Crime and Punishment - Salvation through suffering. Crime and Punishment illustrates the theme of attaining salvation through suffering, a common feature in Dostoevsky's work. This is the (mainly Christian) notion that the act of suffering has a purifying effect on the human spirit allowing for salvation in God. A character who embodies this theme is Sonya, who maintains enough faith to guide and support Raskolnikov despite her own immense suffering. While it may seem grim, it is a relatively optimistic no ...

See also:

Crime and Punishment, Crime and Punishment - Plot, Crime and Punishment - Analysis, Crime and Punishment - Themes, Crime and Punishment - Salvation through suffering, Crime and Punishment - Christian existentialism, Crime and Punishment - Characters, Crime and Punishment - Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, Crime and Punishment - Sofya Semyonovna Marmeladova, Crime and Punishment - Other characters, Crime and Punishment - Structure, Crime and Punishment - Movie versions

Read more here: » Crime and Punishment: Encyclopedia II - Crime and Punishment - Themes

path: Marga or pantha. A trail, road or way. In Hinduism there are various ways that the term path is used.

-       path of enlightenment salvation moksha: The way to the ultimate goals of Self Realization and liberation.

-       universal path: The spiritual path conceived as being followed by all of existence, marching on its way to Godhood.

-       path of dharma: Following principles of good conduct and virtue.

-       the two paths: The way of the monk and that of the householder, a choice to be made by each Hindu young man.

-       Peerless highest path: The spiritual path (or the path of renunciation) as the noblest of human undertakings.

-       the straight path: The way that goes directly to the goal, without distraction or karmic detour.

-       on the path: someone who is seriously studying, striving and performing sadhana to perfect the inner and outer nature.

-       our right path in life: The best way for us personally to proceed; personal dharma, svadharma. -

-       "Truth is one, paths are many:" Hinduism's affirmation for tolerance. It accepts that there are various ways to proceed toward the ultimate goal.

See: dharma, pada.

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

For more dictionary entries, see » Salvation Dictionary

True realisation takes place on knowing and seeing God in His transcendental form. It is a metaphysical experience within the human body. The manifestation of inherent divinity is in reality the revelation of the divine self of man. This is not different from the Supreme Self that permeates even the tiniest particle in the universe. It is accessible to all human beings.

(See also: Self-Realisation , God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Self-Realisation: Cosmic Vision Alone Reveals the Truth  

Purusharthas, Dharma, Artha, Karma and Moksha

Purusha means human being and artha means object or objective. Purusharthas means objectives of man. According to Hindu way of life, a man should strive to achieve four chief objectives (Purusharthas) in his life. They are: 

1.    dharma (righteousness), 

2.    artha (material wealth), 

3.    kama (desire) and 

4.    moksha (salvation). 

Every individual in a society is expected to achieve these four objectives and seek fulfillment in his life before departing from here. The concept of Purusharthas clearly establishes the fact that Hinduism does not advocate a life of self negation and hardship, but a life of balance, achievement and fulfillment. 

Read more here: » Purusharthas: Dharma, Artha, Karma and Moksha - The Purusharthas

The word Yoga comes from the root Yuj which means to join. Yoga is restraint of the activities of the mind, and is the union of the individual soul with the Supreme Soul.

Hiranyagarbha is the founder of the Yoga system. The Yoga founded by Patanjali Maharshi is a branch or supplement of the Sankhya. It has its own charm for students of a mystic temperament and of a contemplative type. It claims greater orthodoxy than the Sankhya proper by directly acknowledging the existence of a Supreme Being (Isvara).

Excerpt from All About Hinduism by Sri Swami Sivananda

Read more here: » Yoga: Hindu Philosophy - The Yoga

The Ashtavakra Gita , also known as Ashtavakra Samhita , is a treatise that offers simple recipes for almost instant liberation. Swami Shantananda of Vasistha Guha calls it “a quantum leap into the absolute”.

A unique treatise on the non-dualistic advaita philosophy , the Ashtavakra Gita “guarantees to transport a seeker instantaneously from time to eternity, from the relative to the absolute and from bondage to liberation”, writes Swami Shantananda.

(See also: Ashtavakra Gita , God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Ashtavakra Gita: Ashtavakra's Guide To Instant Nirvana  

Faith is a rare gift of God granted only to humans, and it forms the basis of human relationships. We need to repose faith in our parents that they will always think of our welfare; in our children that they will not let us down; in our colleagues and friends that they will remain loyal. Similarly, for a seeker of salvation, a prime requirement is faith or shraddha in God.

Faith in people is based on our practical experience of them. We have no such experience of God. Does our faith in Him, therefore, have to be blind? As the following story illustrates, faith in God must be reasoned.

(See also: Faith , God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Faith: Shraddha In God Works Wonders  

Death perhaps is the only certainty in this world. Yet, the fear of death stalks most people. Literature — western and Indian — regards the fear of death as an intriguing and ubiquitous part of human life. We know we are mortals, yet we are afraid of the inevitable. We know we will die one day; yet we continue to behave as though we believe we are going to live forever. However, for people of knowledge, for the wise, death is the door to liberation, the passage to moksha.

Read more here: » Spiritual Inspiration: Moksha - Break Free from Fear of Death

In India, the day begins with worship. People pray, bow and meditate. Members of the Jain community all over India bathe, put on new clothes and walk barefoot to their local temple. They embark on their daily pilgrimage with no possessions and with high aspirations. Some of them carry a cloth mask which they wear when inside the temple. From the moment they walk into the temple, all worldly concerns are set aside to facilitate meditation. Their focus is on the Tirthankaras , the teachers who conquered their own vices to teach the world about compassion and salvation through example. The recitation of the Namokar Mahamantra encourages them to salute the achievements of all divine souls who attained salvation.

(See also: Jainism Worship , God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Jainism Worship: Sincere Prayer for Peace and Harmony  

The world over, women continue to suffer community-sponsored injustice, whether they live in a secular or non-secular country. We can know how progressive a community is, by the way it treats its women.

Shocked at the condition of Indian women, Swami Vivekananda said that there was no reason to view women as being inferior to men or as obstacles to salvation - contrary to popular misconception, there is no scriptural sanction for oppressing women.

(See also: Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Peace on Earth: Shanti Alone Can Help Save Shakti

The dialogue between Buddhism and Christianity has not gone very far, in my opinion, because we have not been able to set up a solid ground for such dialogue. This is a reflection of the present situation.

Read more here: » Buddhism and Christianity: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers

Chanting of mantras and the practice of meditation are time-honoured traditions in oriental religions like Hinduism and Buddhism. Christians use the concept of chanting in a variety of ways in their prayer. The Divine Office or Prayer of the Church is a rhythmic recitation or singing of the Psalms in monastic communities. For a Christian the practice of meditation is the practice of an 'awareness' of God in Christ. Equally, at the heart of the practice of Christian meditation is the essential onslaught on the 'ego' so that we may be completely free from its domination. Prophet Isaiah says (30:15): "In conversion and tranquillity lies your salvation".

Read more here: » Spiritual Practices: Christian Mantras And Meditation

Purva Mimamsa or Karma-Mimamsa is an enquiry into the earlier portion of the Vedas, an enquiry into the ritual of the Vedas or that portion of the Vedas which is concerned with the Mantras and the Brahmanas only. The Purva Mimamsa is so called, because it is earlier (Purva) than the Uttara Mimamsa, not so much in the chronological as in the logical sense.

Excerpt from All About Hinduism by Sri Swami Sivananda

Read more here: » Purva Mimamsa: Hindu Philosophy - The Purva Mimamsa

The word ' Yog ’ is derived from the verb yuj which means to yoke, to join, to connect. The end of life is to yoke oneself to the holy spirit i.e., the Paramchaitanya. Hindu scriptures enlighten us on the various ways or margas of doing so. The union with the holy spirit is possible through Gyan Yog, Karma Yog, Bhakti Marg, Mantra Yog, Raj Yog, Sanyas Marg or Hath Yog.

The rishi-munis have particularly adopted the Gyan Yog which is possible only through Dhyan . For the householder, Karma Yog and Bhakti Marg are the most practical ways of attaining moksha. Ascetics have developed the knowledge of mantra-tantra . Hath Yogis have evolved various Aasanas, postures and occult practices for awakening the Kundalini. Shri Aadishakti Shri Mataji Nirmaladevi has advocated the Sahaj Yog for householders to attain the Parmachaitanya through the raising of the Kundalini.

(See also: Sahaj Yog , God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Sahaj Yog: Raising Kundalini With Sahaj Yog  

Hinduism and Marriage

According to Hinduism, a marriage between two persons is a sacred relationship that is not limited to this life alone. It extends across seven or more lives, during which the couple help each other progress spiritually. The adage that marriages are made in heaven is very much true in case of Hinduism. Two souls come together and marry because their karmas are intertwined and they have to resolve many things together upon earth in order to ensure their mutual salvation. 

Read more here: » Hinduism and Marriage: Marriages in Hinduism

Men pass, mountains remain. Little wonder, why mountains are a sign of solidity and stability. They tower over us, touching the sky, sometimes through clouds ... they convey a sense of mystery.

In fact, philosophers say that the mountain is the point where heaven and earth meet. Mountains, therefore, are considered holy in many faiths. They are believed to be the abode of gods, even a place where one can find salvation.

Christian literature reveals the symbolic role of mountains. In the Old Testament, God was depicted as God of the mountains. But God was also a God of the valleys.

(See also: Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Peace of Mind: Mountains - Source of Divine Inspiration

Sri Madhvacharya, the 13th century dvaita philosopher, is believed to have his divine origin from Mukhyaprana or Vayu, who had in earlier yugas been born as Hanuman, the attendant of Lord Rama and Bhimasena, celebrated in the Mahabharata as the mightiest man, the destroyer of asuras born as kings.

Sri Madhva was a dualist who believed in the verity of God, jeeva and matter existing eternally as distinct entities. His philosophy is a realistic and theistic philosophy. He advocated an active life emphasising duty, devotion and dedication.

(See also: Sri Madhvacharya , Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Sri Madhvacharya: Madhva Siddhant - Bhakti and Gnana  

Sri Sathya Sai Baba is among those realised souls whose wisdom cuts across all barriers of race and religion, aimed only at restoring dharma and establishing the unity of faiths and peoples under the common banner of universal love and brotherhood.

However, to widen spirituality's reach beyond retreats and rosaries, it has to be made to touch all of life and divinise every activity. For this, the quest for atma vidya or self-knowledge is essential in a human being, for it awakens him to his inherent divinity and also promotes reverence and respect for all creation.

(See also: Atma Vidya , Indian Festivals, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Read more here: » Atma Vidya: Touch Base with God Through Atma Vidya  

grace: "Benevolence, love, giving," from the Latin gratia, "favor, goodwill."

God's power of revealment, anugraha shakti ("kindness, showing favor"), by which souls are awakened to their true, Divine nature.

Grace in the unripe stages of the spiritual journey is experienced by the devotee as receiving gifts or boons, often unbidden, from God. The mature soul finds himself surrounded by grace. He sees all of God's actions as grace, whether they be seemingly pleasant and helpful or not. For him, his very love of God, the power to meditate or worship, and the spiritual urge which drives his life are entirely and obviously God's grace, a divine endowment, an intercession, unrelated to any deed or action he did or could perform.

In Saiva Siddhanta, it is grace that awakens the love of God within the devotee, softens the intellect and inaugurates the quest for Self Realization. It descends when the soul has reached a certain level of maturity, and often comes in the form of a spiritual initiation, called shaktipata, from a satguru.

Grace is not only the force of illumination or revealment. It also includes Siva's other four powers - creation, preservation, destruction and concealment - through which He provides the world of experience and limits the soul's consciousness so that it may evolve.

More broadly, grace is God's ever-flowing love and compassion, karuna, also known as kripa ("tenderness, compassion") and prasada (literally, "clearness, purity").

To whom is God's grace given? Can it be earned? Two famous analogies, that of the monkey (markata) and that of the cat (marjara) express two classical viewpoints on salvation and grace.

• The markata school, perhaps represented more fully by the Vedas, asserts that the soul must cling to God like a monkey clings to its mother and thus participate in its "salvation."
• The marjara school, which better reflects the position of the Agamas, says that the soul must be like a young kitten, totally dependent on its mother's will, picked up in her mouth by the scruff of the neck and carried here and there. This crucial state of loving surrender is called prapatti.

See: anugraha shakti, prapatti, shaktipata, tirodhana shakti.

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

For more dictionary entries, see » Salvation Dictionary

Hinduism and Polytheism

According to the tenets of Hinduism, God is one as well as many. He is to be found every where and in every thing. He is there in the sky, in the rivers, in the plants and trees and even in a particle of dust. He is an enigma, because He is in many things at a time and is many things at a time. He is visible as well as invisible. He is here and He is there. He is above and He is below. He is with forms and also without form. He speaks and He speaks not. He is the self and also the not'self. To say that this is God and this is not is perhaps much more sacrilegious, if there is anything like sacrilegious in the world of God, than seeing God in images and idols and worshipping Him.

Read more here: » Hinduism and Polytheism: Why do Hindus worship so many gods and goddesses?

Reformation

The 16th century movement initiated by Martin Luther, initially intended to correct, protest, or reform the doctrines and practices of Roman Catholicism. Luther's efforts (later joined and expanded by Zwingli, Bucer, Calvin and others) quickly developed into a complete break with Catholicism.

The reformers' major doctrinal issues included a rejection of the Pope, church control of Bible translation and interpretation, a distinction in value between laity and clergy, and salvation being a product of the church and its sacraments (salvation by works).

A more thorough (and in some cases unorthodox) reform occurred with the Radical Reformation - the orthodox Anabaptist movement being an example. To various degrees, virtually all Protestant denominations today share a common heritage concerning the issues of the Reformation.

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

For more dictionary entries, see » Salvation Dictionary