Adya Shakti -lit. “first, original." Used as a synonym for the Adishakti, the
first or original Shakti which manifests from the absolute and is the
Mother of all the worlds. Aghora - lit.“non-terrifying.” Aghora is the most extreme of all Indian
sects, concentrating on forcible conversion of a limited human person
ality into a divine personality. Aghori - A practitioner of Aghora Agni - “Fire”; the God Fire Ahamkara - “I-maker”; the ego Amrita - “Immortal”; nectar Anjaneya - “Descendant of Anjani”; a name of Hanuman, the monkey
king, because his mother was named Anjani Apsaras - A class of semi-divine females who can change their shape at
will; they move between water (ap) and clouds (saras) Asura - “Demon, anti-god." Atma(n) - The soul, the indwelling spirit which animates a living being.
The Jivatma is the individual spirit which imagines itself trapped in a physical form and subject to the limitations of embodied existence. The Paramatma is the Universal Soul, the totality of spirit in the cos mos. All Jivas or Jivatmas belong to the Paramatma. Avatara - “Descent, incarnation”; usually denoting one of the ten incar
nations of Vishnu: Matsya (the fish), Kurma (the tortoise), Varaha (the boar), Narasimha (the man-lion), Vamana (the dwarf), Parashurama,
Rama, Krishna, Buddha, and Kalki (the future incarnation) Avishkara - Possession of one’s body by an alien personality, especially
that of a diety or saint
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Bhakti - Religious or spiritual devotion Brahmana - A member of the priestly class of society Chillum - A pipe used to smoke marijuana or hashish mixed with tobac
co. It is three or four inches long and is straight, tapering with a wide bowl to a thin mouth. Darshana - The act of viewing a saint or diety; also, one of India’s philo
sophical systems Dattatreya - Name of a sage, son of Atri and Anasuya who was wor
shipped as a deity in the form of the triad Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva Deepaka - Name of a Raga (musical melody): the Kindling or Igniting
Melody Deva - “Deity, celestial being” Dvapara Yuga - “Eon of one-half”; name of the third Yuga in the series of
four, in which one-half of the dharma or righteousness of Satya Yuga remains. In Dvapara Yuga the primary sadhana and means of achiev
ing desires is austerities (tapas). Ganesha - The elephant-headed god, son of Shiva and Uma (gana + isha,
lord of attendents) Gati - “Gait, mode"; there are 108 gatis of sound (nada). Numerologically
108 adds up to 9, the number of chakras in the body, according to Aghora. Which gati of nada one hears depends upon past karmas, pre
sent tendencies, ancestry, etc. Gotra - 1) System of Vedic lineage ancestry, deriving from “protection of
cows”; 2) “Protection for the senses" Guna - lit. “qualities” or “attributes.” The Three Gunas are the three fun
damental attributes of conditional or limited existence: Sattva (equilib rium), Rajas (activity), and Tamas (inertia). In its purest state the mind is pure Sattva, and the two chief mental disturbances are Rajas (overac
tivity) and Tamas (inactivity). Guru Droha - An offense or act of treachery against the guru Guru Purnima - The full moon of the Indian month of Ashadha (usually
in mid-July), during which the guru is worshipped Halahala - The world-threatening poison drunk by Shiva that turned his
throat blue Hanuman - The mighty monkey of the Ramayana who is the archetype
of the selfless devotee Hiranyakashipu - A great demon king, father of Prahlada (q.v.), was evis
cerated by Narasimha, the man-lion avatara of Vishnu
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Hiranyaksha - A demon king, elder brother of Hiranyakashipu (q.v.), was
killed by Varaha, the boar avatara of Vishnu Homa - General term for any ritual in which offering into a consecrated
fire is the primary action Jiva - The individual personality which undergoes rebirth, because the
karmas stored in the causal body need a physical body to permit their
expression. (see Atma). Jnana - Transcendent wisdom. Knowledge (Vidya) is an outward projec
tion or objectivization of this innate, living wisdom Jnani - One who has attained ordinary spiritual knowledge Kali Yuga - The fourth of the four ages through which the cosmos passes
in cycles of 4,320,000 years. Kali Yuga is supposed to last 432,000 years, and is characterized by lack of interest in spirituality among the popu lace, which leads to materialism, atheism, and the perpetuation of vari
ous cruelties by stronger beings onto weaker ones. Kaula - Followers of Tantra who perform the practice of Rasa Vidya in
order to turn Kundalini into Kula Kundalini (freed kundalini) Kedara - Name of a Raga, the “Field Melody”, sung to attract Krishna Krida - “Play”; particularly unconscious play, such as rati krida (“love
play”). Krida is controlled by someone or something other than the being who is playing. In love play, the glands and the genitals do the
controlling, not the two people who romance each other. Kshatriya - “Warrior”; a member of the warrior castes Kundalini - Cosmic energy that manifests along the spine and within the
chakras; the source and force of all experience Lila - “Cosmic play”; distinct from Krida (q.v.). The divine play of Rishis
and deities, especially Krishna and Rama, is called Lila, cosmic pas
times in which they are always in control. Mahabharata - One of India’s two great epic poems (the other being the
Ramayana) Mahakala - The God of Death Mahalakshmi - The goddess of wealth and prosperity; the Bombay
Racecourse is called “Mahalakshmi” in honor of a nearby temple of
that goddess Mahapurusha - “Great Soul”; refers to any being who has become
immortal as a result of sadhana (q.v.). Rishis (q.v.), Munis (q.v.), Naths
and Siddhas are all Mahapurushas. Maharaj - “Great King”; also a common designation of a saint, who has
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achieved dominion over the spiritual world Maha Shiva Ratri - “Great Night”, otherwise called Maha Ratri, occurring
on the night before the new moon during the lunar month of Magha
(February or early March) Maya - “Illusion”; usually indicates cosmic illusion Megha - “Cloud”; name of a raga. If one wants rain, one plays Megha in a
certain way and rain will come. Moksha - Liberation Mudra - A positioning of the hand or body in a particular way to channel
and thus cultivate one’s prana and consciousness Muni - An advanced being (yet lower than a Rishi (q.v.]), who communi
cates telepathically or through the eyes Nara Bali - Human (nara) sacrifice (bali) Narasimha - “Man-lion”, the name of this avatara of Vishnu Narayana -A name of God, esp. of Vishnu Nath - “Lord”; a highly advanced being, an Aghori Niyama - The second limb of yoga, internal disciplilne Ojas - That essence of physical energy which produces the aura as well as
immunity (Ayurveda) Paan -A common digestive consisting of areca nut and other ingredients
wrapped in the highly astringent betel leaf Para Vani - “Beyond”; the fourth and highest level of speech, purely tele
pathic. Only Rishis can access Para. Parashurama - “Rama with the axe”; the sixth Avatara of Vishnu Pitri Tarpana - A ritual performed for a deceased human, usually a father
or mother or other progenitor, to satisfy any lingering cravings that individual might have had. Properly performed, this assures the indi vidual an auspicious rebirth and enables him or her to maintain their
spiritual progression. Prahlada - Son of the demon king Hiranyakashipu (q.v.), was a devotee
of Vishnu Prakriti - Nature, the field in which manifestation arises. In the limited human sense prikriti is one’s ‘first action’ (pra + kriti), the choice of action which one naturally, instinctively makes when confronted by a
situation that requires action. Prana - “Breath life force.” The five major breaths are: prana (the process
of breathing as well as the breath that regulates the organs in the head), apana (the downward moving breath that regulates evacuation),
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samana (the evenly distributing breath that regulates digestion), vyana (the all-pervasive breath that provides movement of the limbs and joints), and udana (the upward moving breath through which the spir
it departs at death). Prasada - Any substance, usually food, which has been offered to a deity
or saint, or to the image of a deity or saint, which is then partaken of by a disciple or devotee. Prasada is supposed to contain a tiny amount of the deity’s or saint’s shakti, which can exert a spiritualizing effect on
the partaker. Purusha - Absolute Reality Rasa - “Flavor, emotion” Rasa Vidya - “Knowledge of flavor”; Tantric alchemy Ravana - Name of the demon king who abducted Rama’s wife Sita, later
killed by Rama Rishi - lit. “Seer.” Anything a Rishi sees or perceives becomes reality,
because a Rishi is an ethereal being of the highest class, one who is almost totally unlimited, who can travel anywhere in the cosmos and can do anything. The Rishis “speak” the hymns of the Vedas, from
which all the knowledge of ancient India is derived. Rnanubandhana - The bondage of karmic debt Roti - Generic name for Indian bread, usually indicating a chappati. Rudra - lit. “the Crier,” or “He who makes others cry.” Rudra is the
ancient name for Shiva, the god of death, and is so called because he makes everyone cry who comes into contact with Him, because he sep arates them from their limited existence, to which they are tightly
attached. Sadhaka - One who practices a sadhana Sadhana - Any spiritual practice. Aghora Sadhana is designed to replace
the Aghori’s personality with his deity’s personality by creation of the
deity’s form in the Aghori’s subtle body. Sadhu - “A good person”; a wandering religious mendicant Samadhi -A state of profound or one-pointed consciousness; trance Samsara - The cycle of birth and death, ensnarement in the web of
worldly existence Samskara - Personality characteristic Sannyasa - “Coma”; renunciation of the world Shudra - “Laborer”; member of the hereditary castes of laborers Siddha - An “accomplished one”; anyone who has obtained a Siddhi, or
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supernatural accomplishment is a Siddhi. Vimalananda restricted his use of the word Siddhi to indicate those beings who have achieved
immortality. Siddhi - “Perfection, accomplishment”; especially success at sadhana Six Tastes - An Ayurvedic category: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent or
spicy, and astringent Smashan - A charnal ground; an area in which dead bodies are burned or buried. This word is derived from “ashmashana,” or “place where rocks lie,” which suggests that burial was once more common in India than it
now is. Svabhava - One’s innate nature, the thing that determines how one
relates to one’s surroundings. Roughly speaking, prakriti represents the
root and svabhava the fruit of human awareness. Vajroli - A yogic practice in which fluid is sucked into the penis or vagina by muscular force. During the sex act, Vajroli can be used to suck up
the partner’s secretions for both physical and spiritual benefit. Vamana - The dwarf incarnation of Vishnu who rescued the world from
the designs of the demon king Bali Varaha - The boar Avatara of Vishnu Vidya - “Knowledge” Vijnana - Practical spiritual knowledge, higher than jnana. In vijnana one
becomes a Siddha (9.v.), an immortal, because the ego has become
absolutely purified. Vijnani - One who possesses Vijnana Vimalananda - “Stainless bliss”; a proper name Visha - “Poison” Visha Kanya - “poison damsel” (visha = poison); her touch means death Wah - An exclamation of amazement, surprise or revelation
Yajna - Vedic fire ritual. In yajna, deities in ethereal worlds are invoked,
then fed with the fragrance of smoke from the various burnt offerings. Yantra - A diagram which acts as a receptacle for the power of a mantra.
Tantra is the ritual by which the Yantra is empowered by the mantra. Any substance can be used for a Yantra, but Vimalananda averred that the best of all possible Yantras is the human body.
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IN THE SERIES
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AGHORA, AT THE LEFT HAND OF GOD
AGHORA II: KUNDAT INI AGHORA III: THE LAW OF KARMA
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