| A |
| Adi Saiva | One who bears the marks of Siva. |
| Adhyatma vidya | Knowledge of the Atman (Self). |
| Advaita | Non-duality. The doctrine that nothing exists apart from |
| | the Self, but everything is a form assumed by the Self. |
| Agamic | Relating to the Agamas, one of the Hindu scriptures. |
| Aham | I, embodied Self. |
| Ajnana | Ignorance. |
| Ajnani | One who has not realised the Self. |
| Akasvani | Voice coming from the sky. |
| Amba | An intimate name for the Divine Mother or a Goddess. |
| Amrita | Immortal. |
| Artha | Pertaining to material plane. |
| Ashram | Hermitage, establishment that grows up around a sage |
| | or guru. |
| Atma | The Spirit of Self. |
| Avadhuta | An ascetic who has given up everything. |
| Avatar | Incarnation, descent of God in a worldly form, |
| | divine manifestation. |
| B |
| Bhagavan | The term ‘Bhagavan’ is used for those few supreme sages |
| | who are recognised as being completely one with God. |
| Brahma | In the Hindu Trinity, the god of creation. |
| Brahmachari | A celibate. |
| Brahma Jnana | Knowledge (Realization of Brahman). |
| Brahman | The Supreme Being, the Absolute. |
| Brahmapuri | Heart, abode of Brahma. |
| Brahma Vidya | The knowledge of Brahman. |
| Brahmin | The Hindus were divided traditionally into four |
| | castes, of whom the brahmins were the highest being |
| | devoted to a life of spirituality and study. |
| Bhajan | Singing of God’s praises, especially in chorus. |
| Bhakta | Devotee, one who approaches God through love and |
| | devotion. |
| Bhakti | Devotion to a personal God. |
| C |
| Chakra | A Yogic centre in the body. |
| Chinmudra | A hand-pose indicating illumination. |
| Chitakash | The space in the heart, Brahman. |
| D |
| Darsan | Lit: ‘sight’, seeing a holy man. |
| Dasi | Courtesan. |
| Devas | Celestial beings. |
| Devi | The Divine Mother or a Goddess. |
| Dharma | Harmony, harmonious life or action. Also a man’s role |
| | in life, since what is harmonious conduct for one may |
| | not be so for another. |
| Dhyana | Meditation, contemplation. |
| Dikshitar | A priest. |
| G |
| Ganapathi | The eldest son of Siva, whose head is that of an elephant. |
| Gandharvas | Semi divine beings expert in dance and singing. |
| | Ganesh |
| (Ganesa) | A name for Ganapathi. |
| Gayathri | A well-known Vedic mantra. |
| Gowri (Gouri) | A name for Parvati, the wife of Siva. |
| Guru | Spiritual guide or master. |
| H |
| Hara | A name for Siva |
| Harikatha | A religious discourse interspersed with devotional |
| | songs. |
| I |
| Iswara (Isvara) | Personal God, the Supreme Being in His aspect of |
| | the Lord of the World. An intimate reference to God. |
| J |
| Jagrat | Waking state. |
| Japa | Repetition of a sacred word, syllable or name of God. |
| Jivanmukti | Liberated while one is alive. |
| | 133 |
| Jnani | One who is the repository of jnana, (knowledge), A |
| | Self-realised sage. |
| K |
| Kailas | A mountain in the Himalayas reputed to be the abode |
| | of Lord Siva. |
| Kalpa | The end of a period in time. |
| Karma | Action, deeds. The destiny that a person makes for |
| | himself by the law of cause and effect. |
| Karnam | One who keeps accounts on landed property. |
| | Kolaru Padikam: A hymn in praise of Lord Siva explaining that the |
| | planets are powerless and can do no harm to the |
| | devotee if only the Lord condescends to bless him. |
| | Kowpeenam |
| (Kaupeenam) | Loin cloth. |
| L |
| Linga | A symbol representing Siva or the Absolute. Lit: ‘that |
| | in which all beings are absorbed.’ |
| M |
| Mahadeva | A name for Siva. |
| Maharshi | Great Seer, Great Rishi. |
| Mahatma | Enlightened person. |
| Mahendra | A name for Siva. |
| Maheswara | A name for Siva. |
| Mantra | Sacred syllables, through repetition of which one |
| | attains perfection. |
| Marga | Mode of approach in the spiritual quest. |
| Mauna (Mouna) | Silence. |
| Maya | Illusion; the power inherent in Brahman by which it |
| | manifests the world. |
| Moksha | Liberation, spiritual freedom. |
| Mount Meru | The mountain which, in Hindu mythology is the |
| | spiritual centre of the universe. |
| Mutt (Math) | A monastery where mendicants live |
| N |
| Nayana diksha | Initiation by sight. |
| P |
| Parameswara | A name for Siva. |
| Parvati | In Hindu mythology the consort of Siva. |
| Prakriti | Nature, Maya. |
| Pranayama | Regulation or control of breath. |
| Prarabdha | The part of one’s karma which is to be worked out in |
| | this life. |
| Periapuranam | An ancient Tamil work depicting the lives of 63 Saivite |
| | Saints. |
| R |
| Rama | An incarnation of Vishnu. |
| Ramayana | An Indian epic depicting the life of Rama. |
| Rati | In Hindu Mythology the wife of Cupid. |
| Rishi (Rshi) | Sage, Seer. |
| Rudraksha | Lit. Siva’s eyes. Beads used for Japa. |
| S |
| Sadhaka | A spiritual aspirant, a seeker. |
| Sadhana | Method of spiritual practice. |
| Sadhu | Ascetic. One who has renounced home. |
| Saivite | Worshipper of Lord Siva. |
| Samadhi | Absorption in the Spirit or Self, with or without trance |
| | and suspension of the human faculties. |
| Sama Veda | One of the Vedas. |
| Sambhu | A name of Siva, Siva as the bounteous. |
| Sannyasa | Asceticism, the fourth stage of life. |
| Sannyasi | An ascetic, one who has renounced home, property, |
| | caste and all attachments in the spiritual quest. |
| Sastra | Any branch of knowledge or science. |
| Sati | Self-immolation by a wife on the funeral-pyre of her |
| | husband. |
| Siddha Purusha | A sage possessing supernatural powers. |
| Siddhi | Supernatural power, attainment. |
| Sita | In Hindu Mythology the wife of Rama. |
| Siva | Lord of the Universe, in the Hindu Trinity, the god of |
| | destruction. |
| | Siva Bhakti |
| Vilasam | Collection of stories on Siva. |
| Siva Lingam | The symbol of Siva which is an object of worship. |
| | 135 |
| Srutis | Scriptural texts passed on by the verbal medium. |
| Subrahmanya | In Hindu Mythology the second son of Siva. |
| Sushupti | Dreamless sleep. |
| Swapna | Dream. |
| Swarupa | Nature, real form, self. |
| T |
| Tapas | Penance or austerities. |
| Tapasvini | A female who performs tapas. |
| Tapasaya | Intense Spiritual discipline. |
| Tapo Brashta | One who has fallen from his tapas. |
| Tirtha | Sacred water. |
| Turiya | The Fourth state beyond waking, dreaming and |
| | sleeping. |
| U |
| Upadesa | Spiritual instruction. |
| V |
| Van Thondan | The name for Sundaramurthy Nayanar, one of the |
| | four principal Saivite saints. |
| Vasanas | Latencies or tendencies inherent in man. |
| Vedas | The earliest Hindu scriptures, revealed to the ancient |
| | Rishis. |
| Venba | A type of verse in Tamil. |
| Vichara | Enquiry. |
| Vichara Marga | The spiritual path of enquiry. |
| Vishnu | Supreme Lord. In the Hindu Trinity, the god of |
| | preservation. |
| Y |
| Yoga | Lit. Union (with the Supreme Being). |
| Yagna | Ritualistic sacrifice. |
| Yogi | One who follows or has mastered the path of Yoga |
| | (path of union). |
Spiritual Stories 
