Kesarin (Sanskrit) Also Kesarin, Kesari. Having a mane; a variant name of Anjana, the naga or initiate who was the mother of Hanuman, the monkey-god of the Ramayana. Hanuman's father, the wind god (Pavana or Vayu), is at times also called Kesarin.

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

Chhaya-grahini chaya-grahini (Sanskrit) Shadow-catcher; in the Ramayana, it "was able to arrest the aerial progress of Hanuman by seizing on his shadow on the surface of the Sea" (BCW 6:341).

(See also: Chhaya-grahini, chaya-grahini, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Agastya (Sanskrit). The name of a great Rishi, much revered in Southern India; the reputed author of hymns in the Rig Veda, and a great hero in the Ramayana. In Tamil literature he is credited with having been the first instructor of the Dravidians in science, religion and philosophy. It is also the name of the star "Canopus".

(See also: Agastya, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Mahabharata (Sanskrit). Lit., the "great war"; the celebrated epic poem of India (probably the longest poem in the world) which includes both the Ramayana and the Bhagavad Gita "the Song Celestial". No two Orientalists agree as to its date. But it is undeniably extremely ancient.

(See also: Mahabharata, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Ravana (Sanskrit) The giant king-demon of the rakshasas, sovereign of Lanka (Ceylon or Sri Lanka), a remnant of Atlantis. One of the remaining ruling black magicians of the last days of the Atlantis period, he carried away Sita, Rama's wife, which led to the great war described in the Ramayana.

(See also: Ravana, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Valmiki:

Valmiki: (son of Prachetas) the great poet who composed the epic Ramayana, to each canto, Kaanda. Kaanda means water, an expanse of water (RRV-1). Famous Sage visited by Rama while in exile in the forests (RRV-15). (Discourse: God is the Indweller) Valmiki: the author of the original Ramayana. Valmiki, the great yogi [from the semen of Varuna] was born from an anthill [hence his name] and indeed were the two sages Agastya and Vashistha [as their common sons] also there from Mitra [the tenth son] and Varuna. (SB, 6: 18-5,6)

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

smriti: (Sanskrit) "That which is remembered; the tradition."

Hinduism's nonrevealed, secondary but deeply revered scriptures, derived from man's insight and experience. Smriti speaks of secular matters - science, law, history, agriculture, etc. - as well as spiritual lore, ranging from day-to-day rules and regulations to superconscious outpourings.

1)    The term smriti refers to a specific collection of ancient Sanskritic texts as follows: the six or more Vedangas, the four Upavedas, the two Itihasas, and the 18 main Puranas. Among the Vedangas, the Kalpa Vedanga defines codes of ritual in the Shrauta and Shulba Shastras, and domestic-civil laws in the Grihya and Dharma Shastras. Also included as classical smriti are the founding sutras of six ancient philosophies called shad darshana (Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa and Vedanta).

2)    In a general sense, smriti may refer to any text other than shruti (revealed scripture) that is revered as scripture within a particular sect. From the vast body of sacred literature, shastra, each sect and school claims its own preferred texts as secondary scripture, e.g., the Ramayana of Vaishnavism and Smartism, or the Tirumurai of Saiva Siddhanta. Thus, the selection of smriti varies widely from one sect and lineage to another.

See: Mahabharata, Ramayana, Tirumurai.

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

Lanka (Sanskrit) The ancient name of the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The third root-race ended its career in that part of a continent which later became the Lanka of the Atlanteans. In the Ramayana it is described as of gigantic extent and magnificence, "with seven broad moats and seven stupendous walls of stone and metal." Its foundation is attributed to Visvakarman, who built it for Kuvera, the king of the demons, from whom it was taken by Ravena, the great foe of Rama, hero of the Ramayana. The Bhagavata-Purana shows Lanka or Ceylon as primarily the summit of Mount Meru, which was broken off by Vayu, god of the wind, and hurled into the ocean.

Ceylon has become the seat of the Southern Buddhist Church, the Siamese Sect, the representation of the purest exoteric Buddhism outside of Tibet, the latter one home of the Mahayana school.

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

Kapilaksha kapilaksa (Sanskrit) Kapila's eye; an allegorical name for certain spiritual and intellectual powers evoking vibratory forces which neutralize and bend to their will all the lower human mentations and emotions. In the Puranas, Ramayana, and other Hindu works, the sage Kapila's very glance made a mountain of ashes of King Sagara's 60,000 sons, who were the personifications of the human mental and emotional attributes.

(See also: Kapilaksha, kapilaksa, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

Aksha aksa (Sanskrit) (from the verbal root aksh to reach, pass through, pervade)

An axle, axis, wheel, car; a die for gambling, a cube; rarely, inner knowledge, as the axis or pivot of life. As a neuter noun, either an organ or an object of sense perception. In the Ramayana, Aksha (akshakumara) was one of the three sons of Ravana, king of the demons, and was slain by Hanuman in Lanka.

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

Agniratha (Sanskrit) (from agni fire + ratha chariot from the verbal root ri to go)

Fire-chariot; archaic flying vehicles, allegorized in the Ramayana and ancient works on magic. "This vibratory Force, which, when aimed at an army from an Agni Rath fixed on a flying vessel, . . . reduced to ashes 100,000 men and elephants, as easily as it would a dead rat" (SD 1:563).

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

Anjana (Sanskrit) (feminine of anjana)

The mother of Hanumat or Hanuman, the celebrated monkey god of the Ramayana, who is therefore called Anjaneya (son of Anjana). In her previous birth she was a goddess, but due to a curse was born as a monkey in the Himalayas. The birth of her son, Hanuman, lifted the curse and after a period Anjana ascended to svarga (heaven).

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

Rama:

An incarnation of God. The story of His earthly life is told in the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. In this story, Rama's dearly beloved wife is kidnapped by a demon. After much difficulty, Rama eventually succeeds in slaying the demon, rescuing his wife, and restoring her to her former position. Allegorically speaking, this represents God's salvation of the individual soul.

(See also: Rama, Psychic, Psychic Dictionary, Parapsychology, Parapsychology Dictionary)

Astra (Sanskrit) Missile, weapon; in the war between the Pandavas and Kurus in the Mahabharata, in addition to the regular weapons (astras), others are mentioned: mantra-astras (weapons made powerful by mantras); divya-astra (weapons received from higher beings); and agneyastras (weapons of fire).

Likewise racial remnants of the earlier Atlanteans (commonly called Rakshasas) employed the power of hallucination (maya); this is also described in the Ramayana.

See also ASHTAR

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

Agneyastra (Sanskrit). The fiery missiles or weapons used by the Gods in the exoteric Puranas and the Mahabharata the magic weapons said to have been wielded by the adept-race (the fourth), the Atlanteans.

This "weapon of fire" was given by Bharadwaja to Agnivesa, the son of Agni, and by him to Drona, though the Vishnu Purana contradicts this, saying that it was given by the sage Aurva to King Sagara, his chela. They are frequently mentioned in the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.

(See also: Agneyastra, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Rama (Sanskrit). The seventh avatar or incarnation of Vishnu; the eldest son of King Dasaratha, of the Solar Race. His full name is Rama-Chandra, and he is the hero of the Ramayana. He married Sita, who was the female avatar of Lakshmi, Vishnu’s wife, and was carried away by Ravana the Demon-King of Lanka, which act led to the famous war.

(See also: Rama, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Kumbhakarna (Sanskrit). The brother of King Ravana of Lanka, the ravisher of Rama’s wife, Sita. As shown in the Ramayana, Kumbhakarna under a curse of Brahma slept for six months, and then remained awake one day to fall asleep again, and so on, for many hundreds of years. He was awakened to take part in the war between Rama and Ravana, captured Hanuman, but was finally killed himself.

(See also: Kumbhakarna, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Jatayu (Sanskrit). The Son of Garuda. The latter is the great cycle, or Mahakalpa symbolized by the giant bird which served as a steed for Vishnu, and other gods, when related to space and time. Jatayu is called in the Ramayana "the King of the feathered tribe". For defending Sita carried away by Ravana, the giant king of Lanka, he was killed by him. Jatayu is also called "the king of the vultures".

(See also: Jatayu, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Hanuman (Sanskrit) The monkey god of the Ramayana; the generalissimo of Rama’s army; the son of Vayu, the god of the wind, and of a virtuous she-demon. Hanuman was the faithful ally of Rama and by his unparalleled audacity and wit, helped the Avatar of Vishnu to finally conquer the demon-king of Lanka, Ravana, who had carried off the beautiful Sita, Rama’s wife, an outrage which led to the celebrated war described in the Hindu epic poem.

(See also: Hanuman, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary, )

Sastra-devatas (Sanskrit) [from sastra weapon + devata celestial being, god]

The gods of divine weapons; in the Mahabharata and Ramayana, the lords or conscious agents behind the mystical powers exercised by the great-souled heroes, rather than the weapons themselves.

They are likewise in ancient Hindu conception the self-conscious, conscious, and quasi-conscious powers behind the forces of nature, especially those forces which can wreak injury or damage in the phenomenal world, such as earthquakes, tidal waves, storms of all kinds, and lightning.

(See also: Sastra-devatas, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Sita (Sanskrit) A furrow; Rama's wife, so named because she is fabled to have sprung from a furrow made by King Janaka while plowing the ground to prepare it for a sacrifice instituted by him to obtain progeny. She was considered an avatara of Lakshmi, Vishnu's consort in the heaven-world. In the Ramayana she is exiled with her husband, stolen by Ravana of Lanka, and finally rescued.

(See also: Sita, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

Aithihya (Sanskrit) (from iti thus, in this manner + ha emphatic particle)

Thus indeed it was; traditional instructions, tradition. Closely similar to itihasa, a name applied to semi-legendary and epic accounts; also to the Mahabharata and Ramayana. As the instructors of certain schools in handing on teaching (especially oral teaching delivered with "mouth to ear") invariably commenced an installment with the phrase "iti maya srutam" or "iti ha maya srutam" (truly thus have I heard), such instruction came to be called aitihya or aitiha. The adjectival form aitihasika also means what is communicated or derived from tradition, ancient legend, or heroic history.

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