Matsuri (祭り, or sometimes just 祭) is the Japanese word for a festival or holiday. In Japan festivals are characterized by being local and usually sponsored by a local shrine or temple, though they can be secular or Christian. There is not a specific 'matsuri' day for all of Japan, but vary from area to area. Almost everywhere has at least one matsuri in late summer/early autumn, usually related to the rice harvest. Some examples are the Jidai, Aoi and Gion Matsuri held in Kyoto, the Ise-machi Matsuri of Nakanojo, Gunma, and the Ka ...

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Smartism is a denomination of the Hindu religion. This term is usually used to denote a certain category of Brahmins. Smartas consider the Vedas supreme. The majority of members of Smarta community are followers of Advaita. In practicality, Smarta and Advaita have become almost synonymous because of the prevalence of Advaita philosophy among Smarta Brahmins. But not all believers in Advaita are Smartas. In ancient times, all Brahmins who specialized in the Karma Kanda of the Vedas, and who followed the Vedas and Shastras (both Smriti ...

Including:

• Smartism - Definition
• Smartism - Why They Became Distinguished From Others
• Smartism - Main Beliefs
• Smartism - Smarta Contributions to Advaita
• Smartism - Smarta Contributions to other Philosophies
• Smartism - Smartas Who Split Away From Their Group
• Smartism - Important Religious Books Followed
• Smartism - Prominent Communities

Read more here: » Smartism: Encyclopedia - Smartism

The Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishad is one of the older, "primary" (mukhya) Upanishads commented upon by Shankara. It is associated with the White Yajurveda and the Shatapatha Brahmana. It figures as number 10 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. It is widely known for its philosophical statements, and is ascribed to Yajnavalkya. Its name is literally translated as "great-fore ...

Including:

• Bṛhadāraṇyaka - Literature

Read more here: » Bṛhadāraṇyaka: Encyclopedia - Bṛhadāraṇyaka

Chiyoda (千代田区 -ku) is one of the 23 special wards in the heart of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2005, the ward has an estimated population of 43,954 and a density of 3776 persons per km². The total area is 11.64 km², of which the Imperial Palace takes up 12 percent. Chiyoda consists of the Palace and a surrounding radius of about 1 km. It inherited the name, literally meaning "field of a thousand generations," from Edo Castle, which occupied an even larger space than it now does. Many government institutions, such as the Diet, ...

Including:

• Chiyoda Tokyo - History
• Chiyoda Tokyo - Places
• Chiyoda Tokyo - Attractions
• Chiyoda Tokyo - Famous people
• Chiyoda Tokyo - Education

Read more here: » Chiyoda Tokyo: Encyclopedia - Chiyoda Tokyo

Sringeri, located in Chikmagalur district in the Indian state of Karnataka is the site of the fourth matha established by the Adi Sankaracharya, Hindu reformer and exponent of the Advaita Vedanta philosophy, in the 8th century C.E. It is located on the banks of the river Tunga. In a popular legend, Adi Sankaracharya is said to have selected the site when, walking by the Tunga river, he saw a cobra with a raised hood, providing shelter from the hot sun, to a frog about to spawn. Four mathas were eventually established by Sankara, in th ...

Read more here: » Shringeri: Encyclopedia - Shringeri

 Kanda:

a knot, the place where the three main nadis join

(See also:  Kanda, Body Mind and Soul)

Karma-kanda - a division of the Vedas which relates to the performance of ceremonial acts and sacrificial rites directed toward material benefits or liberation.

(See also: Karma-kanda, Bhakti, Bhakti Yoga, Bhakti Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Jnana-kanda (Sanskrit) (Caves & Jungles 487)

(See also: Jnana-kanda, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Khila Kanda:

Khila Kanda (Kaanda). Third section of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

(See also: Khila Kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Madhu Kanda:

Madhu Kanda (Kaanda). First two sections of Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

(See also: Madhu Kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

karma-kanda

The portions of the Vedas that teach ritual sacrifices for material success in this life and the next.

(See also: karma-kanda, Bhakti, Bhakti Yoga, Bhakti Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Brahma-kanda:

Brahma-kanda (-kaanda). Spiritual stage (of life). Also, some texts that are concerned with special features of ceremonial rituals and elaborations of moral codes.

(See also: Brahma-kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Muni Kanda:

Muni Kanda (Kaanda). The second set of two sections of Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

(See also: Muni Kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Karma-kanda:

Karma-kanda (-kaanda). The section of the Vedas dwelling mainly on rituals; the samhithas and the Brahmana of the Vedas.

(See also: Karma-kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Jnana-kanda:

Jnana-kanda (Jnaana-kaanda). Portion of the Vedas that deals with knowledge of Brahman through the path of spiritual wisdom or discriminative knowledge.

(See also: Jnana-kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Yajnavalkya Kanda:

Yajnavalkya Kanda (Yaajnavalkya Khanda). Third and fourth sections of the Brihadaranyakopanishad, which deals with the spiritual teaching of Yajnavalkya to Janaka.

(See also: Yajnavalkya Kanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

The Uttara Kanda, the last book of the Ramayana is the most controversial, and appears to have been a later addition to the original epic. Rama - Sita's banishment. In the Uttara Kanda, Rama banishes his wife Sita, even as she is pregnant with his child, asking Lakshmana to deliver her safely to Rishi Valmiki's ashram. He does so when it is reported to him that some subjects of his in Ayodhya believe that Sita is unchaste due to their long captivity in Ravana's city. The Agni Pariksha fails t ...

See also:

Rama, Rama - Origins, Rama - Prince of Ayodhya, Rama - The Avatara, Rama - With Vishwamitra, Rama - Marriage to Sita, Rama - Rama's Arrow, Rama - Banishment to the Forest, Rama - The Destruction of Khara, Rama - The Kidnapping of Sita, Rama - In Kishkindya, Rama - The War, Rama - Rama Rajya, Rama - Uttara Kanda, Rama - Sita's banishment, Rama - In History and Mythology, Rama - Modern Portrayal in India, Rama - Symbolism of Rama, Rama - Portrayal in South East Asia

Read more here: » Rama: Encyclopedia II - Rama - Uttara Kanda

Kaanda:

Kaanda (Kanda): The three sections of the Veda's: Karma, Upasana and Jnana: 'The first one deals with Karma, which is the most voluminous and the second, shorter in size, is called Upasana or Worship. The third or the Jnana section is the Upanishad literature, which is shorter still, the Vedantha or the Consummation of Vedic discipline'. (SSS-II) Kanda means water, an expanse of water (RRV-1)

(See also: Kaanda, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

According to Hindu tradition, Rāma is an Avātara, an incarnation of Vishnu or God. The main purpose of his incarnation is to demonstrate the ideal human life on earth. Ultimately, Rāma slays the rākshasa king Ravana and reestablishes the rule of religious and moral law on earth known in Hinduism as dharma. It has been said that Brahma promised Valmiki, so long as the mountains and seas endure, so long ...

See also:

Ramayana, Ramayana - Timeline, Ramayana - Synopsis, Ramayana - Book I: Bal Kand or The Book of Youth, Ramayana - Book II: Ayodhya Kanda or The Book of Ayodhya, Ramayana - Book III: Aranya Kanda or The Book of the Forest, Ramayana - Book IV: Kishkindha Kanda or The Book of Kishkindha the kingdom of monkeys, Ramayana - Book V: Sundara Kanda or The Book of Sundara another name of Hanuman, Ramayana - Book VI: Yuddha Kanda or The Book of War, Ramayana - Book VII: Uttara Kanda or The Book Beyond, Ramayana - Lessons from the Ramayana, Ramayana - Literary works inspired by the Ramayana, Ramayana - Sugriva's cave of Hampi

Read more here: » Ramayana: Encyclopedia II - Ramayana - Synopsis

According to Hindu tradition, Rāma is an Avātara, an incarnation of Vishnu or God. The main purpose of his incarnation is to demonstrate the ideal human life on earth. Ultimately, Rāma slays the rākshasa king Ravana and reestablishes the rule of religious and moral law on earth known in Hinduism as dharma. It has been said that Brahma promised Valmiki, so long as the mountains and seas endure, so long ...

See also:

Ramayana, Ramayana - Timeline, Ramayana - Synopsis, Ramayana - Book I: Bal Kand or The Book of Youth, Ramayana - Book II: Ayodhya Kanda or The Book of Ayodhya, Ramayana - Book III: Aranya Kanda or The Book of the Forest, Ramayana - Book IV: Kishkindha Kanda or The Book of Kishkindha the kingdom of monkeys, Ramayana - Book V: Sundara Kanda or The Book of Sundara another name of Hanuman, Ramayana - Book VI: Yuddha Kanda or The Book of War, Ramayana - Book VII: Uttara Kanda or The Book Beyond, Ramayana - Lessons from the Ramayana, Ramayana - Literary works inspired by the Ramayana, Ramayana - Sugriva's cave of Hampie

Read more here: » Ramayana: Encyclopedia II - Ramayana - Synopsis

Valmiki's Ramayana inspired the Sri Ramacharit Manas by Tulasidas, an epic Hindi version with a slant more grounded in a different realm of Hindu literature, that of bhakti. It is an acknowledged masterpiece of India. A similar work was done by Kamban as Kambaramayanam in Tamil. Contemporary versions of the Ramayana include Shri Ramayana Darshanam by Dr.K.V.Puttappa in Kannada and Ramayana Kalpavrikshamu by Viswanatha Satyanarayana in Telugu, both of which have been awarded the Jnanpith Award. The modern Indian author Ashok Banker has so far wr ...

See also:

Ramayana, Ramayana - Timeline, Ramayana - Synopsis, Ramayana - Book I: Bal Kand or The Book of Youth, Ramayana - Book II: Ayodhya Kanda or The Book of Ayodhya, Ramayana - Book III: Aranya Kanda or The Book of the Forest, Ramayana - Book IV: Kishkindha Kanda or The Book of Kishkindha the kingdom of monkeys, Ramayana - Book V: Sundara Kanda or The Book of Sundara another name of Hanuman, Ramayana - Book VI: Yuddha Kanda or The Book of War, Ramayana - Book VII: Uttara Kanda or The Book Beyond, Ramayana - Lessons from the Ramayana, Ramayana - Literary works inspired by the Ramayana, Ramayana - Sugriva's cave of Hampi

Read more here: » Ramayana: Encyclopedia II - Ramayana - Literary works inspired by the Ramayana