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Mahat-tattva
Mahat-tattva () or mahat is a concept in the Samkhya philosophy of Hinduism. It is the first evolute of ''Prakriti'', the causeless cause of the world, that is generated after ''Prakriti'' begins to evolve when its equilibrium is disturbed, which causes expansion of material energy and matter. In the process of evolution, after mahat emanates, egoity (''ahamkara''), mind (''manas''), the five sense capacities, the five action capacities, the five subtle elements, and the five gross elements evolve. These are the 22 other elements that constitute the basic metaphysics of Samkhya. Etymology The Sanskrit terms ''mahat'' means "great", and ''tattva'' may be translated as "element". Description In Samkhya philosophy, the creation process of the Universe starts when ''Purusha'' engages with ''Prakriti''. ''Prakriti'' is the first principal of creation and consists of three ''guṇas'' (qualities) – ''sattva'', ''rajas'', and '' tamas'' – which are dormant until stirred into act ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samkhya
Samkhya or Sankhya (; ) is a dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, '' Puruṣa'' ('consciousness' or spirit) and '' Prakṛti'' (nature or matter, including the human mind and emotions). ''Puruṣa'' is the witness-consciousness. It is absolute, independent, free, beyond perception, above any experience by mind or senses, and impossible to describe in words. ''Prakṛti'' is matter or nature. It is inactive, unconscious, and is a balance of the three '' guṇas'' (qualities or innate tendencies), namely '' sattva'', '' rajas'', and '' tamas''. When ''Prakṛti'' comes into contact with ''Purusha'' this balance is disturbed, and ''Prakṛti'' becomes manifest, evolving twenty-three tattvas, namely intellect ('' buddhi'', ''mahat''), I-principle ('' ahamkara''), mind ('' manas''); the five sensory capacities known as ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose; the five action capacities known as hands (''hasta''), fee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified by adherence to the concept of ''dharma'', a Ṛta, cosmic order maintained by its followers through rituals and righteous living, as expounded in the Vedas. The word ''Hindu'' is an exonym, and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, it has also been described by the modern term ''Sanātana Dharma'' () emphasizing its eternal nature. ''Vaidika Dharma'' () and ''Arya dharma'' are historical endonyms for Hinduism. Hinduism entails diverse systems of thought, marked by a range of shared Glossary of Hinduism terms, concepts that discuss God in Hinduism, theology, Hindu mythology, mythology, among other topics in Hindu texts, textual sources. Hindu texts have been classified into Śruti () and Smṛti (). The major Hin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prakṛti
Prakriti ( ) is "the original or natural form or condition of anything, original or primary substance". It is a key concept in Hinduism, formulated by the '' Samkhya'' school, where it does not refer merely to matter or nature, but includes all cognitive, moral, psychological, emotional, sensorial and physical aspects of reality. ''Prakriti'' has three different innate qualities ( ''guṇas''), whose equilibrium is the basis of all empirical reality, in the form of the five panchamahabhootas (basic elements) – Akasha, Vayu, Agni, Jala, Pruthvi. ''Prakriti'' contrasts with '' Puruṣa'', which is pure awareness and metaphysical consciousness.James G. Lochtefeld (2001), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M, Rosen Publishing, , Pages 224, 265, 520 The term is also found in the texts of other Indian religions such as Jainism and Buddhism. Etymology and meaning ''Prakriti'' (Sanskrit: प्रकृति) is an early Indic concept meaning "making or placing before or at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ahamkara
Ahamkara (Sanskrit: अहंकार; Romanized: Ahaṁkāra), "I-making," is a Sanskrit term in Hindu philosophy referring to the construction of a Self-concept, or the false identification of the self ( Purusha, atman) with impermanent entities such as the body, mind, or material objects. It evolves from Mahat-tattva, and is one of the four '' Antaḥkaraṇa'' (functions of the mind). Ahamkara in the Bhagavad Gita In the Bhagavad Gita, ahamkara is presented as the ego, or the false identification of the self ( atman) with material nature, which obstructs spiritual liberation (moksha). In 3.27, Krishna warns that actions driven by ahamkara—believing “I am the doer”—bind the soul to karma: “All actions are performed by the gunas of nature, but one deluded by ahamkara thinks, ‘I am the doer.’" Easwaran notes that ahamkara fuels desires that obscure the true self, a theme evident in Krishna’s call for humility in 13.8–12, where virtues like “absence of pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion, diffused there from the northwest in the late Bronze Age#South Asia, Bronze Age. Sanskrit is the sacred language of Hinduism, the language of classical Hindu philosophy, and of historical texts of Buddhism and Jainism. It was a lingua franca, link language in ancient and medieval South Asia, and upon transmission of Hindu and Buddhist culture to Southeast Asia, East Asia and Central Asia in the early medieval era, it became a language of religion and high culture, and of the political elites in some of these regions. As a result, Sanskrit had a lasting effect on the languages of South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia, especially in their formal and learned vocabularies. Sanskrit generally connotes several Indo-Aryan languages# ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Purusha
''Purusha'' (, ʊɾʊʂᵊ ) is a complex concept whose meaning evolved in Vedic and Upanishadic times. Depending on source and historical timeline, it means the cosmic being or self, awareness, and universal principle.Karl Potter, Presuppositions of India’s Philosophies, Motilal Banarsidass, , pp 105–109 In early Vedas, ''Purusha'' was a cosmic being whose sacrifice by the gods created all life. This was one of many creation myths discussed in the Vedas. In the Upanishads, the ''Purusha'' concept refers to the abstract essence of the Self, Spirit and the Universal Principle that is eternal, indestructible, without form, and all-pervasive. In Samkhya philosophy, ''Purusha'' is the plural immobile cosmic principle, pure consciousness, unattached and unrelated to anything, which is "nonactive, unchanging, eternal, and pure". ''Purusha'' uniting with '' Prakṛti'' (matter) gives rise to life. In Kashmir Shaivism, ''Purusha'' is enveloped in five sheaths of time (''kā ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guṇa
() is a concept in Hinduism, which can be translated as "quality, peculiarity, attribute, property".guna Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, GermanyguNa Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Koeln University, Germany The concept is originally notable as a feature of Samkhya philosophy. The guṇas are now a key concept in nearly all schools of .James G. Lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sattva
''Sattva'' (Sanskrit: सत्त्व, meaning ''goodness'') is one of the three '' guṇas'' or "modes of existence" (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept understood by the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy.James G. Lochtefeld, "Sattva", in ''The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism'': A–M, Vol. 2, Rosen Publishing, , p. 608 The other two qualities are '' rajas'' (passion and activity) and '' tamas'' (destruction, chaos). ''Sattva'' is the quality of goodness, purity, positivity, truth, serenity, balance, peacefulness, and virtuousness that is drawn towards ''Dharma'' and ''jñāna'' (knowledge).Ian Whicher (1998), ''The Integrity of the Yoga Darśana'', State University of New York Press, pp. 86–87, 124–125, 163–167, 238–243 The act or a person who bears this is called ''Satvik''. Hinduism Samkhya Philosophy In Samkhya philosophy, a is one of three "tendencies, qualities": ''sattva'', '' rajas'' and '' tamas''. This cate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rajas
''Rajas'' (Sanskrit: रजस्) is one of the three '' guṇas'' (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept developed by the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy.James G. Lochtefeld, Rajas, in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M, Vol. 2, Rosen Publishing, , pages 546-547 The other two qualities are ''sattva'' (goodness, balance) and '' tamas'' (lethargy, violence, disorder). ''Rajas'' is innate tendency or quality that drives motion, energy and activity.Ian Whicher (1998), ''The Integrity of the Yoga Darśana'', State University of New York Press, pages 86-87, 124-125, 163-167, 238-243 ''Rajas'' is sometimes translated as passion, where it is used in the sense of activity, without any particular value and it can contextually be either good or bad. ''Rajas'' helps actualize the other two ''guṇa''. In simply it is the mixture of both ''sattva'' and ''tamas''. Description In Samkhya philosophy, a is one of three "tendencies, qualiti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamas (philosophy)
''Tamas'' (Sanskrit: तमस् ''tamas'', ) is one of the three '' guṇas'' (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept developed by the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy.James G. Lochtefeld, Guna, in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M, Vol. 1, Rosen Publishing, , p. 265. The other two qualities are '' rajas'' (passion and activity) and '' sattva'' (purity, goodness). ''Tamas'' is the quality of inertia, inactivity, dullness, or lethargy. Generally it is referred to as the lowest ''guṇa'' of the three. Etymology The Vedic word ''támas'' refers to "darkness." The Indo-European word ''*temH-es'', means "dark", and the Lithuanian word ''tamsa'', mean "darkness." Serbian word "tama" means "darkness". Hinduism In Samkhya philosophy, a is one of three "tendencies, qualities": '' sattva'', '' rajas'' and ''tamas''. This category of qualities have been widely adopted by various schools of Hinduism for categorizing behavior and n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhi
''Buddhi'' (Sanskrit: बुद्धि) refers to the intellectual faculty and the power to "form and retain concepts, reason, discern, judge, comprehend, understand". Etymology ''Buddhi'' () is derived from the Vedic Sanskrit root ''Budh'' (बुध् ), which literally means "to wake, be awake, observe, heed, attend, learn, become aware of, to know, be conscious again". The term appears extensively in Rigveda and other Vedic literature. ''Buddhi'' means, states Monier Williams, the power to "form, retain concepts; intelligence, reason, intellect, mind", the intellectual faculty and the ability to "discern, judge, comprehend, understand" something. Buddhi is a feminine Sanskrit noun derived from ''*budh'', to be awake, to understand, to know. The same root is the basis for the more familiar masculine form ''Buddha'' and the abstract noun ''bodhi''. Buddhi contrasts from ''manas'' (मनस्) which means "mind", and '' ahamkara'' (अहंंकाऱ) which means ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhagavata Purana
The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one of the most popular in Vaishnavism. Composed in Sanskrit and traditionally attributed to Veda Vyasa, it promotes '' bhakti'' (devotion) towards Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, integrating themes from the Advaita (monism) philosophy of Adi Shankara, the Vishishtadvaita (qualified monism) of Ramanujacharya and the Dvaita (dualism) of Madhvacharya. It is widely available in almost all Indian languages. The ''Bhagavata Purana'', like other puranas, discusses a wide range of topics including cosmology, astronomy, genealogy, geography, legend, music, dance, yoga and culture. As it begins, the forces of evil have won a war between the benevolent '' devas'' (deities) and evil '' asuras'' (demons) and now rule the universe. Truth re-emerges as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
