Harivamsha, Harivamsa, Harivaṃśa, Hari-vamsha: 15 definitions
Introduction:
Harivamsha means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
The Sanskrit term Harivaṃśa can be transliterated into English as Harivamsa or Harivamsha, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: archive.org: Puranic EncyclopediaHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश).—An appendix to the Mahābhārata in 10,000 verses. The main object of it is to sing the praises of Mahāviṣṇu. It contains three parts called respectively Harivaṃśa Parva, Viṣṇu Parva, and Bhaviṣya Parva. Creation of the world, kings of the solar dynasty and of the lunar dynasty, Yadu dynasty and the birth of Śrī Kṛṣṇa form the theme of Harivaṃśa Parva. Viṣṇu Parva deals mainly with the pranks and games of Śrī Kṛṣṇa in his childhood. Though there occur certain hints about the future at the beginning of the Bhaviṣya Parva, the creation of the world, the incarnation of Viṣṇu as Vāmana (Dwarf) and as Narasiṃha (half man and half lion), Śiva and Viṣṇu constitute its main theme.
The following verses prove that the Harivaṃśa also was composed by Vyāsa.
"harivaṃśastataḥ parvapurāṇaṃ khilasaṃjñitam / viṣṇuparvaśi śoścaryā visṇoḥkaṃsavadhastathā // bhaviṣyam parvacāpyuktaṃ khileṣvevādbhutaṃ mahat/ etat parvaśatam pūrṇam vyāsenoktaṃ mahātmanā //" (Ādi Parva, Chapter 2, Verses 83-84).
The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.
Ayurveda (science of life)
Dietetics and Culinary Art (such as household cooking)
Source: Shodhganga: Dietetics and culinary art in ancient and medieval IndiaHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश) is the name of a work quoted in the Bhojanakutūhala, in the section named vibhāvarīvilāsa, which deals with the activities during night (after dinner). Here also the author quotes certain authors and works, which are [viz., Harivaṃśa].
Āyurveda (आयुर्वेद, ayurveda) is a branch of Indian science dealing with medicine, herbalism, taxology, anatomy, surgery, alchemy and related topics. Traditional practice of Āyurveda in ancient India dates back to at least the first millenium BC. Literature is commonly written in Sanskrit using various poetic metres.
Vaishnavism (Vaishava dharma)
Source: Pure Bhakti: Brhad BhagavatamrtamHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश) refers to:—Dynastic history of Śrī Kṛṣṇa; an appendix to the Mahābhārata describing Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes. (cf. Glossary page from Śrī Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta).
Vaishnava (वैष्णव, vaiṣṇava) or vaishnavism (vaiṣṇavism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshipping Vishnu as the supreme Lord. Similar to the Shaktism and Shaivism traditions, Vaishnavism also developed as an individual movement, famous for its exposition of the dashavatara (‘ten avatars of Vishnu’).
General definition (in Hinduism)
Source: WikiPedia: HinduismThe Harivamsha ("the lineage of Hari (Vishnu)") is an important work of Sanskrit literature, containing 16,374 verses, mostly in Anustubh metre. The text is also known as the Harivamsha Purana. This text is believed to be a khila (appendix or supplement) to the Mahabharata and is traditionally ascribed to Veda Vyasa. The most celebrated commentary of the Mahabharata by Neelakantha Chaturdhara, the Bharata Bhava Deepa also covers the Harivamsha. According to Adi Parva, the Harivamsha is divided into two parvas or books and had 12,000 verses. The manuscripts found in the 19th century in different parts of India included three books and are also known as puranas - the Harivamsha Purana, the Vishnu Purana and the Bhavishya Purana. These books are included with the eighteen Mahapuranas of the Mahabharata.
- The first book of Harivamsa Parva describes the creation of the cosmos and the legendary history of the kings of the Solar and Lunar dynasties leading up to the birth of Krishna.
- Vishnu Parva recounts the history of Krishna up to the events prior to the Mahabharata.
- Bhavishya Parva, the third book, includes two alternate creation theories, hymns to Shiva and Vishnu, and provides a description of Kaliyuga.
The bulk of the text is derived from two traditions, the pañcalakṣaṇa tradition, that is, the "five marks" of the Purana corpus one of which is vaṃśa "genealogy", and stories about the life of Krishna as a herdsman.
etymology: Harivamsha (also Harivamsa; Sanskrit Harivaṃśa हरिवंश)
Source: Mahavidya: HinuismThe Harivamsa is widely considered by most Hindus as an appendix to one of the most well known epics in Indian literature, the Mahabharata. As an appendix to the Mahabharata the Harivamsa is not one of the 18 parvas but is widely regarded by most scholars to be closer to a purana, a religious text (Winternitz 424). The origins of this appendix is not precisely known but it is apparent that it was a part of the Mahabharata by the 1st century CE because, “the poet Ashvaghosha quotes a couple of verses, att ributing them to the Mahabharata, which are now only found in the Harivamsa” (Datta 1558). The Harivamsa is not known to have been created by one person but rather is the collection of many different a uthors as a “heaping up or very loose arranging, side by side of texts–legends, myths and hymns–which serve to glorify t he god Visnu” (Winternitz 424). However, according to Sanskrit texts, it has been attributed to the sage Vyasa.
Source: Cardiff University Blogs: Who’s who in ancient India?The Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश) is a collective name given to the final three minor books of the Sanskrit Mahābhārata: the Harivaṃśaparvan, the Viṣṇuparvan, and the Bhaviṣyatparvan. These three books are categorised as khilas (supplements or complements), and are not included within the Mahābhārata’s 18 major books. Nonetheless they are said to be original portions of Vyāsa’s Mahābhārata composition, and they are included in a table of its contents, amongst the one hundred minor books which pre-existed the later division into eighteen major books.
The Harivaṃśa contains the oldest surviving biography of Kṛṣṇa Vāsudeva, who by way of brief visits is a major player in the story of the Pāṇḍavas that has just been concluded in Mahābhārata 18. Amongst other things, Kṛṣṇa delivered the Bhagavadgītā to his cousin and brother-in-law Arjuna Pāṇḍava, and then drove the latter’s chariot through eighteen days of war; and he was the great god Viṣṇu-Nārāyaṇa himself in person.
In Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Source: archive.org: The Jaina IconographyHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश) is the name of the lineage (dynasty) of Sumitra, the father of Munisuvrata: the twentieth of twenty-four Tīrthaṃkaras or Jinas, commonly depicted in Jaina iconography.—Regarding the Jina’s parentage, we are informed that his father named Sumitra was the king of Magadha. His mother had the name of Soma (Padmāvatī according to some books). His dynasty is called the Harivaṃśa. The capital was at Rājagṛha. His name originated from the fact that he kept noble vows (Suvrata, good vows) devoutly and he was a Muni or a Saint.
Harivaṃśa is the name of the lineage (dynasty) of Samudravijaya, the father of Neminātha: the twenty-second of twenty-four Tīrthaṃkaras or Jinas.—Neminātha’s parentage and family have a well-known historical background according to the Jainas. His father was named Samudravijaya. He was the king of Sauripurī or Dvārakā. His race is known as Harivaṃśa, Neminātha’s mother’s name was Śivadevī. The most interesting point in this connection is that Neminātha was a cousin of Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Baladeva.
Source: archive.org: TrisastisalakapurusacaritraHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश) is named after Hari (later incarnation of Sumukha), according to chapter 6.7 [śrī-munisuvratanātha-caritra] of Hemacandra’s 11th century Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacaritra: an ancient Sanskrit epic poem narrating the history and legends of sixty-three illustrious persons in Jainism.
Accordingly:—“ [...] Thus resolving, the god [i.e., Vīra incarnated in Saudharma] took them [i.e., Hari and Hariṇī] both with wishing-trees to the city Campā in this Bharata. [...] Then the vassals, etc., installed Hari on the throne accompanied by auspicious songs by priests, bards, and musicians. By his own power the god made their life of short duration, their height a hundred bows, and then went away, his purpose accomplished. Hari was king at the time of Śītala Svāmin’s congregation and from that time the Harivaṃśa has been on earth, named from him. [...]”.
Source: WikiPedia: JainismThere are also Jaina Harivamsas in various languages that present Jaina traditions of the Krishna story. One of the earliest of these is the Harivaṃśapurāṇa (783 AD) of Jinasena. It is divided into 66 cantos and contains 12,000 slokas. The book aims to narrate the life of Arishtanemi, the twenty-second Tirthankara of the Jainas. According to the Jaina sources, Arishtanemi is the first cousin of Krishna. Therefore, Krishna’s adventures too occupy a significant portion of the book.
Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश).—Name of a celebrated work by Vyāsa supplementary to the Mahābhārata.
Derivable forms: harivaṃśaḥ (हरिवंशः).
Harivaṃśa is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms hari and vaṃśa (वंश).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryHarivaṃśa (हरिवंश).—[masculine] Hari's i.e. Viṣṇu’s (Kṛṣṇa’s) race, T. of a poem.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Aufrecht Catalogus Catalogorum1) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश) as mentioned in Aufrecht’s Catalogus Catalogorum:—a supplement to the Mahābhārata. Io. 174. 414. W. p. 107. 110. 111. Oxf. 2^b. Paris. (B 20. D 55). K. 32. B. 2, 68 (and—[commentary]). Report. Xiv. Ben. 61. 63. Rādh. 41 (and—[commentary]). Burnell. 184^b. Bh. 16. P. 9. Bhr. 579. Poona. 466. 467. 603. 622. Ii, 115. 256. 257. 279. Oppert. 2496. 2737. 3094. 5324. 5716. 6297. 6491. Ii, 311. 371. 1407. 1422. 1508. 2627. 2707. 2881. 3305. 4382. 5093. 5814. 6829. 6976. 7215. 7254. 7854. 8712. 9538. 9693. 9801. 10202. Rice. 70. W. 1523. D 2 (and—[commentary]).
—[commentary] Pradyota. B. 2, 68.
—[commentary] by Arjunamiśra. Io. 250. Burnell. 184^b.
—[commentary] by Nīlakaṇṭha. Io. 414. Oxf. 2^b. Ben. 61. Poona. 256. 257. Oppert. Ii, 8537. W. 1523.
—[commentary] Harivaṃśoddyota by Mahādeva Paṇḍita. Poona. 344.
—[commentary] by Rāmānanda. W. p. 107.
—[commentary] by Sūradāsa. Poona. 603. Harivaṃśe Agnistotra. Burnell. 201^b.
—Kailāsayātrā. Poona. Ii, 88.
—Ghaṇṭākarṇakṛtaviṣṇustuti. Burnell. 201^a.
—Dakṣiṇadvārakāmāhātmya. Burnell. 184^b. Oppert. 5852. Rice. 84.
—Pārijātaharaṇa. Poona. 609.
—Mokṣaviṃśakastotra. W. p. 111.
—Vāmanastava. Burnell. 201^a.
—Vārāhaprādurbhāva. W. p. 111.
—Viṣṇustuti. Burnell. 200^b.
—Veṅkaṭagirimāhātmya. Rice. 88.
—Śeṣadharma. Burnell. 184^b. Oppert. 331. 624. 1108. 2151. 2467. 3050. 3743. 3876. 5682. 6250. 7025. 7428. 7788. Ii, 273. 362. 1702. 1821. 1849. 2008. 2173. 2579. 3014. 3283. 3542. 3851. 4192. 5014. 5145. 7037. 7806. 7987. Rice. 70.
—Harivaṃśaśravaṇaphala. Sb. 245.
—Hariścandropākhyāna. Taylor. 1, 169. 451.
—Hariharastotra. Burnell. 203^a.
2) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—kāvya. Gu. 4.
3) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—father of Keśava (Rasikasaṃjīvinī). Br. M. (add. 26, 359).
4) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—poet. [Sūktikarṇāmṛta by Śrīdharadāsa] Bhojaprabandha Oxf. 150^b.
5) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—of Lalitapura in Nepāl: Sūryaśatakaṭīkā.
6) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—Fl. 427. Gov. Or. Libr. Madras 113. Hz. 27. 102. 531. 560. Io. 174. 414. 1915. 1916. 2031. 2072-78. 2761. 2762. Rgb. 138. 186 (and—[commentary] Candrikā).
—[commentary] by Arjunamiśra. Io. 250 (Āścaryaparvaṭīkā).
—[commentary] Harivaṃśenducandrikā by Jayarāma. Io. 1915. 1916. Stein 198. 353 (breaks off in the 145^th adhyāya). He quotes the
—[commentary] of Rāmānanda.
—[commentary] by Nīlakaṇṭha. Fl. 427. Io. 174. 414. 2072-78. 2761. 2762. Stein 198.
—[commentary] by Rāmānanda. Stein 198 ([fragmentary]). 353. Harivaṃśe Śeṣadharma. Hz. 25.
7) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—Ulwar 854 (and—[commentary]). Harivaṃśe Kailāsayātrā. Ulwar 856.
—Harivaṃśaśravaṇaphala. Ulwar 855.
—Hariharātmakastotra. Ulwar 2456.
8) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—See Mahābhārata. Ak 259 (inc.). 260 (inc.). As p. 140. Bc 376. Cs 4, 257. 258 (and C.). 259 (inc.). 260. 261 (inc.). Add Io. 2027. 2028. Tod 4. C. Candrikā. Ak 260 (inc.). C. by Nīlakaṇṭha. Cs 4, 257. Harivaṃśe Kailāsayātrā. L.. 184 ([fragmentary]).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Harivaṃśa (हरिवंश):—[=hari-vaṃśa] [from hari] m. the family of Kṛṣṇa, [Suśruta]
2) [v.s. ...] the race of monkeys, [Rāmāyaṇa]
3) [v.s. ...] Name of various men, [Sadukti-karṇāmṛta; Catalogue(s)]
4) [v.s. ...] mn. ([scilicet] purāṇa) Name of a celebrated poem supplementary to the Mahā-bhārata on the history and adventures of Kṛṣṇa and his family (it is usually regarded as part of the greater epic, though really a comparatively modern addition to it; cf. [Indian Wisdom, by Sir M. Monier-Williams 418])
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusHarivaṃśa (ಹರಿವಂಶ):—[noun] a Saṃskřta text which describes episodes from the life of Křṣṇa, though it, now, forms a part of Mahābhārata, but is a later addition and is treated as a separate text.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Vamsha, Hari.
Starts with: Harivamsha gosvamin, Harivamsha kavi, Harivamsha pandita, Harivamshabhatta, Harivamshacandra gosvamin, Harivamshacandragosvamin, Harivamshacatushka, Harivamshadeva, Harivamshadhyana, Harivamshagosvamin, Harivamshakatha, Harivamshakavi, Harivamshakrishnalila, Harivamshanyasa, Harivamshapandita, Harivamshapurana, Harivamshasaracarita, Harivamshashravanavidhana, Harivamshashravanavidhi, Harivamshavilasa.
Ends with: Hitaharivamsha, Mahadeva harivamsha, Mahadevaharivamsha.
Full-text (+7940): Hitaharivamsha, Hitaharivamshagosvamin, Harivamshapurana, Harivamshasaracarita, Harivamshashravanavidhana, Harivamshashravanavidhi, Harivamshanyasa, Harivamshakrishnalila, Harivamshavilasa, Harivamshacatushka, Harivamshapandita, Harivamshadeva, Harivamshakavi, Harivamshagosvamin, Harivamshabhatta, Harivamshacandragosvamin, Lohitayana, Sheshadharma, Talashabda, Suradasa.
Relevant text
Search found 55 books and stories containing Harivamsha, Harivamsa, Harivaṃśa, Hari-vamsha, Hari-vaṃśa, Hari-vamsa, Harivamśa, Hari-vamśa; (plurals include: Harivamshas, Harivamsas, Harivaṃśas, vamshas, vaṃśas, vamsas, Harivamśas, vamśas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Trishashti Shalaka Purusha Caritra (by Helen M. Johnson)
Book VIII - Nemināthacaritra (Jain Harivamsa)
Introduction to volume 5 < [Introductions]
Part 1: Introduction (king Janaka, son of Vāsavaketu and Vipulā) < [Chapter IV - The, birth, marriage, and retreat to the forest of Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa]
Tiruvaymoli (Thiruvaimozhi): English translation (by S. Satyamurthi Ayyangar)
Pasuram 1.5.9 < [Section 5 - Fifth Tiruvaymoli (Vala el ulakil mutalaya)]
The Markandeya Purana (by Frederick Eden Pargiter)
Canto LVIII - The description of the Earth (continued)
Canto CXI - The guide to the genealogies
Canto LXXIX - The praise of Vaivasvata in the Sāvarṇika Manvantara
Harivamsha Purana (by Manmatha Nath Dutt)
Chapter 20 - Rasa Dance < [Book 2 - Vishnu Parva]
Chapter 49 - The Fruits of the Recitation of Harivamsha < [Book 3 - Bhavishya Parva]
Chaitanya Bhagavata (by Bhumipati Dāsa)
Verse 2.23.200 < [Chapter 23 - Wandering about Navadvīpa On the Day the Lord Delivered the Kazi]
Verse 1.13.46 < [Chapter 13 - Defeating Digvijayī]
Verse 2.52 < [Chapter 2 - The Lord’s Manifestation at the House of Śrīvāsa and the Inauguration of Saṅkīrtana]
The Vishnu Purana (by Horace Hayman Wilson)
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