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Written by Swami Vivekananda |
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Abhaya . . . . . . Fearlessness.
Abhava . . . . . . Bereft of quality
Abheda . . . . . . Non-separateness; sameness; without
distinction.
Abhidhya . . . . . Not coveting others’ goods, not thinking
vain thoughts, not brooding over
injuries received from others.
Abhigata . . . . . Impediment.
Abhimana . . . . . Pride.
Abhinivesa . . . . . Practices.
Acharya . . . . . Great spiritual teacher.
Adarsa . . . . . . A mirror—a term sometimes used to
denote the finer power of vision
developed by the Yogi.
Adhidaivika . . . . . Supernatural.
Adhikari . . . . . One qualified as a seeker of wisdom.
Aditi . . . . . . The infinite, the goddess of the sky.
Aditya . . . . . . The Sun.
Adityas . . . . . . Twelve planetary spirits.
Adharma . . . . . Absence of virtue; unrighteousness.
Adrogha . . . . . Not injuring.
Adrogha-Vak . . . . One who does not harm others even by
words.
Advaita . . . . . . (A-dvaita) Non-dualism. The monistic
system of Vedanta philosophy.
Advaitin . . . . . A follower of Advaita.
Adhyasa . . . . . Reflection, as the crystal reflects the
colour of the object before it.
Superimposition of qualities of one
object over another, as of the snake
on the rope.
Agni . . . . . . The god of fire. Later, the Supreme God
of the Vedas.
Aham . . . . . . “I.”
Aham-Brahmasmi . . . “I am Brahman.”
GLOSSARY
197
Ahamkara . . . . . Egoism. Self-consciousness.
Ahara . . . . . . Gathering in,—as food to support the
body or the mind.
Ahimsa . . . . . . Non-injuring in thought, word, or deed.
Ahimsaka . . . . . One who practices Ahimsa.
Ajna . . . . . . The sixth lotus of the Yogis, corresponding
to a nerve-centre in the
brain, behind the eyebrows. Divine
perception.
Ajnata . . . . . . One who has attained divine wisdom.
Akaca . . . . . . The all-pervading material of the
universe.
Akbar . . . . . . Mogul Emperor of India, 1542-1605.
Akhanda . . . . . Undivided.
Akanda-Satchidananda . . “The undivided Existence-Knowledge-
Bliss Absolute.”
Alambana . . . . . Objective contemplation. The things
which are supports to the mind in its
travel Godwards.
Amritatvam . . . . . Immortality.
Anahata . . . . . lit. “unstruck sound.” The fourth lotus
of the Yogis in the Sucumna, opposite
the heard.
Ananda . . . . . . Bliss.
Ananya-Bhakti . . . . Worship of one particular Deity in
preference to all others. In a higher
sense, it is seeing all Deities as but so
many forms of the One God.
Singleness of love and worship.
Anavasada . . . . . Cheerfulness, not becoming dejected.
Strength, both mental and physical.
Anima . . . . . . Attenuation.
Antahkarana . . . . Internal organ. The mind with its three
functions, the cognitive faculty, the
determinative faculty, and the
egoism.
Antaryamin . . . . . The name of Icvara,—meaning, He who
knows everything that is going on
within (antara) every mind.
RAJA YOGA
198
Antararama . . . . . The Yogi who rests in the final contemplation
of the Supreme Lord
(Icvara).
Anubhava . . . . . Realisation.
Anuddharsa. . . . . Absence of excessive merriment.
Anumana . . . . . Inference.
Anurakti . . . . . The attachment that comes after the
knowledge of the nature of God.
Anuraga . . . . . Great attachment to Icvara.
Anuvdda . . . . . A statement referring to something
already known.
Apakshiyate . . . . . To decay.
Apana . . . . . . One of the five manifestations of prana.
The nerve-current in the body which
governs the organs of excretion.
Aparapratyaksha . . . Super-sensuous perception.
Aparavidya . . . . . Lower knowledge; knowledge of
externals.
Aparigraha . . . . . Non-receiving of gifts; not indulging in
luxuries.
Apas . . . . . . One of the elements; water; liquid.
Apratikalya . . . . . State of sublime resignation.
Apta . . . . . . One who has attained to realisation of
God; one who is self-illumined.
Aptavakyam . . . . Words of an Apta.
Apura . . . . . . Merit.
Aranyakas . . . . . The ancient Rishis, dwellers in the
forest; also a name given to the
books composed by them.
Aristha . . . . . . Portents or signs by which a Yogi can
foretell the exact time of his death.
Arjavam . . . . . Straight-forwardness.
Arjuna . . . . . . The hero of the Bhagavad Gita, to
whom Krishna (in the form of a
charioteer) taught the great truths of
the Vedanta Philosophy.
Artha . . . . . . Meaning.
Arthavattva . . . . . Fruition.
Arupa . . . . . . (A-rupa) Without form.
GLOSSARY
199
Aryavarta . . . . . The land of the Aryans. The name
applied by the Hindus to Northern
India.
Asamprajnata . . . . The highest super-conscious state.
Asana . . . . . . Position of the body during meditation.
Asat . . . . . . Non-being or existence. Opposite of
Sat. Applied to the changing existence
of the universe.
Asmita . . . . . . Non-discrimination.
Acoka . . . . . . A noted Buddhist King, 259-222 B.C.
Acrama . . . . . . Hermitage.
Asvada . . . . . . lit. “taste,”—applied to the finer faculty
of taste developed by the Yogi.
Asteyam . . . . . Non-stealing.
Asti . . . . . . . To be, or exist.
Atharva Veda . . . . That portion of the Veda which treats of
psychic powers.
Athata Brahma-jijnaca . . “Then therefore, the enquiry into
Brahman.” [Vedanta Sutra, 1–1–I.]
Atikranta-Chavaniya . . The stage of meditation which ends with
what is called “Cloud (or Showerer)
of Virtue” Samadhi.
Atithi . . . . . . A guest.
Atman . . . . . . The Eternal Self.
Avarana . . . . . Coverings (of the mind).
Avatara . . . . . . A divine Incarnation.
Avidya . . . . . . Ignorance.
Avritti-rasakrit-upadecat . “Repetition (of the mental functions of
knowing, meditating, etc., is required)
on account of the text giving
instructions more than once.”
[Vedanta Sutra, 1–1–IV.]
Avyaktam . . . . . Indiscrete; undifferentiated. Stage of
nature, where there is no
manifestation.
Bahya-Bhakti . . . . External devotion (as worship through
rites, symbols, ceremonials, etc., of
God).
Bandha . . . . . . Bondage.
RAJA YOGA
200
Banyan-Tree . . . . (Ficus Indica) Indian fig tree; the
branches drop roots to the ground,
which grow and form new trunks.
Bhagavad-Gita . . . . “The Holy Song.” A gem of Indian
literature containing the essence of
the Vedanta Philosophy.
Bhagavan . . . . . lit. “Possessor of all powers.” A title
meaning Great Lord.
Bhagavan Ramakrsna . . A great Hindu prophet and teacher of the
19th century, 1835-1886. [See “Life
and Sayings of Cri Rama-krsna” by
F. Max M?ller. London, 1898.
Longmans, Green & Co., and Charles
Scribner’s Sons. New York.]
Bhagavata-Purana . . . One of the principal Puranas.
Bhakta . . . . . . A great lover of God.
Bhakti . . . . . . Intense love for God.
Bhaki-Yoga . . . . . Union with the Divine through devotion.
Bharata . . . . . A great Yogi who suffered much from
his excessive attachment to a deer
which he brought up as a pet.
Bhashya . . . . . A commentary.
Bhautika . . . . . Pertaining to the Bhutas, or elements.
Bhavana . . . . . Pondering; meditation.
Bheda . . . . . . Separateness.
Bhikshu . . . . . . A religious mendicant, a term now
usually applied to the Buddhist
monks.
Bhoga . . . . . . Enjoyment of sense objects.
Bhoja . . . . . . The annotator of the Yoga Aphorisms.
Brahma . . . . . . The Creator of the Universe.
Brahmacharya . . . . Chastity in thought, word and deed.
Brahmacharin . . . . One who has devoted himself to
continence and the pursuit of
spiritual wisdom.
Brahman . . . . . The One existence, the Absolute.
Brahmaloka . . . . The world of Brahma, the highest
heaven.
Brahmana . . . . . A “twice-born man,” a Brahmin.
GLOSSARY
201
Brahmanas . . . . . Those portions of the Vedas which state
the rules for the employment of the
hymns at the various ceremonials.
Each of the four Vedas has its own
Brahmana.
Brahma-Sutra-Bhashya . . Commentary on the aphorisms of
Vedanta.
Brahmavadin . . . . Teacher of Brahman, one who speaks or
teaches of Brahman or Absolute
Being.
Brahmayoga . . . . The Yoga which leads to the realisation
of the Brahman. (Chap. VIII of the
Bhagavad Gita is called by that
name).
Brahmin . . . . . An Anglicised form of Brahmana, a
member of the Brahmana caste.
Buddha . . . . . . lit. “The Enlightened,” the name given
to one of the greatest Incarnations
recognised by the Hindus, born sixth
century B.C.
Buddhi . . . . . . The determinative faculty.
Chaitanya . . . . . Pure intelligence. Name of a great
Hindu sage (born 1485) who is
regarded as a Divine Incarnation.
Chandogya Upanishad . . One of the oldest Upanishads of the
Sama-Veda.
Charvaka . . . . . A materialist.
Chidakaca . . . . . The space of knowledge, where the Soul
shines in its own nature.
Chitta . . . . . . “Mind-stuff.” (The fine material out of
which the mind has been
manufactured)
Chittakaca . . . . . The mental space.
Dakshima . . . . . Offering made to a priest, or teacher, at
religious ceremonies.
Dama . . . . . . Control of the organs.
Dana . . . . . . Charity.
Dasya . . . . . . “Servantship;” the state of being a
devoted servant of God.
RAJA YOGA
202
Daya . . . . . . Mercy, compassion, doing good to
others without hope of return.
Deha . . . . . . Matter, gross body.
Devadatta . . . . . “God-given.”
Devas . . . . . . The “shining ones,” semi-divine beings
representing states attained by
workers of good.
Devaloka . . . . . Abode of the gods.
Devayana . . . . . The path which leads to the sphere of
the gods, or the different heavens.
Devi-Bhagavata . . . . One of the Puranas, which describes the
deeds of the Divine Mother.
Dharana . . . . . Holding the mind to one thought for
twelve seconds. Concentration.
Dharma . . . . . Virtue. Religious duty.
Dharma-megha . . . . “Cloud of virtue” (applied to a kind of
Samadhi).
Dhyana . . . . . . Meditation.
Dhyanamarga . . . . The way to knowledge through
meditation.
Dvandas . . . . . Dualities in nature, as heat and cold,
pleasure and pain, etc., etc.
Dvesha . . . . . . Aversion.
Dyava-Prithivi . . . . Heaven (and) Earth.
Ekagra . . . . . . Concentrated state of mind.
Ekam . . . . . . One.
Eka-Nistha . . . . . Intense devotion to one chosen ideals.
Ekanta-Bhakti . . . . Singleness of love and devotion to God.
Ekatma-Vadam . . . . Monism. The theory, according to
which there is only on intelligence
Entity. Pure idealism.
Ekayana . . . . . The one stay or support of all things,—
hence the Lord.
Ganapati . . . . . One of the Hindu deities.
Ganeca . . . . . . God of wisdom and “remover of
obstacles.” He is always invoked at
the commencement of every
important undertaking.
GLOSSARY
203
Gargi . . . . . . A woman-sage mentioned in the Upanishads.
She practiced Yoga and
attained to the highest superconscious
state.
Gauni . . . . . . Preparatory stage of Bhakti-Yoga.
Gayatri . . . . . . A certain most holy verse of the Vedas.
Ghata . . . . . . A jar.
Gopis . . . . . . Shepherdesses, worshippers of Krsna.
Grahama . . . . . Sense-perception.
Grihastha . . . . . A householder, head of a family.
Gunas . . . . . . Qualities, attributes.
Guru . . . . . . lit. “the dispeller of darkness.” A religious
teacher who removes the
ignorance of the pupil. The real guru
is a transmitter of the spiritual
impulse that quickens the spirit and
awakens a genuine thirst for religion.
Hamsa . . . . . . The Jiva, or individual soul.
Hanuman . . . . . The great Bhakta hero of the Ramayana.
Hari . . . . . . lit. “One who steals the hearts and
reason of all by his beauty,” hence
the Lord, a name of God.
Hatha Yoga . . . . . The science of controlling body and
mind, but with no spiritual end in
view, bodily perfection being the
only aim.
Hatha-Yogi (or Yogin) . . One who practices Hatha Yoga.
Hiranyagarbha . . . . lit. “golden wombed.” Applied to
Brahma, the Creator, as producing
the universe out of Himself.
Hum . . . . . . A mystic word used in meditation as
symbolic of the highest Bliss.
Ida . . . . . . . The nerve current on the left side of the
spinal cord; the left nostril.
Indra . . . . . . Ruler of the gods.
Indriyani . . . . . Sense organs.
Indriyas . . . . . The internal organs of perception.
Icana . . . . . . One of the devas.
RAJA YOGA
204
Ishtam . . . . . . Chosen ideal (from “ish,” to wish). That
aspect of God which appeals to one
most.
Ishta Nistha . . . . . Devotion to one ideal.
Ishtapurta . . . . . The works which bring as reward the
enjoyments of the heavens.
Icvara . . . . . . The Supreme Ruler; the highest possible
conception through reason, of the
Absolute, which is beyond all
thought.
Icvarapranidhana . . . Meditation on Icvara.
Icvara Pranidhanadva . . A Sutra of Patanjali—entitled “By
worship of the Supreme Lord.”
Jada . . . . . . Inanimate.
Jagrati . . . . . . Waking state.
Jati . . . . . . . Species.
Jayate . . . . . . To be born.
Jiva . . . . . . The individual soul. The one Self as
appearing to be separated into
different entities; corresponding to
the ordinary use of the word “soul.”
Jivatman . . . . . The Atman manifesting as the Jiva.
Jivan Mukta . . . . lit. “Living Freedom.” One who has
attained liberation (Mukti) even while
in the body.
Jnana . . . . . . Pure intelligence. Knowledge.
Jnana-chaksu . . . . One whose vision has been purified by
the realisation of the Divine.
Jnanakanda . . . . The knowledge portion or philosophy of
the Vedas.
Jnana-yajna . . . . “Wisdom-Sacrifice.” Perfect unselfishness,
purity and goodness which lead
to Jnana, or supreme wisdom
(Moksha).
Jnani [or Jnanin] . . . One who seeks liberation through pure
reason or philosophy.
Kaivalya . . . . . Isolation. Oneness with Absolute Being.
Kala . . . . . . Time.
Kalpa . . . . . . A cycle (in evolution).
GLOSSARY
205
Kalyana . . . . . Blessings.
Kama . . . . . . Desires.
Kapila . . . . . . Author of the Sankhya Philsophy, and
the father of the Hindu Evolutionists.
Kapilavastu . . . . . Birthplace of Gautama the Buddha.
Karika . . . . . . A running commentary.
Karma . . . . . . Work or action, also effects of actions;
the law of cause and effect in the
moral world.
Karmakanda . . . . The ritualistic portion of the Vedas.
Karamendriyas . . . . Organs of action.
Karma Yoga . . . . Union with the Divine through the
unselfish performance of duty.
Khanda . . . . . . Differentiated, or divided; division.
Klesa . . . . . . Troubles.
Krsna . . . . . . An Incarnation of God who appeared in
India about 1400 B.C. Most of his
teachings are embodied in the
Bhagavad Gita.
Kriya . . . . . . Action, ritual, ceremonial.
Kriyamana . . . . . The Karma we are making at present.
Kriya-Yoga . . . . . Preliminary Yoga, the performance of
such acts as lead the mind higher and
higher.
Kshana . . . . . . Moments.
Kshatriya . . . . . Member of the warrior (or second) caste
of ancient India.
Kshetra . . . . . . lit. “the perishable,” also “a field.”
Applied to the human body (as the
field of action).
Kshetrajna . . . . . The knower of Kshetra. (Gita, Chap.
XII.) The soul.
Kumbhaka . . . . . Retention of the breath in the practice of
pranayama.
RAJA YOGA
206
Kundalini . . . . . lit. “the coiled-up.” The residual energy,
located according to the Yogis, at the
base of the spine, and which in
ordinary men produces dreams,
imagination, psychical perceptions,
etc., and which, when fully aroused
and purified, leads to the direct
perception of God.
Kunti . . . . . . The mother of the five Pandavas, the
heroes who opposed the Kauravas at
the battle of Kurukshetra, the account
of which forms the principal theme
of the Mahabharata, the Indian epic.
Kurma . . . . . . The name of a nerve upon which the
Yogis meditate.
Kurma-Purana . . . . One of the eighteen principal Puranas.
Kuca . . . . . . A kind of Indian grass used in religious
rites.
Madhubhumiba . . . . The second stage of the Yogi when he
gets beyond the argumentative
condition.
Madhumati . . . . . lit. “honeyed.” The state when knowledge
gives satisfaction as honey
does.
Mathura . . . . . Sweet. That form of Bhakti in which the
relation of the devotee towards God
is like that of a loving wife to her
husband.
Madvacharya . . . . Commentator of the dualistic school of
the Vedanta philosophy.
Mahat . . . . . . lit. “The great one.” Cosmic intelligence.
Mahattattva. . . . . Great principle. The ocean of intelligence
evolved first from indiscrete
nature, according to Sankhya
philosophy.
Mahayoga . . . . . [lit. “great union.”] Seeing the Self as
one with God.
Maitriya . . . . . lit. “Full of compassion.” The name of a
Hindu sage.
GLOSSARY
207
Manas . . . . . . The deliberative faculty of the mind.
Mantra . . . . . . Any prayer, holy verse, sacred or mystic
word recited or contemplated during
worship.
Mantra-drashta . . . . “Seer of thought.” One possessed of
super-sensuous knowledge.
Manipura . . . . . lit. “Filled with jewels.” The third lotus
of the Yogis, opposite the navel (in
the Sucumna).
Matras . . . . . . Seconds.
Matha . . . . . . Monastery.
Mathura [now known as
“Muttra”] . . . .
Birth-place of Krsna.
Maya . . . . . . Mistaking the unreal and phenomenal
for the real and eternal [noumenal?].
Commonly translated “illusion”. (lit.
“which baffles all measurement.”)
Mimansa . . . . . lit. “Solution of a problem.” One of the
six schools of Indian philosophy.
Moksha . . . . . . Freedom, liberation (Mukti).
Moksha-dharma . . . The virtues which lead to liberation of
the soul.
Mrtyu . . . . . . Death. Another name for Yama.
Mukti . . . . . . Emancipation from rebirth
Muladhara . . . . . The basic lotus of the Yogis.
Mumukcutvam . . . . Desire for liberation.
Mundaka-Upanishad . . One of the twelve principal Upanishads.
Muni . . . . . . A (religious) sage.
Nada . . . . . . Sound, finer than is heard by our ears.
Nada-Brahma . . . . The “sound-Brahman.” The Om, that
undifferentiated Word, which has
produced all manifestation.
Nadi . . . . . . A tube along which something flows—
as the blood currents, or nervous
energies.
Nadi-suddhi . . . . lit. “Purification of the channel through
which the nerve currents flow.” One
of the elementary breathing exercises.
RAJA YOGA
208
Naicthika . . . . . One possessed of a singleness of
devotion towards a high ideal of life.
Namah . . . . . . Salutation.
Nama-rupa . . . . . Name and form.
Namacakti . . . . . The power of the name of God.
Narada . . . . . . The great “god-intoxicated” sage of
ancient India, who is reputed to have
possessed all the “powers” described
in Yoga philosophy.
Narada-Sutra . . . . The Aphorisms of Narada on Bhakti.
Narayama . . . . . “Mover on the waters,” a title of Vishnu.
Nataraja . . . . . lit. “Lord of the stage.” Sometimes used
for God as the Lord of this vast stage
of the universe.
“Neti, Neti” . . . . . “Not this, not this.”
Nimitta . . . . . . Operative cause.
Niralambana . . . . lit. “Supportless,” a very high stage of
meditation, according to Yoga
philosophy.
Nirbija . . . . . . lit. “Without seed.” The highest form of
Samadhi or super-conscious state of
the mind according to Yoga
philosophy.
Nirguna . . . . . Without attributes or qualities.
Nishkamakarma . . . . Unselfish action. To do good acts
without caring for the results.
Nitya . . . . . . Permanent, eternal.
Nirukta . . . . . . Science dealing with etymology and the
meaning of words.
Nirvana . . . . . . Freedom: extinction or “blowing out” of
delusions.
Nirvichara . . . . . Without discrimination.
Nirvikalpa . . . . . Changeless.
Nirvitarka . . . . . Withou question or reasoning.
Nivritti . . . . . . “Revolving away from.”
Nishtha . . . . . . Singleness of attachment.
Niyama . . . . . . The virtues of cleanliness, contentment,
mortification, study and selfsurrender.
GLOSSARY
209
Nyaya . . . . . . The school of Indian logic. The science
of logical philosophy.
Ojas . . . . . . lit. “The illuminating or bright.” The
highest form of energy attained by a
constant practice of continence and
purity.
Om or Omkara [`] . . . The most holy word of the Vedas. A
symbolic word, meaning the
Supreme Being, the Ocean of
Knowledge and Bliss Absolute.
Om tat sat* . . . . . lit. “Om That Existence.” That Ocean of
Knowledge and Bliss Absolute, the
only Reality.
Pada . . . . . . Foot.
Pada . . . . . . Chapter.
Para . . . . . . Supreme.
Para-Bhakti . . . . Supreme devotion.
Paramahamsa . . . . Supreme soul.
Paravidya . . . . . Highest knowledge.
Parinamate . . . . . To ripen.
Parjanya . . . . . God of rain, and of the clouds.
Patanjali . . . . . Founder of the Yoga School of
Philosophy.
Pingala . . . . . . The nerve-current on the right side of
the spinal cord; also the right nostril.
Pingala . . . . . . A courtesan who abandoned her vicious
life and became remarkable for her
piety and virtue.
Pitris . . . . . . Forefathers, ancestors.
Pradhana . . . . . lit. “The chief.” The principal element;
a name used for nature in Sankya
philosophy.
Prajna . . . . . . Highest knowledge which leads to the
realisation of the Deity.
Prajnajyati . . . . . One who has been illumined with
knowledge transcending the senses.
* [This, as far as I can tell, is what the Sanskrit on the scroll on the
emblem
facing page 51 reads – T.S.]
RAJA YOGA
210
Prakrti . . . . . . Nature.
Prakrtilayas . . . . Souls that have got all the powers that
nature has by becoming one with
nature.
Prahidda . . . . . The chief of Bhaktas. [Devotees]
Pramana . . . . . Means of proof.
Pramiya . . . . . Correct cognition.
Prana . . . . . . The sum total of the cosmic energy, the
vital forces of the body.
Pranayama . . . . . Controlling the prana.
Pranidhana . . . . . Unceasing devotion.
Prarabdha . . . . . The works or Karma whose fruits we
have begun to reap in this life.
Prasankhyana . . . . Abstract contemplation.
Prathamakalpika . . . Argumentative condition of the
conscious Yogi.
Pratibha . . . . . Divine illumination.
Pratika . . . . . . lit. “Going towards.” A finite symbol
standing for the infinite Brahman.
Pratima . . . . . The use of images as symbols.
Prativishaya . . . . That which is applied to the different
objects, i.e., the organs of sense.
Pratyahara . . . . . Making the mind introspective.
Pratyagatman . . . . The internal self; the self-luminous.
Pratyaksham . . . . Direct perception.
Pravritti . . . . . “Revolving towards.”
Pritti . . . . . . Pleasure in God.
Prithivi . . . . . . One of the elements; earth; solids.
Puraka . . . . . . Inhalation.
Puranas . . . . . Writings containing the Hindu mythology.
Puraca . . . . . . The Soul.
Purva-paksha . . . . The prima facie view.
Qu’ran . . . . . . The Mahommedan Scriptures.
Raga . . . . . . Attachment to those things that please
the senses.
Raganuga . . . . . The highest form of love and attachment
to the Lord.
Raja . . . . . . lit. “To shine.” Royal.
GLOSSARY
211
Rajas . . . . . . Activity. One of the three principles
which form the essence of nature.
Raja Yoga . . . . . lit. “Royal Yoga.” The science of
conquering the internal nature, for
the purpose of realising the Divinity
within.
Rakshasa . . . . . A demon.
Ramanjua . . . . . A noted commentator of the Vishictadvaita
School of Philosophy
(qualified monistic).
Rama . . . . . . An Incarnation of God, and hero of the
celebrated epic—the “Ramayana.”
Ramayana . . . . . A celebrated Indian epic poem written
by Valmiki, a sage.
Rang . . . . . . A symbolic word for the highest wisdom.
Rasayanas . . . . . The alchemists of ancient India.
Rechaka . . . . . Exhalation.
Rg-Veda . . . . . Oldest portion of the Vedas, composed
of hymns.
Rishi . . . . . . lit. “Seer of mantras” (thoughts). One
possessed of super-sensuous
knowledge.
Ritambharaprajna . . . One whose knowledge is truthsupporting.
Rudra . . . . . . A name of a Vedic god.
Cabda . . . . . . Sound.
Cabdabrahima . . . . The creative word corresponding to the
Logos.
Cabda Nishtham Jagat . . “Through sound the world stands.”
Sabija Yoga . . . . “Seeded” meditation (that is where all
seeds of future Karma are not yet
destroyed).
Saguna . . . . . . With qualities.
Saguna-Brahma . . . The qualified or lower Brahman.
Sarguna-vidya . . . . Qualified knowledge.
Sahacrara . . . . . The “thousand-petalled lotus,” a figurative
expression of the Yogis
describing the brain.
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212
Sakhya . . . . . . Friendship.
Cakti . . . . . . Power.
Salokya . . . . . . Dwelling in the presence of God.
Sama . . . . . . Not allowing the mind to externalise.
Sama-Veda . . . . . The hymn portion of the Veda, or that
portion which was sung during the
ceremonies.
Samadhi . . . . . Super-consciousness.
Samadhana . . . . . Constant practice.
Samana . . . . . . The nerve current that controls the
function of digestion.
Camanyatadrishta . . . Inference based on superficial reasoning.
Samapatti . . . . . lit. “Treasures.” Used in Yoga philosophy
to indicate the different stages
of meditation.
Samasti . . . . . . The universal.
Samipya . . . . . Closeness to God.
Samprajnata . . . . The first stage of super-consciousness
which comes through deep meditation.
Samsara . . . . . Endless cycle of manifestation.
Samskaras . . . . . Impressions in the mind-stuff that
produce habits.
Samyama . . . . . lit. “Control.” In the Yoga philosophy it
is technically used for that perfect
control of the powers of the mind, by
which the Yogi can know anything in
the universe.
Sanandam . . . . . The “blissful Samadhi.” The third step
of the samprajnata samadhi. The
object of meditation in this state is
the “thinking organ” bereft of activity
and dullness. (Rajas and Tamas.)
Sanchita . . . . . The stored up, past Karma, whose fruits
we are not reaping now, but which
we shall have to reap in the future.
Sandilya . . . . . Writer of the Aphorisms of Divine Love
(Bhakti) from the Advaita point of
view.
GLOSSARY
213
Cankaracharya . . . . The great exponent and commentator of
the non-dualistic school of Vedanta.
He is supposed to have lived in India
about the eighth century A.D.
Sankhya . . . . . lit. “That which reveals perfectly.” The
name of a famous system of Indian
philosophy, founded by the great
sage Kapila.
Sankocha . . . . . Shrinking, contraction or nonmanifestation.
Sannyasa . . . . . Complete renunciation of all worldly
position, property and name.
Sannyasin . . . . . One who makes Sannyasa, and lives a
life of self-sacrifice, devoting himself
entirely to religion.
Santa . . . . . . Peaceful or gentle love.
Santa-Bhakta . . . . A devotee who has attained to peace
through the path of Divine love.
Santih . . . . . . Peace.
Santoca . . . . . . Contentment.
Sarupya . . . . . Growing like God.
Castra . . . . . . Books accepted as Divine authority.
Sacred Scriptures.
Sat . . . . . . . Existence-absolute.
Satchidananda . . . . “Existence—Knowledge—Bliss Absolute.”
Sattva . . . . . . Illumination material. One of the three
principles which form the essence of
nature.
Sattva-purshanvatakhyati . The perception of the Self as different
from the principles of nature.
Sattvika . . . . . . Having the Sattva quality highly
developed, hence one who is pure
and holy.
Satyam . . . . . . Truthfulness.
Saucham . . . . . Cleanliness.
Savichara . . . . . With discrimination. (A mode of
meditation)
Savitarka . . . . . Meditation with reasoning or question.
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214
Sayujya . . . . . . Union with Brahman.
Sakshi . . . . . . Witness.
Siddha-Guru . . . . A teacher who has attained Mukti.
Siddhanta . . . . . Decisive knowledge.
Siddhas . . . . . . Semi-divine beings, or Yogis, who have
attained supernatural powers.
Siddhis . . . . . . The supernatural powers which come
through the practice of Yoga.
Ciksha . . . . . . The science dealing with pronunciation
and accents.
Cishya . . . . . . A student or disciple of a Guru.
Siva . . . . . . The “Destroyer” of the Hindu trinity.
Sometimes regarded in the Hindu
mythology as the One God.
Sivoham . . . . . “I am Siva” (or eternal bliss).
Sloka . . . . . . Verse.
Smrti . . . . . . (1) Memory. (2) Any authoritative
religious book, except the Vedas.
Soham . . . . . . “I am He.”
Soma . . . . . . A certain plant, the juice of which was
used in the ancient sacrifices.
Sphota . . . . . . The eternal, essential material of all
ideas or names, which makes words
possible, yet is not any definite word
in a fully formed state. The inexpressible
Manifestor behind all the
expressed, sensible universe. The
power through which the Lord
creates the universe. Its symbol is
the eternal Om.
Craddha . . . . . Strong faith in religion.
Cravana . . . . . (1) Hearing, the ears. (2) The finer
power of hearing developed by the
Yogi.
Cri . . . . . . . Holy, or blessed.
Cri Bhashya . . . . . Name of the qualified non-dualistic
commentary of Vedanta by
Ramanuja.
GLOSSARY
215
Crotiyas . . . . . lit. “High born,” or born of a noble
family. The Hindu students who
know the Vedas by heart.
Cruti . . . . . . The Vedas, so called because transmitted
orally from father to son in ancient
times. The Vedas are regarded by all
orthodox Hindus as Divine revelation
and as the supreme authority in
religious matters.
Sthiti . . . . . . Stability.
Sthula Carira . . . . Gross body.
Cukshma Carira [sometimes
called “Linga Carira] .
Fine or subtle body.
Cunya Vada . . . . . Doctrine of the void, nihilism.
Cushupti . . . . . Deep, dreamless sleep.
Sucumna . . . . . The name given by the Yogis to the
hollow canal which runs through the
centre of the spinal cord.
Sutra . . . . . . lit. “Thread.” Usually means aphorism.
Svadhisthana . . . . lit. “Abode of Self.” Second lotus of the
Yogis, between base of spine and the
navel.
Svadhyaya . . . . . Study.
Svaha! . . . . . . “May it be perpetuated,” or “so be it.” An
expression used in making obltation.
Svapna . . . . . . The dream state.
Svapnecvara . . . . Commentator of the Aphorisms of
Sandilya.
Svasti . . . . . . A blessing, meaning “Good be unto you.”
Svati . . . . . . Name of a star
Svarga . . . . . . Heaven.
Svami . . . . . . A title meaning “master” or “spiritual
teacher.”
Cvetasvatara-Upanishad . One of the chief Upanishads of the
Yajur-Veda.
Tadiyata . . . . . lit. “His-ness.” The state when a man
has forgotten himself altogether, in his
love for the Lord, and does not feel that
anything belongs to him personally.
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216
Tamas . . . . . . “Darkness,” intertia.
Tanmatras . . . . . Fine material.
Tantras . . . . . . Books held to be sacred by a certain sect
in India.
Tantrikas . . . . . Followers of the Tantras.
Tapas . . . . . . Controlling the body by fasting or other
means. Austerity.
Taraka . . . . . . Saviour.
Tarka . . . . . . Question or reasoning.
“Tat tvam asi” . . . . “That thou art.”
Tattvas . . . . . . Categories, principles, truths.
Tejas . . . . . . One of the elements; fire; heat.
Titiksha . . . . . . Ideal forbearance. “All-sufferingness.”
Trishna . . . . . . Thirst, desire.
Tulsidas . . . . . A great sage and poet who popularised
the famous epic, the Ramayana, by
translating it from Sanskrit into the
Hindustani dialect.
Turiya . . . . . . The fourth, or highest state of
consciousness.
Tyaga . . . . . . Renunciation.
Udana . . . . . . Nerve current governing the organs of
speech, etc.
Uddharsa . . . . . Excessive merriment.
Udgitha . . . . . lit. “That which is chanted aloud,” hence
the Pravana or Om.
Udgatha . . . . . Awakening the Kundalini.
Upadana . . . . . The material cause of the world.
Upadhi . . . . . . Limiting adjunct.
Uparati . . . . . . Not thinking of things of the senses;
discontinuing external religious
observances.
Upayapratyaya . . . . A state of abstract meditation.
Uttara Gita . . . . . The name of a book supposed to be
related by Cri Krsna for the further
instruction of Arjuna.
Uttara Mimansa . . . Another name for the Vedanta philosophy,
written originally in the form
of aphorisms by Vyasa.
GLOSSARY
217
Vach or Vak . . . . lit. “speech.” The Word, the Logos.
Vada . . . . . . Argumentative knowledge.
Vairagyam . . . . . Non-attachment to the attractions of the
senses. Renunciation.
Vaiceshika . . . . . A branch of the Nyasa school of philosophy;
the Atomic school.
Vaishnavas . . . . . The followers or worshippers of Vishnu,
who form one of the principle Hindu
religious sects.
Vamadeva . . . . . A great Rishi who possessed the highest
spiritual enlightenment from the time
of his birth.
Vanaprastha . . . . The forest life. Third of the four stages
into which the life of a man was
divided into ancient India.
Varaha-Purana . . . . One of the eighteen principle Puranas.
Vardhate . . . . . To grow.
Vartikam . . . . . A concise explanatory note.
Varuna . . . . . . The old Vedic god of the sky.
Vasana . . . . . . A habit or tendency arising from an
impression remaining unconsciously
in the mind from past Karma.
Vasudeva . . . . . Manifestation of the highest Being.
Vatsalya . . . . . The affection of parents for children.
Vayu . . . . . . lit. “the vibrating.” The air.
Vedana . . . . . . The fine power of feeling developed by
the Yogi.
Vedas . . . . . . The Hindu Scriptures, consisting of the
Rg-Veda, the Yajur-Veda, the Sama-
Veda, the Artharva-Veda; also the
Brahmanas and the Upanishads;
comprising the hymns, rituals and
philosophy of the Hindu religion.
Vedanta . . . . . The final philosophy of the Vedas, as
expressed in the Upanishads. The
philosophical system which embraces
all Indian systems of philosophy,—
the monistic, the mono-dualistic and
the dualistic.
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218
Vedavai anantah . . . A quotation from the Vedas, meaning
“The Scriptures are infinite.”
Vidcha . . . . . . Disembodied, or unconscious of body.
Vidya . . . . . . Science, or knowledge.
Vidvan . . . . . . One who knows.
Vijnana . . . . . . The higher knowledge.
Vikalpa . . . . . . Verbal delusion, doubt, notion, fancy.
Vikaranabhava . . . . Uninstrumental perception.
Vikshipta . . . . . A scattered or confused state of mind.
Vimoksha . . . . . Absence of desire. Absolute freedom.
Vina . . . . . . A stringed musical instrument of India.
Viparyaya . . . . . False conception of a thing whose real
form does not correspond to that
conception, as mother of pearl mistaken
for silver.
Vipra . . . . . . A sage who was born and bred a
Brahmin.
Viraka . . . . . . Intense misery due to separation from
the beloved one.
Virya . . . . . . Strength, energy.
Vishnu . . . . . . The “Preserver” of the Hindu trinity,
who takes care of the universe, and
who incarnates from time to time to
help mankind.
Vicishtadvaita . . . . Qualified non-dualism. A school of
Indian philosophy, founded by
Ramanuja, a great religious reformer,
which teaches that the individual soul
is a part of God.
Vicishtadvaitin . . . . A follower of the above school of
philosophy; a qualified non-dualist.
Vicoka . . . . . . “Sorrowless.”
Vivekananda . . . . “Bliss-in-discrimination.”
Vitarka . . . . . . Questioning or philosophical enquiry.
Viveka . . . . . . Discrimination (of the true from the
false).
Vicuddha . . . . . The fifth lotus of the Yogis, opposite the
throat (in the Sucumna).
GLOSSARY
219
Vraja . . . . . . A suburb of the city of Muttra, where
Krsna played in his childhood.
Vrinda . . . . . . The attendant of the principal Gopi.
Vrtti . . . . . . lit. “The whirlpool.” Wave form in the
chitta; a modification of the mind.
Vyana . . . . . . The nerve current which circulates all
over the body.
Vyasa . . . . . . lit. “One who expounds” (as a commentator).
One Vyasa was the author
of the Mahabharata and of the
Uttara Mimansa.
Vyasa Sutras . . . . The Vedanta Aphorisms by Vyasa.
Vyasti . . . . . . The particular (as opposed to the
universal).
Vyutthana . . . . . Waking, or returning to consciousness
after abstract meditation.
Yajur-Veda . . . . . The ritualistic portion of the Vedas.
Yama . . . . . . The internal purification through moral
training, preparatory to Yoga. The
god of Death, so called from his
power of self-control.
Yoga . . . . . . Joining; union of the lower self with the
higher self, by means of mental
control. Any sort of culture that
leads us to God.
Yoga Sutra . . . . . Aphorism on Yoga.
Yogi . . . . . . One who practices Yoga.
Yudhisthira . . . . . A great Hindu Emperor who lived about
1400 B.C. He was one of the five
Pandavas.
Yuga . . . . . . A cycle or age of the world. The present
cycle is known in India as the “Kali-
Yuga” or “Iron-Age.” |
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