Grama, Grāma: 30 definitions

Introduction:

Grama means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, the history of ancient India, Marathi, Hindi, biology. 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.

In Hinduism

Purana and Itihasa (epic history)

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: The Purana Index

1a) Grāma (ग्राम).—A village; outside the kheṭa; between the village and kheṭa is (1/2) yojana; the limits of boundary are two krośas and of kṣetra (fields) four dhanus; the roads of twenty dhanus leading to twenty directions and also roads to grāmas and roads on the limits, 10 dhanus; also rājapatha; four dhanus for branch streets; two dhanus between the houses.*

  • * Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa II. 7. 94 and 105; Vāyu-purāṇa 8. 100; 62. 171; 78. 57; 87. 28; 94. 40; 98. 119; 106. 73-75; Viṣṇu-purāṇa 2. 13; 36. 6.

1b) As a present to learned men, as distinct from towns at the time of Pṛthu. Grāma behind the forest and the forest behind the grāma explained by Yayāti to Aṣṭaka; reference to ascetics and sages who, as residents of village should not use forest produce, and as residents of forests should not use village produce; deserted during the time of anarchy.*

  • * ^1 Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa II. 34. 39; 36. 197; III. 7. 308; Matsya-purāṇa 143. 3; 246. 45. ^2 Matsya-purāṇa 10. 32; 40. 9-13; 41. 2; 47. 257.
Purana book cover
context information

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.

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Natyashastra (theatrics and dramaturgy)

Source: Wisdom Library: Nāṭya-śāstra

Grāma (ग्राम) refers to “musical scale” (number of tones), according Nāṭyaśāstrahapter chapter 28. There are two different musical scales (grāmas) defined, having for each musical note (svāra) a various amount of quarter tones (śruits).

Ṣaḍja-grāma scheme is defined as follows:

  1. ṛṣabha-svara: 3 śrutis,
  2. gāndhāra-svara: 2 śrutis,
  3. madhyama-svara: 4 śrutis,
  4. pañcama-svara: 4 śrutis,
  5. dhaivata-svara: 3 śrutis
  6. niṣāda-svara: 2 śrutis,
  7. ṣaḍja-svara: 4 śrutis.

Madhyama-grama scheme is defined as follows:

  1. madhyama-svara: 4 śrutis,
  2. pañcama-svara: 3 śrutis,
  3. dhaivata-svara: 4 śrutis
  4. niṣāda-svara: 2 śrutis,
  5. ṣaḍja-svara: 4 śrutis.
  6. ṛṣabha-svara: 3 śrutis,
  7. gāndhāra-svara: 2 śrutis,

Grāma represents an aspect of musical notes (svara) arising from the vīṇā, according to the Nāṭyaśāstra chapter 28. These svaras (notes) represent an aspect of ‘musical performance’ (gāndharva), together with tāla (time-measure) and pada (verbal theme). Gāndharva is a combination of vocal music and the music of instruments (ātodya) employed in dramatic performance (nāṭya/ nāṭaka).

Source: Google Books: Dhanapāla and His Times (arts and learning)

Grāma (ग्राम, “musical scale”).—Seven grāmas namely, ṣāḍava, pañcama, ṣaḍjagrāma, sādhāritā, kaiśikā, madhyama, gāndhāra-grāma are referred to in Nāradīya-śikṣā. Ṣaḍja, madhyama and gāndhāra were the popular grāmas in ancient Indian music. Dhanapāla in Tilaka-mañjarī has specifically mentioned gāndhāra-grāma.

Source: Google Books: Indian Music

Grāma (ग्राम).—The word grāma means a village. By a transference of epithet and by analogy, a “cluster of notes” came to be termed grāma. The ṣaḍja-grāma (sa) was, however, not found adequate for acoustic and musical reasons. Therefore, Bharata also gives another under the title madhyama-grāma (ma). A thid grama (the gāndhāra-grāma) is mentioned by other authors.

Source: archive.org: The Ragas Of Karnatic Music

Grāma (ग्राम).—A grāma means the construction of a scale or group of notes (svara) with a definite and distinct allocation of śruti intervals. (The notes of a grāma cover a full octave). The sa, ma and ga-grāmas are constituted into distinct scales or groups of notes with śrutis allocated in definite and clearly distinguished sequence.

Natyashastra book cover
context information

Natyashastra (नाट्यशास्त्र, nāṭyaśāstra) refers to both the ancient Indian tradition (shastra) of performing arts, (natya—theatrics, drama, dance, music), as well as the name of a Sanskrit work dealing with these subjects. It also teaches the rules for composing Dramatic plays (nataka), construction and performance of Theater, and Poetic works (kavya).

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Shilpashastra (iconography)

Source: archive.org: Illustrations of Indian Music and Dance in Western Indian Style

Grāma (ग्राम).—The word grāma has three meanings.—1. Village, 2. Shelter, 3. Group. In this citrāvalī, pictures of three grāmas are included—1. mandra, 2. madhya and 3. tāra. In ordinary usage, it is of three kinds; it is called mandra in the heart (mandra is the lowest; it is the deep tone), madhya in the throat (madhya: medium) and tāra in the head (tāra: very high); and each succeeding one is double (the previous).

Shilpashastra book cover
context information

Shilpashastra (शिल्पशास्त्र, śilpaśāstra) represents the ancient Indian science (shastra) of creative arts (shilpa) such as sculpture, iconography and painting. Closely related to Vastushastra (architecture), they often share the same literature.

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Shaivism (Shaiva philosophy)

Source: Brill: Śaivism and the Tantric Traditions (philosophy)

Grāma (ग्राम) refers to a “village”, according to the Utpaladeva’s Vivṛti on Īśvarapratyabhijñākārikā 1.5.8-9.—Accordingly, “[...] [—Objection from the Sautrāntika:] But just as [you] have said that [in the case of the inference of the sense organs,] the generality ‘causality’ has already been experienced through the experience of [particular causes] such as a seed, without considering the particulars that are the visual organ and so on, in the same way, [you must admit that] externality too has already been experienced as a generality from the experience of [various objects that are] external to the body (śarīra), the house (gṛha) or the village (grāma), etc. [...]”.

Shaivism book cover
context information

Shaiva (शैव, śaiva) or Shaivism (śaivism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshiping Shiva as the supreme being. Closely related to Shaktism, Shaiva literature includes a range of scriptures, including Tantras, while the root of this tradition may be traced back to the ancient Vedas.

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Gitashastra (science of music)

Source: Shodhganga: Elements of Art and Architecture in the Trtiyakhanda of the Visnudharmottarapurana (gita)

Grāma (ग्राम) (in Indian Music) refers to a “collection of svaras” (which forms on the basis of mūrcchanā), according to the Saṃgītaratnākara.—In Indian Music the gamut in which the collection of mūrcchanā, karma, tāna, varṇa, alaṃkāra, and jāti can be found is called as grāmas. The Nāṭyaśāstra accepts two kinds of grāmas where as the Nāradīyasikṣā accepts three grāmas.

In the Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa also three kinds of grāmas are accepted which are:

  1. ṣaḍja,
  2. madhyama and
  3. gāndhāra.
context information

Gitashastra (गीतशास्त्र, gītaśāstra) refers to the ancient Indian science of Music (gita or samgita), which is traditionally divided in Vocal music, Instrumental music and Dance (under the jurisdiction of music). The different elements and technical terms are explained in a wide range of (often Sanskrit) literature.

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Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)

Source: Google Books: Manthanabhairavatantram

Grāma (ग्राम) refers to the “aggregate (of energies)”, 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, [while describing the Niṣkala Form of Śrīnātha]—“[...] One should always apply the vidyā that consists of sixteen parts. The venerable teacher is the aggregate of energies (kalā-grāma) * * *, he is the lord of the Western Tradition. He who neither reads nor writes (and is free of all thought constructs) should be lead into the Supreme within the End of the Twelve. [...]”.

Shaktism book cover
context information

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.

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General definition (in Hinduism)

Source: Wisdom Library: Hinduism

Grāma (Town): A grāma covers an area of one-fourth of a yojana (1 yojana = ~13km).

In Buddhism

Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)

Source: academia.edu: A Study and Translation of the Gaganagañjaparipṛcchā

Grāma (ग्राम) (or Sagrāma) refers to “villages”, according to the Gaganagañjaparipṛcchā: the eighth chapter of the Mahāsaṃnipāta (a collection of Mahāyāna Buddhist Sūtras).—Accordingly, “[...] Save for those who were sitting in the pavilion in the sky, the rest of them in the great three-thousand of worlds, staying on the surface of the earth, as far as its foundations, thought that they disappeared. The king of the mountain (parvatarāja), Mount Sumeru, Mount Cakravāḍa, and Mount Mahācakravāḍa disappeared from the sight of living beings. Villages (grāma), towns, market-towns, royal cities, capitals disappeared as well. However, with the lion’s throne (simhāsana) of the Lord it was another matter, they perceived it as shining ten thousand yojanas high as placed in these pavilions placed in the vault of the sky”.

Mahayana book cover
context information

Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.

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Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayana or tantric Buddhism)

Source: MDPI Books: The Ocean of Heroes

Grāma (ग्राम) refers to a “village”, according to the 10th-century Ḍākārṇava-tantra: one of the last Tibetan Tantric scriptures belonging to the Buddhist Saṃvara tradition consisting of 51 chapters.—Accordingly: “Now, [the Blessed One] has taught [holy sites] such as the pīṭha and upapīṭha in sequence. [...] (7) The melāpaka [sites] are proclaimed to be a bank of a river, a garden, an ocean, and a place where four roads meet. (8) The upamelāpaka [sites] are on the summit of a mountain, the center of a village (grāma-madhya), and Vṛndākaumāriparvaka (or a mountain [where there is] a flock of maidens). A lineage land is [also] the upamelāpaka. [...]”.

Tibetan Buddhism book cover
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Tibetan Buddhism includes schools such as Nyingma, Kadampa, Kagyu and Gelug. Their primary canon of literature is divided in two broad categories: The Kangyur, which consists of Buddha’s words, and the Tengyur, which includes commentaries from various sources. Esotericism and tantra techniques (vajrayāna) are collected indepently.

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India history and geography

Source: archive.org: Geography in Ancient Indian inscriptions

Grāma (ग्राम).—The villages, generally, are called grāma in Sanskrit inscriptions. Prakrit inscriptions, however, give a little changed form gāma. The term grāmaka is another expression, which was used todenote a smaller village or a hamlet. In the inscriptions of the South, the terms grāma and grāmaka are in some cases replaced by the terms pallī and pallikā. The villages were made in ancient times agrahāras by allowing the donees to have the priority orthe first charge-on the produce of the land, which was previously given to the king. The donees were exempted by the kings, the donors from certain liabilities (prihāras), and, instead, provided with certain facilities.

Source: archive.org: Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions

Grāma (ग्राम) refers to a name-ending for place-names mentioned in the Gupta inscriptions (reigned from 3rd century CE). Grāma means an inhabited place, village, hamlet. It seems that firstly the word grāma denoted the collective inhabitants of a place, community or race. Later on this sense was transferred to an inhabitation and was used in the sense of a village. Also see Pāṇini IV.2.142.

Villages (grāma) played an important role as a unit of rāṣṭra or city. Kheṭa was the half of a city and the village was the half of a kheṭa. Cities other than the capital are called karvaṭa, a little less is nigama and lesser is grāma and still lesser is a house. Grāma is changed into gaon, as Suvarṇagrāma, Sonārgaon; Kalahagrāma, Kahalgaon.

Source: What is India: Inscriptions of the Śilāhāras

Grāma (village) refers to administrative divsions of viṣayas and khollas of during the rule of Kannaḍa-speaking Śilāhāra dynasty (r. 765-1215 A.D.).—The viṣayas and khollas comprised nagaras or towns, and grāmas or villages. Very few towns in the kingdoms of the Śilāhāras find mention in their inscriptions. The deśa (administrative unit) was there divided into nāḍas or khollas.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Indian Epigraphical Glossary

Grāma.—(IE 8-4), ‘a village’; often suffixed to the names of localities. (EI 24), a village assembly. (IE 8-4), sometimes used to indicate the number of villages in a territory or geographical unit; but the number was often either exaggerated or traditional without relation to reality; sometimes wrongly interpreted as ‘a unit of revenue assess- ment’. Cf. navanavati-sahasra-grāma-bhāj (IE 8-4), epithet of a territory. See Sircar, Stud. Geog. Anc. Med. Ind., pp. 200 ff. (Ep. Ind., Vol. XXXV, pp. 146-47), a villager; same as Grāmeyaka. Note: grāma is defined in the “Indian epigraphical glossary” as it can be found on ancient inscriptions commonly written in Sanskrit, Prakrit or Dravidian languages.

India history book cover
context information

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.

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Biology (plants and animals)

Source: Google Books: CRC World Dictionary (Regional names)

1) Grama in Brazil is the name of a plant defined with Agropyron repens in various botanical sources. This page contains potential references in Ayurveda, modern medicine, and other folk traditions or local practices It has the synonym Triticum infestum Salisb. (among others).

2) Grama in Latin America is also identified with Axonopus compressus It has the synonym Panicum filiforme L. (etc.).

3) Grama in Mexico is also identified with Bouteloua gracilis It has the synonym Chondrosum gracile var. polystachyum Nees (etc.).

4) Grama in Philippines is also identified with Eragrostis japonica It has the synonym Catabrosa micrantha Hochst. ex A. Rich. (etc.).

Example references for further research on medicinal uses or toxicity (see latin names for full list):

· Prodromus stirpium in horto ad Chapel Allerton vigentium. (1796)
· Abhandlungen der Königlichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen (1857)
· Journal of Cytology and Genetics (1988)
· Repertorium Specierum Novarum Regni Vegetabilis (1931)
· Madroño (1947)
· Révision des Graminées (1829)

If you are looking for specific details regarding Grama, for example health benefits, diet and recipes, chemical composition, extract dosage, side effects, pregnancy safety, have a look at these references.

Biology book cover
context information

This sections includes definitions from the five kingdoms of living things: Animals, Plants, Fungi, Protists and Monera. It will include both the official binomial nomenclature (scientific names usually in Latin) as well as regional spellings and variants.

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Languages of India and abroad

Marathi-English dictionary

Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionary

grāma (ग्राम).—m (S) A village or a hamlet. 2 A scale in music, a gamut. 3 The head man or a respectable man of a village: also a forward and domineering fellow. 4 S An assembly or a collection. In comp. as indriyagrāma, guṇagrāma, puṇyagrāma, bhūtagrāma, svaragrāma.

Source: DDSA: The Aryabhusan school dictionary, Marathi-English

grāma (ग्राम).—m A village. A scale in music. An assembly or collection.

context information

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.

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Sanskrit dictionary

Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम).—[gras-man ādantādeśaḥ]

1) A village, hamlet; पत्तने विद्यमानेऽपि ग्रामे रत्नपरीक्षा (pattane vidyamāne'pi grāme ratnaparīkṣā) M.1; त्यजेदेकं कुलस्यार्थे ग्रामस्यार्थे कुलं त्यजेत् । ग्रामं जनपदस्यार्थे स्वात्मार्थे पृथिवीं त्यजेत् (tyajedekaṃ kulasyārthe grāmasyārthe kulaṃ tyajet | grāmaṃ janapadasyārthe svātmārthe pṛthivīṃ tyajet) || H.1.129; R.1.44; Meghadūta 3.

2) A race, community; कथा ग्रामं न पृच्छसि (kathā grāmaṃ na pṛcchasi) Ṛgveda 1.146.1.

3) A multitude, collection (of anything); e. g. गुणग्राम, इन्द्रियग्राम (guṇagrāma, indriyagrāma); Bhagavadgītā (Bombay) 8.19;9.8. शस्त्रास्त्र- ग्रामकोविदः (śastrāstra- grāmakovidaḥ) Bm.1.611,613.

4) A gamut, scale in music; स्फुटीभवद्ग्रामविशेषमूर्च्छनाम् (sphuṭībhavadgrāmaviśeṣamūrcchanām) Śiśupālavadha 1.1.

Derivable forms: grāmaḥ (ग्रामः).

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम).—m.

(-maḥ) 1. A village, a hamlet, an inhabited and unfortified place in the midst of fields and meadow land, where men of the servile class mostly reside, and where agriculture thrives. 2. A scale in music. 3. (In composition,) A multitude. E. gam to go, affix ghañ, and deriv. irr. or gras to eat, Unadi affix man and āc substituted for the radical final. grasa-man ādantādeśaḥ .

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम).—i. e. grah + ma, m. 1. A village, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 4, 107 (n. [Rāmāyaṇa] 2, 57, 4). 2. A villager, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 8, 258 (? perhaps is to be read grāmasāmº). 3. As latter part of a comp. word. A multitude, [Nala] 4. 10. 4. A scale in music, Mārk. P. 23, 52.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम).—[masculine] dwelling-place, village (also [neuter]), community, tribe, race, multitude, troop, collection; [plural] inhabitants, people.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1) Grāma (ग्राम):—m. an inhabited place, village, hamlet, [Ṛg-veda i, x; Atharva-veda; Vājasaneyi-saṃhitā] etc.

2) the collective inhabitants of a place, community, race, [Ṛg-veda x, 146, 1; Atharva-veda] etc.

3) any number of men associated together, multitude, troop ([especially] of soldiers), [Ṛg-veda i, iii, x; Atharva-veda iv, 7, 5; Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa vi, xii]

4) the old women of a family, [Pāraskara-gṛhya-sūtra i, 9, 3 [Scholiast or Commentator]]

5) ifc. (cf. [Pāṇini 6-2, 84]) a multitude, class, collection or number (in general) cf. indriya-, guṇa-, bhūta-, etc.

6) a number of tones, scale, gamut, [Pañcatantra v, 43; Mārkaṇḍeya-purāṇa xxiii, 52]

7) = indriya-, [Jaina literature]

8) inhabitants, people, [Ṛg-veda ii, 12, 7; x, 127, 5]

9) n. a village, [Rāmāyaṇa ii, 57, 4; Hemādri’s Caturvarga-cintāmaṇi i, 7, 721/722]

10) cf. ariṣṭa-, mahā-, śūra-, saṃ-; cf. [Hibernian or Irish] gramaisg, ‘the mob’; gramasgar, ‘a flock.’

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम):—(maḥ) 1. m. A village; (in compo.) a multitude; scale of music.

Source: DDSA: Paia-sadda-mahannavo; a comprehensive Prakrit Hindi dictionary (S)

Grāma (ग्राम) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit word: Gāma.

[Sanskrit to German]

Grama in German

context information

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.

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Hindi dictionary

Source: DDSA: A practical Hindi-English dictionary

Grāma (ग्राम) [Also spelled gram]:—(nm) a village; gamut; gramme (a weight); as a suffix it means multitude, collection; ~[mīṇa] rural, uncivil; ~[mya] rural, uncivil; hence ~[mīṇatā, ~myatā; ~myatva] vulgarity.

context information

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Kannada-English dictionary

Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpus

Grāma (ಗ್ರಾಮ):—

1) [noun] a more or less concentrated group of houses and private and public buildings, larger than a village but smaller than a city; a town.

2) [noun] a number of things gathered or placed closely together, forming a recognisable unit; a group.

3) [noun] a complete musical scale having all the seven notes, i.e. any of the major scales; a gamut.

context information

Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.

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