Dictionary

Āśraya (Sanskrit: आश्रय) variously means – base, source, assistance, shelter, protection, refuge, dependence, having recourse to or depending on In terms of Hindu philosophy, the living entity or Jiva is āśraya, and Brahman or the Supreme Being, the Godhead, is viśaya, the supreme objective, the goal of life Bhagavata Purana But, this word - āśraya conveying the primary meaning – ‘refuge’, immediately relates with the deity which is worshipped rather than with the abstract Brahman, the substratum of all that exists

Achourya (Sanskrit: अचौर्यः, IAST: Acauryaḥ ) or Asteya (Sanskrit: अस्तेय; IAST: asteya) is the Sanskrit term for “non-stealing” It is a virtue in Hinduism The practice of asteya demands that one must not steal, nor have the intent to steal another’s property through action, speech and thoughts Asteya is considered one of five major vows of Hinduism and Jainism It is also considered one of ten forms of temperance (virtuous self-restraint) in Indian philosophy

Āstika and nāstika are concepts that have been used to classify Indian philosophies by modern scholars, as well as some Hindu, Buddhist and Jain texts The various definitions for āstika and nāstika philosophies have been disputed since ancient times, and there is no consensus In current Indian languages like Telugu, Hindi and Bengali, āstika and its derivatives usually mean ’theist’, and nāstika and its derivatives denote an ‘atheist’; however, the two terms in ancient- and medieval-era Sanskrit literature do not refer to ’theism’ or ‘atheism’...

The astral body is a subtle body posited by many philosophers, intermediate between the intelligent soul and the mental body, composed of a subtle material In many recensions the concept ultimately derives from the philosophy of Plato though the same or similar ideas have existed all over the world well before Plato’s time: it is related to an astral plane, which consists of the planetary heavens of astrology The term was adopted by nineteenth-century Theosophists and neo-Rosicrucians...

The Atharva Veda (Sanskrit: अथर्ववेदः, Atharvavedaḥ from atharvāṇas and veda, meaning “knowledge”) is the “knowledge storehouse of atharvāṇas, the procedures for everyday life” The text is the fourth Veda, but has been a late addition to the Vedic scriptures of Hinduism The language of the Atharvaveda is different from Vedic Sanskrit, preserving pre-Vedic Indo-European archaisms It is a collection of 730 hymns with about 6,000 mantras, divided into 20 books...

Avadhūta (IAST avadhūta, written as अवधूत) is a Sanskrit term from the root ’to shake’ that, among its many uses, in some Indian religions indicates a type of mystic or saint who is beyond egoic-consciousness, duality and common worldly concerns and acts without consideration for standard social etiquette Avadhūta is a Jivanmukta who gives his insight to others and teaches them about his realisation of the true nature of the ultimate reality (Brahman) and self (Ātman) and takes the role of a guru to show the path of moksha to others...

Avarana(आवरण) is a Sanskrit term that translates as ‘covering’ or ‘obstruction’ It is considered to be one of the three defects of the mind that hinder spiritual progression Avarana is a veil of ignorance that dulls the mind and prevents people from seeing their true/higher self Without lifting the veil of Avarana, it is not possible to know Atman or Brahman Avarana is identified as one of the attributes of Maya in Advaita Vedanta...

Avastha (अवस्था) in Sanskrit means status, state or condition Hindu astrology has evolved methods for ascertaining the avasthas (states) gained by planets at any given time Parashara in his Bṛhat Parāśara Horāśāstra refers to six kinds of avasthas

Avatar (Sanskrit: अवतार, avatāra; pronounced [ɐʋɐtaːrɐ]), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means “descent” It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a deity on Earth The relative verb to “alight, to make one’s appearance” is sometimes used to refer to any guru or revered human being The word avatara does not appear in the Vedic literature; however, it appears in developed forms in post-Vedic literature, and as a noun particularly in the Puranic literature after the 6th century CE...

Babaji is an Indian honorific that means “Father”, usually with great respect or to a Priest It may also refer to: Babaji, name is used for Sardar Gurinder Singh Dhillon Ji (born 1 August 1954), spiritual teacher Babaji, affectionate name for Shivarudra Balayogi (born 1954), yogi and self realized master Babaji, a name for Baba Virsa Singh Ji, founder of the Gobind Sadan Institute Babaji Maharaji or Hariakhan Baba (active 1861–1924), a yogi who taught throughout northern India near the Himalayas Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji (1838–1915), a well-known acharya from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism Haidakhan Babaji, a teacher who appeared in northern India and taught publicly from 1970–1984 Mahavatar Babaji, referred to by Paramahansa Yogananda in his best-selling Autobiography of a Yogi

Baglamukhi or Bagalā (Sanskrit: बगलामुखी) is one of the mahavidyas (great wisdom/science), a group of ten Tantrik deities in Hinduism Devi Bagalamukhi smashes the devotee’s misconceptions and delusions (or the devotee’s enemies) with her cudgel The word “Bagala” is derived from the word “Valga” (meaning – bridle or to rein in) which, became “Vagla” and then “Bagla” The Devi has 108 different names (some others also call her by 1108 names)...

Balarama (Sanskrit: बलराम, IAST: Balarāma) is a Hindu god and the elder brother of Krishna He is particularly significant in the Jagannath tradition, as one of the triad deities He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Baladeva, Balabhadra and Sankarshana The first two epithets refer to his strength, and the next two associate him with Hala (Langala, “plough”) from his strong associations with farming and farmers, as the deity who used farm equipment as weapons when needed...

Bhaga is the Vedic god of fortune, as well as a term for “lord, patron” and “wealth, prosperity” Bhaga is an Āditya, a group of societal deities who are the sons of Aditi Bhaga’s responsibility was to make sure that people received a share of the goods in life He is associated with his brother, Aryaman, regarding the expectation of a successful marriage The cognate term in Avestan and Old Persian is baga, of uncertain meaning but used in a sense in which “lord, patron, sharer/distributor of good fortune” might also apply...

The Shrimad Bhagavad Gita (; Sanskrit: श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, romanized: śrīmadbhagavadgītā, lit ‘The Song by God’;), often referred to as the Gita (IAST: gītā), is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic Mahabharata (chapters 23–40 of book 6 of the Mahabharata called the Bhishma Parva), dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE and is typical of the Hindu synthesis It is considered to be one of the holy scriptures for Hinduism...

Bhagavān (Sanskrit: भगवान्, Bhagavān; Pali: Bhagavā), also spelt as Bhagwan, (sometimes translated in English as “Lord”) is an epithet within Indian religions used to denote figures of religious worship In Hinduism it is used to signify a deity or Avatar , particularly for Krishna as an incarnation of Vishnu in Vaishnavism and for Shiva in Shaivism in India In Jainism the term refers to the Tirthankaras, particularly Mahavira and in Buddhism to the Buddha...