Search This Blog

Pancharatra

Pancharatra was a religious movement in Hinduism that originated in late 1st millennium BCE around the ideas of Narayana and the various avatars of Vishnu as their central deities. The movement later merged with the ancient Bhagavata tradition and contributed to the development of Vaishnavism. The Pancharatra movement created numerous literary treatises in Sanskrit called the Pancharatra Samhitas, and these have been influential Agamic texts within the theistic Vaishnava movements.

Literally meaning five nights (panca: five, ratra: nights), the term Pancharatra has been variously interpreted. The term has been attributed to a sage Narayana who performed a sacrifice for five nights and became a transcendent being and one with all beings. The Pancharatra Agamas constitute some of the most important texts of many Vaishnava philosophies including the Dvaita Vedanta of Madhvacharya and the Srivaishnava Sampradaya of Ramanuja. The Pancharatra Agamas are composed of more than 200 texts; likely composed between 600 AD to 850 AD.

The Shandilya Sutras (~100 CE) is the earliest known text that systematized the devotional Bhakti pancharatra doctrine and 2nd-century CE inscriptions in South India suggest Pancharatra doctrines were known there by then. The Pancharatra theology is a source of the primary and secondary avatar-related doctrines in traditions of Hinduism.

History

Pancharatra has likely roots in 3rd-century BCE, as a religious movement around the ideas of a sage Narayana who is an avatar of Vishnu. The earliest use of the word Pancharatra is found in the Taittiriya Samhita, a Vedic text. The section describes a person going through a Pancharatra ritual to become a master of rhetorics.

In the Pancharatra system, the soul is one with the Supreme, but is also an individual. Even in a state of salvation it retains the individuality, to realize the bliss of union with the Supreme.

To worship Lord in temples- The ancient civilization systematically developed cities, towns and villages according to the scriptures written with Vedic knowledge and build temples to consecrate the Idol of lord and prescribed the rules to worship, offering, to do festivals by bring people together from all walks of life with all civic sense.

Practices

The Pancharatra tradition has taught Panchakala or five observances every day called Abhigamana, Upadana, Ijya, Svadhyaya and Yoga and meditation.