English |
ITRANS |
Sanskrit |
Meaning |
R |
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raja yoga |
rAja |
raj |
Raja Yoga (rAja = king, i.e. royal) is the yoga of Patanjali, as written about in 'The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'. It is defined as 'the system of concentration and meditation based on ethical discipline'. It is also called ashtanga (aShTanga) yoga, meaning 'eightfold'. |
rajas |
rajas |
rjs! |
the second of the three guna. Associated with animals and activity, emotions, desire, selfishness and passion. Adjective - rajassic or rajassika.. See guna. |
S |
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sadguru |
sadguru |
sÌ�é |
the ultimate guru - one's own Self (sat = true, real). See guru. |
sadhana |
sAdhanA |
saxna |
literally 'leading straight to a goal'; refers to the spiritual disciplines followed as part of a 'path' toward Self-realisation. See also chatushtaya sampatti. |
saguna |
saguNa |
sgu[ |
'with qualities', usually used to refer to Brahman personified as the creator, Iswara, to symbolise the most spiritual aspect of the world of appearances. See Brahman, Isvara, nirguna. |
sahaja sthiti |
sahaja sthiti |
shj iSwit |
Once Self-realisation has been attained, there is full and lasting knowledge of the Self. 'sahaja' means 'state' but this stage of samadhi is not a state - it is our true nature. It is permanent (sthiti meaning 'steady' or 'remaining'), unlike the earlier stages of samadhi. See nirvikalpa, samadhi, savikalpa, vikalpa. |
sakshibhava |
sAkshibhAva |
saiKzÉav |
'being or becoming' (bhAva) a 'witness' (sAkshin). |
sakshin |
sAkshin |
sai]n! |
seeing, observing, a 'witness', ego or subject. |
samadhana |
samAdhAna |
smaxan |
concentration; one of the 'six qualities' that form part of Shankara's chatushtaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti. |
samadhi |
samAdhi |
smaix |
the state of total peace and stillness achieved during deep meditation - see vikalpa, savikalpa samadhi, nirvikalpa samadhi and sahaja sthiti. |
samhita |
saMhitA |
s<ihta |
a philosophical or religious text constructed according to certain rules of sound. See Astavakra, gita. |
sampradaya |
sampradAya |
sMàday |
the tradition or established doctrine of teaching from master to pupil through the ages. |
samsara |
saMsAra |
s<sar |
the continual cycle of death and rebirth, transmigration etc. to which we are supposedly subject in the phenomenal world until we become enlightened and escape. |
samshaya |
saMshaya |
s<zy |
uncertainty, irresolution, hesitation or doubt. See manana. |
sanatana |
sanAtana |
snatn |
literally 'eternal' or 'permanent'; in conjunction with dharma, this refers to our essential nature. The phrase 'sanatana dharma' is also used to refer to the traditional Hindu practices or as a synonym for 'Hinduism'. See dharma. |
sanchita |
saMchita |
s<ict |
one of the three types of sanskara, literally meaning 'collected' or 'piled up'; that sanskara, which has been accumulated from past action but has still not manifest. See agamin, prarabdha, sanskara. |
sanskara |
saMskAra |
s<Skar |
Whenever an action is performed with the desire for a specific result (whether for oneself or another), sanskara is created for that person. These accumulate and determine the situations with which we will be presented in the future and will influence the scope of future actions. See agamin, karma, prarabdha, sanchita and karma. |
sanyasa |
saMnyAsa |
s<Nyas |
the final stage of the traditional Hindu spiritual path; involves complete renunciation. The word literally means 'putting or throwing down, laying aside'; i.e. becoming a professional ascetic. One who does so is called a sanyasin (saMnyAsin). See brahmacharya, grihasta, vanaprastha. |
sat |
sat |
st! |
existence, reality, truth. See ananda, chit, satchitananda. |
satchitananda |
sat - chit - Ananda or sachchidAnanda |
si½danNd |
the oft used word to describe our true nature, translated as being-consciousness-bliss. |
satsanga |
satsa~Nga |
sTs¼ |
association with the good; keeping 'good company'; most commonly used now to refer to a group of people gathered together to discuss (Advaita) philosophy. |
sattva |
sattva |
sÅv |
the highest of the three guna. Associated with stillness, peace, truth, wisdom, unselfishness and spirituality. Adjective - sattwic or sattvika. See guna. |
sattvapati |
sattvApatti |
sÅvapiÄ |
the (4th) stage on a spiritual path, after which there is no longer any need for effort to be made (so-called because there is now an abundance of sattva). Apatti means 'entering into a state or condition'. |
savikalpa |
savikalpa |
sivkLp |
(referring to samadhi) still 'with' doubts about one's identity with the one Self. See nirvikalpa, samadhi, vikalpa. |
shabda |
shabda |
zBd |
scriptural or verbal testimony. See pramana, nyaya prasthana, prasthana-traya, sruti, smriti. |
shama |
shama |
zm |
literally tranquillity, absence of passion but more usually translated as mental discipline or self-control; one of the 'six qualities' that form part of Shankara's chatushtaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti. |
Shankara |
shaMkara |
z<kr |
8th Century Indian philosopher responsible for firmly establishing the principles of Advaita. |
Shankaracharya |
shaMkarAchArya |
z<kracayR |
The title given to one of the four teachers (see acharya) following the tradition in India established by Shankara (see Shankara). |
shraddha |
shraddhA |
ïÏa |
faith, trust or belief (in the absence of direct personal experience); one of the 'six qualities' that form part of Shankara's chatushtaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti. |
shravana |
shravaNa |
ïv[ |
hearing the truth from a sage or reading about it in such works as the Upanishads. See manana, nididhyasana. |
shruti |
shruti |
ïuit |
refers to the Vedas, incorporating the Upanishads. Literally means 'hearing' and refers to the belief that the books contain orally transmitted, sacred wisdom from the dawn of time. See nyaya prasthana, pramana, smriti. |
shubhecha |
shubhechChA |
zu-eCDa |
'good desire'; the initial impulse that start us on a spiritual search. shubha means 'auspicious', 'good (in a moral sense)' and ichChA means 'wish', 'desire'. |
smriti |
smRRiti |
Sm&it |
refers to material 'remembered' and subsequently written down. In practice, it refers to books of law (in the sense of guidance for living) which were written and based upon the knowledge in the Vedas, i.e. the so-called dharma-shAstras - Manu,Yajnavalkya, Parashara. In the context of nyaya prasthana, it is used to refer to just one of these books - the Bhagavad Gita. See pramana, nyaya prasthana, sruti. |
srishti-drishti-vada |
sRRiShTidRRiShTivAda |
s&iò�iòvad |
the theory that the world is separate from ourselves, having been created (by God or big-bang) and evolving independently of ourselves. See also adhyasa, drishti-srishti-vada. |
sthitaprajna |
sthitapraj~na |
iSwtà} |
meaning one 'standing' (sthita) in 'wisdom' (praj~nA); a man of steadiness and calm, firm in judgement, contented. The name given by the Bhagavad Gita to one who is Self-realised. |
sushupti |
suShupti |
su;uiÝ |
the deep-sleep state of consciousness. The 'sleeper ego' is called prajna (prAj~na). See jagrat, prajna, svapna, turiya. |
svadharma |
svadharma |
SvxmR |
one's own dharma. See dharma. |
svapna |
svapna |
Svß |
'sleep' in general, but more specifically the dream state of consciousness. The 'dreamer ego' is called taijasa. See also, jagrat, sushupti, taijasa, tuiriya. |