105

Most Sanskrit words and phrases occurring in this book are defined below. All words are transliterated according to the international system; where this transliteration differs significantly from the easier (English-orthographic) transliteration sometimes used by Sri Aurobindo, the easier spelling is given within parentheses and a cross- reference is provided.

For Sanskrit words written in devanāgañ script see Notes on the Texts under the text concerned.

adhama – lowest.

aditi – the Mother of the Gods; the indivisible consciousness-force of the Supreme; supreme Nature or infinite consciousness.

advaitin (Adwaitin) – a Vedantic Monist.

ādyā mahāśakti – the original mahāśakti.

ādyā śakti (Adyashakti) – original Power; the transcendent Mother.

ahamkāra – ego-sense; the divisional principle of ego- formation.

ājñā-cakra – the centre (cakra) between the eyebrows, which governs the dynamic mind, will, vision, mental formation.

amṛtam – Immortality.

anāhata – the heart-lotus, the centre (cakra) that governs the emotional mind and vital mental.

106

ānanda – bliss, delight, beatitude, spiritual ecstasy; the essential principle of delight; a self-delight which is the very nature of the transcendent and infinite existence.

ānandaghanaloka – world of dense bliss.

ānandaloka – world of bliss.

annam – matter.

aparā māyā – the lower māyā.

aparārdba – the lower hemisphere (of world-existence).

asat – Non-Being; Non-Existence; Nothingness.

ātman – Self; Spirit; the original and essential nature of our existence.

AUM – see om.

avatāra – descent (of God in man); Incarnation.

avidyā – the Ignorance; the relative and multiple consciousness.

avyākṛta prakrti (Avyakrita Prakriti) – undifferentiated Nature.

avyakta – unmanifest.

avyakta parātpara – the unmanifest supreme of the Supreme.

Ayodhyā – kingdom ruled by Dasharatha and later by his son Rama.

bhūr – the material world.

bhuvar – world of pure vitality.

brahman – the Reality; the Eternal; the Absolute; the Spirit; the One besides whom there is nothing else existent.

107

caitanyaloka – world of consciousness.

cakra (Chakra) – subtle centre; ganglionic centre in the nervous system.

cid-ātman (Chid-Atman) – Self of consciousness.

cidghanaloka (Chidghanaloka) – world of dense consciousness.

cit (Chit) – consciousness; the principle of pure consciousness.

cit-śakti (Chit-Shakti) – consciousness-force; the divine Energy.

cit-tapas (Chit-Tapas) – consciousness-force; pure energy of consciousness.

dharma – law of being.

esa suptesu jāgarti – this that wakes in the sleepers. (Katha Upanishad 2.2.8)

gati – status of soul-nature; final status of becoming.

guru – teacher; spiritual teacher; guide.

īśvari – she who has mastery; ruling Mother.

jana – the delight that gives birth to life and world; the world of creative delight of existence (in this sense janaloka).

jivamnukta -- living liberated man.

jivanmukti – liberation while living.

jñāna-śakti (Jnana-Shakti) – power of knowledge.

kālī – the divine Mother in her terrible aspect as the destroyer of the demons.

108

kriyā-śakti (Kriya-Shakti) – power of process and action.

Kṛṣṇa (Krishna) – the lord of ānanda, love and bhakti (devotion).

kuvera – the god of riches.

lañkā (Lanca) – island kingdom of Ravana, chief of the demons, where he held Sita after abducting her.

Līlā – play, game; the cosmic play.

līlāmaya – playful; made up of the cosmic play (Līlā).

madbyama – middle.

mahad brahma – the great brahman; the Divine Truth and Vastness.

mahāmāyā – the great māyā.

mahar, mahas – the great world, the world of Truth; the supramental.

mahati vinastih – a great perdition. (Kena Upanishad 2.5)

mahimānam asya – his greatness.

manas – sense-mind; mind.

manipūra – the navel centre (cakra); it is the life-force centre, governing the larger vital proper.

manomayah prāna-śarlra-netā – the mental Being, leader of the life and body. (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.8)

manu – mental being.

māyā – signified originally in the Veda the comprehensive and creative knowledge; afterwards taken in its second and derivative sense: cunning, magic, illusion; the cosmic illusion; phenomenal consciousness.

109

māyāvāda – the doctrine holding that the world is māyā, i.e. Illusion.

māyāvādin – one who professes the māyāvāda; Illusionist.

mūlādhāra – root vessel or chamber; the physical consciousness centre (cakra); it is the material support of the vital and governs the physical down to the subconscient.

nirvikalpa samādhi – absolute trance.

om – the mantra or expressive sound symbol of the brahman in its four domains from the turīya to the external or material plane (i.e. the outward looking, the inward or subtle, and the superconscient causal – each letter A, U, M, indicating one of these three in ascending order and the whole bringing out the fourth state, turīya).

om tat sat – om, That is the thing that Is.

Parabrahman – the supreme brahman; the Divine.

parā māyā – Supreme formative power; higher divine Nature.

parameśvara (Parameshwara) – supreme Lord.

parameśvarī (Parameshwari) – the supreme īśvarī.

parā prakrti (Para Prakriti) – the supreme Nature.

para-purusa (Parapurusha) – supreme Soul; God.

parā śakti – the supreme power.

parātpara – the supreme of the Supreme.

parātpara brahman – brahman higher than the highest.

prajñā prasrtā purānī – Wisdom that went forth from the

110

beginning. (Shwetashwatara Upanishad 4.18)

prakrti (Prakriti) – Nature; Nature-Soul; executive or working force.

prakrtim yanti bhutani, nigrahah kim karisyati – all existences follow their nature and what shall coercing it avail? (Gita 3.33)

prāna – the life-force, life; the five prānas: the five workings of the life-force (in man’s body).

pūrna yoga – the integral yoga.

purusa (Purusha) – Person; Conscious Being; Conscious- Soul; Soul; essential being supporting the play of prakrti.

Rāma – son of Dasharatha, king of Ayodhya; considered to be an incarnation of Vishnu.

rsi (Rishi) – a seer.

sā – she.

sabasradala – the highest of the cakras, the thousand- petalled lotus; initiative centre of the illumined mind.

saccidānanda (sachchidananda) – the Divine Being, a trinity of Existence (sat), Consciousness (cit) and Delight (ānanda).

sadghanaloka – world of dense existence.

sah – he.

śakti (Shakti) – Energy, Force, Strength, Will, Power; the self-existent, self-cognitive, self-effective Power of the Lord.

sama – even; equal.

111

samrāt – all-ruler.

śārdūla – tiger.

śāstra (Shastra) – scripture.

sat – being, existence; the Existent.

sat purusa – the pure divine Self; God.

sāttvika (sattwic) – consisting of light and poise and peace.

satyaloka – world of (the highest) truth of being.

satyam – truth; truth of being.

satyam rtam brhat (Satyam Ritam Brihat) – the Truth, the Right, the Vast.

Shakti – see śakti.

Shastra – see śāstra.

siddha – perfect; perfected.

siddha purusa – a perfect being; the superman.

Sītā – daughter of king Janaka and wife of Rama.

śreyān svadharmo vigunah – better is one’s own law of works, though in itself faulty... (Gita 3.35)

śūnya – zero; void.

susupti – deep sleep; the Sleep-State.

svādhisthāna – the penultimate centre (cakra), located between the navel and the mulādhāra; it governs the lower vital.

svar (Swar) – world corresponding to the principle of pure or unobscured mind.

112 svarāt (Swarat) – self-ruler.

tad vā etat – that indeed is this.

tapas – heat, energism; the essential principle of energy.

tapasyā – effort, energism, austerity of the personal will; concentration of the will and energy for any yogic or other high purpose.

tapoghanaloka – world of dense tapas.

tapoloka – world of tapas; world of infinite Will or conscious force.

tat – that (the Absolute).

turīya – the fourth; the fourth plane of our consciousness; the superconscient.

uttama – highest.

vairāgya – distaste; disgust (with the world).

vibhūti – divine power; a power of God in man, embodied World-Force or human leader.

vijñāna – Pure Idea; the free spiritual or divine intelligence; Gnosis; Supermind.

vijñāloka – the world of vijñāna; the supramental world.

vijñāneśvara (Vijnaneshwara) – the Lord of the vijñāna.

vijñāneśvarī (Vijnaneshwari) – the īśvari of the vijñāna.

viśuddha – the throat centre (cakra); it governs speech, external mind, all external expression and formation.

vyāhrti – each of the three symbolic words of the mantra: (om) bhūr bhuvah svah.

vyāvahārika artha – practical value.

112

yayedam dhāryate jagat – by which this world is upheld. (Gita 7.5)

yoga – union; the union of the soul with the immortal being and consciousness and delight of the Divine; a methodised effort towards this union and towards self- perfection.

yogah hi prabhavāpyayau – for yoga is the beginning and ending of things. (Katha Upanishad 2.3.11)