RST 30: Final Exam Study Guide

Hinayana

"Inferior Vehicle" contrasted with Mayahana buddhism. Used as a synonym for Theraveda Buddhism literally meaning: the "Inferior Vehicle", "Deficient Vehicle", the "Abandoned Vehicle", or the "Defective Vehicle", applied to some schools of early Buddhism. The term appeared around the 1st or 2nd century. Hīnayāna is contrasted with Mahāyāna, which means the "Great Vehicle

Bodhicitta

"enlightenment-mind", is the mind that strives toward awakening and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is a sudden and lasting compassion for all beings, accompanied by a falling away of the attachment to the illusion of an inherently-existing self. The mind that strives toward awakening and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings.

Swayambhu

"self-manifested" or "that which is created by its own accord

Murti

A deity that is embodied in a material form. Typically refers to an image that expresses a Divine spirit. Made usually of stone, wood, or metal, which serves as a means through which a divinity may be worshipped.

Amritsar

AKA home of the golden temple, it is a city in the north-western part of india. It is the spiritual centre for the sikh religion and the administrative headquarters

Puja

An act of worship or devotion to deity(s)

Sir William Jones

Anglo-Welsh philologist and scholar of ancient India, particularly known for his proposition of the existence of a relationship among Indo-European languages. He along with Henry Thomas Colebrooke and Nathaniel Halhed founded the Asiatic Society of Bengal, and started a journal called 'Asiatick Researches'. aka the man who knew many languages

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

Bankim Chandra is widely regarded as a key figure in literary renaissance of Bengal as well as India. He was the composer of Indias national song Bengali writer poet and journalist - composed national song (Vande Mataram) - a key figure in the literary renaissance

Lord Macaulay

British historian got english to replace persian as official language taught in indian school. 1834-1838 served on the supreme council of india

Modern Buddhism

Buddhist modernist traditions often consist of a deliberate de-emphasis of the ritual and metaphysical elements of the religion, as these elements are seen as incommensurate with the discourses of modernity. Renunciation of worldly matters, devotional practices, ceremonies and the invocation of bodhisattvas among other traditionally widespread practices are often perceived as culturally contingent, therefore rather dispensable, sometimes inconvenient or impracticable ^This is Buddhism and how it is practiced today. The below is "Modern Buddhism" +Modern Buddhism: Henry Steele Olcott, "Buddhist Catechism" and "Fourteen Items of Belief" in Sri Lanka, ORIENTALISM, turned Buddhism into set of propositions- "created tradition"

Karuna

Compassion. Although you understand the nothingness of being, others probably don't understand it. Compassion is in the form of understanding there is no difference between the two people. Remember that you were born as you are by pure accident, and understanding this helps you to be compassionate towards those who were born in less fortunate circumstances. Good and bad are completely besides the point. It's a doctrine of ethics, not a doctrine of good and bad. Don't judge the quality of different people. compassion. Needed to either attain happy present life and heavenly rebirth (Theraveda) or become a Bodhisattva (Mahayana)

Theosophical Society

Created by Madame Blavatsky and Henry Olcott in 1875. This group (Wisdom of God) holds as its motto, "There is no religion higher than truth" and culls its teachings from all religious traditions, stripped of what are discerned as their "superstitious" accretions. It encourages the study of comparative religion, philosophy, and science, without discrimination based on race, gender, caste, or creed, with an aim to uncover the laws of the natural world and the latent powers of human beings. It developed its own tenets, envisioning a progressive spiritual evolution of humanity, through the periodic arrival of great teachers, known as jagadgurus (world teachers). The effort is to move humanity towards a Universal Brotherhood based on understanding the unity of all life, which shares in the divine consciousness that is God. Undertook the translation of numerous Asian religious scriptures, and continues to popularize the teachings of these traditions. systems of esoteric philosophy concerning, or investigation seeking direct knowledge of, presumed mysteries of being and nature, particularly concerning the nature of divinity. Has to do with the evolution of mankind.

Krishna

Flute- plays songs for gopis (female versions of cow herd maidens) power: he is able to play them the song that they want to here exactly how they want to hear it metaphor sexual - he knows the song each woman wants to hear Heis part of bhakti - devotion or to participate Cow - intimate connection with Krishna and cows Pictured in the rasa lila - (rasa: essence or nectar or a particular set of qualities ie emotion of state of being, extracted juice. Basically semen lila: play that is the structure of the universe) He is often dark blue or black - meaning of his name

Ram Mohan Roy

Founded Brahmo Samaj (Society of the Absolute). Influenced by the Unitarian deists, who believed that God's existence could be arrived at through the application of reason, Roy envisioned a religion that fused the ancient teachings of Hinduism with western rationality.

Guru Nanak

Founder of the religion of sikism Nanak was born in the Punjab. After a mystical experience near the age of thirty, he gave up his material possessions, and responded to a calling to teach about his realization, proclaiming "There is no Hindu; there is no Muslim." He was the first to be regarded as a guru and the founder of the Sikh ("Disciple") religion. Nanak promoted worship of God as formless, free from iconic representations. The goal in life is the release from samsara through the attainment of liberation (moksa).

Gunananda

He is known for leading the Buddhist side in debates that occurred between the Buddhists and the Christians in Baddegama, Udanwita, Waragoda, Liyanagemulla, Gampola, and in the most famous of the debates in Panadura is put in huge debate with David de Silva about Buddhism and Christianity; Buddhism wins and starts to be transformed into study of argumentation; turned Buddhism into a categorized criteria.

Dayananda

He is well known as the founder of the Arya Samaj, a Hindu reform movement of the Vedic tradition. He was a profound scholar of the Vedic lore and Sanskrit language. He was the first to give the call for Swarajya' "India for Indians" A Gujarati Brahmin, who rejected the Hinduism of the Puranas and Tantras, deeming them to be the compositions of self- serving men. He rejected polytheism, image worship, and the concept of the avataras, but upheld the Vedas as the basis of all truth. In 1875, he found the Arya Samaj (Society of Noble Ones), which, like the Brahmo Samaj, was opposed to existing Hindu practices such as caste restrictions and child-marriage.

David de Silva

He is widely regarded as one of the foremost Christian practitioners of Buddhist-Christian dialogue in Sri Lanka, and also as one of the pioneers in this dialogue a franciscan missionary lost the 3 day debate over which tradition (christianity/buddhism) was better

Henry Steel Olcott

He was the first well-known American of European ancestry to make a formal conversion to Buddhism. His subsequent actions as president of the Theosophical Society helped create a renaissance in the study of Buddhism. He is considered a Buddhist modernist for his efforts in interpreting Buddhism through a Westernized lens.First president of theo society With Madam Blavatsky, he formed the theosophical society in 1875 in Nyc, but shifted its headquarters to Adyar. He was a retired soldier who foughclarion call to Hindus to unite and regain their ancient homeland by installing "Hindu-ness" once again as India's dominant public culture. Seeded the ideological foundations of the RSS.

Theravada

Oldest surviving Buddhist branch, it is closer to early Buddhism than the other existing Buddhist traditions

Jnana

One of the major approaches (yoga or marga) to liberation. It is the highest knowledge. Self- restraint, concentration of mind, and regarding a Brahmin and an Untouchable with an equal eye, are among the qualities that characterize this path. The Gita also discusses aspects of this approach in the language of "the field" and "the knower of the field" To know both the field and the knower of the field is true knowledge (jnana). Although jnana means "knowledge", in the context of jnana yoga it is the transcendental "knowing" of the absolute, which is a deeply experienced truth, and which provides meaning to the facts and data that constitute our gathered information about the world.

Sanatana Dharma

Sanskrit meaning "the eternal law" or "the eternal way" The primeval eternal religion, which means that it is above the hostility of all human creeds whatsoever. (Hinduism)

Sati

Siva's wife; a ritual in which a woman immolates herself on her dead husband's funeral pyre.

RSS

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (Community of volunteers for the Nation). It pressed for the formation of a distinctly Hindu state, in opposition to the Congress Party's notion of a secular government with religious freedom. However, they did not favor the partitioning of India, envisioning a nation in which other religions, such as the Muslims, Buddhists, and so on, recognized themselves as Hindus, under the broad cultural category of Hindutva. Claimed to be nonpolitical.

Khalsa

The collective body of all initiated Sikhs. They are the moral pillars of the community, the ones who are supposed to lead by example. They have the five K's Kesh - The uncut hairs on all the body Kanga - A wooden comb. Kara - An iron bracelet. Kachera - A pair of drawers (a specific type of cotton underwear). Kirpan - A dagger or sword. Gobind Singh, the socio- political character of the Sikh movement was crystallized through his creation of the khalsa, an inner circle of religious warriors. Khalsa Sikh males and females wore the "five ks", five items that begin with the Punjabi letter "k". The first of these is kes, which indicates that Sikhs shouldn't cut the hair on their heads or their beards. The other items worn are a special type of underwear (kachh), a steel bangle (kara), a dagger (kirpan), and a comb (kangha).

Jataka

These are the stories that tell about the previous lives of the Buddha, in both human and animal form. The future Buddha may appear in them as a king, an outcast, a god, an elephant—but, in whatever form, he exhibits some virtue that the tale thereby inculcates. body of literature referring to the previous lives of Buddha

Suddhi

This is Sanskrit for purification. In Hinduism it is a part of worship. It also sometimes refers to reverting to Hinduism after converting from Hinduism to another religion. was the 5th Chief Justice of India, serving from December 1, 1955 to January 30, 1959. Mr Das also served as Chairman of The Statesman.

Ram Rajya

Translates to mean "Rule of Rama." It was a film from 1943, and (probably more relevantly) it was a term used by Gandhi to define democratic-righteous rule during the Indian independence struggle. the aegis of a powerful and ancient religious symbol of dharmic government, the rule of the god-king Rama.

Madame Blavatsky

Was instrumental in the Western Transmission and revival of Theravada Buddhism Along with Colonel Henry Steele Olcott, she formed the theosophical society in 1875 in New York City. She was a Russian, whose religious influences were wide-ranging, including neo-Platonic thought, Tibetan Buddhism, and western occultism. Blavatsky and Olcott moved to India and took up the cause of promoting Eastern religious values with passion.

Arati

Worship of a deity, particularly the flame offering, mostly in temples. is a hindu religious ritual of worship, in which a lighted wick is offered to one or more deities. Derived from the Vedic concept of fire rituals.

Madhyamaka

a Mahayana Buddhist school of philosophy founded by Nagarjuna. All phenomena are empty of "substance" or "essence" because they are dependently co arisen. Thus, there is no intrinsic, independent reality of their own.

Vande Mataram

a hymn to the Mother Land in the Indian Independence movement

Stupa

a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the ashes of deceased, used by Buddhists as a place of meditation. The term "reliquary" is sometimes used, after a Christian functional equivalent. Stupas are an ancient form of mandala

Annie Besant

a prominent British socialist, Theosopist, Womans rights activist, writer and orator and supporter of Irish and Indian self-rule.

Orientalism

a term used by art historians and literary cultural studies scholars for the imitation or depiction of aspects of middle eastern and asian cultures (usually generalized, stereotyped and a false image of "the east")

Perfection of wisdom

accepting emptiness exists

Sir Edwin Arnold

an English poet and journalist, who is most known for his work, The Light of Asia The Light of Asia, subtitled The Great Renunciation, is a book. The first edition of the book was published in London in July 1879. In the form of a narrative poem, the book endeavors to describe the life and time of Prince Gautama Siddhartha, who after attaining enlightenment became The Buddha, The Awakened One. The book presents his life, character, and philosophy, in a series of verses. It is a free adaptation of the Lalitavistara. A few decades before the book's publication, very little was known outside Asia about the Buddha and Buddhism, the religion which he founded, and which had existed for about twenty-five centuries. Arnold's book was one of the first successful attempts to popularize Buddhism for a Western readership.[1][2] The book has been highly acclaimed from the time it was first published, and has been the subject of several reviews. It has been translated into several languages, including Hindi (by Acharya Ram Chandra Shukla).

Rama

avatar of Vishnu whose name is synonymous with God, The hero of the Ramayana who is the reincarnation of vishnu, and the role model for men in hindu society.

Vivekananda

born Narendra Nath Datta, was an Indian Hindu monk. He was a key figure in the introduction of Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the western world and was credited with bringing interfaith awarness and hinduism as a world religion in the 19th century

Langar

common kitchen/canteen where food is served in a Gurdwara to all the visitors for free. Only serves vegetarian food. Everyone welcome.

Gandhi

commonly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was the preeminent leader of Indian nationalism in British-ruled India. Employing non-violent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for non-violence, civil rights and freedom across the world. Trained as a lawyer in London. After practicing law and fighting for civil liberties in South Africa for more than two decades, he returned to India in 1915 and became active in the independence movement. He started an astama in Gujarat to train disciples in the techniques of active but non-violent resistance to injustice using the "power" of "force of truth" (satyagraha). Gandhian approaches has been used by segments of the civil rights movement in the United States, etc. Gandhi's approach has often been erroneously construed as passive, instead of active, non-violent resistance. He did not embrace the caste system and fought for equality of Untouchables, whom he referred to as Harijans.

Nagarjuna

credited with founding of the Madyamaka School of Buddhism. Says Samsara and Nirvana are exactly the same thing

Sangh Parivar

family of organizations of hindu nationalists started/inspired by RSS

Rath Yatra

festival that involves transporting idols on a chariot

Upaya

goal to enlightenment and the way one will reach it. It is a concept which emphasizes that practitioners may use their own specific methods or techniques that fit the situation in order to gain enlightenment. The implication is that even if a technique, view, etc., is not ultimately "true" in the highest sense, it may still be an expedient practice to perform or view to hold; i.e., it may bring the practitioner closer to true realization anyway. The exercise of skill to which it refers, the ability to adapt one's message to the audience, is of enormous importance in the Pali Canon

Kali

god - the evil core of durga- fighting the demon and holding its head She's standing on shiva, her wrath is uncontrollable and she killed shiva

Sarasvarti

god of knowledge and music

Laksmi

god of wealth and prosperity

Durga

god that holds all the weapons of the male deities

Arya Samaj (Society of Noble Ones)

is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 7 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Found by Dayananda Sarasvati. It opposed existing Hindu practices such as caste restrictions and child-marriage. The society also promoted widow's rights to remarriage and the education of women. The Arya Samaj's attitude to the Vedas was that they were the receptacle of all truth, and thus every enunciation of legitimate Hinduism should be traceable back to those texts. This organization became a powerful force in the development of Indian nationalism. It had adopted a stance of pride in India's religious heritage.

Ayodhya

is an ancient city of India, birthplace of the Hindu avatar Rama, and setting of the epic Ramayana

Guru Granth Sahib

is the living Guru of Sikhism.[1] It is a voluminous text of 1430 Angs, compiled and composed during the period of Sikh gurus, from 1469 to 1708.[1] It is a collection of hymns (shabda) or baani describing the qualities of God[2] and why one should meditate on God's name Although Sikhism has developed its own religious rituals and traditions, Nanak was highly critical of rituals. His teachings are evident in the over 900 poems attributed to him and gathered in the guru granth Sahib (Honorable book of the teachers).

Ik Onkar

is the symbol that represents the One Supreme Reality[2] and is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy.[1] It is a symbol of the unity of God in Sikhism, and is found on all religious scriptures and places such as Gurdwaras symbol that represents the one supreme reality the unity of god in sikhism

V.D Savarkar

launched a movement for religious reform advocating dismantling the system of caste in Hindu culture, and reconversion of the converted Hindus back to Hindu religion. Savarkar created the term hindtuva

Svabhava

literally means "own-being" or "own-becoming". It is the intrinsic nature, essential nature or essence of living beings. nothing has its own essence; we know what form is because we also knows its opposite/absence of it.

Bodhisattva

one who has attained enlightenment but chosen to return to help others also attain enlightenment. Sanskrit meaning is "enlightened existence". This person is motivated by great compassion and has generated bodhicitta for the good of all sentient beings. one who compassionately refrains from entering nirvana in order to save others and is worshipped as a deity in Mahayana Buddhism; beings who postpone their own enlightenment in order to save others because they know there is no real end. they are not actually putting anything off because things are infinite, including us.

Swaraj

self-governance or "self-rule", and was used synonymously with "home-rule" by Gandhi independence from foriegn rule mean generally self- governance or "self-rule", and was used synonymously with "home-rule" by Gandhi. Refers to Ghandi's concept for Indian independence from foreign domination.

Partition

separation of India and Pakistan split of British India on the basis of religious demographics (India-Pakistan) in 1947

BJP

the Bharatiya Janata Party designates its official ideology and central philosophy to be "integral humanism", based upon a 1965 book by Deendayal Upadhyaya. The party advocates Hindu nationalism and social conservatism, self-reliance as outlined by the Swadeshi movement,and a foreign policy centred around key nationalist principles. The party's platform is generally considered to the right-wing of the Indian political spectrum Bharatiya Janata Party. Political subset of RSS party. One of 2 major parties in Indian political system. Sudden and lasting compassion for all beings.

Shiva

the Destroyer, an important Hindu deity who in the trinity of gods was the Destroyer

Heart Sutra

the Heart of the Perfection of Transcendent Wisdom". It is often cited as the best-known [1] and most popular Buddhist scripture of all famous sutra in Mahayana Buddhism. It is known as the best-known and most popular buddhist scripture of all.

Vishnu

the Sustainer, The preserver god representing divine love who has had nine avatars (incarnations), such as Krishna and Rama.

Emptiness

the perfection of wisdom is emptiness; nothing exists in itself, but rather exists in relation to everything else; empty of anything inherent of themselves

Hindutva

the set of movements advocating Hindu nationalism. According to a 1995 Supreme Court of India judgement this word could be used to mean "the way of life of the Indian people and the Indian culture or ethos In 1923, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar wrote the book Who is a Hindu?, which defined "Hindu-ness" as a cultural category shared by the peoples of the Indian subcontinent. It was circumscribed in some measure merely by its distinctiveness from Islam and Christianity, presented as the "cultures" of India's colonizing powers. Book was a les and females wear the 5 k's, five items that begin with the Punjabi letter "k" (pg 280)

Brahmo Samaj

the societal component of the Brahmoism, a monotheistic reformist and renaissance movement of Hindu religion, It was one of the most influential religious reformist movements responsible for the making of modern India, started in calcutta Found by Ram Mohan Roy, and it was the society of the absolute, the first modern Hindu reform movement. Its essential purpose was to re-envision Hinduism in a manner that would free it from its Puranic accretions, such as rituals of image worship in temples. Supported advancement of English education, promoted science and philosophy. Abolition of sati and pressed to uplift status of women. Emphasis on the Upanisads had reintroduced many Hindu intellectuals to the teachings of the Veda.

Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale

was a Sikh insurgent leader notable for his support of the Anandpur Sahib Resolution and the militarisation of the Golden Temple a sikh insurgent leader, militarisation of the golden temple. against alcohol drugs and sikhs cutting their hair. condemned indian constitution which called sikhs and other minorities a part of hinduism

Babri Masjid

was a mosque in Ayodhya, a city in the Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh, India, on Ramkot Hill ("Rama's fort"). It was destroyed in 1992 when a political rally developed into a riot involving 150,000 people, 2000 people were killed 1527 a muslim mosque in Ayodhya was destroyed in a political rally that turned into a riot in 1992 (the entire Ram film based on this)

Kabir

was a mystic poet and sant of India, whose writings have greatly influenced the Bhakti movement. The name Kabir comes from Arabic al-Kabīr which means 'The Great' - the 37th name of God in Islam. Apart from having an important influence on Sikhism, Kabir's legacy is today carried forward by the Kabir Panth ("Path of Kabir"), a religious community that recognizes him as its founder and is one of the Sant Mat sects. Its members, known as Kabir panthis, are estimated to be around 9,600,000. They are spread over north and central India, as well as dispersed with the Indian diaspora across the world, up from 843,171 in the 1901 census mystic poet and saint of india his writings greatly influenced the Bhakti movement

Mirabai

was a princess Hindu mystical and a devotee of Lord Krishna from Rajasthan. She was one of the most significant figures Sant of the Vaishnava bhakti movement. Some 1,300 pads (poems) commonly known as bhajans (sacred songs) are attributed to her. These are popular throughout India and have been published in several translations worldwide. In the bhakti tradition, they are in passionate praise of Lord Krishna. In most of her poems she has described her unconditional love for her Lord. She has tried to give the message that Krishna bhakti is the best way to live life as it helps us forget our desires and this in turn helps us attain moksha (liberation).

Guru Gobind Singh

was the Tenth of the ten physical living Sikh Gurus]]. Born in Patna, Bihar in India, he was also a Warrior, Poet and Philosopher. He succeeded his Father Guru Tegh Bahadur as the Leader of Sikhs at the young age of nine. He contributed much to Sikhism; notable was his contribution to the continual formalisation of the faith which the First Sikh Guru Ji Guru Nanak had founded, as a religion, in the 15th century. The last of the living Sikh Gurus initiated the Sikh Khalsa in 1699, passing the Guruship of the Sikhs to the Eleventh and Eternal Guru of the Sikhs, the Guru Granth Sahib. By the time of the last Sikh Guru, the socio-cultural character of the movement was crystallized through his creation of the khalsa, an inner circle of religious warriors. Khalsa sikh mat in the civil war, and was the first prominent European American to convert to Buddhism. Olcott was highly influential in the Buddhist revival in Sri Lanka.

Lotus Sutra

writings about story of burning building (man has kids, come out of the building, man says all your toys and things are outside of the house (example of what upaya is), whatever methods we use to obtain enlightenment. (burning building= samsara) rationale for why we should lie to each other (ex: seduction of father with toys to bring boys out of burning house) Upaya - skillful means.

Edward Said

wrote "Orientalism" a Palestinian-American literary theoretician, University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University, and a public intellectual who was a founding figure of the critical-theory field of Post-colonialism, talks about orientalism a lot`

James Mill

wrote "The History of British India" ; ran India's office and decided how British power worked in India According to Thomas Trautman's account, "His highly influential History of British India (1817) - most particularly the long essay 'Of the Hindus' comprising ten chapters - is the single most important source of British Indophobia and hostility to Orientalism,,, hes never been to India