a deity as part of worship, on the model
of treating the deity as an honored
guest. The underlying motive here, as
for all the upacharas, is to show one’s
love for the deity and to minister to the
deity’s needs as one would to a living
person’s needs.
Pradhana
(“principal”) In the Samkhya philo-
sophical school, pradhana is another
name for prakrti, the “primal matter”
that the Samkhyas consider the first
principle from which all material things
have evolved. In the secret, ritually
based religious practice known as
tantra, the word pradhanais used to
denote the goddess Shakti, as the active
principle behind the formation of the
universe. Grammatically, the word is
feminine, indicating a connotation of
fertility and fecundity.
Pradosh Vrat
(“twilight vow”) Religious observance
celebrated on the thirteenth day of each
lunar fortnight, mainly by women, often
for the birth of children or to sustain the
general family welfare. The vow (vrat) is
dedicated to the god Shiva, and its most
important part takes place on the
evening of the thirteenth day (the word
pradosh is interpreted as meaning “twi-
light”) when worshipers present Shiva
with the sixteen traditional offerings
(upacharas), following which they may
take their only meal of the day. In
some cases worshipers stay awake
through the night so that the observance
may finish on the fourteenth day of
the month, a lunar day connected
with Shiva. When the thirteenth day
falls on a Monday (associated with
Shiva), Saturday (associated with
Saturn), or Sunday(associated with
the Sun), this rite is believed to be
especially efficacious.
Pradyumna
In Hindu mythology, the son of the god
Krishnaand his divine queen Rukmini.
Pradyumna is the rebirth of the god
Kama, who has been completely annihi-
lated by the fire from the god Shiva’s
third eye. After Kama’s death, Shiva reas-
sures Kama’s wife Ratithat her husband
will be reborn as Pradyumna to kill the
demonSambhara. Through his magic
powers Sambhara is well aware of the
threat; when he finds the child, he
throws it into the ocean and thinks that
he has killed it. Pradyumna is swallowed
by a great fish, which is caught and pre-
sented to king Sambhara; when the fish
is split open, the child enchants his wife
Mayavati, in whose form Rati has taken
birth to aid her husband. Pradyumna
kills Sambhara in a ferocious battle and
is reunited with Rati.Prahlada
In Hindu mythology, the son of the
demon-king Hiranyakashipu, and a
great devotee (bhakta) of the god
Vishnu. Through harsh physical asceti-
cism(tapas) Hiranyakashipu has gained
a series of divine boons that render him
virtually invulnerable, yet despite his
power, his son Prahlada refuses to aban-
don his devotion to Vishnu. Prahlada’s
devotion in the face of his father’s ever-
growing pride generates an escalating
pattern of abuse that culminates in the
demand that Prahlada worshiphim
rather than Vishnu. At that point Vishnu
comes to Prahlada’s aid as the Man-lion
avatar, slays Hiranyakashipu, and
establishes Prahlada as king in his place.Prajapati
(“Lord of Creatures”) Deityappearing
late in the Vedas, the earliest Hindu
sacred texts, who is described as the
creator of the universe and is consid-
ered superior to the Vedic deities. The
means by which Prajapati carries out
creation are different in different
places. In Rg Veda 10.121 he is
described as the Golden Embryofrom
which all things developed, whereas in
Rg 10.90, also known as the Purusha
Sukta, he is described as the primal personPradhana