Srivatsa

The Śrīvatsa, Shrivatsa, or Sri Vatsa (Devanagari: श्रीवत्स)[1] is a figure of Indian symbology.[clarification needed]

Shrivatsa is an ancient auspicious symbol in India. It is a mark on the chest of Vishnu where His consort Sri Lakshmi resides. It is said that the 10th avatar of Vishnu, Kalki will be bearer of the Srivatsa mark on his chest. SrivatsavakshaaH is another name of Vishnu and is mentioned in the Vishnu Sahasranam.

In Buddhism, the Srivatsa is said to be a feature of the tutelary deity (Skt: ishtadevata; Tib: yidam) Manjusri the Youth (Skt: Manjusrikumarabhuta).[2]

As a Jain symbol

The compound Buddhist symbols: Shrivatsa within a triratana, over a Chakra wheel, on the Tonana gate at Sanchi. 1st century BCE.

In Jainism, it often marks the chest of the Tirthankara statue. It is one of the ashtamangala. It can look somewhat like a fleur-de-lis, an endless knot, a flower or diamond shaped symbol.

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Gotra

In Sanskrit, gotra means family, race or lineage that are patriarchal groups. The Brahmin subcastes are grouped under various gotras. Srivatsa is a commonly used surname in Hindu names. Lord Parasurama an avatar of Vishnu was born in this Gotra. Sri-Vatsa is a gotra derived from the existing Vatsa gotra. Srivatsa gotra has 5 pravara rishis (sages) Bhargava, Chyavana, Apnavana, Aurava and Jamadagni; in other words, people of the Srivatsa or Vatsa gotra claim to being descent from these sages.[3]

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References

  1. ^ Sarat Chandra Das (1902). Tibetan-English Dictionary with Sanskrit Synonyms. Calcutta, India: Bengal Secretariat Book Depot, p.69
  2. ^ Alex Wayman, "Chanting the Names of Manjusri" 1985, p. 94
  3. ^ "Internet Archive Wayback Machine". Web.archive.org. 2009-10-27. Retrieved 2012-03-10. 

SINGARAJU,Lakkapragada

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Last modified on 15 April 2013, at 16:39