Agni Purana

History

The man who gratuitously teaches another, a craft or a trade or settles upon him a property, whereby he earns a livelihood, acquires infinite merit. Tradition has it that its title is named after Agni because it was originally recited by Agni to the sage Vasishta when the latter wanted to learn about the Brahman, and Vasishta later recited it to Vyasa – the sage who compiled all the Vedas, Puranas and many other historic texts. Vyasa recited it to Suta, who then recited to the rishis in Naimisharanya. The Skanda Purana and Matsya Purana assert that the Agni Purana describes Isana-kalpa as described by god Agni, but the surviving manuscripts make no mention of Isana-kalpa. Similarly, medieval Hindu texts cite verses that they claim are from Agni Purana, but these verses do not exist in current editions of the text. These inconsistencies, considered together, have led scholars such as Rajendra Hazra to conclude that the extant manuscripts are different from the text Skanda and Matsya Puranas are referring to.

The earliest core of the text is likely a post 7th-century composition, and a version existed by the 11th century. The chapters that discuss grammar and lexicography may be an addition in the 12th century, while the chapters on metrics likely predate 950 CE because Pingala-sutras text by the 10th-century scholar Halayudha cites this text. The section on poetics is likely a post-900 CE composition, while its summary on Tantra is likely to be a composition between 800 and 1100 CE.

The Agni Purana exists in many versions and it exemplifies the complex chronology of the Puranic genre of Indian literature that has survived into modern times. The number of chapters, number of verses and the specific content vary across Agni Purana manuscripts. Dimmitt and van Buitenen state that each of the Puranas is encyclopedic in style, and it is difficult to ascertain when, where, why and by whom these were written:

As they exist today, the Puranas are a stratified literature. Each titled work consists of material that has grown by numerous accretions in successive historical eras. Thus, no Puran has a single date of composition. (...) it is as if they were libraries to which new volumes have been continuously added, not necessarily at the end of the shelf, but randomly. |Cornelia Dimmitt and J.A.B. van Buitenen|Classical Hindu Mythology: A Reader in the Sanskrit Puranas}}

Structure

The published manuscripts are divided into 382 or 383 chapters, and ranging between 12,000 and 15,000 verses. Many subjects it covers are in specific chapters, but states Rocher, these "succeed one another without the slightest connection or transition". In other cases, such as its discussion of iconography, the verses are found in many sections of the Agni Purana.

Editions and translations

The first printed edition of the text was edited by Rajendralal Mitra in the 1870s (Calcutta : Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1870–1879, 3 volumes; Bibliotheca Indica, 65, 1–3). The entire text extends to slightly below one million characters.

An English translation was published in two volumes by Manmatha Nath Dutt in 1903–04. There are several versions published by different companies.

Contents

The extant manuscripts are encyclopedic. The first chapter of the text declares its scope to be such. Some subjects covered by the text include:

References

Bibliography

References

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14. MN Dutt, [http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b4023049 Agni Purana Vol 2] {{Webarchive. link. (2022-12-27 , pages 853-858)
15. MN Dutt (1967), Agni Purana, Vol 1, {{oclc. 421840, {{ISBN. 978-8170309192, pages 102-109
16. MN Dutt, [http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b4023049 Agni Purana Vol 2] {{Webarchive. link. (2022-12-27 , pages 1075-1081 (Note: Dutt's manuscript has 365 chapters, and is numbered differently))
17. (1976). "The Hindu Temple". Motilal Banarsidass.
18. Suresh Mohan Bhattacharyya. (1976). "The Alaṃkāra-section of the Agni-purāṇa". Firma KLM.
19. (2006). "Literary History: Towards a Global Perspective: Volume 1". Walter de Gruyter.
20. MN Dutt (1967), Agni Purana, {{oclc. 421840, {{ISBN. 978-8170309192, pages 433-457
21. MN Dutt, [http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b4023049 Agni Purana Vol 2] {{Webarchive. link. (2022-12-27 , pages 1313-1338 (Note: Dutt's manuscript has 365 chapters, and is numbered differently))
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