Hindi Vocabularly used in the English Translations of the Sai Baba Writings

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dharmakarma - Act of duty, virtuous action. From dharma, righteousness, and karma, action.

Sai Baba from the Dharma Vahini: "You have to understand ancient Dharmakarmas by entering into their symbolic meaning. The spiritual field has many a technical term, with its own special connotation. These have to be clearly understood, so that you can grasp correctly the teaching of the Sastras."

Clicking on one of the following titles will take the reader farther down this same page.

Hindi Vocabulary used in the Sai Baba Translations
hindi, telugu, Bhagavan, Sri, Shri, Sathya, Sai, Baba, avatar, avathar, darshan, vahini, Prashanthi Nilayam

Basic words commonly used throughout Sai Baba's teachings
Barath, Baratha, Barathadesa, dharma, karma, dharmakarma, sathya, vidya, viveka, Brahmavidya, prema, leela, bhakthi, jnana, vijnana, ajnana, Brahmajnana, sama, dama, moksha, muktha, mukthi, vairagya, sat, chit, ananda, Maharishis, Brahman, guna, sathwa guna, rajo guna, thamo guna, yajna, mantra, artha, kama, samsara

The holy books of India
veda, vedanta, darsana, vedanthadarsana, tarka, sastra, shastra, nithra, Mimamsakas, Puranas, Skanda Purana, ithihasas, sutra, dharmasutras, Brahmanas, Manudharma, smrithi, Bhagavata, Bhagavatha, Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata, Upanishads, Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad, Mundakopanishad, Gurugita, Yogasastras, Manthrasastras, karmakanda, jnanakanda, Yogavasishta,

Titles and qualities of the Divine
avatar, avatara, avathar, avathara, Krishna, leela,

Dharmas and castes
Holy men, holy women, characters, and fiends
The 7 principles of man
Terms used for meditation, worship, rites, and practices
From the Theosophical Glossary on ether, ethereal, aether, actio in distans, astral light, and akasa
Words used to describe the universe
Sai Baba and the Earth changes

Hindi Vocabulary used in the Sai Baba Translations

Some of the more common Hindi terms used in the translations of Sai Baba's writings into English. By looking at this new vocabulary the student has a better idea of what the discussion will be about, what new words will be used, and what their meaning are. I have tried to give a short definition of each from online glossaries followed by quotations from the different texts where each word is used in the context of the discussion. It is really by looking at how a word is used in discussion that a person gets a working knowledge of its meaning. From here the challenge is to locate and identify, in meditation and observation, each of the names or qualities referred to.

Online glossaries used are:

Glossary from www .sathyasai. org

Glossary from www. vahini. org

As well as a general understanding of Hindi or Sanskrit words presented by Theosophy, and western studies of eastern religion.

Hindi - the national language of India, a combination of the older languages of India, such as Tamil, Telugu, and Sanskrit.

Telugu - the language that Sai Baba speaks, it should be noted that he speaks English and many other languages, people have heard him speaking in the language appropriate to who he is talking to. He is said to be able to speak any and all languages. Sai Baba teaches that there is only one language, the language of the heart.

Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

Bhagavan - Divinity, term of reverential address. Bha means creation. Ga means protection. Va means change or transformation. So bhagava means creation, protection, and transformation. One endowed with bhaga is Bhagavan. Bhaga is the qualities of authority derived from power, heroism, bravery, fame, prosperity, wisdom, and detachment.

Sri, Shri (sounds like shree) - honorific prefix to the name of deities, respectful title of venerated persons and celebrated works.

sathya - truth.

Sai - Master, Divine Mother.

Baba - Divine Father. (Sound that sheep make. The Devotees all say Baba, Baba. In India one star is bha, two stars are bha, bha, and many stars are bha, bha, bha, bha. What then are sheep amidst stars led by Baba?)

But seriously, as Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba it means 'The Divine respectful truth as master, Divine Mother, Divine Father.'

The avathara Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

avathara, avathar, avatara, avatar - an incarnation of God, appropriate to the time, place, and purpose. The Divine has manifested previously as Rama, then Krishna, and now as Sai Baba. Later he is to manifest as Kalki, the horse avathara. The list of avatharas is usually given as 10, although it would seem that there have been others.

matha uttakara - noble souls sent to reform religion. Such are Jesus Christ, Buddha, Zoroaster, and others.

Mahatma - great soul. Ghandi is Mahatma.

darshan - sight of a holy person.

vahini - stream or flow.

The book of Sai Baba's that is being considered is:

Sathya Sai Baba
Dharma Vahini
Translated from the Original Telugu
Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
Web posted at Jan 31, 2000

N. Kasturi - a servant of love who prepares the teachings of Sai Baba for distribution among the Students. Kasturi has written the biography of Sai Baba and he writes the preface to many of the Vahinis. Kasturi is clearly a realized soul, stable in his Atmic awareness. On looking at his photograph while a young man it is clear that he came to this life to accomplish a great work in the flourishing of the Vedas. N. Kasturi is Mahatma, a great soul.

Prashanthinilayam - a place, a community, in India where Sai Baba teaches. Shanthi means peace, prashanthi means supreme peace.

Basic words commonly used throughout Sai Baba's teachings

There are many basic words that the student is expected to have an understanding of.

Bharath (Bharatha) - India, Indian, descendant of King Bharatha, first emperor of India.

Bharatha - son of Dasaratha and Kaika, brother of Rama. "Bharatha" means "he who rules."

Bharathadesa - India, region of God loving people.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Your acts and activities are all rituals in the worship of the Paramathma that pervades the Universe. Whatever is done in an attitude of dedication and surrender is a component of the Dharma, which leads to Realisation. The strategy of the Bharathiya way of life is directed towards the sanctification of every moment and every word, thought and deed, into a step towards the realisation."

From the Dharma Vahini: "...were born in this Bharathadesa and by their adherence to Dharma, they strengthened Dharma."

dharma - right action, truth in action, righteousness, morality, virtue, duty, the dictates of God, code of conduct.

Example of Sai Baba's use of the word 'dharma' from Dharma Vahini:

Chapter I. "Man must dedicate himself to Dharma and be engaged always in Dharma so that he may live in peace and the world may enjoy peace. He cannot acquire real Peace, nor can he win the Grace of the Lord through any means other than the Dharmic life. Dharma is the foundation for the welfare of humanity; it is the truth that is stable for all time. When Dharma fails to transmute human life, the world is afflicted by agony and fear, tormented by stormy revolutions. When the effulgence of Dharma fails to illumine human relationships, mankind is shrouded in the night of sorrow.

"God is the embodiment of Dharma; His Grace is won by Dharma. He is ever fostering Dharma, He is ever establishing Dharma, He is Dharma Itself. The Vedas, Sastras, Puranas and Ithihasas proclaim aloud the Glory of Dharma. In the scriptures of the various religions, Dharma is elaborated in the language familiar to the adherents. It is the duty of every man everywhere at all times to pay homage to the Dharma-Narayana the personification of Dharma. The stream of Dharmic activity should never run dry; when its cool waters cease to flow, disaster is certain. Humanity has reached this stage only because Dharma, like the river Saraswathi, flows unseen, below the ground, feeding the roots and filling the springs. Not only humanity, but even birds and beasts have to adhere to Dharma, so that they may be happy and survive in comfort and joy.

"Therefore, the waters of Dharma have to be kept flowing perpetually and full, so that the world might enjoy happiness. Disaster now dances madly on the world stage, because Right is neglected and there is disbelief in the essentials of Dharmic life. So man has to understand clearly the very heart of Dharma."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma is the moral path; the moral path is the Light; the Light is Ananda. Dharma is characterised by holiness, peace, truth and fortitude. Dharma is Yoga, Union, Merger; it is Sathya. Its attributes are justice, sense-control, sense of honour, love, dignity, goodness, meditation, sympathy, non-violence; such is Dharma that persists through the ages. It leads one on to Universal Love and Unity. It is the highest Discipline and the most profitable. All this 'unfoldment' began with Dharma; all this is stabilised by Sathya; Sathya is inseparable from Dharma. Sathya is the law of the Universe, which makes the sun and the moon revolve in their orbits. Dharma is the Vedas and the Mantras, the Jnana they convey. Dharma is the course, the path, the law. Wherever there is adherence to morality, there one can see Sathya-dharma in action. In the Bhagavatha too, it is said, "where there is Dharma, there is Krishna; where there are both Dharma and Krishna together, there is Victory." Dharma is the very embodiment of the Lord; since the world itself is the body of the Lord, the world is but another name for the Moral Order; no one can deny it now or ever."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Education is necessary for both men and women. But, education for women has to be in accordance with their special needs. Educated women are really the promoters of Dharma for the whole world. Parents too must co-operate in getting them equipped with proper education. Women should not be given freedom in certain matters. I will not approve of their being given such freedom. They must be made into ideal women; their education must be so shaped."

It should be noted that in this language the opposite meaning is indicated by an 'a' preceding a word. Thus the opposite of dharma, righteousness is adharma, unrighteousness.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The cause for the present fall in moral standards and absence of social peace is the neglect of this aspect of women's education. The earth and sky are still the same; the change is in the ideal of education from Dharma to Adharma."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Here, one point has to be clearly grasped. Many who read the Gita take it that the Lord incarnates when Dharma is destroyed and when the forces of Adharma begin to prevail. But there is no basis to draw the conclusion that Dharma gets destroyed. The Gita too does not say so. The word that is used is "glaani"; that is to say, when the indications are that dharma is in danger, "I will come in order to protect it from harm."

karma - (a) activity, action, work, duty. (b) fate; consequences of acts done in this life and past lives.

dharmakarma - Act of duty, virtuous action. From dharma - righteousness, and karma - action.

From the Dharma Vahini: "You have to understand ancient Dharmakarmas by entering into their symbolic meaning. The spiritual field has many a technical term, with its own special connotation. These have to be clearly understood, so that you can grasp correctly the teaching of the Sastras."

sathya (sath) - Truth.

From the Dharma Vahini: "With the vision fixed on Sathya or the Reality, with full faith in the Brahmam which is your own essential nature, you can by-pass the need to transform the external world to suit your ideal of happiness and Sathyadharma can be attained."

From the Dharma Vahini: "While, it is so hard to analyze and understand your entity, how can you pronounce judgement on other entities with any definiteness? What you refer to as 'I' and as 'You' relate to the body, the appearance; they are not Sath. The Atma is One and Indivisible; Dharma based on That is genuine Dharma."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Objects undergo change; they are not eternal. They are not Sath, real."

From the Dharma Vahini: "All this 'unfoldment' began with Dharma; all this is stabilised by Sathya; Sathya is inseparable from Dharma. Sathya is the law of the Universe, which makes the sun and the moon revolve in their orbits."

vidya - spiritual knowledge, that which illumines.

viveka - discrimination.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Vidya or education must be built on the basis of Viveka or Discrimination."

From the Dharma Vahini: "In the religious, moral and physical fields, she must adhere to the strict dictates of Dharma, and take that as the essence of all Vidya."

With an 'a' in front of a word the opposite meaning is intended.

From the Dharma Vahini: "To get fixed up in a job, to earn degrees, to move about with all and sundry without distinction and discrimination, to discard respect for elders and give up fear of sin and evil, to over-look the claims of the good and the holy, to force the husband to dance to one's tune, to deny the tribute of repentance to one's errors, are these the signs of education? No; they are all the monstrous shapes of Avidya, the uneducated egoist attitudes that make a person ugly and repelling."

Brahmavidya - spiritual knowledge of Brahman, God, that illumines, from Brahman - God, and vidya - that which illumines.

From the Dharma Vahini: "So too, all persons are affected by the illness of birth and death and they all have the right to the drug, named Brahmavidya, which is its effective cure."

prema - love, well being with good will.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Lord, the embodiment of Prema, is the Only Constant Friend and Relative, Companion, Guide and Protector."

leela - Divine sport or play.

grihastha - householder.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If hindrances come, dedicate them too to the Lord, take them quietly as His Leela and as His Plan; that is the way to follow the Grihastha discipline, the Path for both men and women."

bhakthi (bakthi) - Devotion.

jnana - spiritual knowledge.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Simple folk believe that they have Bhakthi towards the Lord, but they do not pause to inquire whether the Lord has Love towards them!"

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is through the example of such great and holy women, with their character and conduct inspired by Bhakthi and Jnana, that even today simplicity, humility and devotion shine in the hearts of the women of Bharathadesa."

Brahmajnana - spiritual knowledge of Brahman, God, from Brahman - God, and jnana - spiritual knowledge.

sama - control of the senses, control of the inner faculties, peace, equanimity, tranquility, quiet persuasion, good counsel.

dama - control of the outer senses.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dietary and other restrictions are essential components of the treatment of illness; so also mere initiation into Brahmajnana is not enough. Without Sama, Dama and the other moral and spiritual excellences, no one, be he emperor or bondsman, high-born or low-born, can reach the goal. Though every one is entitled to the heritage of Brahmavidya, only those who equip themselves with the qualifications can receive it."

moksha - liberation.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Aspirants for Moksha must first practise the rules and restrictions prescribed in the Sastras for the elevation of character and the consecration of the feelings. Devoid of this liberating quantum of Brahmajnana, mere scholarship acquired by laborious study of the Sastras is just so much exhausting burden!"

vijnana - spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom, discriminating faculty of the intellect.

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is what Manu also says. "They are endowed with Vijnaana." The person who is free from all desire, who has not even the slightest inclination to posses or enjoy the sensory world, who has no trace of egoism or possessiveness, who is ever in the bliss of Brahmam-consciousness, is far from any tinge of sorrow, he is established in supreme joy and peace."

Putting an 'a' in front of a word is often used to denote the opposite meaning, ajnana means ignorance.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The ajnani, or the ignoramus, who is moved by the inert or the jada principle, believes that the body is himself!"

vairagya - detachment, renunciation.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The drug, Brahma-consciousness, has to be supplemented and strengthened by the appropriate Dharma as well as the cultivation of Bhakthi, Jnana and Vairagya."

sat, chit, ananda - existence, awareness, bliss.

Awareness of is knowledge of, so it is also translated existence, knowledge, bliss.
Awareness and knowledge imply consciousness so it is also translated as existence, consciousness, bliss.
These three qualities are Divine so it is all translated existence, omiscience, bliss or existence, all knowing, bliss.
Existence is everywhere so it is also translated omipresent, omniscient, blissful.
Out of these it seems to me that sat chit ananda is most like existence, awareness, bliss.

What then is bliss? Ananda is defined as supreme bliss, unending joy. Good will comes from well being, perhaps then ananda is bliss, joyful, well being.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma is the moral path; the moral path is the Light; the Light is Ananda.

Atmananda - from Atma - the eternal self, and ananda - bliss. Atmananda is then the sat, chit, ananda of the eternal self, the state of self realization.

Maharishis, Maharshis - great sages, from Maha - great, and rishis - sages.

Atmadharma - the teachings of the eternal self.

Brahman - God.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Maharshis who grasped the Atmadharma declared that Sath, Chith and Ananda are the basic characteristics of the Self. Therefore, those great Vijnanis can be said to have attained Brahmam, which is Sath-Chith-Ananda Itself."

guna (sounds like gwana) - Quality, characteristic. Qualities, characteristics of the universe and of gods and men. These characteristics are of three types. Sathwic, Rajasic, Thamasic.

sathwa guna (sathwic) - Characteristics of purity, calmness, serenity, joy, strength, goodness. Associated with the color white.

raja guna (rajasic) - Characteristics of passion, activity, restlessness, aggressiveness. Associated with the color red.

thamo guna (thamasic) - Characteristics of dullness, ignorance, delusion, inactivity, passivity, inertia, sloth. Associated with the color black.

The qualities of the three gunas are commonly thought of as mind, action, body for sathwic, rajasic, and thamasic. The idea is to bring these into the proper proportion to one another. Conversely there are those who are dominated by one of the gunas. Sathwic guna is said to bring the best result because it can rule over the others.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Once, even Prahlada said, "Since it is difficult to destroy egoism, man finds it easy to destroy this dumb animal as a substitute. Animal sacrifice is the manifestation of Thamoguna; it is the path of bondage. The sacrifice of the animal of egoism is the Sathwic Yajna, in the Godward path of Liberation."

From the Dharma Vahini: "To fix the mind on God, the activities have to be controlled. For, success in that process of control one should overcome the handicaps of the Gunas, the Sathwa, the Rajas and the Thamas. When these faces of natural impulse predominate and try to direct along their channels, one must pray to God to negate their pull. That is the first duty of the man who strives towards God. It is the rule of nature, that the morning is the period of Sathwic quality, the "noon" of Rajasic nature and the "evening" hour of dusk of Thamasic nature. At dawn, the mind is awakened from the comfort of sleep, liberated from agitations and depressions and so, the mind is calm and clear. ... As day progresses, Man is infused with the Rajoguna, the active effortful nature, and he enters the field of daily work and toil. ... By observing this ritual, Rajoguna is kept in check and it is overpowered by Sathwa nature. ... Then, man is possessed by a third nature; the Thamas; when evening descends, he hurries home and eats his fill and sleep overpowers him. But, there is one duty still awaiting him. To eat and sleep is the fate of idlers and drones. When the worst of the gunas, the Thamas, threatens to rule, man must make a special effort to escape its coils by resorting to prayer, in the company of those who extol the Lord, reading about the glory of God, the cultivation of good virtues, and purposeful nursing of good rules of conduct."

From the Dharma Vahini: "For the growth and development of the body pure Sathwic food is very necessary, is it not?"

yajna - Holy ritual, sacrifice, or rite.

From the Dharma Vahini: "People used to celebrate Yajnas in ancient times; and they sacrificed Pasus or animals in these Yajnas. But, the animal is only a symbol. It was not the dumb creature that had to be cut to pieces. The animal leads a life of sacrifice, without man completing its career at the sacrificial pole! The animal that has to be disemboweled and offered is different; in the spiritual vocabulary, animal means "the body-consciousness", "the I-consciousness"; and it is this that has to be slaughtered."

mantra - sacred syllables or words to be repeated, often silently, for attaining perfection or self realization, a mystic formula for spiritual enlightenment.

artha - wealth, prosperiety.

kama - desire, desires are of two types, superior desires and inferior desires.

grihini - housewife.

dharmapathni - lawful wife.

bhaarya - housewife.

From the Dharma Vahini: "A wife with such a nature is a wife worth the name. She must have real love towards the husband, then only can she be called housewife or Grihini. Then only is she Dharmapathni, the Bhaarya, the Instrument and Companion for Dharma, Artha and Kama."

dharmakarma - dharma, righteousness, karma, action.

purusharthas, purusha arthas - goals of human life.

moksha - liberation, freedom from illusion, freedom from bondage.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Every one must engage in Dharmakarma, or tasks infused with Dharma, while putting into action the purusharthas of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Aspirants for Moksha must first practise the rules and restrictions prescribed in the Sastras for the elevation of character and the consecration of the feelings."

asramas - the four stages in the life of the religious devotee.

From the Dharma Vahini: "All the four Asramas lead you to Moksha or Liberation if you follow strictly the Dharma as laid down for each and if you devote yourselves steadfastly to your uplift."

muktha - free, liberated, as in liberated from the wheel of birth and death.

mukthi - liberation, final release or emancipation from the wheel of birth and death.

jivamuktha, jivanmuktha - one who is liberated in this life.

jivamukthi, jivanmukthi - liberation while alive.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Above all, he is liberated, even while alive; he is jeevanmuktha."

samsara - literally, place that whirls, defined as the objective world, sea of change, cycle of birth and death.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Moved by the desire to cross this ocean of Samsara, the husband and the wife must both have harmony of mind. The resolution to reach the goal must be equally strong and steady in both."

The holy books of India

The following words are used to refer to the holy books of India: Vedas, Sastras (Shastras), Puranas, Ithihasas

Vedas - ancient sacred revelations of truth. The Vedas are four, which are Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, and Atharvana Veda.

Vedantha (Vedanta) - the teachings of the Vedas.

A. C. Bhakthivedanta Swami Prabhupada helped with the distribution of the texts of India in America. Bhakthi is devotion, so Bhakthivedanta is devoted to the teachings of the Vedas.

darsana - Any of the principal systems of ancient Indian teachings, insight or vision of truth.

Vendanthadarsana - Study of the teachings of the Vedas that brings forth insight or vision of truth.

From the Dharma Vahini: "So too, with the Vedanthadarsana or Philosophy of Vedantha."

tarka - philosophical system based on reasoning and logic.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Thus said Manu: "Any person who wants to know Dharma can know it only by following a system of Logic or Tarka that is not opposed to Veda and Sastra". No conclusion opposed to Veda can be logical."

sastra (sounds like shastra) - Holy scripture, sacred text, that which commands, orders, directs with authority.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The spiritual field has many a technical term, with its own special connotation. These have to be clearly understood, so that you can grasp correctly the teaching of the Sastras."

nethra - eye.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Sastra is Nethra to man; it is the Eye that leads and illumines and guides."

Mimamsakas - a Hindu system concerning itself chiefly with correct interpretation of Vedic ritual.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The principles of Dharma will not change to suit the convenience of man. Dharma is immutable. Dharma persists as Dharma, then, now and forever. Of course, the practices and rules of applied Dharma might change according to changing causes; but, even then, those practices have to be tested on the basis of the Sastras, not on the basis of advantage. There should be no such calculation. The Sastras may not always support rules which yield tangible visible advantage, nor can the Vedas etc. be expected to indicate only such acts. Dharma cannot be tested on those lines; direct or ocular proof is impossible. The Mimamsakas state that Dharma can be known only through the Vedic Manthras and that the Vedas attempt to elucidate only such truths as are beyond ocular demonstration."

Puranas - 18 collections of religious teachings, the most well known are the Mahabhagavatham and the Devi Bhagavatham.

ithihasas - Historical legends, epics, traditional accounts of former events.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Vedas, Sastras, Puranas and Ithihasas proclaim aloud the Glory of Dharma."

adhyatmic (adi-atmic) - Self realized and in control of the senses.

adhidaivic (adi-daivic) Self realized, merged in Brahman, and in control.

adhibhautika (adi-bhautika) - Self realized yet perceived by others as a person amidst people, a part of the created humanity.

These three qualities coexist in the adhyatmic state.

From the Dharma Vahini: The Vedantha, the Adhyatmic Sastras, Dharma - all invite man to live and act as Bhagavan, and not as bondsman.

sutra, suthra - concise rule or aphorism, which through a few words conveys large meanings, a text of such rules, maxims, and aphorisms. A sutra is also a thread, similar to even the 'thread of logic,' a thread that holds many things together.

dharmasutras, dharmasuthras - written teachings of righteousness.

Brahmanas - commentaries on religious teachings written by learned Brahmins.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Vedamaatha, the mother that is the Veda, will confer all boons on all those who worship Her. That Goddess is described in glorious terms in Brahmanas and in the Dharmasuthras; if you understand these clearly, you can realise it, unaided."

Manudharma - Code of virtuous conduct presented in the Dharma Shastras by Manu, also called Manu Dharma Shastra, there is also reference to the Laws of Manu.

smrithi - code of law.

Narada - at times he is thought of as a spiritual musician of old.

From the Dharma Vahini: "In the Manusmrithi, in the Naradaparivraajakopanishad and other such texts..."

Bhagavatha - a text book of Divine love, the story of avatharas, especially Krishna, it describes all the incarnations of Vishnu.

From the Dharma Vahini: "In the Bhagavatha too, it is said, "where there is Dharma, there is Krishna; where there are both Dharma and Krishna together, there is Victory."

Bhagavad Gita - Bhagavad from Bhagavan, Divine, gita means song, Bhagavad Gita means the Song of God. The Bhagavad Gita is the most popular text of India, it is called Gita for short. It is a chapter from the Mahabharata.

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is the reason why the Lord comes down now and then in order to uplift the downtrodden and in order to re-establish Dharma. That causes the incarnation of the Lord; this has been said in ringing tones in the Gita."

Mahabharata, Mahabharatha - The story of the five Pandava brothers instructed by Krishna at the end of the Dwapara Yuga, just previous to 3102 BC. These were the time of the Kurukshetra War, the end of the Atlantean dominance and the flourishing of the times of the Aryans. The Mahabharata is the longest book in the world and was written by Vyasa, also called Vedavyasa.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Vedavyasa has said this in Aranyaparva of Mahabharatha, while describing the conditions that are to be expected in the Kali era."

Upanishads - the ancient teachings of the eternal self that were taught from teacher to student down through the generations.

amrithadharma - Rules and obligations of the teachings of immortality. From a - not and, mrithyu - death with, dharma - righteousness.

Dharmyaamritham - Another arrangement of amritha and dharma, with the same or a quite similar meaning as amrithadharma.

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is this Amrithadharma that is described in the Upanishads and since the Gita is the kernel of the Upanishads, the same is emphasised in the Gita too. The Dharmic way of life is as the very breath: It is the road to self-relisation."

From the Dharma Vahini: "What a grand idea this sloka conveys! That is the concluding sloka of the series which gives the qualities one has to develop. It calls the entire group Dharmyaamritham, the Dharmic way to immortality!

"Note the expression, Dharmyaamritham, used here. Ponder over it and draw inspiration from it! The Nectar of the Lord's Grace is deserved only by those who adhere to the Lord's Dharma. Simple folk believe that they have Bhakthi towards the Lord, but they do not pause to inquire whether the Lord has Love towards them! People who pine to discover this are rather rare. That is really the true measure of spiritual success."

From the Dharma Vahini: "On the other hand, those who are ignorant of the vows and rites prescribed for them, as well as those who have not studied the Vedas, the Upanishads and the Gita, but satisfy themselves with mere external purity and show, such will surely suffer grief."

smrithi - code of law

From the Dharma Vahini: "...so say all the Smrithis."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Smrithi too says that there is no treasure richer than the Gayathri."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Acharya, or the spiritual guide, is ten times more worthy than the teacher of arts and sciences. The Father is ten times worthier than the Acharya, the Mother is a thousand times worthier than the Father". This is the declaration of Manu in the Manusmrithi. That Smrithi is the binding text for all Dharmasastras; it is the very basis."

Gurugita - literally guru, teacher, and gita, song, for song of the teacher. This is a section of the Skanda Purana, the epic story of Skanda.

Yogasastras - various scriptures and sciences that discuss yoga, in particular there is the Yogasastras of Patanjali.

Manthrasastra - the books of the practice of mantra, where mantra is a set of syllables, words, and phrases arranged in a spiritual context and repeated by the practitioner, either aloud or inwardly.

Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad - the Upanishad that sets forth teachings maintained by Yajnavalkya regarding Brahman.

Brahmavidya - knowledge of Brahman, spiritual attainment.

karmakanda - Vedas with rules of conduct, rules for rituals, and Samhithas, which means collections.

jnanakanda - portion of the Vedas that deals with knowledge of Brahman through the path of spiritual wisdom or discriminative knowledge.

Yogavasishta - sacred work in the form of a dialogue between Vasishta and his pupil Rama, teaching the way to eternal bliss.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Now, there is one problem; are women entitled to seek Brahmavidya? This question has been answered already. If women do not deserve this knowledge, how did Vishnumurthi teach Bhudevi the mystery of the Gita? How did Parameswara teach Parvathi the Gurugita? "Dharovaacha" "Parvathyuvaacha", such statements reveal that Dhara and Parvathi took part in the discussions and put questions to clarify the points. The Yogasastra and Manthrasastra were both taught to Parvathi by Iswara. This must therefore be correct, authorised by the Sastras, is it not? In the Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad, it is mentioned that Yajnavalkya taught Maitreyi, the Brahmavidya. The Vedas consist of two parts, the Karmakanda for the Ajnani, the Ignorant, and the Jnanakanda for the Vijnani. Even when the Sastras alone are taken into consideration, they have also two sections; the words of the scholars and words of the wise, coming out of their experience of Atmajnana. Of these, the words of those who have given up all idea of Doership, as a result of their realisation of the identity of Brahmam and Atma, the words of those who know and feel that the same Atma is inherent in the multiplicity of life, who have lost all distinction between Mine and Thine, who seek the welfare of all animate and inanimate creation, the words of such knowers of Atman alone are genuine and valuable.

"In the Brihadaranyaka, there is mention of such effulgent women-sages as Gargi and Maitreyi and in the Mahabharatha, the names of Sulabha and Yogini are found. Women should be inspired by their moral rectitude and their steadfastness and then walk in that path; then, only does the question of reaching that height arise. Choodala, Madalasa and other such women attained Brahmajnana, being in the Grihasthasrama itself. Women can by Sadhana attain that unwavering unequalled auspicious Brahmam; this is made clear in the Yogavasishta and also in the Puranas. Doubts will haunt only those who have not studied the Sastras properly. Novitiates, householders, recluses, all among women, have by their pure hearts and holy conduct, attained the goal. All women should strive to acquire these two."

Mundakopanishad - one of the ten prominent Upanishads of Arthava Veda.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Mundakopanishad has compared scholars who have not assimilated the essence of the Sastras, but who guide others in spite of their own ignorance, to the blind leading the blind, with the result that both the leader and the led fall into the well!"

Titles and qualities of the Divine

The following names refer to the Divine, each name seems to be a for a reference to a particular quality: Brahma, Brahman, Narayana, Dharma Narayana, Saraswathi,

avatar, avathar, avathara - an incarnation of God, taking a form appropriate to the age in which the incarnation occurs, a special manifestation of God on Earth.

From the Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary:

"Avatar, Avatara (Sanskrit) [from ava down + the verbal root tri to cross over, pass] That which passes down or descends; the passing down of a celestial energy or an individualized complex of celestial energies -- a celestial being -- in order to overshadow and illuminate a human being who, at the time of such connection of divinity with matter, possesses no human soul karmically destined to be the inner master of the body thus born. "Hence an Avatara is one who has a combination of three elements in his being: an inspiring divinity; a highly evolved intermediate nature or soul, which is loaned to him and is the channel of that inspiring divinity; and a pure, clean, physical body" (OG 16).

"Sankaracharya, Krishna, Lao-tzu, and Jesus were avataras in differing degrees, of somewhat differing structure. There was a divine ray which came down at the cyclic time of each of these incarnations, and the connecting link or the flame of mind was provided in each case by a member of the Hierarchy of Compassion. Krishna says, "I incarnate in period after period in order to destroy wickedness and reestablish righteousness" (BG ch 4, sl 8). Krishna here represents the Logos or logoic ray which "on our plane would be utterly helpless, inactive, and have no possible means of communication with us and our sphere, because that logoic ray lacks an intermediate and fully conscious vehicle or carrier, i.e., it lacks the intermediate or highly ethereal mechanism, the spiritual-human in us, which in ordinary man is but slightly active. An avatara takes place when a direct ray from the Logos enters into, fully inspires, and illuminates, a human being, through the intermediary of a bodhisattva who has incarnated in that human being, thereby supplying the fit, ready, and fully conscious intermediate vehicle or carrier" (Fund 276).

"Blavatsky says that "rebirths may be divided into three classes: the divine incarnations called Avataras; those of Adepts who give up Nirvana for the sake of helping on humanity -- the Nirmanakayas; and the natural succession of rebirths for all -- the common law. The Avatara . . . is a descent of the manifested Deity -- whether under the specific name of Siva, Vishnu, or Adi-Buddha -- into an illusive form of individuality, an appearance which to men on this illusive plane is objective, but it is not so in sober fact. That illusive form having neither past nor future, because it had neither previous incarnation nor will have subsequent rebirths, has naught to do with Karma, which has therefore no hold on it" (BCW 14:373-4).

"Vishnu as the supporter of life is the source of one line of avataras so often spoken of in Hindu legends. These ten avataras of Vishnu are: 1) Matsya the fish; 2) Kurma the tortoise; 3) Varaha the boar; 4) Narasimha the man-lion (last of animal stage); 5) Vamana the dwarf (first step toward the human form); 6) Parasu-Rama, Rama with the axe (a hero); 7) Rama-chandra, the hero of the Ramayana; 8) Krishna, son of Devaki; 9) Gautama Buddha; and 10) Kalki, the avatara who is to appear at the end of the kali yuga mounted on a white horse, inaugurating a new reign of righteousness on earth. A horse has from immemorial time been a symbol of the spiritual as well as vital energies of the inner solar orb. Hence, when the next avatara is said to come riding a white horse, the meaning is that he comes infilled with the solar light or splendor -- an avatara or manifestation of a spiritual and intellectual solar energy which will carry all before it on earth.

"Brahmanical esotericism never taught that divinity descended into the animals as given in the legends. These names of different animals and men, like all zoological mythology, were chosen because of certain characteristic attributes. They actually represent ten degrees of advancing knowledge and growth in understanding -- ten degrees in the esoteric cycle -- as well as different evolutionary stages through which monads break through the lower spheres in order to express themselves on higher rungs of the evolutionary ladder of life. These names also represent the technical names given to neophytes in esoteric schools. The lowest chela was called a fish, the chela who had taken the second degree successfully was called a tortoise, and so forth, till the highest of all was called an incarnation of the sun -- a white horse in Hindu legend.

"These avataric descents do not appertain solely to a race, root-race, globe, chain, or solar system, because nature repeats itself by analogy, and the same line of enlarging understanding of evolutionary development takes place in all the spheres mutatis mutandis. Thus these avataric descents can be ascribed to the solar system, the planetary chain as a whole, a globe, a root-race, and even to a subrace."

Avatharas are first Divine and secondly purposeful incarnations of advanced souls for the purpose of reforming religion. In Theosophy's list of 10 Divine avatharas they have put the Buddha at 9 whereas in India Buddha is classified as Matha Uttakara, a noble soul who incarnated to reform religion. The 9 spot on the 10 list is Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, the triple avathara of Shirdi Sai, Sri Sathy Sai Baba, and Prema Sai.

Krishna - The avatar (avathar, avathara) of Vishnu in the Dwapara Yuga, prior to the present Kali Yuga.

Krishna - A holy river.

krishna - Black.

leela - Divine sport or play.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The tending of cows is a symbolic leela of Krishna to indicate His Mission of tending Jivas."

Rama - avathar of the Treta Yuga, hero of the Ramayana, killed the wicked Ravana to rescue his wife Sita who had been kidnapped.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Causative Appearances of God-head like Rama and Krishna..."

bhu - earth element.

Bhuloka - bhu, earth, loka, world, therefore earth world.

bhutha - the five elements, earth, water, fire, air, and ether.

bhutha - monster.

Bhuthanatha - master of the five elements.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Lord will evoke in each the emotion which that person associates with Him; if He is conceived as a Monster or Bhutha, He will terrify as a Monster. If He is pictured and believed as Bhuthanatha (the Master of the Five Elements), He will manifest Himself likewise."

Brahman (also Brahmam) - Impersonal Supreme Being, primal source and ultimate goal of all beings. Thus it is identical to the Atma.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Every single unselfish act, which prepares the ground for the merging of the Soul with the Over-Soul, which broadens the vision towards the basic Brahmam immanent everywhere, is a Dharmic act."

Brahma - The creator in the trinity of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer.

Saraswathi - Goddess of learning and eloquence, a daughter of Brahma (Here in the west Saraswathi (sounds like Sarasvathi) has been translated as the goddess counterpart to Brahma, this universe has been called Brahma Saraswathi. Sarasvathi is depicted in the statuary and paintings as the back side of the four armed form of Brahma. She is commonly depicted playing a musical instrument.)

There is also a river named Saraswathi in India. Sarasvathi - An underground river, originating in the upper Indus basin and joining the Ganga and Yamuna rivers at Prayag or Allahabad.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Humanity has reached this stage only because Dharma, like the river Saraswathi, flows unseen, below the ground, feeding the roots and filling the springs."

Vishnu - The preserver in the trinity of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. Vishnu is commonly called the sustainer of universes.

Lakshmi - consort of Vishnu, the goddess of wealth.

Maya - consort of Vishnu, the goddess, literally, appearance.

maya - appearances, worldly illusion, mistaking the transient for the real.

Vaikunta - Vishnu's heaven.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Women who are full of knowledge, who are cultured, who are bound by love and who are keen on discriminating whether their words and deeds are in conformity with Dharma - such women are like the Goddess Lakshmi, bringing joy and good fortune to the home. That home, where the husband and the wife are bound together by holy love, where every day both are engaged in the reading of books that feed the soul, where the Name of the Lord is sung and His Glory remembered, that home is really the Home of the Lord, Vaikunta!"

Grihalakshmi - Lakshmi as goddess of the home, griha is pertaining to the home.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The modest woman will not care for such meaning-less trash and tinsel; she will rather seek self-respect, which is much more satisfying. That is the characteristic which makes her the Lakshmi of the Home. That is why the wife is referred to as Grihalakshmi. If the wife has no such mark the home becomes an abode of ugliness."

pathivratha - a chaste wife to her husband

From the Dharma Vahini: "Just as woman should consider one person and one person only as her master and husband, man too has to be faithful to one woman and one woman only, as his mate, his wife. She has to consider the husband as God and worship him and minister to and follow his desires for the fulfillment of her duty of Pathivrathaa; so man too should honour his wife as the "Mistress of the Home" and act in accordance with her wishes, for she is the Griha Lakshmi."

Shiva (Siva) - The destroyer in the trinity of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. (Destruction brings about an end and conversely mergence with the Divine brings about an end. Sai Baba teaches that Jesus realized his Atmic reality and merged with Brahman. Therefore Jesus is Shiva.)

Shakthi (Sakthi) - Female consort of Shiva.

From the Dharma Vahini: "A woman who is steadfastly doing these will be able to transmute even her atheist husband, persuading him to join the prayers or engage in some good activity or some scheme of social service marked by the attitude of Dedication to the Lord. Indeed, it is the woman who maintains the home; that is her mission. She is truly the representative of Sakthi."

The triple incarnation of the avathara Sai Baba is a manifestation of Shiva Shakthi. The first of the three, Shirdi Sai Baba is an incarnation of Shiva. The second Sri Sathya Sai Baba is a manifestation of Shiva Shakthi. The third Prema Sai Baba will be a manifestation of Shakthi.

shakthi (sakthi) - universal power, Divine energy, strength. The bhakthas, that is the devotees, are said to acquire the shakthis, the abilities that are like the Divine that they are devoted to.

Shakthiswarupa - the form and essential nature of the goddess. Shakthis is the goddess. Swarupa is defined as form, essential nature, true nature of being. Rupa is form.

Parashakthi - supreme goddess, embodiment of highest energy, from para - supreme, and Shakthi - the consort of Shiva.

Parasakthi Swarupa - the supreme form and essential nature of the supreme goddess. Para is supreme. Shakthi is the goddess. Swarupa is defined as form, essential nature, true nature of being. Rupa is form.

From the Dharma Vahini: The Feminine Principle is spoken of as the illusion imposed upon Himself by the Lord, as the Energy with which He equipped Himself out of His own will. This is the Maya, the Feminine Form. This is the reason why Woman is considered as Parasakthi Swarupa. She is the faithful companion of Man, his Fortune; since she is the concretisation of the Will of the Lord, she is Mystery, Wonder, the representative of the protective Principle; the Queen of his home, his beneficence, the Illumination of the house. Women who are repositories of the Sakthiswarupa are in no way inferior; how full of fortitude, patience and prema is their nature! Their self-control is seldom equaled by men.

Parvathi - consort of Shiva

vidya - that which illumines, spiritual knowledge.

artha - wealth, prosperity.

jnana - spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The patron deities of Vidya (Saraswathi), of Wealth (Lakshmi) and of Jnana (Parvathi) are all women!"

Narayana - The primal person, the Lord, Vishnu, He that fills the primal 'waters' of creation. (It should be noted that here in the west Narayana has been translated as the spirit that moved over the primal waters, or further as the the spirit within the waters of creativity. This is one of the closest terms to the description found in Genesis I, 1.)

Dharma Narayana - Personification of dharma. (If dharma can be defined as righteousness then Dharma Narayana would be the embodiment of righteousness from beginningless time, also it would be this creation as the embodiment of the Lord, and also it would be righteousness within this creation on the part of the creatures herein.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is the duty of every man everywhere at all times to pay homage to the Dharma-Narayana the personification of Dharma."

Purusha - God, Lord, Supreme Spirit.

Prakriti - Matter, creation, nature

Purusha Prakriti - Spirit and Nature as a unity.

Paramatma (Paramathma) - Supreme Self, Supreme Atma. (From para, supreme, and Atma, the eternal self.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "Your acts and activities are all rituals in the worship of the Paramathma that pervades the Universe."

From the Dharma Vahini: "They connote Prakrithi and Paramathma, gross and subtle, inert and conscious, the all-pervading duet. All this creation came about by the inter-relation of the Inert and the Conscious, did it not? So too, all the various mores have emerged on account of this bifurcation. All this ramification and elaboration of Dharma is due to this: the Masculine and Feminine."

Gayatri, Gayathri - the goddess, Gayathri is also short for the Gayathri manthra. The Gayathri manthra is said to be the mother of all manthras.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Reflect on these matters and then you will find that the Gayathri is the Monarch of Manthras."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Vedamaatha, the mother that is the Veda, will confer all boons on all those who worship Her."

vaak, vach - true spiritual speech.

Vaak Devi - Gayatri, the goddess that presides over speech. Saraswathi, the goddess of learning, also is Vaak Devi.

bhuthas - the five elementary constituents, earth, water, fire, air, and ether.

prithvi - earth, world.

prana - life breath, life force, vital energy, the five vital airs.

hridaya - heart.

sarira, sariram - body.

Purusha - supreme spirit, Lord, God.

From the Dharma Vahini: "All that is visible shines as Gayathri, for Vaak is Gayathri and all objects or Bhuthas are Vaak, indicated by Vaak and subsumed in Vaak. Vaak is speech or sound. It is Vaak that describes them, it is Vaak that declares them and it is Vaak that denotes them. All objects are also of the World or Prithvi. Nothing can go beyond it. This world is the body of Man; he cannot leap out of his body. There is the Prana that sustains him; breath or the Prana is inside the Hridaya or "Heart". And, the Prana cannot move outside and beyond the Hridaya.

"The Gayathri has four feet and six categories. The categories are: Vaak, Bhutha, Prithvi, Sariram, Prana and Hridaya - Speech, Objects, World, Body, Breath, and Heart. The Purusha that is extolled by this Gayathri is indeed exalted, sacred, glorious. All this objective multiplicity, as has been said, is but a fraction of His Body. The number and nature, the measure and the meaning of the objects or bhuthas are beyond understanding; yet all this is but a quarter of His Magnificence. The other three quarters are His Effulgent Immortal Form.

"It is impossible to grasp the Mystery of that splendour-filled Form. This Purusha indicated by the Gayathri is indeed referred to as Brahmam."

From the Dharma Vahini: "One should clearly grasp the sense of the Gayathri Manthra. It is necessary to feel the Identity between that Effulgent Being, the Atmaswarupa, mentioned therein and oneself. It is only those who are ignorant of its meaning that will neglect the Gayathri."

The Gayathri mantra is:

Aum
(sound of the universe)

Bhur, bhurva, suvaha
(earth, mid heaven, high heaven)

Tat Savitar varenium
(tat, that Savitar, the central spiritual illumination varenium, endearing)

Bhargo devasya deemahi
(bhargo, radiant devasya, heavenly and Divine deemahi, meditation, contemplation)

Diyo yo naha, prachodaayt
(diyo yo naha, awaken discernment, prachodaayt, approach respectfully)

Aum
(sound of the universe)

gayas - vital airs, pranas.

thra - protecting.

indriyas - senses.

Vaak, Vach - spiritual speech.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Well, what is the real meaning of the word Gayathri? Does any one try to know it today? The word is taken to mean either a Goddess or a formula. Gayathri is that which protects (Thra) the Gayas, or Pranas or the Indriyas, beginning with Vaak. Besides, it is said "Gaayaantham thraayathe yasmaad gayathri, thena thathyathe". That is to say that which saves those who sing it, or revere it and repeat it or meditate on it is called Gayathri. It is this sacred Manthra that transformed a Rajarshi like Viswamithra into Brahmarshi. The Vedamaatha, the mother that is the Veda, will confer all boons on all those who worship Her. That Goddess is described in glorious terms in Brahmanas and in the Dharmasuthras; if you understand these clearly, you can realise it, unaided."

thath twam asi (tat twan asi) - Thou are that. Perhaps more literally would be 'that thou are.'

thath (tat) - that.

nethi nethi - Not this, not that.

Brahman is all. Thou are that. A person can speak of or point to a 'something' within the all. That. Because that is part of the all then that with the all is Brahman. A person can speak of Brahman who can't be limited by words and another can then say 'do not speak of Brahman that way, for He is not this, not that.' If another definition of Brahman is then put forward then it too is answered with 'not this, not that.' What then is Brahman? He is all. That.

So there were five Hindus discussing Brahman. The first gave a long definition of Brahman. The second said 'nethi, nethi' and gave a short definition of Brahman. The third said 'nethi, nethi' and 'tat.' The fourth said 'tat.' The fifth just sat there silently, remaining secure in his sat, chit, ananda. The other four turned to him and said, 'excellent, quiet one, excellent.'

So there were these Buddhas at lunch time. The first Buddha said grace to the Buddha and started to eat his bowl of rice. The second Buddha said 'Buddha, Buddha' and started to eat his bowl of rice. The third Buddha said 'Budha,' with one 'd,' and started to eat his bowl of rice. The fourth Buddha said 'Buddha,' picked up his bowl of rice, smelled it, then set it back down. The fifth Buddha said 'Buddha' and just looked at the bowl of rice. The sixth Buddha said 'Buddha' and remained with internal vision, not bothering to look at the bowl of rice. The seventh Buddha just sat there silently, secure in his Buddhaness. The other six Buddhas turned to him and said 'excellent, silent one, excellent.'

So there was this guy sitting on his porch watching the sun go down. His neighbor comes over, says 'hi,' and sits down to watch the sunset also. Two hours later the neighbor gets up and says, 'well, I'll see you tomorrow.' After he leaves the man's wife comes out and he tells her, 'that's one heck of good ole neighbor.' The wife doesn't say anything, just sits on the porch watching the moon rise.

That.

I note that Brahman as Thath, that, is quite similar to the name Toth from the Egyptian teachings. Such teachings have discussion on the letter tau and some spell Toth as Thoth. Thoth is similar to Thath. Thou are that so Thoth is Thath.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Atma is One and Indivisible; Dharma based on That is genuine Dharma."

Thyagaraja - (1767 - 1847) mystic poet, singer, composer. Leader in Karnatak tradition of classical music.

Rama - avathara of the Treta Yuga, hero of the Ramayana.

Sita - consort of Rama, rescued from the evil King Ravana by Rama.

bhakthi - devotion.

Ishtadevatha - chosen deity.

Krishna - flute playing avathara from about 3220 - 3102 BC. Teacher of Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita.

Radha - cowherd maid, devotee of Krishna, known for her happiness energy, one of the forms of the goddess Lakshmi.

Narayana - Vishnu as the spirit of the causal waters of creation.

Lakshmi - consort of Vishnu, goddess of wealth.

Parameswara - name for Shiva.

Parvathi - consort of Shiva.

archaka - worshiper.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The feeling aroused by and during worship must be sweet and melodious and must, imperceptibly, transform the low desires and cravings of matter-bound men; they must not awaken or inflame the latent animal instincts of man. Take this example: Thyagaraja forgot that he should go to bed, in his enthusiasm to see that Rama was put to bed. Here, you should infer, not that Thyagaraja made Rama sleep in a swing; you should infer that Rama seated Thyagaraja on the swing of Bhakthi and gently swung him to sleep (or the forgetfulness of all things material). Instead of remembering your child in its cradle when you swing your Ishtadevatha in the silver or golden cradle, you must cultivate the attitude of seeing your Ishtadevatha, Rama or Krishna, in the cradle when you swing your own child in it. So too, when you stand before the installed Ishtadevatha, you must get confirmed in the installation of Brahmam in your own heart, as the real base of your existence, knowledge and bliss. It is to instill this feeling that the rites and ceremonies of temple worship have been organised. So you should not take the Sita-Rama, Radha-Krishna, Lakshmi-Narayana, or Parvathi-Parameswara in the temple as 'Pitiable couples' eking out a miserable existence in the cramped sanctum sanctorum, subsisting on the food given by the archaka and slaking thirst with drinks that he offers. The archakas say "the Lord is sleeping", "the Lord is taking food" while refusing to open the door of the inner shrine. This is absurd. They sometimes even enforce silence, for "the Lord is asleep and He might be awakened too soon by the noise". There will be no chance at such times even for emergent pleadings."

Holy men, holy women, characters, and fiends

Rishis - they seem to be the first 7 emanations of Brahma at the dawn of this universe. The seven stars of the Big Dipper are said to be representative of the seven Rishis.

Rishis are called Rajarishis, from raja - royal, and Rishis - sages. Rishis also seem to be Maharishis, from maha - great, and rishis - sages, seven great scribes in the service of the Lord. Rishis are also called Brahmarishis, as sages of Brahma.

From the Dharma Vahini: "As the ancient Rishi said:"

Maharishis - great sages, from Maha - great and Rishis - sages.

Atmadharma - the teachings of the eternal self.

sat, chit, ananda - Existence, awareness, bliss.

vijnana - spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom, discriminating faculty of the intellect.

Brahman - God.

Viswamitra, Viswamithra, Visvaamithra - born as a warrior he transformed himself by the Gayatri mantra into a spiritual sage, early counselor of the young Rama.

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is this sacred Manthra that transformed a Rajarshi like Viswamithra into Brahmarshi."

Janakachakravarthi - a Rajarishi.

Aswapathi - Lord of Horses, brother in law of Dasaratha, Rama's father.

Dileepa, Dilipa, Dhileepa - son of Amsumanta, he became king of the solar dynasty and offered his life to a lion who was about to kill the sacred cow Nandini.

grihastha - householder.

asrama - the four stages of life, Brahmacharya - chaste student, grihastha - householder, vanaprastha - retiring to the forest for meditation, and sanyasa - renunciate.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Rajarshis like Janakachakravarthi, Aswapathi, Dileepa reached the Goal while continuing in the Grihastha stage; in that stage they struggled and succeeded in removing all obstacles that hindered the winning of the Grace of the Lord; they had as goal the Godhead they wanted to reach. Therefore, do not doubt it; Grihasthaasrama is no hindrance."

Manu - The first father of mankind, author of the codes of righteous conduct called the Laws of Manu, son of Surya (the sun) and father of Vaivaswatha Manu, the present progenitor of mankind. (Vaivaswatha sounds like Vie va sva tha.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "Thus said Manu:" and "...this is mentioned by Manu also."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Manu lays special stress on just this: he has declared the Gayathri is the very life-breath of the Brahmin. It is not his declaration only; it is the Truth."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Manu states that the Brahmin will not lose his status so long as he holds on to the Gayathri and is inspired by its meaning; he says that, if he is too weak to pursue the study of the Vedas, he must at least recite the Gayathri and adhere to it, till the very end."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Manu, in his Dharma Sastras, has emphasized this point very clearly."

manvantara - The time of a Manu. There are 14 Manus for the Day of Brahma. Vaivaswatha is the 7'th Manu.

kalpa - The time for this creation, the Day of Brahma.

Narada - at times he thought of as a spiritual musician of old.

From the Dharma Vahini: "In the Manusmrithi, in the Naradaparivraajakopanishad and other such texts..."

Arjuna (also called Vijaya) - One who is pure, unsullied, white. Son of queen Kunti and King Pandu. Friend and cousin of Krishna. One of the five Pandava brothers, Krishna became his chariot driver and spoke to him the Bhagavad Gita. Arjuna was chosen to represent humanity in a dialogue with the Divine. Arjuna lost heart before the Kurukshetra war and Krishna then informed him of his Divine nature, his reason for being, the role of duty and dharma, and the way to merge with the Divine. These teachings are the Bhagavad Gita, the Song of God, the most popular text of Hinduism.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma cannot be restricted to any particular society or nation, for it is closely bound up with the fortunes of the entire living world. It is a flame of light that can never be extinguished. It is untrammeled in its beneficent action. Krishna taught the Gita to Arjuna. But He intended it for the whole of humanity. Arjuna was just an excuse. That very Gita is today correcting all mankind. It is not for any particular caste, religion or nation. It is the very breath for humans everywhere."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Dharmic way of life is as the very breath: It is the road to self-relisation. Those who walk along it are dear to the Lord; He dwells with all who are truthful, whose deeds spring from Dharma. That is the reason why the Gita teaches Arjuna to develop certain qualities, which help the practice of Atmic Dharma."

Prahlada - Son of the demon king Hiranyakasipu. As a boy he was beaten, trampled, and cast into fire and water. But he saw only God everywhere and repetition of the Name of God saved him. Once, Prahlada asserted that God was everywhere and Narayana appeared in his man lion form from within a pillar to destroy the king. The story has it that Hiranyakasipu was interfering with his son's worship of the Divine. He demanded to know from his son who this Divine was that he should worship him and he struck a pillar with his sword. Then Narasimha, a form of the Divine, stepped out of the pillar, set the evil father in his lap, tore his bowels apart, and looked around for any further aggression. The wisest of the sages stepped forward and a dialogue of Divine instruction begins.

Sai Baba refers to Prahlada repeatedly. From the Dharma Vahini: "Once, even Prahlada said, "Since it is difficult to destroy egoism, man finds it easy to destroy this dumb animal as a substitute. Animal sacrifice is the manifestation of Thamoguna; it is the path of bondage. The sacrifice of the animal of egoism is the Sathwic Yajna, in the Godward path of Liberation."

Dharmaja, Yudhistira - eldest of the Pandavas, born to Kunthi by the grace of Yama, Dharmaraja, Lord of Death. Dhamaja is named for adherence to dharma, his name also means king of righteousness. He is written of in the Mahabharata.

Santhi - peace

Duryodhana - eldest son of the evil minded Dhritharashtra, a leader of the hostile armies in the Mahabharata.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The wicked Hiranyakasipu and the purehearted Prahlada both lived in the selfsame chronological Yuga; the same Yuga saw Dharmaja, the personification of Righteousness and Santhi, as well as the arch-cheat, Duryodhana."

Shankaracharya (Sankaracharya, also Shankara or Sankara) - Self realized spiritual teacher of India. (Perhaps late 1800's, early 1900's?)

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is why once Sankara said, "the egoism based on the body is what is meant by Naraka or Hell."

Ramanuja - eleventh century spiritual teacher and interpreter of the Brahma Sutra, proponent of the ultimate oneness of the differentiated. Taught a personal God reached by devotion and faith and the everlasting self identity of the individual soul in communion with God as the goal of life.

Madhwa, Madhwacharya - thirteenth century sage, lived in south India, founder of the sect of Vaishnavas.

Buddha, Gautama Buddha - circa 556 - 480 BC, founder of Buddhism after attaining enlightenment. Teacher of the four noble truths, to be human is to suffer, desire causes suffering, the teachings of the Buddha stop the suffering and bring about bliss, and that the result of the continued practice of the teachings is liberation from the wheel of birth and death. Teacher of the eight fold path, clear thinking, proper intention, correct speech, correct action, right means of livelihood, correct mindfulness, correct meditation, and Buddhahood.

Jesus Christ - reformer of religion, taught healing and proper spiritual awareness.

Muhammad, Mohammed - seventh century Arabic prophet and founder of Islam.

Brahmajnana - knowledge of Brahman, jnana means knowledge.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Causative Appearances of God-head like Rama and Krishna, religious teachers like Sankara, Ramanuja and Madhwa, bearers of Wisdom like Buddha, Jesus Christ and Muhammad - were they not all born of women? Their mothers were embodiments of holy glory and they gave the world sons who transformed it. Women who follow in their footsteps and lead pure consecrated lives can claim the right to Brahmajnana, and no one can deny it to them."

Savithri

From the Dharma Vahini: "Chastity is the ideal for womankind. By the strength derived from that virtue, they can achieve anything. Savithri was able, through that power, to win back the life of her husband; she actually fought with the Lord of Death."

Anasuya

From the Dharma Vahini: "Anasuya, the wife of the Sage Athri and the mother of Dattatreya, was able to transform even the Trinity into infants."

Nalayani

From the Dharma Vahini: "Nalayani, who was devoted to her leper husband, could by the mysterious force of her chastity stop the sun in its course!"

Damayanthi - wife of King Nala of Nishada. King Nala lost his kingdom by playing dice.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Damayanthi burnt into ashes a hunter who attempted to molest her, by the power of her "word". She bore all the travails of lonely life in the jungle, when her husband, King Nala deserted her, all of a sudden becoming the victim of cruel Fate."

Sulabha - a female mendicant told of in the Mahabharata.

Brahmavadin - one who expounds the Brahman.

pundit - learned scholar, wise person.

vidwan - wise person.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Sulabha and others who pursued such studies became Brahmavadins of great fame. India produced several such saints and scholars, among women. Pundits and Vidwans used to approach such women for inspiration and guidance."

Gargi - a female sage, I believe it is Gargi that questions Yajnavalkya in the Upanishad.

Meera - Princess of Rajastan and queen of Chittor, devoted to Krishna, took poison from her husband without any effect, composed devotional songs of exceptional quality.

Chudala, Choodala - Saintly wife King Sikhidwaja. When he renounced his kingdom, she gave him instruction in Atmic knowledge and brought him back to the throne.

Janaka - A self realized king, Sita's father and Rama's father in law.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Vidya or education must be built on the basis of Viveka or Discrimination. Sulabha, Savithri, Anasuya, Gargi, Nalayani and other such models of chastity, devotees of the Lord like Meera, yoginis like Choodala, all were born in this Bharathadesa and by their adherence to Dharma, they strengthened Dharma. Once, when Sulabha was discoursing on the Atma with all her scholarship and experience, even Janaka was astounded!"

Brahmavidya - knowlege of Brahman, spiritual achievement.

Vishnumurthi - evidently another name for Vishnu, the preserver, the sustainer of universes.

Bhudevi - goddess of Earth, wife of Vishnu.

Parameswara - supreme Lord.

Parvathi - Shiva's consort.

Dhara - wife of a god among the Vasus. Vasus, Rudras, and Adityas are each a host, from the Book of Manu, "The wise call our fathers Vasus, our paternal grandfathers Rudras, our paternal great grandfathers Adityas; agreeably to a text of the Vedas."

Yajnavalkya - great Upanishadic personage, priest and guru of King Janaka, taught the monistic Adwaithic doctrine of the identity of Atma and Brahman in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

Maitreyi - female consort of Yajnavalkya.

Yogini - a female yogi written of in the Mahabharatha.

Madalasa, Madhaalasaa - wife of King Rithadwaja. Once the demon Patalaketu carried her away to the nether world, Patala, and King Rithadwaja rescued her. Patala means the other side.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Now, there is one problem; are women entitled to seek Brahmavidya? This question has been answered already. If women do not deserve this knowledge, how did Vishnumurthi teach Bhudevi the mystery of the Gita? How did Parameswara teach Parvathi the Gurugita? "Dharovaacha" "Parvathyuvaacha", such statements reveal that Dhara and Parvathi took part in the discussions and put questions to clarify the points. The Yogasastra and Manthrasastra were both taught to Parvathi by Iswara. This must therefore be correct, authorised by the Sastras, is it not? In the Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad, it is mentioned that Yajnavalkya taught Maitreyi, the Brahmavidya. The Vedas consist of two parts, the Karmakanda for the Ajnani, the Ignorant, and the Jnanakanda for the Vijnani. Even when the Sastras alone are taken into consideration, they have also two sections; the words of the scholars and words of the wise, coming out of their experience of Atmajnana. Of these, the words of those who have given up all idea of Doership, as a result of their realisation of the identity of Brahmam and Atma, the words of those who know and feel that the same Atma is inherent in the multiplicity of life, who have lost all distinction between Mine and Thine, who seek the welfare of all animate and inanimate creation, the words of such knowers of Atman alone are genuine and valuable.

"In the Brihadaranyaka, there is mention of such effulgent women-sages as Gargi and Maitreyi and in the Mahabharatha, the names of Sulabha and Yogini are found. Women should be inspired by their moral rectitude and their steadfastness and then walk in that path; then, only does the question of reaching that height arise. Choodala, Madalasa and other such women attained Brahmajnana, being in the Grihasthasrama itself. Women can by Sadhana attain that unwavering unequalled auspicious Brahmam; this is made clear in the Yogavasishta and also in the Puranas. Doubts will haunt only those who have not studied the Sastras properly. Novitiates, householders, recluses, all among women, have by their pure hearts and holy conduct, attained the goal. All women should strive to acquire these two."

Kamsa - brother of Krishna's mother, Devaki, and killer of her first six sons, king of the Bhoja dynasty.

Jarasandha - King of Magadha and father in law of Kamsa, enemy of Krishna.

Sisupala - Demon slain by Krishna. Those slain by Krishna merge with Krishna.

Hiranyakasipu - father of Prahlada, forbade mention of Vishnu's name, was slain by the avathara Narasimha. Nara means man and simha lion, therefore the Divine man lion.

Jayadeva Gosvami - a Vaisnava Sanskrit poet, wrote the Gita Govinda which describes the early life of Krishna. Vaisnavas are vegetarian Krishna devotees.

Gouranga, Chaithanya - fifteenth century Vaishnava mendicant, teacher of love and devotion.

Tukaram - seventeenth century writer from Maratha, became a wandering ascetic.

Ramdas - seventeenth century saint of Maratha, wrote of religious duty, guru to king Sivaji.

Surdas - a great blind devotee of Krishna.

Radha - cowherd maid, devotee of Krishna, known for her happiness energy, one of the forms of the goddess Lakshmi.

Meera - princess of Rajastan and queen of Chittor, devotee of Krishna, took poison from her husband without any effect, composed devotional songs.

Sakkubai, Sakku - a Krishna devotee.

Ananda - bliss. The Buddha's scribe is named Ananda.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Kamsa, Jarasandha, Sisupala, Hiranyakasipu, etc., took up the attitude of hostility to the Lord, so, the Lord manifested Himself as their Enemy and finished their careers and their struggles. If the Lord is conceived as the Most Loved One, as Jayadeva, Gouranga, Tukaram, Ramdas, Surdas, Radha, Meera and Sakkubai did, He manifests Himself as the nearest and the dearest and showers Ananda."

Dharmas and castes

Dharmyaamritham - evidently from dharma, righteousness and the teachings of righteousness, and amritha, the nectar of no death, immortality. Amritha is from a, not, and mrithyu, death. Dharmyaamritham then seems to mean the teachings of immortality, or the teachings of the sweet nectar of no death.

varna - caste, the four castes are Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, and Sudras.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Similarly there are prescriptions for every Varna."

Brahmins - the first of the four varnas or castes, the priestly or teacher class.

Kshatriyas (sounds like ksha thri yas) - the second caste, administrators, civil servants, and warriors.

Vaisyas (sounds like vai shyas)- the third caste, traders, merchant, and market place workers.

Sudras - the fourth caste, farmers, laborers.

From the Dharma Vahini: "I have created the four varnas dividing them on the basis of quality and activities"

Atmadharma - Divine duty, from Atma, the eternal self, and dharma, righteousness.

From the Dharma Vahini: "So, too, seeing the Atmadharma in every single act of yours transforms it into an act of worship, elevates it and removes its binding characteristic."

Maharishis - great sages.

sat, chit, ananda - existence, awareness, bliss.

vijnana - spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom, discriminating faculty of the intellect.

Brahman - God.

Atmavidya - knowledge of the Atman, from Atma the eternal self, and vidya, knowledge.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The country can be lifted to its pristine greatness only through women mastering the Atmavidya, the science of Realisation of the Reality."

Manu - the first father of mankind, author of the codes of righteous conduct called the Laws of Manu, son of Sury (the sun) and father of Vaivaswatha Manu, the present progenitor of mankind. (Vaivaswatha sounds like Vievasvatha.)

Manudharma - rules and obligations for good behavior as said by Manu.

varnadharma - rules and obligations for each of the the four varnas, that is the four castes.

grihastha - Householder.

grihasthadharma - Rules and obligations for the householder.

grihini - housewife

From the Dharma Vahini: "A wife with such a nature is a wife worth the name. She must have real love towards the husband, then only can she be called housewife or Grihini."

achara - unmoving.

achara - precept, behavior, rules of good conduct.

acharya - spiritual teacher, preceptor, guide.

acharadharma - rules and obligations of good behavior.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma expresses itself in a variety of forms, known sometimes by the persons who codified it, like Manudharma, sometimes by the group which followed it like Varnadharma, sometimes by the stage of life to which it is applied, like Grihastha-dharma etc. But these are subsidiary practical details, not the Fundamental Norm. The Atmadharma, the Divine Dharma, is what I am speaking of. Practical Dharma or Acharadharma relates to temporary matters and problems and physical needs, to man's passing relationships with the objective world. The very instrument of those rules, the human body, is itself not permanent; how can these Dharmas be eternal? How can their nature be described as true? The Eternal cannot be expressed by the evanescent; Truth cannot reveal itself in untruth; Light cannot be procured from darkness. The Eternal can emerge only from the Eternal; Truth can emanate only from Truth. Therefore, the objective codes of Dharma relating to worldly activities and daily life, though important in their own sphere, have to be followed with the full knowledge and consciousness of the Inner Basic Atmadharma; then only can the internal and external urges co-operate and yield the Bliss of harmonious progress."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Acharya, or the spiritual guide, is ten times more worthy than the teacher of arts and sciences. The Father is ten times worthier than the Acharya, the Mother is a thousand times worthier than the Father". This is the declaration of Manu in the Manusmrithi."

sathya - Truth.

sathyadharma - The law of truth, the practice of truth.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If the duties of worldly life are done with no regard to genuine Sathyadharma, it is as unholy as treating God as stone. The Acharadharma pursued apart from Sathyadharma and Sathyadharma divorced from Acharadharma are both barren of results. They are both inextricably intertwined, and should be treated as such."

varnadharma - Rules and obligations for each of the the four varnas, that is the four castes.

grihasthadharma - Rules and obligations for the householder.

vanaprasthadharma - Rules and obligations for certain forest dwellers and hermits. When the householder has all the children raised and grown and all duties fulfilled then they are eligible for quiet meditation in the forest.

sanyasadharma - Rules and obligations for a renunciate. From sanyasa, renunciation, detachment, mendicancy.

Brahmacharyadharma - Rules and obligations for a celibate student under the guidance of a spiritual master.

Atmadharma - Divine duty, from Atma, the eternal self, and dharma, righteousness.

santha dharma - Rules and obligations for a man of peace. Santha, a man of peace, is from santhi, peace. More commonly written shanthi and most often said three times at the end of a mantra, Aum, shanthi, shanthi, shanthi. Shanthi and dharma - righteousness, proper way of life, teachings.

sathyadharma - The law of truth, the practice of truth.

stridharma - Rules and olbigations for women.

purushadharma - Rules and obligations for men.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Varnadharma, Grihasthadharma, Vanaprasthadharma, Sanyasadharma, Brahmacharyadharma, this Dharma, that Dharma... all are modifications of the basic Dharma, ... The separate varieties disappear as soon as you go deep into their nature, the corporeal Dharmas fade away and the Atmadharma alone remains."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Of course, for the worldly career, the corporeal Dharmas are important. I won't say they are not. As wood is turned into furniture and used, Atmadharma or Santha Dharma or Sathyadharma has to be shaped into Grihasthadharma, Vanaprasthadharma, Varnadharma, Stridharma, Purushadharma etc. The stuff is the same in all; the substance is identical, in every separate form."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Purushadharma for the male and the Stridharma for the female are important applications of the Sathyadharma mentioned above. Other codes and disciplines are but accessories, tributaries like the streams that meet the Godavari when it is coursing forward. They are related to the various circumstances, situations and statuses that are temporary; you have to pay attention to the main river and not the tributaries. Similarly, take the major Masculine and Feminine Dharma as the chief guides of living and do not give the minor accessory dharmas any decisive place in the scheme of living."

pathivrathadharma - duty of a chaste wife to her husband.

"As Pathivrathaadharma is for women, Brahmacharya is for men. Just as woman should consider one person and one person only as her master and husband, man too has to be faithful to one woman and one woman only, as his mate, his wife. She has to consider the husband as God and worship him and minister to and follow his desires for the fulfillment of her duty of Pathivrathaa; so man too should honour his wife as the "Mistress of the Home" and act in accordance with her wishes, for she is the Griha Lakshmi."

sanathana - from beginning less time, eternal.

Sanathana Dharma - the original religion from beginning less time, the eternal religion.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Wherever they move, if they are endowed with good qualities, and if the good qualities are accompanied by good actions and good habits, and adherence to Sanathanadharma and Sadhana, then their study is really worth while and society is indeed benefited."

From the Dharma Vahini: "So, it is imperative to revive Sanathana Dharma and the principles of interpretation natural to the Atmic Truth which is the basis of Dharma."

paramahamsa - realized sage, from parama supreme, and hamsa swan or swan as vehicle of the Divine. Paramahamsa then means 'supreme swan of the Divine.' In America it is associated with the teacher from India named Paramahamsa Yogananda. Yoga is union and ananda is bliss so the full name would mean 'supreme swan of union and bliss.'

From the Dharma Vahini: "So too, knowledge can develop discrimination, inspire the springs of service, prompt inquiry into the Reality, promote the search for the Absolute, and even pave the way for attaining Paramahamsahood."

From the Dharma Vahini: "There is an intimate relation between the worship-worthy Grihastha and the saintly Paramahamsa."

asrama, ashrama, aashrama, - stages of life from student to householder, forest dweller, and renunciate.

brahmacharya - a chaste religious student.

Brahmacharyadharma - Rules and obligations for a celibate student under the guidance of a spiritual master.

grihastha - Householder.

grihasthadharma - Rules and obligations for the householder.

vanaprastha - a person in later life who is retired to the forest for meditation.

sanyasa - renunciation, detachment, mendicancy.

sanyasadharma - Rules and obligations for a renunciate.

moksha - liberation

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Asramas regulating man's life are four: Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vaanaprastha and Sanyasa. They are all based on Grihasthaasrama. That is the chief Asrama, because the Grihastha fosters the other three. The Grihastha is the most important of all.

"As all living beings depend upon air for their existence, the other three Asramas are dependent on the Grihastha. The Grihastha not only feeds and clothes the others, but he also provides facilities for the study of the Vedas. Manu, in his Dharma Sastras, has emphasized this point very clearly. He has declared that the Grihastha too attains Moksha; only he must follow strictly the Dharma laid down for his Asrama. There is no doubt that every one, to whichever Asrama he may belong, who adheres to the Dharma of that Asrama, will attain Moksha."

nivritti, nivrithi - withdrawal, detachment, renuciation.

"...the universally honoured Asrama of Sanyaasa, the path of Nivritthi."

sadhachara, sadhaachaara, - good conduct.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If one is engaged in Sad-aachaara, every Asrama is holy, every Asrama is commendable."

swa - true nature.

dharma - righteousness, the teachings of righteousness.

swadharma - one's own righteousness, duty, and obligations.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Sastras therefore require that a person has to be in the house-holder stage till the age of 48, whether it is favourable or unfavourable. One has to be in it and struggle to perform the Swadharma, without hindrance."

The 7 principles of man

This is the main reason why I write this page. The 7 principles of man have been presented by Annie Bessant and studied extensively by Theosophy. Here is the discussion presented anew by the great world teacher Sai Baba. In this section I include those words pertaining to the 7 principles and those words pertaining to the movement from ignorance and error to truth and righteousness.

jnana (its opposite is ajnana) - Spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom. (Self knowledge with the emphasis on experience. The opposite is ajnana, ignorance.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "Sacrifice ajnana and ahamkara at the altar of Jnana, and install Dharma therein; this is the message of the Veda."

From the Dharma Vahini: "So too, in this benighted world, it is difficult to move about truthfully, correctly and peacefully without knocking against some obstacle or other. How then are you to succeed? Light the lamp! Let it reveal the reality; get the light of Jnana. That will solve all the difficulties."

Brahmajnana - Knowledge of Brahman. (From Brahman, God, and jnana, knowledge of the eternal self.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "Every single unselfish act, which prepares the ground for the merging of the Soul with the Over-Soul, which broadens the vision towards the basic Brahmam immanent everywhere, is a Dharmic act. Each such act is a tiny stream that swells the river of holiness rushing towards the sea of Brahmajnana."

Nischithajnana - Incontrovertible wisdom.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The reality of the Atma is the bedrock, the Jnana that is incontrovertible, the Nischithajnana."

Atma (Atman) - The real Self, one's divinity, God, the substance of everything, the unseen basis, the spark of God within. The Atma is unchanging and immortal; it does not die. The Atma is commonly called the eternal self.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Therefore, endeavor first to become Free. That is to say, as a preliminary to successful living, cultivate Faith in the Atma as the core of your personality and then learn and practice the discipline necessary to reach down to that core. With that qualification acquired, you can engage fully in worldly activities, following the Dharma prescribed for their regulation. Then you become a moral individual, a Dharma purusha."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Really, woman should strive to achieve the knowledge of the Soul and live every moment in the consciousness of her being only the Atman; she must evince always a desire to become one with the Divine Consciousness."

From the Dharma Vahini: "The educated person must be capable of imbibing the inner joy of the Atman, irrespective of external circumstances; he must have grasped the purpose of existence; he must be aware of the discipline of Realisation. The Grace of the Lord was the Diploma which every student sought to secure in the old days. That Diploma was awarded to those who were proficient in the cultivation of morality, the knowledge of the Atman, the sublimation of instincts, good conduct, pure habits, control of the senses, restraint of the mind, and the development of divine qualities."

karmadeha - Literally karma, action, and deha, body, or more properly that body acquired as a result of activity.

paramartha - Literally param, supreme, and artha good. Artha is that good related to welfare and prosperity. It is one of the four goals of human life which are righteousness, endeavor, prosperity, and liberation, as dharma, kama, artha, and moksha.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Atma is One and Indivisible; Dharma based on That is genuine Dharma.

"Some ask: "You go on saying 'Atma', 'Atma'; well what is the Rupa or form of this Atma?" But, wherefrom is Atma to get form? It is eternal, unchanging, immortal. It is goodness, right, beneficence. It is immutable, unblemished. It cannot be limited by any particular name or form. It can be understood by the Jnana that dawns in and through the Karmadeha, i.e., the body acquired as a result of activity. The body alone has name and form, and so, in every activity of the body, you should manifest the Atmadharma, Dharma based on the Atma-consciousness.

"It is said, "the Atma is neither male nor female; nor cattle nor sheep nor horse nor elephant nor bird nor tree; it is beyond such categorizations". These distinctions and differences arise on the basis of activity; the Atma is incapable of modification; only one thing can be posited about it, viz., that It is. The sum and substance of all this is that the Atma is the Absolute, the Paramartha. The rest is all particular, insignificant, false, unreal, denotable, and identifiable."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma enables the Atma to be realised, without any mist or fog hiding it from view."

nithya - eternal, permanent.

suddha - pure.

Buddha - awakened, enlightened, wise.

jyothi - Divine light. Jyothi Veda, study of planets and stars, astrology.

swayamjyothi - self illuminating.

From the Dharma Vahini: "In fact, the Atma is devoid of all differences as between men and women. It is Nithya, Suddha, Buddha, Swayamjyothi; i.e., it is eternal pure consciousness itself, and self illumining. Women can reach the status of those holy women only when they become aware of the nature of the Atma."

Atmaswarupa - from Atma, the eternal self, and swarupa, form, essential nature, true nature of being

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is necessary to feel the Identity between that Effulgent Being, the Atmaswarupa, mentioned therein and oneself."

jnana - Spiritual knowledge, experiential wisdom.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Those who are endowed with Atmajnana, the knowledge of the Atma as their basic truth, do cross the ocean of birth and death and without doubt attain liberation."

Putting an 'a' in front of a word is often used to denote the opposite meaning, ajnana means ignorance.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The ajnani, or the ignoramus, who is moved by the inert or the jada principle, believes that the body is himself!"

Paramatma (Paramathma) - Supreme Self, Supreme Atma. (From para, supreme, and Atma, the eternal self.)

From the Dharma Vahini: "Your acts and activities are all rituals in the worship of the Paramathma that pervades the Universe."

karana - sense organ.

anthahkarana - inner fourfold instruments of mind, intellect, memory, and ego.

suddhi - purity.

From the Dharma Vahini: "This Anthahkarana Suddhi is what the Sastras extol, when they speak of salvation."

kama - Desire.

kamakarma (kamyakarma) - Desire motivated action attempting to get the result of that action, such activity binds a person within the illusion.

deha - Body.

Deva - Deity, a god, a godlike being, a celestial being, a heavenly person.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Vedantha, the Adhyatmic Sastras, Dharma - all invite man to live and act as Bhagavan, and not as bondsman. Then, all acts become Dharmakarma and not Kamyakarma (acts done with intent to gain the fruits thereof). The shackles of bondage cannot be avoided by a mere change of the type of activity. They can be avoided only by changing the point of view from the Deha to the Deva, from the Created to the Creator. The moral qualities also will be rendered stronger, thereby."

muktha - Free, liberated.

mukthi - Liberation, final release or emancipation from the cycle of birth and death.

mukthapurusha - Liberated person, from muktha - free, and purusha - perfect person, soul, self. Purusha pertaining to man is from Purusha pertaining to the Divine, as God, Lord, Supreme Person.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Only those who have escaped this fate are free; that "freedom" is the ideal stage to which Dharma leads. With that stage constantly in mind, if one engages in the activity of living, he can become liberated, a Mukthapurusha."

Paramatma, Paramathma - supreme Atma, from para - supreme, and Atma - eternal self, Atma is commonly used to refer to the highest principle of man and Paramatma is that self same Atma but in reference to the Divine.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If every act is done as if it is for the sake of the Atma and its merger with Paramathma, then activity becomes dedicated to the Lord. All such acts save; they do not bind."

Atmic bliss - The eternal self realized as existence, awareness, bliss. The sat, chit, ananda of the Atma.

Atmadharma - The duties and obligations of the eternal self.

sathya - Truth.

santham - Equanimity, serenity, tranquility.

prema - Love, well being with good will.

ahimsa - Nonviolence.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The true Dharma is to be immersed in the Atmic Bliss, the Inner Vision, the steady faith in the identity of one's real nature with the Absolute, and the realisation that all is Brahmam; these four are the authentic Dharma. In this physical existence as particular individuals, these four are named for the convenience of practice (but yet saturated with the Inner Dharma of Atmic Reality) Sathya, Santham, Prema and Ahimsa, so that particularised individuals who are only personifications of that Absolute can follow them in daily life. The mode of pursuit of Dharma, now as in the past, is to adhere to these high principles in every act and thought. The Sathya, Santham, Ahimsa and Prema of today are but the Unintermittent immersion in the Atma, the Vision fixed on the Inner Truth, the Contemplation of One's Real Nature and the Knowledge that all is Brahmam, the one and the only. These, the Fundamental and the Derived, must be co-ordinated and harmonised. Then only can it be termed Atmadharma."

From the Dharma Vahini: "To have selflessness, the spirit of self-sacrifice and the spiritual eminence required for the dedicatory outlook, one must have first won the four characteristics: Sathya, Santham, Prema, Ahimsa."

sadguna - good character, virtue

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is why it is said, "Sadguna or virtue is the sign of the educated person, the thing which makes education worthwhile."

ahamkara - Ego, self-love, selfish individuality.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Sacrifice ajnana and ahamkara at the altar of Jnana, and install Dharma therein; this is the message of the Veda."

Arishadvarga - Six inner enemies of man, viz. lust, anger, greed, delusion, pride, and hate.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Now, who can cure the present blindness? Man has to slay the six-fold beast of Arishadvarga, leading him on to disaster through the pulls of Lust, Anger, Greed, Delusion, Pride and Hate. Thus, only can Dharma be restored."

anyaya - this seems to mean 'illogical.' The Nyanya Shastra is a system of logic based on syllogistic inference, that is proceeding from premises to conclusions. An 'a' in front of a word is used to denote the opposite meaning.

adharma - unrighteousness, the opposite of dharma, righteousness.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If you do not try to know the significance, you will interpret them as your fancy leads, and land yourselves in tricks and stratagems, to escape the obligations of life. You will be caught in injustice and negation, Anyaya and Adharma."

pasu (pashu) - Animal, bull. (This word is often use to refer to man as creature of creator and having a having a 'lower animal nature' that he must control.)

pasupathi - master of his animal qualities.

Pasupathi - Lord of animals or individualized souls, name for Siva (Shiva).

govinda - Guardian (of cows or individuals).

Govinda - Name for Krishna.

jiva - Individualized soul with ego.

From the Dharma Vahini: "People used to celebrate Yajnas in ancient times; and they sacrificed Pasus or animals in these Yajnas. But, the animal is only a symbol. It was not the dumb creature that had to be cut to pieces. The animal leads a life of sacrifice, without man completing its career at the sacrificial pole! The animal that has to be disemboweled and offered is different; in the spiritual vocabulary, animal means "the body-consciousness", "the I-consciousness"; and it is this that has to be slaughtered. The Lord is known as Pasupathi or Govinda; Pasupathi means the Lord of all Jivas, Pasu meaning Jiva; Govinda means the Guardian of Cows or Jivas, "Go" meaning Jiva. The tending of cows is a symbolic leela of Krishna to indicate His Mission of tending Jivas."

Nandi - Shiva's bull.

Nandini - Fabulous cow of sage Vasishtha bestowing all desires.

Nandiswara - God, Lord of all creatures, Shiva.

vahana - Vehicle.

vimana - Vehicle capable of moving by its own volition across land, on water, and through the air.

lingam - Egg shaped stone, symbol of Shiva, the form of the formless, symbolizes merger of the form with the formless. (Associated with this universe being depicted as the golden egg of Brahma.)

Iswara - Lord, God, Supreme Being, name for Shiva.

From the Dharma Vahini: "These meanings must be learnt by young and old. Take for instance, the Siva Temple. Right in front of the Idol of Shiva we have the image of Nandi, the Bull. You are told that the Sacred Bull is the vehicle or Vahana of Shiva and, that is the reason for its being there. But, really speaking the Bull or the Pasu represents Jiva while the Lingam is the symbol of Shiva. "No one should pass between the Bull and the Lingam, the Jiva and the Shiva", it is said; for they are to merge in one. Shiva has to be seen through the two horns of Nandi, they say. People when asked the reason for this procedure reply, "Well, it is holier than other methods of viewing the Lingam". But the inner meaning is, "You must see the Shiva in Jiva" - Pasu and Pasupathi are one: Nandi and Iswara become Nandiswara. Both are only two ways of referring to the same entity. When in bondage, it is Nandi; it is Iswara, when the bound becomes free and Nandiswara is achieved; it is worshipped and is entitled to be so honoured. When the Pasu is offered to the Pasupathi, and its separate identity is cast away, that is the true Yajna. The significance has now been forgotten."

bound - A person tied up with a rope is bound. A person caught in the 'coils of Maya' is bound.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Only the intelligent can save themselves by knowing the Truth, the rest will remain bound."

coils of Maya - Evidently time as spirals of the years with the emphasis on Maya, appearance, rather than on Atma, the eternal self.

From the Dharma Vahini: "A lion asleep is unaware of its nature. So too, man asleep in the coils of Maya is not aware of his being the Splendourful Atma."

attachment - One thing connected to another. Here is seems to mean that the mind follows the senses to the sense objects and gets attached to them. These attachments then are the bondage of the individual in the 'coils of Maya.'

From the Dharma Vahini: "When the worst of the gunas, the Thamas, threatens to rule, man must make a special effort to escape its coils by resorting to prayer, in the company of those who extol the Lord, reading about the glory of God, the cultivation of good virtues, and purposeful nursing of good rules of conduct. This is the evening Sandhya-vandanam, which is prescribed."

chain - Iron chains are used to bind prisoners. A gold chain was given to Daniel in the book of Daniel. Andromeda, the constellation, is called the woman in chains, signifying that the universe is held together. Theosophy writes of the lunar chain and the earth chain. Jewelry can be maid of chains whether it worn by humans, heavenly Devas, or goddesses.

prisoner - A soul in a body. A person bound by the attachments of desire. A person held in chains.

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is only because you bind yourself that you become bound and stray away from the Dharmic path. It is always so; no other person can bind you; you do it yourself. If faith in God's Omnipresence is deep-rooted, then, you would be aware that He is your self and that you can never be bound! For that faith to grow, you must grasp Atmananda firmly."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Until the fundamental secret of the Atma is recognised, the outer state of bondage will persist."

From the Dharma Vahini: "It does not matter what your activity is, or what name and form you have chosen. A chain is a chain whatever the material it binds, whether it is iron or gold, is it not? So too, whether the work is of this type or that, so long as the Atma Dharma is the base, and Atmathathwa the root, it is Dharma beyond doubt. Such work will bless one with the fruit of Santhi. When the waves of egoist fear or greed drive one forward, either into the privacy of the home, or the loneliness of the forest, or to any other refuge, it is impossible to escape suffering. The cobra does not cease to be a cobra, when it lies coiled. Then too, it is cobra nevertheless. In daily practice, when acts are motivated by the basic Principle of the reality of the Atma, every act becomes stamped with the seal of Dharma. But when acts are motivated by convenience and selfish interest, the Dharma becomes pseudo Dharma. It is a variety of bondage, however attractive it may be. Like prisoners in a jail pushed in a single file by warders, either to the court of trial or the dining barracks, the prompting of the senses pushes the bondsman forward either to a place of sorrow or to a place of relief."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Castes like "Brahmin", colours like white and black, asramas like Brahmacharya etc. these are physical conditions; they are not characteristics of the Atma. They are conditioned by time and place. They belong to this world of bondage, and are governed by reasons related to that world."

amritha - the nectar of no death, immortality. Evidently from a, not, and mrithyu, death.

puthra - son.

amrithaputhra - son of immortality.

anritha - false.

anrithaputhra - son of falseness, child of futility.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Acts which are expressions of Dharma are deathless and only those who know that they are deathless can perform them. That is the highest destiny of man. Instead of reaching it, he is intent on doing acts against Dharma. Man is everywhere degrading himself from his status as a child of eternity to the status of a child of Futility, from an Amrithaputhra to an Anrithaputhra! Holding nectar in the grasp, he is drinking the poison of sensual pleasure. Neglecting the joy of the contemplation of the fundamental Atmic reality of the Universe, he is entangling himself in the external trappings of this objective world or appearances. One can only bewail that this fate has overwhelmed man!"

Purusha - supreme spirit, Lord, God, spirit.

Gayathri - goddess, short for Gayathri mantra, the mother of all mantras.

Brahmam - God.

Aakaasa, aakaasha, akasa - sky, space, ether.

hridaya - heart.

avastha - state, condition.

jagath - cosmos, world of change, creation.

swapna, swapna avastha - dream state.

sushupthi - deep sleep state.

Atmaswarupa - Atma, the eternal self, and swarupa, form, essential nature, true nature of being.

From the Dharma Vahini: "It is impossible to grasp the Mystery of that splendour-filled Form. This Purusha indicated by the Gayathri is indeed referred to as Brahmam. He is the Aakaasa, beyond the comprehension of man; He is spoken of as, "Bahir dhapurushaakaasah." This is the mark of the Waking Stage; that Purusha is the Aakaasa, inside the personality of man. He is "Antah purushaakaasah". That is the mark of the "Dream Stage". He is the Aakaasa inside the Hridaya of man; He fills it and fulfils it; that is the "Deep-Sleep Stage". Whoever knows this Truth attains Fullness and Brahmam. That is to say, he who knows the Three Avasthas of Wakefulness, Dream and Deep Sleep (Jagath, Swapna and Sushupthi) is himself Brahmam. How ridiculous is it that Man known as Purusha bearing the name of this Atmaswarupa should become the repository of egoism and consequent impurity, busy in the unholy pursuit of injustice! How calamitous! At least for being known even today as a "Purusha", man should try to practice the path that will endow him with an atom of that Glory."

Terms used in meditation, worship, rites, and practices

yoga - Union, merger.

sathya - truth

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma is Yoga, Union, Merger; it is Sathya."

Sanathana Dharma - the original religion from beginning less time, the eternal religion

sadhana - spiritual discipline or exercise.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Wherever they move, if they are endowed with good qualities, and if the good qualities are accompanied by good actions and good habits, and adherence to Sanathanadharma and Sadhana, then their study is really worth while and society is indeed benefited."

japa, japam - repeating God's name, mantra meditation.

dhyana, dhyanam - meditation, equanimity.

From the Dharma Vahini: "They will get up early, before dawn, clean the home and after finishing bath etc., sit for a while engaged in Japam and Dhyanam."

puja - worship

From the Dharma Vahini: "Woman must accord first place to the service of her husband; that is True Worship, for her. Her prayers and worship and puja can wait. Without serving the husband she cannot attain Bliss in worship or meditation."

snana - bath.

sandhya - early morning, noon, or evening

sandhya vandana - morning, noon, or evening prayers. Vandana - praise, worship, veneration, salutation.

Gayathri Devi, Gayatri - presiding goddess of the Gayatri mantra.

Gayathri mantra - Ancient Vedic prayer to awaken the intelligence and lead to enlightenment. The mother of all mantras. The first of the seven mantras of Surya Narayana, the Sun God from the dawn of creation. The Gayathri mantra is traditionally done at daybreak, mid day, and sunset.

Vishnu Sahasranama - the 1000 names of Vishnu.

Siva, Shiva Sahasranama - the 1000 names of Shiva.

varna - each of the four castes, the Brahmins, the Kshatriyas, the Vaisvas, and the Sudras, that is the learned priests; the civil servants and warriors; the market place workers; and the farmers, loggers, fishermen, and those who gather.

From the Dharma Vahini: "If Dharma is followed with an eye on the consequences, it might even be neglected when the advantage is not patent or immediate. Every one will not have the same motive; every one will not have the same standard. For example, each will have a different idea of the fruits of Snana, Sandhya, Japa and Dhyana, which are prescribed. Some persons cancel the Gayathri Japam in the evenings and instead recite the Vishnu Sahasranama or the Sivasahasranama. "Kaale Sandhyaa Samaachareth": "Perform Sandhyavandanam in proper time"; that is the prescription. But, inspite of such directions, is it not a breach of Dharma when they cancel the evening Sandhya like this? Similarly there are prescriptions for every Varna."

Brahmathathva - literally Brahman that this, or Brahman that you, or I am Brahman, or thou art Brahman.

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is to say, when the twice-born gives up the Sandhya-worship, he falls into perdition; so say all the Smrithis. Those who neglect the Sandhyaa-worship have no right for any other type of ritual. It is because the sages of ancient times performed the Sandhya-worship for many years that they acquired long life, fame, glory, wisdom and the splendour of Divinity; this is mentioned by Manu also. Therefore, from whatever point of view we consider, no Brahmin can deserve that status if he does not meditate on the Gayathri.

"Of course what is meant by Brahmin in this context is the man who has realised the Brahmathathva and who has purified himself by the practice of the Brahmopasana, the ceaseless contemplation of the Brahmam. This has nothing to do with caste and even religion. But, those who have inherited the name Brahmin have a special responsibility in adhering to the Sandhya-worship and the Gayathri.

"What exactly is Sandhya? 'Sam' means well and 'dhya' is derived from 'dhyan' and so Sandhya refers to the proper dhyana or intense meditation on the Lord. It means concentration on the Godhead."

praathah sandya - dawn worship of the Lord.

From the Dharma Vahini: "At dawn, the mind is awakened from the comfort of sleep, liberated from agitations and depressions and so, the mind is calm and clear. At that time, in that mental condition, the dhyana of the Lord is very fruitful, as everyone knows. This is the reason why the Praathah-Sandhya is prescribed."

Maadhyahnikam - noon time worship.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Before he takes his noonday food, he is directed to meditate on the Lord again and to dedicate the work as well as the fruit derived through it, to the Lord Himself. He can start eating only after this act of devotion and grateful remembrance. This is the meaning of the Maadhyahnikam, the Noon-time worship. By observing this ritual, Rajoguna is kept in check and it is overpowered by Sathwa nature."

sandhya vandana - morning, noon, or evening prayers. Vandana, vandhana - praise, worship, veneration, salutation.

From the Dharma Vahini: "When the worst of the gunas, the Thamas, threatens to rule, man must make a special effort to escape its coils by resorting to prayer, in the company of those who extol the Lord, reading about the glory of God, the cultivation of good virtues, and purposeful nursing of good rules of conduct. This is the evening Sandhya-vandanam, which is prescribed."

samaana - equal.

sama, saama - control of the senses, equanimity.

dana - charity, giving.

bheda - separation, division.

danda, dhanda - stick, rod of punishment.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Dharma is not an ordinary affair. He who does not practice Dharma is as bad as dead; if he does practice it, he is of the divine nature. Now there is need to turn men on to the Dharmic path by means of good advice, tempting them with the attractive consequences of following the path, threatening to dissociate from those who do not, and inflicting punishment as a last resort; the traditional methods of Saama, Daana, Bheda and Danda."

bhaavana - creative thought, creator.

From the Dharma Vahini: For the growth and development of the body pure Sathwic food is very necessary, is it not? So also, the effulgence of the Sun has to be drawn, to reinforce the inner effulgence of man in the form of Bhaavana, or creative imagination.

upanayana - sacred thread ceremony in which a boy is initiated with a sacred thread and is then qualified to learn Vedas.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Of what purpose is the Upanayana sacrament?"

nithya - eternal, permanent.

anushtana, anushtaana - undertaking, performance, action, good disciplined conduct.

nithyaanushtana, nithyaanushthaana - rites and vows prescribed for daily adherence.

tapas, thapas - concentrated spiritual exercises to attain God, penance, severe austerities.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Nithyaanushthaana, or the rites and vows prescribed for daily adherence, is very important among the disciplines. It is the highest Thapas, the highest Dharma."

nishta - regulated behavior, excellence, discipline.

Brahmanishta - steady contemplation of Brahman.

From the Dharma Vahini: "That is why the persons who are ever engaged in Brahmanishta, those who have grasped the basic Reality..."

sthithi - preservation, staying, abiding.

prajna - intuitive wisdom.

sthithaprajna - a person of steady integrity and spiritual wisdom.

aham - the knower.

Aham Brahmasmi, Aham Brahmaasmi - I am Brahman.

jnana - spiritual knowledge.

ajnana - ignorance.

jada - inert matter.

jiva, jivi - individual or soul.

Atma - the eternal self.

An-atma - not the eternal self.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The "Sthithaprajna" stage is quite natural for such persons. The constant feeling, "I am Brahmam", is the panacea for all the ills of man. Liberation comes through this "Aham Brahmaasmi" idea itself. That is the real duty of man, to cultivate that feeling and enter upon that experience. The ajnani, or the ignoramus, who is moved by the inert or the jada principle, believes that the body is himself! The pandit who is capable of a little ratiocination and enquiry feels that the jivi in the body is "I". But those wise men who can see the An-atma is separate from the Atma, they know that the truth is: "Aham Brahmaasmi" and they do not stray from that conviction."

tapas, thapas - concentrated spiritual exercises to attain God, penance.

thapaswis - those who do thapas.

thapovana - sacred grove in which religious austerities are practised, hermitage.

jnanis - those of jnana, spiritual knowledge.

yajna - holy rite, ritual.

asrama - the four stages of life, brahmacharya - chaste youth, grihastha - householder, vanaprastha - retiring to the forest for meditation, and sanyasa - renunciation.

Brahman - God.

swa - this seems to mean true being, or true identity.

rupa - form, arupa, formless

swarupa - essential nature, true nature of being

swaswarupa - one's true nature.

Atma - the eternal self.

parama - supreme.

pada - word, speech, sign, position, step.

Paramapada - realizing God as the 'limitless open,' the highest abode of peace, highest stage of spirituality, final emancipation.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Those who have attachment and hatred, even if they dwell in the forest, cannot escape harm. Those who have conquered the senses, even if they are householders, can be thapaswis. If engaged in acts which are not harmful or condemned, then they are entitled to be called Jnanis. The home is the thapovana for attaining non-attachment. Liberation cannot be won by progeny, or by charity or by riches or by Yajna or Yoga; what is wanted for liberation is the cleansing of the self.

"In order to decide what is right action and wrong, the Sastras alone are the authority; whatever the stage of life, whatever the Asrama, if the person has the realisation of Brahmam as the goal, and if he seeks to realise Swaswarupa, that is, his own real Reality, he will succeed in removing the veil of ignorance and know himself as Brahmam. Attention fixed on one's Atma - that is the means of liberation.'

"Understanding this lesson that the Vedas teach, practising the principles of living laid down for the particular stage of one's life, any one, whatever the caste, can attain the Paramapada, the Highest Stage. If there is the will and the strength to adhere strictly to Dharma, if there are no difficulties in acquiring Jnana, one can, without entering Sanyaasa Asrama, remain as a householder and yet be liberated."

alaya - house, dwelling.

mandir - temple.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Next, about the House of God, the Residence of the concretised Formful Aspect of divinity (called Alaya or Mandir), the Temple and the Rules of Dharma relating to it."

bhakthi - devotion.

Madhava - God, name for Krishna, master of illusion, Lord of Lakshmi.

"While it is quite natural and appropriate that man should picture Madhava in human form, it is not desirable to assume that He is just an ordinary individual. It is the principle of Bhakthi that He is conceived as an extra-ordinary Person, with a Figure of Sublime Splendour."

Madhavathwa - Divinity.

Madhavathathwa - Godliness.

manavathwa - human value.

manavathathwa - humanness.

Brahmajnana - knowledge of Brahman.

jivi, jiva - individual.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The purpose of the temple is to awaken the Madhavathwa in the Manavathwa, the Divinity in Humanity, inducing man to believe that the physical frame in which he lives is itself the House of God. Therefore all the temple formalities, rites and rituals emphasise and cultivate this Brahmajnana, the Truth that the Jivi is just a wave of the Sea."

bhakthi - devotion.

jnana - spiritual knowledge and experience.

vairagya - detachment, renunciation.

dharma - righteousness, the teachings of righteousness.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Of the three, Bhakthi, Jnana and Vairagya, Bhakthi is the Queen. The rules and rites are the Maids-in-waiting; the Queen treats her maids with kind consideration and favour, no doubt, but, if the ceremonies, which are but 'servants' and 'aides', disregard the Queen, they should be mercilessly dismissed; all the formalities and rituals in the temples must therefore subserve the glorification of the Queen, Bhakthi; this is the sum and substance of the Dharma which must direct and govern all temples. It is only then that man can reach the Goal."

Kumkum Dot - a mark of vermillion placed on the forehead representative of the central spiritual illumination.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The little child takes the sun to be similar to the Kumkum Dot on its mother's forehead; but the knowing adult sees it as a sphere of effulgent heat."

From the Theosophical Glossary on ether, ethereal, aether, actio in distans, astral light, and akasa

Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary: Em-Ez

Ether. See AETHER; ETHEREAL

Ethereal, Ethereality Used in an attempt to define states of matter more refined and less dense than familiar physical matter. The differences between the higher divisions of matter is analogous to the corresponding subdivisions of physical matter -- solid, liquid, gas, and fiery. Thus the characteristic of the solid is fixity of form, restriction of movement; that of liquid, mobility; of gas, expansibility; while the fiery element among other things is exempt from gravitation. The major divisions of matter must be graded on a somewhat analogous scale.

There is a clear distinction between 1) akasa; 2) the astral light; and 3) ether. Akasa in its higher portions is pure spirit; the astral light is the seventh or highest division of our physical cosmic plane and may even in a sense be called the most subtle part of the terrestrial atmosphere; whereas ether is a material agent or stuff interpenetrating molecular matter, and is therefore even more gross than is the astral light. In one sense these three are the highest, the very low, and the lowest parts of spirit or akasa itself, the physical stuff or body of our plane being its lees or dregs.

Etheric Body. See ASTRAL BODY; LINGA-SARIRA

Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary: Adi-Ag

Aether, Ether (Greek) [from aitho shining, fire] The upper or purer air as opposed to aer, the lower air; the clear sky; the abode of the gods. In Classical antiquity it denoted primordial substance, Proteus or protyle, the unitary source both of all substances and energies, the mask of all kosmic phenomena. Often used loosely to embrace a domain which extends from the All-Father himself down to the atmosphere of our earth. Vergil speaks of "Jupiter omnipotens aether," and Cicero describes aether as the ultimate zone of heaven encircling, embracing, and permeating all things. At one time a member of the pantheon and object of veneration, at another the quest of the alchemist in search of the "absolute element" which would give him power over nature, and finally a hypothetical medium of science for conveying light waves.

Sometimes aether is used in translating the Sanskrit akasa, which has the same etymological and philosophical meaning. Here it is an element or principle coming after manas and kama and before the astral light and ether. Again, it is a high aspect of akasa, having itself also seven subordinate aspects. There are in kosmic space at least seven aethers or prakritis, which exist one within the other in a rising scale of spirituality. Collectively they may be called spirit-aether or akasa.

Generally in The Secret Doctrine it is the fifth kosmic element from below, a link between kosmic mind or mahat and the lower manifested world, the vehicle of the former and the parent of the latter. Looking at aether in a more general kosmic way, it is the field of activity of the kosmic Third Logos, Brahma-prakriti, and therefore the great womb of manifested being, the treasure house of all kosmic types, forth from which they flow at the opening of manifestation and back into which they will again be ingathered at the beginning of kosmic pralaya. It is in consequence the great mother-substance out of which all the hierarchies are built. It interpenetrates everything, lasting from the beginning of the universal manvantara to its end, and indeed, may be said to continue, in its most spiritualized form throughout kosmic pralaya as the seed-house or storehouse from which everything will flow into manifestation again when the new period of kosmic activity arrives. Considered as the cosmic mother of all things, aether in its highest feminine aspect is the same as the Vedic Aditi or the Hera or Juno of Greece and Rome. Thus in one sense it is also mulaprakriti, the generator or producer of the seeds of beginnings and things. The Old Testament refers to aether as the kosmic waters. In its highest parts it is mystically alaya (the kosmic spirit-soul) or what in Northern Buddhism is called svabhavat, more mystically adi-buddhi. See also ACTIO IN DISTANS; AKASA

Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary: Aa- Adh

Actio in Distans (Latin) Action at a distance. Can force be transmitted across an empty space? On the automechanical theory of the universe, such action is inexplicable and yet inevitable, for if the universe consists entirely of matter made of atoms separated from each other by empty spaces, the transmission of force from one atom to another cannot be explained except by supposing some medium to intervene. If this medium is atomic, the old difficulty reappears; if it is continuous, there is no reason for supposing it, since matter might in the first place have been supposed to be continuous. Thus if we choose to represent reality as a system of points in space, we must assume actio in distans as an axiom. The difficulty that a body cannot act where it is not, may be gotten over by stating that wherever it can act, there it is. Scientific theories, carried to a logical conclusion, support the idea that all things in the universe are connected with each other, so that whatever affects one part affects every other part. Notions of physical space do not enter to the realm of mind, thought, and feeling.

To meet this difficulty of action at a distance, early European scientists invented various kinds of ethers to bridge the supposed gap of nothingness between atom and atom or body and body. These finally were abandoned, with the exception of the luminiferous or light-carrying ether, which remained until the Michelson-Morley experiment, after which it was abandoned.

Nevertheless, theosophy postulates the existence of atomic and subatomic ethers of various degrees of tenuity, ranging from physical to spiritual. Collectively these ethers are the different planes or ranges of akasa, the fundamental substratum of the universe and the garment in which the kosmic divinity clothes itself -- the various prakritis as outlined especially in the Sankhya philosophy. Any scientific ether is not the akasa or aether, but solely the lowest plane of the akasic plenum, some of the ranges of the astral light, which in one sense is the highest principle of the earth's atmosphere -- a subtle ethereal energy-stuff permeant through and interpenetrating physical matter of all kinds. See also Aether; Ether

Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary: Ass-Atm

Astral Bell. See BELL SOUNDS

Astral Body Generally equivalent to the Sanskrit linga-sarira, the ethereal model-body, usually invisible to our physical eyes, upon which the physical body (sthula-sarira) is modeled. There are three ethereal forms or bodies which might properly be called astral bodies: 1) mayavi-rupa -- the illusory form-body of thought and substance projected by high initiates; 2) linga-sarira -- the model- or pattern-body, the second principle of the human constitution; and 3) kama-rupa -- the phantom or spook which is seen occasionally in the vicinity of graves or which occasionally materializes at seances.

Astral Double. See ASTRAL BODY; BHUTA; CHHAYA

Astral Fluid {HBP, GdeP}

Astral Light This is the next cosmic plane above the physical, which is to the physical globes of our earth or of the other bodies of our solar system what the linga-sarira is to the human physical body. As such, it is the carrier of life-forces -- jiva cosmically, and prana individually -- and the storehouse of cosmic energies on their way to or from physical manifestation. It preserves an indelible record of all events on the astral and physical planes, there being continual interaction between the two planes. No natural phenomenon, whether mental, psychic, or physical, can be explained without it; without it, the physical world would crumble to impalpable dust.

The astral light is itself divided into subordinate planes; the lower regions teem with gross emanations from the earth, including psychic remnants from deceased beings, which exert a negative influence on the living, especially when intercourse with these remnants is encouraged by moral and physical weakness or by ignorant experiments.

The alchemical action of the astral light and its intimate connection with the physical sphere explains epidemics, whether physical or psychological. Because it transmits thoughts and emotions, its connection with karma is evident. The astral light is the mother of the physical world, just as akasa is the mother of the astral light.

The astral light is virtually the same as the sidereal light of Paracelsus and other medieval mystic philosophers who followed him. The reason for calling this kosmic plane astral or sidereal is that all nature being a vast and intricately interwoven organism, the stars and planets emanate into each other their respective celestial energies and substances. Thus, because there is this constant interchange of starry fluids emanating from the different celestial bodies, the term astral light has a foundation of esoteric scientific fact. It is applied specifically to the second kosmic plane only because it is nearest to the physical and beings living on the physical plane at times become sensible of the existence of the second kosmic plane by means of flashes of starry light or sensations of luminosity. Hence the ancient initiates, knowing the source of this starry substance, properly called it the astral or sidereal light, or by some similar expression. The astral light, finally, is the very dregs of akasa, and is virtually the same as the hypothetical ether of science.

Astral Plane. See ASTRAL LIGHT

Astral Monad or Soul The animal soul or vital-astral soul, the lowest and feeblest reflection or vehicle of the divine monad; when enlightened by the human monad, it produces the human being known today.

Astral World. See ASTRAL LIGHT

Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary: Ah- Al

Akasa (Sanskrit) [from akas to be visible, appear, shine, be brilliant] The shining; ether, cosmic space, the fifth cosmic element. The subtle, supersensuous spiritual essence which pervades all space. It is not the ether of science, but the aether of the ancients, such as the Stoics, which is to ether what spirit is to matter. In the Brahmanical scriptures, akasa is used for what the Northern Buddhists call svabhavat, more mystically adi-buddhi (primeval buddhi); it is also mulaprakriti, cosmic spirit-substance, the reservoir of being and of beings. Genesis refers to it as the waters of the deep. It is universal substantial space, and mystically in its highest elements is alaya.

As universal space, it is also known as Aditi, in which lies inherent the eternal and continuously active ideation of the universe producing its ever-changing aspects on the planes of matter and objectivity; and from this ideation radiates the First Logos. This is why the Puranas state that akasa has but one attribute, namely sound, for sound is but the translated symbol of logos (speech) in its mystic sense. Akasa as primordial spatial substance is thus the upadhi (vehicle) of divine thought. Further, it is the playground of all the intelligent and semi-intelligent forces in nature, the fountainhead of all terrestrial life, and the abode of the gods.

Akasa is the noumenon and spiritual substratum of differentiated prakriti, otherwise the seven or ten prakritis, the root or roots of all in the universe. These prakritis are not merely in akasa, but are the manifestations of akasa in its various grades or degrees of evolutionary development. All the ancient nations mythologically deified akasa in one or another of its aspects and powers (cf IU 1:125 for a descriptive listing of the many names anciently used for akasa). It is the indispensable agent in all religious or profane magic: occult electricity, the universal solvent, in another aspect kundalini. "Akasa is the mysterious fluid termed by scholastic science, 'the all-pervading ether'; it enters into all the magical operations of nature, and produces mesmeric, magnetic, and spiritual phenomena. As, in Syria, Palestine, and India, meant the sky, life, and the sun at the same time; the sun being considered by the ancient sages as the great magnetic well of our universe" (IU 1:140n).

Sometimes the astral light is used as a convenient but inaccurate phrase for akasa. In clarifying the difference between these Blavatsky says: "The Astral Light is that which mirrors the three higher planes of consciousness, and is above the lower, or terrestrial plane; therefore it does not extend beyond the fourth plane, where, one may say, the Akasa begins.

"There is one great difference between the Astral Light and the Akasa which must be remembered. The latter is eternal, the former is periodic. The Astral Light changes not only with the Mahamanvantaras but also with every sub-period and planetary cycle or Round. . . .

"The Akasa is the eternal divine consciousness which cannot differentiate, have qualities, or act; action belongs to that which is reflected or mirrored from it. The unconditioned and infinite can have no relation with the finite and conditioned. . . . We may compare the Akasa and the Astral Light . . . to the germ in the acorn. The latter, besides containing in itself the astral form of the future oak, conceals the germ from which grows a tree containing millions of forms. These forms are contained in the acorn potentially, yet the development of each particular acorn depends upon extraneous circumstances, physical forces, etc." (TBL 75-6; also IU 1:197).

The astral light is the tablet of memory of earth and of its child the animal-man; while akasa is the tablet of memory of the hierarchy of the planetary spirits controlling our chain of globes, and likewise of their child, each spiritual ego. The astral light is simply the dregs or lowers vehicles of akasa. Gautama Buddha held only two things as eternal: akasa and nirvana. In the Chandogya Upanishad (7:12:1-2) akasa (ether, space) is equated with Brahman.

Akasa-bhuta (Sanskrit) [from akasa ether, space + bhuta element, existing, being from the verbal root bhu to be, become] The aether element, the Father-Mother element, third in the descending scale of seven cosmic bhutas which in the Upanishads are reckoned as five, and in Buddhist writings as four. Akasa-bhuta has its analog in the Third Logos, which because it is formative or creative is called Father-Mother. Not the ether, which is merely one of its lowest principles and only slightly more ethereal than physical matter.

Akasa-sakti (Sanskrit) [from akasa ether, space + sakti power, energy, from the verbal root sak to be strong, able] Used by Blavatsky for the soul or energy of prakriti: "The Tibetan esoteric Buddhist doctrine teaches that Prakriti is cosmic matter, out of which all visible forms are produced; and Akasa that same cosmic matter -- but still more imponderable, its spirit, as it were, 'Prakriti' being the body or substance, and Akasa-Sakti its soul or energy" (BCW 3:405n). Each divinity is supposed to have his sakti (active energy), mythologically referred to as his consort or feminine counterpart. Thus akasa-sakti is used as the akasa-power in the all-various differentiations of prakriti.

Akasa-tattva (Sanskrit) [from akasa ether, space + tattva thatness, reality from tat that] The brilliant, shining, spiritually luminous, evolving substratum of nature; the third in the descending scale of the seven tattvas. According to one manner of enumerating the cosmic procession of consciousnesses, this tattva corresponds to the feminine aspect of the creative or Third Logos; but as nature repeats itself constantly in its processes of evolutionary unfolding, it is likewise proper to derive the subordinate First Logos from akasa when it is considered as virtually identical with mulaprakriti. In view of this repetitive functioning in nature, it is important not to allow the mind to crystallize around any one definition of a stage in any series of "descents" as being the only stage properly so described. This is seen with the First Logos: adi-tattva, first of the five or seven tattvas, may be called the First Logos; from another aspect the First Logos is born from akasa-tattva as the formative or creative mental impulse.

Akasic [from Sanskrit akasa ether, space] The anglicized adjectival form of akasa (Sanskrit akasika).

Akasic Magnetism In theosophy both electricity and magnetism are considered as the vital fluids or effluxes of living beings, which flow forth from them and, interblending and interworking, produce the multimyriad forms of electric and magnetic phenomenal activity common everywhere. This means that both magnetism and electricity are to be traced to their source in cosmic akasa, which is in the great what the magnetism of an individual is in the small. The changes occurring in the earth's magnetism "are due to akasic magnetism incessantly generating electric currents which tend to restore disturbed equilibrium" (ML 160). Hence all magnetic or electrical activity on earth is produced by astral magnetism and electricity incessantly generating electric and magnetic currents which reproduce themselves in the physical sphere.

Akasic Samadhi [adjective of akasa ether, space + samadhi profound meditation from sam-a-dha to hold or fix together (in abstract thought)] Used for the state of consciousness into which victims of accidental death enter: "a state of quiet slumber, a sleep full of rosy dreams, during which, they have no recollection of the accident, but move and live among their familiar friends and scenes, until their natural life-term is finished, when they find themselves born in the Deva-Chan . . ." (ML 109).

This condition of human consciousness differs from the devachanic state. As used above, akasic samadhi was applied to those individuals dying by accident who on earth had been of unusually pure character and life. It is a temporary condition, equivalent to an automatic reproduction in the victim's consciousness of the beautiful and holy thoughts that the person had had during incarnated life; in fact, a sort of preliminary to the devachanic state. Such dream state immediately succeeds the first condition of absolute unconsciousness which the shock of death brings to all human beings, good, bad, or indifferent. In the above cases there is no conscious kama-lokic experience whatsoever, because the shock of death has brought about the paralysis of all the lower parts of the human constitution. Only adumbrations of the consciousness of the buddhi and atman, with the most spiritual portion of manas are then active (ML 131). In certain cases the condition of samadhi in the akasic portions of the human constitution may last until what would have been the natural life term on earth is completed; and then these individuals glide into the devachanic state.

Words used to describe the universe

jnana - spiritual knowledge.

ajnana - ignorance.

jada - inert matter.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The ajnani, or the ignoramus, who is moved by the inert or the jada principle, believes that the body is himself!"

Surya - the Sun God.

Chhaya - the consort of Surya the Sun God.

Chandra - moon goddess in charge of crops and medicinal plants.

Soma - god of the moon

sixteen - that number in the doubling sequence, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 that is associated with the phases of the moon and the field of the heart mind where the inner garden is cultivated.

From the Dharma Vahini: "See even the mid-day Sun is associated with His Consort, Chhaya; the Sixteen-fractioned Moon is closely associated with cool rays of Light, acting like Nectar."

yuga - era or age.

Krithayuga, Krita Yuga, Sathya Yuga - Golden Age, 1,728,000 years.

Threthayuga, Treta Yuga - Silver Age, 1,296,000 years.

Dwaparayuga, Dwapara Yuga - Bronze Age, 864,000 years.

Kaliyuga, Kali Yuga - Iron Age, 432,000 years.

Mahayuga - 4,320,000 years, a great age, within the Mahayuga the four yugas follow one another the succession of Krita, Treta, Dwapara, and Kali. The yugas are in the proportion of 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 10.

sathya - truth.

daya - compassion.

thapas, tapas - concentrated spiritual exercises.

dana - charity.

From the Dharma Vahini: "The Yugas are classified on the basis of the dominant mental role. In the Krithayuga, it is said Dharma walked about on four legs, happy and safe. In the Threthayuga, Dharma had only three legs, while in the Dwaparayuga, it had to totter about on just two! In the present Kaliyuga, Dharma has only one leg, according to this tradition. The four legs are Sathya, Daya, Thapas and Dana. If one has all these four, then he can be said to be in the Krithayuga, whatever may be the Yuga in the calendar. If Sathya is not steady in a person but, if he has the other three qualities, he is in the Threthayuga. If Sathya and Daya are both absent, but if Thapas and Dana persist, individuals who are in this predicament can be said to be in the Dwaparayuga. If however only Dana remains out of the four, it is as if Dharma is standing on one leg and the person who is sticking to Dana, in spite of everything else having disappeared, is in the Kaliyuga, even if he exists in the chronological age, called Kritha. The Yugas change only with the change in Dharma, not with the mere passage of time. The wicked Hiranyakasipu and the purehearted Prahlada both lived in the selfsame chronological Yuga; the same Yuga saw Dharmaja, the personification of Righteousness and Santhi, as well as the arch-cheat, Duryodhana. So, Dharma is what makes the Yuga for each; one can always be in the Kritha Yuga, if only one has all the four qualities of Dharma. It is the conduct of man that makes or mars history and changes the Golden Age to the Iron Age."

Sai Baba and the Earth changes

Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Bhagavan - Divinity, term of reverential address. Bha means creation. Ga means protection. Va means change or transformation. One endowed with bhaga is Bhagavan. Bhaga is the qualities of authority derived from power, heroism, bravery, fame, properity, wisdom, and detachment.

Sri (sounds like shree) - Honorific prefix to the name of deities, respectful title of venerated persons and celebrated works.

sathya - Truth.

Sai - Master, Divine Mother.

Baba - Divine Father.

From the Dharma Vahini: "These meanings must be learnt by young and old. Take for instance, the Siva Temple. Right in front of the Idol of Shiva we have the image of Nandi, the Bull. You are told that the Sacred Bull is the vehicle or Vahana of Shiva and, that is the reason for its being there. But, really speaking the Bull or the Pasu represents Jiva while the Lingam is the symbol of Shiva. "No one should pass between the Bull and the Lingam, the Jiva and the Shiva", it is said; for they are to merge in one. Shiva has to be seen through the two horns of Nandi, they say. People when asked the reason for this procedure reply, "Well, it is holier than other methods of viewing the Lingam". But the inner meaning is, "You must see the Shiva in Jiva" - Pasu and Pasupathi are one: Nandi and Iswara become Nandiswara. Both are only two ways of referring to the same entity. When in bondage, it is Nandi; it is Iswara, when the bound becomes free and Nandiswara is achieved; it is worshipped and is entitled to be so honoured. When the Pasu is offered to the Pasupathi, and its separate identity is cast away, that is the true Yajna. The significance has now been forgotten.

From the Dharma Vahini: "Today, these symbolic acts have changed beyond recognition. The practices of today and the principles of yesterday are far apart. Even the smallest detail of secular life has to be inspired by the higher ideal of spiritual fulfillment. Then, even simple folk can be led step by step towards the goal. When you do not discriminate the process and the purpose of every act, but still go on doing it, it becomes a funny fossilised version. Once, even Prahlada said, "Since it is difficult to destroy egoism, man finds it easy to destroy this dumb animal as a substitute. Animal sacrifice is the manifestation of Thamoguna; it is the path of bondage. The sacrifice of the animal of egoism is the Sathwic Yajna, in the Godward path of Liberation."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Thus the Paramaartha of those ancient days is turned into Paaramaartha of these days! (Paramaartha means the highest goal; Paaramaartha means the fool's goal). Thus, every one of the ancient practices, once full of meaning, has grown wild beyond recognition. Branches have shot out in various directions. It is not now possible to pluck the tree by the roots and plant a new one. So, the existing tree has to be trimmed and trained to grow straight. The highest goal has to be constantly remembered, and not diluted into the lowest."

Divine awareness contra animalism and the pruning of the tree.

From the Dharma Vahini: "No nation can be built except on the culture of its women. The coming generation is shaped by the mothers of today; this generation is so full of adharma and injustice, because the mothers who brought it up were not vigilant and intelligent enough. Well, what is past is past. To save at least the next generation, women have to be warned in time and guided to take the ancients as their model."

From the Dharma Vahini: "Sastra is Nethra to man; it is the Eye that leads and illumines and guides. Follow its directions - that is the whole duty of man. That is the big task before the world today. If the Sastras are fully understood, no doubt will arise, no discussion will be needed.

"It is not proper to select and superimpose on the Sastras things that are congenial to you, nor should you go up against the injunctions of the Sastras. Even to challenge them and talk lightly of their commands is sinful. The world has come to this sorry pass, mainly because the Sastras have been neglected in practice. This is the tragedy, the moral Fall."

Alaska Mark at The Archimedean Dual

(Page report. Unfinished, page in progress, Dharma18.html. I believe Sai Baba is the great world teacher that Madam Blavatsky had said would be here sometime in the 1950's.)

more unfinished pages:

glossary for Sai Baba's writings

Prashanthi Nilayam

quotes from Sai Baba relevant to akasa

quotes from Sai Baba relevant to the Earth changes

quotes from Sai Baba relevant to the 7 principles of man

(Development of theme within site mission. This page establishes the profundity of the teachings of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. The theme progresses from Pythagorean number, to Pythagoras, Greek use of Pythagorean number, history of numerical tradition in mystery schools, the works of Plato in the Academy, the eternal soul as remembering what it already knows, the role of pattern recognition in sacred geometry as an aid in the memory of the eternal soul, the study of Platonic solids in the development of the higher mental, the study of Eastern wisdom in the final development of spiritual ability, the progression from number to geometry to solid geometry to astronomy to music to self realization, an examination of the aura as a visual indication of the progression of the individual, the appearance of the Platonic solids in the human aura, observation of atoms with meditative procedure, the appearance of the Platonic solids in the atom, Pythagorean number and Platonic solids as evident in Genesis, the Jesus went to India story to establish the connection between the Hebrew and Hindu traditions, the emergence of abilities from the development of the higher mental, observation of the septenary Earth, the Platonic solids in the Earth grid, the proper use of the higher abilities, the illusory nature of the higher abilities, a comparison of views of future events, the illusory appearances in time, the focusing of the attention on Aum and eternity.)

Complete Table of Contents, long form, contains a description of each page
Partial Table of Contents, short form, at the bottom of this page
Shirdi Sai, the Peace Maker stories
Sai Baba teachings
Photo of Sai Baba
This page, Hindi Vocabulary used in the Sai Baba Translations
Next page, Chao Pi Ch'en and the Taoist Numbers, short and illustrated
Top of Page

www.theplatonicsolid.com www .thearchimedeandual. com www.plato-triangle.com

Table of Contents, Short Form

I. The Platonic Solid

A. Pythagoras, Plato and the Greeks

Simple Pythagorean Number and Sacred Geometry, with illustrations fun
Profound Pythagorean Number with a History of Pythagoras, with illustrations serious
Theon of Smyrna, with illustrations good for students of all ages, Greek number systems
Madam Blavatsky on Pythagorean Number, with illustrations serious
Plato, A Brief Description of Each of His Works dry and informative
Plato's Meno, Knowledge is Recollection, with illustrations can you double the area of a square?
The Platonic Solids, with illustrations fun

Cube Tetrahedron Octahedron Icosahedron Dodecahedron

Plato's Timaeus and Critias
Madam Blavatsky on Plato and the Timaeus dry and serious
Timaeus, the text only difficult readiing
Timaeus, the Introduction with Socrates and Critias on Atlantis, with illustrations and commentary
Timaeus, on the Soul, with illustrations and commentary
Timaeus, the Same and the Different, with illustrations and commentary
Timaeus, the Body and the Four Elements, with illustrations and commentary
Critias on Atlantis, follows the Timaeus, with illustrations and commentary

I. The Platonic Solid

B. Eastern Religion

Madam Blavatsky on the Surya Siddhanta dry and serious
Surya Siddhanta, Chapter I, the Motions of the Planets, just the text, no calculations difficult
Surya Siddhanta, Chapter I, the Motions of the Planets, with Comments and Calculations important
Shirdi Sai, the Peace Maker stories
Sai Baba teachings
Photo of Sai Baba
Hindi Vocabulary used in the Sai Baba Translations
Chao Pi Ch'en and the Taoist Numbers short and illustrated

I. The Platonic Solid

C. The Macro, Man, and the Micro

Astronomy

Triangulum

The Planets from the astrologers of India, Varaha Mahira and Mantraswara, descriptions of the characters of the planets, also Rahu, and Ketu.
Aura illustrations with the Hindu classifications.
Atom personal observation of the Anu within the atom, as seen in meditation, also Babbitt's drawing of the Anu.

I. The Platonic Solid

D. The Esoteric and the Bible

The Esoteric History of Humanity and the Universe
Genesis illustrated
Issa, called Jesus Christ and Yoshua with picture of Jesus as Shiva

II. Current Events

A. Currents Events From Observation During Meditation of the Future Formative

The Use of Maps as an aid to clairvoyance
Personal Observations and Experiences Relevant to Today's Earth Changes
Historical Context for the setting of the times to the Day of Brahma
Nick Begich and Others on HAARP excellent material

II. Current Events

B. Presentation of Several Future Accounts

Sean David Morton
Sean David Morton about a gifted meditation student from the Tibetan Black Hat School of Buddhism.
The Ordeal, 1918 - 2139 Sean's discussion of the Great Pyramid and the Egyptian dates as we approach 2012 and beyond.