Sarasvati: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
#REDIRECT[[Saraswati]] |
|||
:''This article is about Sarasvati, the Indian goddess. There are separate articles about the [[Vedic Sarasvati River]] and [[Saraswati River]], a small river in [[Haryana]]'' |
|||
'''Sarasvati''' (also romanized as '''Saraswati''') is the [[Hindu]] goddess of [[knowledge]] that includes [[art]], [[science]], [[education]] and [[writing]]. There have been mentions, due to her association with the more general Hindu divine mother concept of [[Devi]], of relations to [[water]] and [[fertility]]. In the [[Rig-Veda]] (6,61,7), she is credited with killing the [[asura]] (demon) [[Vritra]] (also romanized as Vrtra), who represents darkness. Her consort is [[Brahma (god)|Brahma]]. |
|||
She was originally a river-goddess (see [[Vedic Sarasvati River]]). As a river-deity, she came to be the [[goddess]] of everything that flows: [[words]] (and [[knowledge]], by extension), [[speech]], [[eloquence]], and [[music]]. Her association with writing may also be due to the fact that the earliest writing in India ([[Indus]] or Sarasvati script) is found in the Sarasvati valley towns and cities. She is often seen as equivalent to the other [[Vedic]] goddesses like [[Vaak]] (divine word), Savitri (Illumination) and [[Gayatri]]. In the [[Shakta]] tradition (worship of Shakti or Devi, the female aspect of the divinity), Sarasvati represents intelligence, consciousness and cosmic knowledge. |
|||
In Indian art she is depicted in human form, as a woman with four arms, often playing a string instrument called the [[Veena]]. She rides a [[swan]] or [[peacock]]. |
|||
In India today, Hindus still revere Sarasvati as the Goddess of Knowledge. On special days in the Hindu calendar special [[puja]]s are arranged for, and she is present in representation in many educational centers. |
|||
In [[Indian Classical Music]] Sarasvati is the patron Goddess of practically all musicians, whether Hindu or [[Muslim]]. Some of the world's greatest instrumentalists who revere Sarasvati as the Mother of Music are [[Ravi Shankar]] and [[Bismillah Khan|Ustad Bismillah Khan]]. |
|||
== Sarasvati In Non-Hindu Culture == |
|||
Besides her role in [[Hinduism]], she was also, like the Hindu goddess [[Tara (Devi)|Tara]], absorbed from [[Vedic]] culture into the [[Buddhist]] [[pantheon]] and came to [[China]] via the Chinese translations of the [[Sutra of Golden Light]], which has a section devoted to her. Now largely forgotten in China, she is still worshipped in Japan under the name [[Benzaiten]]. Other names for her include Sarada, Sharada, Vani. |
|||
{{Hinduism}} |
|||
[[Category:Hinduism]] |
|||
[[ja:%E3%82%B5%E3%83%A9%E3%82%B9%E3%83%B4%E3%82%A1%E3%83%86%E3%82%A3%E3%83%BC]] |
|||
Revision as of 19:48, 18 September 2004
Redirect to: