Dictionary of common Sanskrit spiritual words
rAga - sAMkyha

raga

any feeling or passion but especially vehement desire; interest in, attachment. Shankara differentiates this from kAma: rAga is attachment to something one already has whereas kAma is wanting something one doesn’t have. rAga-dveSha is love-hatred.

rahita

deserted by, separated or free from, deprived of.

raja

literally “king or sovereign,” as in rAja yoga (or aShTA~Nga yoga) of Patanjali, where it is usually translated as “royal yoga.”

rajas

the second of the three guNa. Associated with animals and activity, emotions, desire, selfishness and passion. Adjective – rajassic (Eng.); rAjasa or rAjasika (Sansk.) See guna.

Ramanuja

founder of the vishiShTAdvaita school of philosophy.

rasa

taste (one of the tanmAtra-s or five subtle senses).

rina

obligation, duty or debt, as in AchArya RRiNa – the obligation one has to one’s teacher to pass on that knowledge to others.

rishi

author or singer of sacred Vedic hymns but now more generally used to refer to a saint or Sage.

rupa

form, outward appearance (one of the tanmAtra-s or five subtle senses).

sadguru

the ultimate guru – one’s own Self (sat = true, real). See guru.

sadhaka

a seeker or, more pedantically, a worshipper.

sadhana

refers to the spiritual disciplines followed as part of a “path” toward Self-realisation. See also chatushtaya sampatti.

sadhu

a sage, saint, holy man; literally leading straight to the goal, hitting the mark.

sadhya

(in logic, that which is) to be concluded, proved or demonstrated.

saguna

“with qualities.” The term is usually used to refer to brahman personified as the creator, Ishvara, to symbolise the most spiritual aspect of the world of appearances. See Brahman, Isvara, nirguna.

sahaja sthiti

Once Self-realization 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.

sajati

literally belonging to the same caste or tribe; similar or homogeneous.

sakshatkara

evident or intuitive perception, realization.

sakshin

a witness, the ego or subject as opposed to the object (also sAkShi or sAkShI).

sakshibhava

being or becoming (bhAva) a “witness” (sAkShin).

sakshya

visible (to); testimony, evidence; that which is witnessed (by the witness). (Also sAkShyam.)

sama

same, equal, similar; neutral, indifferent; impartial.

samadhana

contemplation, profound meditation; more usually translated as concentration; one of the “six qualities” that form part of Shankara’s chatuShTaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti, shamadi shatka sampatti.

samadhi

the state of total peace and stillness achieved during deep meditation. Several “stages” are defined – see vikalpa, savikalpa samadhi, nirvikalpa samadhi and sahaja sthiti.

samana

one of the five “vital airs,” concerned with the digestive system. More generally, relates to assimilation and integration of perceptions with existing knowledge.

samanya

general, universal, opposite of specific; genus as opposed to species.

samashti

totality, as opposed to vyaShTi, the individual.

samavaya

(in philosophy) the constant and inseparable conjunction between an attribute and substance (e.g. blue and lotus) or between a whole and its parts (e.g. cloth and fibers). Literally, it means ‘coming or meeting together’.

sambandha

relationship, literally “union, association, conjunction.”

samhita

a philosophical or religious text constructed according to certain rules of sound. There are many of these in the Vedas. The one most likely to be encountered is the aShTAvakra saMhitA or Gita. This book is not part of the Vedas. See Astavakra, gita.

samitpani

(literally) holding fuel in the hands, i.e. having renounced all desire and approaching the deity to offer sacrifice.

samkhya

one of the three main divisions of Hindu philosophy and one of the six darshana-s; attributed to Kapila.