Key terms Flashcards
acharya
teaching monk, honorific title
adhyasa
superimposition-the false identification of that which is with that which is not
Advaita Vedanta
non-dual Vedenta, which teaches that atman and brahman are identical
Agni
sacrificial fire, deified as the god of fire in later Vedic religion
ahimsa
non-violence to any living thing-a key part of Gandhi’s thought, originating in Jainism
Aksharbrahma
abode of God in Swaminarayan theology, either personal as the prime devotee or impersonal as a heavenly abode
amrit
divine nectar, source of immortality
anirvacaniya
Advaitin term to describe the nature of avidya:’incomprehensible’
apophatic
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.
apotropaic
Western term meaning ‘averting evil’. An apotropaic action is one undertaken to ward off evil influences.
arta
first aim in life: the acquisition of wealth
Aryans
invaders or migrants who entered northern India in about 1500BC, establishing or developing Vedic religious ideas
ashram
religious community
ashramas
stages in life
asteya
not stealing
atman
individual, microcosmic spirit within every living being
avatar
‘descent’-the belief that individual gods may come down to Earth for the benefit of mankind
avidya
ignorance
Bhagvad Gita
‘the song of the blessed Lord’-part of the key texts for Vaishnavites, and the most popular scripture of Hinduism
bhakti magra
way of loving devotion, lifestyle of those who dedicate themselves to knowing the divine through one particular god
Bharat Ma
‘Mother India’-the deified nation of India, worshipped as a goddess
Braham
creator God
brahmacharya
the student ashrama-marked by devotion to one’s guru and celibacy
brahman
universal,macrocosmic, impersonal spirit
brahmana
priest, the topmost varna
Buddha
ninth avatar of vishnu
Dalits
the oppressed, those outside the varna system