Abhisara, Abhīsārā, Abhīsāra: 20 definitions
Introduction:
Abhisara means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Buddhism, Pali, the history of ancient India, Marathi, Jainism, Prakrit, Hindi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
Alternative spellings of this word include Abhisar.
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: JatLand: List of Mahabharata people and placesAbhīsāra (अभीसार) is a name mentioned in the Mahābhārata (cf. VI.10.52, VIII.51.18) and represents one of the many proper names used for people and places. Note: The Mahābhārata (mentioning Abhīsāra) is a Sanskrit epic poem consisting of 100,000 ślokas (metrical verses) and is over 2000 years old.
The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.
Vaishnavism (Vaishava dharma)
Source: Pure Bhakti: Bhajana-rahasya - 2nd EditionAbhisāra (अभिसार) refers to:—Rendezvous or tryst with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. (cf. Glossary page from Bhajana-Rahasya).
Vaishnava (वैष्णव, vaiṣṇava) or vaishnavism (vaiṣṇavism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshipping Vishnu as the supreme Lord. Similar to the Shaktism and Shaivism traditions, Vaishnavism also developed as an individual movement, famous for its exposition of the dashavatara (‘ten avatars of Vishnu’).
Jyotisha (astronomy and astrology)
Source: Wisdom Library: Brihat Samhita by VarahamihiraAbhisāra (अभिसार) refers to a country belonging to “Aiśānī (north-eastern division)” classified under the constellations of Revatī, Aśvinī and Bharaṇī, according to the system of Kūrmavibhāga, according to the Bṛhatsaṃhitā (chapter 14), an encyclopedic Sanskrit work written by Varāhamihira mainly focusing on the science of ancient Indian astronomy astronomy (Jyotiṣa).—Accordingly, “The countries of the Earth beginning from the centre of Bhāratavarṣa and going round the east, south-east, south, etc., are divided into 9 divisions corresponding to the 27 lunar asterisms at the rate of 3 for each division and beginning from Kṛttikā. The constellations of Revatī, Aśvinī and Bharaṇī represent the north-eastern consisting of [i.e., Abhisāra] [...]”.
Jyotisha (ज्योतिष, jyotiṣa or jyotish) refers to ‘astronomy’ or “Vedic astrology” and represents the fifth of the six Vedangas (additional sciences to be studied along with the Vedas). Jyotisha concerns itself with the study and prediction of the movements of celestial bodies, in order to calculate the auspicious time for rituals and ceremonies.
India history and geography
Source: archive.org: The Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Mediaeval IndiaAbhīsārā.—Same as Abhisāri (Padma-purāṇa, Ādikhhaṇḍa, ch. 6).
Source: archive.org: Nilamata Purana: a cultural and literary study (history)Abhisāra (अभिसार) is the name of a tribe mentioned as inhabiting the region around ancient Kaśmīra (Kashmir valley) according to the Nīlamatapurāṇa.—The Abhisāras were the famous people who helped the Assakenoi in offering resistance to Alexander but later on made alliance with Alexander who confirmed their ruler under the title of Satrap. The expression Dārvābhisāra occurs mostly as the name of one continuous territory. According to Stein, it lay between the river Vitastā and Gandrabhāgā and included the provinces of Jammu, Punch etc.
The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.
Languages of India and abroad
Pali-English dictionary
Source: Sutta: The Pali Text Society's Pali-English DictionaryAbhisara, (fr. abhi + sarati, of sṛ to go) retinue J.V, 373. (Page 72)
Pali is the language of the Tipiṭaka, which is the sacred canon of Theravāda Buddhism and contains much of the Buddha’s speech. Closeley related to Sanskrit, both languages are used interchangeably between religions.
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionaryabhisāra (अभिसार).—m abhisāraṇa n S Spilling or shedding; dispersing, scattering, spreading far and wide.
Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryAbhisara (अभिसर).—&c. See under अभिसृ, अभिसृज् (abhisṛ, abhisṛj) &c.
See also (synonyms): abhisarga, abhisarjana.
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Abhisara (अभिसर).—
1) A follower, an attendant; Daśakumāracarita 73,127.
2) A companion. मन्मथाभिसरा तदागारमभिसराभि (manmathābhisarā tadāgāramabhisarābhi) Daśakumāracarita 15; शिवराजस्याभिसराः प्रसरन्ति पुरः पुरः (śivarājasyābhisarāḥ prasaranti puraḥ puraḥ) Śivabhārata 24.39.
3) Name of a people.
Derivable forms: abhisaraḥ (अभिसरः).
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Abhisāra (अभिसार).—
1) Going to meet (as a lover), appointment, assignation; रतिसुखसारे गतमभिसारे मदनमनोहरवेशम् (ratisukhasāre gatamabhisāre madanamanoharaveśam) Gītagovinda 5.
2) The place where lovers meet by appointment, rendezvous; त्वरितमुपैति न कथमभिसारम् (tvaritamupaiti na kathamabhisāram) Gītagovinda 6.
3) An attack, assault; श्वोऽभिसारः पुरस्य नः (śvo'bhisāraḥ purasya naḥ) Rām.
4) War, battle.
5) A follower, companion.
6) Might, power.
7) An instrument, means; अभिसारेण सर्वैण तत्र युद्धमवर्तत (abhisāreṇa sarvaiṇa tatra yuddhamavartata) Mahābhārata (Bombay) 3.15.4.
8) A purificatory rite.
9) (°rāḥ pl.) Name of a people.
-rī Name of a town.
Derivable forms: abhisāraḥ (अभिसारः).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryAbhisāra (अभिसार).—m. (nowhere recorded; corresponds to Pali abhihāra, also [Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit], see s.v., which in Pali is [compound] with bhatta-, compare bhaktābhisāra below; abhi-harati has a meaning appropriate to this in Sanskrit, and abhi-sarati does not; only in Divyāvadāna, MPS, and Mūla-Sarvāstivāda-Vinaya; var. twice atisāra), gift, present, honorarium: Divyāvadāna 6.18, 20 (here given to a bringer of good tidings); usually of food offered to the Buddha and or his monks, Divyāvadāna 187.23, and almost always in the [compound] bhaktābhi° offering of food, MPS 6.8; Divyāvadāna 43.22 (mss. °āti°); 65.2; 81.16; 85.16; 97.3 (ed. °saras); 177.26 (mss. °āti°); 183.21; 285.2—3; 286.26; of a physician's fee, Mūla-Sarvāstivāda-Vinaya i.218.10 f.; ii.25.20.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryAbhisara (अभिसर).—m.
(-raḥ) A companion, a follower. E. abhi after or near, and sara who goes; from sṛ to go, and ac aff.
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Abhisāra (अभिसार).—m.
(-raḥ) 1. Strength. 2. War, battle. 3. A companion, a follower. 4. The instrument or agent. 5. An assignation, an appointment. E. abhi before sṛ to go, affix ghañ.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English DictionaryAbhisara (अभिसर).—i. e. abhi-sṛ + a, m. Companion, [Daśakumāracarita] in
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Abhisāra (अभिसार).—i. e. abhi-sṛ + a, m. 1. A lover’s appointment, a rendezvous. 2. An attack, [Rāmāyaṇa] 6, 9, 19. 3. plur. The name of a people.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryAbhisāra (अभिसार).—[masculine] approach, attack; love-visit, appointment.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Abhisara (अभिसर):—[=abhi-sara] a etc. See abhi-√sṛ.
2) Abhisāra (अभिसार):—[=abhi-sāra] a etc. See abhi-√sṛ.
3) Abhisara (अभिसर):—[=abhi-sara] [from abhi-sṛ] b m. (ifc. f(ā). ) a companion, [Daśakumāra-carita]
4) Abhisāra (अभिसार):—[=abhi-sāra] [from abhi-sṛ] b m. attack, assault, [Rāmāyaṇa]
5) [v.s. ...] meeting, rendezvous (of lovers), [Sāhitya-darpaṇa; Gīta-govinda] etc.
6) [v.s. ...] ‘pay for coming’, messenger’s pay, [Buddhist literature]
7) [v.s. ...] companion, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
8) [v.s. ...] a purificatory rite, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
9) [v.s. ...] (eṇa) [instrumental case] (with sarveṇa) = sarvābhisāreṇa q.v., [Mahābhārata iii, 639] (cf. lohābhisāra and abhīsāra)
10) [v.s. ...] Name of a people, [Mahābhārata] etc.
11) Abhīsāra (अभीसार):—[=abhī-sāra] [from abhi-sṛ] a m. assault, [Mahābhārata vii, 8785.]
12) [=abhī-sāra] b See abhi-√sṛ
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Goldstücker Sanskrit-English DictionaryAbhisara (अभिसर):—[tatpurusha compound] 1. m. f. n.
(-raḥ-rā-ram) A companion, a follower; e. g. Daśakumārach.: ahaṃ…avocam . sakhe samāpatitamevāṅganāthābhisaraṃ rājamaṇḍalaṃ sugūḍhameva saṃbhūya pauravṛddhaistadupāvartaya. 2. m. pl. (rāḥ) The name of a people or country; (thus in Weber's Catal. of the Berlin Mss.; but the name is probably a misreading of abhisāra). E. sṛ with abhi, kṛt aff. ap (cf. Pāṇ. Iii. 3. 57; acc. to Sāy. on Ṛgv. I. 3. 8., however, sara belongs to the pacādi—Pāṇ. Iv. 1. 134.—, when the aff. would be ac which is given also of abhisara by the comment. of the Amarak. and the Śabdamuktāmah.; in either case, however, the fem. would be in ṭāp and the accent the adātta on the last syllable; comp. Pāṇ. Vi. 2. 144.).
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Abhisāra (अभिसार):—[tatpurusha compound] 1. m.
(-raḥ) 1) An assignation, a lover’s appointment; e. g. Gītagov.: ratasukhasāre gatamabhisāre madanamanoharaveśam . na kuru nitambini gamanavilambamanusara taṃ hṛdayeśam; or in the following verse (which exemplifies an alliteration called mahācakra or kulālacakra q. v.): rādhā śrutālivacanā virasābhisārā rāsābhisārasamaye vivṛtāpakārā . rākā patāvṛtaparāpyapayātamārā rāmātayā paramadurgalitāśrudhārā; or Vivādachint.: striyaṃ puruṣaṃ vābhisāraṃ prati saṃcārayati yaśca tayorabhisārasthānaṃ dadāti tau pāradārikavaddaṇḍyau.
2) An army.
3) An attack; e. g. Rāmāy.: pravṛttistairihākhyātā śvobhisāraḥ purasya naḥ (Dharaṇik.: = yuddha; battle, war).
4) A follower.
5) A purificatory ceremony; (viz. lustration of arms). [In the explanation of the Dharaṇik.: abhisāro bale yuddhe sahāye sādhanepi ca, the meaning bala and sādhana are clearly founded on the compound words sarvābhisāra and lohābhisāra, the former meaning the making a whole army ready for attack or battle, and the latter a ceremony observed by princes before opening a campaign; the meaning bala in the Dharaṇik. should therefore not be rendered ‘strength’, not the meaning sādhana ‘instrument’.]
6) A fish; (according to the Nighaṇtaprakāśa). 2. m. pl.
(-rāḥ) The name of a country, in the southwest of Kashmir, the modern Hazār; usually mentioned together with the Dārva (e. g. Bhīṣmap. Mahābh.: dārvābhisārā dāradāḥ puṇḍrāścaiva sahasraśaḥ; or Rājatar.: śīte dārvābhisārādau ṣaṇmāsānpārthivovasat); the Abisares of Arrian; (comp. Wilson's Arr. Antiq. p. 190; Troyer's Rājatar. 11. cc. s. v.; Lassen's Ind. Alterth. Ii. pp. 138. 144. 146. 154 ff. 235. 467. 669. 887. &c.). 3. f.
(-rī) The name of a town; probably the capital of the country Abhisāra; Sabhāp. Mahābh.: abhisārīṃ tato ramyāṃ vijigye kurunandanaḥ. E. sṛ with abhi, kṛt aff. ghañ; the fem. in ī is irregular. Comp. also the two following articles.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Abhisara (अभिसर):—[abhi-sara] (raḥ) 1. m. A companion.
2) Abhisāra (अभिसार):—[abhi-sāra] (raḥ) 1. m. Strength; war; assignation; agent; follower.
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
Hindi dictionary
Source: DDSA: A practical Hindi-English dictionaryAbhisāra (अभिसार) [Also spelled abhisar]:—(nm) meeting; rendezvous (of lovers).
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Prakrit-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: Paia-sadda-mahannavo; a comprehensive Prakrit Hindi dictionaryAbhisara (अभिसर) in the Prakrit language is related to the Sanskrit word: Abhisṛ.
Prakrit is an ancient language closely associated with both Pali and Sanskrit. Jain literature is often composed in this language or sub-dialects, such as the Agamas and their commentaries which are written in Ardhamagadhi and Maharashtri Prakrit. The earliest extant texts can be dated to as early as the 4th century BCE although core portions might be older.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusAbhisāra (ಅಭಿಸಾರ):—
1) [noun] a going to meet a lover at a prefixed place and at prefixed time.
2) [noun] any purification process.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Starts with: Abhisarabh, Abhisaradyashtarasa, Abhisaram, Abhisaran, Abhisarana, Abhisaranavesha, Abhisarasthana, Abhisarat.
Ends with: Bhaktabhisara, Lohabhisara, Pranabhisara, Rambhabhisara, Sabhisara, Sarvabhisara, Sarvvabhisara.
Full-text: Abhisari, Abhisarasthana, Lohabhisara, Darva, Abhisaram, Abhishri, Anabhisarana, Abhisarga, Abhisar, Abhisarjana, Sarju, Sarvabhisara, Abhihara, Abhisaryamana, Abhisarana, Shrutakarma, Citrasena.
Relevant text
Search found 12 books and stories containing Abhisara, Abhīsārā, Abhisāra, Abhīsāra, Abhi-sara, Abhi-sāra, Abhī-sāra; (plurals include: Abhisaras, Abhīsārās, Abhisāras, Abhīsāras, saras, sāras). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Dasarupaka (critical study) (by Anuru Ranjan Mishra)
Part 2b - Justification of the title (Ubhayābhisārikā) [ubhaya-abhisārikā] < [Chapter 2 - Bhāṇa (critical study)]
List of Mahabharata tribes (by Laxman Burdak)
Bhajana-Rahasya (by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura Mahasaya)
Text 23 < [Chapter 7 - Saptama-yāma-sādhana (Pradoṣa-kālīya-bhajana–vipralambha-prema)]
Text 19 < [Chapter 8 - Aṣṭama-yāma-sādhana (Rātri-līlā–prema-bhajana sambhoga)]
Text 25 < [Chapter 8 - Aṣṭama-yāma-sādhana (Rātri-līlā–prema-bhajana sambhoga)]
Puranic encyclopaedia (by Vettam Mani)
List of Mahabharata people and places (by Laxman Burdak)
Brihat Samhita (by N. Chidambaram Iyer)