Advaita Goswami :
An intimate disciple of Chaitanya Deva
Advaitavada : Non-dualism
Adyashakti : Primal
Divine Energy
Ahetuki bhakti :
Love for God that wells up unbidden out of the depths of the immortal soul
Akasa : Ether, the
subtlest of the five elements, the vehicle of life and sound
Akhanda : Indivisible
Akshay Kumar Sen
: A poet devotee of Sri Ramakrishna. He authored Sri Ramakrishna Punthi (The
life of Sri Ramakrishna in verse), and thus immortalized himself. His birthplace
is Maynapur village in the Bankura district.
Amavasya : New moon;
the darkest night of the month.
Anahata Shabda :
The uncaused sound
Anandamayi : All-Bliss
Divine Mother
Antarjali
: Hindu rite of keeping the lower part of the body of a dying person immersed
in a holy river.
Antaryami : God as
the Inner Controller
Antasarra : Full
of pith and marrow
Apradha bhanjan :
Dissolver of sins
Arani wood : Tinder
stick
Arati : Singing of
devotional songs and waving of lights before the deity
Artha : Wealth
Asana : Meditation
seat
Atmarama : Rejoicing
in the company of the Self
Avatar : Incarnation
of God
Avidya : Ignorance
which leads one away from God
Avidya maya : Power
of nescience leading one away from God
Avidya shakti : Power
of ignorance
Avyapadesyam : Indescribable,
and impossible to verbalize
Bahaduri wood : a
heavy log
Banya : a semi-circular
percussion instrument played along with tabla
Baul :
Minstrel
Bhagavan : The Personal
God, Lord
Bhairavas and Bhairavis : Couples in Tantrik worship
Bhajanananda : Joy
of worship
Bhakti : Love, devotion,
prayerfulness and self-surrender
Bhakti yoga : Path
of union with God through love and devotion
Bhava : Ecstasy of
divine love
Bhava-avastha : The
highest spiritual state of absorption just before the mind merges in the Absolute
Oneness; bhava samadhi
Bhavamukha chaitanya
: Affirmation
Bija mantra : A mystic
word or words of great power to be recited silently within
Bodhebodhe : Inner
experience of God
Brahmajnana : Knowledge
of the Absolute
Brahman: God the
Absolute
Brahmananda : Bliss
of Brahman
Brahmani : A sannyasini
who was Sri Ramakrishna’s spiritual preceptor
Chadar : A long piece of cloth worn on the upper part of the body,
often draped as a shawl
Chamara : A fan made
of the white hair from the tail of the chamari yak, used in Hindu ritual worship
Chanabara : A Bengali
sweet made of fried cheese
Chandala : A man
who cremates; a scavenger
Chandravali : One
of the gopis at Vrindavan
Chapati : Flat whole
wheat bread
Chetana Samadhi :
This samadhi is experienced in bhakti yoga. In this samadhi the aspirant retains
the consciousness of his I-ness as he communes with God
Chidananda : Knowledge
and Bliss Absolute
Chinmaya : Embodiment
of Spirit
Chitshakti : The
power of Consciousness
Chitta : In yoga
terminologymanas (mind), buddhi (intellect)
and ahamkara (ego) are but various processes in the mind-stuff, called chitta.
The waves of thought in the chitta are called vrittis. When presented with
outside stimuli, via the organs of perception, mind, intellect and ego, the
vrittis become energized. The chitta is the instrument that takes hold of
some thought waves, absorbs them and sends them out as thoughts.
Daityas : Demons
Dakshina : Teacher’s
fee
Danas : Ghosts
Dandis : A sect of
sannyasins who carry a staff
Darshan : Seeing,
experiencing; paying respect to a holy place or person by a ceremonial visit;
also the blessing or purification felt in the presence of holiness
Dasya : Attitude
of a servant toward his master
Demons’ room : The
brothers of the monastery at Baranagore Math called themselves danas and daityas
(ghosts and demons) and the room where they met they called ‘the room of the
danas,’ or the ‘demons’ room’
Dham : Place of pilgrimage
Dharma : Righteousness
Dhoti : A man’s wearing
cloth; a method of cleaning entrails with water
Dhyana Yoga : Communion
with God through meditation
Dol : Festival in
which Sri Krishna is swung in a cradle
Dulali : A dear little
girl
Dvaitavada : Dualism
Eight fetters : Hatred,
shame, fear, lineage, pride of good conduct, secretiveness, caste and grief
Fakir : A mendicant
ascetic
Faras : Lamp lighter
Fazli mango : A kind
of mango species grown in Malda
Ghat : Bathing place
on the side of a lake or river; finite being
Giriraj : Himalaya, the king of mountains
Golap-ma : Golap
Sundari Devi, a companion and friend of Holy Mother
Goloka : The heavenly
abode of Vishnu
Gopala : Baby Krishna
Gopis : Milkmaids
Goswamis : Vaishnava
priests
Hari : A name of
the Lord as Vishnu
Haribol : A Vaishnava
expression meaning “Chant the Lord’s name”
Havishya : Holy food
consisting of boiled rice with clarified butter
Hinche : A kind of
aquatic plant eaten as greens
Homa : A Vedic sacrifice
in which oblations are offered into a fire
Ichhamai : The Divine
Mother has Her own way in everything
Ida : A spiritual
nerve on the left of the spinal cord
Ishvarakoti : Eternally
free and perfect souls, born on earth for the good of mankind, with at least
some of the characteristics of an avatar
Jada Samadhi : In
this samadhi the I-consciousness of the aspirant vanishes and he appears like
an inert object as he communes with God. The jnani passes into this kind of
samadhi.
Jagadamba : Mother
of the Universe
Japa : Repetition
of the holy Name
Jivakoti : An ordinary
human being
Jivatman : Individual
soul
Jivanmukta : One
liberated in this very life
Jnana : Knowledge
Jnana yoga : Path
of union with God through knowledge
Jnani : Man of knowledge
Kala : Spirit of
Eternity
Kalpatru : Wish-fulfilling
tree
Kama
: Desire
Karanananda : Bliss
of divine inebriation
Karma : Action
Karmakanda : Performance
of work, rituals or duties
Khoka : Baby
Kirtan : Devotional
singing
Kirtaniya : Woman
kirtan singer
Kosha : Sheath; small
water container used along with kushi for worshipping.
Kripasiddha : Perfected
by God’s grace
Kulfi : Ice cream
Kumbhaka : Suspension
of breath
Kundalini :Spiritual energy lying dormant at the base of
the spine.When awakened, it travels
up through the Sushumna and the centers of consciousness in the spinal canal
and manifests in various degrees of illumination.
Kushi : A small spoon
used to remove water from a larger ritualistic worship vessel. Both are usually
made of copper.
Kutastha intellect
: Firm and steadfast understanding
Kutichaka: An aspirant
who settles down peacefully at one place on an asana
Lila : Phenomenal
world
Luchi : Fried bread
Madhava : A name
of Sri Krishna
Madhavi : A spring
creeper with fragrant flowers
Madhura : Attitude
of a sweetheart
Mahabhava : Highest
manifestation of divine love
Mahakala : Spirit
of Eternity, the Absolute
Mahamaya:Great Power of the Mother of the Universe, on
the one hand veiling the vision of Brahman through illusion or nescience;
and on the other, dispelling ignorance through Her grace.
Mahat : Cosmic mind
Mahatma : Great spiritual
personality
Mahayoga : Supreme
yoga experience
Malechha : A non-Hindu
Mallhar raga : Indian
musical mode of rainy season
Muladhara : The first
and lowest center in the Sushumna, a lotus with four petals. The Kundalini
is coiled up at the Muladhara center.
Mumukshu : A seeker
with a burning desire for liberation
Nada : This sound
rises from the navel and originates in the Supreme Brahman
Nangta : The Naked
One; Totapuri
Narasimha : God incarnated
as half lion and half man to protect Prahlada
Narayana : A name
of Lord Vishnu
Nedas and nedis :
Shaven-headed Vaishnava monks and nuns
Neeras : Devoid of
sweetness, love and bliss
Neti : Cleaning of
nose passages with water
Neti, neti : Not
this, not this
Nirguna : God without
attributes
Nirlipta : Unattached
Nirvana : Total annihilation
of the ego
Nishkama karma :
Selfless work; work without the expectation of any reward
Nishtha bhakti :
Single-minded devotion
Nitya : The Absolute
Nitya Kali : A name
of the Divine Mother
Nityasiddhas : The
Ever--perfect
Panchatapa : Practicing
japa and meditation seated within five fires
Paramatman : The
Supreme Soul
Paramahamsa :One belonging to the highest order of knowers
of Brahman
Parabrahman :Supreme Brahman
Passions, six : Lust,
anger, avarice, delusion, pride and envy
Pestle, story of
: The childhood friends of Samba, one of Krishna’s
sons, playfully disguised him as a pregnant woman by dressing him in female
clothes and hanging an iron pestle below his waist. They presented him before
a group of ascetics and asked them what sort of child the woman would give
birth to. Enraged that a joke had been played on them, the munis proclaimed
a curse that the iron pestle would be the ruin of the entire clan of Yadus.
Fearfully, the boys took the pestle to the ocean and rubbed it for a very
long time. The particles that fell from it, on striking the ground, became
strong willow reeds. The boys threw the last piece of pestle into the sea.
In the meantime Krishna’s clan, the Yadus, had become overbearingly vain
and arrogant and they began to fight among themselves. At last they took the
powerful willow reeds sprung from the pestle dust and, with them as weapons,
fought each other to the death. Krishna,
having decided that it was time that he also pass on, bade his father and
his wives farewell and seated himself under a tree for meditation. Only one
of his legs was not obscured by the leafy and outreaching branches of the
tree. A hunter mistook him for a deer and killed him with an arrow, the point
of which was the last piece from the pestle that had been thrown into the
sea. Thus did the munis’ curse find fulfillment.
Pilau : Fried rice
Pingala : A spiritual
nerve on the right of the spinal cord
Pir : A Muslim saint
Pisacha : Unclean
spirit, demon
Pitamah : Grandfather
Pitta : One of the
humours of the body, caused due to excess of bile
Prakriti : Primordial Nature, composed of the 3 gunas, the material of
the universe of mind and matter
Prakriti bhava :
Assuming a feminine nature
Prana : Vital breath
Prarabdha : Stored-up
karma from past lives which has begun to bear fruit in the present life
Prasad : Sacramental
food
Pravartaka : Beginner
in spiritual life
Pravritti : Worldly
action
Prema : Ecstatic
love; a state in which the devotee forgets the world and his own body
Purascharana : Performance
of japa a certain number of times each day, methodically increasing and decreasing
the number
Purna : Perfect
Purna jnana : Perfect
knowledge of the Absolute
Purnima : Full moon
Purusha : The Self, the Absolute, Spirit. Pure Consciousness, the witness
of the changes of Prakriti
Raga Bhakti : Intense
love and devotion for God
Ragini : An Indian
musical mode
Rama : One of the
incarnations of God
Ramana : Romance,
lit. intercourse
Ramani : Woman with
whom one cohabits
Ramlala : Image of
baby Rama made of eight metals
Rasaswaroop : Fountain
of love and bliss
Rathayatra : A festival in which the form of Sri Krishna
is borne in procession on a large canopy-topped chariot
Rishi : A great sage
Roshan chowki : Symphony
of sanai and other musical instruments
Sadguru : A perfected
Master; a genuine spiritual preceptor
Sadhaka : Spiritual
aspirant
Sadhana : Spiritual
practices
Sadhanasiddha:Perfected by spiritual practices
Sadhu : Holy man
Sagar : Ocean
Saguna : God with
attributes
Sahaja : Natural;
simple one
Sahasrara : It is
the topmost center in the cerebrum, the lotus of a thousand petals, the abode
of Shiva, which is the goal of the spiritual energy (Shakti) awakened by the
yogi at the Muladhara. When the spiritual energy reaches the Sahasrara and
becomes united with Shiva or Brahman, the result is samadhi, Brahmajnana.
Sakhi : Gopi (milkmaid)
friend; female lover of the Lord
Sakhi bhava : Attitude
of being a female lover of the Lord
Sakhya : Attitude
of a friend
Sama : Control of
the mind
Samskaras : Tendencies
inherited from past lives
Sandesh : A Bengali
sweet made of cheese and sugar
Sandhya : Worship
and meditation performed at dawn, noon, and sunset by orthodox Hindus
Shakti : The Divine
Mother, Power of Brahman, Personification of the Primal Energy
Shankari : Name of
the Divine Mother, giver of all good
Shanta : Serene attitude
Shraddha : Faith
Shudra : Member of
the fourth or menial caste among Hindus
Shyam Sunder : A
name of Sri Krishna
Siddha : Spiritually
perfect ones
Siddha of the siddhas
: Most perfect of the perfected
Siddhi : Indian hemp
Soham : I am He
Svarata : Self existent
Svati : The fifteenth
of the twenty-seven zodiacal stars according to Hindu astronomy
Svati nakshatra :
A particular conjunction of stars
Systems of Hindu
Philosophy, Six :Samkhya of Kapila,
Yoga of Patanjali, Vaiseshika of Kanada, Nyaya of Gautama, Purva Mimamsa of
Jaimini, and Vedanta of Badarayana
Tabasheer : Hard
substance extracted from bamboo joints and used medicinally; sugar of bamboo
Tagi : A man of renunciation
Tantras : Religious
philosophy in which the Divine Mother, or Power, is the Godhead
Tattva jnana : Knowledge
of the Reality, the highest Truth
Totapuri : Sri Ramakrishna’s
teacher of Advaita Vedanta
Trigunatita : Beyond
the three gunas
Twenty four categories
: these are the following, viz. – the five gross elements (earth, water, fire,
air, space); the five pranas (vital airs) (prana, udana, samana, vyana, apana);
the five organs of sense; the five organs of work; the mind; the determinative
faculty (buddhi); the ego; chitta (mind-stuff)
Tyagi : One who has
given up the world for the sake of God – riches, honours, work with attachment,
sensual pleasures etc.
Upadhis : Adjuncts
Urjita bhakti : Burning
love and devotion for God
Vahudaka : The aspirant
who visits many places of pilgrimage and hasn’t yet attained peace of mind
Vaidhi bhakti : Vedic
worship
Vaikuntha : The abode
of Lord Vishnu
Vairagya : Non-attachment
to things of the world; dispassion
Vaishakh : First
day of the year
Vaishnavas : Worshippers
of Vishnu
Vajrasana : Centre
in the Sushumna
Vamana : The dwarf
– an incarnation of Vishnu
Varuna : Presiding
deity of the ocean
Vasanta raga : An
Indian musical mode
Vasus : A class of
devas (gods)
Vatsalya : Attitude
of a mother toward her child
Vibhu : Presence
of God as all-pervading power
Vijaya Dashami :
The fourth day of worship of Mother Durga
Vidya maya : The
aspect of Maya which leads man closer to the realization of Brahman
Vidya Shakti : The
power of knowledge which leads one toward God
Vina : A stringed
musical instrument
Vinapani : The goddess
of music
Virat : The All-pervading
Spirit in the form of the universe
Vishishtadvaita :
Qualified non-dualism
Vishyananda : Joy
of worldly enjoyment
Viveka : Discrimination
between the real and the unreal
Yajna : Vedic sacrifice
Yama : God of death
Yama : Self-restraint.
Patanjali cites five yamas or restrains. They are: (1) abstinence from injury
in any form; (2) truthfulness; (3) continence; (4) non-stealing and non-covetousness;
and (5) abstinence from possessiveness, accepting only what is absolutely
necessary (ahimsa, satya, brahmacharya, asteya, aparigraha).
Yatra : Religious
theatrical performances
Yoga : Union with God; also the method to realize this union.