Salvation [from Latin salvatio from salvare to save]

In Christianity, the saving of individual souls from supposed damnation, usually by faith in the Atonement. In theosophy, as concerns the individual, salvation is achieved by victory of his divine self over the illusions created by the contact of the intermediate nature with the lower planes. In this sense the serpent of Eden, Satan even, is man's savior, as are Prometheus, Lucifer, etc.

Mankind as a whole is saved by those manasaputras who descended into intellectually senseless mankind of the third root-race and who, by thus enlightening the minds of early humanity, became the elect custodians of the mysteries revealed to mankind by its divine teachers. Again, the Silent Watchers in their various grades, who refuse to pass on into a greater light and maintain their post for the protection and guidance of humanity, are saviors also.

Yet no one can be saved by the vicarious merit of another; his salvation is achieved by means of that very free will and enlightened intelligence of his own through which he at first risks falling. But the great ones maintain the ideal which the multitude elect to follow, and thus light the path mankind will ultimately tread.

(See also: Salvation , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary)

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

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Salvation

See also: Salvation , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

Salvation

The Christian doctrine of deliverance from sin. The basic Christian doctrine is that Jesus died on the cross and paid the price of our sins, so that we are all saved from the spiritual consequences of our sins when we accept Jesus as our personal savior. Some teach we need only accept Jesus as our savior, others that we must keep his commandments.

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

Salvation Dream Symbols:

(Source: Myths - Dreams - Symbols)

Related pages: Dream Symbols, Dream Interpretation, Dream Symbol Salvation, Dream Dictionary Salvation, Meaning of dreams about Salvation, Dream Interpretation Salvation, Dream Analysis Salvation, Dreaming of Salvation

Salvation, Resolving of conflict, Balance, Wholeness, Guilt-feelings

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)

Calvinism

A system of Christian interpretation initiated by John Calvin. It emphasizes predestination and salvation. The five points of Calvinism were developed in response to the Arminian position (See Arminianism).

Calvinism teaches:

1)    Total depravity: that man is touched by sin in all parts of his being: body, soul, mind, and emotions,

2)    Unconditional Election: that GodÕs favor to Man is completely by GodÕs free choice and has nothing to do with Man. It is completely undeserved by Man and is not based on anything God sees in man,

3)    Limited atonement: that Christ did not bear the sins of every individual who ever lived, but instead only bore the sins of those who were elected into salvation,

4)    Irresistible grace: that God's call to someone for salvation cannot be resisted,

5)    Perseverance of the saints: that it is not possible to lose one's salvation.

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

Eschatology

General term for teachings concerning the "last things," the end of the world and processes of salvation.

In Christianity, eschatology includes teachings concerning death, judgment, heaven, hell, and the coming of Christ (Gk. parousia). The term itself was first used in the nineteenth century with the rise of critical biblical studies. One significant early finding was that both Jesus and the apostle Paul seemed convinced that God would terminate history soon.

Studies of Jesus' use of "the reign of God" and of Paul's treatment of the return of Christ brought a reevaluation of the relations between the end of history and the new era that Jesus had ushered in. For current Christian theology, eschatology raises important issues about history. If Christian faith says that the crucial victory occurred in Christ's death, resurrection, and sending of the Holy Spirit, what value should believers place on temporal matters? The mainstream of theologians seems to have reached a consensus that both the New Testament and subsequent faith seek a balance between "now" and "not yet. "

The substance of salvation (God's forgiveness and eternal life) is available now, in virtue of Christ. But the full expression of salvation can only occur beyond history, where God is all in all, and so does not yet exist. The study of the teachings in the Bible concerning the end times, or of the period of time dealing with the return of Christ and the events that follow.

Eschatological subjects include the Resurrection, the Rapture, the Tribulation, the Millennium, the Binding of Satan, the Three witnesses, the Final Judgment, Armageddon, and The New Heavens and the New Earth. In one form or another most of the books of the Bible deal with end times subjects. But some that are more prominently eschatological are Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Joel, Zechariah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, 2 Thessalonians, and of course Revelation.

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

A Christian theological definition of Baptismal Regeneration according to CARM - The Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry:

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Baptismal Regeneration

See also: Baptismal Regeneration , Christianity, 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,)

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

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Calvinism

See also: Calvinism , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

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)

shad darshana: (Sanskrit) "Six views or insights; six philosophies."

Among the hundreds of Hindu darshanas known through history are six classical philosophical systems: Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Sankhya, Yoga, Mimamsa and Vedanta.

Each was tersely formulated in sutra form by its "founder," and elaborated in extensive commentaries by other writers. They are understood as varied attempts at describing Truth and the path to it. Elements of each form part of the Hindu fabric today.

-       Nyaya: "System, rule; logic." A system of logical realism, founded sometime around 300 bce by Gautama, known for its systems of logic and epistemology and concerned with the means of acquiring right knowledge. Its tools of enquiry and rules for argumentation were adopted by all schools of Hinduism.

-       Vaisheshika: "Distinctionism." From "vishesha," differences. Philosophy founded by Kanada (ca 300 bce) teaching that liberation is to be attained through understanding the nature of existence, which is classified in nine basic realities (dravyas): earth, water, light, air, ether, time, space, soul and mind. Nyaya and Vaisheshika are viewed as a complementary pair, with Nyaya emphasizing logic, and Vaisheshika analyzing the nature of the world.

-       Sankhya: "Enumeration, reckoning." A philosophy founded by the sage Kapila (ca 500 bce), author of the Sankhya Sutras. Sankhya is primarily concerned with "categories of existence," tattvas, which it understands as 25 in number. The first two are the unmanifest purusha and the manifest primal nature, prakriti - the male-female polarity, viewed as the foundation of all existence. Prakriti, out of which all things evolve, is the unity of the three gunas: sattva, rajas and tamas. Sankhya and Yoga are considered an inseparable pair whose principles permeate all of Hinduism.

-       See: prakriti, purusha.

-       Yoga: "Yoking; joining." Ancient tradition of philosophy and practice codified by Patanjali (ca 200 bce) in the Yoga Sutras. It is also known as raja yoga, "king of yogas," or ashtanga yoga, "eight-limbed yoga." Its object is to achieve, at will, the cessation of all fluctuations of consciousness, and the attainment of Self Realization. Yoga is wholly dedicated to putting the high philosophy of Hinduism into practice, to achieve personal transformation through transcendental experience, samadhi.

-       See: yoga.

-       Mimamsa: "Inquiry" (or Purva, "early," Mimamsa). Founded by Jaimini (ca 200 bce), author of the Mimamsa Sutras, who taught the correct performance of Vedic rites as the means to salvation.

-       Vedanta (or Uttara "later" Mimamsa): "End (or culmination) of the Vedas." For Vedanta, the main basis is the Upanishads and Aranyakas (the "end," anta, of the Vedas), rather than the hymns and ritual portions of the Vedas. The teaching of Vedanta is that there is one Absolute Reality, Brahman. Man is one with Brahman, and the object of life is to realize that truth through right knowledge, intuition and personal experience. The Vedanta Sutras (or Brahma Sutras) were composed by Rishi Badarayana (ca 400 bce).

See: Brahma Sutra, padartha, tattva, Vedanta, yoga.

(See also: Shad darshana , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

REINCARNATION

Advanced minds seem to take reincarnation for granted: Plato, Emerson, Edison, Shaw, Jung -- even Nietzsche and Schopenhauer. All life transmigrates -- indeed, not just life, but everything "returns." Many find the latter idea hard to take -- as though there must be not only no mice in the Afterworld, but no machines! Yet, obviously, if one thing evolves, then everything evolves. Molecules of steel and granite cling tenaciously, as do we, to permanence and the spider chooses her life, even as we choose ours, because spiderdom is the acme of her aspirations. Where the will exists, there return exists.

Even if the evolution of life out of the inanimate does not indicate mind apart from brain, even if it demonstrates only the "accidental" fact that things must mutate "upward" or else dissolve downward into entropy, then "mind" or "purpose" is synonymous with or implicit in "accidence" itself. The one apodictic truth is that life and complexification have prevailed, whatever else has not, including the "content" of entropy.

The universe is mind, as we've pointed out elsewhere. The purpose of mind is to know itself, and knowing can succeed only through particularization.

One way to understand metempsychosis is to imagine our poor sublunary lives as pressings onto phonograph records, on the Akasha's etheric record. When the Atma particle, or Oversoul, incarnates, it shuffles off its generalized shell and starts to particularize. In so doing it may, under certain rare and privileged circumstances, find itself able to examine previous akashic recordings in which it formed similar particularizations. The Oversoul itself, however, is made up of all these countless recorded souls. With each experience it grows in metamorphic complexity. In the Oversoul the Whole is greater that its parts -- although when it separates individually the part is naturally greater than the Whole.

The Buddhists hold that there is no "immutable soul." Therefore reincarnation is simply a way of expressing the rebirth of unenlightened mind. Rebirth is then merely like the same sand pouring into different vessels: bucket, goblet, urn, etc. If death is the abandonment of personal self, then the dividing walls between us crumble and memory has access to all former lives. Most people tend to remember only the former lives of the more interesting or arresting personalities: kings, queens, martyrs, monsters, etc. That's why there are so many former Napoleons and Cleopatras and so few kitchenmaids and village idiots.

Finally, we must detach ourselves from the encapsulating Xtian belief in literal "Resurrection." We must understand that the "raising of the dead" is a metaphorical version, not of reincarnation, but of renewal within life. To be reborn of the flesh, of fire, of water and the spirit -- these are its tetramorphic aspects, to be sure, but resurrection, reincarnation and being "born again" are all symbols of the birth or rebirth of the spirit within the "dead" soul of materialistic greed. Rebirth begins before physical death and proceeds post-mortem into actual reincarnation. Reincarnation per se, however, is not acceptable to orthodox Xtianity in the slightest because it neutralizes Salvation.

(See also: REINCARNATION , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

Father Divine

(1878Ð1965)

Born George Baker, he was the Black minister and founder of the Peace Mission Movement in Sayville, New York, in 1932. on of ex-slaves, Divine developed a theology comprised of elements of African-American Christianity, Methodism, Catholicism, Pentecostalism, and the power-of-positive-thinking ideology, New Thought.

He taught that he was God and encouraged followers to channel his spirit to achieve health, prosperity, and salvation. An integrationist, Divine attracted both blacks and whites and campaigned for Civil Rights. During the Depression, disciples opened businesses offering low-priced goods and services, and Peace Missions provided social assistance to the poor.

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

Spiritual Gifts

According to Christian doctrine, special abilities given by God to worthy believers. Every Christian has at least one

Following is a list of the gifts arranged in two groups.

• The first are gifts that require supernatural intervention and are possessed only by true Christians.
• The second are gifts that do not require supernatural intervention. Even non-Christians can have the second group of gifts.

A further issue is whether or not the gifts are still in use today. Some believe they ceased with the apostles and the completion of the writings of the Bible) and they are no longer needed for the building up of the body of Christ (Eph. 4: 12). Others believe the gifts are still in use but not in the pure apostolic sense. In other words, they are still in use but not in the same way possessed by the apostles. Instead, they are available to the believer if and when God decides it is beneficial to use them.

The first group of spiritual gifts are: Salvation, Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, Faith, Healing, Miracles, Prophecy, Distinguishing of Spirits, Tongues, and Interpretation of Tongues.

The second group of spiritual gifts are: Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Giving, Leading, and Showing mercy.

(see Psychic Gifts)

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

Videhamukti: Disembodied salvation; salvation attained by the realised soul after shaking off the physical sheath as opposed to jivanmukti which is liberation even while living.

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

Salvation by Works

The doctrine that eternal life is merited, earned, conditioned, or maintained through human effort, religious ritual, financial donations, obedience to laws/commandments, church membership, and/or moral behavior.

(See also: Salvation by Works , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

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

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Revelation

See also: Revelation , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

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

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Baptism

See also: Baptism , Christianity, Body Mind and Soul

Soteriology

The study of the Christian doctrine of salvation. It is derived from the Greek word soterious which means salvation. Some of the subjects of soteriology are the atonement, imputation, and regeneration.

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