Glossary

The Sanskrit words used in these readings, in alphabetical order, with the chapter of The Teaching where each is explained.

Advaita Vedanta. The non-dual tradition of teaching the Gita and the Upanishads, associated with Adi Shankaracharya. Advaita means "not two." This series follows it as taught by Swami Dayananda Saraswati. (Chapter 2)

Atma. The self: the awareness in which body, mind and world appear. It is not born, does not die, and is whole, lacking nothing. (Chapters 5 and 6)

Bhakti. Devotion. In this teaching, the attitude that grows within karma yoga: acknowledging ishvara, and doing your work as an offering. (Chapters 16 and 17)

Brahman. The one reality, considered without any framing of inside or outside. Atma is brahman; ishvara is brahman. (Chapter 22)

Dharma. Right action: what is honest, fair, and truly called for by the situation. (Chapter 9)

Ishvara. The intelligent order that runs everything, including your own body and mind, and that appears as the world. Usually translated as God. It can be related to as that order, or in a personal form. (Chapters 12 to 16)

Japa. Silently repeating a name of ishvara, or the syllable Om, as a way of steadying the mind. (Chapter 18)

Karma, the law of. The Gita's teaching that actions have results that come back through the order, often in ways and at times no one can trace. It is the Gita's claim, not something science has shown. (Chapter 15)

Karma yoga. The Gita's way of living for those who stay in their work and families: giving every action full effort and care, as an offering, and meeting whatever result comes with an even mind. (Chapters 9 to 11)

Manana. Reflection: questioning the teaching until every doubt is answered. The second part of inquiry. (Chapter 19)

Mithya. Real in its own place, but not independent. A clay pot holds water, but it is nothing apart from the clay. (Chapter 13)

Nididhyasana. Contemplation: staying with what you have understood, and holding it against the situations of your life, until it is how you see. The third part of inquiry. (Chapters 19 and 20)

Om. A sacred syllable, often used in japa. (Chapter 18)

Raga and dvesha. Likes and dislikes: every "I must have this" and "I cannot bear that." They are not wrong in themselves; the trouble is when they run you. Karma yoga loosens their hold. (Chapter 10)

Samsara. The quiet belief that something out there will finally make you whole, and the restless seeking that comes from it. (Chapter 3)

Sannyasa. Renunciation: stepping away from work and family to give your life wholly to the knowledge. One of the two ways of living the path that the Gita describes. (Chapter 9)

Shraddha. Trust in the teaching while you are still coming to understand it. Reasoned and provisional, not blind belief. (Chapter 7)

Shravana. Listening: steady, systematic study of the teaching, ideally with a teacher. The first part of inquiry. (Chapter 19)