The Garuda Purana
S. V. Subrahmanyam
9781465581099
100 pages
Library of Alexandria
Overview
This Garu?a Pura?a Sarodhhara (Extracted essence of the Garu?a Pura?a) was compiled or written by one Navanidhirama, son of Sri Hari Naraya?a, who lived in the city of Jhunjhu?u, which was ruled by a King Sri Sukhalalaji. It was done for the helping of those who cannot understand the difficult earlier works; but itself is not easy to understand, and required much labour, the author informs us. It is entirely originally written, he says, and comprises the results of very deep study of the sacred books, and is the extracted essence of them on the subjects with which it deals. It is used all over India at funeral ceremonies, but some are afraid to read it on other occasions, thinking it inauspicious. CHAPTERS I to VII deal with Hells. CHAPTERS VII to XIII deal with Ceremonies for the dead. CHAPTER XIV deals with Heaven. CHAPTERS XV & XVI deal with Yoga and liberation. The neo-theosophists, among the great good they have done to the world, have revived the idea that Hell is a living reality, and not a superstitious fiction, created by a designing priestcraft, to keep Humanity on its good behavior. Among the educated, with the vanishing of the belief in an after-life, has vanished also the belief in Hell. But owing to the labors of the Psychical Research Society and similar other bodies, there are few educated persons now, who deny the existence of the afterlife, as they used to do some thirty years back. But though the belief in after-life has revived, yet the cognate belief in Heaven and Hell is still very vague. Our Hindu Puranas, however, among the great mass of rubbish that they contain, have always been very clear on this question of Heaven and Hell. Serious writers of law books also like Yajñavalkya and Vi??u have described as-seriously the existences of various Hells, as they have done the various joys of Heaven. No doubt, the subject of Hell is not a very savoury one, and nervous persons have always fought shy of studying this unpleasant department of existence. But, pleasant or unpleasant, the science does not take into account the human feelings. No one is forced to study the subject, unless he feels strong enough to do so, as no one is bound to study Medicine, unless he is prepared to face the scenes of the dissecting room.
