The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism (2 Vol Set)

(vip2019) #1

extremely unusual feature in Indian
temples. See also Chola dynasty.


Brhannala


This was the identity assumed by
Arjuna, one of the five Pandavaprinces,
during the year they lived incognito
after twelve years of forest exile. The
Pandavas are the heroes of the
Mahabharata, the later of the two great
Hindu epics, which details the struggle
for power between the Pandavas and
their cousins the Kauravas. At one point
in their struggle, Arjuna’s older brother,
Yudhishthira, has lost all the brothers’
freedom and possessionsto the Kauravas
in a game of dice. As a penalty for this
loss, the Pandavas have to go into exile
for twelve years and spend the thirteenth
year back in society, unrecognized. It is
understood that if the brothers are dis-
covered during that year, they will be
banished again. Arjuna, the epic’s most
heroic warrior, disguises himself as a
eunuch named Brhannala, knowing that
no one will suspect him in such guise. He
spends the year living in the women’s
quarters of the palace, singing and danc-
ing as a eunuch. At the end of the year,
still in his eunuch’s garb, Arjuna takes
part in a great battle in which he defeats
the troops of the Kauravas.


Brhaspati


In Hindu mythology, Brhaspati is a sage
chosen by the deities(devas) as their
guru, or spiritual teacher. Brhaspati is
also one of the names used to designate
the planet Jupiter, since in Hindu astrol-
ogy this planet is the most significant,
and thus the symbolic “guru” among
the planets.


Brideprice


The money the groom’s family gives to
the bride’s family as a condition for mar-
riage. This exchange of money for the
bride is the defining feature of the asura
marriage, one of eight recognized forms
of marriage in the Dharma Shastras, the
treatises on religious duty (dharma).


This form of marriage is considered
aprashasta(“reprehensible”) because of
the implication of selling one’s children.
Even though it does take place in mod-
ern India, communities practicing this
form have very low social status. In
modern times, giving brideprice is an
admission that the bride’s family
deserves compensation for the loss of a
wage earner, implying that her labor is
necessary for the family. In contrast, the
higher-status type of marriage, the
Brahma marriage, transfers both the
bride and wealth (in the form of a
dowry) to the groom’s family with the
understanding that both families have
enough money that her paid labor
is unnecessary.

Brindavan


(“tulsi forest”) Small town in the
Mathuradistrict of the state of Uttar
Pradesh, which is the town in which the
god Krishnais supposed to have lived
during his childhood. Although every
place in Brindavan is associated with the
life of Krishna and is full of temples ded-
icated to him, one particularly important
place is the Chir Ghat, at which Krishna
stole the gopis’ clothes as they were
bathing (snana) in the Yamuna River.
(The gopis were female cowherds who
were companions to Krishna during his
youth.) An interesting architectural site
is the Gobind Deo Mandir, built in 1590,
which has a vaulted ceiling. This latter
temple is also notable for its lack of exte-
rior ornamentation, perhaps to avoid
antagonizing the nearby Moghuls. For a
description of the sacred life in
Brindavan, see John Stratton Hawley, At
Play with Krishna, 1981. See also
Moghul dynasty.

Bronzes


For most of Indian history, stone has
been the preferred medium for creating
images of the Hindu deitiesfor worship.
One of the significant exceptions to this
trend can be found in southern India,
primarily under the Chola dynasty

Bronzes
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