1.
Sanskrit
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Sanskrit is the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, a philosophical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, and a literary language and lingua franca of ancient and medieval South Asia. As a result of transmission of Hindu and Buddhist culture to Southeast Asia and parts of Central Asia, as one of the oldest Indo-European languages for which substantial written documentation exists, Sanskrit holds a prominent position in Indo-European studies. The body of Sanskrit literature encompasses a rich tradition of poetry and drama as well as scientific, technical, philosophical, the compositions of Sanskrit were orally transmitted for much of its early history by methods of memorization of exceptional complexity, rigor, and fidelity. Thereafter, variants and derivatives of the Brahmi script came to be used, Sanskrit is today one of the 22 languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, which mandates the Indian government to develop the language. It continues to be used as a ceremonial language in Hindu religious rituals and Buddhist practice in the form of hymns. The Sanskrit verbal adjective sáṃskṛta- may be translated as refined, elaborated, as a term for refined or elaborated speech, the adjective appears only in Epic and Classical Sanskrit in the Manusmṛti and the Mahabharata. The pre-Classical form of Sanskrit is known as Vedic Sanskrit, with the language of the Rigveda being the oldest and most archaic stage preserved, Classical Sanskrit is the standard register as laid out in the grammar of Pāṇini, around the fourth century BCE. Sanskrit, as defined by Pāṇini, evolved out of the earlier Vedic form, the present form of Vedic Sanskrit can be traced back to as early as the second millennium BCE. Scholars often distinguish Vedic Sanskrit and Classical or Pāṇinian Sanskrit as separate dialects, although they are quite similar, they differ in a number of essential points of phonology, vocabulary, grammar and syntax. Vedic Sanskrit is the language of the Vedas, a collection of hymns, incantations and theological and religio-philosophical discussions in the Brahmanas. Modern linguists consider the metrical hymns of the Rigveda Samhita to be the earliest, for nearly 2000 years, Sanskrit was the language of a cultural order that exerted influence across South Asia, Inner Asia, Southeast Asia, and to a certain extent East Asia. A significant form of post-Vedic Sanskrit is found in the Sanskrit of Indian epic poetry—the Ramayana, the deviations from Pāṇini in the epics are generally considered to be on account of interference from Prakrits, or innovations, and not because they are pre-Paninian. Traditional Sanskrit scholars call such deviations ārṣa, meaning of the ṛṣis, in some contexts, there are also more prakritisms than in Classical Sanskrit proper. There were four principal dialects of classical Sanskrit, paścimottarī, madhyadeśī, pūrvi, the predecessors of the first three dialects are attested in Vedic Brāhmaṇas, of which the first one was regarded as the purest. In the 2001 Census of India,14,035 Indians reported Sanskrit to be their first language, in India, Sanskrit is among the 14 original languages of the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. The state of Uttarakhand in India has ruled Sanskrit as its official language. In October 2012 social activist Hemant Goswami filed a petition in the Punjab. More than 3,000 Sanskrit works have been composed since Indias independence in 1947, much of this work has been judged of high quality, in comparison to both classical Sanskrit literature and modern literature in other Indian languages
2.
Indian religions
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These religions are also classified as Eastern religions. Although Indian religions are connected through the history of India, they constitute a wide range of religious communities, evidence attesting to prehistoric religion in the Indian subcontinent derives from scattered Mesolithic rock paintings. The Harappan people of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which lasted from 3300 to 1300 BCE, had an early urbanised culture which predates the Vedic religion. The documented history of Indian religions begins with the historical Vedic religion, the practices of the early Indo-Iranians. The period of the composition, redaction and commentary of these texts is known as the Vedic period, the Reform or Shramanic Period between 800–200 BCE marks a turning point between the Vedic religion and Hindu religions. This period also saw the writing of the Upanishads and the rise of Vedanta, the early Islamic period also gave rise to new movements. Sikhism was founded in the 15th century on the teachings of Guru Nanak, the vast majority of its adherents originate in the Punjab region. With the colonial dominance of the British a reinterpretation and synthesis of Hinduism arose, james Mill, in his The History of British India, distinguished three phases in the history of India, namely Hindu, Muslim and British civilisations. This periodisation has been criticised, for the misconceptions it has given rise to, another periodisation is the division into ancient, classical, medieval and modern periods, although this periodization has also received criticism. The division in Ancient-Medieval-Modern overlooks the fact that the Muslim-conquests took place between the eight and the century, while the south was never completely conquered. According to Thapar, a periodisation could also be based on significant social and economic changes, smart and Michaels seem to follow Mills periodisation, while Flood and Muesse follow the ancient, classical, mediaeval and modern periods periodisation. Evidence attesting to prehistoric religion in the Indian subcontinent derives from scattered Mesolithic rock paintings such as at Bhimbetka, depicting dances, neolithic agriculturalists inhabiting the Indus River Valley buried their dead in a manner suggestive of spiritual practices that incorporated notions of an afterlife and belief in magic. Marshalls interpretations have been debated, and sometimes disputed over the following decades. One Indus valley seal shows a seated, possibly ithyphallic and tricephalic, figure with a horned headdress, surrounded by animals. Marshall identified the figure as a form of the Hindu god Shiva, who is associated with asceticism, yoga, and linga, regarded as a lord of animals. The seal has hence come to be known as the Pashupati Seal, after Pashupati, while Marshalls work has earned some support, many critics and even supporters have raised several objections. Doris Srinivasan has argued that the figure does not have three faces, or yogic posture, and that in Vedic literature Rudra was not a protector of wild animals. Despite the criticisms of Marshalls association of the seal with a proto-Shiva icon, historians like Heinrich Zimmer, Thomas McEvilley are of the opinion that there exists some link between first Jain Tirthankara Rishabha & Indus Valley civilisation
3.
Reincarnation
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Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different physical body or form after each biological death. It is also called rebirth or transmigration, and is a part of the Saṃsāra doctrine of cyclic existence and it is a central tenet of all major Indian religions, namely Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. The idea of reincarnation is found in ancient cultures, and a belief in rebirth/metempsychosis was held by Greek historic figures, such as Pythagoras, Socrates. Unity Church and its founder Charles Fillmore teach reincarnation, in recent decades, many Europeans and North Americans have developed an interest in reincarnation, and many contemporary works mention it. The word reincarnation derives from Latin, literally meaning, entering the flesh again, the Greek equivalent metempsychosis derives from meta and empsykhoun, a term attributed to Pythagoras. An alternate term is transmigration implying migration from one life to another, the term has been used by modern philosophers such as Kurt Gödel and has entered the English language. Another Greek term sometimes used synonymously is palingenesis, being born again, Rebirth is a key concept found in major Indian religions, and discussed with various terms. These religions believe that this reincarnation is cyclic and an endless Saṃsāra and they consider the release from the cycle of reincarnations as the ultimate spiritual goal, and call the liberation by terms such as moksha, nirvana, mukti and kaivalya. Gilgul, Gilgul neshamot or Gilgulei Ha Neshamot refers to the concept of reincarnation in Kabbalistic Judaism, Gilgul means cycle and neshamot is souls. Kabbalistic reincarnation says that humans only to humans and to the same sex only. The origins of the notion of reincarnation are obscure, discussion of the subject appears in the philosophical traditions of India. The Greek Pre-Socratics discussed reincarnation, and the Celtic Druids are also reported to have taught a doctrine of reincarnation, the ideas associated with reincarnation may have arisen independently in different regions, or they might have spread as a result of cultural contact. In ancient European, Iranian and Indian agricultural cultures, the cycles of birth, death. The idea of reincarnation has early roots in the Vedic period, predating the Buddha, the concepts of the cycle of birth and death, samsara, and liberation partly derive from ascetic traditions that arose in India around the middle of the first millennium BCE. Though no direct evidence of this has found, the tribes of the Ganges valley or the Dravidian traditions of South India have been proposed as another early source of reincarnation beliefs. Hinduisms Rigveda makes references to reincarnation in the Brahmanas layer, though these early textual layers of the Vedas, from 2nd millennium BCE, mention and anticipate the doctrine of Karma and rebirth, the idea is not fully developed. It is in the early Upanishads, which are pre-Buddha and pre-Mahavira, the texts of ancient Jainism that have survived into the modern era are post-Mahavira, likely from the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE, and extensively mention rebirth and karma doctrines. The Jaina philosophy assumes that the soul exists and is eternal, passing through cycles of transmigration, after death, reincarnation into a new body is asserted to be instantaneous in early Jaina texts
4.
Vedas
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The Vedas are a large body of knowledge texts originating in the ancient Indian subcontinent. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature, Hindus consider the Vedas to be apauruṣeya, which means not of a man, superhuman and impersonal, authorless. Vedas are also called śruti literature, distinguishing them from religious texts. The Veda, for orthodox Indian theologians, are considered revelations seen by ancient sages after intense meditation, in the Hindu Epic the Mahabharata, the creation of Vedas is credited to Brahma. The Vedic hymns themselves assert that they were created by Rishis, after inspired creativity. There are four Vedas, the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda, each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the Samhitas, the Aranyakas, the Brahmanas, and the Upanishads. Some scholars add a fifth category – the Upasanas, the various Indian philosophies and denominations have taken differing positions on the Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy which cite the Vedas as their authority are classified as orthodox. Other śramaṇa traditions, such as Lokayata, Carvaka, Ajivika, Buddhism and Jainism, despite their differences, just like the texts of the śramaṇa traditions, the layers of texts in the Vedas discuss similar ideas and concepts. The Sanskrit word véda knowledge, wisdom is derived from the root vid- to know and this is reconstructed as being derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *u̯eid-, meaning see or know. The noun is from Proto-Indo-European *u̯eidos, cognate to Greek εἶδος aspect, not to be confused is the homonymous 1st and 3rd person singular perfect tense véda, cognate to Greek οἶδα oida I know. Root cognates are Greek ἰδέα, English wit, etc, the Sanskrit term veda as a common noun means knowledge. The term in some contexts, such as hymn 10.93.11 of the Rigveda, means obtaining or finding wealth, property, a related word Vedena appears in hymn 8.19.5 of the Rigveda. It was translated by Ralph T. H. Griffith as ritual lore, as studying the Veda by the 14th century Indian scholar Sayana, as bundle of grass by Max Müller, Vedas are called Maṛai or Vaymoli in parts of South India. Marai literally means hidden, a secret, mystery, in some south Indian communities such as Iyengars, the word Veda includes the Tamil writings of the Alvar saints, such as Divya Prabandham, for example Tiruvaymoli. The Vedas are among the oldest sacred texts, the Samhitas date to roughly 1700–1100 BC, and the circum-Vedic texts, as well as the redaction of the Samhitas, date to c. 1000-500 BC, resulting in a Vedic period, spanning the mid 2nd to mid 1st millennium BC, or the Late Bronze Age, Michael Witzel gives a time span of c.1500 to c. Witzel makes special reference to the Near Eastern Mitanni material of the 14th century BC the only record of Indo-Aryan contemporary to the Rigvedic period
5.
Upanishads
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The Upanishads are a collection of ancient Sanskrit texts that contain some of the central philosophical concepts of Hinduism, some of which are shared with Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Early Upanishads are considered by Hindus as part of their scriptures that discuss the nature of ultimate reality, the Upanishads are commonly referred to as Vedānta, variously interpreted to mean either the last chapters, parts of the Veda or the object, the highest purpose of the Veda. The concepts of Brahman and Ātman are central ideas in all the Upanishads, the Upanishads are the foundation of Hindu philosophical thought and its diverse traditions. Of the Vedic corpus, they alone are known. More than 200 Upanishads are known, of which the first dozen or so are the oldest and most important and are referred to as the principal or main Upanishads. The mukhya Upanishads are found mostly in the part of the Brahmanas and Aranyakas and were, for centuries, memorized by each generation. The early Upanishads all predate the Common Era, five of them in all likelihood pre-Buddhist, of the remainder, some 95 Upanishads are part of the Muktika canon, composed from about the last centuries of 1st-millennium BCE through about 15th-century CE. New Upanishads, beyond the 108 in the Muktika canon, continued to be composed through the modern and modern era. Along with the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahmasutra, the mukhya Upanishads provide a foundation for the later schools of Vedanta, among them. With the translation of the Upanishads in the early 19th century they started to attract attention from a western audience. Arthur Schopenhauer was deeply impressed by the Upanishads and called it the production of the highest human wisdom, modern era Indologists have discussed the similarities between the fundamental concepts in the Upanishads and major western philosophers. The Sanskrit term Upaniṣad translates to sitting down near, referring to the student sitting down near the teacher while receiving esoteric knowledge, monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary adds that, According to native authorities Upanishad means setting to rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit. Adi Shankara explains in his commentary on the Kaṭha and Brihadaranyaka Upanishad that the word means Ātmavidyā, other dictionary meanings include esoteric doctrine and secret doctrine. The word appears in the verses of many Upanishads, such as the verse of the 13th volume in first chapter of the Chandogya Upanishad. The authorship of most Upanishads is uncertain and unknown, Radhakrishnan states, almost all the early literature of India was anonymous, we do not know the names of the authors of the Upanishads. The Vedic texts themselves assert that they were created by Rishis, after inspired creativity. Women, such as Maitreyi and Gargi participate in the dialogues and are credited in the early Upanishads. There are exceptions to the tradition of the Upanishads and other Vedic literature
6.
Buddhism
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Buddhism is a religion and dharma that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and spiritual practices largely based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. Buddhism originated in India sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE, from where it spread through much of Asia, two major extant branches of Buddhism are generally recognized by scholars, Theravada and Mahayana. Buddhism is the worlds fourth-largest religion, with over 500 million followers or 7% of the global population, Buddhist schools vary on the exact nature of the path to liberation, the importance and canonicity of various teachings and scriptures, and especially their respective practices. In Theravada the ultimate goal is the attainment of the state of Nirvana, achieved by practicing the Noble Eightfold Path, thus escaping what is seen as a cycle of suffering. Theravada has a following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. Mahayana, which includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Shingon, rather than Nirvana, Mahayana instead aspires to Buddhahood via the bodhisattva path, a state wherein one remains in the cycle of rebirth to help other beings reach awakening. Vajrayana, a body of teachings attributed to Indian siddhas, may be viewed as a branch or merely a part of Mahayana. Tibetan Buddhism, which preserves the Vajrayana teachings of eighth century India, is practiced in regions surrounding the Himalayas, Tibetan Buddhism aspires to Buddhahood or rainbow body. Buddhism is an Indian religion attributed to the teachings of Buddha, the details of Buddhas life are mentioned in many early Buddhist texts but are inconsistent, his social background and life details are difficult to prove, the precise dates uncertain. Some hagiographic legends state that his father was a king named Suddhodana, his mother queen Maya, and he was born in Lumbini gardens. Some of the stories about Buddha, his life, his teachings, Buddha was moved by the innate suffering of humanity. He meditated on this alone for a period of time, in various ways including asceticism, on the nature of suffering. He famously sat in meditation under a Ficus religiosa tree now called the Bodhi Tree in the town of Bodh Gaya in Gangetic plains region of South Asia. He reached enlightenment, discovering what Buddhists call the Middle Way, as an enlightened being, he attracted followers and founded a Sangha. Now, as the Buddha, he spent the rest of his teaching the Dharma he had discovered. Dukkha is a concept of Buddhism and part of its Four Noble Truths doctrine. It can be translated as incapable of satisfying, the unsatisfactory nature, the Four Truths express the basic orientation of Buddhism, we crave and cling to impermanent states and things, which is dukkha, incapable of satisfying and painful. This keeps us caught in saṃsāra, the cycle of repeated rebirth, dukkha
7.
Jainism
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Jainism, traditionally known as Jain Dharma, is an ancient Indian religion belonging to the śramaṇa tradition. The central tenet is non-violence and respect all living beings. The three main principles of Jainism are ahimsa, anekantavada and aparigraha, followers of Jainism take five main vows, ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha. Jain monks and nuns observe these vows absolutely whereas householders observe them within their practical limitations, self-discipline and asceticism are thus major focuses of Jainism. The word Jain derives from the Sanskrit word jina, a human being who has conquered all inner passions like attachment, desire, anger, pride, greed, etc. is called Jina. Followers of the path practiced and preached by the jinas are known as Jains, Parasparopagraho Jivanam is the motto of Jainism. Jains trace their history through a succession of teachers and revivers of the Jain path known as Tirthankaras. In the current era, this started with Rishabhdeva and concluded with Mahavira, Jains believe that Jainism is eternal and while it may be forgotten, it will be revived from time to time. The majority of Jains reside in India, with 6-7 million followers, Jainism is smaller than many other major world religions. Outside of India, some of the largest Jain communities are present in Canada, Europe, Kenya, the UK, Suriname, Fiji, contemporary Jainism is divided into two major sects, Digambara and Śvētāmbara. Namokar Mantra is the most common and basic prayer in Jainism, major Jain festivals include Paryushana and Daslakshana, Mahavir Jayanti, and Diwali. The principle of ahimsa is the most fundamental and well-known aspect of Jainism, the everyday implementation of the principle of non-violence is more comprehensive than in other religions and is the hallmark for Jain identity. Jains believe in avoiding harm to others thoughts, speech. According to the Jain text, Purushartha Siddhyupaya, killing any living being out of passions is hiṃsā, Jains extend the practice of nonviolence and kindness not only towards other humans but towards all living beings. For this reason, vegetarianism is a hallmark of Jain identity, if there is violence against animals during the production of dairy products, veganism is encouraged. Jainism has an elaborate framework on types of life and includes life-forms that may be invisible. Therefore, after humans and animals, insects are the living being offered protection in Jain practice. For example, insects in the home are often escorted out instead of killed, Jainism teaches that intentional harm and the absence of compassion make an action more violent
8.
Karma
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Karma means action, work or deed, it also refers to the spiritual principle of cause and effect where intent and actions of an individual influence the future of that individual. Good intent and good deed contribute to good karma and future happiness, while bad intent and bad deed contribute to bad karma, Karma is closely associated with the idea of rebirth in many schools of Asian religions. In these schools, karma in the present affects ones future in the current life, as well as the nature, with origins in ancient India, karma is a key concept in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Taoism. Karma is the deed, work, action, or act, and it is also the object. Halbfass explains karma by contrasting it with another Sanskrit word kriya, a good action creates good karma, as does good intent. A bad action creates bad karma, as does bad intent, Karma, also refers to a conceptual principle that originated in India, often descriptively called the principle of karma, sometimes as the karma theory or the law of karma. In the context of theory, karma is complex and difficult to define, other Indologists include in the definition of karma theory that which explains the present circumstances of an individual with reference to his or her actions in past. The law of karma operates independent of any deity or any process of divine judgment, Buddhism and Jainism have their own karma precepts. Thus karma has not one, but multiple definitions and different meanings and it is a concept whose meaning, importance and scope varies between Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and other traditions that originated in India, and various schools in each of these traditions. OFlaherty claims that, furthermore, there is a debate regarding whether karma is a theory, a model, a paradigm. Karma theory as a concept, across different Indian religious traditions, shares common themes, causality, ethicization. A common theme to theories of karma is its principle of causality, one of the earliest association of karma to causality occurs in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad of Hinduism. For example, at 4.4. 5-6, it states, The relationship of karma to causality is a motif in all schools of Hindu, Jain. Disinterested actions, or unintentional actions do not have the positive or negative karmic effect, as interested. Another causality characteristic, shared by Karmic theories, is that like deeds lead to like effects, thus good karma produces good effect on the actor, while bad karma produces bad effect. This effect may be material, moral or emotional — that is, the effect of karma need not be immediate, the effect of karma can be later in ones current life, and in some schools it extends to future lives. The consequence or effects of karma can be described in two forms, phalas and samskaras. A phala is the visible or invisible effect that is typically immediate or within the current life, the theory of karma is often presented in the context of samskaras
9.
Moksha
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Moksha, also called vimoksha, vimukti and mukti, is a term in Hinduism and Hindu philosophy which refers to various forms of emancipation, liberation, and release. In its soteriological and eschatological senses, it refers to freedom from saṃsāra, in its epistemological and psychological senses, moksha refers to freedom from ignorance, self-realization and self-knowledge. In Hindu traditions, moksha is a concept and included as one of the four aspects and goals of human life. Together, these four aims of life are called Puruṣārtha in Hinduism, the concept of moksha is found in Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. In some schools of Indian religions, moksha is considered equivalent to and used interchangeably with terms such as vimoksha, vimukti, kaivalya, apavarga, mukti, nihsreyasa. However, terms such as moksha and nirvana differ and mean different states between various schools of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, the term nirvana is more common in Buddhism, while moksha is more prevalent in Hinduism. Moksha is derived from the root Sanskrit, मुच्, muc, in Vedas and early Upanishads, the word Sanskrit, मुच्यते, mucyate appears, which means to be set free or release - such as of a horse from its harness. The definition and meaning of moksha varies between schools of Indian religions. Moksha means freedom, liberation, from what and how is where the schools differ, Moksha is also a concept that means liberation from rebirth or saṃsāra. This liberation can be attained while one is on earth, or eschatologically, some Indian traditions have emphasized liberation on concrete, ethical action within the world. This liberation is a transformation that permits one to see the truth. For example, Vivekachudamani - an ancient book on moksha, explains one of many steps on the path to moksha, as. Samsara originated with religious movements in the first millennium BCE and these movements such as Buddhism, Jainism and new schools within Hinduism, saw human life as bondage to a repeated process of rebirth. This bondage to repeated rebirth and life, each subject to injury, disease. By release from this cycle, the involved in this cycle also ended. This release was called moksha, nirvana, kaivalya, mukti, in earliest Vedic literature, heaven and hell sufficed soteriological curiosities. The rebirth idea ultimately flowered into the ideas of saṃsāra, or transmigration - where one’s balance sheet of karma determined one’s rebirth, along with this idea of saṃsāra, the ancient scholars developed the concept of moksha, as a state that released a person from the saṃsāra cycle. Moksha release in eschatological sense in these ancient literature of Hinduism, suggests van Buitenen, comes from self-knowledge, the meaning of moksha in epistemological and psychological sense has been variously explained by scholars
10.
Nirvana
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Nirvāṇa literally means blown out, as in an oil lamp. The term nirvana is most commonly associated with Buddhism, and represents its ultimate state of soteriological release, in Indian religions, nirvana is synonymous with moksha and mukti. All Indian religions assert it to be a state of perfect quietude, freedom, highest happiness along with it being the liberation from samsara, however, Buddhist and non-Buddhist traditions describe these terms for liberation differently. In the Buddhist context, nirvana refers to realization of non-self and emptiness, in Hindu philosophy, it is the union of or the realization of the identity of Atman with Brahman, depending on the Hindu tradition. In Jainism, it is also the goal, it represents the release of a soul from karmic bondage. The word nirvāṇa, states Steven Collins, is from the verbal root √vā blow in the form of past participle vāna blown, hence the original meaning of the word is blown out, extinguished. Sandhi changes the spelling, the v of vāna causes nis to become nir, the term nirvana in the soteriological sense of blown out, extinguished state of liberation does not appear in the Vedas nor in the pre-Buddhist Upanishads. According to Collins, the Buddhists seem to have been the first to call it nirvana, nirvāṇa is a term found in the texts of all major Indian religions – Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism. It refers to the peace of mind that is acquired with moksha, liberation from samsara, or release from a state of suffering. The hope for life after death started with notions of going to the worlds of the Fathers or Ancestors and/or the world of the Gods or Heaven. The earliest layers of Vedic text incorporate the concept of life, followed by an afterlife in heaven, however, the ancient Vedic Rishis challenged this idea of afterlife as simplistic, because people do not live an equally moral or immoral life. Between generally virtuous lives, some are more virtuous, while evil too has degrees, the Vedic thinkers introduced the idea of an afterlife in heaven or hell in proportion to ones merit, and when this runs out, one returns and is reborn. The idea of rebirth following running out of merit appears in Buddhist texts as well, the Samsara, the life after death, and what impacts rebirth came to be seen as dependent on karma. The liberation from Saṃsāra developed as a goal and soteriological value in the Indian culture. This basic scheme underlies Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, where the aim is the timeless state of moksa, or, as the Buddhists first seem to have called it. Although the term occurs in the literatures of a number of ancient Indian traditions and it was later adopted by other Indian religions, but with different meanings and description, such as in the Hindu text Bhagavad Gita of the Mahabharata. Nirvana literally means blowing out or quenching and it is the most used as well as the earliest term to describe the soteriological goal in Buddhism, release from the cycle of rebirth. Nirvana is part of the Third Truth on cessation of dukkha in the Four Noble Truths doctrine of Buddhism and it is the goal of the Noble Eightfold Path
11.
Rigveda
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The Rigveda is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns. It is one of the four sacred texts of Hinduism known as the Vedas. The text is a collection of 1,028 hymns and 10,600 verses, a good deal of the language is still obscure and many hymns as a consequence seem unintelligible. The hymns are dedicated to Rigvedic deities, for each deity series the hymns progress from longer to shorter ones, and the number of hymns per book increases. In the eight books that were composed the earliest, the hymns predominantly discuss cosmology, Rigveda is one of the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language. 1700–1100 BC has also been given, some of its verses continue to be recited during Hindu rites of passage celebrations such as weddings and religious prayers, making it probably the worlds oldest religious text in continued use. This redaction also included some additions and orthoepic changes to the Vedic Sanskrit such as the regularization of sandhi, the Padapatha and the Pratisakhya anchor the texts fidelity and meaning, and the fixed text was preserved with unparalleled fidelity for more than a millennium by oral tradition alone. In order to achieve this the oral tradition prescribed very structured enunciation, involving breaking down the Sanskrit compounds into stems and inflections and this interplay with sounds gave rise to a scholarly tradition of morphology and phonetics. The Rigveda was probably not written down until the Gupta period, the oral tradition still continued into recent times. The text is organized in 10 books, known as Mandalas, of varying age, the family books, mandalas 2–7, are the oldest part of the Rigveda and the shortest books, they are arranged by length and account for 38% of the text. Within each book, the hymns are arranged in collections each dealing with a deity, Agni comes first, Indra comes second. They are attributed and dedicated to a rishi and his family of students, within each collection, the hymns are arranged in descending order of the number of stanzas per hymn. If two hymns in the collection have equal numbers of stanzas then they are arranged so that the number of syllables in the metre are in descending order. The second to seventh mandalas have a uniform format, the eighth and ninth mandalas, comprising hymns of mixed age, account for 15% and 9%, respectively. The first and the tenth mandalas are the youngest, they are also the longest books, of 191 suktas each, however, adds Witzel, some hymns in Mandala 8,1 and 10 may be as old as the earlier Mandalas. The first mandala has an arrangement not found in the other nine mandalas. The ninth mandala is arranged by both its structure and hymn length, while the first eighty four hymns of the tenth mandala have a structure different than the remaining hymns in it. Each mandala consists of hymns called sūkta intended for various rituals, the sūktas in turn consist of individual stanzas called ṛc, which are further analysed into units of verse called pada
12.
Katha Upanishad
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The Katha Upanishad is one of the mukhya Upanishads, embedded in the last short eight sections of the Kaṭha school of the Krishna Yajurveda. It is also known as Kāṭhaka Upanishad, and is listed as number 3 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads, the Katha Upanishad consists of two chapters, each divided into three sections. The first Adhyaya is considered to be of older origin than the second, the Upanishad is the legendary story of a little boy, Nachiketa – the son of Sage Vajasravasa, who meets Yama. Their conversation evolves to a discussion of the nature of man, knowledge, Atman, the Kathaka Upanishad is an important ancient Sanskrit corpus of the Vedanta sub-schools, and an influential Śruti to the diverse schools of Hinduism. It asserts that Atman exists, teaches the precept seek Self-knowledge which is Highest Bliss, the Upanishad presents ideas that contrast Hinduism with Buddhisms assertion that Soul, Self does not exist, and Buddhisms precept that one should seek Emptiness which is Highest Bliss. The detailed teachings of Katha Upanishad have been interpreted, as Dvaita. It is among the most widely studied Upanishads, Katha Upanishad was translated into Persian in 17th century, copies of which were then translated into Latin and distributed in Europe. Max Müller and many others have translated it, Katha is also the name of a sage, credited as the founder of a branch of the Krishna Yajur-veda, as well as the term for a female pupil or follower of Kathas school of Yajurveda. Paul Deussen notes that the Katha Upanishad uses words that symbolically embed, for example, a closely pronounced word Katha literally means story, legend, conversation, speech, tale. All of these meanings are relevant to the Katha Upanishad. Nachiketa, the boy and a character in the Katha Upanishad legend, similarly, has closely related words with roots. Similarly, Na jiti is another play and means that which cannot be vanquished. Some of these Sanskrit word plays are incorporated within the Upanishads text, the chronology of Katha Upanishad is unclear and contested by scholars. Buddhism scholars such as Richard King date Katha Upanishads composition roughly to the 5th century BCE, Hinduism scholars such as Stephen Phillips note the disagreement between modern scholars. Ranade posits a view similar to Phillips, with slightly different ordering, placing Kathas chronological composition in the group of ancient Upanishads along with Mundaka. Winternitz considers the Kathaka Upanishad as pre-Buddhist, pre-Jaina literature, the Katha Upanishad has two chapters, each with three sections, thus a total of six sections. The first section has 29 verses, the second section 25 verses, the second chapter opens with the fourth section of the Katha Upanishad and has 15 verses, while the fifth valli also has 15 verses. The final section has 17 verses and this, however, does not imply a significant gap between the two chapters, both chapters are considered ancient, and from 1st millennium BCE
13.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad
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The Shvetashvatara Upanishad is an ancient Sanskrit text embedded in the Yajurveda. It is listed as number 14 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads, the Upanishad contains 113 mantras or verses in six chapters. The Upanishad is one of the 33 Upanishads from Taittiriyas, the chronology of Maitrayaniya Upanishad is contested, but generally accepted to be a late period Upanishadic composition. The text includes a credit to sage Shvetashvatara, considered the author of the Upanishad. The text is notable for its discussion of the concept of personal god – Ishvara, the text is also notable for its multiple mentions of both Rudra and Shiva, along with other Vedic deities, and of crystallization of Shiva as a central theme. The Shvetashvatara Upanishad is a Principal Upanishad of Hinduism, commented by many of its ancient and it is a foundational text of the philosophy of Shaivism, as well as the Yoga and Vedanta schools of Hinduism. Some 19th century scholars suggested that Shvetashvatara Upanishad is sectarian or possibly influenced by Christianity, hypotheses that were disputed. The name Shvetashvatara has the compound Sanskrit root Shvetashva, which means white horse. Shvetashvatara is a compound of, where tara means crossing, carrying beyond. The word Shvetashvatara translates to the one carrying beyond on white horse or simply white mule that carries, the text is sometimes spelled as Svetasvatara Upanishad. It is also known as Shvetashvataropanishad or Svetasvataropanishad, and as Shvetashvataranam Mantropanishad, in ancient and medieval literature, the text is frequently referred to in the plural, that is as Svetasvataropanishadah. Some metric poetic verses, such as Vakaspatyam simply refer to the text as Shvetashva, flood as well as Gorski state that the Svetasvatara Upanishad was probably composed in the 5th to 4th century BCE. Paul Muller-Ortega dates the text between 6th to 5th century BCE, the chronology of Shvetashvatara Upanishad, like other Upanishads, is uncertain and contested. Phillips chronologically lists Shvetashvatara Upanishad after Mandukya Upanishad, but before and about the time the Maitri Upanishad, ranade places Shvetashvatara Upanishads chronological composition in the fourth group of ancient Upanishads, after Katha and Mundaka Upanishads. Deussen states that Shvetashvatara Upanishad refers to and incorporates phrases from the Katha Upanishad, some sections of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad are found, almost in its entirety, in chronologically more ancient Sanskrit texts. Similarly, many verses in chapters 3 through 6 are also found, in identical form in the Samhitas of Rig Veda, Atharva Veda. The text has six Adhyaya, each with varying number of verses, the first chapter includes 16 verses, the second has 17, the third chapter contains 21 verses, the fourth is composed of 22, the fifth has 14, while the sixth chapter has 23 verses. The last three verses of the chapter are considered as epilogue
14.
Maitrayaniya Upanishad
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The Maitrayaniya Upanishad is an ancient Sanskrit text that is embedded inside the Yajurveda. It is also known as the Maitri Upanishad, and is listed as number 24 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads, the Maitrayaniya Upanishad is associated with the Maitrayanas school of the Yajurveda. The chronology of Maitrayaniya Upanishad is contested, but generally accepted to be a late period Upanishadic composition, the Maitrayaniya Upanishad consists of seven Prapathakas. The content and structure of the Upanishad is also different in various manuscript recensions, the etymological root of the Maitrayaniya Upanishad are unclear. This has historically led to a variety of names and spellings for this Upanishad, Maitra and Maitri are related words which literally mean kindly, benevolent, good will, amity, friend of all creatures. The likely root for the Upanishad is probably the name of an ancient Indian scholar, Maitra, sometimes spelled Maitri or Maitreya, the ancient scholar is also credited with a school of thought, thus giving the text the name Maitrayaniya Upanishad. Olivelle includes Maitri Upanishad among the list of principal Upanishads that were composed last, mahony suggests an earlier date, placing Prashna along with Maitri and Mandukya Upanishads, as texts that probably emerged about early fourth century BCE. Jayatilleke states, Buddhism is not far removed in time from, though it is prior to, nakamura states that although Buddhistic influence can be seen in the Maitri Upanishad, the particular terms and modes of expression of Mahayana Buddhism do not yet appear. Phillips, in contrast, lists Maitri Upanishad before and about the time the first Buddhist Pali canonical texts were composed, ranade posits a view similar to Phillips, placing Maitris chronological composition in the fifth group of ancient Upanishads and last of the Principal Upanishads. The extant recension of the text consists seven Prapāṭhakas, of several sections are Khilas added later. The last two are called as khila by medieval era Indian scholar Ramatirtha, others consider the last three sections as supplements and appendices. Other discovered manuscript versions of the Maitri Upanishad present different number of sections, ranging from 1 to 4, there are also differences in style, structure and content among the discovered manuscripts when the text contains the same number of sections. The text is a prose style Upanishad, with a collection of different sized paragraphs. The first section has four paragraphs, the second has seven, as appendices, the fifth lesson has two paragraphs, while the sixth Prapathaka is the longest section with thirty eight paragraphs. The last supplementary section, or the seventh Prapāṭhaka has eleven paragraphs some with many sub-paragraphs, the Maitrayaniya Upanishad is embedded after the Brahmana text of Yajur Veda, and in its opening passages refers to rituals contained therein. It contextually belongs to the Sannyasa Upanishads corpus, hume includes it among his list of Thirteen Principal Upanishads. Maitri Upanishad deals with the concept and nature of Atman, the question of how is joy possible, and how one can achieve moksha. in later sections it offers a debate on possible answers. Therefore, let such man, after he has laid those fires, meditate on the Self, to become complete, but who is to be meditated on
15.
Rishi
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In the Vedas the term Rishi denotes an inspired poet of Vedic hymns. Post-Vedic tradition of Hinduism regards the Rishis as seers or sages, who after intense meditation realized truths and eternal knowledge, according to Indian tradition, the word may be derived from two different meanings of the root rsh. Sanskrit grammarians derive this word from the meaning, to go. V. S. Apte gives this particular meaning and derivation, another form of this root means to flow, to move near by flowing. Monier-Williams also quotes Tārānātha who compiled the great dictionary named ṛṣati jñānena saṃsāra-pāram, more than a century ago, Monier-Williams tentatively suggested a derivation from drś to see. Monier-Wiliams also quotes the Hibernian form arsan and arrach as related to rishi, Monier-Williams also conjectures that the root drish might have given rise to an obsolete root rish meaning to see. However, the root has a close Avestan cognate ərəšiš an ecstatic, yet the Indo-European dictionary of Julius Pokorny connects the word to a PIE root *h3er-s meaning rise, protrude, in the sense of excellent and thus cognate with Ṛta and right and Asha. Some of the earliest lists of Rishi are found in Jaiminiya Brahmana verse 2.218, in the Vedas, the word denotes an inspired poet of Vedic hymns. In particular, Ṛṣi refers to the authors of the hymns of the Rigveda, post-Vedic tradition regards the Rishis as sages or saints, constituting a peculiar class of divine human beings in the early mythical system, as distinct from Asuras, Devas and mortal men. Swami Vivekananda described Rishis as Mantra-drashtas or the seers of thought, the Sama Veda adds Nodha, Akrishtabhasha, Sikatanivavari and Gaupayana. In Mahabharata 12, on the hand, there is the post-Vedic list of Marici, Atri, Angiras, Pulaha, Kratu, Pulastya. The Mahābhārata list explicitly refers to the saptarshis of the first manvantara, each manvantara had a unique set of saptarshi. In Harivamsha 417ff, the names of the Rishis of each manvantara are enumerated, in addition to the Saptarṣi, there are other classifications of sages. In descending order of precedence, they are Brahmarshi, Maharshi, Rajarshi, devarṣi, Paramrṣi, Shrutarṣi and Kāndarṣi are added in Manusmriti iv-94 and xi-236 and in two dramas of Kālidasa. The Chaturvarga-Chintāmani of Hemādri puts riṣi at the place in the eightfold division of Brāhmanas. Amarakosha mentions seven types of riṣis, Shrutarshi, Kāndarshi, Paramarshi, Maharshi, Rājarshi, Brahmarshi and Devarshi, amarakosha strictly distinguishes Rishi from other types of sages, such as sanyāsi, bhikṣu, parivrājaka, tapasvi, muni, brahmachāri, yati, etc. Most medieval era Hindu temples of Java, Indonesia show Rishi Agastya statues or reliefs, some examples include Candi Sambisari and the Prambanan temple near Yogyakarta. Rishi Agastya is known as Phra Reusi Akkhot in Thailand, Ruesi is a hermit sage, the equivalent of Rishi in India
16.
Yama
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Yama or Yamarāja, also called Imra, is a god of death, the south direction and the underworld, belonging to an early stratum of Rigvedic Hindu deities. In Sanskrit, his name can be interpreted to mean twin, in the Zend-Avesta of Zoroastrianism, he is called Yima. According to the Vishnu Purana, his parents are the sun-god Surya and Sandhya, Yama is the brother of Sraddhadeva Manu and of his older sister Yami, which Horace Hayman Wilson indicates to mean the Yamuna. According to Harivamsa Purana her name is Daya, there is a temple in Srivanchiyam, Tamil Nadu dedicated to Yama. In the Vedas, Yama is said to have been the first mortal who died, by virtue of precedence, he became the ruler of the departed, and is called Lord of the Pitrs. Mentioned in the Pāli Canon of Theravada Buddhism, Yama subsequently entered Buddhist mythology in Tibetan and he is otherwise also called as Dharmaraja. In Hinduism, Yama is the lokapala of the south and the son of Brahma, three hymns in the 10th book of the Rig Veda are addressed to him. He has two dogs with four legs and wide nostrils guarding the road to his abode and they are said to wander about among people as his messengers. He wields a leash with which he seizes the lives of people who are about to die and he is also depicted as riding a buffalo. According to Hindu mythology, Yama is the son of Surya and he is the twin brother of Yami, brother of Shraddhadeva_Manu and the step brother of Shani. In Buddhism, Yama is a said to judge the dead and preside over the Narakas. The Buddhist Yama has however, developed different myths and different functions from the Hindu deity, Naraka in Hinduism serves only as a temporary purgatory where the soul is purified of sin by its suffering. In Hindu mythology, Naraka holds many hells, and Yama directs departed souls to the appropriate one, even elevated Mukti-yogyas and Nitya-samsarins can experience Naraka for expiation of sins. Although Yama is the lord of Naraka, he may direct the soul to a Swarga or return it to Bhoomi. As good and bad deeds are not considered to cancel each other out, the seven Swargas are, Bhuvas, Swas, Tharus, Thaarus, Savithaa, Prapithaa, and Maha. The idea of Naraka in Sikhism is like the idea of Hell, ones soul, however, is confined to 8.4 million life cycles before taking birth as a human, the point of human life being one where one attains salvation, the salvation being sach khand. The idea of khand comes in multiple levels of such heavens, the idea of Hell comes in multiple levels, and hell itself can manifest within human life itself. The Sikh idea of hell is where one is apart from naama, naama is believed to be a direct deliverance by God to humanity in the form of Guru Nanak
17.
Mahabharata
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The Mahābhārata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa. The Mahābhārata is a narrative of the Kurukṣetra War and the fates of the Kaurava. It also contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four goals of life or puruṣārtha, traditionally, the authorship of the Mahābhārata is attributed to Vyāsa. There have been attempts to unravel its historical growth and compositional layers. The oldest preserved parts of the text are thought to be not much older than around 400 BCE, the text probably reached its final form by the early Gupta period. The title may be translated as the tale of the Bhārata dynasty. According to the Mahābhārata itself, the tale is extended from a version of 24,000 verses called simply Bhārata. The Mahābhārata is the longest known epic poem and has described as the longest poem ever written. Its longest version consists of over 100,000 śloka or over 200,000 individual verse lines, and long prose passages. About 1.8 million words in total, the Mahābhārata is roughly ten times the length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined, or about four times the length of the Rāmāyaṇa. W. J. Johnson has compared the importance of the Mahābhārata in the context of civilization to that of the Bible, the works of Shakespeare. The epic is traditionally ascribed to the sage Vyāsa, who is also a character in the epic. Vyāsa described it as being itihāsa and he also describes the Guru-shishya parampara, which traces all great teachers and their students of the Vedic times. The first section of the Mahābhārata states that it was Gaṇeśa who wrote down the text to Vyasas dictation, the epic employs the story within a story structure, otherwise known as frametales, popular in many Indian religious and non-religious works. It is recited by the sage Vaiśampāyana, a disciple of Vyāsa, the text has been described by some early 20th-century western Indologists as unstructured and chaotic. Hermann Oldenberg supposed that the poem must once have carried an immense tragic force. Moritz Winternitz considered that only unpoetical theologists and clumsy scribes could have lumped the parts of disparate origin into an unordered whole, Research on the Mahābhārata has put an enormous effort into recognizing and dating layers within the text. Some elements of the present Mahābhārata can be traced back to Vedic times, the background to the Mahābhārata suggests the origin of the epic occurs after the very early Vedic period and before the first Indian empire was to rise in the third century B. C
18.
Brahman
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In Hinduism, Brahman connotes the highest Universal Principle, the Ultimate Reality in the universe. In major schools of Hindu philosophy, it is the material, efficient and it is the pervasive, genderless, infinite, eternal truth and bliss which does not change, yet is the cause of all changes. Brahman as a concept is the single binding unity behind the diversity in all that exists in the universe. Brahman is a Vedic Sanskrit word, and it is conceptualized in Hinduism, states Paul Deussen, Brahman is a key concept found in the Vedas, and it is extensively discussed in the early Upanishads. The Vedas conceptualize Brahman as the Cosmic Principle, in the Upanishads, it has been variously described as Sat-cit-ānanda and as the unchanging, permanent, highest reality. Brahman is discussed in Hindu texts with the concept of Atman, personal, impersonal or Para Brahman, or in various combinations of these qualities depending on the philosophical school. In dualistic schools of Hinduism such as the theistic Dvaita Vedanta, Brahman is different from Atman in each being, Brahman is thus a gender-neutral concept that implies greater impersonality than masculine or feminine conceptions of the deity. Brahman is referred to as the supreme self, puligandla states it as the unchanging reality amidst and beyond the world, while Sinar states Brahman is a concept that cannot be exactly defined. In Vedic Sanskrit, Brahma, brahman from root bṛh-, means to be or make firm, strong, solid, expand, promote. Brahmana, from stems brha + Sanskrit -man- from Indo-European root -men- which denotes some manifested form of power, inherent firmness. In later Sanskrit usage, Brahma, brahman means the concept of the transcendent and immanent ultimate reality, the concept is central to Hindu philosophy, especially Vedanta, this is discussed below. Brahm is another variant of Brahman, Brahmā, Brahman, means the deity or deva Prajāpati Brahmā. He is one of the members of the Hindu trinity and associated with creation, but does not have a cult in present-day India. This is because Brahmā, the creator-god, is long-lived but not eternal i. e. Brahmā gets absorbed back into Purusha at the end of an aeon, and is born again at the beginning of a new kalpa. These are distinct from, A brāhmaṇa, is a commentary on the Vedic mantras—an integral part of the Vedic literature. A brāhmaṇa, means priest, in this usage the word is rendered in English as Brahmin. This usage is found in the Atharva Veda. Ishvara, in Advaita, is identified as a partial manifestation of the ultimate reality
19.
Maya (illusion)
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Maya, literally illusion or magic, has multiple meanings in Indian philosophies depending on the context. In ancient Vedic literature, Māyā literally implies extraordinary power and wisdom, in later Vedic texts and modern literature dedicated to Indian traditions, Māyā connotes a magic show, an illusion where things appear to be present but are not what they seem. In Buddhism, Maya is the name of Gautama Buddhas mother, in Hinduism, Maya is also an epithet for goddess, and the name of a manifestation of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, prosperity and love. Maya is also a name for girls, Māyā is a word with unclear etymology, probably comes from the root mā which means to measure. According to William Mahony, the root of the word may be man- or to think, in early Vedic usage, the term implies, states Mahony, the wondrous and mysterious power to turn an idea into a physical reality. Franklin Southworth states the origin is uncertain, and other possible roots of māyā include may- meaning mystify, confuse, intoxicate, delude, as well as māy- which means disappear. Jan Gonda considers the word related to mā, which means mother, as do Tracy Pintchman and Adrian Snodgrass, serving as an epithet for goddesses such as Lakshmi. Maya here implies art, is the power, writes Zimmer. A similar word is found in the Avestan māyā with the meaning of magic power. Words related to and containing Māyā, such as Mayava, occur many times in the Vedas and these words have various meanings, with interpretations that are contested, and some are names of deities that do not appear in texts of 1st millennium BCE and later. The use of word Māyā in Rig veda, in the later era context of magic, illusion, power, the hymn is a call to discern ones enemies, perceive artifice, and distinguish, using ones mind, between that which is perceived and that which is unperceived. Rig veda does not connote the word Māyā as always good or always bad, it is simply a form of technique, mental power and means. Rig veda uses the word in two contexts, implying there are two kinds of Māyā, divine Māyā and undivine Māyā, the former being the foundation of truth. Elsewhere in Vedic mythology, Indra uses Maya to conquer Vritra, varunas supernatural power is called Maya. Māyā, in such examples, connotes powerful magic, which both devas and asuras use against each other, in the Yajurveda, māyā is an unfathomable plan. In the Aitareya Brahmana Maya is also referred to as Dirghajihvi, hostile to gods and sacrifices. In hymns of 8.10.22, Virāj is used by Asuras who call her as Māyā, as follows, The contextual meaning of Maya in Atharvaveda is power of creation, not illusion. Gonda suggests the meaning of Maya in Vedic literature is, wisdom and power enabling its possessor, or being able itself, to create, devise, contrive, effect
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Four Noble Truths
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The Four Noble Truths are the truths of the Noble Ones, the truths or realities which are understood by the worthy ones who have attained Nirvana. The truths are dukkha, the arising of dukkha, the cessation of dukkha, the four truths express the basic orientation of Buddhism, we crave and cling to impermanent states and things, which is dukkha, incapable of satisfying and painful. This keeps us caught in samsara, the cycle of repeated rebirth, dukkha. But there is a way to real happiness and to end this cycle. The meaning of the truths is as follows, Dukkha, incapable of satisfying, Life in this mundane world, with its craving and clinging to impermanent states and things, is dukkha, unsatisfactory and painful, Samudaya, the origination or arising of dukkha. Dukkha, and repeated life in this world, arises with taṇhā, thirst, craving for and clinging to impermanent states. This craving and clinging produces karma which leads to renewed becoming, keeping us trapped in rebirth and renewed dissatisfaction, Nirodha, the four truths provide a conceptual framework for introducing and explaining Buddhist thought, which has to be personally understood or experienced. The formulation of the four truths, and their importance, developed over time, in the sutras, the four truths have both a symbolic and a propositional function. They represent the awakening and liberation of the Buddha, but also the possibility of liberation for all sentient beings, the four truths are of central importance in the Theravada tradition, which holds to the idea that insight into the four truths is liberating in itself. They are less prominent in the Mahayana traditions, which emphasize insight into sunyata, the four truths are best known from their presentation in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, which contains two sets of the four truths, while various other sets can be found in the Pali Canon. According to the Buddhist tradition, the Buddha first taught the four noble truths in the very first teaching he gave after attaining enlightenment, as recorded in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta. According to Norman, the Pali canon contains various shortened forms of the four truths, the mnemonic set, the earliest form of the mnemonic set was dukkham samudayo nirodho magga, without the reference to sacca or arya, which were later added to the formula. This full set contains grammatical errors, but were considered correct by the Pali tradition, as opposite to sukha, pleasure, it is better translated as pain. S. Cousins notes that the four truths are not restricted to the form where dukkha is the subject. Other forms take the world, the arising of the world or the āsavas, according to Cousins, the well-known form is simply shorthand for all of the forms. The world refers to the saṅkhāras, that is, all compounded things, the Pali terms ariya sacca are commonly translated as noble truths. This translation is a convention started by the earliest translators of Buddhist texts into English, Norman, this is just one of several possible translations. According to Paul Williams, here is no reason why the Pali expression ariyasaccani should be translated as noble truths
21.
Asceticism
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Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Asceticism is classified into two types, Asceticism has been historically observed in many religious traditions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Jainism and Judaism. Mainstream Islam has lacked asceticism, except for its minority Sufi sect whose long tradition has included strict asceticism, the practitioners of these religions eschewed worldly pleasures and led an abstinent lifestyle, in the pursuit of redemption, salvation or spirituality. Asceticism is seen in the ancient theologies as a journey towards spiritual transformation, where the simple is sufficient, the bliss is within, the adjective ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askēsis, which means training or exercise. The original usage did not refer to self-denial, but to the training required for athletic events. Its usage later extended to rigorous practices that are used in all religious traditions, in varying degrees to attain redemption. Asceticism has been classified into natural and unnatural forms of asceticism, natural asceticism is defined as a lifestyle where material aspects of life are reduced to utmost simplicity and minimum. This may include minimal, simple clothing, sleeping on floor or caves, natural asceticism, state Wimbush and Valantasis, does not include maiming the body or harsher austerities that make the body suffer. Self-discipline and abstinence in some form and degree are parts of religious practice within many religious, ascetic lifestyle is associated particularly with monks, nuns, fakirs in Abrahamic religions, and bhikkhus, munis, sannyasis, yogis in Indian religions. Christian authors of antiquity such as Origen, St. Jerome, St. Ignatius, John Chrysostom. Scriptural examples of asceticism could be found in the lives of John the Baptist, Jesus, the twelve apostles, the Dead Sea Scrolls revealed ascetic practices of the ancient Jewish sect of Essenes who took vows of abstinence to prepare for a holy war. An emphasis on a religious life was evident in both early Christian writings and practices. Other Christian practitioners of asceticism include individuals such as Simeon Stylites, Saint David of Wales, according to Richard Finn, much of early Christian asceticism has been traced to Judaism, but not to traditions within Greek asceticism. Some of the thoughts in Christianity nevertheless, Finn states, have roots in Greek moral thought. Virtuous living is not possible when an individual is craving bodily pleasures with desire, the deserts of the Middle East were at one time inhabited by thousands of Christian hermits including St. Anthony the Great, St. Mary of Egypt, and St. Simeon Stylites. In 963 CE, an association of monasteries called Lavra was formed on Mount Athos and this became the most important center of orthodox Christian ascetic groups in the centuries that followed. In the modern era, Mount Athos and Meteora have remained a significant center, sexual abstinence such as those of the Encratites sect of Christians was only one aspect of ascetic renunciation, and both natural and unnatural asceticism have been part of Christian asceticism. The natural ascetic practices have included simple living, begging, fasting and ethical practices such as humility, compassion, patience, such ascetic practices were linked to the Christian concepts of sin and redemption
22.
Bhakti
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Bhakti literally means attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith or love, devotion, worship, piety. Bhakti, in Hinduism, refers to devotion and the love of a god or a representational god by a devotee. Bhakti in Indian religions is emotional devotionalism, particularly to a god or to spiritual ideas. The term also refers to a movement that arose between the 7th century and 10th century CE in India, focused on the gods Vishnu and Shiva, the Bhakti movement reached North India during the Delhi Sultanate era and grew throughout the Mughal era. It evolved the characteristics of Hinduism as the religion of the population as dhimmi under the Islamic rulers in parts of the Indian subcontinent. Bhakti-like movements also spread to other Indian religions during this period, the term bhakti, in the modern era, is used to refer to any tradition of Hindu devotionalism, including Shaivism, Vaishnavism, or Shaktism. The Bhagavata Purana is a associated with the Bhakti movement which elaborates the concept of bhakti as found in the Bhagavad Gita. Along with Hinduism, nirguni Bhakti is found in Sikhism, the Sanskrit word bhakti is derived from the root bhaj, which means divide, share, partake, participate, to belong to. The word also means attachment, devotion to, fondness for, homage, faith or love, worship, piety to something as a spiritual, the meaning of the term Bhakti is analogous to but different from Kama. Kama connotes emotional connection, sometimes with sensual devotion and erotic love, Bhakti, in contrast, is spiritual, a love and devotion to religious concepts or principles, that engages both emotion and intellection. Karen Pechelis states that the word Bhakti should not be understood as uncritical emotion, one who practices bhakti is called a bhakta. It may refer to devotion towards a teacher as guru-bhakti, or to a personal god. The term Bhakti also refers to one of several alternate spiritual paths to moksha in Hinduism, the other paths are Jnana marga, Karma marga, Rāja marga. The term bhakti has been translated as devotion in Orientalist literature. The colonial era authors variously described Bhakti as a form of mysticism or primitive religious devotion of lay people with monotheistic parallels, however, modern scholars state devotion is a misleading and incomplete translation of bhakti. Bhakti in Indian religions is not a ritualistic devotion to a god or to religion and it involves, among other things, refining ones state of mind, knowing god, participating in god, and internalizing god. Increasingly, instead of devotion, the participation is appearing in scholarly literature as a gloss for the term bhakti. David Lorenzen states that bhakti is an important term in Sikhism and Hinduism and they both share numerous concepts and core spiritual ideas, but bhakti of nirguni is particularly significant in Sikhism
23.
Raja
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Raja, is a title for a Monarch or princely ruler in South and Southeast Asia. The female form Rani applies equally to the wife of a Raja, usually as queen consort and occasionally as regent. The title has a history in the Indian subcontinent and South East Asia, being attested from the Rigveda, where a rājan- is a ruler, see for example the dāśarājñá. Sanskrit rājan- is cognate to Latin rēx King, Gaulish rīx, Gaelic rí, etc. originally denoting heads of petty kingdoms and it is believed to be ultimately derived from the Proto-Indo-European *h3rēǵs, a vrddhi formation to the root *h3reǵ- to straighten, to order, to rule. The Sanskrit n-stem is secondary in the title, apparently adapted from the female counterpart rājñī which also has an -n- suffix in related languages. Cognates of the word Raja in other Indo-European languages include English reign, rather common, practically equivalent variants in Rajasthani, Marathi and Hindi, used as equivalent royal style in parts of India include Rana, Rao, Raol, Rawal and rawat and Yuvraj prince heir. Maharaja, or great king, is literally a title for more significant rulers in India, hence during the British raj, precedence was rather determined by the gun salute. Raja රජ means King in Sri Lanka, Rajamanthri is the Prince lineage of Kings generation in Sri Lanka. Rajamanthri title is aristocracy of the Kandiyan Kingdom මහනුවර in Sri Lanka, badan Singh was styled Raja Mahendra and founded the city and state Bharatpur, which his dynasty ruled as Maharajas. Raja Sahib was the style in Bansda until its upgrade from c.1829 to higher counterpart Maharaja Sahib. Raja-i Rajgan was notably the royal style of, the former Rajas of Jind from * until their 1911 upgrade to Maharaja, the former Rajas of Kapurthala from 1861 until their 1911 upgrade to Maharaja. Two consecutive rulers of Patiala, the first of which was originally styled Maharaja, Raja Bahadur, and remained the rulers of Raigarh. as 1763 upgrade from the family title Raja Sar Desai in Maratha state Savantvadi. e. Third prince in line for succession, there were many more Rajas among the feudatory states, such as jagirs. In Pakistan, Raja is still used by Muslim Rajput clans as hereditary titles, Raja is also used as a given name by Hindus and Sikhs. Most notably Raja is used in Hazara division of Pakistan for the descendants of a Turkic dynasty and these Rajas ruled that part of Pakistan for decades and they still possess huge land in Hazara division of Pakistan and actively participate in the politics of the region. In Sinhalese, the title Raja means King of Sri Lanka, Rajamanthri is the Prince lineage of Kings generation especially Rajamanthri is aristocracy of the Kingdom of Kandy in Sri Lanka history. Indonesian has the word raja for king, leaders of local tribes and old Hindu kingdoms had that title before Indonesia became an independent nation. Various traditional princely states in Indonesia still style their ruler Raja, in the Malay language, the word raja also means king
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Bhagavad Gita
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The Bhagavad Gita, often referred to as simply the Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture in Sanskrit that is part of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. The Gita is set in a framework of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer Lord Krishna. Inserted in this appeal to kshatriya dharma is a dialogue, between diverging attitudes concerning methods toward the attainment of liberation. The Bhagavad Gita was exposed to the world through Sanjaya, who senses and cognises all the events of the battlefield, Sanjaya is Dhritarashtras advisor and also his charioteer. The Bhagavad Gita presents a synthesis of the concept of Dharma, theistic bhakti, the ideals of moksha through jnana, bhakti, karma. Numerous commentaries have been written on the Bhagavad Gita with widely differing views on the essentials, the setting of the Gita in a battlefield has been interpreted as an allegory for the ethical and moral struggles of the human life. The Bhagavad Gitas call for selfless action inspired many leaders of the Indian independence movement including Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi referred to the Gita as his spiritual dictionary. The epic Mahabharata is traditionally ascribed to the Sage Vyasa, the Bhagavad Gita, theories on the date of composition of the Gita vary considerably. Scholars accept dates from the century to the second century BCE as the probable range. Professor Jeaneane Fowler, in her commentary on the Gita, considers second century BCE to be the date of composition. It is estimated that the text probably reached something of a form by the early Gupta period. The actual dates of composition of the Gita remain unresolved, there is no reference to the Bhagavad Gita in Buddhist literature, the Tripitaka. The Buddha refers to 3 Vedas rather than 4 Vedas, as per general perception in many dialogues, so, there is doubt about whether the Bhagavad Gita was widely known about during the lifetime of Gautama Buddha. Due to its presence in the Mahabharata, the Bhagavad Gita is classified as a Smriti text or that which is remembered. The smriti texts of the period between 200 BCE and 100 CE belong to the emerging Hindu Synthesis, proclaiming the authority of the Vedas while integrating various Indian traditions and religions. Acceptance of the Vedas became a criterion for defining Hinduism over and against the heterodoxies. The so-called Hindu Synthesis emerged during the early Classical period of Hinduism, the Bhagavad Gita is the sealing achievement of this Hindu Synthesis, incorporating various religious traditions. According to Hiltebeitel, Bhakti forms an ingredient of this synthesis
25.
Madhvacharya
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Madhva Acharya, also known as Purna Prajña and Ananda Teertha, was a Hindu philosopher and the chief proponent of the Dvaita school of Vedanta. Madhva called his philosophy as Tattvavada meaning the realist viewpoint, madhvācārya was born on the west coast of Karnataka state in 13th-century India. As a teenager, he became a Sanyasin joining Brahma-sampradaya guru Achyutapreksha, Madhva studied the classics of Hindu philosophy, particularly the Principal Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras. He commented on these, and is credited with thirty seven works in Sanskrit and his writing style was of extreme brevity and condensed expression. His greatest work is considered to be the Anuvyakhyana, a supplement to his bhasya on the Brahma Sutras composed with a poetic structure. In some of his works, he proclaimed himself to be an avatar of Vayu and he was a critic of Adi Shankaras Advaita Vedanta and Ramanujas Vishishtadvaita Vedanta teachings. He toured India several times, visiting places such as Bengal, Varanasi, Dwarka, Goa and Kanyakumari, engaging in philosophical debates, Madhva established the Krishna Mutt at Udupi with a murti secured from Dwarka Gujarat in AD1285. His schools theistic dualism teachings disagreed with the monist teachings of the two most influential schools of Vedanta based on Advaitas nondualism and Vishishtadvaitas qualified nondualism. Salvation, asserted Madhva, is only through the grace of God. Madhvas historical influence in Hinduism, state Kulandran and Kraemer, has been salutary, the biography of Madhvacharya is unclear. Many sources date him to 1238–1317 period, but some place him about the 1199-1278 period, madhvācārya was born in Pajaka near Udupi, a coastal Malabar region of south-west India in the state of Karnataka. Traditionally it is believed that Naddantillaya was the name of his father, born in a Vaishnavite Brahmin household, he was named Vāsudeva. Later he became famous by the names Purnaprajna, Anandatirtha and Madhvacarya, pūrnaprajña was the name given to him at the time of his initiation into sannyasa, as a teenager. The name conferred on him when he became the head of his monastery was Ānanda Tīrtha, all three of his later names are found in his works. Madhvācārya or Madhva are names most commonly found in literature on him. Madhva began his school after his Upanayana at age seven, became a monk or Sannyasi in his teenage and he joined an Advaita Vedanta monastery in Dwarka, accepted his guru to be Achyutrapreksha, who is also referred to as Achyutraprajna in some sources. Madhva never acknowledged Achyutrapreksha as his guru or his lineage in his writings. A number of semi-fictional hagiographies have been written by Madhvas disciples, of these, the most referred to is the sixteen cantos Sanskrit biography Madhvavijaya by Nārāyana Panditācārya – son of Trivikrama Pandita, who himself was a disciple of Madhva
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Adi Shankara
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Adi Shankara was a philosopher and theologian from India who consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta. He is credited with unifying and establishing the main currents of thought in Hinduism and his works in Sanskrit discuss the unity of the ātman and Nirguna Brahman brahman without attributes. He wrote copious commentaries on the Vedic canon in support of his thesis and his works elaborate on ideas found in the Upanishads. Shankaras publications criticised the ritually-oriented Mīmāṃsā school of Hinduism and he also explained the key difference between Hinduism and Buddhism, stating that Hinduism asserts Atman exists, while Buddhism asserts that there is no Soul, no Self. Shankara travelled across the Indian subcontinent to propagate his philosophy through discourses and debates with other thinkers and he established the importance of monastic life as sanctioned in the Upanishads and Brahma Sutra, in a time when the Mīmāṃsā school established strict ritualism and ridiculed monasticism. He is reputed to have founded four mathas, which helped in the development, revival. Adi Shankara is believed to be the organiser of the Dashanami monastic order and he is also known as Adi Shankaracharya, Shankara Bhagavatpada, sometimes spelled as Sankaracharya, Śaṅkarācārya, Śaṅkara Bhagavatpāda and Śaṅkara Bhagavatpādācārya. There are at least fourteen different known biographies of Adi Shankaras life, many of these are called the Śankara Vijaya, while some are called Guruvijaya, Sankarabhyudaya and Shankaracaryacarita. Of these, the Brhat-Sankara-Vijaya by Citsukha is the oldest hagiography but only available in excerpts, other significant biographies are the Mādhavīya Śaṅkara Vijayaṃ, the Cidvilāsīya Śaṅkara Vijayaṃ, and the Keraļīya Śaṅkara Vijayaṃ. Some biographies are probably forgeries by those who sought to create a basis for their rituals or theories. Adi Shankara died in the thirty third year of his life, the Sringeri records state that Shankara was born in the 14th year of the reign of VikramAditya, but it is unclear as to which king this name refers. This conforms to the chronology calculated based off the Hindu Puranas, 44–12 BCE, the commentator Anandagiri believed he was born at Chidambaram in 44 BCE and died in 12 BCE. 6th century CE, Telang placed him in this century, sir R. G. Bhandarkar believed he was born in 680 CE. 788–820 CE, This was proposed by early 20th scholars and was accepted by scholars such as Max Müller, Macdonnel, Pathok, Deussen and Radhakrishna. The date 788–820 is also among those considered acceptable by Swami Tapasyananda, sometime between 700-750 CE, late 20th-century scholarship has questioned the 788-820 CE dates, placing Adi Shankaras life of 32 years in the first half of the 8th century. The popularly accepted dating places Adi Shankara to be a scholar from the first half of the 8th century CE and his father died while Shankara was very young. Shankaras upanayanam, the initiation into student-life, had to be delayed due to the death of his father, Shankaras hagiography describe him as someone who was attracted to the life of Sannyasa from early childhood. A story, found in all hagiographies, describe Shankara at age eight going to a river with his mother, Sivataraka, to bathe, Shankara called out to his mother to give him permission to become a Sannyasin or else the crocodile will kill him
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Karma in Jainism
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Karma is the basic principle within an overarching psycho-cosmology in Jainism. Human moral actions form the basis of the transmigration of the soul, the soul is constrained to a cycle of rebirth, trapped within the temporal world, until it finally achieves liberation. Liberation is achieved by following a path of purification, Karma not only encompasses the causality of transmigration, but is also conceived of as an extremely subtle matter, which infiltrates the soul—obscuring its natural, transparent and pure qualities. Karma is thought of as a kind of pollution, that taints the soul with various colours, based on its karma, a soul undergoes transmigration and reincarnates in various states of existence—like heavens or hells, or as humans or animals. Jains cite inequalities, sufferings, and pain as evidence for the existence of karma, various types of karma are classified according to their effects on the potency of the soul. The Jain theory seeks to explain the process by specifying the various causes of karmic influx and bondage, placing equal emphasis on deeds themselves. The Jain karmic theory attaches great responsibility to individual actions, the Jain doctrine also holds that it is possible for us to both modify our karma, and to obtain release from it, through the austerities and purity of conduct. According to Jains, all souls are pure in their inherent and ideal state, possessing the qualities of infinite knowledge, infinite perception, infinite bliss. However, in experience, these qualities are found to be defiled and obstructed. The soul has been associated with karma in this way throughout an eternity of beginningless time and this bondage of the soul is explained in the Jain texts by analogy with gold ore, which—in its natural state—is always found unrefined of admixture with impurities. Similarly, the pure state of the soul has always been overlaid with the impurities of karma. This analogy with gold ore is also taken one step further, Jainism speaks of karmic dirt, as karma is thought to be manifest as very subtle and microscopically imperceptible particles pervading the entire universe. They are so small that one space-point—the smallest possible extent of space—contains an infinite number of karmic particles and it is these karmic particles that adhere to the soul and affect its natural potency. This material karma is called dravya karma, and the resultant emotions—pleasure, pain, love, hatred, the relationship between the material and psychic karma is that of cause and effect. The material karma gives rise to the feelings and emotions in worldly souls, which—in turn—give rise to psychic karma and these emotions, yet again, result in influx and bondage of fresh material karma. Jains hold that the matter is actually an agent that enables the consciousness to act within the material context of this universe. They are the carrier of a souls desire to physically experience this world. When attracted to the consciousness, they are stored in an interactive karmic field called kārmaṇa śarīra, thus, karma is a subtle matter surrounding the consciousness of a soul
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Advaita Vedanta
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Advaita Vedanta is a school of Hindu philosophy and religious practice, and one of the classic Indian paths to spiritual realization. The term Advaita refers to its idea that the soul is the same as the highest metaphysical Reality, Advaita Vedanta traces its roots in the oldest Upanishads. It relies on three textual sources called the Prasthanatrayi and it gives a unifying interpretation of the whole body of Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras, and the Bhagavad Gita. Advaita Vedanta is the oldest extant sub-school of Vedanta, which is one of the six orthodox Hindu philosophies, though its roots trace back to the 1st millennium BCE, the most prominent exponent of the Advaita Vedanta is considered by the tradition to be 8th century scholar Adi Shankara. Advaita Vedanta emphasizes Jivanmukti, the idea that moksha is achievable in this life in contrast to Indian philosophies that emphasize Videhamukti, Advaita Vedanta is one of the most studied and most influential schools of classical Indian thought. Many scholars describe it as a form of monism, others describe the Advaita philosophy as non-dualistic, beyond Hinduism, Advaita Vedanta interacted and developed with the other traditions of India such as Jainism and Buddhism. Advaita Vedanta texts espouse a spectrum of views from idealism, including illusionism, in modern times, its views appear in various Neo-Vedanta movements. It has been termed as the example of Hindu spirituality. The Advaita Vedanta school has referred to historically by various names, such as Advaita-vada, Abheda-darshana, Dvaita-vada-pratisedha. According to Richard King, a professor of Buddhist and Asian studies, traditional Advaita Vedanta centers on the study of the sruti especially the Principal Upanishads, along with the Brahma Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita. Within the Vedanta tradition of Hinduism are many sub-schools, of which Advaita is one, unlike Buddhism, but like Jainism, all Vedanta schools consider the existence of Atman as self evident. The Vedanta tradition also posits the concept of Brahman as the eternal, the sub-schools of Vedanta disagree on the relation between Atman and Brahman. The Advaita darsana considers them to be identical, Advaita Vedanta believes that the knowledge of ones true self or Atman is liberating. Correct knowledge, which destroys avidya, psychological and perceptual errors related to Atman and Brahman, is obtained through three stages of practice, sravana, manana and nididhyasana, the Vedanta tradition of Hinduism rejects the dualism of Samkhya. Advaita, like all Vedanta schools, states that Brahman is both the efficient and the cause, that from which the origination, subsistence. What created all existence is also present in and reflected in all beings and inert matter and this Brahman it postulates is sat-cit-ananda. Second, how did cit Brahman create material world, third, if ananda Brahman is pure bliss, why did the empirical world of sufferings arise. These are the questions that Advaita Vedanta thinkers have historically attempted to answer, Advaita establishes its truths, in part, from the oldest Principal Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras, the Bhagavad Gita and numerous other Hindu texts
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Nondualism
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Nondualism, also called non-duality, means not two or one undivided without a second. It is a term and concept used to define various strands of religious and it is found in a variety of Asian religious traditions and modern western spirituality, but with a variety of meanings and uses. The term may refer to, Advaya, the nonduality of conventional, in Buddhist Madhyamaka it means that there is no absolute, transcendent reality beyond our everyday reality, and while things exist, they are ultimately empty of any existence on their own. This is an approach to nondualism, and asserts non-difference between Ātman and Brahman. The nondualism idea developed in the Vedic, post-Vedic Hindu and the Buddhist traditions, the oldest traces of nondualism in Indian thought is found as Advaita in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, as well as other pre-Buddhist Upanishads such as the Chandogya Upanishad. In Hinduism, nondualism has more commonly associated with the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Adi Shankara. Universalism and Perennialism are another important strand of thought, as reflected in various strands of modern spirituality, New Age, according to Espín and Nickoloff, nondualism is the thought in some Hindu, Buddhist and Taoist schools, which. Teaches that the multiplicity of the universe is reducible to one essential reality, the main definitions are the nonduality of Atman and Brahman, the nonduality of Absolute and relative, and nondual consciousness. According to Dasgupta and Mohanta, non-dualism developed in various strands of Indian thought, the oldest traces of nondualism in Indian thought may be found in the Chandogya Upanishad, which pre-dates the earliest Buddhism. Pre-sectarian Buddhism may also have been responding to the teachings of the Chandogya Upanishad, Advaya of Buddhism and Advaita of Hinduism both refer to nondualism. However, while Hinduism develops its concept of Advaita with an ontological approach, the nondual consciousness is a western, inclusive understanding of various strands of eastern religiosity. In Madhyamaka Buddhism Advaya refers to the nonduality of conventional and ultimate truth, or the relative world, in Yogacara, it may also refer to overcoming the dichotomies of cognitum and cognition imposed by conceptual thought. Another Buddhist formulation of the Advaya concept has been as non-two, which denies extremes such as the existence of reality, in Madhyamaka-Buddhism, Advaya refers to the non-duality of conventional and ultimate truth. The ultimate truth is emptiness, or non-existence of inherently existing things, and it is the Middle Way between eternalism and annihilationism or nihilism. According to Murti, Advaya is that knowledge which is free of distinctions, in Madhyamaka-Buddhism, Advaya is an epistemological approach. It is the recognition that everything is impermanent and devoid of self or essence. The Chinese Buddhist scholars posited that there is a third truth above the mundane truth of samsaric being, in one description, everything is posited to be simultaneously empty, real and neither. According to Lai, most scholars of Chinese Buddhism, unlike Nagarjuna and this mistake was identified and discussed by Jizang of Sanlun school
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Thangka
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A thangka, variously spelt as tangka, thanka or tanka, is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, or silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, or mandala. Thangkas are traditionally kept unframed and rolled up when not on display, mounted on a textile backing somewhat in the style of Chinese scroll paintings, with a further silk cover on the front. So treated, thangkas can last a long time, but because of their delicate nature, most thankas were intended for personal meditation or instruction of monastic students. They often have elaborate compositions including many small figures. A central deity is surrounded by other identified figures in a symmetrical composition. Narrative scenes are common, but do appear. Thangka serve as important teaching tools depicting the life of the Buddha, various influential lamas and other deities, one subject is The Wheel of Life, which is a visual representation of the Abhidharma teachings. The term may sometimes be used of works in media than painting, including reliefs in metal. Today printed reproductions at poster size of painted thangka are commonly used for devotional as well as decorative purposes, many thangkas were produced in sets, though they have often subsequently become separated. Images of deities can be used as teaching tools depicting the life of the Buddha, describing historical events concerning important Lamas. Devotional images act as the centerpiece during a ritual or ceremony and are used as mediums through which one can offer prayers or make requests. Overall, and perhaps most importantly, religious art is used as a tool to help bring one further down the path to enlightenment. The thanka form developed alongside the tradition of Tibetan Buddhist wall paintings, the early history of the form is more easily traced through these murals, which survive in greater numbers than the portable paintings which certainly once existed. Most thanka were commissioned by individuals, who were believed to acquire merit by doing so and they might then be given to a monastery or another individual, or retained for use by the commissioner. Some thangka have inscriptions on their back recording that they were the personal image of a notable monk. Most artists were probably monks, although lay artists seem to have existed, the commissioner would provide the materials, which were often valuable, and by tradition the compensation to the artist was regarded as a gift rather than a fee. The word thangka means thing that one unrolls in Classical Tibetan, Thangka are very rarely signed, but some artists are known, more because they were important monastic leaders than famous as artists. Painting was an accomplishment in a monk
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Bhavacakra
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The bhavacakra is a symbolic representation of saṃsāra found on the outside walls of Tibetan Buddhist temples and monasteries in the Indo-Tibetan region. In the Mahayana Buddhism, it is believed that the drawing was designed by the Buddha himself in order to help people understand Buddhist teachings. The bhavacakra is popularly referred to as the wheel of life, the bhavacakra is painted on the outside walls of nearly every Tibetan Buddhist temple in Tibet and India. So these images on the Wheel of Life are just to communicate to the general audience, the meanings of the main parts of the diagram are, The images in the hub of the wheel represent the three poisons of ignorance, attachment and aversion. The third layer represents the six realms of samsara, the fourth layer represents the twelve links of dependent origination. The fierce figure holding the wheel represents impermanence, the moon above the wheel represents liberation from samsara or cyclic existence. The Buddha pointing to the circle indicates that liberation is possible. Karma in turn gives rise to the six realms, which represent the different types of suffering within samsara, the fierce being holding the wheel represents impermanence, this symbolizes that the entire process of samsara or cyclic existence is impermanent, transient, constantly changing. The moon above the wheel indicates liberation, the Buddha is pointing to the moon, indicating that liberation from samsara is possible. In the hub of the wheel are three animals, a pig, a snake, and a bird and they represent the three poisons of ignorance, aversion, and attachment, respectively. The pig stands for ignorance, this comparison is based on the Indian concept of a pig being the most foolish of animals, since it sleeps in the dirtiest places and eats whatever comes to its mouth. The snake represents aversion or anger, this is because it will be aroused, the particular bird used in this diagram represents an Indian bird that is very attached to its partner. These three animals represent the three poisons, which are the core of the bhavacakra, from these three poisons, the whole cycle of existence evolves. In many drawings of the wheel, the snake and bird are shown as coming out of the mouth of the pig, indicating that aversion, the snake and bird are also shown grasping the tail of the pig, indicating that they in turn promote greater ignorance. Under the influence of the three poisons, beings create karma, as shown in the layer of the circle. The second layer of the wheel shows two-half circles, One half-circle shows contented people moving upwards to higher states, the other half-circle shows people in a miserable state being led downwards to lower states, possibly to the lower realms. These images represent karma, the law of cause and effect, the light half-circle indicates people experiencing the results of positive actions. The dark half-circle indicates people experiencing the results of negative actions, ringu Tulku states, We create karma in three different ways, through actions that are positive, negative, or neutral
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