Vikarna Vikarna was one of the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra. On the 12th day of war The youthful Vikarna of great wisdom resisted Shikhandin, the youthful son of Yajnasena, as the latter advanced in that battle. Yajnasena’s son then covered the former with showers of arrows. The mighty son Vikarna,…
Vichitravirya Vichitravirya (Sanskrit: विचित्रवीर्य, vicitravīrya) was the son of Shantanu, the king of Hastinapur and Satyavati. He was the grandfather of the Pandavas and Kauravas. Vichitravirya had an elder brother named Chitrāngada, whom his half-brother Bhishma placed on the throne of the kingdom of the Kurus after Shantanu’s death. He was a mighty warrior but the king of the Gandharvas defeated and…
Vasudeva Vasudeva (Devanagari वसुदेव, IAST Vasudeva), also called Ānakadundubhi (“Drum”, after the sound of drums heard at the time of his birth), was the father of Krishna, his eighth son who was an Avatar of Vishnu, and his siblings Balarama and Subhadra. He was king of the Vrishnis and a Yadava prince. He was the son of the Yadava king Shurasena.…
Vrata Vrata (Sanskrit: व्रत) means “vow, resolve, devotion”, and refers to the practice of austerity, particularly in matters related to foods and drinks, as part of a pious observance or prayers seeking health, fertility, long life or happiness for her loved ones. Derived from the root ‘vr’ (“will, rule, restrain, conduct, choose,…
Vrata Vrata is a religious votive rite, a vow often involving abstinence from food, particularly common with women. It may be accompanied with elaborate prayers, other rites such as charity or visit to a temple, sometimes observed during festivals or with sanskara (rite of passage) ceremonies. It is found in ancient Hindu texts such…
Vibhishana Vibhishana (Devanagari: विभीषण IAST: Vibhīṣaṇa or Bibhishan) was a king of Lanka in the legendary epic Ramayana. He was younger brother of the Rakshasa king Ravana of Lanka. Though a Rakshasa himself, Vibhishana was of a noble character and advised Ravana, who kidnapped and abducted Sita, to return her to her husband Rama in an orderly fashion and promptly which Ravana refused sternly. When Ravana did…
Vibhitaka Tree Vibhitaka or Terminalia bellirica, known as bahera or beleric or bastard myrobalan, (Sanskrit: Vibhitaka विभितक, Aksha अक्ष ), is a large deciduous tree common on plains and lower hills in Southeast Asia, where it is also grown as an avenue tree. The basionym is Myrobalanus bellirica Gaertn. (Fruct. Sem. Pl. 2: 90, t. 97. 1791). William Roxburgh transferred M. bellirica to Terminalia as…
Vasishtha Vasishtha (Sanskrit: वसिष्ठ, IAST: vasiṣṭha) is a revered Vedic sage in Hinduism. He is one of the Saptarishis (seven great Rishis) of India. Vasishtha is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of Rigveda. Vasishtha and his family are mentioned in Rigvedic verse 10.167.4, other Rigvedic mandalas and in many Vedic texts. His ideas have been influential and he was called as the…
Vaishampayana Vaishampayana (Sanskrit: वैशंपायन, Vaiśampāyana) was one of the three to whom the the Indian epic Mahabharata was first narrated by the composer of the epic, Vyasa, in the form of Jaya. He became the first narrator of the epic to humans, when he narrated it to Janamejaya, the great…
Vedic Cosmology In Vedic Cosmology, the universe is cyclically created and destroyed. The timeline suggested in Vedas and Puranas is considered by some to be the closest to modern scientific timelines. It suggests that the Big Bang is not the beginning of everything, but is just the start of a present cycle preceded by…