What is Itihasa and Purana?

By sruti is meant the Veda. By smrti is meant the Dharma-shastra (like Manusmriti, Yājñavalkya Smṛti and so on).

But What does Itihasa and Purana means?

Many of the translators or people who have not studied Hindu tradition in a pre-requisite disciplic succession has contributed to the significant confusion of the masses on these terms which is hurting the believers themselves because of their subconscious or conscious acceptance of such terms by these people.

In Sanskrit Non-Translatables, a much recommended book which explains the inefficiency of English to capture the true meaning of Sanskrit terminology, Sri Satyanarayan Babaji Maharaj has explained what is Itihasa and Purana. Unlike other translators who lack the traditional training, Sri Satyanarayan Babaji Maharaj comes from a proper disciplic succession and understands these concepts from within the tradition itself rather than imposing external frameworks on them.

Itihasa is not History

History is knowledge relating to past events connected to a particular people, country, period or persons, usually written as a chronological account. Itihasa also contains historical facts but are neither merely the books of history, nor tales of fantasy.

The word itihasa etymologically means "so it has been". The word itihasa can be broken down into three units: iti, ha and asa. Iti means 'thus', ha means 'was', and asa means 'expansion'; thus, Itihasa means "Expansion/Elaboration of an incident which happened in the past", this is what called poetic license. This etymological breakdown itself reveals something crucial - itihasa was never meant to be a dry chronological record. The very word tells us it is an elaboration, an expansion of what happened, crafted with a purpose beyond mere documentation.

There are two itihasas: Mahabharata and Ramayana. Maharshi Vedvyasa and Valmiki has respectively used historical facts for pedagogical purposes.

Puranas are not Myth

Similarly, Puranas are regarded in Hinduism among the fourteen or eighteen branches of traditional knowledge. Puranas are vaster in time spanning numerous kalpas and their narrative is not linear in time as in the case of history. They narrate incidents from different yugas to spiritually enlighten a person and have information related to geography, astronomy, political theory, culture, economics, philosophy and several other streams of knowledge and not merely reporting historical facts.

The renowned etymologist Yaska, in his work Nirukta (111.19) has defined 'Purana' as pura navam bhavati which means that anything old which becomes new is known as 'Purana'. Thus although the Puranas and Itihasas narrate very old incidents, they are also new in the sense that the principles illustrated by them are eternal and ever-applicable in a person's life. This is the key difference - history becomes outdated as new events occur, but Puranas remain fresh because the principles they teach don't expire.

The Indian Conception

The Indian conceptions of Puranas and Itihasas can be regarded as an interpretative account of past events in a cultural or a spiritual context. They are not trying to do what history does, and calling them "mythology" misses the point entirely.

Part of Vedic Literature - The 5th Veda

We should know that they are part of Vedic literature, literally called the 5th Veda. Now, even these western indologists will agree that the purpose of the Vedas are not to describe history. The Vedas deal with principles, with knowledge, with understanding reality - not with recording events. Since Itihasas and Puranas are extensions of the Vedas themselves, they naturally serve the same function. But there's a practical problem.

The Vedas have restrictions and of course Vedas are very terse to understand themselves. Given the very high standards for studying the Vedas, since not everyone can do it, thus Itihasa and Purana's job is to bring the message of the Vedas for the non-experts.

Why Stories? The Question of Accessibility

For those who cannot study the Vedas directly, Itihasa/Purana brings accessibility to the masses who are basically unqualified for the Vedas. Since stories can be remembered easily rather than an abstract Upanishadic mantra, and it contains the essence of the Vedic knowledge, therefore Itihasas and Puranas are written.

So Vyasa takes historical facts and utilizes that history to present Vedic knowledge. The history is the vehicle, not the destination.

The Same Story, Different Ways - Proof of Intent

Here's something that proves this pedagogical purpose conclusively: sometimes you will read the same story is explained in different manner in different Puranas. Because even the Puranas are written for different adhikari people. Because they will have liking for story in this manner, other svabhava of people have liking of story in other manner.

The intention of the author is not to tell you the story but to come to your level, so Vyasa has done that. Same story is told differently to the child and to the grown up man. The purpose is to cater everybody.

Important Note:
The Matsya Purāṇa highlights the distinction between history and Purāṇa:

“A history is called Purāṇa if it has the five defining characteristics in it (Sarga, Pratisarga, etc.); otherwise, it is called Akhyāna.”
— Matsya Purāṇa 53.64

Śrīdhara Swāmī further clarifies these terms in his commentary on Viṣṇu Purāṇa 3.6.1, as cited by Babaji:

“The learned define an Akhyāna as the narration of an event witnessed by the speaker, while an Upākhyāna is the narration of an event that is heard about but not witnessed by the speaker.”

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Recommended Reading

Here are some key resources to further explore Itihāsa, Purāṇa, and their Vedic context:

• Sanskrit Non-Translatables
  Śrī Satyanarayan Babaji Maharaj
  Read online

• Tattva Sandarbha
  Śrī Satyanarayan Babaji Maharaj
  Read online

These texts provide foundational perspectives and detailed analysis relevant to the topics discussed in this series.

These works offer valuable insights into the foundational concepts discussed in this series.

This series on Itihāsa and Purāṇa aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of their Vedic and pedagogical significance as part of our spiritual tradition.