REL 220

It is a symbolic or ritual gesture in Hinduism and Buddhism. While some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands an

Is a Sanskrit word meaning " Circle". In Buddhism, a circular symbol, often enclosed in a square. Buddhist stupas were mandalas. The mandala

sculpture iconic or figures of Buddha in butter;when hot will melt and says that nothing is permanent

colored sand; make a whole design; is temporarythough

-One of the most distinctive and most important of the Vaishnava ideas. It is a from assumed by the supreme being to undergo descent and bir

A Hindu spiritual teacher selected by an aspirant, deemed to be an expert in mystical disciplines and an effective guide to the life of intr

-Has shaped many of Hinduism's themes and emphases - Two main things: agricultural nation and is isolated.

- Agricultural nation: cities are jam packed and the county is as well; soil is very fertile, not desert and rainfall is plentiful but there

There are vast expanses of sea to the South, East, and West. The Himalayas are a barrier that is 6 miles up and is protection from the North

The early religious literature of the Aryas, centered on four collections ( samhitas) of ritual materials: Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda, and

The largest and ritually most important of he four Vedas, containing 1,028 hymns used in the Aryas' sacrificial rituals.

One of the four Vedas, a collection of songs of the samans, the cantors of Aryan sacrificial ceremonies, taken primarily from the ninth book

One of the four Vedas, consisting of short incantations ( yajuses) used by the adhvaryus; about half the content is extracted from the Rigve

Vedic text produced by the Atharvans containing 565 metrical and prose hymns in 19 books. It includes both magical and ritual elements and s

Enlightenment, release, liberation, from the retribution ordinarily entailed by one's past deeds and thus from the necessity of further deat

Enlightenment, release, liberation, from the retribution ordinarily entailed by one's past deeds and thus from the necessity of further deat

Enlightenment ( literally, blowing out). The state gained by Buddha and by any being who is able to extinguish all attachments and defileme

In Hinduism, any systematic discipline of meditation directed toward the realization of an arcane religious truth. - Deeply introspective te

Practices self-denial. - Sannyasi ( " renounce") practices this and it is a severe and permanent renunciation- not merely of desires or of o

1. Brahmins ( priests; duty is to perform sacrifices, to study and teach the Vedas, and to guard the rules of the dhama; supreme in purity

The oldest scripture created by the Hindu Bhagavatas, who worshiped Krishna Vasudeva, a poem of 18 cantos preserved in the Hindu epic known

A high deity in post-Vedic Hinduism. To some polytheist he was the special god of destruction, but to monotheists he became the one Lord of

Vedic deity associated with the sun, germination, growth, and the support of life. Considered the Lord of the Universe by certain believers

-Followers of Jainism who unify matter and emotion. -Jainism is an Indian religion that emphasizes complete non-violence and asceticism. Fol

( " holding on to truth") Mahatma Gandhi principle for the nonviolent attainment of social justice ( courageous tactic for social reform). B

(especially in South Asia) a hermitage, monastic community, or other place of religious retreat.

-saying Namaste means "I bow to the divine in you". Namaste is usually spoken with a slight bow and hands pressed together, palms touching a

a technique for detaching oneself from anxiety and promoting harmony and self-realization by meditation, repetition of a mantra, and other y

-One of the three main early schools of Indian Buddhism, today found primarily in Japan, Korea, and China. - Began as a reform movement in t