Sutton Sutras Flashcards
Abhyāsa
Regulated practice of a particular discipline.
Adhyatma
In relation to the self; a form of knowledge that reveals the true nature of the self.
Advaita
Non-dualism; an expression of Vedanta philosophy that teaches absolute unity of ātman and Brahman, the individual self and the absolute reality.
Agama
A scripture or teaching that has been handed down; one of the three means of knowing accepted by Patañjali.
Ahaṁkāra
That part of our psychological makeup that gives us a sense of selfhood. Can also mean ‘pride’ and ‘arrogance’.
Ahimsā
Non harming or non-violence.
Ajivikas
Ancient sect that rejected the authority of the Vedas and taught a doctrine based on absolute determinism.
Ānanda
Bliss, joy; often referred to as the experience of spiritual awakening.
Animā
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to make oneself minutely small.
Anjali
Prayer.
Anumāna
Inference; one of the three means of knowing accepted by Patañjali.
Āsana
A sitting posture; especially as an element of Yoga practice.
Ashtanga
Eight-limbed; a name for the Yoga practice taught by Patañjali.
Asmitā
A sense of personal identity that tends towards individualism.
Āstika
Orthodox in the sense of accepting the authority and validity of the Vedic revelation.
Ātman
The self or soul.
Avatāra
A descent of the Supreme Deity to earth, as, for example, Krishna or Rāma.
Avidyā
Ignorance, the absence of true knowledge.
Bhagavad-gītā
A passage from the Mahabharata which contains a range of religious teachings, including those on the practice of meditational Yoga.
Bījā
A seed, or the source of an object.
Brahmacharya
Celibacy, sexual restraint.
Buddhi
The intellect; that part of a person’s psychological makeup that analyzes information and makes decisions based on that information.
Cārvākas
An ancient sect of skeptics who taught that knowledge came only from perception and denied the authority of the Veda.
Citta
The mind or thought processes; perhaps the combination of buddhi, manas, and ahaṁkāra.
Darśana
Seeing, or a philosophical system that claims to perceive the truth.
Dhāranā
A part of the Yoga system that involves intense concentration on a single object.
Dhyāna
Meditation; controlling the mind and turning the vision inwards in order to gain direct perception of the ātman.
Draṣṭṛ
The one that sees or perceives, a term used to indicate the ātman.
Dṛsya
That which is seen or perceived; a term used to refer to the external world.
Duḥkha
Sorrow, misery, suffering.
Dveṣa
Hatred, aversion.
Garimā
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to become heavy and immovable.
Guṇas
The three strands or qualities that pervade everything material and exert an influence over our lives, our mentality, and the way we conduct ourselves.
Haṭha-yoga
A form of Yoga based primarily on physical exercises and postures.
Īshvara
The Supreme Deity, God.
Īśitva
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to achieve mastery over the world.
Japa
Quiet or silent recitation of a prayer or mantra.
Jñana
Knowledge; either an understanding of mundane affairs or the realization that brings enlightenment and liberation.
Kaivalya
Aloneness, separation; a term used in Sāmkhya teachings to indicate the separation of the true self from matter.
Karma
Action that brings future reactions as destiny unfolds.
Klesha
A difficulty, obstacle, or affliction.
Kriya-yoga
A form of Yoga practice that is based on specific forms of action.
Laghimā
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to become very light and to float through the air.
Lokāyatas
Atheists, skeptics who believe there is nothing that exists beyond the world we perceive.
Mahābhārata
The vast Indian scripture that includes the earliest extant teachings on Yoga.
Mahimā
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to become large in size.
Manas
The mind; that part of our psychological makeup that receives and categorizes perceptions received through the senses.
Mantra
A hymn, prayer, or sacred sound; often used in meditation.
Moksha
Liberation, release; a term used to denote the state of liberation from the cycle of karma and rebirth.
Nāstika
One who does not accept the authority of the Vedic revelation; a non-believer.
Nidra
Sleep.
Nirbīja
Free of any seed; the form of meditation in which no object is used as a point of focus.
Nirvāna
An equivalent term for moksha; liberation from rebirth.
Niyama
An observance.
Parināma
Transformation; the evolution of diverse elements from out of raw prakriti.
Pradhāna
Prakriti in its primal state before it evolves into the variegated universe.
Prākāmya
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to act in any way without restriction.
Prakriti
Matter in both its non-differentiated primeval form and in its evolved variegated form as well.
Pramana
An accepted means through which true knowledge can be gained.
Praṇava
The sacred syllable om.
Pranayama
A part of the Yoga system that involves regulation of the breathing process.
Prāpti
The supernatural power that gives one the ability to acquire objects from distant places.
Prasāda
Mercy, grace, serenity.
Prātibha
Intuitive rather than reasoned knowledge.
Pratiprasava
Reversing the flow; returning to the original state.
Pratyahara
A part of the Yoga system that involves restraining the senses from external perception.
Pratyakṣa
Direct perception through the senses; one of the accepted means through which knowledge is acquired.
Puṇya
Piety, virtue; forms of action that lead to a favorable karmic result.
Puranas
A group of eighteen Sanskrit works which, amongst other things, describe the actions performed by the Supreme Deity.
Purusha
A person; frequently used as a synonym for ātman in Sāmkhya teachings.
Rāga
Passion, longing, fierce attachment.
Rājas
One of the three guṇas, which is indicated by passion, energy, action, and achievement.
Ramayana
An early Hindu scripture that recounts the activities of the Rāma avatāra.
Ṛta
The proper universal order; the highest level of truth.
Sādhana
The means of attaining a result; regulated spiritual practice.
Samādhi
The final state of yogic perfection, when the mind is absolutely tranquil and all thought processes are brought under control.
Samāna
The air within the abdomen that is active in the process of digestion.
Samāpatti
The state of mind that exists prior to samadhi, when the movements of the mind have been stilled.
Sāmkhya
An early system of Indian thought that emphasizes the absolute distinction between prakriti and purusha.
Sāmkhya Karika
A text that sets out the main precepts of the Sāmkhya system.
Samskara
A latent impression, on the mind left by all thoughts, words, and deeds.
Samyama
A collective term for the final three stages of the eight limbs of Yoga, dhāranā, dyhana, and samādhi.
Sattva
The first of the three guṇas, indicated by truth, purity, light, goodness, and virtue. A term that is also used to refer to material manifestation.
Satyam
Truthfulness, honesty.
Siddhi
Perfection, success; used to refer to the superhuman powers acquired through Yoga practice.
Smriti
Memory or recollection.
Sūtra
A short, pithy aphorism that seeks to convey its meaning with the minimum words possible.
Svādhyāya
Study or recitation of the Vedas.
Tamas
The third of the three guṇas, which is indicated by darkness, illusion, inertia, and impurity.
Tantra
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.
Tapas
Acts of austerity undertaken in the hope of gaining some material or spiritual reward.
Udāna
The air within the body which rises upwards from the throat.
Vairāgya
Detachment from material desires.
Vāsanā
The impression of any experience that remains unconsciously in the mind.
Vaśitva
The supernatural power that gives him the ability to bring others under one’s control.
Vedanta
A system of Indian religious thought which bases its ideas on the teaching of the Upinshads, Brahma Sūtras, and Bhagavad-gītā.
Vibhūti
Glories, opulence or outstanding achievements.
Vicāra
Sustained contemplation of a particular object.
Vikalpa
Inability of the thought processes to reach a definite conclusion; uncertainty.
Viparyaya
Misapprehension, false knowledge, illusion.
Vitarka
Conscious deliberation on a particular object or subject.
Viveka
Discrimination, particularly the ability to discern the distinction between prakriti and purusha.
Yama
Restraint; avoiding unwanted action.
Yogin
A practitioner of yoga.
