Glossary

DHÁRAŃÁ. Restriction of the flow of mind, conception; e.g., Tattva Dhárańá means restricting the flow of mind to, or conception of, the fundamental factors. DHARMA. Characteristic property; spirituality; the path of righteousness in social affairs. DHYÁNA. Meditation in which the psyche is directed towards Consciousness. DIDI. Literally, “elder sister”; may refer to an ÁCÁRYÁ of ANANDA MARGA. GURU MANTRA. “Important” mantra, learned as a lesson of Ananda Marga SÁDHANÁ. INDRIYA. One of the five sensory organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin) or five motor organs (hands, feet, vocal cord, genital organ and excretory organ). The eye indriya (for example) comprises the eye itself, the optical nerve, the fluid in the nerve, and the location in the brain at which the visual stimulus is transmitted to the ectoplasm, or mind-stuff. JIIVA. An individual being. JIIVÁTMÁ. See ÁTMÁ. JIṊÁNA. Knowledge; understanding. JIṊÁNII. A SÁDHAKA who follows the path of knowledge or discrimination. KARMA. Action. KARMII. A SÁDHAKA who follows the path of action or work. KIIRTANA. Collective singing of the name of the Lord, sometimes combined with a dance that expresses the spirit of surrender. MARGI. A member of Ananda Marga. MÁYÁ. Creative Principle, PRAKRTI in Her phase of creation. One aspect of Máyá is the power to cause the illusion that the finite created objects are the ultimate truth. MOKŚA. Spiritual emancipation, non-qualified liberation. MUKTI. Spiritual liberation. OṊM. The sound of the first vibration of creation; the biija mantra (acoustic root) of the expressed universe. Oṋḿkára literally means “the sound oṋm”. OTA YOGA. The association of PURUŚOTTAMA with each unit creation individually in PRATISAIṊCARA. PARAMA PURUŚA. Supreme Consciousness. PARAMÁTMÁ, PARAMÁTMAN. Supreme Consciousness in the role of witness of His own Macropsychic conation. Paramátman comprises: (1) PURUŚOTTAMA, the Macrocosmic Nucleus; (2) Puruśottama’s association with all creation in His extroversive movement (prota yoga); and (3) Puruśottama’s association with each unit creation individually (ota yoga) and (4) with all collectively (prota yoga) in His introversive movement. PRAKRTI, PARAMÁ PRAKRTI. Cosmic Operative Principle. PROTA YOGA. The association of PURUŚOTTAMA with all creation in His extroversive movement and with all the unit creations collectively in His introversive movement. PURUŚOTTAMA, PARAMASHIVA. The Nucleus Consciousness, the witness of saiṋcara (extroversion from the Nucleus) and pratisaiṋcara (introversion to the Nucleus). SÁDHAKA. Spiritual practitioner. SÁDHANÁ. Literally, “sustained effort”; spiritual practice; meditation. SAMÁDHI. “Absorption” of the unit mind into the Cosmic Mind (savikalpa samádhi) or into the ÁTMAN (nirvikalpa samádhi). SAḾSKÁRA. Mental reactive momentum, potential mental reaction. SANNYÁSII m. or SANNYÁSINII f. Literally, “one who has surrendered one’s everything to the Cosmic will” or “one who ensconces oneself in Sat, the unchangeable entity”; a renunciant. SHAKTI. PRAKRTI; energy; a deification of Prakrti. SHÁSTRA. Scripture. SHIVA. A great Tantric guru of 5000 BCE who guided society while His mind was absorbed in Consciousness; hence, Infinite Consciousness, PURUŚA. TANTRA. A spiritual tradition which originated in India in prehistoric times and was first systematized by SHIVA. It emphasizes the development of human vigour, both through meditation and through confrontation of difficult external situations, to overcome all fears and weaknesses. Also, a scripture expounding that tradition. VEDA. Literally, “knowledge”; hence, a composition imparting spiritual knowledge. Also, a religious or philosophical school which originated among the Aryans and was brought by them to India. It is based on the Vedas and emphasizes the use of ritual to gain the intervention of the gods. VIDYÁ. Centripetal, or introversial, force; force of attraction to the Nucleus Consciousness; aspect of the Cosmic Operative Principle which guides movements from the crude to the subtle. See also AVIDYÁ. VIVEKA. Conscience, power of discrimination between good and evil. YOGA. Spiritual practice leading to unification of the unit ÁTMAN with PARAMÁTMAN.