they seem to him; in this period of childhood of thought, a person does not investigate what is happening in himself, but assumes, guesses, and takes these assumptions and guesses as undoubted truths, which he believes with sincere and ardent conviction. Feeling unconsciously that the same forces are constantly at work in all the phenomena of nature, primitive suggests that between all beings there is a kindred, consanguineous, unanimous, inseparable connection, which is why a stone, a tree, an animal, a bird, earth, water, air, fire, stars, a month, a person can sympathize with each other, understand each other, talk to each other with a friend, even to move from one form of being to another, so to speak, change faces and roles, undergo transformations at their own will, or at the will of some higher power. This is how it is in the Ramayana.
The dominant character of the poem is mythological-religious. It developed under the influence of the sacred Indian books, known as the Vedas, or revelations: These Vedas poured out from the mouth of the deity - Brahma; that means, beyond any time limits, beyond any chronological indications. The genealogy of the Indian kings dates back to three thousand years before the birth of Christ, therefore the appearance of the Vedas is even older; who can remember when they poured out from the mouth of Brahma? Some of the Vedas are in verse, some in prose. They include:
Hymns to various deities
Rules of morality
Compulsory religious rites are counted
Poetic was to be spoken aloud, or sung; prosaic - read in a whisper, indistinctly, to yourself.
Despite the extreme antiquity of the Vedas, their teaching strikes with an abstraction and speculation unusual in the pagan world. This is the essence of this doctrine, generally known under the name of Brahmanism: there is an eternal, original, before all times and all things, the beginning, or being, incorporeal, without parts, alien to any passion, filling all spaces, penetrating all beings, into the highest degree good, supremely wise; from it, like rays from the sun, all the deities, people and other creatures of nature pour out; it is invisible, and it can be contemplated only in the beings and phenomena of the world, as its material and temporal incarnations, which will return to it, plunge into it and merge with its essence, from which they poured out. This eternal father of all things loves his children infinitely; the highest pleasure of a person consists in contemplating him, in love for him, in mental worship of him, in love and mercy towards all needy and suffering living beings, as towards brothers. The concept of the unity of the supreme principle of the world constantly shone through in the mystical fog of the interpreters of the Vedas. The invented three deities - Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu, as his highest incarnations, were symbols of the phenomena of life: Brahma is the creator, Shiva is the destroyer, Vishnu is the restorer of the destroyed. Countless gods and goddesses appeared, good and evil, striking with their extraordinary beauty and extraordinary ugliness, with many symbolic attributes - in the form of birds, animals, reptiles, trees, flowers, which gave rise to the grossest idolatry, wild fakirism and barbaric sacrifices. The Vedas were considered so sacred that only Brahmins were allowed to read them, who were obliged to keep them in the deepest secret; a brahmin who dared to read them, or give them into the hands of a person of another caste, was excluded from the brahmin caste and ranked among the outcast pariah caste. Translate the Vedas into foreign language was considered the greatest sacrilege. The Vedas were the source of all Indian literature: epic poets borrowed from them the content for their writings, lawyers - for the development and confirmation of civil laws, grammars - the rules of the language and examples, compilers of lexicons - all the richness of words and their explanation, philosophers - the foundations for their systems. This gave all the works of Indian literature a mythical-religious character, in which tender, often idyllic-cute features are always brightly visible. best properties human nature - the sanctity of love and friendship, generosity, nobility, self-sacrifice, unshakable courage in enduring misfortunes, touching sympathy for grief, respect for the merits of another person and some, one might say, moral delicacy in social relations between people. All the inhabitants of ancient India were divided into four states, or four colors, which in Europe, following the Portuguese, are usually called castes. People of the first, highest color, or caste, were called Brahmins (Brahmins), because they came up with the idea to produce themselves from the deity - Bramha, as his children. They were not only priests who performed sacrifices, but teachers of the people, judges, ministers and advisers, who were always with the sovereigns; it was their right and duty to practice the sciences and arts and to take care of their dissemination; they alone could be addressed for healing from illness, because illness was considered a punishment that the gods sprinkled on people for their misdeeds and crimes. Brahmins were revered by earthly gods; therefore the face of a Brahmin was sacred; if anyone dared to hit a brahmin even with a stalk of grass, he would be cursed and condemned to eternal torment; there was nothing to atone for the insult inflicted on the Brahmin. Although the Brahmins obeyed civil laws, they possessed supernatural power: everything was fulfilled according to their one word. They could call on a person's head happiness with their blessing and all kinds of disasters, even death with their curse. The main duty of the Brahmins was to observe the exact preservation of religious ideas and sacred rites, constantly read, explain the Vedas and arrange sacrifices. They had to lead an impeccable life, observe the purity of morals, have no permanent home, no personal property, not collect wealth, not kill any living creature, not eat meat, except the meat of sacrificial animals. The second caste was made up of kshatriyas, that is, warriors, or protectors. Their purpose and duties are evident from the name itself.
The third caste included artisans of all kinds and farmers. Farming was preferred to all other occupations of the working class. Farmers did not enter military service, but had to pay only a certain tribute to the Brahmins and sovereigns. The Sudras, who made up the rest of the mass of the people, belonged to the fourth caste. They were not prescribed any specific occupation: they could engage in all sorts of needlework, crafts, even trade. Of these, those who voluntarily, on their own initiative, became servants of the Brahmins, stood out and enjoyed special honor. Those belonging to the Sudra caste were not allowed to read or listen to the Vedas. The mixing of people of different castes through marriage was not prohibited by law, but those who entered into unequal marriages with persons lower castes were not respected. Pariahs constituted a special, outcast, excluded from society caste. When this caste was formed is unknown. Even the origin of the word pariah is unknown. It is believed that the gypsies are the descendants of Indian pariahs. Of all the castes, it was possible to achieve some degree of holiness by devoting oneself to the life of a hermit, exhausting oneself with hunger, subjecting oneself voluntarily to all kinds of tortures of the body, and plunging into reflection on the essence of Brahma. In the Vedas there are prayers for sending wisdom to man as a heavenly, holy gift. It was considered a law and a religious matter to preserve all ancient works in inviolable primitiveness, without changing a single word, not a single letter. It was a charitable act to collect libraries and protect manuscripts; often temples were at the same time libraries. The shrine of religion merged with the shrine of thought and poetry.
The Ramayana is considered the oldest Indian poem. According to connoisseurs of Sanskrit literature, it ranks first in a series of poetry India. The main poetic theme is very simple: Rama, represented by one of the incarnations of Vishnu in the form of a man, is looking for his wife - Sita, who was kidnapped by the lord of demons - Rakshasas Ravana and carried off to Ceylon.
From this simple plot, the poet developed an extensive and diverse picture majestic, luxurious, brilliant views of mighty tropical nature, lands, cities, inhabitants, their customs, sacrifices, religious rites, battles of gods, people, birds, monkeys. Adventures are so unexpected, so fantastically extraordinary, that they amaze the wildest, most bizarre imagination. But these strange adventures involuntarily arouse sympathy by the fact that they express the universal features of the inner, spiritual life - love, friendship, enmity, sincerity, cunning, determination, hesitation, doubts, gullibility and suspicion, deliberation and recklessness, joys and sorrows; in a word, a diverse world of qualities and states of mind and heart. The Ramayana offered to readers is an extract from a huge poem: in the original it consists of twenty-four thousand couplets (slokas). In the extract, care was taken to convey as accurately as possible the character actors and scenery pictures.
Indian mythology.
In this appendix, we will consider the mythology in the epic. Myth and epic are two different structures: the first is a form of consciousness, the second is a story that tells about gods and heroes, that is, a story that reveals the images and symbols of mythological consciousness and its existence in the world around. As a rule, among the peoples of antiquity, mythology could not do without epic. On the examples of the epic, we will consider some images born in the Ancient East.
It was in the East that in myths she was the most famous theme unification of disparate states by one hero. Of course, these myths arose due to the political situation - early feudal fragmentation, but not only because of this. Main character unites not the states of earthly rulers, but the kingdoms of the world: the kingdom of the underworld, earthly and heavenly, which are separated for some reason. Perhaps the fragmentation of states was presented to people as the structure of the world, because the state structure was perceived as a continuation of the cosmos, its structure. But the probability that the world was originally fragmented is greater, since not only in the East there are heroes who unite these three kingdoms.
main topic Eastern myths: it is the unification of the kingdoms and the removal of enmity of any kind. For this, the protagonist is ready to go into prison, retire to the forests, etc. The most famous epic in the East are the stories of the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
The mythology of India is one of the richest and most extensive mythologies, including stories about the creation of the world, stories about gods and heroes, a powerful religious and philosophical code of laws about space, life, behavior and much more. In fact, it is not only narratives, but also the "book of life", which guided in all cases. It was believed that there is nothing in life that would not be described in the Mahabharata. So great was its significance.
The main code of laws in India was the Vedas. The Vedas consist of several books. The first book of the Rig Veda is a collection of hymns, prayers, sacrificial formulas, which had developed by 600 BC. e., it consisted of 1028 hymns (Brahmanism). The Rigveda, in turn, consists of three books: the Samaveda (veda of melodies), the Yajurveda (veda of sacrifices) and the Atharvaveda (veda of incantations). "Rig Veda" is a set of hymns, which was considered a divine revelation and therefore was transmitted by priests. It forms the basis of all Vedic (Veda - to know - to know; Veda - a witch - a knowing woman) literature, since these are texts of a cosmogonic nature that explain the ritual, its origin and meaning. Samhitas were written from it - collections, they are adjoined by brahmins - prose legends, this also includes Aranyakas and Upanishads - philosophical treatises on nature, gods and man. Samhitas, Brahmins, Aranyakas and Upanishads together form the sacred canon of Brahma (the supreme god). Later, two epics "Ramayana" were created almost simultaneously - about the god Vishnu, incarnated in King Rama; and "Mahabharata" - about the struggle of gods and demons, embodied in two genera (Pandavas and Kauravas).
Two mythological epics "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana" can be considered as two independent sets that tell about gods and heroes, heroes and their magical assistants (animals), whose images are often intertwined with one another and enter one another. They clearly define the involvement of gods, heroes and magical animals, which confirms the interconnections of the whole world.
The main language of influence of these mythological epics is not the word (as, for example, among the Scandinavians), but the action, the essence of which lies in the name. It was believed that if you know the real name of God, then you can enter into a mystical relationship with him in order to get something you want. Therefore, in Indian mythology, there are a large number of very different names for one god, which hid the true name, and thus saved ordinary people from direct contact with a god or demon.
The magical reunion of the three worlds (underground, earthly and heavenly), which arises through overcoming and fighting the forces of evil that oppose life, and the reunification of the whole world - is the basis of the idea of "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana".
In Indian mythology, not only the magical cosmos is deified, but also the despotism of the tribal community of ancestors, the power of the state, order, which is thought of as a continuation of the divine world order. The ancient gods of eternal nature (cosmos) appear in the guise of the first builders and patrons of the state. The description of battles with demons, which abound in epics, is nothing more than an attempt to define one's freedom and get rid of some overwhelming social factors.
“Man's path to his freedom in the Ancient East turns out not to be a search for a new being, but a renunciation of any definite being. At the heights of Eastern wisdom, freedom looks like a total denial of the outside world, from which they try to hide, dissolving in the eternal stream of life or finding peace within themselves, where there is neither fear nor hope ”(A. A. Radugin).
Searches, return to the original state of "before-being" - was the motivating reason for all battles and any actions. Perhaps this was due to the fact that a person in search of his freedom did not find it anywhere: neither in the surrounding nature, nor in the state (continuation of nature). This is a distinguishing feature of Indian mythology from any other, where, nevertheless, a person was considered a certain more necessary beginning in a person than in the East, and was perceived as universal wealth. Such is, for example, the situation in Greek mythology. Therefore, there the gods are more like people than unearthly creatures with unearthly (other cosmic) qualities.
Summary"Mahabharata".
The Mahabharata is a great epic that took shape at the turn of the 2nd and 1st millennium BC. e. and was known to the 5th century. n. e. as an independent code, describes the battles of heroes and gods. It consists of 19 books. The plot of the Mahabharata begins when India begins. This is reflected in the very title of the epic, which is translated as "The Tale of the Great Battle of the Bharatas": in Indian languages, India is referred to as the "Land of Bharata". Passed down from generation to generation, the Mahabharata acquired more and more new stories. It contains heroic tales, and myths, and legends, and parables, and stories about love, and philosophical treatises, and much more.
"Mahabharata" consists of 19 books, the main legends of which are: "The Tale of Shakuntala", "The Tale of Rama", "The Tale of Matsya", "The Tale of King Shivi", "The Tale of Nala", "The Tale of Savitri" and philosophical poem Bhagavad Gita. The story is told on behalf of the legendary sage Vyasa.
The plot of the Mahabharata is built on the struggle of two clans. Two groups of heroes opposing each other, two branches of the family tree - the descendants of Bharata (Pandu and Kuru) Pandava and Kaurava, enter into a long struggle for dominance over Hastinapura (Delhi). The friend and helper of the Pandavas is their maternal cousin Krishna (the incarnated god Vishnu). It was believed that the Pandavas were born gods, and the Kauravas are the incarnations of demons.
In Delhi, Dushyanta ruled. One day, while hunting, he met the daughter of the nymph Shakuntala in the forest in a hermit's hut and offered her his heart and kingdom. She agreed, but immediately took the word from Dushyanta that when her son was born, he would be the ruler. He agreed and lived in the hut for a while, then servants came for him, since the country, left without a ruler, could not prosper. Dushyanta left, promising to return.
Time passed, the ruler did not return. Shakuntala gave birth to a son. When the son was 6 years old, his strength became equal to the strength of the great hero. With her son, Shakuntala went to Dushyanta, who recognized her and her son, and immediately got married. The son was given the name Bharata.
Shantanu was the king of the Bharata family. One day, in the Ganges River, he saw a beautiful girl who was bathing there. Having fallen in love with her, he asked her to become his wife. She agreed to be his wife only on the condition that he would never ask her anything and let her do what she wanted. And Shantanu agreed. When their son was born, she threw him into the waters of the sacred river Ganges. The ruler mourned him, but did not say a word to the queen. So the queen acted with the other 6 born sons. When the 8th was due to be born, Shantanu demanded an explanation and began to ask the queen to leave last son to him. To all his words, the queen did not answer, sighed and disappeared. The ruler was saddened by the loss of his beloved wife.
When many years had passed, somehow Shantanu, sitting on the banks of the Ganges, saw a beautiful young man, whom he mistook for a god, because a radiance emanated from him. Shantanu was delighted with him and sadly remembered his dead sons and his missing wife. And then the disappeared queen appeared next to the young man. And she revealed the secret to Shantan: she said that she was the goddess of the river Ganges, and the sons whom she threw into the waters of the sacred river are alive, because those who end their lives in the waters of the Ganges live in the abode of the gods. Seven shining youths appeared before Shantanu - they were all gods. The eighth son, the heir, the goddess Ganga endowed with divine power and left with her father. He was given the name Bhishma and declared heir.
Shantanu, having only one son, was afraid both for his life and for the throne, so he decided to marry a second time. Having found the girl, Shantanu, wooing her father, heard from his father the condition: the son of his daughter should become the ruler. Shantanu became sad because the throne was promised to Bhishma. But the son, seeing the sadness of his father, took a vow of celibacy, publicly renounced the throne and betrothed this girl to his father. A son was born from this marriage. When he grew up Bhishma found a wife for him. When the son of Kuru was born to the young ruler, Bhishma undertook to educate him. He taught him all the sciences, taught him how to govern the state, and on the appointed day Kuru ascended the throne.
Kuru ruled for many years and Bhishma always came to the rescue. A blind son was born to the Kuru and he was given the name Dhritarashtra ("protection of the kingdom"). After some time, Kuru had another son - Pandu. When the time came, Pandu's youngest son ascended the throne. He married and had 5 sons - they began to be called Pandavas by the name of their father. The blind Dhritarashtra had 100 sons - they began to be called Kauravas, after the name of their grandfather. Both of them were brought up by Bhishma.
The eldest of the Kauravas Duryodhana ("evil warrior") hated the Pandavas because the eldest of them would ascend the throne in time, and he was not the first son of the primordial father. He decided to get rid of 5 brothers so that the throne went to him. For this purpose, Duryodhana wanted all his brothers to have good warrior abilities. Blind Dhritarashtra, understanding the intentions of his eldest son, tried to lead him away from the path of cruel thoughts, but it was all in vain. Duryodhana befriended the son of the sun Kara, who quarreled with Arjuna, the eldest of the Pandavas. Having skillfully set up Kara against all the Pandavas, Duryodhana asked Kara to train his brothers in the art of war in order to destroy the Pandavas.
Parallel to the story of the brothers, the story of the birth of Krishna, the incarnation of the god Vishnu (guardian god), is told. In the city of Mathura, the queen's son Kansa was born, in which an evil demon was embodied. When Kansa grew up, he threw his father into the dungeon and seized the throne. Executions were carried out from morning to evening. Kansa had a sister Devaka, when she became the bride of a noble warrior, then at the wedding feast Kansa was predicted to die from her 8th son. Upon learning of this, Kansa rushed at his sister with a knife, but her husband stood up for her, promising Kansa to give him all her children. All the sons that were born to Devaki were given to Kansa and he killed them, only he allowed him to leave his daughter. Finally, Devaki's husband managed to pass the 8th born son to the shepherd's wife. This child began to grow up far from the capital. His name was Krishna. When Kansa found out about this, he ordered to kill all the boys of Krishna's age. Sensing danger, Kansa summoned all the evil demons and ordered them to find Krishna. The demons eventually discovered Krishna, but he killed all the demons. When Krishna grew up, he killed Kansu and returned the throne to his uncle, he himself became king in a neighboring city.
At one match of suitors, Krishna and the Pandavas met and concluded friendly union. Of all the Pandavas, Arjuna became the closest friend of Krishna and married his sister Subhadra. Thus the Pandavas and Kauravas had powerful assistants.
Duryodhana, by his seniority, becomes the ruler of the city and expels the Pandavas, since Arjuna plays dice with Shakuni Duryodhana's representative and loses, and the loser had to leave the capital for 12 years.
The Pandavas settle in the forest. Wise men come to them and tell about the Great Love of Nala and Damayanti, about the strength and courage of Hanuman, about the flood, about the frog princess, about Rama and Sita (many legends, traditions and philosophical treatises follow, occupying a large place in the Mahabharata).
When the end of the exile approached, the Pandavas decided to fight the Kauravas in order to regain their kingdom. Indra (the god of thunder) decides to help them by taking the earrings from Karna, the son of the sun, in which his life is stored. In the form of a brahmin, Indra came to Karna and asked for his earrings (the brahmin had to be given what he asks, not to give - a mortal sin and a curse, because the brahmins were considered holy people), and Karna asked Indra for a spear in exchange for his earrings , which will kill one person whom Karna desires. Indra gives him this spear.
The Kauravas and Pandavas were preparing for battle and were expecting help from their mighty patrons - the Kauravas from Karna, and the Pandavas from Krishna. With this, Arjuna went to Krishna, but found there his cunning brother Duryodhana, who had come to Krishna before him with the same request. And Krishna offered Duryodhana to choose help for the battle: Krishna himself or his army. Duryodhana chose Krishna's army, but Arjuna wanted only Krishna himself. And Krishna agreed. Duryodhana also lured the Pandava uncle's army to him and asked old Bhishma to lead them. Bhishma led the Kauravas.
The battle has begun. When the slain Bhishma fell from the chariot in the name of the world, the battle stopped, everyone crowded around the bed, who sacrificed himself in the name of the world, great-grandfather. But this sacrifice was useless. - Karna was led by the Kauravas and the battle continued. At the duel, Arjuna kills Karna. A terrible battle begins. All the commanders perish, Duryodhana himself perishes, two troops perish.
After this terrible battle, only the Pandavas remain alive. And the blind Dhritarashtra blesses the Pandavas for the kingdom. Arjuna, as the elder brother, becomes the ruler, and when the time came, Indra took him alive to heaven in the kingdom of the gods.
This concludes the story of the Mahabharata.
The process of resettlement of the Indo-Aryan tribes in Hindustan was finally completed in the Mauryan era. The central events of the ancient Indian epic date back to the late Vedic era. But it was in the Gupta period that the text of two epic poems was finally formed, reflecting the main events associated with the development of a new space by the Indo-Aryans: the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. The birth of such epic characters as Krishna and Rama, the incarnations of the god Vishnu, is characteristic of the heyday of Hinduism.
The tradition associated with the composition and performance of epic poems has its roots in the depths of the period of Indo-European unity. Ancient Greek poems attributed to Homer are works related in genre affiliation Indian epic. Tales about gods and heroes were performed during sacrifices, burial rites and commemoration. For this, professional singers-narrators were invited. Different tribes and alliances of tribes had their own epic tradition - itihasa(“tales of the past”). All these traditions were reflected in the final text of the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Indian historical tradition singled out two main dynasties: Lunar and Solar. The events reflected in the Indian epic are grouped precisely around the representatives of these two families.
At "Mahabharata", like any epic poem, there is no single author. Indian mythological tradition attributes the authorship of the poem to the sage Vyasa, the earthly incarnation of the god Vishnu. It took him only three years to write 18 books containing almost 90,000 couplets. Inclusions of prose in the text of the Mahabharata are very rare. The text of the Mahabharata was probably taking shape throughout the 1st millennium BC. e. It also mentions initial period the history of the Indo-Aryan tribes in India, and the nomadic invasions that preceded the rise of the Guptas.
The main protagonists of the Mahabharata are two Kshatriya clans - Pandavas and Kauravas - from the Lunar dynasty. The brothers from the Pandu and Kuru clans, representing the Bharata tribe, were cousins and claimed superiority over each other. The struggle for dominance on the Indo-Gangetic plain in the process of settling the Indo-Aryan tribes is the main historical component of the Mahabharata.
Vishnu on the Serpent Sheshu (VI c.)
The eldest of the Kaurava brothers, Duryodhana, envious and spiteful, tried to destroy his Pandava brothers. The Kauravas, having beaten the Pandavas in dice, forced them to go into exile for thirty years - these were the conditions of the game. Their path in exile was long and hard, they were often threatened with death, and only honesty and dedication, loyalty to their word rescued them. When the Pandavas returned from exile, they began to prepare to fight the Kauravas. But one of the Pandavas, Arjuna, was very depressed that he would have to fight against his cousins. Then the supreme god Vishnu, having turned into the earthly king Krishna, turned to Arjuna with a fiery sermon, appealing to his military duty. This sermon is the core "Bhagavad Gita"- Songs of the Blessed.
Several books of the Mahabharata are devoted to the description of the bloody battle between the Pandavas and the Kauravas on the Kuru field. It was attended by almost all the tribes that lived then in India, and many gods. Chariots on which heroes fought flashed, swords glittered, bow strings rang, clouds of arrows darkened the sky, from which no shelter could save. The Kauravas were defeated, and then the eldest of the Pandavas, Yudhishthira, became king, whose just reign ended with the ascension of the brothers to heaven.
"Ramayana", like the Mahabharata, was created by itinerant poets and storytellers and passed down orally for centuries. It tells the story of another royal family - the Solar Dynasty. The authorship of the poem is attributed to the sage Valmiki. "Ramayana" - less voluminous work. It consists of 7 books and contains about 24 thousand couplets. Its text is more homogeneous, its addition took much less time than in the case of the Mahabharata, but the absolute dating of the Ramayana is still impossible. This poem also reflects real historical events- the penetration of the Indo-Aryan tribes into the south of India and their clash with the local tribes, bred in the poem in the form of evil rakshasas demons.
The narrative outline of the Ramayana is built around the misadventures of King Rama, the incarnation of Vishnu. WITH young years Rama was distinguished by extraordinary strength and courage. He accomplished many feats, defended the forest hermits from the attacks of evil Rakshasas. In the competition of suitors, he won the hand and heart of the beautiful Sita. But as a result of court intrigues, his father was forced to send Rama into exile for 14 years. Together with him in hard way his brother Lakshmana and his wife Sita went. The evil demon Ravana kidnapped Sita and hid her on the island of Lanka in the Southern Ocean. Then the leader of the monkeys and friend of Rama Hanuman flew by air to Lanka and found Sita there. A fierce battle ensued between the monkeys and the Rakshasas. The monkeys threw trees and rocks at the Rakshasas, who resorted to magical tricks. Finally, the main characters of the poem, Rama and Ravana, met in a duel. For a long time Rama could not overcome the evil demon. Then the gods came to his aid and gave him a magical weapon, with the help of which he defeated Ravana.
Like the "Mahabharata", "Ramayana" contains a lot of fantastic, but Rama for all time remained the embodiment of the ideal of a warrior, and the loyalty and strength of Sita's love, her willingness to share with her beloved all the hardships and anxieties sent by fate, Lakshmana's devotion to her brother, and Hanuman - to their friend Rama they made the "Ramayana" the favorite legend of India, and so it is now.
Hinduism
Gradually, the Indo-Aryans merged more and more closely with the local non-Aryan population, their way of life changed, and religion also changed. By the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. the foundations of Hinduism began to take shape. In contrast to the chaotic Vedic pantheon, Hinduism singled out the main gods, to whom countless lesser deities obeyed, and their "family" relationships became more definite. The main characters of the Vedic pantheon lost their former significance, and the figure of the omnipresent creator god came to the fore. All other deities were either his reincarnations or his retinue. The deities were no longer identified with natural phenomena, but took on human form. The whole set of gods obeyed the triad Brahma - Vishnu - Shiva. Brahma revered as the supreme creator god, and Vishnu And Shiva as its incarnation.
One direction in Hinduism reveres Vishnu as the incarnation of the supreme god. He most often appears in the role of a guardian. According to legend, he took earthly incarnations in order to save the universe from disaster. He was depicted as dark blue and with four arms. He could appear in the form of various animals - a boar, a fish, a turtle or a person (for example, Rama or Krishna in the form of a dark-skinned king or shepherd). Often Vishnu was represented as a beautiful young man reclining on the mythical snake Shesha, which swims in the waters of the cosmic ocean. This direction in Hinduism is called Vaishnavism. The sacred foundation of Vaishnavism is the Bhagavad Gita.
Once Vishnu, turning into a dwarf, came to the king of the evil demons Bali and asked him to give him as much land as he could cover in three steps. Laughing, Bali gave him such a promise. Then Vishnu grew to a gigantic size and covered the sky with the first step, and the earth with the second. Vishnu, seeing the horror of Bali, did not take the third step.
Another group of Hindus Shaivites - recognizes the incarnation of the supreme god Shiva. Unlike Vishnu - the guardian, Shiva - the god of destruction. He was portrayed in different ways: either as an ascetic hung with skulls, or as a dancer. According to legend, Shiva lives high in the Himalayas on Mount Kailash. He holds a trident in his hands, and he is always accompanied by the bull Nandin. Shiva borrowed his fierce appearance from the Vedic Rudra.
One of the sons of Shiva Ganesha- a four-armed man with the head of an elephant riding a rat. He was revered as the god of wisdom and good luck. Durga- the wife of Shiva - was revered as the main female deity. The most common among her other names is Parvati("Mountain").
There are no special differences between Shaivites and Vishnuites, the dispute is only around which god is considered the most important, Shiva or Vishnu, and which deity is primary.
Trimurti
In addition to the Vedas, the basis of Hinduism was Puranas("tales of the past"). They were sacred books along with the Vedas. The Puranas were considered to constitute a separate veda for the Shudras and women. Unlike the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, the epic content of the Puranas did not develop into a coherent narrative—they were not elaborately stylistically crafted. The Puranas are composed in simple verse, prose inclusions are rare, and their language is simple. There are 18 main Puranas known, which enjoy the greatest authority.
Mention is made of works of the Puranic genre dating from approximately the 4th century BC. BC e. The authorship of the first Puranas is also attributed to Vyasa, the legendary writer of the Mahabharata. The content of the Puranas is that the rishis - celestial sages - invite a narrator to tell them about the beginning and end of the world. The narrator recounts events related to five main themes: the creation of the world, the revival of the world, the genealogy of gods and heroes, the eras of Manu and earthly royal dynasties. Many other topics are always added to the main topics. The Puranas are divided into Vaishnavist and Shaivist.
basis Hindu cosmogony expounded in the Puranas is the idea of infinitely repeating cycles. One cycle - kalpa- is equal to one day of Brahma, i.e. 4320 million earth years. The night of Brahma lasts the same. 360 such days make up the year of Brahma, and his life lasts 100 years (currently Brahma, according to Hindu tradition, is 51 years old). Thus, one earthly cycle lasts 311,040,000 million years, after which the world falls into a state of chaos until it is recreated by the creator god. Each kalpa, in turn, is divided into 14 smaller periods, corresponding to the appearance of a new Manu- progenitor of the human race.
Brahma (VI century)
The seventh such period is now underway, corresponding to the era of Manu Vaivasvata. Each such period is subdivided into 71 mahayugas (“ great era”), which consist of four “ages”: Krita, Treta, Dvapara and Kali. Their duration is, respectively, 4800, 3600, 2400 and 1200 years of the gods, each of which is equal to 360 human years. Each "age" ( south) represents the gradual regression of mankind in virtue. Currently, the Kali Yuga, which began in 3102 BC, is ongoing. e. At the end of the Kali Yuga, the world will be destroyed by flood and fire in order for a new cosmic order to be recreated in its place.
Hinduism developed under the influence of the beliefs of numerous non-Aryan peoples who inhabited India. They revered trees, rivers, mountains, plants, animals such as snakes, elephants, monkeys, and cows, which were especially revered by the Indo-Aryans, are still considered sacred in India. Gradually, the construction of temples developed, which were often decorated with sculptural images on various mythological subjects. Buddhism made a significant contribution to the development of temple architecture in India. The figures of kings, gods, heroes of various legends reminded people of the main events of their lives.
Public holidays have become widespread. Crowds of people were accompanied by images of their favorite deities. Cheerful music was heard, singers sang songs, groups of dancers who lived at the temples performed dances depicting various episodes from the life of gods and heroes. The Spring Festival was especially popular. holi. Cumbersome Vedic rituals and sacrifices were becoming more and more a thing of the past.
One of the main features of the Hindu doctrine is the doctrine of religious merit - karma and the rebirth of the soul, which karma conditions. These ideas originated already in the Upanishads, the source of their appearance in the late Vedic literature is unclear. Some researchers suggest that they were borrowed from the non-Aryan peoples of the northeast of India. This doctrine reached its fullest development in the first centuries of our era.
According to the doctrine of karma, a person, doing good deeds, could improve his position in the next life, and a lifestyle that did not correspond to the duty of varna could even lead to the loss of human appearance. The "Laws of Manu" indicated exactly who would be born in future life righteous or sinner. For example, a brahmana drunkard will have to experience a worm, an insect, a moth, or a dung-eating bird. The one who stole the grain turned into a rat in a future life, water into a water bird, honey into a mosquito, milk into a crow, juice into a dog, meat into a kite, fat into a seagull, salt into a cricket, etc. On the other hand, a vaishya who honestly performed his duty could well be reborn as a kshatriya hero. A righteous brahmin could reach the level of a rishi, a celestial sage. Good deeds led to the accumulation of positive karma, which ensured rebirth with an increase in “status”.
"Vedic period". Ancient India in the XV - VI centuries. BC.
ancient indian epic. Mahabharata and Ramayana
In the Vedic period of the history of ancient India, the formation of epic creativity takes place. Epic poems are written monuments and are one of the most important and significant sources on the history and culture of ancient India in the first half of the 1st millennium BC. e. Epic poems have been compiled and edited over many centuries, and they reflect the phenomena of the Vedic era. The main epic monuments of ancient India include the poems "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana". These late Vedic works of literature are enormous in size, heterogeneous in composition and varied in content.
Truth, fiction and allegory are intertwined in both works. It is believed that the Mahabharata was created by the sage Vyas, and the Ramayana by Valmiki. However, in the form in which these creations have come down to us, they cannot belong to any one author and do not belong to the same century in time of creation. Modern form these great epic poems are the result of numerous and continuous additions and changes.
The largest in size is the Mahabharata, it is 8 times larger than the combined Odyssey and Iliad. Due to the richness and variety of content, it is called the encyclopedia of ancient Indian life. The Mahabharata contains huge material about economic and social development, public administration and forms of political organization, rights, customs and culture. Of particular value are the data of cosmological and religious nature, philosophical and ethical content. All this information reflects the process of the emergence of Indian philosophy and religion, the addition of the fundamental features of Hinduism, the cult of the gods Shiva and Vishnu. In general, the Mahabharata reflects the stage of development of ancient Indian society associated with the strengthening of the Kshatriya class and their struggle with the Brahmins for a leading position in society.
The plot basis of the Mahabharata ( great war descendants of Bharata) is a struggle for power within the royal family of Kuru, who ruled Hastinapur. The Kuru clan was one of the most powerful in Northern India, descended from Bharata, a king from the Lunar dynasty. In this clan were two brothers Dhritarashtra - the eldest and Pandu - the youngest. Each had a family and children.
The sons of Pandu were called Pandavas (descendants of Pandu), and the sons of Dhritarashtra were called Kauravas, since he was the eldest in the family, and family name passed on to him.
Panda was the ruler, because due to a physical defect - blindness, Dhritarashtra could not occupy the throne. Panda dies, leaving young heirs. This is used by the sons of Dhritarashtra, who wanted to destroy the Pandavas and establish their power. However, certain circumstances did not allow them to do this, and the Kauravas were forced to cede part of the kingdom to their cousins.
However, the Kauravas do not give up their idea to deal with the Pandavas and thus deprive them of part of their inheritance. They go to various tricks. The Kauravas challenged the Pandavas to a game of dice, which at that time was a kind of duel that was not customary to refuse. Kshatriyas had such peculiar duels to sort things out, where they measured their strengths, abilities, and determined their position. As a result of several rounds of the game, the Pandavas lost all their wealth and, based on the conditions of the game, their part of the kingdom passed to the Kauravas, and they were forced to go into exile for thirteen years in the forests.
At the end of this period, the Pandavas demanded their share of the kingdom, but Duryodhan, the eldest of the Kauravas, refused them. This led to internecine warfare, the fate of which was decided by the famous battle on the plain of Kurukshetra. The battle was fierce, bloody and lasted eighteen days. Almost all Kauravas were killed. Yudhishthira, the eldest of the Pandavas, became the king of Hastinapura. After some time, the Pandavas renounced worldly life and transferred their power to Parikshit, the grandson of Arjuna, one of the Pandava brothers.
The "Mahabharata" includes a religious and philosophical treatise - "Gita" or "Bhagavad Gita" ("Song of God"), which was Krishna's teaching to Arjuna. During the battle on the plain of Kurukshetra, Arjuna hesitated to take up arms against his relatives. The fact is that according to the ideas of that era, regardless of the reason, the murder of relatives and friends was considered a sin and was subjected to the strictest ban.
Dancer. Mohenjo-Daro. Copper. |
Lord Krishna gave a command explaining to Arjuna that he is a kshatriya and the duty of a kshatriya is to fight and kill the enemy, that he is deluded into thinking that in the battle he kills his relatives. The soul is eternal, nothing can kill or destroy it. If you fight and win, you will gain kingdom and happiness, if you die in battle, you will reach heaven. Krishna showed the bewildered Arjuna the right way to combine his interests with duty, contrary to these interests. Then Krishna explained
him his divine mission. The Gita touches on many issues that are of a universal nature. It is the most popular work of Indian thought and occupies place of honor in world literature.In size and historical data, Ramayana (The Tale of Rama) is inferior to Mahabharata, although it is distinguished by a greater harmony of composition and better editing.
The plot of the Ramayana is based on the life story of Rama, the ideal son and the ideal ruler. There was a ruler in Ayodhya, Dasaratha, who had four sons from three wives. In old age, he appoints his eldest son Rama as his successor (novorajas), who surpassed his brothers in intelligence, strength, courage, courage and nobility. But his stepmother Kaikeyi opposed this, she seeks the appointment of her son Bharat as the heir, and Rama leaves the country for fourteen years in exile. With his wife Sita and younger brother Lakshman, he retired to the forests. Saddened by this event, Dasaratha dies, Bharata renounced the throne, but before the return of Rama, he agreed to rule the country.
During the wanderings of Rama, Ravana - the king of Rakshas (demons) and the lord of Lanka (Ceylon) - kidnapped Sita. This led to a long war between Rama and Ravana. Ultimately, Ravana was killed. Sita is released, and Rama, whose exile has expired, returns with Sita to Ayodhya and takes the throne. Some in Ayodhya doubted the purity of Sita, Rama expels her, she retires to the cell of rishi Valmiki, where she gives birth to two boys, Lava and Kusha. Rama later recognizes them as his sons and heirs.
Possessing historical and literary value, the poems "Ramayana" and "Mahabharata" have become National treasure Indian people who, in difficult periods of its history, found moral support and support in them. These poems serve as a guide in the field of laws and morals. moral character characters of these works became an example for many generations of Hindus.
