Puranic Hinduism
Topic: Early Indian Art and Architecture: Stupas, Rock-cut Caves, Temples · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings"
Meaning
Puranic Hinduism is the name for traditions like Vaishnavism (worship of Vishnu) and Shaivism (worship of Shiva). They grew in the early centuries CE, around the same time as Mahayana Buddhism. They taught bhakti, which means love and devotion between a devotee and a chosen god, who was seen as a saviour. Their key features were the avatars of Vishnu, the linga of Shiva, and the worship of images in temples. The stories behind these images are in the Puranas. Brahmanas compiled the Puranas by about the mid-first millennium CE, in simple Sanskrit verse. They were meant to be read aloud to everyone, including women and Shudras, who were kept out of Vedic learning.
Example
At Deogarh in Uttar Pradesh (c. fifth century CE), a temple panel shows Vishnu lying on the serpent Sheshnag. It is a Puranic story turned into stone.
Don't confuse with
- Vedic religion: built around fire sacrifices and Vedic texts that few people could study. Puranic Hinduism was built around devotion, images and temples, and its texts were open to all.