Greatest Purana

[Shyam]

What is the best and greatest purana 1 can read? Which is considered best?

[GauraHari]

Jaya Sri Radhe!

Srila Vyasadeva was the original author of the major Vedic texts, He was still not satisfied after writing them. There was a reason for this. In all the literature compiled by Vyasadeva, there are many descriptions of the temporary universe, prayers to the demigods, the process for attaining one’s material necessities, information about the Brahman, the soul, the Supersoul, and the process of yoga for attaining spiritual realizations. There is also information about the Supreme Lord, Bhagavan Krishna. But the detailed descriptions of God, His form, His incarnations, names, activities, potencies and energies, and how He is the source of everything, including the ever-increasing spiritual bliss for which we are always looking, had not yet been fully described. Narada Muni advised Vyasadeva to write the Srimad-Bhagavatam, also called the Bhagavata Purana. After doing so, Vyasadeva considered it his own commentary on the Vedanta-sutras and the complete explanation and conclusion of all Vedic philosophy. This is why Sri Caitanya never cared for writing a commentary on the Vedanta-sutras, because He considered Srimad-Bhagavatam to be the topmost commentary which had already been written. This Srimad-Bhagavatam is part of the Vedic literature called the Itihasas, or the universal histories. So therefore Srimad-Bhagavatam is the last gift of Srila Vyasadeva.

Scriptures also glorify the Bhagavatam greatly and call it the jewel of all Puranas:

The Skanda Purana states:
“In Kali-yuga, of what value are collections of hundreds of thousands of other scriptures, if one does not keep the Srimad Bhagavatam in his house? wherever is the Srimad Bhagavatam in Kali-yuga, the Lord goes there along with the demigods. O muni, a person who faithfully recites a verse of Srimad Bhagavatam every day attains the fruit of reading the eighteen Puranas“.
(Skanda Purana, 2.5.16.40-42,44,33)

Srimad Bhagavatam 1.1.2 — Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyāsadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.

Srimad Bhagavatam 12.13.16 — Just as the Gaṅgā is the greatest of all rivers, Lord Acyuta the supreme among deities and Lord Śambhu [Śiva] the greatest of Vaiṣṇavas, so Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the greatest of all Purāṇas.

Srimad Bhagavatam 12.13.18 — Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless Purāṇa. It is most dear to the Vaiṣṇavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahaṁsas. This Bhāgavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated.

Srimad Bhagavatam 12.13.15 — Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is declared to be the essence of all Vedānta philosophy. One who has felt satisfaction from its nectarean mellow will never be attracted to any other literature.

Hope this helped answer your question. Hare Krishna.

[ShivaFan]

The Greatest Purana is the one that is told to you from the true love of the Teacher who tells you the truth which you are ready for. The First Purana is the One that connects you to the Great Lord. It is the one that opens a door. By this magic, you will find someone who will then speak the Gretest Purana for you. This person will be a Guru. This may be a male or a female. In some cases it may be Lord Shiva Himself, or our Mother Devi. Vishnu in person. You will know when you hear it.

For me, the Greatest Purana is the Name. For me, the Greatest Story is the Ramayana. For me, the greatest Purana is the words of the Perfect Master who may be waiting down some alley in Varanasi, or Vrindavan, or a pair of shoes of a great Saint.

Inside a flower offered to Mother Annapurna is the Gretest Purana. Shiva in meditation is the Greatest Purana. Rama breaking Shiva's Bow is the Greatest Purana. The Bhakti calling for God is the Greatest Purana.

You could be the Greatest Purana. Tell me the story of God.

[shiv.somashekhar]

What is the best and greatest purana 1 can read? Which is considered best?

The Vishnu Purana is known as the Purana-ratna, meaning the jewel among Puranas.

The Bhagavata Purana (also a Vaishnava purana) is easily the most popular among puranas, which makes it widely available.

if you are inclined towards Shiva, then the Vayu Purana is the Shaiva Purana - which is confusing because there exists a Shiva Purana, which is commonly (and incorrectly) assumed to be the main Shaiva Purana.

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namast�

What is the best and greatest purana 1 can read?

What is your measuring stick for 'greatest' ?

praṇām

[philosoraptor]

I assume he is referring to scriptural evidence. I know for a fact that the Padma Puraana explicitly states that the Bhaagavatam is the "greatest" among Puraanas. I don't know if other Puraanas are described as such.

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

I assume he is referring to scriptural evidence. I know for a fact that the Padma Puraana explicitly states that the Bhaagavatam is the "greatest" among Puraanas. I don't know if other Puraanas are described as such.

Yes, I can appreciate this. It is not unusal for a purāṇa to call out its own greatness. In the 1st chapter, 8th śloka, of the śiva mahāpurāṇa (rudra saṃhitā), sūta-ji informs us that ' this śiva purāṇa is the best of all purāṇa-s '. Yet sūta-ji is the same narrator we find in the
śrīmad bhāgavata mahāpurāṇa. It is śukadeva in this śrīmad bhāgavata mahāpurāṇa that informs us that ' this purāṇa possesses the glory of its own and constitutes the very essence of all the veda-s '; how could this purāṇa not be great too ?

Each purāṇa sings its own praise.


FYI for one's kind consideration:
The purāṇa-s typically discuss 5 topics (pañca-lakṣaṇa) - that is:

• the creation of the universe - sarga सर्ग or letting go , discharging i.e. creation
• its destruction and renovation . This is called prati-sarga : prati प्रति or back , again , in return + sarga सर्गor letting go , discharging = additional creations, recreations
• the genealogy of the devatā & sages i.e. lineage or families, and this is called vaṃśa वंश
• the reigns of the manu-s - the various epochs and rulers of these times - (if I am correct, manu+antara¹ = manvañtara )
  manu-antara¹ = manu मनु father of the human race + antara अन्तर is interval, term, period or duration.
• the history ~lineage~ of the solar and lunar races ; genealogy of kings - vaṃśa-nucarita¹

praṇām

words

• puraṇa पुरण- rooted (√) in pṝ the sea , ocean , not to be confused with purāṇa meaning ancient or old
• manu+antara - for those interested, this is a grammer rule of sandhi defined by the grammarin pāniṇi. When u+a are combined it results in a 'v' based upon the yaṇa sandhi rule. Hence we get manvantara.
• vaṃśa-nucarita - vaṃśa + nu + carita :vaṃśa the line of a pedigree or genealogy (from its resemblance to the succession of joints in a bamboo) + nu = time + carita = acts, deeds, adventures

[philosoraptor]

No doubt each Puraana sings its own praise, and no doubt many Puraanas glorify some of the other Puraanas. But my point was, I don't know of many Puraanas which explicitly name *ANOTHER* Puraana as "greatest" or "best." The only such reference I know of is in the Padma Puraana, and it says the Bhaagavatam is the best. But I would be very interested to know if we see other examples, such as the Garuda P. calling the Vishnu P. the best, or the Brahma P. calling the Vaayu P. the best, etc.

[Ganeshprasad]

Pranam
In my experience Ramayan more precisely Ramchritra manas rank along Bhagvat puran as very popular but then I am reminded many times popularity is no indication for its greatness. There again Ramayan is Ithihas so it does not count.

To say what Puran is greatest would be very subjective matter depending who we may ask. Bhagvat puran does get aired the most in TV channels .

It is very popular to have Sapta (reciting for seven days) organised after our departed near and dears, there are various reason for this . King Pariksit who was cursed to die in 7days, was fortunate to hear the katha amrut from Sukhdeva Goswami within which there is a story of Gokarna who gets his brother dhudhukari released from Pret yoni by the recitation of Bhagvat katha.

What I find interesting is, we are told or rather read in Bhagvatam as to how Vyas ji was not satisfied having compiled all the Shastra presumably other Puranas also. Along appear Naradmuni, he discovers Gyan and vairagya lame and saw Bhakti lamenting. To cut the long story sort he then instructed Vyas ji to describe the glories of Lord Krishna and thus we have Bhagvat Puran the Last.

I find this quote strange

The Skanda Purana states:
�In Kali-yuga, of what value are collections of hundreds of thousands of other scriptures, if one does not keep the Srimad Bhagavatam in his house? wherever is the Srimad Bhagavatam in Kali-yuga, the Lord goes there along with the demigods. O muni, a person who faithfully recites a verse of Srimad Bhagavatam every day attains the fruit of reading the eighteen Puranas�.
(Skanda Purana, 2.5.16.40-42,44,33)
.

Following from this the question arise, having already written other purans, and up to that point he had not thought of Bhagvat puran let alone written it, how then this passage in Skanda or that matter Padma Puran can declare Bhagvat is the best?

Please don�t think I am questioning the greatness of the Purana, rather how it can appear in Skanda or Padma Purana?

Jai Shree Krishna

[Eastern Mind]

To say what Puran is greatest would be very subjective matter depending who we may ask.

Vannakkam GP: This just struck me as funny somehow for its astute simplicity. First we are arguing which God is Supreme. Then it's which scripture. Then it's which translation. Then it's which temple. Then it's what teacher.

What will we think of next? Whose wife is the prettiest? Whose car is the fastest?

Aum Namasivaya