Upapurana

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The Upapuranas (Sanskrit: Upapurāṇa) are a genre of Hindu religious texts consisting of many compilations differentiated from the Mahapuranas by styling them as secondary Puranas using the prefix Upa (secondary). Though only a few of these compilations originated earlier than most of the extant Mahapuranas, some of these texts are extensive and important.[1]

Definition and number[]

Similar to the case of the Mahapuranas, a claim has been made in a number of Puranas and Smritis that the Upapuranas are also eighteen in number and give evidence of their knowledge of the existence of a larger number of the Upapuranas. But, unlike the case of the Mahapuranas, the different lists of eighteen Upapuranas seldom agree with one another with regard to the names of these texts. Lists of eighteen Upapuranas occur in a number of texts, which include the Kurma Purana, the Garuda Purana, the Brihaddharma Purana, the , the , the , the , the Skanda Purana, the Padma Purana, the Brahmavaivarta Purana, the , Hemadri's Caturvargacintamani and Ballal Sena's Dana Sagara. In spite of the mention of a particular Upapurana in different lists under different names, these lists provide us the names of much more than eighteen texts as the Upapuranas. In fact, by examining all the Sanskrit texts which mention the names of these texts, the actual number of the Upapuranas are found to be near a hundred, including those mentioned in the different lists. But, it can not be denied that many of these texts have been lost without leaving any trace.[1]

Major Upapuranas[]

Sl. No. Upapurana name Chapters number Status Comments
01 Sanat-kumara Purāṇa Nineteen Published It is narrated by Sanatkumāra.
02 Nārasimha Purāṇa Sixty-eight Published It discusses the Lord's Nṛsimha incarnation.
03 Fifty-two Unpublished, manuscript available It is narrated by Nandi.
04 Twenty-four Published It talks about Śaivaism.
05 Samba Purana Eighty -four Manuscript unavailable It is narrated by Durvāsā.
06 Nāradīya Purāṇa Thirty-eight Published It is narrated by Nārada.
07 Kāpila Purāṇa Twenty-one Published It discusses Kapila's Samkhya Philosophy.
08 Manuscript unavailable It is narrated by Manu.
09 Manuscript unavailable It is narrated by Uśanā.
10 Mudgala Purana Manuscript unavailable It discusses lord Ganesh.
11 Twelve Published It is narrated by Varuṇa.
12 Kālikā Purāṇa Ninety-eight Published It discusses Pārvatī.
13 Twelve Unpublished, manuscript available It discusses Śiva's family.
14 Ganesha Purana Eighty-four Published It narrated life of lord Ganesha.
15 Saura Purāṇa Sixty-nine Published It is discusses Śiva's family.
16 Eighteen Published It is narrated by Vishwakarma.
17 Vishnudharmottara Purana Fiveteen Unublished, manuscript available It is narrated to Brahma
18 Forty Published Its narrated by Vaśiṣṭha.

Sthala, Kula, and Minor Upapuranas[]

Also called Aupapuranas or Atipuranas.

  1. Bṛhaddharma Purāṇa
  2. Gaṇeśa Purāṇa
  3. Maudgalya Purāṇa
  4. Kālkya Purāṇa
  5. Ṣivarahasya Purāṇa
  6. Kriyāyogasāra Purāṇa
  7. Yuga Purāṇa
  8. Lakṣmi Purāṇa
  9. Bhaviśyottara Purāṇa
  10. Devānga Purāṇa
  11. Śiva Purāṇa
  12. Nīlamata Purāṇa
  13. Malla Purāṇa
  14. Basava Purāṇa
  15. Periya Purāṇa

Sectarian divisions[]

Unlike the Mahapuranas, most of the Upapuranas have been able to preserve their older materials along with their distinctive sectarian character. All extant Upapuranas can be broadly divided into six groups according to the sectarian views found in these texts: Vaishnava, Shakta, Shaiva, Saura, Ganapatya and non-sectarian.[1]

Vaishnava Upapuranas[]

The most significant texts among the Vaishnava Upapuranas are the , the Vishnudharmottara Purana, the Narasimha Purana, the Brihannaradiya Purana and the .[1]

The extant Narasimha Purana comprises 68 chapters. The extant Vishnudharma Purana comprises 105 chapters.

Shakta Upapuranas[]

Among the Shakta Upapuranas, the most important extant texts are the Kalika Purana (or Sati Purana) , the and the (or Candika Purana).[1]

The extant Kalika Purana comprises 98 chapters.

Shaiva Upapuranas[]

The notable Shaiva Upapuranas are the Saura Purana, the , the , the Shivarahasya Purana, the , the , the , and the .[1]

The extant Saura Purana comprises 69 chapters. The extant Parashara Upapurana consists 18 chapters. The extant Shivadharma Purana comprises 24 chapters and deals only with the religious rites and duties of the worshippers of Shiva. It mentions itself as a shastra or dharmashastra.[2]

Saura Upapuranas[]

The only extant text which can be called an exclusive Saura Purana is the Samba Purana.[1] It comprises 84 chapters.

Ganapatya Upapuranas[]

Only two extant Upapuranas profess the views of the Ganapatya sect. These are the Mudgala Purana and the Ganesha Purana.[1]

Non-sectarian Upapuranas[]

The Upapuranic works, which do not profess any particular sectarian views are the Bhavishyottara Purana, the Kapila Purana and the Brihaddharma Purana.[1]

Scholarship[]

Dr. R. C. Hazra's magnum opus for which he earned a D. Litt was a detailed catalogue of contents, comparison of manuscripts of Upapuranas; popularly known as Studies in the Upapurāṇas. It was series of five volumes of equal length, a part of the Calcutta Sanskrit College Research Series (out of which only two were published by Munshiram Manoharlal, both generally edited by and Hazra's handwritten papers of the other three volumes are kept with the College); on a descriptive study of all more than hundred Upapuranas, which, even to this day, remains an important but ignored field of Sanskrit literature.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Hazra, R.C. (1962, reprint 2003). The Upapuranas in S. Radhakrishnan (ed.) The Cultural Heritage of India, Vol.II, Calcutta:The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, ISBN 81-85843-03-1, pp.271-286
  2. ^ Rocher, Ludo (1986). "The Purāṇas". In Jan Gonda (ed.). A History of Indian Literature: Epics and Sanskrit religious literature, Fasc.3. Vol. 2. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 228. ISBN 3-447-02522-0.
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