Brahmavedi
Brahmavedi · brahma-vedi, “the altar of Brahmā”
Grammar: feminine noun; a compound of brahma (Brahmā) and vedi (the altar of a yajña): “the altar of Brahmā”.
Meaning: a sacred altar-ground of yajña. In the Vāmana Purāṇa, the five vedis of Lokanātha, and above all the northern one, Samantapañcaka, which is Kurukshetra.
In the scriptures: Bhagavān Vishṇu tells the devas the account of Kurukshetra. King Kuru bathed in the holy waters of the Sarasvatī at Dvaitavana and went to the Brahmavedi to the north, the finest dharmabhūmi (land of dharma), named Samantapañcaka, which extends five yojanas in every direction. The devas asked Purushottama about the vedi in the north and how many Brahmavedis there are in all. He answered: “There are five vedis of Lokanātha in this world. They are dharma-setus (bridges of dharma). In those places Lokeśvara Śiva performed yajñas.” The five are:
- the middle vedi, Prayāga;
- the eastern vedi, Gayā;
- in the south, the Virajā vedi, which gives endless fruit;
- in the west, the Pushkara vedi, with three kuṇḍas;
- in the north, the imperishable (akshaya) Samantapañcaka vedi.
There King Kuru resolved to cultivate that kshetra of great fruit, and ploughed it with a golden plough (Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 23).
The Saro Māhātmya gives the names of the place in order: first it was called Brahmavedi; after that Rāmahrada; and after that, because King Kuru ploughed it, Kurukshetra. It is also called Kurukshetra Samantapañcaka and the Uttaravedi of Brahmā, Brahmā’s northern altar (Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 1).
Related terms: Vedi · Samantapañcaka · Uttaravedi · Dharmabhūmi · Kurukshetra
Sources
- Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 23
- Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 1