Raktaksha, Rakta-aksha, Raktākṣa, Raktākṣā: 17 definitions
Introduction:
Raktaksha 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 terms Raktākṣa and Raktākṣā can be transliterated into English as Raktaksa or Raktaksha, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: Wisdom Library: Varāha-purāṇa1) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—One of the twelve rākṣasas facing the twelve ādityas in the battle of the gods (devas) between the demons (asuras), according to the Varāhapurāṇa chapter 94.
2) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—One of the eleven rākṣasas facing the eleven rudras in the battle of the gods (devas) between the demons (asuras), according to the Varāhapurāṇa chapter 94.
This battle was initiated by Mahiṣāsura in order to win over the hand of Vaiṣṇavī, the form of Trikalā having a red body representing the energy of Viṣṇu. Trikalā 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.
Source: archive.org: Shiva Purana - English TranslationRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) refers to “having red eyes (filled with anger)”, according to the Śivapurāṇa 2.5.15 (“The birth of Jalandhara and his marriage”).—Accordingly, after Bhārgava narrated the details regarding the headless Rāhu: “Then on hearing about the churning of his father, the heroic son of the ocean, the valorous Jalandhara became furious and his eyes turned red with anger (krodha-raktākṣa). Then he called his excellent emissary Ghasmara and told him everything what the wise preceptor had said to him. He then lovingly honoured the clever emissary in various ways, assured him of protection and sent him to Indra as his messenger. [...]”.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: The Purana IndexRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—An attendant on Śiva.*
- * Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa III. 41. 26.
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: Kathāsaritsāgara1) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) is a minister of the owl-king named Avamarda, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 62. Accordingly, “... and he [Raktākṣa], being a discreet minister, said to him: ‘King [Avamarda], these ministers have done their best to ruin you by impolitic advice. Those who know policy place no confidence in the acts of an hereditary enemy. It is only a fool that, though he sees the fault, is satisfied with insincere flattery’...”.
2) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) is the name of a Vidyādhara champion allied to Mandaradeva who marched in war against Naravāhanadatta, as mentioned in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 109. Accordingly, “... and the kings of Mandaradeva’s party, Kāñcanadaṃṣṭra, Aśokaka, Raktākṣa, Kālajihva and the others, submitted to the sway of Naravāhanadatta”.
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Raktākṣa, 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: Google Books: Manthanabhairavatantram1) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) refers to one of the eight Servants (ceṭa-aṣṭaka) associated with Jālandhara (which is in the southern quarter), according to the Manthānabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjikā.—[...] The eight servants (ceṭāṣṭaka): Ali, Cīvara, Raktākṣa, Kṛṣṇa, Pakṣa, Khāṭaka, Somāda, Dhūmaka.
2) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) also refers to one of the eight Servants (ceṭa-aṣṭaka) associated with Kāmākhya (corresponding to the eastern face of Bhairava).—[...] The eight Servants (ceṭāṣṭaka): Śaṃkhapāla, Kaṃkāla, Viśālaka, Ajaya, Vijaya, Vīrabhadra, Raktākṣa, Kasmāla.
3) Raktākṣā (रक्ताक्षा) [=Raktākṣāmbā] refers to one of the consort of Prayāsadeva—one of the Sixteen Siddhas according to the Kubjikānityāhnikatilaka: a derative text drawing from Tantras and other sources such as the Ṣaṭsāhasrasaṃhitā.—These sixteen spiritual teachers represent the disciples of the Nine Nāthas who propagated the Western Transmission noted in the Kubjikā Tantras.—Prayāsadeva is the Caryā name of this Nātha (i.e., the public name the Siddha uses when living as a wandering renouncer). He is associated with the consorts named Vijayā and Raktasiddhā (or Raktākṣa-Ambā).
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.
Jyotisha (astronomy and astrology)
Source: Wisdom Library: Brihat Samhita by VarahamihiraRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष) refers to the fifty-eighth of the sixty-year cycle of Jupiter, according to the Bṛhatsaṃhitā (chapter 8), an encyclopedic Sanskrit work written by Varāhamihira mainly focusing on the science of ancient Indian astronomy astronomy (Jyotiṣa).—Accordingly, “In the twelvth yuga sacred to god Bhāga (Sun), the first year is known as Dundubhi; the crops will thrive well. The next year is known as Udgāri; in it the ruling sovereigns will perish and there will not be good rain. The third year is known as Raktākṣa; in it there will be fear from the attack of tusked animals and mankind will suffer from disease. The fourth year is known as Krodha; in it there will be anger in the land and countries will be ruined in consequence of internal strife. [...]”.
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.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionaryraktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—a (S) Of red eyes--a horse &c. 2 Blood-colored or reddish;--used of pearls, rudrākṣa &c.
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 dictionaryRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—a.
1) red-eyed.
2) fearful. (-kṣaḥ) 1 a buffalo.
2) a pigeon.
3) a crane (sārasa).
4) Name of a संवत्सर (saṃvatsara).
5) the Chakora bird.
Raktākṣa is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms rakta and akṣa (अक्ष).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—name of a heretical ascetic: Divyāvadāna 151.25 ff. (See also s.v. Tārākṣa.)
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—mfn. (-kṣaḥ-kṣī-kṣa) Red-eyed. m.
(-kṣaḥ) 1. A buffalo. 2. A pigeon. 3. The Greek partridge, (Perdix rufa.) “cakore.” 4. A tyrant, a savage, a barbarous or cruel man. 5. The Indian crane. E. rakta red, akṣi the eye, aff. ṣa .
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष).—[feminine] ī red-eyed.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष):—[from rakta > raj] mf(ī)n. red-eyed, having red or blood-shot eyes, [Rāmāyaṇa; Bhāgavata-purāṇa] (-tā f., [Dharmaśarmābhyudaya])
2) [v.s. ...] fearful, dreadful, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
3) [v.s. ...] m. a buffalo, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
4) [v.s. ...] Perdix Rufa, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
5) [v.s. ...] a pigeon, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
6) [v.s. ...] the Indian crane, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
7) [v.s. ...] Name of a sorcerer, [Buddhist literature]
8) [v.s. ...] Name of the minister of an owl-king, [Kathāsaritsāgara; Pañcatantra]
9) [v.s. ...] n. Name of the fifty-eighth year in a Jupiter’s cycle of sixty years, [Varāha-mihira’s Bṛhat-saṃhitā] (also kṣi m. or kṣin m., [Catalogue(s)])
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English DictionaryRaktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष):—[raktā+kṣa] (kṣaḥ) 1. m. A buffalo; a pigeon; Greek patridge; a tyrant; savage; Indian crane. a. Red-eyed.
[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.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusRaktākṣa (ರಕ್ತಾಕ್ಷ):—
1) [adjective] having red eye.
2) [adjective] creating fear; frightening; fierce.
--- OR ---
Raktākṣa (ರಕ್ತಾಕ್ಷ):—
1) [noun] a male buffalo.
2) [noun] any of a family (Columbidae order Columbiformes) of birds with a small head, plump body, long, pointed wings, and short legs; pigeon.
3) [noun] the bird Ardea sibirica; the Indian crane.
4) [noun] the bird Perdix rufus fabled to subsist upon moon-beams; Greek partridge.
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 Dictionary1) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष):—adj. 1. (eyes) being reddish; looking like bloodstain; 2. fearful; terrific;
2) Raktākṣa (रक्ताक्ष):—n. 1. Zool. pigeon; 2. Zool. cuckoo; 3. → राँगो [rāṃgo]
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: Aksha, Rakta.
Starts with: Raktakshamba, Raktakshata, Raktakshaya.
Full-text (+12): Raktakshata, Raktakshi, Raktakshamba, Raktaksh, Irattatci, Taraksha, Samvatsara, Somada, Vishalaka, Kashmala, Dhumaka, Khataka, Kankala, Paksha, Ajaya, Ashokaka, Krodha, Bahukrodha, Krodhakara, Dundubhi.
Relevant text
Search found 20 books and stories containing Raktaksha, Rakta-akṣa, Rakta-aksa, Rakta-akṣā, Rakta-aksha, Raktākṣa, Raktākṣā, Raktaksa; (plurals include: Raktakshas, akṣas, aksas, akṣās, akshas, Raktākṣas, Raktākṣās, Raktaksas). 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 5.24.24 < [Chapter 24 - The Killing of the Kola Demon]
Panchatantra: A reflex of Arthashastra (by M. N. Indrani)
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A Descriptive Catalogue of the Sanskrit Manuscripts, Madras (by M. Seshagiri Sastri)
Page 318 < [Volume 14 (1912)]
Rudra-Shiva concept (Study) (by Maumita Bhattacharjee)
2.19. Rudra as Tryambaka < [Chapter 6a - The Epithets of Rudra-Śiva]
Garuda Purana (by Manmatha Nath Dutt)
Chapter LXVI - Description of the specific marks of Salagrama < [Agastya Samhita]
Studies in Indian Literary History (by P. K. Gode)
64. The Date of Bhanudatta, the Author of the Rasamanjari < [Volume 1 (1945)]