Vedanta Philosophy

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Glossary of Sanskrit Terms

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Madhva The twelfth-century exponent of dualistic Vedanta. He wrote commentaries on the Brahma Sutras, the Upanishads, and the Bhagavad Gita.

Mahamaya The Mother of the universe, the divine will. Mahamaya veils our vision of Brahman, the absolute Reality. Yet through her grace, she rends this veil, allowing us to realize the identity of the Atman with Brahman.

Mahavakya Literally, "great saying." A Vedantic formula that declares the oneness of the individual soul with Brahman.

Manana The process of reasoning in which one reflects on the spiritual teacher's words and meditates upon their meaning.

Mantra The sacred name of God given by the guru to the disciple. Repetition of the mantra is japa.

Marga Path; jnana marga, for example, is the path of spiritual knowledge, and bhakti marga is the path of devotion.

Maya Maya is the power of Brahman, the creative aspect of God. It is also the cosmic illusion that creates ignorance and veils the vision of Brahman. Due to the power of maya, Brahman, the one Reality, is perceived as the manifold universe.

Nididhyasana Deep meditation on the truth of Brahman.

Nirvikalpa samadhi Lit., "changeless samadhi." The highest state of realization in which the spiritual aspirant attains oneness with the Absolute.

Om The most sacred syllable of Hinduism; the sound-symbol of Brahman.

Prakriti Primordial nature; the material principle of the world which, in association with Purusha, creates the universe. Prakriti is one of the two ultimate realities of Sankhya philosophy.

Prana In the physical body, prana is the vital breath that sustains life and manifests as thought, bodily function, and physical action. In the cosmos, prana is the sum total of all primal energy that manifests as motion, gravitation, magnetism, etc.

Prarthana Prayer.

Pratyahara Withdrawal of the mind from the objects of the senses.

Pravrajika Title of women who have taken final vows of renunciation, or sannyas. (The corresponding word for men is swami.) The term generally means a woman ascetic.

Puja Ritualistic worship.

Purusha One of the two ultimate realities of Sankhya philosophy. The divine Self, the absolute Reality, pure Consciousness.

Raja yoga Literally the "royal yoga," raja yoga is the path of meditation. It is the spiritual path by which one attains union with the Absolute through control of internal and external forces.

Rajas The guna which expresses itself as restlessness, activity, and passion.

Ramakrishna, Sri (1836-1886) A God-man of India who is considered by many to be an incarnation of God. His message stressed the essential unity of all religions, the innate divinity of humanity, and the realization of God as the goal of life.

Ramanuja The eleventh-century saint-philosopher who propagated the school of qualified nondualism, Vishishtadvaita. Ramanuja wrote commentaries on the Brahma Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita, along with other original treatises which advocated his philosophy of devotion to God as the highest ideal of human life.

Ramprasad Eighteenth-century Bengali mystic and poet. He composed devotional songs to Kali which Ramakrishna loved to sing.

Rishi A seer of spiritual truth. Usually the term refers to the ancient Hindu seers to whom the Vedas were revealed.

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