Vaishnavism Dictionary

divine incarnation: The concept of avatara. The Supreme Being's (or other Mahadeva's) taking of human birth, generally to reestablish dharma. This doctrine is important to several Hindu sects, notably Vaishnavism, but not held by most Saivites.

See: avatara, avatar, Vaishnavism.

(See also: Divine incarnation , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

avatara: (Sanskrit) "Descent." A God born in a human (or animal) body. A central concept of Shaktism, Smartism and Vaishnavism. See: incarnation, Ishta Devata, Vaishnavism.

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

Chaitanya: (Sanskrit) A renowned Vaishnava saint (1485 - 1534), revered today especially in Bengal and Orissa, remembered for his ecstatic states of devotion.

He taught a dualistic philosophy in which bhakti (devotion) to the divine couple Radha and Krishna is the only means to liberation. Practice revolves mainly around kirtana, devotional singing and dancing. He gave prominence to the Gaudiya Vaishnava sect, of which several branches thrive today, including ISKCON. See: Krishna, Vaishnavism, Vedanta.

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

bhakti yoga: n (Sanskrit) "Union through devotion." Bhakti yoga is the practice of devotional disciplines, worship, prayer, chanting and singing with the aim of awakening love in the heart and opening oneself to God's grace. Bhakti may be directed toward God, Gods or one's spiritual preceptor.

Bhakti yoga seeks communion and ever closer rapport with the Divine, developing qualities that make communion possible, such as love, selflessness and purity. Saint Sambandar described bhakti as religion's essence and the surest means to divine union and liberation. He advised heartfelt worship, unstinting devotion and complete surrender to God in humble, committed service. From the beginning practice of bhakti to advanced devotion, called prapatti, self-effacement is an intricate part of Hindu, even all Indian, culture.

Bhakti yoga is embodied in Patanjali's Yoga Darshana in the second limb, niyamas (observances), as devotion (Ishvarapranidhana). Bhakti yoga is practiced in many Hindu schools, and highly developed in Vaishnavism as a spiritual path in itself, leading to perfection and liberation. In Saiva Siddhanta, its cultivation is the primary focus during the kriya pada (stage of worship).

See: bhakti yoga, prapatti, sacrifice, surrender, yajna.

(See also: Bhakti yoga , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Andal: (Tamil) Famed Vaishnava saint of Tamil Nadu. One of the Alvars, she lived in the early 9th century and today is venerated as one of South India's greatest bhakta poetesses. See: Alvar, Vaishnavism.

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

Andhra Pradesh (Pradesha): (Sanskrit) Modern Indian state located on the southeast coast of India north of Tamil Nadu. The capital is Hyderabad. Language: Telegu. Dominant faith: Vaishnavism. Area: 106,000 square miles. Population 54 million. Famous for its opulent Tirupati Vaishnava temple.

(See also: Andhra Pradesh (Pradesha): , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Alvar: (Tamil) "One who rules the Lord through bhakti." A group of renowned saints of the Vaishnava religion (7th9th century), devotional mystics whose lives and teachings catalyzed to a resurgence of Vaishnavism in Tamil Nadu. Their devotional poems are embodied in the Nalayiram Divya Prabandham, containing about 4,000 hymns. Among the 12 most famous Alvars are Poykai, Pudam, Tirumalisai, Nammalvar, Kulashekhara, Andal, Tiruppan and Tirumangai. A term not to be confused with Nalvar, naming the four Samayacharya Saivite saints: Appar, Sundarar, Sambandar and Manikkavasagar, who were their contemporaries. See: Nalvar, Nayanar.

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

Vishnu: (Sanskrit) "The All-Pervasive." Supreme Deity of

the Vaishnavite religion. God as personal Lord and

Creator, the All-Loving Divine Personality, who

periodically incarnates and lives a fully human life to reestablish dharma whenever necessary. In Saivism,

Vishnu is Siva's aspect as Preserver.

See: Vaishnavism.

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

maya: (Sanskrit) "Consisting of; made of," as in manomaya, "made of mind."

From the verb root ma, "to measure, to limit, give form." The principle of appearance or manifestation of God's power or "mirific energy," "that which measures." The substance emanated from Siva through which the world of form is manifested. Hence all creation is also termed maya. It is the cosmic creative force, the principle of manifestation, ever in the process of creation, preservation and dissolution.

See: loka, mind (universal), mirific.

The Upanishads underscore maya's captivating nature, which blinds souls to the transcendent Truth. In Shankara's Vedantic interpretation, maya is taken as pure illusion or unreality. In Saivism it is one of the three bonds (pasha) that limit the soul and thereby facilitate its evolution. For Saivites and most other nondualists, it is understood not as illusion but as relative reality, in contrast to the unchanging Absolute Reality.

In the Saiva Siddhanta system, there are three main divisions of maya, the pure, the pure-impure and the impure realms. Pure or shuddha maya consists of the first five tattvas - Siva tattva, Shakti tattva, Sadasiva tattva, Ishvara tattva and Shuddhavidya tattva. The pure-impure realm consists of the next seven tattvas. The impure realm consists of the maya tattva and all of its evolutes - from the kala tattva to prithivi, the element earth. Thus, in relation to the physical universe, maya is the principle of ever-changing matter. In Vaishnavism, maya is one of the nine Shaktis of Vishnu.

See: loka, mind (universal), mirific, tattva, world.

(See also: Maya , Hinduism, 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)

Bhagavata: n (Sanskrit) "Relating to God or a God holy; sacred, divine." Pertaining to Vishnu or Krishna. From bhaga, "Gracious lord; patron; good fortune." The name of a sect of Vaishnavism which arose in the Western part of India after 600 bce. A highly devotional monotheistic faith worshiping God as Krishna, Vasudeva or Vasudeva- Krishna. It is believed by scholars to have been one of five religions (along with the Ekantika, Narayaniya, Vaikhanasa and Satvata) that blended to form what was called the Pancharatra religion in the vicinity of Mathura around 300 bce. Today, the term Bhagavata is often used to refer to the Vaishnavite religion as a whole. See: Pancharatra,Vaishnavism.

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

avatara: (Sanskrit) "Descent." A God born in a human (or animal) body. A central concept of Shaktism, Smartism and Vaishnavism. See: incarnation, Ishta Devata, Vaishnavism.

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

Appaya Dikshita: (Sanskrit) Philosophical genius of South India (1554-1626) who worked to reconcile Vaishnavism and Saivism, advancing the Siva Advaita school of Saivism by his writings, and bolstering other schools by his brilliant summations of their philosophies. He is best known for his commentaries on the teachings of Srikantha. Appaya Dikshita also created a manual of Saiva temple ritual still in use today. See: Siva Advaita.

(See also: Appaya Dikshita , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Pancharatra: (Sanskrit) An ancient name of Vaishnavism. The term literally means "five nights," but may be a corruption of pancharatha ("five vehicles, ways or paths"), thought to indicate five ancient sects in the vicinity of Mathura that eventually merged into one with the worship of Krishna.

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

Vaishnavas:

Worshippers of Lord Vishnu or Lord Krishna, since it is believed that the one comes from the other. Vaishnavas worship Lord Krishna or Lord Vishnu because He is supreme. All other gods come from Him. Scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita and the Bhagavat, Vishnu, Garuda Puranas to name a few, recommend Vaishnavism as the supreme Snatana dharma of the jiva soul.

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

Sivakarnamrita: (Sanskrit) A text by Appaya Dikshita (15541626) written to reestablish the superiority of God Siva in the face of widespread conversion to Vaishnavism.

See: Appaya Dikshita.

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

Vaikuntha: (Sanskrit) "Vishnu's heaven."

See:

Vaishnavism.

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

Vaishnavite: Of or relating to Vishnu; same as

Vaishnava. A follower of Vishnu or His incarnations.

See:

Vaishnavism, Vishnu.

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

nastika: (Sanskrit) "One who denies; unbeliever." Opposite of astika, "one who asserts."

The terms astika (orthodox) and nastika (unorthodox) are a traditional classification of Indian schools of thought. Nastika refers to all traditions that reject and deny the scriptural authority of the Vedas. This includes Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, the Charvaka materialists and others. Astika refers to those schools that accept the revealed authority of the Vedas as supreme scripture. This includes the four major sects: Saivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Smartism.

See: atheism, Charvaka, materialism.

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

Namo Narayanaya: (Sanskrit) "Salutations to Lord Vishnu." The great mantra of the Vaishnava faith. Also a popular greeting among Vaishnavites and Smartas.

See: Vaishnavism, Vishnu.

(See also: Namo Narayanaya , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)