A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism Klaus K Klostermaie

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books on Tantric Hinduism, until then
all but unknown in the West. Among
his best-known works are Introduction
to Tantra Ÿästra, Principles of Tantra,
Maha-nirväæa-tantra, Wave of Bliss,
Ÿakti and Ÿakta and The World as Power.
word
From early on Hindus were conscious of
the importance of the word and its
power; the entire Veda is testimony to
this in a general way and some of its süktas
(hymns), especially the Väksükta,
explicitly affirm the creative power of the
word through which everything has been
made and everything is sustained. The
power of the brahmins rested entirely on
the power of the word, whose custodians
they were. The continued interest of
Hindus in language and grammar is evidenced
by a long tradition in these disciplines
and works of lasting value such as
PÄŒINÏ’s Astädhyayï and BHARTØHARI’s
Väkyapadïya. (See also LANGUAGE;
ŸABDA.)
world egg (bramäæõa)
The tradition that the universe evolved
out of a primordial egg is found in many
different versions. The Vedas speak of a
world egg floating on the primordial
ocean and giving birth to various creatures.
The first being to come forth from
the world egg was Viÿvakarma, the
Vedic creator god. In Manu’s account
of creation the desire of Svayambhü
Bhagavän appeared as a golden egg
shining with the brilliance of a thousand
suns. From it issued BRAHMÄ, the creator
god. Remaining in the shape of an
egg for a full year, he divided himself
through the power of meditation into
two halves out of which were fashioned
heaven and earth. Puräæic cosmography
describes the universe as being contained
within the shell of the world egg
(aæõakaflaha), whose diameter is calculated
at 500 million yojanas.
worship
The various Sanskrit terms translated
by ‘worship’, such as yajña, püjä,
upäsana, and others, indicate varieties
of worship that evolved throughout the
ages. In Vedic times SACRIFICE (yajña)
was the most comprehensive term,
encompassing public and domestic rituals,
from the offering of hundreds of
cattle to the burning of a stick of firewood.
When theistic religions developed,
PÜJÄ, the offering of flowers, fruit
and incense in a formal or informal setting,
became the predominant form of
worship. Upäsana is the most generic
expression, encompassing both outwardly
visible ritual worship as well as
interior acts of devotion, meditation
and self-surrender. Usually Hindus distinguish
between acts of worship that
are mandatory (nitya) and those that
are optional (naimittika). Overall, worship
in some form or other is typical for
Hinduism and the great variety of forms
as well as the lavishness of execution
especially in connection with temple
festivals is quite unique.