Comment to 'Purana Series - 1: Vishnu Purana: Pralaya, Prakriti and Purusha'
  • Aniroodh Sivaraman

    My views are that one has to first understand the vocabulary of the particular text. It is a serious mistake to standardize the word meanings for every Purana or other similar text.

    For instance, if one reads the Vishnu Purana one has to be ready to accept that Vishnu is the God but if one reads the Shiva Purana, one has to begin by accepting Shiva as God.

    Of course, this seems contradictory but still to follow the text one has to follow with meanings given by the writer. If, however one cannot stomach so much change in vocabular, then one should leave those texts aside or merely regard them as they are considered by many people, as mere myths.

    When reading a specific Purana, one has to begin by first culling out the definitions used in that book and then applying that as one reads. In that way one can follow the mind of the writer. Otherwise, there will be unnecessary confusion. This means that how Michael Beloved uses or defines a word has no value in some other writer’s book.

    Usually, my definitions tally with the Srimad Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana) and with that Purana only. If one tries to take my definitions elsewhere, there will be confusion.

     

    Your statement in bold font below is out of place because it indicates taking one definition and trying to use it in another text which is unreasonable.

     

    Looks like Prakriti is also an inspiration from Vishnu, I thought it was from Durga ? Is it a different timecycle or parallel universe?

     

    If in one Purana, prakriti is an inspiration from Vishnu and then in another Purana or text, it is from Durga, then what is the problem. All one needs to do is to stay on one side or the other. But if one tries to straddle both sides, they may move apart and then what will happen? One will be in a dangerous split.

    If one stays on one side and understands that side’s views, then if one goes completely to the other side and understands that, and if one does not try to bring the two in harmony, there will be no confusion.

    The idea of the Puranas was for each particular set of people in a certain part of India, to use one of the Puranas. It was never for them to read all the Puranas and compare or contrast the text. Previously it was near impossible to do that comparison as we can today because we have ready access to books, while people before did not have access to the written form and only an oral format given by the leading pandits in their area. One should stick to one Purana which one’s nature agrees with and leave the others aside. Otherwise, it is likely that one’s brains will explode.