Mangala

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Mangala
God of the planet Mars
AbodeMangalaloka
PlanetMars
MantraOm Mangala Devaya Namah
DayTuesday
ColourRed
MountRam
Personal information
Parents
(mother)

Mangala (

Bhumi, the earth goddess, and Vishnu, born when the latter raised her from the depths of the primordial waters in his Varaha avatar.[2][4]

Nomenclature

Mars (Mangala) is also called:

Iconography

He is painted red or flame colour, four-armed, carrying a trident (Sanskrit:

Padma), and a spear (Sanskrit: shūla). His mount (Sanskrit: vahana) is a ram. He presides over Tuesday.[7]

Legend

Mangala appears in the narrative of the Varaha avatar of Vishnu. When the king of the asuras, Hiranyaksha, abducts the goddess of the earth, Bhumi, Vishnu assumes his third avatar, and descends upon the earth to rescue her. Observing that the asura had dragged her deep within the primordial waters, he catches the goddess with his tusks, and successfully slays the asura, restoring her to her rightful place in the cosmos. As she rises, Vishnu realises that Bhumi is, in fact, an aspect of his consort, Lakshmi,[8] and proceeds to sport with her, and from this union is born Mangala, meaning the auspicious one.[9]

Literature

The word Mangala is ancient, first appearing in the

Mimamsa school of Hinduism did not include any mangala (auspicious) verses, related to plane "Mangala" in any of its text throughout the 1st millennium CE.[11]

The Markandeya Purana contains the astrological Mangala Kavacha Stotram, which includes a prayer to be recited to Mangala for seeking protection.[12]

Astrology and worship

Saptarishi. He is included in the list of Hindu deities, whose dedicated temples are found at various Hindu pilgrimage sites, to which Hindus perform their pilgrimage, called yatra
.

Planet

Mangala, as a planet, appears in various Hindu astronomical texts in Sanskrit, such as the 5th century Aryabhatiya by Aryabhata, the 6th century Romaka by Latadeva and Panca Siddhantika by Varahamihira, the 7th century Khandakhadyaka by Brahmagupta and the 8th century Sisyadhivrddida by Lalla.[13] These texts present Mangala as one of the planets and estimate the characteristics of the respective planetary motion.[13] Other texts such as Surya Siddhanta dated to have been complete sometime between the 5th century and 10th century present their chapters on various planets with deity mythologies.[13]

The manuscripts of these texts exist in slightly different versions, present Mangala's motion in the skies, but vary in their data, suggesting that the text were open and revised over their lives.[14][15][16]

The 1st millennium CE Hindu scholars had estimated the time it took for sidereal revolutions of each planet including Mangala, from their astronomical studies, with slightly different results:[17]

Sanskrit and other texts: How many days for Mangala (Mars) to complete its orbit?
Source Estimated time per sidereal revolution[17]
Surya Siddhanta 686 days, 23 hours, 56 minutes, 23.5 seconds
Siddhanta Shiromani 686 days, 23 hours, 57 minutes, 1.5 seconds
Ptolemy 686 days, 23 hours, 31 minutes, 56.1 seconds
20th century calculations 686 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes, 41.4 seconds

Calendar and zodiac

Mangala is the root of the word 'Mangalavara' or Tuesday in the Hindu calendar.[2] The word मंगल also means "auspicious" but the planet मंगल is considered malefic.

Similarly, the names of Tuesday in other Indo-European languages are often derived from the Roman god

Tīw, also known as Týr.[19]

Mangala is part of the Navagraha in Hindu zodiac system. The role and importance of the Navagraha developed over time with various influences. The earliest work of astrology recorded in India is the Vedanga Jyotisha which began to be compiled in the 14th century BCE.

The planet Mars

Deifying planetary bodies and their astrological significance occurred as early as the

Rudrakarman I. The Yavanajataka written in 120 CE is often attributed to standardizing Indian astrology. The Navagraha would further develop and culminate in the Shaka era with the Saka, or Scythian, people. Additionally the contributions by the Saka people would be the basis of the Indian national calendar
, which is also called the Saka calendar.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Mangala, Maṅgalā, Maṅgala, Mamgala: 45 definitions". 27 September 2008.
  2. ^ .
  3. ^ Ancient Indian Tradition & Mythology: The Nārada-Purāṇa. Motilal Banarsidass. 1982. p. 984.
  4. .
  5. ^ Turner, Sir Ralph Lilley (1962). "aṅgāraka 126". A comparative dictionary of the Indo-Aryan languages. London: Oxford University Press. Digital Dictionaries of South Asia, University of Chicago. p. 7. Archived from the original on 15 December 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2010. aṅgāraka 126 aṅgāraka '(hypothetical) red like embers', masculine 'charcoal'. 2. masculine 'the planet Mars'. [áṅgāra -- ]1. Pali aṅgāraka -- 'red like charcoal'; Sanskrit aṅārī 2. Pali aṅgāraka -- masculine 'Mars'; Sanskrit aṅāro masculine Tuesday.
  6. ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 75.
  7. ^ Mythology of the Hindus, Charles Coleman, p. 132
  8. .
  9. .
  10. .
  11. ^ .
  12. ^ adawal, Shanker. Encyclopedia of Vedic Astrology : Relationship: Marriage, Love & Sex. Sagar Publications. p. 589.
  13. ^ .
  14. .
  15. .
  16. ^ J Fleet (1911). "Arbhatiya". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Cambridge University Press for the Royal Asiatic Society: 794–799.
  17. ^ .
  18. .
  19. .

Further reading