Ahamkara Dictionary

Ahamkara (Sanskrit) (from aham ego, I + kara maker, doer from the verbal root kri to do)

I-maker; conception of egoity or I-am-I-ness. In its lower aspect, the egoistical and mayavi principle, born of avidya (ignorance), which produces the notion of the personal ego as being different from the universal self. In Sankhya philosophy ahamkara is the third emanation: from prakriti (primal nature or substance) issues mahat (the great), standing for universal mind, which in turn produces ahamkara, selfhood, individuality; from ahamkara come forth the five tanmatras, the subtle forms of the elements or principles and "the two series of sense organs" (Samkhya-Sutra 1:61).

In the Bhagavad-Gita (7:4), prakriti manifests in eight portions -- "earth, water, fire, air, ether (space: kham-akasa), mind (manas), understanding (buddhi) and egoity, self-sense (ahamkara)

" -- all of which relate to the object side, which gives an erroneous sense of identity or egoity.

As universal self-consciousness, ahamkara has "a triple aspect, as also Manas. For this conception of 'I,' or one's Ego, is either sattwa, 'pure quietude,' or appears as rajas, 'active,' or remains tamas, 'stagnant,' in darkness. It belongs to Heaven and Earth, and assumes the properties of either" (SD 1:335n).

(See also: Ahamkara , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Ahamkara:

Ahamkara: Ego, ego(ism). (SSS-III)

(See also: Ahamkara , Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Ahamkara:

Ego or "I-consciousness"; one of the functions of the inner organ. (See Antahkarana.)

(See also: Ahamkara , Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V X Y Z

Ahamkara:

Ahamkara: egoism or self-conceit; the  self-arrogating principle 'I', 'I am'-ness; self-consciousness.

(See also: Ahamkara , Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

 Ahamkara:

tendency to identify oneself with external phenomena, 'the I-maker'

(See also:  Ahamkara , Body Mind and Soul)

ahamkara:

ahamkara - tendency to identify oneself with external phenomena, 'the I-maker'

(See also: ahamkara , Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Ahamkara:

Ahamkara ("I-maker"): the individuation principle, or ego, which must be transcended; cf. asmita; see also buddhi, manas

(See also: Ahamkara ,Yoga, Yoga Dictionary)

Ahamkara:

Self-sense of ego.

(See also: Ahamkara , Kundalini, Kundalini Yoga, Kundalini Dictionary)

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V X Y Z

mahath-ahamkara:

mahath-ahamkara (-ahamka ara). The primordial great ego.

(See also: mahath-ahamkara , Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Sanskrit dictionary. From Advaita to Yoga.

Please note that all words in grey, like "enlightenment" or "kundalini" are hyperlinked to archives further explaining the term. At the corresponding archive you will also find articles related to the term.

A dictionary Of Commonly Used Sanskrit terms. From A to Crore.

Please note that all words in grey, like "yoga", "enlightenment" or "kundalini" are hyperlinked to archives further explaining the term. At the corresponding archive you will also find articles related to the term.

siddhi: (Sanskrit) "Power, accomplishment; perfection."

Extraordinary powers of the soul, developed through consistent meditation and deliberate, grueling, often uncomfortable tapas, or awakened naturally through spiritual maturity and yogic sadhana.

Through the repeated experience of Self Realization, siddhis naturally unfold according to the needs of the individual. Before Self Realization, the use or development of siddhis is among the greatest obstacles on the path because it cultivates ahamkara, I-ness, and militates against the attainment of prapatti, complete submission to the will of God, Gods and guru. Six siddhis in particular are considered primary obstacles to samadhi:

-       clairvoyance (adarsha siddhi or divya siddhi),

-       clairaudience (shravana siddhi or divyashravana),

-       divination (pratibha siddhi),

-       super-feeling (vedana siddhi) and

-       super-taste (asvadana siddhi),

-       supersmell (varta siddhi).

The eight classical siddhis are:

1)    anima: to be as small as an atom;

2)    mahima: to become infinitely large;

3)    laghima: super-lightness, levitation;

4)    prapti: pervasiveness, extension, to be anywhere at will;

5)    prakamya: fulfillment of desires;

6)    vashitva: control of natural forces;

7)    ishititva: supremacy over nature;

8)    kama-avasayitva: complete satisfaction.

The supreme siddhi (parasiddhi) is realization of the Self, Parasiva.

See: ahamkara, prapatti, siddha yoga, psychic ability.

(See also: Siddhi , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

individuality: Quality that makes one person or soul other than, or different from, another.

See: ahamkara, ego, anava, soul.

(See also: Individuality , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Kundalini Dictionary

Dictionary over terms related to kundalini and kundalini awakening. Please note that words in grey like " Kundalini " are links to archives with related articles.

tattva: (Sanskrit) "That-ness" or "essential nature." Tattvas are the primary principles, elements, states or categories of existence, the building blocks of the universe. Lord Siva constantly creates, sustains the form of and absorbs back into Himself His creations. Rishis describe this emanational process as the unfoldment of tattvas, stages or evolutes of manifestation, descending from subtle to gross. At mahapralaya, cosmic dissolution, they enfold into their respective sources, with only the first two tattvas surviving the great dissolution.

The first and subtlest form - the pure consciousness and source of all other evolutes of manifestation - is called Siva tattva, or Parashakti-nada. But beyond Siva tattva lies Parasiva - the utterly transcendent, Absolute Reality, called attava. That is Siva's first perfection.

The Sankhya system discusses 25 tattvas. Saivism recognizes these same 25 plus 11 beyond them, making 36 tattvas in all. These are divided into three groups:

1)    First are the five shuddha tattvas (shuddha = pure). These constitute the realm of shuddha maya.

2)    Next are the seven shuddha-ashuddha tattvas(shuddha-ashuddha = pure-impure). These constitute the realm of shuddhashuddha maya.

3)    3The third group comprises the 24 ashuddha tattvas (ashuddha = impure). These constitute the realm of ashuddha maya.

See: atattva, antahkarana, guna, kosha,

(See also: Tattva , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

ahamkara: (Sanskrit) "I-maker." Personal ego. The mental faculty of individuation; sense of duality and separateness from others. Sense of I-ness, "me" and "mine." Ahamkara is characterized by the sense of I-ness (abhimana), sense of mine-ness, identifying with the body (madiyam), planning for one's own happiness (mamasukha), brooding over sorrow (mamaduhkha), and possessiveness (mama idam). See: anava, ego, mind (individual mind).

(See also: Ahamkara , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Egoity I-am-I-ness, ahamkara; human egoity is dual, but egoity really should mean individuality, not personality.

The characteristic or swabhava of individuality is egoity or the essential root of I-am-I-ness, while the characteristic or swabhava of the personality is egoism, the faint shadow of egoity drunken with the sense of its own exclusive importance in the world.

Further, both egoity and egoism are sharply distinguished from essential selfhood; paradoxically, the stronger the idea of essential selfhood in the human being, the less is there of egoity, and the least there is of egoism, for even egoity is a reflection, albeit high, of spiritual selfhood, which recognizes its oneness with the All.

Thus ego is defined as I-am-I, consciousness recognizing its own mayavi existence as a separate entity, hence often called reflected consciousness. Essential selfhood is the characteristic of atman in the human constitution; egoity arises in the conjunction of atma-buddhi with manas; whereas personality or egoism is the faint reflection of the latter working in and through the lower manas, kama, and prana.

Egregores Coined by Eliphas Levi, who explains it as "the chiefs of the souls who are the spirits of energy and action" (SD 1:259). They are beings "whose bodies and essence is a tissue of the so-called astral light. They are the shadows of the higher Planetary Spirits whose bodies are of the essence of the higher divine light" (TG 111). Blavatsky comments that they are "the 'giants' of Genesis who loved the daughters of men: an allusion to the first prehuman (so to say) races of men evoluted, not born -- Alpha and the Omega of Humanity in this our 'Round' " (BCW 6:176). (BCW refers to eggregores; does it = egregores?)

(See also: Egoity , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

ashuddha tattvas: Odic, or magnetic, energy. These 24 categories make up the "world" of ashuddha (impure) maya. This is the realm of the astral and physical planes, in which souls function through the manomaya, pranamaya and

annamaya koshas, depending on their level of embodiment.

1.    prakriti tattva: primal nature, the gross energy of which all lower tattvas are formed. Prakriti, also called pradhana, is expressed as three gunas (qualities) - sattva, rajas and tamas. These manifest as light, activity and inertia, respectively; and on the subtle level as pleasure, sorrow and delusion. These gunas dominate the soul's powers of knowledge, action and desire (jnana, kriya and ic�ha), and form the guna body, manomaya kosha. - antahkarana: the mental faculty.

2.     buddhi tattva: judgment, intellect, the faculty of discrimination.

3.     ahamkara tattva: egoism, sense of I-ness in the external form. It is the fundamental principle of individuality.

4.     manas tattva: the instinctive mind, the receiving and directing link between the outer senses and the inner faculties. - jnanendriya: the five cognitive senses, of the nature of sattva guna. Each has a subtle and physical aspect.

5.     shrotra tattva: hearing (ears).

6.     tvak tattva: touching (skin).

7.     chakshu tattva: seeing (eyes).

8.     rasana tattva: tasting (tongue).

9.     ghrana tattva: smelling (nose). - karmendriya: the five organs of action, of the nature of rajaguna. Each has a subtle and physical aspect.

10.  vak tattva: speech (voice).

11.  pani tattva: grasping (hands).

12.  pada tattva: walking (feet).

13.  payu tattva: excretion (anus).

14.  upastha tattva: procreation (genitals). - tanmatra: the five subtle elements, of the nature of tamaguna.

15.  shabda tattva: sound.

16.  sparsha tattva: feel.

17.  rupa tattva: form.

18.  rasa tattva: taste.

19.  gandha tattva: odor. These are the subtle characteristics of the five gross elements, akasha, vayu, tejas, apas and prithivi, respectively. - panchabhuta: the five gross elements.

20.  akasha tattva: ether or space.

21.  vayu tattva: air.

22.  tejas tattva: fire.

23.  apas tattva (or jala): water.

24.  prithivi tattva: earth.

See:tattvas, tattva, atattva, antahkarana, guna, kosha, Siva

(See also: Ashuddha tattvas , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Ayurveda is the oldest surviving complete medical system in the world. Derived from its ancient Sanskrit roots - ‘ayus' (life) and ‘ved' (knowledge) – and offering a rich, comprehensive outlook to a healthy life, its origins go back nearly 5000 years. To when it was expounded and practiced by the same spiritual rishis, who laid the foundations of the Vedic civilisation in India, by organising the fundamentals of life into proper systems.

The main source of knowledge in this field therefore remain the Vedas, the divine books of knowledge they propounded, and more specifically the fourth of the series, namely Atharvaveda that dates back to around 1000 BC. Of the few other treatises on Ayurveda that have survived from around the same time, the most famous are Charaka Samhita and the Sushruta Samhita which concentrate on internal medicine and surgery respectively. The Astanga Hridayam is a more concise compilation of earlier texts that was created about a thousand years ago. These between them forming a greater part of the knowledge base on Ayurveda as it is practiced today.

The art of Ayurveda had spread around in the 6th century BC to Tibet, China, Mongolia, Korea and Sri Lanka, carried over by the Buddhist monks travelling to those lands. Although not much of it survives in original form, its effects can be seen in the various new age concepts that have originated from there.

No philosophy has had greater influence on Ayurveda than Sankhaya’s philosophy of creation and manifestation. Which professes that behind all creation there is a state of pure existence or awareness, which is beyond time and space, has no beginning or end, and no qualities. Within pure existence, there arises a desire to experience itself, which results in disequilibrium and causes the manifestation of the primordial physical energy. And the two unite to make the "dance of creation" come alive.

Imponderable, indescribable and extremely subtle, this primordial energy – which and all that flows from it existing only in pure existence – is the creative force of all action, a source of form that has qualities. Matter and energy are so closely related that when energy takes form, we tend to think of it in terms of matter only. And much modified, it ultimately leads to the manifestation of our familiar mental and physical worlds.

It also gives rise to cosmic consciousness, which is the universal order that prevades all life. Individual intelligence, as distinct from the everyday intellectual mind, is derived from and is part of this consciousness. It is the inner wisdom, the part of individuality that remains unswayed by the demands of daily life, or by Ahamkara, the sense of `I-ness’.

A Sanskrit word with no exact translation, Ahamkara, is a concept not quite understood by everyone as it is often misleadingly equated to `ego’. Embracing much more than just that, it is in essence that part of ‘me’ which knows which parts of the universal creation are ‘me’. Since ‘I’ am not separate from the universal consciousness, but ‘I’ has an identity that differentiates and defines the boundaries of `me’. All creations therefore have Ahamkara, not just human beings.

There arises from Ahamkara a two-fold creation. The first is Satwa, the subjective world, which is able to perceive and manipulate matter. It comprises the subtle body (the mind), the capacity of the five sense organs to hear, feel, see, taste and smell, and for the five organs of action to speak, grasp, move, procreate and excrete. The mind and the subtle organs providing the bridge between the body, the Ahamkara and the inner wisdom, which three together is considered the essential nature of humans.

The second is Tamas, the objective world of the five elements of sound, touch, vision, taste and smell – the five subtle elements that give rise to the dense elements of ether or space, air, fire, water and the earth – from which all matter of the physical world is derived. And it is Rajas, the force or the energy of movement, which brings together parts of these two worlds.

It is worth noting that even at the stage of the dense elements the philosophy of creation –which according to Sankaya is now and in the present, without any past and any future – is still dealing with aspects of existence beyond our simple physical realms. The point of contention being that we are the first and foremost spirit experiencing existence. To use Ayurveda in daily life, one has neither to accept nor even understand this philosophy. But it does provide a deeper insight into how Ayurveda works towards betterment of your health.

Ayurveda therefore is not simply a health care system but a form of lifestyle adopted to maintain perfect balance and harmony within the human existence, from the most abstract transcendental values to the most concrete physiological expressions. Based on the premise that life represents an intelligent co-ordination of the Atma (Soul), Mana (Mind), Indriya (Senses) and Sharira (Body). That revolves around the five dense elements that go into the making of the constitution of each individual, called Prakriti. Which in turn is determined by the vital balance of the three physical energies - Vata, Pitta, Kapha and the three mental energies - Satwa, Rajas,

Ayurveda thus offers a unique blend of science and philosophy that balances the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual components necessary for holistic health.

(See also: Ayurveda , Ayurveda, Ayurvedic Dictionary, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

individual mind: At the microcosmic level of individual souls, mind is consciousness and its faculties of memory, desire, thought and cognition. Individual mind is chitta (mind, consciousness) and its three-fold expression is called antahkarana, "inner faculty" composed of:

4)    buddhi ("intellect, reason, logic," higher mind);

5)    ahamkara ("I-maker," egoity);

6)    manas ("lower mind," instinctive-intellectual mind, the seat of desire).

From the perspective of the 36 tattvas (categories of existence), each of these is a tattva which evolves out of the one before it. Thus, from buddhi comes ahamkara and then manas. Manas, buddhi and ahamkara are faculties of the manomaya kosha (astral or instinctive-intellectual sheath). Anukarana chitta, subsuperconsciousness, the knowing mind, is the mind-state of the vijnanamaya kosha (mental or intuitive-cognitive sheath). The aspect of mind corresponding directly to the anandamaya kosha (causal body) is karana chitta, superconsciousness.

See: mind, ahamkara, antahkarana, buddhi, chitta, manas, universal mind, consciousness.

(See also: Individual mind , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)