Nirbhaya, Nirbhayā, Nir-bhaya: 24 definitions
Introduction:
Nirbhaya means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit, Marathi, 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 Nirbhay.
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: Wisdom Library: The Matsya-purāṇaNirbhayā (निर्भया) is the name of a mind-born ‘divine mother’ (mātṛ), created for the purpose of drinking the blood of the Andhaka demons, according to the Matsya-purāṇa 179.8. The Andhaka demons spawned out of every drop of blood spilled from the original Andhakāsura (Andhaka-demon). According to the Matsya-purāṇa 179.35, “Most terrible they (e.g., Nirbhayā) all drank the blood of those Andhakas and become exceedingly satiated.”
The Matsyapurāṇa is categorised as a Mahāpurāṇa, and was originally composed of 20,000 metrical verses, dating from the 1st-millennium BCE. The narrator is Matsya, one of the ten major avatars of Viṣṇu.
Source: archive.org: Shiva Purana - English TranslationNirbhaya (निर्भय) refers to one who is “free from fear”, according to the Śivapurāṇa 2.2.20. Accordingly as Brahmā narrated to Nārada:—“[...] O sage, the lord Śiva who was delighted in His mind and who is an adept in many a divine sport spoke to me within the hearing of all: ‘Dear Brahmā, I am glad. You can be free from fear (nirbhaya). You touch your head with your hand. Unhesitatingly carry out my behest’”
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: The Purana Index1) Nirbhaya (निर्भय).—A son of Raucya Manu.*
- * Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa IV. 1. 104; Vāyu-purāṇa 100. 109.
2) Nirbhayā (निर्भया).—A mind-born mother.*
- * Matsya-purāṇa 179. 25.
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.
Kavya (poetry)
Source: Wisdom Library: KathāsaritsāgaraNirbhaya (निर्भय) is the name of a Rājpūt aligned with king Pṛthvīrūpa, according to in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 51. Accordingly, “... and while he was perplexed as to what it could mean a Rājpūt named Nirbhaya, mounted on an elephant, came up and said to him: ‘King, a very large army of Bhillas attacked us in front there...’”
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Nirbhaya, is a famous Sanskrit epic story revolving around prince Naravāhanadatta and his quest to become the emperor of the vidyādharas (celestial beings). The work is said to have been an adaptation of Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhatkathā consisting of 100,000 verses, which in turn is part of a larger work containing 700,000 verses.
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’.
Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)
Source: Kamakoti Mandali: The Yoginis of Narasimha VyuhaNirbhayā (निर्भया) is the name of a Mātṛkā-Śakti created by Mahārudra in order to control the plague of demons created by Andhakāsura.—Accordingly, Andhaka-Asura tried to kidnap Umā (Devī Pārvatī), and was fiercely attacked by Mahārudra who shot arrows at him from his mahāpināka. when the arrows pierced the body of Andhakāsura, drops of blood fell to earth and from those drops, thousands of Andhakas arose. To control this plague of demons, Mahārudra created Mātṛkā-Śaktis [viz., Nirbhayā] and ordered them to drink the blood of the demons and drain them dry.
Source: Kamakoti Mandali: Nrisimha matrika-mandalaNirbhayā (निर्भया) refers to one of the various Mātṛkā-Śaktis created by Rudra in order to destroy the clones that spawned from Andhaka’s body.—Accordingly, [...] Andhakāsura attempted to abduct Girājanandinī (Pārvatī) and thus ensued a fierce battle between Andhakāsura and the great Rudra, the Lord of Umā. Like raktabīja, every drop of blood that fell from the body of Andhaka created another Asura like him and in no time, the entire world was filled with Andhakas. To destroy the growing number of Andhakas, Rudra created innumerable Mātṛkā-Śaktis [viz., Nirbhayā]. These Śaktis of immense power at once began to drink every drop of blood that flowed from the body of Andhaka, but they could still not effectively contain the emergence of more and more demons.
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.
Ayurveda (science of life)
Source: gurumukhi.ru: Ayurveda glossary of termsNirbhaya (निर्भय):—Fearlessness
Āyurveda (आयुर्वेद, ayurveda) is a branch of Indian science dealing with medicine, herbalism, taxology, anatomy, surgery, alchemy and related topics. Traditional practice of Āyurveda in ancient India dates back to at least the first millenium BC. Literature is commonly written in Sanskrit using various poetic metres.
Vedanta (school of philosophy)
Source: ORA: Amanaska (king of all yogas): (Advaita Vedanta)Nirbhaya (निर्भय) refers to “fearless”, according to the Māṇḍūkyopaniṣatkārikā 3.35cd-36.—Accordingly, while discussing Brahma (without attributes): “That very [mind, free of thought and restrained,] is fearless (nirbhaya) Brahma, [which is] the light of gnosis [pervading] everywhere. [It is] unborn, devoid of sleep and dreaming, unnamed, formless, manifested [all] at once and omniscient [This statement] is not figurative in any way”.
Vedanta (वेदान्त, vedānta) refers to a school of orthodox Hindu philosophy (astika), drawing its subject-matter from the Upanishads. There are a number of sub-schools of Vedanta, however all of them expound on the basic teaching of the ultimate reality (brahman) and liberation (moksha) of the individual soul (atman).
In Buddhism
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Source: Wisdom Library: Maha Prajnaparamita SastraNirbhaya (निर्भय) refers to the “absence of fear”, according to Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra (chapter 40).—Accordingly, “[Question].—The ten powers are knowledges and the four fearlessnesses (vaiśāradya) are also knowledges. What are the similarities and the differences? [Answer].—When the qualities of the Buddha are explained at length, this is bala; when they explained in brief, this is vaiśāradya. [...] [Question].—What is fearlessness called? [Answer].—The absence of doubt, the absence of fear (nirbhaya), the non-decline of wisdom, not becoming discouraged, not becoming exasperated, acting in all ways as has been said, all that is vaiśāradya”.
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.
In Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Source: The University of Sydney: A study of the Twelve ReflectionsNirbhaya (निर्भय) refers to “fearlessness”, according to the 11th century Jñānārṇava, a treatise on Jain Yoga in roughly 2200 Sanskrit verses composed by Śubhacandra.—Accordingly, “Certainly in this world the one knowing the higher knowledge constantly obtains fearlessness [com.—nirbhaya] [and] happiness that is beyond the senses [and] imperishable through the reflections with playful knowledge. The fire of passion becomes extinguished, desire flows away, darkness disappears [and] the light of knowledge shines forth in the heart for men from the repetition of the reflections”.
Synonyms: Anātaṅka.
Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionarynirbhaya (निर्भय).—a (S) Fearless. 2 Safe, secure, free from likelihood of harm.
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nirbhaya (निर्भय).—n (S) Freedom from danger or ground for apprehension.
Source: DDSA: The Aryabhusan school dictionary, Marathi-Englishnirbhaya (निर्भय).—a Fearless. Safe, secure. Freedom from danger.
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 dictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय).—a.
1) fearless, undaunted.
2) free from danger, safe, secure; निर्भयं तु भवेद्यस्य राष्ट्रं बाहुबलाश्रितम् (nirbhayaṃ tu bhavedyasya rāṣṭraṃ bāhubalāśritam) Manusmṛti 9.255.
Nirbhaya is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms nir and bhaya (भय).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय).—mfn.
(-yaḥ-yā-yaṃ) Fearless, undaunted. E. nir not, bhaya fear.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English DictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय).—I. adj., f. yā. 1. fearless, [Pañcatantra] 111, 25. 2. free from danger, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 9, 255. Ii. m. a proper name.
Nirbhaya is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms nis and bhaya (भय).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय).—1. [neuter] safety, security.
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Nirbhaya (निर्भय).—2. [adjective] fearless, dangerless, secure.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Nirbhaya (निर्भय):—[=nir-bhaya] [from nir > niḥ] n. fearlessness, security, [Hemādri’s Caturvarga-cintāmaṇi]
2) [v.s. ...] mf(ā)n. fearless, not afraid of ([compound])
3) [v.s. ...] mf(ā)n. free from danger, secure, tranquil (am ind. fearlessly etc.), [Manu-smṛti; Mahābhārata; Kāvya literature] etc.
4) [v.s. ...] m. Name of a son of the 13th Manu, [Harivaṃśa]
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English DictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय):—[nir-bhaya] (yaḥ-yā-yaṃ) a. Fearless.
Source: DDSA: Paia-sadda-mahannavo; a comprehensive Prakrit Hindi dictionary (S)Nirbhaya (निर्भय) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit word: Ṇibbhaya.
[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 dictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय) [Also spelled nirbhay]:—(a) fearless, dauntless, undaunted; daring; ~[tā] fearlessness, dauntlessness.
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Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusNirbhaya (ನಿರ್ಭಯ):—[adjective] without fear; not afraid; intrepid; fearless.
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Nirbhaya (ನಿರ್ಭಯ):—
1) [noun] = ನಿರ್ಭಯತೆ [nirbhayate].
2) [noun] a fearless, undaunted man.
3) [noun] freedom from danger or risk; safety.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
Nepali dictionary
Source: unoes: Nepali-English DictionaryNirbhaya (निर्भय):—adj. 1. bold; fearless; brave; 2. secure;
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: Bhaya, Nir, Nish.
Starts with: Nirbhayabhima, Nirbhayam, Nirbhayarama bhatta, Nirbhayaramabhatta, Nirbhayata, Nirbhayate, Nirbhayatva.
Ends with: Vinirbhaya.
Full-text (+1): Nirbhayam, Nibbhaya, Nirbhayabhima, Nirbhayaramabhatta, Vinirbahu, Vinirbhaya, Yamadharmanirbhayastotra, Nirbhay, Adyakalaka, Mahendrapala, Fearless, Adyakalika, Kumudvin, Nirdara, Svri, Anatanka, Abhr, Ashva, Vinayaka, Shvasa.
Relevant text
Search found 25 books and stories containing Nirbhaya, Nirbhayā, Nir-bhaya, Nis-bhaya; (plurals include: Nirbhayas, Nirbhayās, bhayas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Garga Samhita (English) (by Danavir Goswami)
Verse 2.14.30 < [Chapter 14 - Description of Kāliya’s Story]
Verse 2.11.4 < [Chapter 11 - The Liberation of Dhenukāsura]
Verse 4.3.11 < [Chapter 3 - The Story of the Mithilā Women]
Taittiriya Upanishad Bhashya Vartika (by R. Balasubramanian)
Verse 2.129 < [Book 2 - Brahmavallī]
Chaitanya Bhagavata (by Bhumipati Dāsa)
Verse 2.6.74 < [Chapter 6 - The Lord’s Meeting with Advaita Ācārya]
Verse 3.5.429 < [Chapter 5 - The Pastimes of Nityānanda]
Verse 3.9.184 < [Chapter 9 - The Glories of Advaita]
Manusmriti with the Commentary of Medhatithi (by Ganganatha Jha)
Verse 9.255 < [Section XXXV - Consolidation and Settlement of the Kingdom]
Samkhya thoughts in the Mahabharata (by Shini M.V.)
Vyāsa Śuka Deva Saṃvāda < [Chapter 3 - The Philosophical Tenets in the Śānti-parva]
Mandukya Upanishad (Gaudapa Karika and Shankara Bhashya) (by Swami Nikhilananda)
Mandukya Karika, verse 1.25 < [Chapter I - Agama Prakarana (Scripture)]
Mandukya Karika, verse 3.34-35 < [Chapter III - Advaita Prakarana (Non-duality)]