Puranas
The Puranas (Sanskrit purāṇá "ancient", since they focus on ancient history of the universe) are part of Hindu Smriti; these religious scriptures discuss varied topics like devotion to God in his various aspects, traditional sciences like Ayurveda, Jyotish, cosmology, concepts like dharma, karma, reincarnation and many others. According to tradition they were written by Vyasa at the end of Dvapara Yuga, while modern scholarship dates them 400–1000 CE. The eighteen Puranas are divided into three groups of six according to gunas of people they are primarily meant for. Thus rajasika Puranas eulogize Brahma of Hindu Trinity, sattvika Puranas Vishnu and tamasika Puranas Shiva and Shakti, God's Power personified. Perhaps the best known Purana is the Bhagavata Purana.
In all these Puranas the goddess Lakshmi is given a laudable place without any sectarian dispute. In the Vaishnavite Puranas, Shiva starts telling the efficacy of Vishnu to the Goddess Parvati. While Shaiva mythology places goddess Parvati, the consort of Shiva, as one half of His body (ardha naareeshvara tattva), Vaishnavites place the Goddess Lakshmi in the heart of Vishnu itself, as if it were a lotus (hridaya kamala). This is to depict the inseparable union of Universal purusha and prakriti, seed and field, or male and female.
List of Puranas
- Brahma Purānās
- Brahma
- Brahmānda
- Brahma Vaivarta
- Mārkandeya (includes Devi Mahatmyam, an important text for Shaktas.)
- Bhavishya
- Vāmana
- Vishnu Purānās
- Vishnu
- Bhagavata
- Nāradeya
- Garuda
- Padma
- Varāha
- Shiva Purānās
- Vāyu
- Linga
- Skanda
- Agni
- Matsya
- Kūrma
Heaven, Hell and other worlds in the Puranas
Puranic cosmology describes numerous worlds, planets and planes of existence (loka). Of the multitude of worlds, heaven (Svarga) and hell (Naraka) stand out as nearest and most relevant to our own planet, the Earth. Svarga, or heaven, is the planet of the demigods, or devas, ruled by King Indra.
On Svarga, the ability to enjoy physical senses is enhanced while life
in Naraka, the netherworld ruled by the King of Justice, Dharmaraj (Yama) is subjected to pain and misery. It should be noted that both heaven and hell are temporary abodes for life and once the Karma that is responsible for birth in heaven and hell is exhausted, the soul transmigrates to other forms and worlds of existence.
There are many variations and different levels of the temporal
planets as seen by different Puranas and often have conflicting views
on the nature of the phenomenal universe.
Two of the other most important worlds in Puranic Cosmology are the Satyaloka, the realm of Brahma, the highest plane of existence where souls of extraordinary karma reside before attaining moksha, and the Vaikuntha, the realm of Vishnu, from where there is no return to material worlds.
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