# हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha)

Canonical page: https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/hiranyagarbha

हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) is a Sanskrit word meaning a golden fetus, an epithet of Brahma, the author of the Rigveda hymn, 121, of a Vedanta teacher, of various other persons. Its 21 recorded definitions are grouped into 9 contexts, among them Brahmā / Creator God, Name for Specific Non-Deity Entities, Author / Teacher.

- **SLP1:** `hiraRyagarBa`  **IAST:** hiraṇyagarbha  **Devanagari:** हिरण्यगर्भ
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiranyagarbha
- **Declensions:** 48 forms — https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/hiranyagarbha/declensions.md
- **Other headwords romanised the same way:** हिरण्यगर्भा (hiraṇyagarbhā)

## Meanings by context

### Brahmā / Creator God (9 definitions)
- an epithet of Brahma  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > N. of Brahmā (so called as born from a golden egg formed out of the seed deposited in the waters when they were produced as the first creation of the Self-existent; according to Manu-smṛti (Title) i, 9, this seed became a golden egg, resplendent as the sun, in which the Self-existent Brahma was born as Brahmā the Creator, who is therefore regarded as a manifestation of the Self-existent, Ṛg-veda (Title) x, 121 ), Ṛg-veda (Title); Atharva-veda (Title); Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa (Title) &c. ( cf. Religious Thought and Life in India, also called ’Brāhmanism and Hindūism,’ by Sir M. Monier-Williams (Title) 14 &c.) [ ID=263208 ]
- Brahmā  
  *Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > हिरण्य (hiraṇya) गर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 976 ] हिरण्य (hiraṇya) गर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) m. ( - र्भः (-rbhaḥ) ) BRAHMĀ. E. हिरण्य (hiraṇya) gold, गर्भं (garbhaṃ) embryo; or the mundane egg floating on the water at creation, of that metal, or of similar colour, from which the deity issued, according to some legends. [ ID=44300 ]
- Brahma  
  *Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 901-b ] हिरण्य - गर्भ (hiraṇya-garbha) ( र्भः ) ((rbhaḥ)) 1. m. Brahmā. [ ID=44128 ]
- 1. A name of Brahman. 2. A name of Vishnu. 3. The soul invested by the subtle body.  
  *Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 833-18 ] हिरण्य - गर्भ (hiraṇya-garbha) m. 1. a name of Brahman (m.); 2. a name of Vishṇu; 3. the soul invested by the subtle body ( सूक्ष्मशरीर (sūkṣmaśarīra) ). [ ID=43316 ]
- 1. Brahma. 2. Vishnu. 3. The soul invested by the subtle body.  
  *Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > हिरण्य (hiraṇya) गर्भ (garbha) (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 834-a ] हिरण्य (hiraṇya) गर्भ (garbha) (hiraṇyagarbha) m. ( - र्भः (-rbhaḥ) ) 1. BRAHMĀ. 2. VISHṆU. 3. The soul invested by the subtile body, “ सूक्ष्मशरीर ” (“sūkṣmaśarīra”). E. हिरण्य (hiraṇya) gold, गर्भ (garbha) embryo; or the mundane egg floating on the water at creation, of that metal, or of similar colour, from which the deity issued, according to some legends. [ ID=46987 ]
- an epithet of Brahman  
  *Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 663 ] हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) m. golden womb or fetus, E. of Brahman. [ ID=39729 ]
- 1. The golden child or primordial creator. 2. An epithet of Brahman.  
  *Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 286-b ] hiraṇya-garbhá, m. fruit or scion or child of the gold ( i. e. of the golden egg, 57 3 ), Hiranyagarbha or Gold-scion, name of a cosmogonic power, the personal Brahmán, 91 16. [ ID=4908 ]
- Brahman  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 324-1 ] Hiraṇyagarbha 1 (“the golden fetus”) = Brahmán. § 4 (Anukram.): I, 1, 59.—§ 599 (Jayadrathavadhap.): VII, 94, 3479 ( brahmasūtreṇa badhnāmi kavacaṃ tava, pārthiva| H°eṇa yathā baddhaṃ Viṣṇor purā raṇe ).—§ 621 (Rājadh.): XII, 43, 1513 (Kṛṣṇa identified with H.).—§ 705 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 303, 11231 (with various names in the different philosophical systems); 309, †11506 (instructed Vasiṣṭha), 11511 (do.).—§ 717 b (Nārāyaṇīya): XII, 340 θ, 12914 ( Brahmā ), (ι), 12933 ( °o bhagavān eṣa chandasi suṣṭutaḥ|so 'haṃ yogaratir, brahmán, yogaśāstreṣu śabditaḥ, says Nārāyaṇa); 343 χ, 13255 ( °o dyutimān yo eṣa chandasi stutaḥ|yogaiḥ sampūjyate nityaṃ sa evāhaṃ bhuvi smṛtaḥ, says Kṛṣṇa); 348, 13470 (born from the primeval lotus, which sprang from [the navel of] Aniruddha); 350, 13703 (promulgator of the Yoga system, read with B. yogasya instead of lokasya ).—§ 730 (Ānuśāsanik.): XIII, 14, 610 ( °pramukhā- devāḥ ). [ ID=4508 ]
- Brahma  
  *The Purana Index*
  > हिरण्यगर्भ (hiraṇyagarbha) [Printed book page 3-771 ] Hiraṇyagarbha (I) — is Brahmā. Br. III. 1. 35; 65. 23. [ ID=17386 ]

### Name for Specific Non-Deity Entities (3 definitions)
- of a flamingo  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a flamingo, Hitopadeśa (Title) [ ID=263213 ]
- name of a river  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H3B) [Printed book page 1299,3] हिरण्य (hiraṇya) — गर्भा (—garbhā) ( आ (ā) ), f. N. of a river, Catalogue(s) [Cologne Addition] (Title) [ ID=263215 ]
- an epithet of a Linga  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > हिरण्य (hiraṇya) — गर्भ (—garbha) n. ( prob. ) N. of a Liṅga, in the same place [Cologne Addition] (Title) [ ID=263216 ]

### Author / Teacher (2 definitions)
- The author of the Rigveda hymn 10.121  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > N. of the author of the hymn Ṛgveda x, 121 (having the patr. Prājāpatya), Anukramaṇikās (Literary category) [ ID=263209 ]
- of a Vedanta teacher  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a Vedānta teacher, Tattvasamāsa (Title) [ ID=263210 ]

### Viṣṇu / Kṛṣṇa / Vāsudeva (2 definitions)
- an epithet of Vishnu  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of Viṣṇu, Mahābhārata (Title) [ ID=263212 ]
- Vasudeva as the author of the Yoga Shastra  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Hiraṇyagarbha (II) — is Vāsudeva; 1 as the author of Yogaśāstra. 2 [ Footnote: 1) Vi. VI. 7. 56.] [ Footnote: 2) Ib. II. 13. 44.] [ ID=17387 ]

### Adjectival Use (1 definition)
- relating to Hiranya-garbha or Brahma  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > हिरण्य (hiraṇya) — गर्भ (—garbha) mfn. relating to Hiraṇya-garbha or Brahmā, Indische Studien by A. Weber [Cologne Addition] (Title) [ ID=263217 ]

### Golden Embryo / Fetus (Literal) (1 definition)
- a golden fetus  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H3) [Printed book page 1299,3] हिरण्य (hiraṇya) — गर्भ (—garbha) m. a golden fetus, Catalogue(s) [Cologne Addition] (Title) [ ID=263207 ]

### Name for Various Persons (1 definition)
- of various other persons  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of various other persons, Catalogue(s) [Cologne Addition] (Title) [ ID=263211 ]

### Soul with Subtle Body (Philosophical) (1 definition)
- the soul invested with the subtle body  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (in phil. ) the soul invested with the Sūkṣma-śarīra or subtle body (= सूत्रा (sūtrā) त्मन् (tman), प्रा (prā) णा (ṇā) त्मन् (tman) ), Vedāntasāra (Title) [ ID=263214 ]

### Śiva (1 definition)
- 1. An epithet of Shiva. 2. An epithet of Vishnu.  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > Hiraṇyagarbha 2 = Śiva (1000 names 1 ). Do. 3 = Viṣṇu (1000 names). [ ID=4509 ]

## Sources

Definitions from Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Index to the Names in the Mahabharata; Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary; Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899); Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary; The Purana Index; Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary.
Text from the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, University of Cologne.

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