Divisions
70-589: Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas Indian epic poetry is the epic poetry written in the Indian subcontinent , traditionally called Kavya (or Kāvya ; Sanskrit : काव्य, IAST: kāvyá ). The Ramayana and the Mahabharata , which were originally composed in Sanskrit and later translated into many other Indian languages, and
140-718: A Jain monk . The work is unique in that it does not employ letters, but is composed entirely in Kannada numerals . The Saangathya metre of Kannada poetry is employed in the work. It uses numerals 1 through 64 and employs various patterns or bandhas in a frame of 729 (27×27) squares to represent letters in nearly 18 scripts and over 700 languages. Some of the patterns used include the Chakrabandha , Hamsabandha , Varapadmabandha , Sagarabandha , Sarasabandha , Kruanchabandha , Mayurabandha , Ramapadabandha , and Nakhabandha . As each of these patterns are identified and decoded,
210-466: A Mahabharata based on the Jain tradition in addition to those based on Brahmanical tradition. Shivakotiacharya was the first writer in prose style. His work Vaddaradhane is dated to 900 CE. Sri Ponna (939-966 CE) is also an important writer from the same period, with Shanti Purana as his magnum opus. Another major writer of the period is Ranna (949-? CE). His most famous works are
280-645: A roughly 90-km traditional circle ( Parikrama ) around the holy city (1 kos equals about 3.00 km or 1.91 miles), and a complete parikrama refers to a pilgrimage to all these sites on foot. The International Gita Mahotsav , held every year in Kururukshetra on the Shukla Ekadashi —the 11th day of the waxing moon of the Margashirsha ( Agrahayan ) month of the Hindu calendar , celebrates
350-674: A style adopted from Sangam literature. Later, during the Chola period, Kamban (12th century) wrote what is considered one of the greatest Tamil epics — the Kamba Ramayanam of Kamban , based on the Valmiki Ramayana. The Thiruthondat Puranam (or Periya Puranam ) of Chekkizhar is the great Tamil epic of the Shaiva Bhakti saints and is part of the religious scripture of Tamil Nadu's majority Shaivites. Most of
420-462: A trend of poetic excellence for the Kannada poets of the future. The former work is an adaptation of the celebrated Mahabharata , and is the first such adaptation in Kannada. Noted for the strong human bent and the dignified style in his writing, Pampa has been one of the most influential writers in Kannada. He is identified as Adikavi "first poet". It is only in Kannada that we have a Ramayana and
490-619: Is a rhyming verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking three-line rhyme scheme. An example is found in the first lines of the Divine Comedy by Dante , who originated the form: Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita (A) mi ritrovai per una selva oscura (B) ché la diritta via era smarrita. (A) Ahi quanto a dir qual era è cosa dura (B) esta selva selvaggia e aspra e forte (C) che nel pensier rinnova la paura! (B) In ottava rima , each stanza consists of three alternate rhymes and one double rhyme, following
560-768: Is a couplet), as well as long prose passages, so that at ~1.8 million words it is roughly twice the length of Shahnameh , four times the length of the Rāmāyaṇa , and roughly ten times the length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined. Famous examples of epic poetry include the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh , the ancient Indian Mahabharata and Rāmāyaṇa in Sanskrit and Silappatikaram and Manimekalai in Tamil,
630-671: Is a language with a rich granary of epic poetries, mostly written in archaic version of the Meitei script in Puyas , the Meitei texts. The sagas of the seven epic cycles of incarnations of the two divine lovers were originated from the shoreline Moirang around the Loktak lake in Manipur . Their stories were composed in both prose and poetry, among which the ballad versions were usually sung by
700-641: Is as follows: Old English, German and Norse poems were written in alliterative verse , usually without rhyme . The alliterative form can be seen in the Old English " Finnsburg Fragment " (alliterated sounds are in bold): Ac on w acnigeað nū, w īgend mīne e alra ǣ rest e orðbūendra, But awake now, my warriors, of all first the men While the above classical and Germanic forms would be considered stichic , Italian, Spanish and Portuguese long poems favored stanzaic forms, usually written in terza rima or especially ottava rima . Terza rima
770-496: Is based on the legendary love story of Khuman Khamba , an orphan man, and Thoibi , the then princess of Moirang . Though the legend existed in the immortal songs of the Meitei balladeers, it was composed in a proper poetic version by Hijam Anganghal in 1940. The Numit Kappa , literally meaning "Shooting at the Sun" in Meitei , is a 1st-century BC Meitei epic, based on the story of a hero named Khwai Nungjeng Piba , who shoots one of
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#1732757485343840-428: Is located at around 30° North and 77° East. Kurukshetra city is surrounded by Patiala , Ludhiana , Jalandhar , Amritsar to the northwest, Ambala , Chandigarh , Shimla to the north, Yamuna Nagar , Jagadhri , Dehradun to the northeast, Pehowa , Cheeka , Mansa to the west, Ladwa , Saharanpur , Roorkee to the east, Kaithal , Jind , Hisar to the southwest, Karnal , Panipat , Sonipat , New Delhi to
910-641: Is merged with Kurukshetra, is a pilgrimage site with many locations attributed to Mahabharata . In the Vedas, Kurukshetra is described not as a city but as a region (" kshetra " means "region" in Sanskrit). The boundaries of Kurukshetra correspond roughly to the central and western parts of the state of Haryana and Punjab . According to the Taittiriya Aranyaka 5.1.1., the Kurukshetra region
980-400: Is not a complete biography of Roland, but picks up from the plot of Orlando Innamorato , which in turn presupposes a knowledge of the romance and oral traditions . Epic catalogues and genealogies are given, called enumeratio . These long lists of objects, places, and people place the finite action of the epic within a broader, universal context, such as the catalog of ships . Often,
1050-408: Is perhaps Catullus 64 . Epyllion is to be understood as distinct from mock epic , another light form. Romantic epic is a term used to designate works such as Morgante , Orlando Innamorato , Orlando Furioso and Gerusalemme Liberata , which freely lift characters, themes, plots and narrative devices from the world of prose chivalric romance . Long poetic narratives that do not fit
1120-651: Is south of Turghna (Srughna/Sugh in Sirhind , Punjab), north of Khandava (Delhi and Mewat region), east of Maru (desert), and west of Parin. According to the Vamana Purana , King Kuru chose land at the banks of the Sarasvati River for embedding spirituality with eight virtues: austerity ( Tapas ), truth ( Satya ), forgiveness (Kshama), kindness ( Daya ), purity (Shuddha), charity ( Daana ), devotion ( Yajna ), and conduct ( Brahmacharya ). Lord Vishnu
1190-649: Is the Epic of Gilgamesh ( c. 2500–1300 BCE ), which was recorded in ancient Sumer during the Neo-Sumerian Empire . The poem details the exploits of Gilgamesh , the king of Uruk . Although recognized as a historical figure, Gilgamesh, as represented in the epic, is a largely legendary or mythical figure. The longest written epic from antiquity is the ancient Indian Mahabharata ( c. 3rd century BC –3rd century AD), which consists of 100,000 ślokas or over 200,000 verse lines (each shloka
1260-550: Is the most popular. In Serbian poetry, the decasyllable is the only form employed. Balto-Finnic (e.g. Estonian, Finnish, Karelian) folk poetry uses a form of trochaic tetrameter that has been called the Kalevala meter. The Finnish and Estonian national epics, Kalevala and Kalevipoeg , are both written in this meter. The meter is thought to have originated during the Proto-Finnic period. In Indic epics such as
1330-601: The Iliad ) or both. Epics also tend to highlight cultural norms and to define or call into question cultural values, particularly as they pertain to heroism . In the proem or preface, the poet may begin by invoking a Muse or similar divinity. The poet prays to the Muses to provide them with divine inspiration to tell the story of a great hero. Example opening lines with invocations: An alternative or complementary form of proem, found in Virgil and his imitators, opens with
1400-641: The epyllion (plural: epyllia), a brief narrative poem with a romantic or mythological theme . The term, which means "little epic ", came into use in the nineteenth century. It refers primarily to the erudite, shorter hexameter poems of the Hellenistic period and the similar works composed at Rome from the age of the neoterics ; to a lesser degree, the term includes some poems of the English Renaissance , particularly those influenced by Ovid . The most famous example of classical epyllion
1470-521: The Ancient Greek adjective ἐπικός ( epikos ), from ἔπος ( epos ), "word, story, poem." In ancient Greek , 'epic' could refer to all poetry in dactylic hexameter ( epea ), which included not only Homer but also the wisdom poetry of Hesiod , the utterances of the Delphic oracle , and the strange theological verses attributed to Orpheus . Later tradition, however, has restricted
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#17327574853431540-539: The Five Great Epics of Tamil literature and Sangam literature are some of the oldest surviving epic poems ever written. In modern Hindi literature, Kamayani by Jaishankar Prasad has attained the status of an epic. The narrative of Kamayani is based on a popular mythological story, first mentioned in Satapatha Brahmana . It is a story of the great flood and the central characters of
1610-641: The Indian state of Haryana . It is also known as Dharmakshetra ("Realm of duty") and as the "Land of the Bhagavad Gita ". According to the Puranas , Kurukshetra is a region named after King Kuru , the ancestor of Kauravas and Pandavas in the Kuru kingdom , as depicted in epic Mahabharata . The Kurukshetra War of the Mahabharata is believed to have taken place here. Thaneswar , whose urban area
1680-688: The Jain religious work Ajita Tirthankara Purana and the Gada Yuddha , a birds' eye view of the Mahabharata set in the last day of the battle of Kurukshetra and relating the story of the Mahabharata through a series of flashbacks. Structurally, the poetry in this period is in the Champu style, essentially poetry interspersed with lyrical prose. The Siribhoovalaya is a unique work of multilingual Kannada literature written by Kumudendu Muni ,
1750-456: The Ramayana and Mahabharata , the shloka form is used. The primary form of epic, especially as discussed in this article, is the heroic epic , including such works as the Iliad and Mahabharata . Ancient sources also recognized didactic epic as a category, represented by such works as Hesiod 's Works and Days and Lucretius's De rerum natura . A related type of poetry is
1820-839: The Sanskrit epics such as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana were also translated into Meitei language in the medieval times. Other translated epic works include the Meghnad Badh Kavya , the Bhagavad Gita , and the Ashtakam . In 14th century Madhav Kandali dubbed the epic Ramayana as Saptakanda Ramayana . In chronology, among vernacular translations of the original Sanskrit, Kandali's Ramayana comes after Kamban 's ( Tamil , 12th century)and Gona Budda Reddy's ( Telugu : Ranganath Ramayanamu ) and ahead of Kirttivas ' ( Bengali , 15th century), Tulsidas ' ( Awadhi , 16th century), Balaram Das' (Oriya) etc. Thus it becomes
1890-711: The Slaying of Śiśupāla Śiśupālavadha of Māgha , Arjuna and the Mountain Man Kirātārjunīya of Bhāravi , the Adventures of the Prince of Nishadha Naiṣadhacarita of Śrīharṣa and Bhaṭṭi's Poem Bhaṭṭikāvya of Bhaṭṭi . The post- sangam period (2nd century-6th century) saw many great Tamil epics being written, including Cilappatikaram (or Silappadhikaram ), Manimegalai , Civaka Cintamani , Valayapathi and Kundalakesi . Out of
1960-653: The performative verb "I sing". Examples: This Virgilian epic convention is referenced in Walt Whitman 's poem title / opening line "I sing the body electric". Compare the first six lines of the Kalevala : These conventions are largely restricted to European classical culture and its imitators. The Epic of Gilgamesh , for example, or the Bhagavata Purana do not contain such elements, nor do early medieval Western epics that are not strongly shaped by
2030-528: The 16th century the Spenserian stanza and blank verse were also introduced. The French alexandrine is currently the heroic line in French literature, though in earlier literature – such as the chanson de geste – the decasyllable grouped in laisses took precedence. In Polish literature, couplets of Polish alexandrines (syllabic lines of 7+6 syllables) prevail. In Russian, iambic tetrameter verse
2100-548: The 1st-2nd century. He wrote a biography of the Buddha, titled Buddhacarita. His second epic is called Saundarananda and tells the story of the conversion of Nanda, the younger brother of the Buddha. The play he wrote is called Śariputraprakaraṇa, but of this play only a few fragments remained. The famous poet and playwright Kālidāsa also wrote two epics: Raghuvamsha ( The Dynasty of Raghu ) and Kumarasambhava ( The Birth of Kumar Kartikeya ). Other classical Sanskrit epics are
2170-526: The 24th and last tirthankara of Jainism, Mahavira , though his Kannada-language version of Kalidasa's epic poem, Kumārasambhava , Karnataka Kumarasambhava Kavya is lost. The most famous poet from this period is Pampa (902-975 CE), one of the most famous writers in the Kannada language . His Vikramarjuna Vijaya (also called the Pampabharatha ) is hailed as a classic even to this day. With this and his other important work Ādi purāṇa he set
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2240-461: The ABABABCC rhyme scheme . Example: Canto l'arme pietose, e 'l Capitano Che 'l gran sepolcro liberò di Cristo. Molto egli oprò col senno e con la mano; Molto soffrì nel glorioso acquisto: E invan l'Inferno a lui s'oppose; e invano s'armò d'Asia e di Libia il popol misto: Chè 'l Ciel gli diè favore, e sotto ai santi Segni ridusse i suoi compagni erranti. The sacred armies, and
2310-520: The Homeric epics, the earliest works of Western literature, were fundamentally an oral poetic form. These works form the basis of the epic genre in Western literature. Nearly all of Western epic (including Virgil's Aeneid and Dante's Divine Comedy ) self-consciously presents itself as a continuation of the tradition begun by these poems. In his work Poetics , Aristotle defines an epic as one of
2380-679: The Kuru kingdom (as determined by philological study of the Vedic literature) corresponds with the archaeological Painted Grey Ware culture . Kurukshetra was conquered by the Mauryan empire in the late 4th century BCE and subsequently became a center of Buddhism and Hinduism. The history of Kurukshetra is little-known in between the collapse of the Mauryans and the rise of the Kushans who conquered
2450-671: The Mongols , the Kyrgyz Manas , and the Malian Sundiata . Epic poems of the modern era include Derek Walcott 's Omeros , Mircea Cărtărescu 's The Levant and Adam Mickiewicz 's Pan Tadeusz . Paterson by William Carlos Williams , published in five volumes from 1946 to 1958, was inspired in part by another modern epic, The Cantos by Ezra Pound . The first epics were products of preliterate societies and oral history poetic traditions. Oral tradition
2520-1152: The Persian Shahnameh , the Ancient Greek Odyssey and Iliad , Virgil 's Aeneid , the Old English Beowulf , Dante 's Divine Comedy , the Finnish Kalevala , the German Nibelungenlied , the French Song of Roland , the Spanish Cantar de mio Cid , the Portuguese Os Lusíadas , the Armenian Daredevils of Sassoun , the Old Russian The Tale of Igor's Campaign , John Milton 's Paradise Lost , The Secret History of
2590-804: The Telugu epics are about Hinduism . The first known Telugu epic was the Andhra Mahabharatam written by the Kavitrayam (11th-14th centuries) Other main Telugu epics are the Ranganatha Ramayanamu , Basava Purana , and the Amuktamalyada Epic poetry An epic poem , or simply an epic , is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces , gave shape to
2660-546: The caste system of Indian society and the life of the lower levels of society, such as cobblers and shepherds, see C.N. Ramachandran, "Ambivalence and Angst: A Note on Indian folk epics," in Lauri Honko (2002. p. 295). Some Indian oral epics feature strong women who actively pursue personal freedom in their choice of a romantic partner (Stuart, Claus, Flueckiger and Wadley, eds, 1989, p. 5). Japanese traditional performed narratives were sung by blind singers. One of
2730-477: The city likely enjoyed some autonomy. The area was much more firmly controlled under the subsequent Lodi dynasty . Some damages to Kurukshetra and its structures occurred during this period. Kurukshetra became part of the Mughal Empire after Babur quashed a local rebellion in 1526. Under Akbar , Kurukshetra once again became a spiritual center not only for Hindus but also for Sikhs and Muslims. Between
2800-653: The classical traditions, such as the Chanson de Roland or the Poem of the Cid . Narrative opens " in the middle of things ", with the hero at his lowest point. Usually flashbacks show earlier portions of the story. For example, the Iliad does not tell the entire story of the Trojan War, starting with the judgment of Paris , but instead opens abruptly on the rage of Achilles and its immediate causes. So too, Orlando Furioso
2870-440: The contents can be read. The work is said to have around 600,000 verses, nearly six times as big as the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata . The Prabhulingaleele , Basava purana , Channabasavapurana and Basavarajavijaya are a few of the Lingayat epics. Meitei language (officially known as Manipuri language ), an old Sino-Tibetan language, originated from Ancient Kangleipak (early Manipur ) in North East India ,
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2940-416: The earliest phase of Classical Sanskrit , following the latest stage of Vedic Sanskrit found in the Shrauta Sutras . The Suparṇākhyāna , a late Vedic poem considered to be among the "earliest traces of epic poetry in India," is an older, shorter precursor to the expanded legend of Garuda that is included within the Mahābhārata . The Buddhist kavi Aśvaghoṣa wrote two epics and one drama. He lived in
3010-595: The epic poem are Manu (a male) and Shraddha (a female). Manu is representative of the human psyche and Shradha represents love. Another female character is Ida , who represents rationality. Some critics surmise that the three lead characters of Kamayani symbolize a synthesis of knowledge, action and desires in human life. It inspires humans to live a life based on "karm" and not on fortunes. Apart from Kamayani , Saketa (1932) by Maithili Sharan Gupt , Kurukshetra (Epic Poetry) (1946), Rashmirathi (1952) and Urvashi (1961) by Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' have attained
3080-417: The first recorded state-level society ( janapada ) in the Indian subcontinent . This kingdom documented their ritual hymns into collections called the Vedas , and developed new rituals which gained their position in Indian civilization as the Srauta rituals, which contributed to the "classical synthesis" or "Hindu synthesis" (roots of Hinduism). It was the dominant political and cultural center of
3150-408: The first rendition of the Ramayana into an Indo-Aryan language in the Indian subcontinent. The ancient Sanskrit epics the Ramayana and Mahabharata comprise together the Itihāsa ( lit. ' writer has himself witnessed the story ' ) or Mahākāvya ("Great Compositions"), a canon of Hindu scripture . Inde bbu nued, the epic form prevailed and verse remained until very recently
3220-520: The five, Manimegalai and Kundalakesi are Buddhist religious works, Civaka Cintamani and Valayapathi are Tamil Jain works and Silappatikaram has a neutral religious view. They were written over a period of 1st century CE to 10th century CE and act as the historical evidence of social, religious, cultural and academic life of people during the era they were created. Civaka Cintamani introduced long verses called virutha pa in Tamil literature, while Silappatikaram used akaval meter (monologue),
3290-499: The forms of poetry, contrasted with lyric poetry and drama (in the form of tragedy and comedy). Harmon & Holman (1999) define an epic: Harmon and Holman delineate ten main characteristics of an epic: The hero generally participates in a cyclical journey or quest, faces adversaries that try to defeat them in their journey, and returns home significantly transformed by their journey. The epic hero illustrates traits, performs deeds, and exemplifies certain morals that are valued by
3360-451: The godly knight, That the great sepulchre of Christ did free, I sing; much wrought his valor and foresight, And in that glorious war much suffered he; In vain 'gainst him did Hell oppose her might, In vain the Turks and Morians armèd be: His soldiers wild, to brawls and mutines prest, Reducèd he to peace, so Heaven him blest. From the 14th century English epic poems were written in heroic couplets , and rhyme royal , though in
3430-412: The importance of line consistency and poetic meter. Ancient Greek epics were composed in dactylic hexameter . Very early Latin epicists, such Livius Andronicus and Gnaeus Naevius , used Saturnian meter. By the time of Ennius , however, Latin poets had adopted dactylic hexameter . Dactylic hexameter has been adapted by a few anglophone poets such as Longfellow in " Evangeline ", whose first line
3500-444: The late 17th and early 18th centuries, Kurukshetra was controlled by the forces of the Maratha Empire until the British took over Delhi in 1803. In 1805, the British took Kurukshetra after defeating the Maratha forces in the Second Anglo-Maratha War , who were controlling the city. Since 1947, Kurukshetra has become a popular spiritual center and has seen much infrastructure, development, and restoration of old structures. Kuruksetra
3570-427: The limits of the Municipal Corporation due to its religious significance. Kurukshetra Junction railway station is a junction station at the junction of Delhi–Kalka line and Kurukshetra–Jind branch line. It serves Kurukshetra and Thanesar city. Kurukshetra is an important Hindu pilgrimage destination, and there are several pilgrimage sites surrounding the city. The Hindi phrase 48 kos parikrama refers to
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#17327574853433640-417: The middle Vedic Period during the reigns of Parikshit and Janamejaya , but declined in importance during the late Vedic period (c. 900 – c. 500 BCE) and had become "something of a backwater" by the Mahajanapada period in the 5th century BCE. Traditions and legends about the Kurus continued into the post-Vedic period, providing the basis for the Mahabharata epic. The time-frame and geographical extent of
3710-418: The minstrels, playing Pena (musical instrument) since ancient times. The Khamba Thoibi Sheireng (based on the story of Khamba and Thoibi ) is regarded as the greatest of all the Meitei epics. It is regarded as the national epic of the Manipuris . It consists of approximately 39,000 verses . The epic poetry has fifteen chapters ( Meitei : Pandup ) and ninety two sections ( Meitei : Taangkak ). It
3780-425: The mortal universe for their descendants. With regard to oral tradition , epics consist of formal speech and are usually learnt word for word, and are contrasted with narratives which consist of everyday speech where the performer has the license to recontextualize the story to a particular audience, often to a younger generation. The English word epic comes from Latin epicus , which itself comes from
3850-401: The most famous, The Tale of the Heike , deals with historical wars and had a ritual function to placate the souls of the dead (Tokita 2015, p. 7). A variety of epic forms are found in Africa. Some have a linear, unified style while others have a more cyclical, episodic style (Barber 2007, p. 50). People in the rice cultivation zones of south China sang long narrative songs about
3920-457: The origin of rice growing, rebel heroes, and transgressive love affairs (McLaren 2022). The borderland ethnic populations of China sang heroic epics, such as the Epic of King Gesar of the Mongols , and the creation-myth epics of the Yao people of south China. Kurukshetra Kurukshetra ( Hindi pronunciation: [kʊrʊkʃeːtɾə] , pronunciation ) is a city and administrative headquarters of Kurukshetra district in
3990-706: The poet is also paying homage to the ancestors of audience members. Examples: In the Homeric and post-Homeric tradition, epic style is typically achieved through the use of the following stylistic features: Many verse forms have been used in epic poems through the ages, but each language's literature typically gravitates to one form, or at least to a very limited set. Ancient Sumerian epic poems did not use any kind of poetic meter and lines did not have consistent lengths; instead, Sumerian poems derived their rhythm solely through constant repetition and parallelism , with subtle variations between lines. Indo-European epic poetry, by contrast, usually places strong emphasis on
4060-444: The preferred form of Hindu literary works. Indian culture readily lent itself to a literary tradition that abounded in epic poetry and literature. The Puranas , a massive collection of verse-form histories of India's many Hindu gods and goddesses, followed in this tradition. Itihāsa and Puranas are mentioned in the Atharva Veda and referred to as the fourth Veda . The language of these texts, termed Epic Sanskrit , constitutes
4130-412: The region. After the decline of Kushan power in the region, Kurukshetra became independent only to become conquered by the Gupta empire in the early 4th century CE. Under Gupta rule, Kurukshetra experienced a cultural and religious revival and became a center for Hinduism. After the fall of the Gupta, the Pushyabhuti dynasty ruled over Kurukshetra. Kurukshetra reached the zenith of its progress during
4200-541: The reign of King Harsha (c. 590–647 CE) during which Chinese scholar Xuanzang visited Thanesar. Civil war broke out when Harsha (of the Pushyabhuti dynasty) died without a successor in 647. A Kashmiri army briefly conquered Kurukshetra in 733 but were unable to establish dominion in the area. In 736, the Tomara dynasty was founded and they took over the region. Around the early 9th century, Kurukshetra lost its independence to Bengal. Mahmud of Ghazni sacked Kurukshetra in 1014 and Muslim raiders sacked it in 1034. Kurukshetra
4270-436: The society the epic originates from. Many epic heroes are recurring characters in the legends of their native cultures. In the Indian mahākāvya epic genre, more emphasis was laid on description than on narration. Indeed, the traditional characteristics of a mahākāvya are listed as: Classical epic poetry recounts a journey, either physical (as typified by Odysseus in the Odyssey ) or mental (as typified by Achilles in
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#17327574853434340-422: The south, and Shamli , Muzaffarnagar , Meerut to the southeast. The climate of the district varies as the temperature in summer reaches as high as 47 °C (117 °F), and as low 1 °C (34 °F) in winter, with rains in July and August. Religion in Kurukshetra city (2011) In 2017, the government declared Kurukshetra a holy city and the sale, possession, and consumption of meat are banned within
4410-402: The status of epic poetry . Likewise Lalita Ke Aansoo by Krant M. L. Verma (1978) narrates the tragic story about the death of Lal Bahadur Shastri through his wife Lalita Shastri . Kannada epic poetry mainly consists of Jain religious literature and Lingayat literature. Asaga wrote Vardhaman Charitra , an epic which runs in 18 cantos , in 853 CE, the first Sanskrit biography of
4480-551: The term 'epic' to heroic epic , as described in this article. Originating before the invention of writing, primary epics, such as those of Homer , were composed by bards who used complex rhetorical and metrical schemes by which they could memorize the epic as received in tradition and add to the epic in their performances. Later writers like Virgil , Apollonius of Rhodes , Dante , Camões , and Milton adopted and adapted Homer's style and subject matter , but used devices available only to those who write. The oldest epic recognized
4550-460: The traditional European definition of the heroic epic are sometimes known as folk epics. Indian folk epics have been investigated by Lauri Honko (1998), Brenda Beck (1982) and John Smith, amongst others. Folk epics are an important part of community identities. The folk genre known as al-sira relates the saga of the Hilālī tribe and their migrations across the Middle East and north Africa, see Bridget Connelly (1986). In India, folk epics reflect
4620-441: The two shining suns in the sky, to create the night . The Ougri is the collection of musical epic poetries, associated with religious themes, originated during the reign of King Nongda Lairen Pakhangba in 33 AD. Other epics include Shingel Indu by Hijam Anganghal, Khongjom Tirtha by Nilabir Sharma, Chingoi Baruni by Gokul Shastri, Kansa Vadha by A. Dorendrajit, and Vasudeva Mahakavya by Chingangbam Kalachand. However,
4690-515: Was impressed with the acts of King Kuru and blessed him with two boons—first, that this land forever will be known as a Holy Land after his name as Kurukshetra (the land of Kuru); second, that anyone dying on this land will go to heaven. The land of Kurukshetra was situated between two rivers—the Sarasvati and the Drishadvati . Kuru Kingdom , founded by King Puru —the ancestors of Kauravas and Pandavas Vedic Indo-Aryan tribal union in northern Iron Age (c. 1200 – c. 900 BCE), developed into
4760-422: Was incorporated into the Delhi Sultanate in 1206. Other than a short moment of independence from the result of a rebellion within the Sultanate in 1240, Kurukshetra was under the control of Delhi until 1388. Kurukshetra became independent once again after the steep decline of the Delhi Sultanate and the raids of Tamerlane near the region. The Sayyid dynasty incorporated Kurukshetra into their territory though
4830-455: Was that oral epics tend to be constructed in short episodes, each of equal status, interest and importance. This facilitates memorization, as the poet is recalling each episode in turn and using the completed episodes to recreate the entire epic as he performs it. Parry and Lord also contend that the most likely source for written texts of the epics of Homer was dictation from an oral performance. Milman Parry and Albert Lord have argued that
4900-404: Was used alongside written scriptures to communicate and facilitate the spread of culture. In these traditions, poetry is transmitted to the audience and from performer to performer by purely oral means. Early 20th-century study of living oral epic traditions in the Balkans by Milman Parry and Albert Lord demonstrated the paratactic model used for composing these poems. What they demonstrated
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