Subramuniyaswami: Current and 162nd satguru (1927-) of the Nandinatha Sampradaya's Kailasa Parampara. He was ordained Sivaya Subramuniyaswami by Sage Yogaswami on the full-moon day of May 12, 1949, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, at 6:21 pm. This was just days after he had attained nirvikalpa samadhi in the caves of Jalani. Yogaswami, then 77, ordained the 22-year old yogi with a tremendous slap on the back, saying, "This will be heard in America," and conferring upon him the mission to bring the fullness of Saivism to the West. Local devotees called the initiation a coronation.

That same year, while still in Sri Lanka, Subramuniyaswami founded the Saiva Siddhanta Yoga Order and Saiva Siddhanta Church at the Sri Subramuniya Ashrama in Alaveddy. Returning to America, he spent the next six years preparing for his teaching mission through intense sadhana and tapas. He began actively teaching in 1957 when he founded the Himalayan Academy. In 1970, he established his international headquarters and monastery complex, Kauai Aadheenam, on Hawaii's Garden Island of Kauai. Five years later, he designated a portion of the 51-acre holy site as the San Marga Sanctuary, future site of Iraivan Temple, carved of white granite stone in Bangalore, India. To spearhead a growing Hindu renaissance, he founded Hinduism Today in 1979, an international monthly, full-color magazine acclaimed the world over as the the greatest advent in Hindu publishing this century. In August of 1986, the World Religious Parliament in New Delhi honored Subramuniyaswami as one of five Hindu spiritual leaders outside of India who had most dynamically promoted Sanatana Dharma in the past 25 years. He was given the title Jagadacharya, "World Teacher." In 1995 the Parliament bestowed on him the title of Dharmachakra for his remarkable publications. In April of 1988, he was selected to represent Hinduism at the five-day Global Forum of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders for Human Survival, held in England at Oxford University, and again in Moscow from January 11 to 15, 1990; and in Brazil, June 5­7, 1992. At Chicago's historic centenary Parliament of the World's Religions in September, 1993, he was elected to the Presidents' Assembly, a core group of 25 men and women representing the world's faiths. In late 1996 Gurudeva transformed "Hinduism Today" to a magazine, a quantum leap that extended its global reach and impact in Hindu communities. In 1997 he responded to President Bill Clinton's call for religious opinions on the ethics of human cloning and spearheded the 125th anniversary and diaspora pilgrimage of Sri Lanka's Sage Yogaswami. In Kerala, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad honored him as "The Hindu Voice of the Century." Throughout that same year he was a key member of Vision Kauai, a small group of indigenous and political leaders meeting to fashion the island's future based on ethical values.

Over the years Subramuniyaswami has written hundreds of tracts and books, which have been distributed in the tens of thousands in many languages. Especially in the 1980s, he lectured worldwide and established the worship in numerous Hindu temples. Gurudeva teaches the traditional Saivite Hindu path to enlightenment, a path that leads the soul from simple service to worshipful devotion to God, from the disciplines of meditation and yoga to the direct knowing of Divinity within. His insights into the nature of consciousness provide a key for quieting the external mind and revealing to aspirants their deeper states of being, which are eternally perfect, full of light, love, serenity and wisdom. He urges all seekers to live a life of ahimsa, harmlessness towards nature, people and creatures, an ethic which includes vegetarianism. From his ashrama in Hawaii, Gurudeva continues to follow his satguru's instruction to bring Saivism to the Western world by teaching others to "know thy Self by thyself" and thus "see God Siva everywhere." Through the ordained swamis of the Saiva Siddhanta Yoga Order, he trains young men in the ancient path of brahmacharya, enlightenment and service to humanity. Over 30 full-time monks, along with extended family groups in eight countries, have joined to fulfill this parampara's mission to further monistic Saiva Siddhanta and Hindu solidarity.

The name Subramuniya is a Tamil spelling of the Sanskrit Shubhramunya (not to be confused with Subramanya). It is formed from shubhra meaning "light; intuition," and muni, "silent sage." Ya means "restraint; religious meditation." Thus, Subramuniya means a self-restrained soul who remains silent or, when he speaks, speaks out from intuition.

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

Aditi (Sanskrit) (from a not + diti bound from the verbal root da to bind)

Unbounded, free; as a noun, infinite and shoreless expanse. In the Vedas, Aditi is devamatri (mother of the gods) as from and in her cosmic matrix all the heavenly bodies were born. As the celestial virgin and mother of every existing form and being, the synthesis of all things, she is highest akasa. Aditi is identified in the Rig-Veda with Vach (mystic speech) and also with the mulaprakriti of the Vedanta. As the womb of space, she is a feminized form of Brahma. The line in the Rig-Veda: "Daksha sprang from Aditi and Aditi from Daksha" has reference to "the eternal cyclic re-birth of the same divine Essence" (SD 2:247n). In one of its most mystic aspects Aditi is divine wisdom.

Aditi has correspondences in many ancient religions: the highest Sephirah in the Zohar; the Gnostic Sophia-Achamoth; Rhea, mother of the Greek Olympians; Bythos or the great Deep; Amba; Surarani; Chaos; Waters of Space; Primordial Light; and the source of the Egyptian seven heavens. Sometimes she is linked with the Greek Gaia, goddess of earth, to denote dual nature or the mother of both the spiritual and physical: Aditi, cosmic expanse or space being the mother of all things; and Gaia, mother of earth and, on the larger scale, of all objective nature (cf SD 2:65, 269).

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

Corpse

• To dream of a corpse is fatal to happiness, as this dream indicates sorrowful tidings of the absent, and gloomy business prospects. The young will suffer many disappointments and pleasure will vanish.
• To see a corpse placed in its casket, denotes immediate troubles to the dreamer.
• To see a corpse in black, denotes the violent death of a friend or some desperate business entanglement.
• To see a battle-field strewn with corpses, indicates war and general dissatisfaction between countries and political factions.
• To see the corpse of an animal, denotes unhealthy situation, both as to business and health.
• To see the corpse of any one of your immediate family, indicates death to that person, or to some member of the family, or a serious rupture of domestic relations, also unusual business depression. For lovers it is a sure sign of failure to keep promises of a sacred nature.
• To put money on the eyes of a corpse in your dreams, denotes that you will see unscrupulous enemies robbing you while you are powerless to resent injury. If you only put it on one eye you will be able to recover lost property after an almost hopeless struggle. For a young woman this dream denotes distress and loss by unfortunately giving her confidence to designing persons.
• For a young woman to dream that the proprietor of the store in which she works is a corpse, and she sees while sitting up with him that his face is clean shaven, foretells that she will fall below the standard of perfection in which she was held by her lover. If she sees the head of the corpse falling from the body, she is warned of secret enemies who, in harming her, will also detract from the interest of her employer. Seeing the corpse in the store, foretells that loss and unpleasantness will offset all concerned. There are those who are not conscientiously doing the right thing. There will be a gloomy outlook for peace and prosperous work.

Source: 10 000 Dream Interpretations, by Gustavus Hindman Miller

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

Death, Dead People, Death and Dying, Dying

• To dream of seeing any of your people dead, warns you of coming dissolution or sorrow. Disappointments always follow dreams of this nature.
• To hear of any friend or relative being dead, you will soon have bad news from some of them.
• Dreams relating to death or dying, unless they are due to spiritual causes, are misleading and very confusing to the novice in dream lore when he attempts to interpret them. A man who thinks intensely fills his aura with thought or subjective images active with the passions that gave them birth; by thinking and acting on other lines, he may supplant these images with others possessed of a different form and nature. In his dreams he may see these images dying, dead or their burial, and mistake them for friends or enemies. In this way he may, while asleep, see himself or a relative die, when in reality he has been warned that some good thought or deed is to be supplanted by an evil one. To illustrate: If it is a dear friend or relative whom he sees in the agony of death, he is warned against immoral or other improper thought and action, but if it is an enemy or some repulsive object dismantled in death, he may overcome his evil ways and thus give himself or friends cause for joy. Often the end or beginning of suspense or trials are foretold by dreams of this nature. They also frequently occur when the dreamer is controlled by imaginary states of evil or good. A man in that state is not himself, but is what the dominating influences make him. He may be warned of approaching conditions or his extrication from the same. In our dreams we are closer to our real self than in waking life. The hideous or pleasing incidents seen and heard about us in our dreams are all of our own making, they reflect the true state of our soul and body, and we cannot flee from them unless we drive them out of our being by the use of good thoughts and deeds, by the power of the spirit within us.
• [53] See Meaning of Dreams about Corpse.

Source: 10 000 Dream Interpretations, by Gustavus Hindman Miller

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

KARMA -

1. the belief that one’s thoughts and deed can be counted against or for them to their spirtual growth by counted against or for them to their spirtual growth during several life times in Sanskrit, it means “action”. Follow the law of cause and effect (TRASB)

2. ‘action’, measure of attachment, one’s worldly circumstances, psychological development and level of consciousness, often distinguishes as good of bad Karma, though in Indian tradition, all Karma is to transcended: Imperfections that are washed or burned by yoga, meditation, service, cultivating the Dharma or other spirtual practice. That which is created so long as one doesn’t realize one’s original nature. (Bodhidharma) Consequences of a thought, word or deed; reaping what is sown. Sum of the consequences of one’s thoughts, words, or deeds in this and previous lifetimes. Chain of moral cause and effect. Force generated by consciousness or actions that conditions this and future lives. Fate, the natural and necessary happenings of one’s lifetime, preconditioned by one’s past lifetimes. moral debt, worked out and repaid usually gradually, for past actions. That which the individual has instituted, carried forward, endorsed, omitted to do, or has done right, through the ages until the present moment ’ mythical rock symbolizing peace and courage. (Vietnamese) (NAD)

(See also: KARMA , Wiccan Pagan, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)

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)

Dream Interpretation Arm, arms

If you see in your dream, that your arms are stronger than usual, it is a sign that there is a hard work ahead. If your arms or someone's arms are covered in hair: you are about to receive money. Breaking or injuring your arms symbolizes family fights and squabbles or careless actions. If one of your arms is missing: you are suffering from painful inhibitions. Your left arm is associated with your supportive and nurturing nature, right arm represents your outgoing nature.

Source: Dream-Land, http://www.dream-land.info

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

Avyakta (Sanskrit) (from a not + vyakta manifested from vy-anj to anoint, adorn, cause to appear, manifest)

Unmanifested; applied to Vishnu and Siva, and in the Bhagavad-Gita to Krishna. Hence Avyakta is the unmanifest or the undifferentiated, as opposed to vyakta, the manifest or differentiated. In the Sankhya philosophy, it is mulaprikriti (root- or primordial nature), the veil of parabrahman, or parabrahman manifested in mulaprakriti.

Mulaprakriti is the unmanifested side of differentiated nature, and hence avyakta; but the term is equally applicable to the consciousness side of the universe, during those immensely long time periods when cosmic consciousness is sunken in its own essence and not manifesting. Similarly, the higher or divine-spiritual parts of cosmic consciousness may be said to be avyakta even during periods of cosmic manifestation. To the Sankhyas, avyakta is the one cosmic principle which is the root of all essential selfhood and which during cosmic manvantara is in its lower parts differentiated in and through the innumerable hierarchical organisms. It therefore subsists in every kind of upadhi and is the real spiritual entity which a person has to reach in his progress towards spirit.

In the Vedantic system of Krishna, however, avyakta is also parabrahman, that which will not perish even at the time of cosmic pralaya, because parabrahman is the one essence, not only of the whole cosmos, but even of mulaprakriti itself, the foundation of the manifested cosmos. "In case you follow the Sankhyan doctrine, you have to rise from Upadhi to Upadhi in gradual succession, and when you try to rise from the last Upadhi to their Avyaktam, there is unfortunately no connection that is likely to enable your consciousness to bridge the interval. If the Sankhyan system of philosophy is the true one, your aim will be to trace Upadhi to its source, but not consciousness to its source.

The consciousness manifested in every Upadhi is traceable to the Logos and not to the Avyaktam of the Sankhyas. It is very much easier for a man to follow his own consciousness farther and farther into the depths of his inmost nature, and ultimately reach its source -- the Logos -- than to try to follow Upadhi to its source in this Mulaprakriti, this Avyaktam. Moreover, supposing you do succeed in reaching this Avyaktam, you can never fix your thoughts in it or preserve your individuality in it; for, it is incapable of retaining any of these permanently" (Notes on BG 98). Nevertheless the Sankhya philosophy is as true as is the Vedanta, and reaches the same ultimates of philosophic thought and understanding, although along differing systemic lines.

In the Law of Manu avyakta is used as an equivalent to paramatman (universal spirit).

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

Agneyastra (Sanskrit) (from agneya fiery weapon from agni fire + astra missile weapon, arrow)

Fiery weapon; one of the magic weapons used by some of the gods and heroes of the Mahabharata and Ramayana. The Vishnu-Purana (3:8) recounts that the agneyastra was given by the sage Aurva to his disciple King Sagara. A magic weapon said to have been "wielded by the adept-race (the fourth), the Atlanteans" (TG 9), and to have been built of "seven elements" (SD 2:629).

It can signify a weapon of fiery character used in physical warfare, or on a cosmic scale can denote the employment of a force of nature by an intelligent being either for offensive or defensive purposes. In archaic thought fire, in its abstract sense, is almost equivalent to spirit, and permeates the sevenfold nature of the universe.

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

Chi

(Chinese, "ether," "matter-energy," "vital energy," "material force")

An important and multifaceted term in Chinese religion, philosophy, and science, the root meaning of which is "moist vapor" or "breath. "

• Early Chinese teachers spoke of chi as a vital spirit or energy that animated living beings. As such, it had to be properly nourished.
• For Confucians, that required moral cultivation so that one's chi, undistracted by external things, would conform to the dictates of will.
• For Taoists, it required mastery of the self through meditation, breath control, diet, yoga, and other techniques so as to harmonize one's chi with the material force of the universe ordered by the Tao (undifferentiated unity).

Traditional Chinese medicine attributed illnesses primarily to imbalances in the chi that pulsed through the body. Acupuncture, moxibustion (placing burning cones made of the dried leaves of the Artemisia moxa plant on the patient's skin), and other techniques helped to restore its balanced circulation.

Chi was also an important concept in the correlative philosophy that blossomed in the early Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 8) systematizing the correspondences between like things that explained their mutual interactions.

In the Neo-Confucian metaphysics of the Northern and Southern Sung dynasties (960-1279), all phenomena were said to be manifest through the intrinsic relation of principle (li) and material force (chi). Li constituted the essential, unchanging, perfect nature of all things, while chi represented their corporeal, transitory, and potentially flawed aspect. Individuals were instructed to perfect their humanity, to purify and harmonize their chi with their true Heavenendowed nature through the external investigation of things and mental introspection. Also Ki.

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

Yuga (Sanskrit) Age; an age of the world, of which there are four -- satya yuga, treta yuga, dvapara yuga, and kali yuga -- which proceed in succession during the manvantaric cycle. Each yuga is preceded by a period called in the Puranas, sandhya (twilight, transition period, dawn) and followed by another period of like duration often called sandhyansa (a portion of twilight). Each of these transition periods is one-tenth of its yuga. The group of four yugas is first computed by the divine years or years of the gods -- each such year being equal to 360 years of mortal men.

Thus we have, in divine years:

1. Krita or Satya Yuga . . 4,000

Sandhya . . . . . . . . 400

Sandhyansa . . . . . . 400

4,800 or 1,728,000 mortal years

2. Treta Yuga . . . . . . . 3,000

Sandhya . . . . . . . . 300

Sandhyansa . . . . . . . 300

3,600 or 1,296,000 mortal years

3. Dvapara Yuga . . . . . . 2,000

Sandhya . . . . . . . . 200

Sandhyansa . . . . . . . 200

2,400 or 864,000 mortal years

4. Kali yuga . . . . . . . 1,000

Sandhya . . . . . . . . 100

Sandhyansa . . . . . . 100

1,200 or 432,000 mortal years

Total: 12,000 a Mahayuga or 4,320,000 mortal years

Of these four yugas, our present racial period is the kali yuga (black age), often called the Iron Age, said to have commenced at the moment of Krishna's death, usually given as 3102 BC. These yugas do not affect all mankind at the same time, as some races, because of their own special cycles in running, are in one or in another of the yugas, while other races are in a different cycle. This series of 4, 3, 2, 1, with ciphers added or not according to circumstances, are among the sacred computations of archaic esotericism, which shows that all the various kinds of yugas, the small being included within the great, are each governed by the same periodic and regular series -- all of which makes calculation no easy thing.

"All races have their own cycles, which fact causes a great difference. For instance, the Fourth Sub-Race of the Atlanteans was in its Kali-Yug, when destroyed, whereas the Fifth was in its Satya or Krita Yuga. The Aryan Race is now in its Kali Yuga, and will continue to be in it for 427,000 years longer, while various 'family Races,' called the Semitic, Hamitic, etc., are in their own special cycles. The forthcoming 6th Sub Race -- which may begin very soon -- will be in its Satya (golden) age while we reap the fruit of iniquity in our Kali Yuga" (SD 2:147n).

The four yugas refer to any root-race, although indeed a root-race from its individual beginning to its individual ending is about double the length of the great yuga as set forth in the above chart. The racial yugas, however, overlap because each new great race is born at about the middle period of the parent race, although the individual length of any one race is as above stated. Thus it is that by the overlapping of the races, a race and its succeeding race may for a long time be contemporaneous on the face of the globe.

As the four yugas are a reflection in human history of what takes place in the evolution of the earth itself, and also of the planetary chain, the same scheme of yugas applies on larger scales: there exist the four yugas in the time periods of the evolution of a planetary chain, as well as in the general time period of a globe manvantara. These cosmic yugas are very much longer than the racial yugas, but the same general scheme of 4, 3, 2 applies throughout.

"The sacredness of the cycle of 4320, with additional cyphers, lies in the fact that the figures which compose it, taken separately or joined in various combinations, are each and all symbolical of the greatest mysteries in Nature. Indeed, whether one takes the 4 separately, or the 3 by itself, or the two together making 7, or again the three added together and yielding 9, all these numbers have their application in the most sacred and occult things, and record the workings of Nature in her eternally periodical phenomena. They are never erring, perpetually recurring numbers, unveiling, to him who studies the secrets of Nature, a truly divine System, an intelligent plan in Cosmogony, which results in natural cosmic divisions of times, seasons, invisible influences, astronomical phenomena, with their action and reaction on terrestrial and even moral nature; on birth, death, and growth, on health and disease. All these natural events are based and depend upon cyclical processes in the Kosmos itself, producing periodic agencies which, acting from without, affect the Earth and all that lives and breathes on it, from one end to the other of any Manvantara. Causes and effects are esoteric, exoteric, and endexoteric, so to say" (SD 2:73-4).

(See also: Yuga , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

Seven The fundamental number of manifestation, frequently found in the different cosmogonies as well as in many religious dogmas and observances of the different ancient peoples.

Although ten was called one of the perfect numbers by the Pythagoreans, seven was unique in their series of numbers because it has all the "perfection of the Unit -- the number of numbers. For as absolute unity is uncreated, and impartite (hence number-less) and no number can produce it, so is the seven: no digit contained within the decade can beget or produce it" (SD 2:582). Seven is the number of the manifested universe, while ten or twelve is the number of the unmanifested universe.

Pythagoras taught that seven was composed of the numbers three and four, explaining that "on the plane of the noumenal world, the triangle was, as the first conception of the manifested Deity, its image: 'Father-Mother-Son'; and the Quaternary, the perfect number, was the noumenal, ideal root of all numbers and things on the physical plane" (ibid.). Further, seven was called by the Pythogoreans the vehicle of life for it consisted of body and spirit: the body was held to consist of four principal elements, while the spirit was in manifestation triple, comprising the monad, intellect or essential reason, and mind.

There are innumerable instances of sevening -- the seven days of the week, the seven colors of the spectrum, the seven notes of the musical scale -- while special emphasis is placed upon the seven human and cosmic principles; the seven senses (five senses now in manifestation and two more to be attained in the future through evolutionary unfolding); the seven cosmic elements; the seven root-races and seven subraces; the seven kingdoms, human and below; the seven rounds; the seven lokas and talas; the seven manifested globes of the planetary chain; the seven sacred planets; the seven racial buddhas; the seven dhyani-bodhisattvas and -buddhas; the seven Logoi; etc.

Man as well as nature is called saptaparna (seven-leaved plant), symbolized by the triangle above the square {illust}. While the senary was applied to man in all ranges from the physical to the spiritual, when completed by the atman, thus making the septenary, the latter signified the entire range of the constitution, whether of man or nature, crowned by the immortal spirit.

In Hindu literature the number seven continually appears: the saptarshis (the seven sages), the seven superior and inferior worlds, the seven hosts of deities, the seven holy cities, the seven holy islands, seas, or mountains, the seven deserts, the seven sacred trees, etc. In Greece seven was often connected with the gods and goddesses: Mars had seven attendants, seven was sacred to Pallas Athene and to Phoebus Apollo -- the latter with his seven-stringed lyre playing hymns to septenary nature as well as to the seven-rayed sun; Niobe's seven sons and seven daughters, etc.

Apart from mythological considerations, in physical life manifestations of the number seven occur continuously: "if the mysterious Septenary Cycle is a law in nature, and it is one, as proven; if it is found controlling the evolution and involution (or death) in the realms of entomology, ichthyology and ornithology, as in the Kingdoms of the Animal, mammalia and man -- why cannot it be present and acting in Kosmos, in general, in its natural (though occult) divisions of time, races, and mental development?" (SD 2:623n).

Seven is indeed the sacred number of life, and with the circle and the cross it forms a triad of primordial symbols of the ancient wisdom.

(See also: Seven , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Out-of-body Experience

The out-of-body experience can be a dramatic one. Clinically, this falls into a phenomenon called "dissociative experience or disorder."

Often the experiences that create this feeling are powerfully ecstatic or traumatic. In either case, the feeling is similar to watching oneself in a film. Basically, whatever is going on in the dream is so powerful that the dreamer is separating herself from experiencing it directly. The result is a self watching the self in a moment of life. Dreams of this nature can be very revealing about the self at work in the world (see Medard Boss). Lucid dreaming can also create this feeling. In lucid dreaming, the dreamer is conscious of dreaming and may be watching herself in the dream.

Dreams of this nature may create a feeling that the dreamer has projected herself into another sphere of reality, creating a sense of astral projection. This idea has been popularised by certain paranormal studies on perceptions of reality.

Native American cultures view the out-of-body experience as a fuller unity of the soul with nature. As such, it is not surprising that they hold such experiences in high regard. It is in this sense that you can consider the out-of-body experience a brush with great power-in a world of physical limitations you suddenly have the ability to go wherever you wish to go. You have complete control regarding your place in the universe.

Conversely, another possible out-of-body experience involves a complete loss of power: seeing yourself lying on an operating table in a hospital.

Does your out-of-body experience empower or frighten you?

Do you choose your travel destination or do you simply appear somewhere through no choice of your own?

Source: iVillage, http://www.ivillage.co.uk

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Out-of-body Experience , Meaning of Dreams about Out-of-body Experience , Dream Interpretation Out-of-body Experience )

Circle

The circle symbolizes infinity, the circle of life and the eternal unknown. You, the dreamer, may have come to a greater degree of spiritual awareness, so the dream could be spiritual in nature. Carl Jung called all circular images a "mandala." It is one of the most important dream symbols which represent the psychic center of personality. It is symbolic of wholeness, completeness and unity of the self. However, as always, examine all of the details in the dream, as well as its tone and mood, and rule out the possibility of "going in circles" as the primary message in the dream.

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

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

tapas: (Sanskrit) "Warmth, heat," hence psychic energy, spiritual fervor or ardor.

1)    Purificatory spiritual disciplines, severe austerity, penance and sacrifice. The endurance of pain, suffering, through the performance of extreme penance, religious austerity and mortification. By comparison, sadhana is austerity of a simple, sustained kind, while tapas is austerity of a severe, psychetransforming nature. Tapas is extreme bodily mortification, long term sadhanas, such as meditating under a tree in one place for 12 years, taking a lifetime vow of silence and never speaking or writing, or standing on one leg for a prescribed number of years. Scriptures warn against extreme asceticism that harm the body.

2)    On a deeper level, tapas is the intense inner state of kundalini "fire" which stimulates mental anguish and separates the individual from society. Life does not go on as usual when this condition occurs. The association with a satguru, Sadasiva, brings the devotee into tapas; and it brings him out of it. The fire of tapas burns on the dross of sanchita karmas. This is the source of heat, dismay, depression and striving until final and total surrender, prapatti. The individual can mollify this heated condition by continuing his regular sadhana as outlined by the guru. The fires of self-transformation may be stimulated by the practice of tapas, or come unbidden. One can "do" tapas, but the true tapas is a condition of being and consciousness which is a state of grace, bringing positive change, transformation and purification of one's nature. Guru bhakti is the only force that can cool the fires of tapas.

See: kundalini, penance, sadhana.

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

There are four principal kinds of dharma, as follows. They are known collectively as - chaturdharma: "four religious laws."

1. rita: "Universal law." The inherent order of the cosmos. The laws of being and nature that contain and govern all forms, functions and processes, from galaxy clusters to the power of mental thought and perception.
2. varna dharma: (Sanskrit) "Law of one's kind." Social duty. Varna can mean "race, tribe, appearance, character, color, social standing, etc." Varna dharma defines the individual's obligations and responsibilities within the nation, society, community, class, occupational subgroup and family. An important part of this dharma is religious and moral law. See: jati, varna dharma.
3. ashrama dharma: "Duties of life's stages." Human or developmental dharma. The natural process of maturing from childhood to old age through fulfillment of the duties of each of the four stages of life- brahmachari (student), grihastha (householder), vanaprastha (elder advisor) and sannyasa (religious solitaire)- in pursuit of the four human goals: dharma (righteousness), artha (wealth), kama (pleasure) and moksha (liberation). See: ashrama dharma.
4. svadharma: "Personal path, pattern or obligation." One's perfect individual pattern through life, according to one's own particular physical, mental and emotional nature. Svadharma is determined by the sum of past karmas and the cumulative effect of the other three dharmas. It is the individualized application of dharma, dependent on personal karma, reflected on one's race, community, physical characteristics, health, intelligence, skills and aptitudes, desires and tendencies, religion, sampradaya, family and guru.

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

Yana (Sanskrit) [from the verbal root ya to go]

Path, road, vehicle; there are two recognized paths of action in nature, the pratyeka-yana (the path of each one for himself) and the amrita-yana (the immortal vehicle or path of immortality). There are also two schools of philosophy in India using this term: the Hinayana (the lesser, inferior, or defective vehicle) and the Mahayana (the greater or superior vehicle).

This contrast is an exoteric rather than an esoteric one. It is a recognition of the fact that the religion of Gautama Buddha has separated into two general paths of action; but both the Hinayana and the Mahayana are recognized because known to possess each one its own particular value in training. The combination of the two is what one might call the esoteric path.

The Hinayana is that portion of the esoteric path in which the mystic traveler takes the lower passional and elemental sides of himself into strict discipline and self-control, the while following certain simple rules of day-to-day procedure; whereas the Mahayana aspect includes rather the training of the spiritual, intellectual, and higher psychic parts of the human constitution, such as is brought about by a profound study of philosophy, of the truths of nature, the mystical side of religion, and the higher parts of kosmic philosophy -- all these collected together around the heart of the Mahayana which is mystical study and aspiration.

(See also: Yana , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

evolution of the soul: Adhyatma prasara.

In Saiva Siddhanta, the soul's evolution is a progressive unfoldment, growth and maturing toward its inherent, divine destiny, which is complete merger with Siva. In its essence, each soul is ever perfect. But as an individual soul body emanated by God Siva, it is like a small seed yet to develop. As an acorn needs to be planted in the dark underground to grow into a mighty oak tree, so must the soul unfold out of the darkness of the malas to full maturity and realization of its innate oneness with God.

The soul is not created at the moment of conception of a physical body. Rather, it is created in the Sivaloka. It evolves by taking on denser and denser sheaths-cognitive, instinctive-intellectual and pranic-until finally it takes birth in physical form in the Bhuloka. Then it experiences many lives, maturing through the reincarnation process. Thus, from birth to birth, souls learn and mature. Evolution is the result of experience and the lessons derived from it. There are young souls just beginning to evolve, and old souls nearing the end of their earthly sojourn. In Saiva Siddhanta, evolution is understood as the removal of fetters which comes as a natural unfoldment, realization and expression of one's true, self-effulgent nature. This ripening or dropping away of the soul's bonds (mala) is called malaparipaka.

The realization of the soul nature is termed svanubhuti (experience of the Self). Self Realization leads to moksha, liberation from the three malas and the reincarnation cycles. Then evolution continues in the celestial worlds until the soul finally merges fully and indistinguishably into Supreme God Siva, the Primal Soul, Parameshvara. In his Tirumantiram, Rishi Tirumular calls this merger vishvagrasa, "total absorption. The evolution of the soul is not a linear progression, but an intricate, circular, many-faceted mystery. Nor is it at all encompassed in the Darwinian theory of evolution, which explains the origins of the human form as descended from earlier primates.

See: Darwin's theory, mala, moksha, reincarnation, samsara, vishvagrasa.

(See also: Evolution of the soul , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Tornado

Tornado is a violent storm in nature, and it may represent violent emotional storms in your dreams. If you have reoccurring tornado dreams consider the emotional changes in your life and also the amount of anger and rage that you may be currently experiencing. Tornadoes could also represent disruptions and upsets in you immediate environment and specific or current issues that may be overwhelming.

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

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

Awakening vs. Enlightenment

A clear distinction should be made between awakening to the Way (Great Awakening) and attaining the Way (attaining Enlightenment). (Note: There are many degrees of Awakening and Enlightenment. Attaining the Enlightenment of the Arhats, Pratyeka Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, etc. is different from attaining Supreme Enlightenment, i.e., Buddhahood.)

To experience a Great Awakening is to achieve (through Zen meditation, Buddha Recitation, etc.) a complete and deep realization of what it means to be a Buddha and how to reach Buddhahood.

It is to see one's Nature, comprehend the True Nature of things, the Truth. However, only after becoming a Buddha can one be said to have truly attained Supreme Enlightenment (attained the Way).

A metaphor appearing in the sutras is that of a glass of water containing sediments. As long as the glass is undisturbed, the sediments remain at the bottom and the water is clear. However, as soon as the glass is shaken, the water becomes turbid. Likewise, when a practitioner experiences a Great Awakening (awakens to the Way), his afflictions (greed, anger and delusion) are temporarily suppressed but not yet eliminated.

To achieve Supreme Enlightenment (i.e., to be rid of all afflictions, to discard all sediments) is the ultimate goal. Only then can he completely trust his mind and actions. Before then, he should adhere to the precepts, keep a close watch on his mind and thoughts, like a cat stalking a mouse, ready to pounce on evil thoughts as soon as they arise.

To do otherwise is to court certain failure, as stories upon stories of errant monks, roshis and gurus demonstrate.

 (See also: Awakening vs. Enlightenment , Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Dhyani-chohans (Sanskrit-Tibetan) (from Sanskrit dhyani contemplation + Tibetan chohan lord)

Lords of meditation. In theosophical literature, dhyani-buddhas are the intellectual architects, the higher and more spiritual beings of the god-world. Dhyani-chohans, as a generalizing term, includes both the higher classes which take a self-conscious, active part in the architectural ideation of the universe, and the lower classes, some of which are self-conscious, but in their lower representations progressively less on on a descending scale.

The lowest of these builders are little more than merely conscious or semi-conscious beings following almost servilely the ideation of the cosmic spirit transmitted to them by the higher class of the architects.

Dhyani-chohan is likewise synonymous in one sense with the Sanskrit manu. The seven principal classes of dhyani-chohans are intimately connected, each to each, respectively, with the seven sacred planets of our solar system, and likewise with the globes of the earth planetary chain. Furthermore, there is a class of dhyani-chohans at the head of every department of nature in our solar system.

These dhyani-chohans, as the summit of the Hierarchy of Light, imbody in themselves as individuals the ideation of the cosmic Logos, thus forming the laws according to which nature exists and works. These laws, therefore, are really the automatic spiritual activities of the highest classes of the dhyani-chohans.

The dhyani-chohans have their bodhisattvas, intellectual offspring, or representatives on and in each descending cosmic plane, so that every being has as its highest portion one such dhyani-chohan as its egoic individuality. Hence, "the dhyani-chohans are actually in one most important sense our own selves. We were born from them; we were the monads, we were the atoms, the souls, projected, sent forth, emanated, by the dhyanis . . ." (Fund 407).

(See also: Dhyani-chohans , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)