Manasa in the context of "Mangal-Kāvya"

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⭐ Core Definition: Manasa

Manasa (Sanskrit: मनसा, romanizedManasā) is a Hindu goddess of snakes. She is worshipped mainly in Bihar, Odisha, Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Assam and other parts of northeastern India, chiefly for the prevention and cure of snakebite, and also for fertility and prosperity. In Hindu texts, Manasa is the daughter of sage Kashyapa, sister of Vasuki—king of Nāgas (serpents)—and wife of sage Jaratkaru. She is the mother of the sage Astika.

In regional tradition, her stories emphasise her bad temper and unhappiness, due to rejection by her father, Shiva, and her husband (Jaratkaru), and the hate of her stepmother Chandi (Shiva's wife, identified with Parvati in this context). Manasa is depicted as kind to her devotees, but harsh toward people who refuse to worship her. Denied full godhood due to her mixed parentage, Manasa's aim was to fully establish her authority as a goddess, and to acquire steadfast human devotees.

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👉 Manasa in the context of Mangal-Kāvya

Mangal-Kāvya (Bengali: মঙ্গলকাব্য; lit. "Poems of Benediction") is a group of Bengali religious texts, composed more or less between 13th and 18th centuries, notably consisting of narratives of indigenous deities of rural Bengal in the social scenario of the Middle Ages. The Mangal-Kāvyas usually give prominence to a particular deity amalgamated with a Vedic or Hindu mythological god and the narratives are usually written in the form of verses.

Manasā Mangal, Chandī Mangal and Dharma Mangal, the three major genus of Mangal-Kāvya tradition include the portrayal of the magnitude of Manasā, Chandī and Dharmathakur respectively. They are considered the greatest among all the native divinities in Bengal. But restraining the accounts of other deities, there are also minor Mangal-Kāvyas known as Shivāyana, Kālikā Mangal, Rāya Mangal, Shashtī Mangal, Sītalā Mangal and Kamalā Mangal etc. Each strain is composed by more than one poet or group of poets who are on the whole the worshipper of the god or goddess concerning their verses.

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Manasa in the context of Bhagalpur

Bhagalpur (official and romanised name), historically known as Champa Nagari, is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges river. It is the third largest city of Bihar by population and also serves the headquarters of Bhagalpur district, Bhagalpur division, and Eastern Range. It is known as the Silk City and also listed for development under the Smart Cities Mission by Government of India.It is the only district in Bihar after capital city Patna where three major higher educational institutions IIIT Bhagalpur, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, TMBU, and Agriculture University (BAU) are located and also Vikramshila Central University is under construction next to the ruins of the medieval Vikramshila Mahavihara.Bhagalpur Railway Station serves the city. The river around the city is home to the Gangetic dolphin, the national aquatic animal of India, and the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary is established near the town. The city holds the largest Manasa Puja and one of the largest processions in Kali Puja, an intangible cultural heritage of the region.

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