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Religious Studies > Key terms > Flashcards

Key terms Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
GCSE Religious Studies - Eduqas Route A flashcards GCSE Religious Studies - Eduqas Route B flashcards GCSE Religious Studies - Edexcel Route B flashcards GCSE Religious Studies - Edexcel Route A flashcards
1
Q

acharya

A

teaching monk, honorific title

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2
Q

adhyasa

A

superimposition-the false identification of that which is with that which is not

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3
Q

Advaita Vedanta

A

non-dual Vedenta, which teaches that atman and brahman are identical

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4
Q

Agni

A

sacrificial fire, deified as the god of fire in later Vedic religion

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5
Q

ahimsa

A

non-violence to any living thing-a key part of Gandhi’s thought, originating in Jainism

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6
Q

Aksharbrahma

A

abode of God in Swaminarayan theology, either personal as the prime devotee or impersonal as a heavenly abode

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7
Q

amrit

A

divine nectar, source of immortality

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8
Q

anirvacaniya

A

Advaitin term to describe the nature of avidya:’incomprehensible’

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9
Q

apophatic

A

Western philosophical term meaning to describe through negatives-usually applied to God. The idea is that any positive terms applied will, by the transcendent nature of God, be inherently wrong, thus God can only be described in negatives.

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10
Q

apotropaic

A

Western term meaning ‘averting evil’. An apotropaic action is one undertaken to ward off evil influences.

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11
Q

arta

A

first aim in life: the acquisition of wealth

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12
Q

Aryans

A

invaders or migrants who entered northern India in about 1500BC, establishing or developing Vedic religious ideas

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13
Q

ashram

A

religious community

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14
Q

ashramas

A

stages in life

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15
Q

asteya

A

not stealing

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16
Q

atman

A

individual, microcosmic spirit within every living being

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17
Q

avatar

A

‘descent’-the belief that individual gods may come down to Earth for the benefit of mankind

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18
Q

avidya

A

ignorance

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19
Q

Bhagvad Gita

A

‘the song of the blessed Lord’-part of the key texts for Vaishnavites, and the most popular scripture of Hinduism

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20
Q

bhakti magra

A

way of loving devotion, lifestyle of those who dedicate themselves to knowing the divine through one particular god

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21
Q

Bharat Ma

A

‘Mother India’-the deified nation of India, worshipped as a goddess

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22
Q

Braham

A

creator God

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23
Q

brahmacharya

A

the student ashrama-marked by devotion to one’s guru and celibacy

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24
Q

brahman

A

universal,macrocosmic, impersonal spirit

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25
Q

brahmana

A

priest, the topmost varna

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26
Q

Buddha

A

ninth avatar of vishnu

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27
Q

Dalits

A

the oppressed, those outside the varna system

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28
Q

darshan

A

to look into the eyes of a murti and make contact with the divine

29
Q

devas

A

the gods

30
Q

dev rin

A

one of the three obligations of the brahmacharya stage-to look after one’s society

31
Q

dharma

A

understood as either cosmic-‘the way things should be’, or personal-an individual’s duty. Also, the third of the three aims of life

32
Q

Divali

A

festival of light, celebrating new year and the return of Rama to Ayodhya

33
Q

Dvaita Vedenta

A

dual Vedanta, which teaches that atman and brahman, while of the same nature, are distinct and seperate

34
Q

enstasy

A

the loss of conscious awareness of the self, caused by going within rather than by external, divine influence

35
Q

gopis

A

milkmaids who play/dance with krishna

36
Q

guru

A

literally ‘teacher’-one who teaches religious knowledge, but also used to denote a person recognised as having attained great spirituality

37
Q

ishvara

A

personal god/supreme soul, is synonymous with Shiva in Shaivism ect

38
Q

janeu

A

sacred thread ceremony-initiation into the brahmacharya stage

39
Q

jatakarma

A

samskara celebrating birth

40
Q

jati

A

social hierarchy based upon am

41
Q

jiva

A

individual personal spirit

42
Q

jhana

A

experiential knowledge of brahman

43
Q

jnana magra

A

way of knowledge, the lifestyle of renouncers who live outside society and seek jhana

44
Q

kama

A

second aim in life, the enjoyment of sensual pleasures

45
Q

karma

A

‘action and the fruits of action’; the idea that every action is repaid by the universe

46
Q

karma marga

A

way of action; lifestyle of those who live within society and obey the rules

47
Q

Kirtana

A

congregational singing of mantra

48
Q

kshatriya

A

warrior/ruler varna

49
Q

lingam

A

Shiva’s most common, aniconic, representation the phallic symbol

50
Q

mansa puja

A

mental puja; visualisation of worship in the devotee’s mind

51
Q

mantra

A

‘powerful utterance’; a short phrase, usually in Sanskrit, which the worshipper can chant in order to attain spiritual benefit

52
Q

maya

A

illusion; the physical world and anything that makes you think you are not

53
Q

medha

A

‘sacrificial substance’; the spiritual component which offered in a yajna

54
Q

moksha

A

liberation from the cycle of samsara: fourth aim in life

55
Q

munis

A

naked, matted-haired ascetics mentioned in the Vedas

56
Q

murti

A

image (of a divine being) used for worship

57
Q

nirguna

A

without qualities

58
Q

Om

A

primary divine syllable; literally god as a sound

59
Q

panchayatana-puja

A

worship of five deities

60
Q

pandit

A

temple preist

61
Q

pitri rin

A

one of the three obligations of the brahmacharya: to look after one’s parents and ancestors

62
Q

prana

A

breath or spiritual energy

63
Q

prana pratishta

A

ceremony to infuse the breath of the divine into the murti

64
Q

prashad

A

consuming food offered to God, as a means of receiving blessing

65
Q

puja

A

act of worship

66
Q

purushamedha

A

human sacrifice

67
Q

rajas

A

passion

68
Q

reality, mundane/empirical

A

reality that can be appreciated through the senses, that is subject to measurement, and is described by science

Religious Studies (9 decks)

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