devaprasnam

English

Alternative forms

• deva prasnam

Etymology

Transliteration of Sanskrit देवप्रश्नम् (devapraśnam).

Noun

devaprasnam (plural devaprasnams)

1. (Hinduism) An astrological ritual carried out to interpret the will of the gods.
   • 1992, Kunissery Ramakrishnier Vaidyanathan, Sri Krishna, the Lord of Guruvayur:

     A deva prasnam conducted in July 1975 revealed that the image had been consecrated by a saint from Tirupati more than one thousand years ago.

   • 2006, Pakistan & Gulf Economist, volume 25, page 109:

     The temple has been in the news since June when astrologer Panicker maintained that the ‘devaprasnam’ had revealed to him that the temple had been ‘defiled’ two decades ago.

   • 2012 April 30, Jake Halpern, “The Secret of the Temple”, in The New Yorker:

     As the citizens of Trivandrum debated what to do about Vault B, the royal family and officials from the temple invited a group of astrologers to hold a four-day ceremony, known as a Devaprasnam, in order to ascertain the will of the deity.