Hinduism

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Acarya

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Title for the leading teacher of a sect or head of a monastery

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Advaita

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Sankara's school of philosophy, which holds that there is only one ultimate reality, the indescribable Brahman, with which the Atman or self is identical.

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Alvars

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Twelve devotional poets South India whose contribution sparked the bhakti tradition.

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Artha

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Wealth and power, one the three classical aims in life.

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Aryans

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Population that invade northern india from the northwest in the second millennium BCE, becoming rulers over the indigenous Dravidian people.

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Asramas

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Four stages in life of an upper-class male: student, householder, forest dweller, and ascetic.

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Atman

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The individual self, held by Upanishadic and Vedantic thought to be identical with Brahman, the world-soul.

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Avatara

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A 'descent' or incarnation of a deity in earthly form.

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Ayurveda

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A system of traditional medicine in India, understood as a teaching transmitted from the sages.

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Bhakti

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Loving devotion to a deity, understanding the deity also as a gracious being who enters the world fro the benefit of humans.

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Brahma

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A creator god. But Brahma is the name of the world-soul, sometimes understood in impersonal terms; a brahmin is a member of the priestly class; and the brahmanas are texts regarding ritual.

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Darsana

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Seeing and being seen by the deity in the temple or by a holy teacher; the experience of beholding with faith.

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Davanagari

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The alphabet used to write Sanskrit and the northern Indian vernacular languages such as Hindi and Bengali.

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Dharma

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One's religious and social duty, including both righteousness and faith.

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Dipavali (Divali)

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October-Novermber festival when lamps are lit.

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Dravidians

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Population with roots in the Indian subcontinent before the Aryan invasion more than 3,000 years ago. Tamil is one of the Dravidian languages.

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Guru

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One's teacher.

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Holi

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March festival when one splashes colored powder or water on people one meets in the streets.

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Jnana

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Knowledge presented in the Bhagavad Gita along with action and devotion as one of the three avenues to liberation.

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Kama

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Sensual (not merely sexual) pleasure, as one of the three classical aims of life.

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Karma

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One's actions, whose cumulative result is held to have a determining effect on the quality of rebirth in future existences.

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Ksatriya

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A member of the warrior class in ancient Hindu society.

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Linga

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A conical or cylindrical stone column, sometimes considered phallic, symbolic of the god Siva.

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Mahabharata

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A very long epic poem, containing the Bhagavad Gita as one of its episodes.

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Mantra

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An expression of one or more syllables, chanted repeatedly as a focus of concentration or devotion.

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Moksa

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Liberation from the cycle of birth and death, listed as one of the three classical aims in life.

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Murti

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A form of personification in which divinity is manifested.

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Navaratri

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A September-October festival of nine nights' duration.

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Om

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A syllable chanted in meditation, among whose varying interpretations are that it represents ultimately reality, or the universe, or the relationship of the devotee to the deity.

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Prasada

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A gift from the deity, especially food that has been placed in the presence of the god's temple image, blessed, and returned to the devotee.

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Puja

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Ritual household worship of the deity, commonly involving oil lamps, incense, prayers, and food offerings.

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Puranas

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'Old tales', stories about deities that became important after the Vedic period.

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Rajanya

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The royal class in early Indian society after the Aryan conquest, which subsequently became known as the Ksatriya class.

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Ramayana

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An epic recounting the activity of Lord Rama, an incarnation of the god Visnu.

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Rsi

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A seer. The composer of the ancient Vedic hymns are viewed as rsis.

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Sadhu

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A holy man.

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Samnyasin

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The continuing cycle of rebirths.

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Sati

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The self-sacrificing devotion of a widow who throws herself onto the deceased husband's funeral pyre.

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Smrti

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'What is remembered', a body of ancient Hindu literature including the epics, puranas, and law codes formed after the sruti and passed down in written tradition.

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Sruti

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'What is heard', the sacred literature of the Vedic and Upanishadic period, recited orally by the brahmin priests for many centuries before being written down.

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Sudra

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A member of the lowest of the four major classes, with the status of 'servant' after the Aryan invasion of the Indian subcontinent, but in some cases enjoying prosperity in more recent centuries.

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Tantra

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An emphasis apart from the Vedic and brahminical tradition, which gained momentum from the fifth century onward, with an esoteric lineage and involving ritual and sometimes sexual practices not universally accepted.

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Tilaka

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A dot or mark on the forehead made with red or other colored powder.

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Trimurti

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The concept of viewing of the gods Brahma, Visnu, and Siva as one of the unity with three faces and three aspects.

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Upanayana

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The initiation of a young brahmin boy with ritual responsibility, in which he is given the cord to wear over his left shoulder and a mantra to recite and is sent to beg for food for the day.

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Upanisads

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Philosophical texts, in the form of reported conversations composed around the sixth century BCE and reflecting on the theory of Vedic ritual and the nature of knowledge.

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Vaisya

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In the ancient fourfold class structure of society, a member of the third or mercantile class.

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Vedas

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The four collections of hymns and ritual texts, constituting the oldest and most highly respected HIndu sacred literature. The hymns reflect the religion of the Aryans, who probably entered India from the northwest in the second millennium BCE.

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Yoga

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A pattern of practice and discipline, which can involve a philosophical system and mental concentration as well as physical posture exercises.

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Agni

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God of fire in the Vedas, who transmutes sacrificial offerings into food for the gods.

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Aryan

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The European tribes that settled in India in the second millennium BCE.

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Atman

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"Soul," the divine essence of every individual.

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Avidya

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"Ignorance," the primary factor that enmeshes living beings in the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

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Bhagavad-Gita

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"Song of God," a section of the epic Mahabharata that describes the ethical dilemma of Arjuna, who is torn between the demands of karma and dharma.

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Bhakti

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Selfless devotion to god.

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Brahman

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The ultimate reality described in the Upanishads.

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Brahmin

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The priestly caste of traditional Hinduism.

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Deva

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The gods of Hinduism.

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Devi

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The Goddess, who manifests in various female forms.

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Dharma

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"Duty," "Law," the occupational, social, and religious roles required of individuals as a result of their places in society.

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Dravidian

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Term coined by Western scholars for the indigenous inhabitants of India, who were displaced and conquered by the Aryans.

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Harijan

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"Children of God," term coined by Mahatma Gandhi for groups of Hindus traditionally viewed as being outside the caste system (commonly referred to as "untouchables".)

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Hindu

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An adherent to Hinduism.

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Indra

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Kings of the gods in the Vedic stories, and the paradigmatic warrior.

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Karma

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"Actions," which bring about concordant results.

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Kshatriya

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The caste whose members were traditionally warriors and rulers.

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Loka-samgraha

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"Upholding the World," the goal of the sacrifices enjoined by the Vedas.

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Maya

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"Magic" or "illusion," the creative power of Brahman that manifests as the phenomena of the world.

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Moksha

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"Release" from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

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Ramayana

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Epic story of the heroic deeds of Rama, believed by tradition to be an incarnation of the god Vishnu.

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Rishi

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"Seers" who revealed the Vedas.

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Rita

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Cosmic order, which is maintained by the gods.

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Samnyasin

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One who renounces the world in order to seek liberation from the cyclic existence.

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Samsara

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"Cyclic Existence," the beginning-less cycle of birth, death and rebirth in which ignorant beings are trapped.

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Sanatana-Dharma

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"Universal Truth," a term for Hinduism, implying that it is able to embrace the limited "truths" of other religions and philosophies.

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Shankara

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Most influential of traditional commentators of the Upanishads.

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Shiva

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God who exemplifies yogic practice, who will destroy the world at the end of the present cosmic cycle.

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Shudra

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The caste whose traditional duty was to serve the caste above them.

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Upanishads

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Mystical texts that speculate on the nature of the human existence and the ultimate reality.

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Vaishya

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The caste whose members traditionally were merchants and skilled artisans.

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Varna

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The four main social groupings of traditional Indian society (brahmins, kshatriyas, vaishnyas, and shudras).

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Veda

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The four early sacred texts of Hinduism, which describe the gods and rituals connected with them.

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Vedanta

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Tradition of commentary on the Upanishads.

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Vishnu

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God whose traditional role is to protected dharma.

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Yoga

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System of meditative cultivation involving physical and mental discipline.

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Vaishya

Back 86

The caste whose members traditionally were merchants and skilled artisans.

Front 87

Varna

Back 87

The four main social groupings of traditional Indian society (brahmins, kshatriyas, vaishnyas, and shudras).

Front 88

Veda

Back 88

The four early sacred texts of Hinduism, which describe the gods and rituals connected with them.

Front 89

Vedanta

Back 89

Tradition of commentary on the Upanishads.

Front 90

Vishnu

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God whose traditional role is to protected dharma.

Front 91

Yoga

Back 91

System of meditative cultivation involving physical and mental discipline.