Talk:Nāga

Cleanup

Cleanup needing to be done:

1. Fix the indexing sort key, which should have been done by Guanaco when the article was moved.
2. Fix header capitalization.

Gene Nygaard 20:58, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

Done. —Guanaco 22:52, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

Questions

Question: (1 December 2006) Naga is the prevailing convention for the orthography, so why is Na-ga now used in this article? b9 hummingbird hovering (user).

Question: "They are especially popular in southern India where some believe that they brought fertility to their venerators". Who is "venerators"? Does it mean, that it brought fertility to their respectful ones? -by User talk:Slidersv

Contention

Naga is the Sanskrit term that these beings/entities are commonly known as in English...but klu (as evident in the [[Himalayan}} tradition and even the Rainbow Serpent of indigenous Australians show that these beings/entities are not the cultural property of the Hindu. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by B9 hummingbird hovering (talk • contribs) 03:57, 10 January 2007 (UTC).

I'm not exactly sure what you're saying, but no, not all legendary snake-like beings are the cultural property of the Hindu, but not all legendary snake-like beings are naga, either. You might as well say that Garuda isn't a Hindu creature, since there are eagle-man kachinas in the North American southwest. Kotengu 小天狗 05:56, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

Is this article worth being on Wikipedia?

theres nothing helpful on this article so why shouldn't they either 1) edit the article or 2) merge it with naga or 3) delete it altogther!!!! 211.28.178.61 08:33, 8 March 2007 (UTC)

Are you certain you are talking about the right article? This is Nāga, Naga is a disambiguation page. --Stephan Schulz 10:49, 8 March 2007 (UTC)

This is an important article that requires more work. While history comes from recorded events, many social practices, beliefs and traditional festivals come from centuries-old folktales passed through word of mouth through generations. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.20.143.190 (talk) 09:36, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

Sarpa/Naga

Question: Why is there no clear differentation between Sarpa and Naga... Isnt Sarpa a serpent/snake and a Naga a Cobras... Arent these 2 distinct families within these reptiles, and more specifically in the Hindu scriptures ??? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 125.99.32.83 (talk • contribs)

I'm not familiar with the term 'sarpa', but I do know that naga is used very broadly and inconsistently in Buddhist scriptures- sometimes referring to cobras, sometimes to snakes in general, sometimes to mythical beings- I wouldn't be surprised if a distinction between families of naga was drawn within certain scriptures, but I also wouldn't be surprised to see that distinction ignored or omitted elsewhere. If you had a particular source where this distinction was mentioned, that would be very helpful. --Clay Collier 20:10, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

PS- please add new messages to the bottom of the talk page. --Clay Collier 20:10, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

In Sanskrit, a नागः (nāgaḥ) is a cobra, a specific type of snake (hooded snake). A synonym for nāgaḥ is फणिन् (phaṇin). There are several words for "snake" in general, and one of the very commonly-used ones is सर्पः (sarpa). Sometimes the word nāgaḥ is also used generically to mean "snake". There are lots of snakes in India, so a vocabulary has grown up around them to describe different types. For the specific terminology for cobra see p. 432, Vaman Shivram Apte, The Student's English-Sanskrit Dictionary (Motilal Banarsidass: 2002 reprint edition) ISBN 81-208-0299-3. The cobra is a particularly impressive type of snake, and its hooded form is often noted in art. The mythological beings known as Nāgas are often shown with hooded depictions, pointing to the specific idea of cobras. Other examples can be found in Sanskrit if this is desired. Buddhipriya 20:49, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

Merge Phaya Naga

It has been proposed that Phaya Naga be merged with Nāga. I', greatly in favor of a merger, even to include Naga fireballs, as it would help greatly in editing Rocket Festival and Funan.Lee 16:34, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Support seems to be the proper thing to do. --Ouro (blah blah) 17:57, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

There is absolutely no need to merge "Phaya Naga" with "Naga" IMHO. The Phaya Naga is a derivation of the original Indian myth. It can be mentioned ion Naga and then there should be the corresponding link. Signed: Shiva 122.162.165.45 (talk) 13:11, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

Objection to unsourced content

User:B9 hummingbird hovering persists in adding unsourced content to multiple articles, and also is now removing fact tags that I have placed on unsourced material. According to WP:V "Material that is challenged or likely to be challenged, and all quotations, must be attributed to a reliable, published source." The continued restoration of unsourced material that has been objected to needs to be noted. Buddhipriya 07:26, 1 August 2007 (UTC)

Nagini

There's no reason for Nagini to be on here, is there? -masa ♫ 04:18, 21 January 2008 (UTC)

Uses in fiction

I'll be cleaning the "In Fiction" segment up. As there are many references to nāgas in modern literature and popular culture, I'm not sure if I ought to remove the entire thing. However, please see Wikipedia's guideline to trivia sections for more information. Murphy2010 (talk) 22:04, 25 November 2008 (UTC) (I must remember to sign my posts...)

Nagas have appeared in a few Square Enix RPG titles. Variations appear as enemies in the video game Final Fantasy IV. A female version known as Naga-ette appears in Chrono Trigger. Also it is noteworthy that these Naga-ette's appear as the priests who are in charge of the church you visit upon first travelling back in time, in human form, shifting their shape into that of serpents with human torsos and heads. Several varieties of Naga are Dungeons & Dragons monsters, resembling large serpents with humanlike heads. Nagas appear in the video game Tomb Raider Underworld in the Hindu Underworld. In the Warcraft universe, nagas are a form of mutated elves (highborne night elves). Males have low intelligence and resemble the naga of legend. Females, while still having a serpent-like body, retain most of their elven features. Females are the leaders of naga clans, and are proficient spellcasters. Nagas also appear in the online game Guild Wars. Nagini is the name of Voldemort's pet snake in the Harry Potter series. Nagas also appear in various forms in the fictional world of Xanth, by Piers Anthony. They are part of a human/animal hybrid network, called "crossbreeds."They can shapeshift beetween a human,a half-serpent half-human and a serpent guise. Naga, Nagi, and Nagini make appearances in this series. There is even a Nagini main character. See also: Piers Anthony; Xanth[citation needed][12] In the animated series Gargoyles, the Guatemalan Gargoyle, Zafiro, resembles a Naga.[citation needed] In the Slayers manga and anime series, Naga the Serpent is named after the mythological Naga. Nagas are featured in numerous installments of the Shin Megami Tensei series as an enemy as well as an acquirable ally. Bleu, a sorceress and one of the playable characters in the Breath of Fire RPG series, is a humanoid creature with a long, blue-green serpent tail, resembling a Naga. Naga appear in the Heroes of Might and Magic 3 game for the PC. They come in two flavors, regular and upgraded, referred to as "Queens". They can be recruited in Tower cities and attack with curved swords. In the debut episode of the live-action American TV series "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" (1995-99), the She-Demon (actress Nicky Mealings) is a lamia who seduces foolish men with her beauty, and then sacrifices their souls to the goddess Hera. She would do this by standing immobile out in the open, but she would wear a long white skirt to hide her tail; this would show only the top human-half of her body. Then, when the men approached her and stood on the extra-long skirt, she would carefully raise her tail behind them and sting them with the glowing tip of her tail. Hercules- still grieving over the recent loss of his family by the cruel powers and motivations of Hera- eventually is convinced to stop the She-Demon, and he defeats her in her cavern home in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse- he tricks her into accidentally stinging herself, which turns her into a stone statue, and frees all of her victims. The She-Demon only appears physically in this one episode, but is mentioned briefly in a later season of the series. The She-Demon had a thin Caucasian upper body, with long brunette hair down her back. Her scaly tail- mostly created by using three-dimensional photo-realistic CGI- was light green, and portrayed as being over 50ft [assumed] in length. Only the last few feet of her tail would glow yellow-gold when she stung someone; otherwise its color remained the same as the rest. When she was enraged or attacking, she would screech loudly like a bird. In the 2005 movie The Snake King, there is a giant seven-headed snake named Naga. In the Yu-gi-oh TCG,the 3 cards of Vennominaga the Deity of Poisonous Snakes Vennominon the King of Poisonous Snakes and Evil Dragon Ananta are based on the Naga mythology. In the Namco's Tales of Symphonia they also appear as enemies that you battle on the field.

The above is a copy of what was removed, sans formatting [notice the lack of citations]. Murphy2010 (talk) 22:06, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

Made a slight tweak to the section about the Magic The Gathering use. It was incorrectly using the term "block". In MtG, a block is a group of sets that are considered to be part of a larger whole. So the block was Tarkir block (or Khans of Tarkir block, as the blocks are usually named for their first set), the sets were Khans of Tarkir, Fate Reforged and Dragons of Tarkir, but it was referring to Fate Reforged Block and Dragons of Tarkir block.86.14.166.5 (talk) 21:24, 16 January 2016 (UTC)

Naming Nagpur here.

Nagpur: The name of the Indian city Nagpur is derived from Nāgapuram, literally, "city of nāgas".
This statement is false. Nagpur is named after a small river called Nagnadi flowing through it. This river originates from Ambazari lake and drains into Kanhan river, which drains into Wainganga and which drains into Godavari. Naming of Nagpur has nothing to do with Naga people or if they ever lived here(which I am sure they did not).I would deleting this entry tomorrow.
If you have any argument speak now or forever hold your silence. gppande «talk» 14:37, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

'''Naga as Symbol of KUNDALINI'''

The kundalini energy or serpent energy that ascends through the body and chakras on the way to enlightenment is usually represented by the image of the snake. Perhaps this is part of the symbology of the Naga or perhaps it carries a diffrent meaning in some cases. Images of the Buddha covered by the King Cobra are often said to depict Buddhas enlightenment as the serpent energy enters his Crown chakra and expands his consciousness GDL April 25th 2010

Too many images?

There are a lot of beautiful images including with this article, but it feels cluttered in places. Are they all necessary? I'm sure there are thousands of wonderful Nāga-related pictures available, but we should just chose the best ones to use in key places throughout the article. Thoughts? -Mikhailovich (talk) 16:11, 25 June 2011 (UTC)

Burmese Nagas

I feel that we need to add Burmese belief in Naga into the page. The page has covered loads for Southeast Asia. 122.248.106.89 (talk) 12:42, 31 October 2013 (UTC)

Norbu quote

I checked the Norbu book "The crystal and the way of light", but could not find the statement made in Wikipedia. I could only find the following statements:

Page 81: About a Thanka showing Yeshe Tsogyal entrusting terma to three dakinis and a Naga: "A being of the Naga class rises from his watery domain to receive treasures into his safe keeping."

Page 188: "The dakinis have thus come to be in charge of many teachings which have been entrusted to their care either by Padmasambhava himself, or by his consort Yeshe Tsogyal. dakinis, and the class of beings associated with watery places known as 'Nagas', guard a terma, or 'hidden treasure', until the time is ripe for its rediscovery and revelation by a terton."

No reference to the Prajnaparamita or Nagarjuna. I guess the citation should be replaced by a work actually mentioning the Prajnaparamita, or the statement has to be generalized to terma scriptures. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kathedra87 (talk • contribs) 07:28, 11 August 2014 (UTC)

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Dhammapada XXIII, The Elephant (nāgavaggo)

This article omits any reference to use of nāga in chapter XXIII of the Pāḷi version of the Dhammapada. The title of the chapter is commonly translated as "The Elephant", as in the translations by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Narada Thera. Neither nāga nor its root appear in every verse, however. For example these are in neither the 2nd, 7th, or 8th verses, yet Radhakrishnan gave "elephant" for all three. Narada Thera gave "animal" for the 2nd and "elephant" for 7 and 8.

In the first verse, however, the nāga endures arrows in battle, and this seems to be a clear reference to an elephant. Of course, part of an elephant has a superficial similarity to a snake, so perhaps there is more to the use of nāga in XXIII than commonly supposed by translators who render it only as elephant.

Other recensions of the Dhammapada have the same or similar word. See "A Comparative Edition of the Dhammapada with parallels from Sanskritised Prakrit" by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu at http://ancient-buddhist-texts.net/Buddhist-Texts/C3-Comparative-Dhammapada/index.htm

66.99.3.234 (talk) 17:22, 11 January 2016 (UTC)

Very likely a metaphor for mutilated people

Some attempt should be made at establishing the reality base of myths and mythical characters. Nagas do seem to refer to some mutilation practice, or maybe birth defects prevalent in the population at some time. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.30.56.204 (talk) 17:13, 4 February 2017 (UTC)

Are there any discussions from WP:reliable sources that suggest this? Otherwise, this would be delving into the realm of WP:original research, which is prohibited on Wikipedia.--Mr Fink (talk) 21:25, 4 February 2017 (UTC)

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Spelling

Throughout the article, Nāga and Naga are used, apparently interchangeably. Is there a difference in meaning or pronunciation. The latter spelling might be pronounced nah∙gah where the former is nay∙gah (please forgive the nonstandard phonetic spelling). Is this so, is there any difference in meaning, or is typography the only difference?Joe Avins (talk) 15:18, 4 September 2019 (UTC)

@Jqavins: Nāga is the correct spelling following Indic languages. Naga is just lazy writing, leaving out the diacritics. Sometimes done not to alienate the audience, especially in popular works. But using diacritics is more appropriate for an encyclopedia, since all secondary sources do so as well.--Farang Rak Tham (Talk) 08:38, 5 September 2019 (UTC)

Diacritics are not standard for the English translations of Sanskrit terms on Wikipedia. If they were, virtually every article on Hindu mythology, Buddhism, and other Indian concepts would use them. You would notice that they don't, and under these norms, they should be eschewed. This article should be renamed as Naga, without the diacritic. Chronikhiles (talk) 16:03, 5 August 2022 (UTC)

Proposed merge of Phaya Naga into Nāga

Phaya Naga was previously merged to Nāga, but was then reverted without discussion by an IP editor. There doesn't seem to be that much information specific to the Lao/Thai tradition that it can't be accommodated in the main article. Paul_012 (talk) 10:10, 25 May 2020 (UTC)

i agreed with it, and i don't think it's only thai or even lao traditional, even the name came from the Mon. Lalalulilalia (talk) 23:56, 24 March 2021 (UTC)

  Y Merger complete. Klbrain (talk) 10:42, 31 July 2021 (UTC)

Uncertain grammar

The following sentence seems off or at least awkward to me: "However, they often took beneficial protagonist role in Hindu mythology …" I feel like there should be an "a" between "took" and "beneficial", or "role" should be pluralized. Could anyone please tell me if I'm right about this?--Thylacine24 (talk) 22:43, 30 July 2020 (UTC)

Inappropriate American reference

The section referring to Mesoamerican creatures is inappropriate, as there is no relationship between Mesoamerican feathered serpents and naga. This is like putting "brontosaurus" on the "elephant" page because they're both large land herbivores. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.83.91.202 (talk) 16:48, 17 February 2021 (UTC)

This is a very specific question

Is "Nagaraja" really a title? It's literally just Sanskrit for "Naga King". IAmNitpicking (talk) 01:16, 22 August 2022 (UTC)

I would think so, it has its own article, complete with references.--Mr Fink (talk) 01:46, 22 August 2022 (UTC)