THE PURANIC LIBRARY / A REFERENCE GUIDE

Eighteen great collections.
A library of worlds.

The Mahapuranas weave cosmology, divine narratives, genealogies, sacred geography, ritual, ethics and liberation into extensive living textual traditions.

Meet the eighteenWhat makes a Purana?

01 / HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE

Not eighteen
versions of one book.

Each Mahapurana is a large composite work with its own textual history. Titles name traditions of transmission, not single modern volumes with identical contents everywhere. Editions, recensions and chapter arrangements can differ.

The Bhagavata Purana 12.7 gives ten characteristics of a major Purana and then names eighteen works. The same passage notes that some teachers summarise the characteristics as five.

SOURCE TRANSPARENCY

This reference uses the owner-supplied Gita Press Bhagavata edition for the list and characteristics. Individual stories continue to identify the exact Purana and edition they follow.

02 / TEN CHARACTERISTICS

What a Mahapurana
sets in motion.

Bhagavata Purana 12.7.9–20 expands the Puranic field beyond “old stories.” Transliteration and compact descriptions are provided as a reading map.

Sarga
Primary creation: the emergence of cosmic principles and elements.
Visarga
Secondary creation: living forms and embodied worlds unfold.
Vritti
The means by which living beings sustain life.
Raksha
Divine protection, including manifestations that restore order.
Manvantara
The administration and distinctive beings of a Manu's age.
Vamsha
Genealogies of gods, sages and royal lines.
Vamshanucharita
Accounts of figures who continue those lineages.
Samstha
Dissolution, described in several modes and scales.
Hetu
The embodied being and the causal entanglement of ignorance and action.
Apashraya
The ultimate ground that remains through changing states and names.

03 / THE EIGHTEEN MAHAPURANAS

A reference
without ranking.

The order follows Bhagavata Purana 12.7.23–24. Short notes are orientation, not summaries of every section.

  1. 01

    Brahma Purana

    Cosmology, genealogies, sacred places and narratives associated with creation and pilgrimage.

  2. 02

    Padma Purana

    An extensive collection spanning creation, sacred geography, devotion, pilgrimage and religious observance.

  3. 03

    Vishnu Purana

    Creation, cosmic cycles, dynasties and Vishnu-centred theology arranged in six books.

    King Prithu & Mother Earth
  4. 04

    Shiva Purana

    Shaiva cosmology, worship and narratives of Shiva's household and manifestations.

    The Infinite Shiva LingaShiva & AndhakasuraShiva & ParvatiGaneshaKartikeya
  5. 05

    Linga Purana

    Shaiva teachings centred on the linga, with cosmology, sacred observance and divine narratives.

  6. 06

    Garuda Purana

    A wide-ranging Vaishnava work including cosmology, worship, ethics, rites and teachings about death and afterlife.

  7. 07

    Narada Purana

    Devotion, worship, sacred places and summaries that guide readers through wider sacred literature. This is a distinct Mahapurana; the site’s Narada life reader follows the Bhagavata account.

    Narada reader · source distinction
  8. 08

    Bhagavata Purana

    Twelve skandhas centred on devotion and the manifestations of Vishnu, especially Krishna.

    NaradaDhruvaGajendraVarahaPrahladaVamanaKaliyaSudamaAjamila
  9. 09

    Agni Purana

    An encyclopaedic collection addressing ritual, iconography, polity, literature, medicine and other fields.

  10. 10

    Skanda Purana

    A vast Shaiva corpus especially rich in sacred geography, pilgrimage traditions and regional mahatmyas.

    Markandeya & ShivaSacred placesFestivals
  11. 11

    Bhavishya Purana

    A layered collection whose title evokes future matters and whose received material spans ritual, observance and later historical horizons.

  12. 12

    Brahmavaivarta Purana

    A devotional work giving major attention to Krishna, Radha, Prakriti and Ganesha.

  13. 13

    Markandeya Purana

    Cosmology, dharma and narrative teachings, including the Devi Mahatmya's celebrated Goddess cycle.

    Mahamaya, Madhu & KaitabhaMahishasuraShumbha–Nishumbha
  14. 14

    Vamana Purana

    A Puranic collection whose present form contains substantial Shaiva sacred geography alongside the name of Vamana.

  15. 15

    Varaha Purana

    Teachings voiced through the Varaha setting, with Vaishnava worship, sacred places and observances.

  16. 16

    Matsya Purana

    Flood narrative, creation, dynasties, temple and image traditions, rites and sacred geography.

    Matsya and the cosmic flood
  17. 17

    Kurma Purana

    Teachings framed through Kurma, integrating devotion, cosmology, yoga and accounts of sacred places.

  18. 18

    Brahmanda Purana

    Cosmology, cosmic geography, dynasties and the Lalita Mahatmya within its received textual tradition.

    Lalita TripurasundariLalita & Bhandasura

04 / READ WITH CONTEXT

Four questions
to carry with you.

  1. 01

    Which Purana and which section? A title alone rarely locates a narrative precisely.

  2. 02

    Which edition or recension? Chapter order and details can differ.

  3. 03

    Who is speaking to whom? Puranic teaching is often nested inside several conversations.

  4. 04

    Is this text, commentary or editorial reflection? This site labels those layers separately.

SOURCE-GUIDED READING

Read the text, not just the title

Explore completed pages alongside their textual settings. Compare accounts carefully rather than treating every tradition as one version.

Sources and edition notes →