Reverse words Flashcards
“City of the elephants,” an important city in ancient India, located about sixty miles northeast of the modern Delhi. It was the capital of the Pāndavas and their line.
Hastināpura [EG]
“Conduct leading to God,” self-control, purity.
brahmacharya [EG]
“Giver of peace,” a name of Shiva.
Shankara [EG]
“Having a bright chariot,” the king of Gandharvas.
Chitraratha [EG]
“He who stirs up the people,” name of Krishna.
Janārdana [EG]
“Highest Person,” Supreme Being, God.
Purushottama [EG]
“Lord of offspring,” the creator of all beings. Indian myth encompasses many creation stories, and sometimes one great Father, or Prajāpati, is mentioned; sometimes there are seven or more fathers or sages who created all living creatures.
Prajāpati [EG]
“Nirvana in Brahman,” the final state of spiritual fulfillment: eternal union with Brahman, the ground of all being.
brahmanirvāna [EG]
“Not dharma.” Injustice, evil, anything which goes against moral laws.
adharma [EG]
“Prince of Joy,” name of the son of Dasharatha, who was king of Ayodhyā. Rāma was the famous prince who killed the evil demon Rāvana to reclaim his wife Sītā. He is regarded as an incarnation of Vishnu.
Rāma [EG]
“Self”; the innermost soul in every creature, which is divine.
Ātman [EG]
“Slayer of Madhu,” a name for Krishna, who killed the demon Madhu.
Madhusūdana [EG]
“Son of Prithā,” a name for Arjuna - or for his brothers Bhīma and Yudhishthira.
Pārtha [EG]
“The cow of wishes,” who in legend fulfills all desires.
Kāmadhuk [EG]
“The field of the Kurus,” where the Mahābhārata battle takes place. It is north of the modern city of Delhi.
Kurukshetra [EG]
“The noble one,” a Vedic god, revered as an ancestor of mankind.
Aryaman [EG]
“The purifier,” a name for the god of fire.
Pāvaka [EG]
“The Royal Path”; the path of meditation taught especially by Patañjali in the Yoga Sūtras.
rāja yoga [EG]
“The serpent power,” spiritual or evolutionary energy. In yoga literature, kundalinī is described as a force coiled at the base of the spine. Kundalinī may be aroused through meditation and the practice of yoga; then it rises up through the subtle body, awakening the higher centers of consciousness.
kundalinī [EG]
“The Song,” a shorter title for the Bhagavad Gītā.
Gītā [EG]
“The sons of Kuru,” Duryodhana and his brothers, who are the enemies of the Pāndava brothers.
Kauravas [EG]
“The sons of Pāndu,” a collective name for Arjuna and his four brothers, Yudhishthira, Bhīma, Nakula, and Sahadeva. The Pāndavas are in conflict with the Kauravas; both claim the ancient throne of Hastināpura. The Gītā is set on the eve of the battle that will decide this conflict. The Pāndavas are looked upon as forces for good and the Kauravas as wicked usurpers.
Pāndavas [EG]
A body of disciplines or way of life, which leads to the supreme goal of Self-realization.
sādhana [EG]
A brave warrior who plays an important role in the larger epic, but is only mentioned in passing in the Gītā.
Karna [EG]
A chapter or section of a composition. The eighteen books of the Mahābhārata are referred to as parvans.
Parvan [SG]
A charioteer; considered to be of lower birth.
Suta [SG]
A collective term for the final three stages of the eight limbs of Yoga, dhāranā, dyhana, and samādhi.
Samyama [SS]
A deity; a term that can be applied either to the one Supreme Deity or any of the lesser divine beings.
Deva [SG]
A demon prince who was greatly devoted to Vishnu.
Prahlāda [EG]
A descent of the Supreme Deity to earth, as, for example, Krishna or Rāma.
Avatāra[SS]
A devotee of Shiva who regards Shiva as the Supreme Deity.
Shaivite [SG]
A devotee of Vishnu who regards Vishnu as the one Supreme Deity.
Vaishnava [SG]
A devotional song performed to glorify a deity.
Bhajan [SG]
A difficulty, obstacle, or affliction.
Klesha [SS]
A divine being, a god. The devas of Hindu mythology resemble the Olympians of the ancient Greeks - extraordinary, immortal, yet not unlike mortal men and women in their behavior. The feminine is devī, “goddess.”
deva [EG]
A drink used in Vedic ritual; the drink of the gods.
soma [EG]
A field; a place; a scared place or temple.
kshetra [EG]
A form of Yoga based primarily on physical exercises and postures.
Haṭha-yoga [SS]
A form of Yoga practice that is based on specific forms of action.
Kriya-yoga [SS]
A god of war, the son of Shiva; general of the divine forces when they go into battle against the demons.
Skanda [EG]
A great archer and warrior who is Drona’s son.
Ashvatthāma [EG]
A group of eighteen Sanskrit works which, amongst other things, describe the actions performed by the Supreme Deity.
Puranas [SS]
A group of eighteen Sanskrit works, mostly composed after the Bhagavad-gītā, some of which describe the deeds performed by the Krishna and other avataras.
Puranas [SG]
A group of gods associated with storm and destruction. Sometimes the Rudras are mentioned as a group; at other times they are thought of as a single god, Rudra. In later Hinduism, Shiva is called Rudra.
Rudras [EG]
A group of powerful superhuman beings who are generally vicious in nature and who are the eternal enemies of the gods.
Asura [SG]
A group of religious and philosophical systems based on the teaching of the Upanishads, brahma Sūtras, and Bhagavad-gītā.
Vedanta [SG]
A holy man, sage.
sādhu [EG]
A holy name or phrase; a spiritual formula.
mantram (mantra) [EG]
A hymn, prayer, or sacred sound; often used in meditation.
Mantra [SG]
A hymn, prayer, or sacred sound; often used in meditation.
Mantra [SS]
A king of ancient times who was both an effective ruler and a holy sage.
Janaka [EG]
A latent impression, on the mind left by all thoughts, words, and deeds.
Samskara [SS]
A learned brahmin who became a warrior, and eventually general of the Kaurava army. The preceptor of the royal princes, he taught the heroes of the Mahābhārata the skills of war.
Drona [EG]
A learned scholar, or one who has achieved a state of enlightenment.
Pandita [SG]
A member of the third of the four social classes who is expected to live by trade and agriculture.
Vaishya [SG]
A meter used in Vedic hymns; a prayer to the sun composed in this meter.
gāyatrī [EG]
A mythical mountain said to stand at the center of the world or cosmos. The gods dwell on Meru in beautiful cities, amidst flowering gardens.
Meru [EG]
A part of the Yoga system that involves intense concentration on a single object.
Dhāranā [SS]
A part of the yoga system that involves regulation of the breathing process.
Pranayama [SG]
A part of the Yoga system that involves regulation of the breathing process.
Pranayama [SS]
A part of the Yoga system that involves restraining the senses from external perception.
Pratyahara [SS]
A passage from the Mahabharata which contains a range of religious teachings, including those on the practice of meditational Yoga.
Bhagavad-gītā [SS]
A period in cosmic time equaling one Day of Brahmā or 1,000 “great yugas” - a total of 4,320 million years.
kalpa [EG]
A period of creation from the time of the manifestation of the world until its withdrawal.
Kalpa [SG]
A person who practices spiritual disciplines.
yogī [EG]
A person who successfully engages in yoga practice.
Yogin [SG]
A person, a man; a synonym for ātman frequently used in Sāmkhya teachings.
Purusha [SG]
A person; frequently used as a synonym for ātman in Sāmkhya teachings.
Purusha [SS]
A practitioner of yoga.
Yogin [SS]
A revered elder of the Kaurava dynasty who allows himself to be killed by Arjuna in the Mahābhārata battle.
Bhīshmā [EG]
A revered teacher of the royal family who also serves as a warrior.
Kripa [EG]
A sage and poet who appears in the Vedas.
Ushanas [EG]
A sage famous in ancient legend.
Bhrigu [EG]
A sage or holy man; the rishis were the original recipients or ‘hearers’ of the Vedas.
Rishi [SG]
A scripture or teaching that has been handed down; one of the three means of knowing accepted by Patañjali.
Agama [SS]
A seed, or the source of an object.
Bījā [SS]
A sense of personal identity that tends towards individualism.
Asmitā [SS]
A short, pithy aphorism that seeks to convey its meaning with the minimum words possible.
Sūtra [SS]
A sitting posture, as in yoga practice.
Āsana [SG]
A sitting posture; especially as an element of Yoga practice.
Āsana [SS]
A spiritual teacher.
guru [EG]
A state of spiritual awareness in which there is no perception of duality; of inside or outside, of subject and object; merger in the impersonal Godhead.
nirvikalpa samādhi [EG]
A system of Indian religious thought which bases its ideas on the teaching of the Upinshads, Brahma Sūtras, and Bhagavad-gītā.
Vedanta [SS]
A system of spiritual thought and practice based on texts known as tantras; typically seeks a goal of transformation of matter into a spiritual form.
Tantra [SS]
A teacher or interpreter of scripture, typically revered by groups of followers.
Acharya [SG]
A text of scripture that gives instruction.
Shastra [SG]
A text that sets out the main precepts of the Sāmkhya system.
Sāmkhya Karika [SS]
A type of powerful evil being inimical towards the gods and said to roam the forests at night.
Rakshasa [SG]
A Vedic demigod. The name means “particle of light.”
Marīchi [EG]
A warrior or prince; a member of the ruling class of traditional Hindu society.
kshatriya [EG]
A wise and holy person; often, a wandering mendicant who is capable of giving spiritual instruction.
Sādhu [SG]
A woman saint of medieval India remembered for her songs to her beloved Krishna.
Meerā [EG]
A work composed by Patañjali later than the Bhagavad-gītā which discusses the philosophy and practice of the yoga system.
Yoga-sūtras [SG]
Absolute surrender to the will of the Deity and complete dependence upon him.
Prapatti [SG]
Action and reaction.
Karma [SG]
Action that brings future reactions as destiny unfolds.
Karma [SS]
Acts of austerity undertaken in the hope of gaining some material or spiritual reward.
Tapas [SG]
Acts of austerity undertaken in the hope of gaining some material or spiritual reward.
Tapas [SS]
Aloneness, separation; a term for liberation used in Sāmkhya teachings to indicate the separation of the true self from matter.
Kaivalya [SG]
Aloneness, separation; a term used in Sāmkhya teachings to indicate the separation of the true self from matter.
Kaivalya [SS]
An accepted means through which true knowledge can be gained.
Pramana [SS]
An age or eon. In Hindu cosmology there are four yugas, representing a steady deterioration in the state of the world from age to age. The names of the yugas are taken from a game of dice. Krita Yuga is the age of perfection, followed by Tretā Yuga. The incarnation of Srī Krishna is said to mark the end of the third yuga, Dvāpara. We are living in the fourth and final yuga, Kali, in which the creation reaches its lowest point. The world goes through 1,000 such yuga-cycles during one kalpa or Day of Brahmā.
yuga [EG]
An ancient sect of skeptics who taught that knowledge came only from perception and denied the authority of the Veda.
Cārvākas [SS]
An early Hindu scripture that recounts the activities of the Rāma avatāra.
Ramayana [SS]
An early Hindu scripture that recounts the life and deeds of the Rāma avatāra.
Ramayana [SG]
An early system of Indian thought that emphasizes the absolute distinction between prakriti and purusha, matter and spirit, and liberation through the knowledge of that distinction.
Sāmkhya [SG]
An early system of Indian thought that emphasizes the absolute distinction between prakriti and purusha.
Sāmkhya [SS]
An early text compiled by Badarayana that purports to summarize the teachings of the Upanishads. Regarded as an authoritative source by acharyas of Vedanta.
Brahma Sūtras [SG]
An equivalent term for moksha; liberation from rebirth.
Nirvāna [SG]
An equivalent term for moksha; liberation from rebirth.
Nirvāna [SS]
An observance.
Niyama [SS]
Ancient mystical documents found at the end of each of the four Vedas.
Upanishads [EG]
Ancient sect that rejected the authority of the Vedas and taught a doctrine based on absolute determinism.
Ajivikas [SS]
Anger.
Krodha [SG]
Another name for Krishna, “of the Mādhava clan.”
Mādhava [EG]
Another term used for the ātman, although it tends to apply to the ātman in its state of bondage in this world.
Jīva, Jīva-bhūta [SG]
Arjuna’s bow, which was a gift from the god of fire.
Gāndīva [EG]
Arjuna’s elder brother, famous for his adherence to dharma at all times.
Yudhishthira [EG]
Arjuna’s mother (also called Kuntī). Arjuna is called Pārtha, “son of Prithā.”
Prithā [EG]
Atheist, skeptics who believe there is nothing that exists beyond the world we perceive.
Lokāyatas [SS]
Austerity, control of the sense; the spiritual power acquired through self-control.
tapas [EG]
Beloved, one who is loved.
Priya [SG]
Bliss, joy; often referred to as the experience of spiritual awakening.
Ānanda [SS]
Breath; vital force.
prāna [EG]
Caste or class.
varna [EG]
Celibacy or sexual restraint.
Brahmacharya [SG]
Celibacy or sexual restraint.
Brahmacharya [SS]
Charity.
Dāna [SG]
Compassion.
Kripa [SG]
Conscious deliberation on a particular object or subject.
Vitarka [SS]
Darkness, ignorance; the lowest of the three guṇas, promoting indolence, stupidity, impurity, and disregard.
Tamas [SG]
Desire, lust.
Kāma [SG]
Detachment from material desires.
Vairāgya [SS]
Detachment from material desires; an important element in the practice of yoga.
Vairāgya [SG]
Devotion, worship, love.
bhakti [EG]
Devotion; one of the paths advocated by the Bhagavad-gītā to achieve spiritual perfection.
Bhakti [SG]
Direct perception through the senses; one of the accepted means through which knowledge is acquired.
Pratyakṣa [SS]
Discrimination, particularly the ability to discern the distinction between prakriti and purusha.
Viveka [SS]
Divine will; destiny.
daivam [EG]
Dualism; the understanding that the individual ātman and the Supreme Deity (Brahman) are absolutely and eternally distinct.
Dvaita [SG]
Eight-limbed; a name for the Yoga practice taught by Patañjali.
Ashtanga [SS]
energy, passion.
rājas [EG]
Faith.
shraddhā [EG]
Free of any seed; the form of meditation in which no object is used as a point of focus.
Nirbīja [SS]
Game; the divine play of the Lord disguising himself as the many beings of this world.
līlā [EG]
Glories, opulence or outstanding achievements.
Vibhūti [SS]
God as creator, one of the Hindu Trinity; the others are Vishnu, the Preserver, and Shiva, the Destroyer. Brahmā should not be confused with Brahman.
Brahmā [EG]
God of waters and the ocean; in the Vedas, the moral overseer of the world.
Varuna [EG]
