Malayavati, Malayavatī: 4 definitions

Introduction:

Malayavati means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit. 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

Kavya (poetry)

[«previous next»] — Malayavati in Kavya glossary
Source: Wisdom Library: Kathāsaritsāgara

1) Malayavatī (मलयवती) is the name of the younger sister of Mitrāvasu, chief prince of the Siddhas, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 22. Accordingly, “Then one day Mitrāvasu came up suddenly to Jīmūtavāhana, who deserved the respect of the three worlds, with a pleased expression, and said to him: ‘I have a younger sister, the maiden called Malayavatī; I give her to you, do not refuse to gratify my wish’”.

Malayavatī (मलयवती) is also mentioned in the sixteenth story of the Vetālapañcaviṃśati in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 90. Accordingly, “... then Jīmūtavāhana said to an attendant of hers: ‘What is your friend’s auspicious name, and what family does she adorn?’ When the attendant heard that, she said: ‘She is the sister of Mitrāvasu, and the daughter of Viśvāvasu, the King of the Siddhas, and her name is Malayavatī”.

2) Malayavatī (मलयवती) is the daughter of king Malayavatī from Malayapura, as mentioned in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 122. Accordingly, as Śambarasiddhi said to king Vikramāditya: “... and he [king Malayasiṃha] has a matchless daughter, named Malayavatī, who used to abhor males. But one night she somehow or other saw in a dream a great hero in a convent. The moment she saw him, that evil spirit of detestation of the male sex fled from her mind, as if terrified”.

The story of Malayavatī is mentioned in the Vetālapañcaviṃśati (twenty-five tales of a vetāla) which is embedded in the twelfth book of the Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’). The main book is a famous Sanskrit epic detailing the exploits of prince Naravāhanadatta in his quest to become the emperor of the vidyādharas (celestial beings). The Kathā-sarit-sāgara is is explained to be an adaptation of Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhatkathā which consisted of 100,000 verses and in turn forms part of an even larger work containing 700,000 verses.

Kavya book cover
context information

Kavya (काव्य, kavya) refers to Sanskrit poetry, a popular ancient Indian tradition of literature. There have been many Sanskrit poets over the ages, hailing from ancient India and beyond. This topic includes mahakavya, or ‘epic poetry’ and natya, or ‘dramatic poetry’.

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Languages of India and abroad

Sanskrit dictionary

[«previous next»] — Malayavati in Sanskrit glossary
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1) Malayavatī (मलयवती):—[=malaya-vatī] [from malaya] f. Name of a Surāṅganā, [Siṃhāsana-dvātriṃśikā or vikramāditya-caritra, jaina recension]

2) [v.s. ...] of other women, [Kathāsaritsāgara; Nāgānanda]

3) Malayāvatī (मलयावती):—[=malayā-vatī] [from malaya] f. Name of a woman, [Catalogue(s)] (cf. malaya-vatī).

[Sanskrit to German]

Malayavati 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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