Shravana

Makara face at Konark Temple (CC BY Pratishkhedekar)

Shravana is an Indian nakshatra associated with a mythological sea-crature named Makara. The nakshatra is used by the Indian Vedic tradition,. Most of these names are roughly 3000 years old. They pre-date Hinduism but were taken over by it.

Etymology and History

What does the term mean, does it always have the same meaning - was it changed over time.

Makara is a sea-creature, sometimes resembling a crocodile, sometimes a huge fish, in many cases depicted with an elephant trunk. In some cases, this creature carries deity, for instance the river goddess Ganga or the sky god Varuna. Its representation in mythology resemble the many variants of the depiction of the creature that the Greeks named "Ketos" (Cetus) but the Makara-nakshatra in the Vedic tradition is a section of Capricornus, and the Vedic constellation is in Aquila.

Mythology

mnemonic tales and cultural significance

References

• References (general)