Padma-puran [The ancient (history) of Padma]

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Syed Jamil Ahmed

Ed. by Niaz Zaman, Independent University Bangladesh
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 10.3.2: Pakistani and Bangladeshi Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Claire Gallien (Université Paul Valéry Montpellier 3), Sarker Hasan Al Zayed (Independent University Bangladesh), Pavan Kumar Malreddy (J W Goethe University of Frankfurt), Delphine Munos (Université de Liège), Muneeza Shamsie (Independent Scholar - Asia), Niaz Zaman (Independent University Bangladesh)

Domains

Theatre

Dates

Date of occurrence c.1400- c.1800

Places

Bangladesh (Location)
India (Involved)

Resources

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Quite a few indigenous performances in Bangladesh are based on a body of texts that seek to establish the worship of Manasā, also known as Padmā, the goddess of serpents. Commonly known as

Padmā-purāņ

[the ancient (history) of Padmā] or the

Manasā-mangal

[Wellbeing of Manasā], these texts in rhymed metrical verse were composed mostly from the 15th to the 18th centuries, and are classed under a genre of medieval literature known as the

mańgalakābya

[“auspicious poetry” or “poems of well-being”]. The

Padmā-purāņ

relate the struggle between Manasā and the merchant-prince Čhād Saodāgar, who refuses to acknowledge Manasā as a deity. The general scheme of the narrative may be divided into three ‘movements’. The first of these describes the birth of Manasā from…

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574 words

Citation: Ahmed, Syed Jamil. "Padma-puran [The ancient (history) of Padma]". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 August 2020 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19593, accessed 19 April 2024.]

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