Dictionary of common Sanskrit spiritual words
taijasa - uttara mImAMsA

taijasa

the individual “dreamer ego” in the dream state of consciousness, svapna. See also visva, prajna.

Taittiriya

one of the principal Upanishads. (taittirIya was one of the schools of the Yajur Veda.)

tamas

the “lowest” of the three guna. Associated with matter and carrying characteristics such as inertia, laziness, heedlessness and death. It literally means “darkness” or “gloom.” Adjective – tamasic (Eng.); tAmasa or tAmasika (Sansk.). See guna.

tanmatra

subtle element, of which there are five: shabda (sound, speech), sparsha (touch), rUpa (form), rasa (taste) and gandha (smell). (The gross elements are the mahAbhUta-s: ether, air, fire, water and earth.)

tantra

main or essential point. (Also doctrine or theory and the body of scriptures relating to attaining mystical union with the divine through meditation.)

tapas

austerity, living a simple life without comforts. One of the five niyama-s in Raja yoga.

tarka

reasoning, speculation, philosophical system or doctrine.

tarkika

(adj. from tarka) related to or belonging to logic; (noun, less common) logician or philosopher.

tatastha

a property distinct from the nature of the body and yet that by which it is known. An example would be telling someone that the house they are referring to in the street ahead is the one with the crow on the chimney. The house is what the listener is interested in but the crow is a taTastha lakShaNa, i.e. that by which it is known.

tejas

fire (or light) – one of the five elements or pa~nchabhUta. Associated with sight.

tikshna

sharp (of the intellect - buddhi).

titiksha

forbearance or patience; one of the “six qualities” that form part of Shankara’s chatuShTaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti, shamadi shatka sampatti.

trikala

the three times or tenses (past, present and future).

trikalatita

that which transcends past, present and future (describing the Self).

triputi

threefold (noun) used of knower-known-act of knowing, seer-seen-act of seeing etc; (tripuTa is the adjective)

tucha

empty, vain, trifling, little; also used in the sense of ‘totally unreal’, c.f. prAtibhAsika.

turiya

literally the “fourth” [state of consciousness]. It refers to the non-dual reality, the background against which the other states (waking, dream and deep sleep) arise. It is our true nature. The other three states are mithyA. (If defined merely as the highest “state” then Ramana Maharshi calls our true nature 'turiyatita' but this word is not encountered in the scriptures.)

tyaga

renunciation.

udaharana

example, instance, illustration.

udana

one of the five “vital airs,” associated with the throat. More generally relates to the understanding that has been gained from past experience.

upadana

literally “the act of taking for oneself”; used to refer to the “material cause” in logic (upAdAna karaNa).

upadesha

instruction or teaching.

Upadesha Sahasri

“A Thousand Teachings” - book attributed to Shankara (with more certainty than most). sAhasrika means “consisting of a thousand.”

upadhi

Literally, this means something that is put in place of another thing; a substitute, phantom or disguise. In Vedanta, it is commonly referred to as a “limitation” or “limiting adjunct” i.e. one of the “identifications” made by ahaMkAra that prevents us from realizing the Self.

upamana

comparison, resemblance, analogy.

upanishad

one of the (108+) books forming part (usually the end) of one of the four Vedas. The parts of the word mean: to sit (Shad) near a master (upa) at his feet (ni), so that the idea is that we sit at the feet of a master to listen to his words. Monier-Williams (Ref. 5) states that, “according to native authorities, upanishad means “setting at rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit.” See Vedanta.

uparama or uparati

desisting from sensual enjoyment; “revelling” in that which is “near” i.e. one’s own Self; also translated as following one's dharma or duty; one of the “six qualities” that form part of Shankara's chatushtaya sampatti. See chatushtaya sampatti, shamadi shatka sampatti.

upasana

worship, homage, waiting upon; literally the act of sitting or being near to; sometimes used in the sense of “meditation.”

upaya

another term for “path” (see marga) – that by which one reaches one’s aim, a means or expedient, way.

ushman

The Sanskrit term for the sibilants, sh, Sh and s, together with h. The word itself literally means “heat, steam or vapour.”

uttama

uppermost, excellent, highest.

Uttara Mimamsa

the Vedanta philosophy, based on the latter (uttara) part of the Vedas rather than the earlier (pUrva). Its founder was Badarayana, who authored the Brahmasutras. There are three main schools within this – dvaita, advaita and vishiShTAdvaita. See Brahmasutras, mimamsa, purvamimamsa, veda.