Common Sanskrit Terms

ADVAITA
Non-duality; a school of Vedanta philosophy teaching the oneness of God, soul, and universe, whose chief exponent was Sankaracharya.

AGNIHOTRA
A Vedic sacrifice in which oblations are offered to Agni, the Fire-god.

AHAMKARA
Ego or "I-consciousness"; one of the functions of the inner organ. (See Antahkarana.)

AJNANA
A term of Vedanta philosophy meaning ignorance, individual or cosmic. According to Non-dualistic Vedanta it is responsible for the perception of multiplicity in the relative world and also for man's bondage and suffering.

AKASA
The first of the five material elements that constitute the universe; often translated as "space" or "eter". The four other elements are vayu (air), agni (fire), ap (water), and prithivi (earth).

ANANDA
Bliss.

ANANDAMAYAKOSA
The sheath of bliss. (see Kosa)

ANNAMAYAKOSA
The gross physical sheath. (see Kosa)

ANTAHKARANA
The innerorgan, comprising manas (mind), buddhi (intellect or determinative faculty), citta (pleasure-seeking faculty), and, ahamkara (ego).

ATHARVA-VEDA
One of the section of the Vedas. (see Vedas)

ATMABODDHA
(Lit., Self-Knowledge) The name of a Sanskrit work written by Sankaracharya.

ATMAN
The Self, or Soul; denotes also the Supreme Soul, which, according to Non-dualistic Vedanta, is one with the individual soul.

AVIDYA
A term of Vedanta philosophy meaning ignorance, individual or cosmic. (see Ajnana)

BHAGAVAD-GITA
A well-known Hindu scripture, comprising eighteen chapters of the Bhisma Parva of the Mahabharata.

BRAHMA
The Creator God; the First Person of the Hindu Trinity, the other two being Vishnu and Siva.

BRAHMACHARI
A celibate religious student who lives with his teacher and devotes himself to the practice of spiritual discipline.

BRAHMAJNANA
The knowledge of Brahman.

BRAHMALOKA
The plane of Brahma, roughly corresponding to the highest heaven of the dualistic religions, where fortunate souls repair after death and enjoy spiritual communion with the Personal God.

BRAHMAN
The Absolute; the Supreme Reality of Non-dualistic Vedanta.

BRAHMANAS
One of the two main sections of the Vedas. (see Vedas)

BRAHMA-SUTRA
An authoritative treatise on Vedanta philosophy ascribed to Vyasa. Same as Vedanta-sutras.

BRAHMIN
A member of the priestly caste, the highest caste in Hindu society.

BUDDHA
(Lit., The Enlightened One) The founder of Buddhism.

BUDDHI
The determinative faculty of the mind which makes decisions; sometimes translated as "intelect".(see Antahkarana)

CHARVAKA
The founder of the well-known materialistic school of Hindu philosophy.

CHIT
Consciousness.

CHITTA
The function of the inner organ which seeks for pleasurable objects. (see Antahkarana)

CODE OF MANU
A book on Hindu law by Manu.

DEVAS
(Lit., shining ones) The gods of Hindu mythology.

DHARMA
Righteousness, duty. The inner constitution of a thing, which governs its growth.

DURGA
The Divine Mother.

GAUDAPADA
A celebrated philosopher of Non-dualistic Vedanta whose principal work is a commentary on the Mandukya Upanisad.

GAUTAMA
The author of the Nyaya system of Hindu philosophy, or Indian Logic.

GOVINDA
A name of Sri Krishna.

GOVINDAPADA
The teacher of Sri Sankaracharya.

GUNA
According to Samkhya philosophy, Prakriti (Nature or matter), consist of three gunas -usually translated as 'qualities' -known as sattva, rajas, and tamas. Tamas stands for inertia or dullness; rajas, for activity or restlessness; sattva, for balance or righteousness.

GURU
Spiritual teacher.

INDRA
The king of the gods.

ISVARA
The Personal God. (See Saguna Brahman)

JAIMINI
The author of the Purva Mimamsa system of Hindu philosophy, which deals with the ritualistic portion of the Vedas.

JAPA
(See Mantra)

JIVA
(Lit., living being) The individual soul, which in essence is one with the Universal Soul.

JIIVANMUKTA
One enjoying Liberation while living in the body.

JNANA
Knowledge of reality.

JNANAKANDA
The part of the Vedas that teaches philosophical wisdom.

KAILAS
A peak of the Himalayas, regarded as the sacred abode of Siva.

KANADA
The author of the Vaisesika system of Hindu philosophy.

KAPILA
The author of the Samkhya system of Hindu philosophy.

KARIKA
A commentary or a philosophical, grammatical work in concise statements

KARMA
Action in general; duty; ritualistic worship.

KARMAKANDA
The part of the Vedas that deals with rituals and sacrifices.

KOSA
(Lit., sheath or covering) The following are the five kosas as described in Vedanta philosophy: (1) the annamayakosa, or gross physical sheath, made of and sustained by food; (2) the pranamayakosa, or vital sheath, consisting of the five pranas or vital forces; (3) the manomayakosa, or mental sheath; (4)the vijnanamayakosa, or sheath of intelligence; (5) the anandamayakosa, or sheath of bliss. These five sheaths cover the Soul, which is the innermost reality or the jiva and is untouched by the characteristics of the sheaths.

KRISHNA
An Incarnation of God whose life is given in the Bhagavata and in the Mahabharata.

KSATRIA
A member of the warrior caste.

MADANA
The God of earthly love.

MADHVA
The founder of the Dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy (A.D. 1199-1276).

MAHABHARATA
A famous Hindu Epic.

MAHADEVA
(Lit., the Great God) A name of Siva.

MANAS
The faculty of doubt and volition, sometimes translated as 'mind'; one of the functions of the inner organ. (See Antahkarana)

MANOMAYAKOSA
The sheath of the mind. (See Kosa)

MANTRA
Holy Sanskrit text; the sacred formula used in japa, or repetition of God's name. Also one of the two main sections of the Vedas. (See Vedas)

MANU
The celebrated law-giver of ancient India, who is supposed to be the author of the Manusamhita, or Code of Manu.

MAYA
A term of Vedanta philosophy denoting ignorance obscuring the vision of Reality; the cosmic illusion on account of which the One appears as the many, the Absolute as the relative.

MOKSA
Liberation.

NARAYANA
The Supreme Godhead of the Vaisnavas, or worshippers of Vishnu.

NIRGUNA BRAHMAN
The Supreme Godhead of the Vaisnavas, or worshippers of Vishnu.

NIRVANA
(Lit., blowing out, as a flame) Annihilation of desire, passion, and ego; Liberation, characterized by freedom and bliss.

NIRVIKALPASAMADHI
The highest state of samadhi, in which the aspirant realizes his total oneness with Brahman.

OM
The most sacred word of the Vedas; also written Aum. It is a symbol of both the personal God and the Absolute.

PARVATI
Daughter of king Himalaya and consort of Siva; a manifestation of Divine Mother.

PATANJALI
The author of the Yoga system of Hindu philosophy.

PRAKRTI
Primordial Nature; the material substratum of the creation, consisting of sattva, rajas, and tamas.

PRANA
The vital breath, which sustains life in a physical body; the primal energy or force, of which other physical forces are manifestations. In the books of Yoga, prana is described as having five modifications, according to its five different functions. These are: prana (the vital energy that controls the breath), apana(the vital energy that carries downward unassimilated food and drink), samana (the vital energy that carries nutrition all over the body), vyama (the vital energy that pervades the entire body), and udana (the vital energy by which the contents of the stomach are ejected through the mouth). The word Prana is also a name of the Cosmic Soul, endowed with activity.

PRANAMAYAKOSA
The vital sheath. (See Kosa)

PRARABDHA KARMA
Action done in a previous life which has begun to bear fruit in the present life.

PURANAS
Books of Hindu mythology.

PURUSA
(Lit., person) A term of Samkhya philosophy denoting the Conscious Principle. The universe evolves from the union of Prakriti (Nature) and Purusa. In Vedanta the world also denotes the Soul and the Absolute.

RAJAS
The principle of activity or restlessness. (See Guna)

RAJASIC
Pertaining to, or endowed with rajas.

RAMA
The hero of the Ramayana, regarded by the Hindus as a Divine Incarnation.

RAMAKRISHNA
A great saint of Bengal, regarded as a Divine Incarnation (A.D. 1836-1886).

RAMANUJA
A famous saint and philosopher of southern India, the founder of the school of Qualified Non-dualism (A. D. 1017-1137)

RAMAYANA
A famous Hindu epic.

RAVANA
The monster-king of Ceylon, who forcibly abducted Sita, the wife of Rama. His life and exploits are described in the Ramayana.

RIG-VEDA
One of the four Vedas. (See Vedas)

RISHI
A seer of Truth; a revealer of the wisdom of the Vedas.

SADHANANDA
A Vedantist philosopher, the author of Vedantasara, or The Essence of Vedanta, who lived probably during the middle of the fifteenth century.

SAGUNA BRAHMAN
(Lit., Brahman with attributes) The Absolute conceived as the Creator, Preserver, and Destroyer of the universe; corresponds to Isvara, or the Personal God.

SAMADHI
Ecstasy, trance, complete concentration, communion with God.

SAMA-VEDA
One of the four Vedas. (See Vedas)

SAMBHU
An epithet of Siva.

SAMHITA
A section of the Vedas. (See Vedas)

SAMKHYA
One of the six systems of Hindu philosophy, ascribed to Kapila.

SAMSARA
The world of change and becoming; the relative world.

SANATANA DHARMA
(Lit., Eternal Religion) The religion of the Hindus, formulated by the Rishis of the Vedas.

SANKARA
A name of Siva; also short for Sankaracharya.

SANKARACHARYA
The great philosopher of Non-dualistic Vedanta. (A.D. 788-820)

SANNYASA
The monastic life.

SANNYASI
A Hindu monk, who renounces the world in order to realize God.

SATTVA
The principle of balance or righteousness. (See Guna)

SAVIKALPA SAMADHI
Communion with God in which the distinction between subject and object is retained.

SISYA
Disciple.

SITA
The consort of Rama. Her life is described in Ramayana.

SHIVA
The Destroyer God; the Third Person of the Hindu Trinity, the other two being Brahma and Vishnu.

SMRITI
The law books, subsidiary to the Vedas, guiding the daily life and conduct of the Hindus.

SRUTI
The Vedas.

SUSUMNA
The hollow canal within the spinal column, through which the awakened spiritual energy rises.

TURYA
(Lit., the fourth) A name of the Transcendental Brahman, which both transcends and pervades the three states of waking, dream, and deep sleep.

UMA
A name of the Divine Mother; same as Parvati, the Consort of Siva.

UPADHI
A term of Vedanta philosophy denoting a limitation imposed upon the Self or upon Brahman through ignorance.

UPANISHADS
One of the sections of the Vedas, forming, with one or two exceptions, the concluding chapters of the Aranyakas and containing the Vedanta philosophy. (See Vedas) There are one hundred and eight Upanishads extant, of which eleven are the most important.

VAMADEVA
An epithet of Siva.

VEDANTA
(Lit., the conclusion of the Vedas) A system of philosophy ascribed to Vyasa, discussed mainly in the Upanishads, the Bhagavad-Gita and the Brahma Sutras.

VEDAS
The most sacred scriptures of the Hindus and the ultimate authority of the Hindu religion and philosophy. They were arranged by Vyasa into four books, namely, the Rig-Veda, the Yajur-Veda, the Sama-Veda, and the Atharva-Veda. According to orthodox Vedic scholars the Vedas consist of the Mantras and the Brahmanas. The Mantras include the Samhita, and the Brahmanas include the Aranyakas and the Upanishads.

VIJNANAMAYAKOSA
The sheath of intelligence. (See Kosa)

VIRAT
Consciousness limited or conditioned by the upadhi of the aggregate of gross bodies.

VISNU
(Lit., the All-pervading Spirit) A name of the Supreme Lord; the Preserver God, the Second Person of the Hindu Trinity, the other two being Brahma and Siva.

VISISTADVAITA
The philosophy of Qualified Non-dualism, a school of Vedanta philosophy teaching that individual souls and the universe are parts of Brahman; its chief exponent was Ramanuja.

VIVEKA
Philosophical discrimination.

VYASA
A celebrated sage, who is reputed to have arranged the Vedas in their present form; he is also believed to be the author of the Mahabharata, the eighteen Puranas, and the Brahma Sutras.

YAJUR-VEDA
One of the four Vedas. (See Vedas)

YOGA
Union of the individual soul and the Supreme Soul; the discipline by which such union is effected. The Yoga system of philosophy, ascribed to Patanjali, deals with the realisation of Truth through concentration of mind.