Vayu Purana
Also known as: Vayu Purana (Vayaviya), Vāyu Purāṇa, Vayaviya Purana


A Shaiva-leaning Mahapurana presenting cosmogony, genealogies, ritual norms, sacred geography, and time cycles. It arranges cosmic and royal histories with tirtha lore, vrata prescriptions, and Purāṇic lists.
Description
The Vayu Purana is a major Purāṇic compendium attributed to revelatory discourse of Vāyu, the Wind deity. Its contents conform to the classic five-fold Purāṇa schema: creation and re-creation of the cosmos (sarga, pratisarga), genealogies of gods and kings (vamśa), manvantara cycles, and dynastic chronicles. Strongly Shaiva in orientation yet ecumenical, it preserves myths of Śiva, ViṣŇu, and Brahmā alongside detailed sacred geography (tīrtha-mahātmya) of sites such as Prayāga and Vārāṇasī. The text also outlines rites, vows, and calendrical observances and catalogs yugas, kalpas, and cosmographic structures like Meru and Jambūdvīpa. Surviving in multiple recensions, its language and content reflect long editorial growth from early centuries CE through the medieval period.
Historiography
Known from divergent recensions (often labeled Vayu and Vayaviya), the work exhibits layered composition and regional tirtha expansions. It shares extensive matter with Brahmanda Purana, suggesting textual borrowing or common sources. Medieval Shaiva redactions shaped parts of its current form, and some traditions report assimilation of a Vayaviya recension into the Śiva Purana. Modern critical use relies on Sanskrit manuscripts and the Tagare MLBD translation, while catalogues and indices map variant chapterings and verse counts.
Date Notes
Core layers are often considered among the earlier Mahapurana strata; substantial redaction over centuries. Some recensions circulate as Vayaviya and share material with Brahmanda Purana.
Major Characters
- Vayu
- Shiva
- Brahma
Myths
- Cosmogony and the Cycles of Time
- Genealogies of Gods, Rishis, and Kings
- Ritual Duties and Sacred Geography
Facts
- Classed among the Mahapuranas with a notably Shaiva orientation.
- Conforms to the Purāṇa-panchalakshana: sarga, pratisarga, vamsha, manvantara, vamshanucharita.
- Presents detailed cosmology including kalpas, yugas, and the structure of lokas and dvipas.
- Preserves extensive dynastic genealogies of the solar and lunar lines.
- Includes major tirtha-mahatmyas, especially of Prayaga and Kashi.
- Contains rites and vratas with calendrical observances and gifting norms.
- Shares substantial material with Brahmanda Purana; the two are textually close.
- Manuscripts attest multiple recensions, often labeled Vayu and Vayaviya.
- Frequently cited as one of the earlier strata among Purana compositions.
- Links Vayu thematically to heroic figures Hanuman and Bhima.