noun. In contrast, particular deitiesare
seen as lower, provisional, qualified
(saguna) forms of Brahman. This under-
standing was modified by the influence
of later devotional trends, in which ideas
of the highest Brahman became identi-
fied with a particular deity, who was
seen as the ultimate source of all things.
Brahmana
General name for the second literary
stratum in the Vedas, the earliest and
most authoritative Hindu religious
texts. Although the composition of
these differing parts of the Veda is not
completely linear, the Brahmanas gen-
erally come after the hymns of praise to
the gods known as samhitasand pre-
cede the speculative texts known as the
Aranyakasand the Upanishads. In the-
ory, each Veda has a Brahmana as an
appendix, which is intended to give fur-
ther explanation of the Vedic rituals.
Although the Yajur Vedais the only one
for which this is actually true, this
understanding gives the Brahmanas
the authority of revealed scripture
(shruti) and thus makes them unques-
tionable. There are several different
Brahmanas, of which the most impor-
tant are the Aiteraya Brahmana and
the Shatapatha Brahmana; the latter’s
tone and contents (including the Isha
Upanishad) clearly mark it as the most
recent of the Brahmanas.
The Brahmanas are primarily ritual
manuals, and they give exacting,
painstaking instructions for performing
these Vedic rituals. These texts indicate a
fundamental shift in religious practice,
from the earlier emphasis on sacrifice
as a means of invoking and pleasing the
Vedic gods to an importance on the
power of ritual itself. This new emphasis
makes the sacrificial priests the most
powerful people of all, since even the
gods themselves are subject to the ritu-
als. The power of correctly performed
ritual paves the way for the Aranyakas
and the Upanishads, which asks more
speculative questions about the rituals
themselves. At times these differing
religious genres are juxtaposed—as in
the Shatapatha Brahmana, in which the
Isha Upanishad is embedded. Such jux-
tapositions indicate that although the
stress varied in differing types of texts,
there was some overlap during the time
they were composed.Brahmanda
See cosmic egg.Brahmarandhra
(“aperture of Brahman”) In traditional
mystical physiology, an opening in the
crown of the head—perhaps corre-
sponding to the fontanel in young chil-
dren. Although this hole usually closes
up, it is widely believed that if at the time
of death the departing soul can be chan-
neled through this aperture, it will bring
final liberation of the soul (moksha).
The earliest mention of this idea can be
found in Katha Upanishad 6.16, and
exercises to facilitate this practice are
stressed in certain varieties of yoga. The
desire to open this aperture is the reason
behind one of the actions sometimes
performed during cremation. In many
cases the pyre’s heat will itself split the
skull, but when it does not, a long pole is
used to break it open in an effort to
release the soul.Brahma Sampraday
One of the four branches of the Bairagi
Nagaclass of ascetics. The Bairagi Nagas
are devotees (bhakta) of the god
Vishnu, organized in military fashion
into different anis, or “armies.” Until the
beginning of the nineteenth century,
their primary occupation was as merce-
nary soldiers, although they also had
substantial trading interests; both of
these occupations have largely disap-
peared in contemporary times. The
Brahma Sampraday traces its immedi-
ate spiritual lineage through the
Gaudiya Vaishnavasect, founded by the
Bengali devotee Chaitanya, but claims
ultimate descent from the southern
Indian philosopher Madhva. This latterBrahma Sampraday