Endless Knot
file:Endless knot detail, from- Burmese-Pali Manuscript. Wellcome L0026495 (cropped).jpg, Endless knot in a Burmese Pali manuscript The endless knot or eternal knot is a symbolic Knot (mathematics), knot and one of the Ashtamangala, Eight Auspicious Symbols. It is an important symbol in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. It is an important cultural marker in places significantly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism such as Tibet, Mongolia, Tuva, Kalmykia, and Buryatia. It is also found in Celtic knot, Celtic, Kazakh culture, Kazakh and Chinese knotting, Chinese symbolism. History The endless knot appears on clay tablets from the Indus Valley civilization (2500 BC) and on a historic era inscription. While associated with Dharmic religions, it also appears in Islamic art. It likely was introduced due to trade and other cultural contact with China, the Mongols, and Iran. Interpretations Buddhism Various Buddhist interpretations of the symbol are: * The endless knot iconography sym ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shrivatsa
The Shrivatsa (Sanskrit: ; IAST: ''Śrīvatsa,'' ) is an ancient symbol, considered auspicious in Hinduism and other Indian religious traditions. Hinduism Origin Shrivatsa means "Beloved of Shri", an epithet of Vishnu, and a reference to his consort, the goddess Lakshmi, also called Shri. It is a mark on the chest of Vishnu, where his consort is described to reside. The Bhagavata Purana explains the origin of this mark. The story goes that a number of maharishis once gathered on the banks of the river Sarasvati to perform a yajna. A dispute arose among these sages regarding the superiority of the members of the Trimurti: Brahma, Vishnu, or Shiva. The sage Bhrigu was appointed to discover the truth of this matter, and undertook this task by travelling to the abodes of these deities. He felt disrespected by Brahma when the latter was offended by the fact that he had taken his seat on a stool that was not offered to him. He grew anxious when Shiva rose to embrace him, wh ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation, was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE. Together with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, it was one of three early civilisations of the Near East and South Asia, and of the three, the most widespread, its sites spanning an area including much of Pakistan, northwestern India and northeast Afghanistan. The civilisation flourished both in the alluvial plain of the Indus River, which flows through the length of Pakistan, and along a system of perennial monsoon-fed rivers that once coursed in the vicinity of the Ghaggar-Hakra, a seasonal river in northwest India and eastern Pakistan. The term ''Harappan'' is sometimes applied to the Indus Civilisation after its type site Harappa, the first to be excavated early in the 20th century in what was then the Punjab ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Reality
Reality is the sum or aggregate of everything in existence; everything that is not imagination, imaginary. Different Culture, cultures and Academic discipline, academic disciplines conceptualize it in various ways. Philosophical questions about the nature of reality, existence, or being are considered under the rubric of ontology, a major branch of metaphysics in the Western intellectual tradition. Ontological questions also feature in diverse branches of philosophy, including the philosophy of science, philosophy of religion, religion, philosophy of mathematics, mathematics, and philosophical logic, logic. These include questions about whether only physical objects are real (e.g., physicalism), whether reality is fundamentally immaterial (e.g., idealism), whether hypothetical unobservable entities posited by scientific theories exist (e.g., scientific realism), whether God exists, whether numbers and other abstract objects exist, and whether possible worlds exist. Etymology a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dependent Origination
A dependant (US spelling: dependent) is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income and usually assistance with activities of daily living. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enable the provider to claim a tax deduction. In the United Kingdom, a full-time student in higher education who financially supports another adult may qualify for an Adult Dependant's Grant. Taxation In the US, a taxpayer may claim exemptions for their dependants. See also * Military dependent Military dependents are the spouse(s), children, and possibly other familial relationship categories of a sponsoring military member for purposes of pay as well as special benefits, privileges and rights.DoD 601O.8-R This generic category is e ... * Independent * Guardian References External links * Interpersonal relationships Gender roles Sociology of work ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Emptiness
Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation, nihilism, and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression (mood), depression, loneliness, anhedonia, wiktionary:despair, despair, or other mental/emotional disorders, including schizoid personality disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, schizotypal personality disorder and borderline personality disorder. A sense of emptiness is also part of a natural process of grief, as resulting death of a loved one, or other significant changes. The particular meanings of "emptiness" vary with the particular context and the religious or cultural tradition in which it is used. While Christianity and Western sociologists and psychologists view a state of emptiness as a negative, unwanted condition, in some Eastern philosophies such as Buddhist philosophy and Taoism, emptiness (Śūnyatā) represents seeing through the Pratītyasamutpāda, il ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Upasana
Upasana (Sanskrit: उपासना ') literally means "worship" and "sitting near, attend to". It refers to the worship of, or meditation on, formless things, such as Absolute Self, the Holy, the '' Atman'' (Soul) Principle, distinguishing meditative reverence for an internalized and intellectual concept from earlier forms of physical worship, actual sacrifices and offerings to Vedic deities. The term also refers to one of three ' (, parts) of Vedas, one that focuses on worship or meditation. The other two parts of Vedas are called Aranyakas and Upanishads, sometimes identified as ' (, ritualistic sacrifice section) and ' (, knowledge, spirituality section).A Bhattacharya (2006), Hindu Dharma: Introduction to Scriptures and Theology, , pages 8-14 Etymology The root of the Sanskrit word ''Upasana'' is ''up'' and ''asana'' (from ''as''), which means "to sit close to someone, waiting on someone with reverence". Oldenberg explained ''Upasana'' from its root ''Upās-'', in German as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Secular
Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian history into the modern era. Since the Middle Ages, there have been clergy not pertaining to a religious order called "secular clergy". Furthermore, secular and religious entities were not separated in the medieval period, but coexisted and interacted naturally. The word ''secular'' has a meaning very similar to profane as used in a religious context. Today, anything that is not directly connected with religion may be considered secular, in other words, neutral to religion. Secularity does not mean , but . Many activities in religious bodies are secular, and though there are multiple types of secularity or secularization, most do not lead to irreligiosity. Linguistically, a process by which anything becomes secular is named ''secularizatio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Religious Doctrine
Doctrine (from , meaning 'teaching, instruction') is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief system. The etymological Greek analogue is 'catechism'. Often the word ''doctrine'' specifically suggests a body of religious principles as promulgated by a church. ''Doctrine'' may also refer to a principle of law, in the common-law traditions, established through a history of past decisions. Religious usage Examples of religious doctrines include: * Christian theology: ** Doctrines such as the Trinity, the virgin birth and atonement ** The Salvation Army ''Handbook of Doctrine'' **Transubstantiation and Marian teachings in Roman Catholic theology. The department of the Roman Curia which deals with questions of doctrine is called the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. ** The distinctive Calvinist doctrine of "double" predestination **The Meth ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mutual Dependence
Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term , between two s of different . The two organisms, termed symbionts, can for example be in mutualistic, commensalistic, or relatio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dualistic Cosmology
Dualism or dualistic cosmology is the moral or belief that two fundamental concepts exist, which often oppose each other. It is an umbrella term that covers a diversity of views from various religions, including both traditional religions and scriptural religions. #Moral dualism, Moral dualism is the belief of the great complement of, or conflict between, the benevolent and the malevolent. It simply implies that there are two moral opposites at work, independent of any interpretation of what might be "moral" and independent of how these may be represented. Moral opposites might, for example, exist in a worldview that has one god, more than one god, or none. By contrast, duotheism, bitheism or ditheism implies (at least) two gods. While bitheism implies harmony, ditheism implies rivalry and opposition, such as between good and evil, or light and dark, or summer and winter. For example, a ditheistic system could be one in which one god is a creator and the other a destroyer. In theol ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Maitrī
(Sanskrit; Pali: ) means benevolence, loving-kindness, friendliness, amity, good will, and active interest in others. It is the first of the four sublime states () and one of the ten of the Theravāda school of Buddhism. The cultivation of benevolence () is a popular form of Buddhist meditation. It is a part of the four immeasurables in (divine abidings) meditation. as "compassion meditation" is often practiced in Asia by broadcast chanting, wherein monks chant for the laity. The compassion and universal loving-kindness concept of is discussed in the ''Metta Sutta'' of Buddhism, and is also found in the ancient and medieval texts of Hinduism and Jainism as or . Small sample studies on the potential of suggest potential benefits. However, peer reviews question the quality and sample size of these studies. Etymology and meaning is a Pali word, from which was itself derived from which, states Monier-Williams, means "friend". The term is found in this sense in the Ve ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |