Janeu
Overview Janeu, also known as the yajñopavīta, is the sacred thread associated with the Hindu rite of passage called Upanayana (Sanskrit: उपनयन, meaning 'initiation'). The thread is referred to by various regional nam...
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Overview Janeu, also known as the yajñopavīta, is the sacred thread associated with the Hindu rite of passage called Upanayana (Sanskrit: उपनयन, meaning 'initiation'). The thread is referred to by various regional nam...
Overview Tarpana (Sanskrit: तर्पण) is a term in Vedic ritual practice that refers to an offering made to divine entities. The word denotes both the act of offering and the substance used in the offering. It is regarde...
Overview Sannyasa (Sanskrit: संन्यास, saṃnyāsa) is the fourth stage in the Hindu system of four life stages, or ashramas. It follows brahmacharya (the celibate student), grihastha (the householder) and vanaprastha (th...
Overview Gṛhastha (Sanskrit: गृहस्थ) literally means "being in and occupied with home, family" or "householder". It refers to the second phase of an individual's life in the four age-based stages of the Hindu āśrama s...
Overview In Indian religions and society, an acharya (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ācārya; Pali: ācariya) refers to a religious teacher and spiritual guide. The term is used in both Hinduism and Buddhism, and carries somew...
Overview In Indian religions, a rishi (Sanskrit: ऋषि, IAST: ṛṣi) is an accomplished and enlightened person. Rishis are mentioned across various Vedic texts and are traditionally believed to have composed the hymns of ...
Overview A Sadhu (Sanskrit: साधु, IAST: sādhu for male, sādhvī for female; also spelled saddhu) is a religious ascetic, mendicant or holy person in Hinduism and Jainism who has renounced worldly life. Sadhus are somet...
Overview Guru (Sanskrit: गुरु; IAST: guru) is a Sanskrit term denoting a mentor, guide, expert, or master of a particular field of knowledge. In pan-Indian traditions, the guru is regarded as more than a teacher: he o...
Overview Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique or combination of techniques to train attention and awareness and to detach from reflexive, discursive thinking, with the aim of achieving a me...
Overview Raja yoga (Sanskrit: rāja yoga) is a term that, in classical Sanskrit literature, denoted both the goal of yoga and a method to attain it. Within these textual traditions, the expression carried connotations ...
Overview Karma Yoga (Sanskrit: कर्म योग), also known as Karma marga, is one of the three classical spiritual paths described in the Bhagavad Gita. It is the "yoga of action", and is presented alongside Jnana Yoga, the...
Overview Bhakti (Sanskrit: भक्ति; Pali: bhatti) is a concept common to the Dharmic religions, conveying meanings such as attachment, fondness, devotion, trust, homage, worship, piety, faith or love. In Indian religiou...
Overview Yoga (Sanskrit: योग, literally 'yoke' or 'union') is a group of physical, mental and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India. The practices are aimed at con...
Overview Moksha (Sanskrit: मोक्ष, mokṣa), also referred to as vimoksha, vimukti, and mukti, is a term used in Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism to denote various forms of emancipation, liberation, or release. I...
Overview Karma (Sanskrit: कर्म; Pali: kamma) is an ancient Indian concept referring to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term denotes a principle of cause and effect: a...
Overview Dharma (Sanskrit: धर्म) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term does not have a single, clear translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it derives from the Sanskrit root dhr-...
Overview The Agamas (Devanagari: आगम, IAST: āgama) are a collection of Tantric literature and scriptures associated with several schools of Hinduism. The term literally means "tradition" or "that which has come down"....
Overview The Bhagavata Purana (Sanskrit: भागवतपुराण; IAST: Bhāgavata Purāṇa), also known as the Srimad Bhagavatam, Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana or simply the Bhagavata, is one of the eighteen major Puranas (Mahapuranas...
Overview The Vishnu Purana (Sanskrit: विष्णुपुराण) is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of ancient and medieval Hindu texts. It is regarded as an important Pancharatra text within the Vaishnavism literary corpu...
Overview The Shiva Purana (Sanskrit: Śivapurāṇa or Śivamahāpurāṇa) is one of the eighteen major texts of the Purana genre of Sanskrit literature in Hinduism, and forms part of the Shaivism textual corpus. It primarily...