Ekakshara, Ekākṣarā, Eka-akshara: 17 definitions
Introduction:
Ekakshara means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Marathi. 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.
The Sanskrit term Ekākṣarā can be transliterated into English as Ekaksara or Ekakshara, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Ekākṣarā (एकाक्षरा, “one syllable”) is another name for Brāhmī, the form of Trikalā having a white body representing the energy of Brahmā, according to the Varāhapurāṇa chapter 91. Trikalā (त्रिकला) is the name of a Goddess born from the combined looks of Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara (Śiva).
The Varāhapurāṇa is categorised as a Mahāpurāṇa, and was originally composed of 24,000 metrical verses, possibly originating from before the 10th century. It is composed of two parts and Sūta is the main narrator.
Ekākṣarā (एकाक्षरा) refers to the name of a Lady mentioned in the Mahābhārata (cf. IX.45.24). Note: The Mahābhārata (mentioning Ekākṣarā) 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.
Vyakarana (Sanskrit grammar)
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—Consisting of one single syllable ; e.g. स्व, भू, वाच् (sva, bhū, vāc) etc. cf. एकाक्षरा-त्कृते जातेः सप्तम्यां च न तौ स्मृतौ (ekākṣarā-tkṛte jāteḥ saptamyāṃ ca na tau smṛtau) M.Bh. on P.V.2.115, as also on VI.1.168, VI.4.161.
Vyakarana (व्याकरण, vyākaraṇa) refers to Sanskrit grammar and represents one of the six additional sciences (vedanga) to be studied along with the Vedas. Vyakarana concerns itself with the rules of Sanskrit grammar and linguistic analysis in order to establish the correct context of words and sentences.
Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)
Ekākṣarā (एकाक्षरा) refers to “one-syllabled”, according to the Manthānabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjikā.—Accordingly, “(Kubjikā’s) iconic form is threefold (according to whether it is) in (the transmission) of the Child, Middle One or the Aged. O Śaṃkara, you are (my) devotee, I will tell you. The one syllabled [i.e., ekākṣarā] (Vidyā) is called Parā. It is the plane of knowledge of the Siddhas. It is the Yoga Vidyā, the great Vidyā which is in the heart of the Rudras. It is the Rudra part which is that of the Rudras and it is in consonance with the knowledge of Parā. It said to be the main Vidyā in Kāmākhyā, while the goddess of the sacred seat is in Pūrṇaka. The one called Yoga is in (the sacred seat called) Oṃkāra in the maṇḍala of the three seals”.
Shakta (शाक्त, śākta) or Shaktism (śāktism) represents a tradition of Hinduism where the Goddess (Devi) is revered and worshipped. Shakta literature includes a range of scriptures, including various Agamas and Tantras, although its roots may be traced back to the Vedas.
Pancaratra (worship of Nārāyaṇa)
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर) refers to a particular method of making an image of Rāma, as discussed in the thirtieth chapter of the Agastyasaṃhitā (agastya-suīkṣṇa-saṃvāda edition), an ancient Pāñcarātra Āgama text dealing with the worship of Rāma, Sītā, Lakṣmaṇa and Hanumān.—[Cf. the chapter daśākṣaravidhi]:—[...] Three other methods—the “saptākṣara”, the “aṣṭākṣara” and the “ekākṣara”—are described : One reveals Rāma primarily as a warrior with Lakṣmaṇa, another as a warrior without Lakṣmaṇa, and the third as central figure among His male retinue and without Sītā. Other methods are alluded to, any one of which might be used for worship or meditation icons of Rāma. The way one worships any one of these ( groups of ?) images is by nyāsa, mūla-mantras (=japa), etc.—just so long as it has been “vitalized” [prāṇapratiṣṭhā] according to the rules. The mantras used for Lakṣmaṇa, Śatrughna and Hanumān are to be prepared according to the rules, also. [...]
Pancaratra (पाञ्चरात्र, pāñcarātra) represents a tradition of Hinduism where Narayana is revered and worshipped. Closeley related to Vaishnavism, the Pancaratra literature includes various Agamas and tantras incorporating many Vaishnava philosophies.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
ēkākṣara (एकाक्षर).—a S Monosyllabic. Used as s n A monosyllable.
ēkākṣara (एकाक्षर).—a Monosyllabic. n A monosyllable.
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
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—a. monosyllabic. ओमित्येकाक्षरं ब्रह्म (omityekākṣaraṃ brahma) Bhagavadgītā (Bombay) 8.13. (-ram) 1 a monosyllable.
2) the sacred syllable; ओम् (om); एकाक्षरं परं ब्रह्म (ekākṣaraṃ paraṃ brahma) Manusmṛti 2.83.
3) The sole imperishable thing; एका- क्षरमभिसंभूय (ekā- kṣaramabhisaṃbhūya) Av.5.28.8.
4) Name of an Upaniṣad. °कोशः (kośaḥ) a vocabulary of monosyllabic words by Puruṣottamadeva. °रीभावः (rībhāvaḥ) the production of only one syllable, contraction.
Ekākṣara is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms eka and akṣara (अक्षर).
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—n.
(-raṃ) A monosyllable, especially the sacred monosyllable Om. E. eka and akṣara a letter.
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—adj. monosyllabic, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 2, 83.
Ekākṣara is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms eka and akṣara (अक्षर).
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—1. [neuter] the only imperishable; only one syllable.
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Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर).—2. [adjective] monosyllable; [neuter] a monosyllabic word.
1) Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—[from eka] n. the sole imperishable thing, [Atharva-veda v, 28, 8]
2) [v.s. ...] a single syllable, [Subhāṣitāvali]
3) [v.s. ...] a monosyllabic word, [Vājasaneyi-saṃhitā; Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa; Ṛgveda-prātiśākhya] etc.
4) [v.s. ...] the sacred monosyllable om, [Manu-smṛti ii, 83; Mahābhārata etc.]
5) [v.s. ...] Name of an Upaniṣad
6) [v.s. ...] mfn. of an Upaniṣad
7) [v.s. ...] monosyllabic
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—[ekā+kṣara] (raṃ) 1. n. Monosyllable, Om.
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—(eka + akṣara) n. ein aus einer Silbe bestehendes Wort: ekākṣaradvyakṣarāṇyeva prathamaṃ vadaṃkumāro vadati [The Śatapathabrāhmaṇa 11, 1, 6, 4.] [Vājasaneyisaṃhitā 9, 31.] die mystische Silbe om: ekākṣaraṃ paraṃ brahma [Manu’s Gesetzbuch 2, 83.] [Mahābhārata 1, 22.] ekākṣarakoṣa eine Sammlung einsilbiger Wörter [Colebrooke II, 19.] ekākṣaramālikā desgl. [Weber’s Verzeichniss No. 808.] ekākṣaranighaṇṭa [911.]
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Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—1. n. das einzige Unvergängliche [Atharvavedasaṃhitā 5, 28, 8.]
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Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—2. adj. (f. ā) einsilbig; n. ein einsilbiges Wort. [Prātiśākhya zum Ṛgveda 5, 17.] [Prātiśākhya zur Vājasaneyisaṃhitā 3, 75. 5, 29. 6, 5.] [Prātiśākha zum Atharvaveda 4, 55. fg.] [Weber’s Indische Studien 5, 33. 8, 427.] n. Titel einer Upaniṣad [3, 325.] koṣa [Oxforder Handschriften 189,a, No. 431. 182,b,32] (abgekürzt ekākṣara). nāmamālā [110,b,13.] ekākṣarābhidhānakoṣa [14.] gaṇapatikavaca n. aus dem Rudrayāmala [299,a,1 v. u.] = ekavarṇaka; davon nom. abstr. tva n. [Weber’s Indische Studien 8, 463, 2 v. u.]
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—1. n. —
1) das einzige Unvergängliche. —
2) eine einzige Silbe [Indische sprüche 1400.]
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Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—2. —
1) Adj. einsilbig. Nom.abstr. tva n. —
2) wohl m. Titel einer Sammlung einsilbiger Wörter. —
3) n. — a) ein einsilbiges Wort. kośa m. , nāmamālā f. , nighaṇṭa m. , mālikā f. und ekakṣarābhidhānakośa m. Titel von Sammlungen solcher Wörter. — b) die Silbe om. — c) Titel einer Upaniṣad.
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.
Kannada-English dictionary
Ēkākṣara (ಏಕಾಕ್ಷರ):—
1) [noun] a single syllable.
2) [noun] (rhet.) a verse or stanza that is composed using one syllable only.
3) [noun] that which has only one syllable.
4) [noun] (fig.) the quality or state of being very easy to do or get; easiness.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
Nepali dictionary
Ekākṣara (एकाक्षर):—adj. monosyllabic; n. monosyllabic mantra;
Nepali is the primary language of the Nepalese people counting almost 20 million native speakers. The country of Nepal is situated in the Himalaya mountain range to the north of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches (+0): Akshara, Eka.
Starts with (+2): Ekaksharabhidhana, Ekaksharabhidhanakosha, Ekaksharabhidhanamala, Ekaksharadhatu, Ekaksharaganapatikavaca, Ekaksharaganapatistotra, Ekaksharaganapatividhana, Ekaksharakosha, Ekaksharamadhavanighantu, Ekaksharamala, Ekaksharamalika, Ekaksharamantravidhi, Ekaksharamatrikakosha, Ekaksharanamamala, Ekaksharanamamalika, Ekaksharanighanta, Ekaksharanighantu, Ekaksharanighantumala, Ekaksharapada, Ekakshararatnamala.
Full-text (+46): Ekaksharakosha, Ekakshararatnamala, Ekaksharamalika, Ekaksharanamamalika, Ekaksharanamamala, Ekaksharanighanta, Ekaksharoshnishacakra, Ekaksharopanishad, Ekaksharanighantu, Yi jia qi sha luo, Yi zi fu ding lun wang, Ekaksharaganapatistotra, Akshara, Ekakshar, Ekaksharabhidhanakosha, Ekatcaram, Yi zi jin lun, Nighanta, Zhuan lun wang yi zi xin zhou, Brahmi.
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Search found 35 books and stories containing Ekakshara, Eka-akṣara, Eka-aksara, Eka-akshara, Ekākṣarā, Ekaksara, Ēkākṣara, Ekākṣara; (plurals include: Ekaksharas, akṣaras, aksaras, aksharas, Ekākṣarās, Ekaksaras, Ēkākṣaras, Ekākṣaras). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Dictionaries of Indian languages (Kosha)
Page 181 < [Gujarati-Hindi-English, Volume 1]
Page 433 < [Marathi-Hindi-English, Volume 1]
Page 331 < [Bengali-Hindi-English, Volume 1]
List of Mahabharata people and places (by Laxman Burdak)
Yoga Upanishads (study) (by Heena B. Kotak)
Part 7.1 - The concept of Pranava in the Yoga-Upanishads—Introduction < [Chapter 3 - Analytical and Critical study of 20 Yoga-Upanishads]
Part 11 - Major and Minor Upanishads < [Chapter 1 - Introduction]
The backdrop of the Srikanthacarita and the Mankhakosa (by Dhrubajit Sarma)
Part 3 - Structure of the Maṅkhakośa contents < [Chapter V - The Maṅkhakośa]
Part 2 - The Maṅkhakośa: authorship and date < [Chapter V - The Maṅkhakośa]
Kulamrit Stotra < [The Divine Strotras]
A Descriptive Catalogue of the Sanskrit Manuscripts, Madras (by M. Seshagiri Sastri)