God Consciousness Dictionary

Goddess: Female representation or manifestation of Divinity; Shakti or Devi.

Goddess can refer to a female perception or depiction of a causal-plane being (Mahadeva) in its natural state, which is genderless, or it can refer to an astral-plane being residing in a female astral body.

To show the Divine's transcendence of sexuality, sometimes God is shown as having qualities of both sexes, e.g., Ardhanarishvara, "Half-woman God;" or Lord Nataraja, who wears a feminine earring in one ear and a masculine one in the other.

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

A dictionary Of Siddha Yoga Terminology. From Abhanga to Yogini.

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.

Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God In the New Testament, used by John the Baptist, Jesus, and St. Paul; it indicates a state of relative spiritual completion and attainment, not merely the afterdeath state of the "righteous" or "saved," as seen in the statement, "the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21). Blavatsky interprets the answer in the Gospel of the Egyptians as to when the kingdom of heaven will come -- "When the Two has been made One, and the Outward has become as the Inward, and the Male with the Female neither Male nor Female" -- as signifying among other things, 1) the union of lower manas with the higher manas, the self-conscious raising of the personality to the individuality; and 2) the return of humankind to the androgynous state in future root-races.

"Thus this Kingdom may be attained by individuals now, and by mankind in Races to come" (BCW 13:48-9; 14:55; ET).

(See also: Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

God

1.    (Judeo-Christianity) Creator and sustainer of the universe.

2.    (Theosophy) Transcendent and immanent being who guides and controls the course of planetary evolution.

3.    Sum total of all that is.

4.    (Islam) Lord of the universe who cannot be represented by any form.

5.    (Hinduism) The One who plays the game of life by becoming the Many, losing itself in the creation and finding its way back to unity; supreme being, personal friend, teacher, and lover who knows the heart of all beings.

6.    (mysticism) Indwelling spirit within all beings; one's highest self realized through contemplation or service; eternal, infinite, all-wise, all-knowing, all-loving, ever-free radiant presence.

7.    (humanism) Impersonal spirit of selfless love

(See also: God , Body Mind and Soul)

evil: That which is bad, morally wrong, causing harm, pain, misery. In Western religions, evil is often thought of as a moral antagonism to God. This force is the source of sin and is attached to the soul from its inception.

Whereas, for Hindus, evil is not a conscious, dark force, such as Satan. It is situational rather than ontological, meaning it has its basis in relative conditions, not in ultimate reality. Evil (badness, corruption) springs from ignorance (avidya) and immaturity. Nor is one fighting with God when he is evil, and God is not standing in judgment. Within each soul, and not external to it, resides the principle of judgment of instinctive-intellectual actions. God, who is ever compassionate, blesses even the worst sinner, the most depraved asura, knowing that individual will one day emerge from lower consciousness into the light of love and understanding.

Hindus hold that evil, known in Sanskrit as papa, papman or dushta, is the result of unvirtuous acts (papa or adharma) caused by the instinctive-intellectual mind dominating and obscuring deeper, spiritual intelligence. (Note: both papa and papman are used as nouns and adjectives.) The evil-doer is viewed as a young soul, ignorant of the value of right thought, speech and action, unable to live in the world without becoming entangled in maya. -

intrinsic evil: Inherent, inborn badness. Some philosophies hold that man and the world are by nature imperfect, corrupt or evil. Hinduism holds, on the contrary, that there is no intrinsic evil, and the real nature of man is his divine, soul nature, which is goodness.

See: hell, karma, papa, Satan, sin.

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

Supreme God: Highest God, the source or creator of all other Gods, beings and all manifestation.

(See also: Supreme God , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Sun God, Sun Gods Sometimes applied to the cosmic logoi, which collectively are not only symbolized, but actually are represented by and through the septenary sun. Deities of masculine character are often called sun gods. Like the sun, a sun god may be on various planes, from that of a Logos to that of the absolute in various subordinate hierarchies.

Sun gods in mythology usually slay dragons, as Apollo slays Python, and often have serpents for their emblems, the serpent being dual in aspect -- high and low, inner and outer, active and passive, positive and negative, spiritual and material.

As in Egyptian mythology, Osiris the sun god manifests as Horus, his own son, who is also a sun god, in similar fashion sun gods are manifested in man and on the lower planes of nature; similar to the Egyptian Osiris we have Adonis, Bacchus, Krishna, Christ, etc., as the sun god or spiritual monad in man; and cosmically we find sun gods on various planes.

(See also: Sun God, Sun Gods , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

A nonordinary state of consciousness that can range from states of light meditation and hypnosis to states of trance.

(See also: altered state of consciousness , Magic, Shamanism, Pagan Dictionary)

A Christian theological definition of Decrees of God according to CARM - The Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry:

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Decrees of God

See also: Decrees of God , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

Neptune (Poseidon)

The Roman god Neptune and the Greek god Poseidon is the god of the waters of the earth. He is also known as the god of the earthquakes, as the movements of the oceans create disturbances on the earth. Poseidon is not a kind god, but a terrifying one that creates stormy seas and puts fears into mortals; his offspring are monsters. Poseidon is the son of Crones and the brother of Zeus and Pluto. He has a strong sexual appetite and has affairs with countless goddesses and mortal woman. He represents the primeval earth before civilization and spiritualization. Poseidon may resist the evolution of man (consciousness) and possibly this is why he appears so angry and inaccessible. He symbolizes a powerful part of the unconscious.

In astrology, the planet Neptune represents the unconscious forces and powers of the human psyche. It is believed to influence paranormal faculties, psychic abilities, irrational fears and insanity. The unconscious shows itself in dreams. However, we do not understand the language of dreams. It takes a very long time to develop the ability to interpret dreams with accuracy and satisfaction. Thus, the forces that come up from the unconscious are often frightening and disturbing. The unconscious holds different information than the conscious mind: It may be the dwelling place of intuition and the sixth sense. Dreaming of Neptune is symbolic of the unconscious, which holds positive and negative attributes, just like the conscious mind does. The information that is coming up in your dream may be interpreted based on what is occurring in daily life. Are you experiencing moments of "madness" or are you developing intuitive abilities and using them to guide your decisions?

Source: Dream Lover Incorporated, http://www.dreamloverinc.com

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Neptune (Poseidon) , Meaning of Dreams about Neptune (Poseidon) , Dream Interpretation Neptune (Poseidon) )

tithing: The spiritual discipline, often a vrata, of giving one tenth of one's gainful and gifted income to a religious organization of one's choice, thus sustaining spiritual education and upliftment on earth. The Sanskrit equivalent is dashamamsha, called makimai in the Tamil tradition.

Tithing is given not as an offering, but as "God's money." In olden days it was a portion of one's crops, such as one coconut out of ten. Tithing immediately as soon as income is received sanctifies the remaining portion and reaps the greatest punya. It is an acknowledgement by faithful Hindus of God's providential care, bringing a greater awareness of God's power in the world. Because tithers are thus uplifted to a purer, spiritual consciousness, abundance naturally floods into their lives. Additional offerings should be given after this minimal obligation is paid.

See: tithing, dashamamsha.

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

Horned God

Pagan or Wiccan father God. Usually wears goat or deer's horns, but in ancient times, wore bull's horns.

(See also: Horned God , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

Hindu: (Sanskrit) A follower of, or relating to, Hinduism.

Generally, one is understood to be a Hindu by being born into a Hindu family and practicing the faith, or by declaring oneself a Hindu. Acceptance into the fold is recognized through the name-giving sacrament, a temple ceremony called namakarana samskara, given to born Hindus shortly after birth, and to self-declared Hindus who have proven their sincerity and been accepted by a Hindu community. Full conversion is completed through disavowal of previous religious affiliations and legal change of name.

While traditions vary greatly, all Hindus rely on the Vedas as scriptural authority and generally attest to the following nine principles:

1)    There exists a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, both creator and unmanifest Reality.

2)    The universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution.

3)    All souls are evolving toward God and will ultimately find moksha: spiritual knowledge and liberation from the cycle of rebirth. Not a single soul will be eternally deprived of this destiny.

4)    Karma is the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds.

5)    The soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved.

6)    Divine beings exist in unseen worlds, and temple worship, rituals, sacraments, as well as personal devotionals, create a communion with these devas and Gods.

7)    A spiritually awakened master or satguru is essential to know the transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good conduct, purification, self-inquiry and meditation.

8)    All life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore one should practice ahimsa, nonviolence.

9)    No particular religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others. Rather, all genuine religious paths are facets of God's pure love and light, deserving tolerance and understanding.

See: Hinduism.

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

A Christian theological definition of The Word of God according to CARM - The Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry:

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The Word of God:

See also: The Word of God , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

Personal God:

See: Ishta Devata, Parameshvara.

(See also: Personal God , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Light

Whether you are dreaming or awake, light is a very positive symbol. It represents enlightenment, lifting of shadow, the acquisition of understanding and knowledge, and a positive force. Depending on the details of the dream, you may give the light spiritual or physical meaning. For some, the light may represent a higher force or power, God's presence, or rays of His love and peace. Others may find this dream reassuring as it may represent a well-lit journey through life, or simply a solution to a current problem. Light always refers to consciousness.

Source: Dream Lover Incorporated, http://www.dreamloverinc.com

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Light , Meaning of Dreams about Light , Dream Interpretation Light )

Nile-God (Egypt, Egyptian). Represented by a wooden image of the river god receiving honours in gratitude for the bounties its waters afford the country.

There was a "celestial" Nile, called in the Ritual Nen-naou or "primordial waters"; and a terrestrial Nile, worshipped at Nilopolis and Hapimoo. The latter was represented as an androgynous being with a beard and breasts, and a fat blue face ; green limbs and reddish body. At the approach of the yearly inundation, the image was carried from one place to another in solemn procession.

(See also: Nile-God , Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,)

HORNED GOD - consort of the Goddess, the lord of animals and forests, associated with hunting and the forces of death. (NAD)

(See also: HORNED GOD , Wiccan Pagan, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

Samadhi (Sanskrit) [from sam with, together + a towards + the verbal root dha to place, bring]

To direct towards; to combine the mental faculties towards an object. Self-consciousness union with the spiritual monad by intense and profound spiritual contemplation or meditation.

It implies "the complete abstraction of the percipient consciousness from all worldly, or exterior, or even mental concerns or attributes, and its . . . becoming the pure unadulterate, undilute super-consciousness of the god within. . . . Samadhi is the eighth or final stage of genuine occult Yoga, and can be attained at any time by the initiate without conscious recourse to the other phases or practices of Yoga enumerated in Oriental works, and which other and inferior practices are often misleading, in some cases distinctly injurious, and at the best mere props or aids in the attaining of complete mental abstraction from worldly concerns" (OG 150-1). The seeker on attaining samadhi becomes practically omniscient for his solar universe because his consciousness is functioning in the cosmic spiritual and causal worlds.

Bodhi (enlightenment) is a particular state of samadhi, during which the subject reaches the culmination of spiritual knowledge. Samadhi is the highest state on earth that can be reached while in the body; its highest stage or degree is called turiya. To attain beyond this, the initiate must have become a nirmanakaya.

(See also: Samadhi , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

virginal: Characteristic of a virgin. Pure. - virginal God: Reference to Lord Karttikeya, the perpetual bachelor, descriptive of His inherent purity.

(See also: Virginal God , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

ANTI-CHRISTIAN STRATEGIES

"My earlier views of the unsoundness of the Christian scheme of salvation and the human origin of the scriptures have become clearer and stronger with advancing years," said Abraham Lincoln, a century and a half ago. "What are the fruits of Christianity? Bigotry, superstition and persecution," said President James Madison some two centuries ago. "For seventeen hundred years the Christian sect has done nothing but harm" said Voltaire 230 years ago. Quotations of this sort by the wisest of thinkers and leaders, extending as they do back through the millennia, should serve as a skull and crossbones over the door of the church.

Xtianity, obviously, is the worst of all worlds (with the possible exception of Islam). On the one hand, it exhorts its believers to live vicariously, to reach for nothing, inasmuch as Christ has done all the work of redemption for them. In this way it thoroughly discourages individualism, especially in its most creative aspects. On the other hand, it pledges salvation to the dregs of mankind - the lowest ranks of morality - to the mindless and the vicious. Thus it espouses egoism at the cheapest level.

Arrogant Xtians are fond of saying, "You can't have it both ways." By that they mean that you can't accept the interconnectedness of everything and at the same time believe in the separation of the individual. But Xtianity, founded as it is on the veneration of stupidity, has always confused paradox with inconsistency.

The wise man leans neither on belief nor on non-belief. The whole issue of God/Not-God is unnecessarily dichotomous, as is our analysis of morality/immorality. The Either-Or world is dangerous. Indeed, it is so dangerous that even to proceed in a line midway between this Scylla and Charybdis is to hem oneself in by unwanted limitations. "God" is a word that has yet to be defined and even the certainty of divine singularity vs. plurality is debatable. It is a common conceit that monotheism is a step is a step forward from polytheism and one which some serious metaphysicians are finally beginning to question. The initiate may declare that there is but one "God", but he means that in a quite different sense from the common notion of exclusivity.

Monotheism (see MONOLATRY) always leads to monolithism. We are one another only be differing from one another. It is uniqueness that makes us divine. It is quite possible to deny the existence of "God" without elevating man (in his present condition) to apotheosis. There is, for example, the teaching of Pantheism, in which all plants, animals and, in fact, matter itself, are all equally God. This is also one God.

Anti-christians are admittedly defensive about "Salvation through Christ". First of all, non-Christians insist, there can be no salvation without one's own immolation - not the crucifiction of some 2000 year old personage of legend. Secondly, Christ is a type of supraconsciousness already potential, but undeveloped, in all men and women. It must not be confused with the self-pitying figures depicted in stained glass windows. The Christ level of consciousness is, in fact, certainly not available to the average, plastic-coated, postmodern illiterate, whose vision scarcely extends beyond that of an insect and whose tenacity is no firmer than a worm's pull. Therefore, to make salvation available to all men on a believe-as-you-go basis is idiotic. And finally, the Galilean mode is only one of many modes of consciousness - most of which are a lot more interesting. (See 666.)

(See also: ANTI-CHRISTIAN STRATEGIES , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

Siva, Shiva (Sanskrit) The third god of the Hindu Trimurti (trinity): Brahma the evolver; Vishnu the preserver; and Siva the regenerator or destroyer.

Siva is one of the three loftiest divinities of our solar system, and in his character of destroyer stands higher than Vishnu for he is "the destroying deity, evolution and PROGRESS personified, who is the regenerator at the same time; who destroys things under one form but to recall them to life under another more perfect type" (SD 2:182). As the destroyer of outward forms he is called Vamadeva. Endowed with so many powers and attributes, Siva possesses a great number of names, and is represented under a corresponding variety of forms. He corresponds to the Palestinian Ba`al or Moloch, Saturn, the Phoenician El, the Egyptian Seth, and the Biblical Chiun of Amos, and Greek Typhon.

"In the Rig Veda the name Siva is unknown, but the god is called Rudra, which is a word used for Agni, the fire god . . ."; "In the Vedas he is the divine Ego aspiring to return to its pure, deific state, and at the same time that divine ego imprisoned in earthly form, whose fierce passions make of him the 'roarer,' the 'terrible' " (SD 2:613, 548).

Siva is often spoken of as the patron deity of esotericists, occultists, and ascetics; he is called the Mahayogin (the great ascetic), from whom the highest spiritual knowledge is acquired, and union with the great spirit of the universe is eventually gained. Here he is "the howling and terrific destroyer of human passions and physical senses, which are ever in the way of the development of the higher spiritual perceptions and the growth of the inner eternal man -- mystically . . . Siva-Rudra is the Destroyer, as Vishnu is the preserver; and both are the regenerators of spiritual as well as of physical nature. To live as a plant, the seed must die. To live as a conscious entity in the Eternity, the passions and senses of man must first die before his body does. 'To live is to die and to die is to live,' has been too little understood in the West. Siva, the destroyer, is the creator and the Saviour of Spiritual man, as he is the good gardener of nature. He weeds out the plants, human and cosmic, and kills the passions of the physical, to call to life the perceptions of the spiritual, man" (SD 1:459&n).

Though Siva is often called Maha-kala (great time) which, while being the great formative factor in manvantara is also the great dissolving power, to the Hindu mind destruction implies reproduction; so Siva is also called Sankara (the auspicious), for he is the reproductive power which is perpetually restoring that which has been dissolved, and hence is also called Mahadeva (the great god). Under this character of restorer he was often represented by the symbol of the linga or phallus: "the Lingham and Yoni of Siva-worship stand too high philosophically, its modern degeneration notwithstanding, to be called a simple phallic worship" (SD 2:588). It is under the form of the linga, either alone or combined with the yoni (female organ, the representative of his sakti or female energy), that Siva is so often worshiped today in India.

In the Linga-Purana, Siva is said to take repeated births, in one kalpa possessing a white complexion, in another that of a black color, in still another that of a red color, after which he becomes four youths of a yellow color. This allegory is an ethnological account of the different races of mankind and their varying types and colors (cf SD 1:324).

Siva is known under more than a thousand names or titles and is represented under many different forms in Hindu writings. As the god of generation and of justice, he is represented riding a white bull; his own color, as well as that of the bull, is generally white, referring probably to the unsullied purity of abstract justice. He is sometimes seen with two hands, sometimes with four, eight, or ten; and with five faces, representing among other things his power over the five elements.

He has three eyes, one placed in the centre of his forehead, and shaped as a vertical oval. These three eyes are said to denote his view of the three divisions of time: past, present, and future. He holds a trident in his hand to denote his three great attributes of emanator, destroyer, and regenerator, thus combining all the usual qualities or functions attributed to the Trimurti. In his character of time, he not only presides over its beginning and its extinction, but also over its present functioning as represented in astronomical and astrological calculations.

A crescent or half-moon on his forehead indicates time measured by the phases of the moon; a serpent forms one of his necklaces to denote the measure of time by cycles, and a second necklace of human skulls signifies the extinction and succession of the races of mankind. He is often pictures as entirely covered with serpents, which are at once emblems of spiritual immortality and his standing as the patron of the nagas or initiates. He is often mystically personated by Mount Meru, which esoterically is both the cosmic and terrestrial axis with their respective poles.

According to the belief of most Advaita-Vedantists, Sankaracharya, the great Indian philosopher and sage, is held to be an avatara of Siva.

See also Shiva, Siva

(See also: Siva, Shiva , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)