Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s3.t12.7

v2.c10.s3.t12.7

**2. Padma Purana** has about 55,000 verses, and is as long as half of the *Mahabharata* and is the longest Puranic texts. It can be divided into five sections (or seven sections in some editions). (1) *The section of Creation* described the origin of its name, and says Brahma was born from a lotus and created the world, then describes the division of time, epochs and various periods under the Manu’s rule, genealogy of dynasties, and birth and responsibilities of castes; it also contains names and tales of some holy places, such as devas and asuras churning the Ocean of Milk, Vishnu killing the demon Madhu and turning into a boar to kill the demon Hiranyaksha. It also describes the stories of Shiva, Parvati and Skanda. At last, it mentions the worship of the Ganges and Sun, exhorts on women’s fidelity and the poor man’s lack of greed. (2) *The section of Earth*, firstly tells that Kashyapa’s two wives gave birth to a number of devas and asuras, and then explains, that through the mouth Kashyapa, came reality and non-reality of the world, soul, life and death as well as other philosophical concepts, and then explains the nature of dharma through Vasishtha. In the end it tells a variety of stories about observing and not observing dharma, including Yayati in the *Mahabharata*. (3) *The section of Heaven* begins with a description of Vishnu worship, and then proceeds to narrate the creation of the world, the formation of five elements, India’s major mountains, rivers, ancient kingdoms and four epochs, and responsibilities of four castes and four stages of human life and then teaches how to worship Vishnu to purify evils. (4) *The section of Netherworld* mainly offers quite a complete story about Rama but a considerable part is devoted to his father Dasharatha and his two sons; (5) *The final section* is in the form of a dialogue between Shiva and Parvati. It narrates the meaning and effect of Vishnu Worship and then describes the essential knowledge of religion, it goes on to talk about the God of Saturn and Dashratha, the 12 months and relevant rituals and ceremonies, and tells in details the benefits of listening to the *Bhagavad Gita* and eight avatars of Vishnu, and at last, it mentions Vishnu worship and four epochs.