Wiktionary
n. (context Hinduism English) A ritual of sacrifice to the Devas.
Wikipedia
'''Yajna ''' ( IAST: ) literally means "sacrifice, devotion, worship, offering", and refers in Hinduism to any ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras. Yajna has been a Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature called Brahmanas, as well as Yajurveda. The tradition has evolved from offering oblations and libations into sacred fire to symbolic offerings in the presence of sacred fire ( Agni).
Yajna rituals-related texts have been called the Karma-kanda (ritual works) portion of the Vedic literature, in contrast to Jnana-kanda (knowledge) portion contained in the Vedic Upanishads. The proper completion of Yajna-like rituals was the focus of Mimansa school of Hindu philosophy. Yajna have continued to play a central role in a Hindu's rites of passage, such as weddings. Modern major Hindu temple ceremonies, Hindu community celebrations, or monastic initiations may also include Yajna vedic rites, or alternatively be based on agamic rituals.
Yajna or Yajneshwara ("Lord of Yajna") is mentioned as an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu in the Bhagavata Purana. As Yajna, Vishnu is the embodiment of the Hindu sacrifice ritual or Yajna. He was also the Indra (king of the gods) of the Svayambhuva Manvantara, era of Svayambhuva Manu.
Usage examples of "yajna".
In a flutelike voice, he sang of the sacred writings, or Vedas, composed well before the first millennium bc, and of the catalogue of magical yajnas, sacrificial formulas, mantras, and rituals that the Vedic religion embodied, and of the many schools, sects, and religions that had developed through the centuries: Sankhya, Yoga, Vedanta, Vaishnavas, Shaivas, Shak-tas, all of which were preached and practised under the separate canopies of Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, which in turn took their impetus from the original Vedic, changing and refining the basic precepts into a multiplicity of separate doctrines : Karma, avatar, samsara, dharma, trimurti, bhakti, maya.
In a flutelike voice, he sang of the sacred writings, or Vedas, composed well before the first millennium bc, and of the catalogue of magical yajnas, sacrificial formulas, mantras, and rituals that the Vedic religion embodied, and of the many schools, sects, and religions that had developed through the centuries: Sankhya, Yoga, Vedanta, Vaishnavas, Shaivas, Shak-tas, all of which were preached and practised under the separate canopies of Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, which in turn took their impetus from the original Vedic, changing and refining the basic precepts into a multiplicity of separate doctrines : Karma, avatar, samsara, dharma, trimurti, bhakti, maya.