১৮ পুরানের মাহাত্ম্য:

 ১৮ পুরানের মাহাত্ম্য:

Basically 18 maha puranas and 18 Upa Puranas.

 

18 Maha Puranas :

 

Of these, six are Sattvic Puranas glorifying Vishnu; six are Rajasic, glorifying Brahma; six are Tamasic, glorifying Siva.

 

Vyasa, the son of Rishi Parasara, is said to be the author of them all.

 

Agni Purana: Includes geography of Mithila (Bihar and neighboring states), cultural history, politics, education system, iconography, taxation theories, organization of army, theories on proper causes for war, diplomacy, local laws, building public projects, water distribution methods, trees and plants, medicine, Vastu Shastra (architecture), gemology, grammar, metrics, poetry, food, rituals , martial arts and numerous other topics

Bhagavata Purana: The most studied and popular of the Puranas. telling of Vishnu's Avatars, and of Vaishnavism. It contains a controversial genealogical details of various dynasties. Numerous inconsistent versions of this text and historical manuscripts exist, in many Indian languages. Influential and elaborated during Bhakti movement.

Brahma/Aadi Purana : Includes mythology, theory of war, art work in temples, and other cultural topics.

Brahmananda Purana: it contains a controversial genealogical details of various dynasties. Includes Lalita Sahasranamam, law codes, system of governance, administration, diplomacy, trade, ethics. Old manuscripts of Brahmanda Purana have been found in the Hindu literature collections of Bali, Indonesia.

Brahmavaivarta Purana :Discusses Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, Devis, Vishnu, Krishna and Radha. Primarily mythology, love and seduction stories of gods and goddesses. Mentions geography and rivers such as Ganga to Kaveri.

Garuda Purana : Cosmology, relationship between gods. Discusses ethics, what are crimes, good verses evil, various schools of Hindu philosophies, the theory of Yoga, the theory of "heaven and hell" with "karma and rebirth", includes Upanishadic discussion of self-knowledge as a means of moksha. Includes chapters on rivers, geography of Bharat (India) and other nations on earth, types of minerals and stones, testing methods for stones for their quality, various diseases and their symptoms, various medicines, aphrodisiacs, prophylactics, Hindu calendar and its basis, astronomy, moon, planets, astrology, architecture, building home, essential features of a temple, rites of passage, virtues such as compassion, charity and gift making, economy, thrift, duties of a king, politics, state officials and their roles and how to appointment them, genre of literature, rules of grammar, and other topics. The final chapters discuss how to practice Yoga (Samkhya and Advaita types), personal development and the benefits of self-knowlede.

Kurma Purana: explains vishnu’s 2nd avatara.

Linga Purana : Discusses Lingam, symbol of Shiva, and origin of the universe.

Markandeya Puana : Contains chapters on dharma and on Hindu epic Mahabharata. The Purana includes Devi Mahatmyam of Shaktism.

Matsya Putana : Includes legends about Brahma and Saraswati. It also contains a controversial genealogical details of various dynasties.

Narada Purana: Lists major rivers of India and places of pilgrimage, and a short tour guide for each. Includes discussion of various philosophies, soteriology, planets, astronomy, myths and characteristics of major deities including Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, Krishna, Rama, Lakshmi and others.

Padma Purana: Describes cosmology, the world and nature of life from the perspective of Vishnu. Discusses festivals, numerous legends, geography of rivers and regions from northwest India to Bengal to the kingdom of Tripura, major sages of India, various Avatars of Vishnu and his cooperation with Shiva, Places of pilgrimage.

ShivaPurana : Stories about Shiva.

Skanda Purana : Describes the birth of Skanda (or Karthikeya), son of Shiva. The longest Purana, it is an extraordinarily meticulous pilgrimage guide, containing geographical locations of pilgrimage centers in India, with related legends, parables, hymns and stories. Many untraced quotes are attributed to this text.

Vamana Purana: Describes North India, particularly Himalayan foothills region.

Varaha Purana : Primarily Vishnu-related worship manual, with large Mahatmya sections or travel guide to Mathura and Nepal.

Vayu Purana : Discusses rituals, family life, and life stages of a human being.

Vishnu Purana: A Vaishnavism text, focused on Vishnu.