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| deities wo emerged and romed the earth during the time or the dreaming (Aboriginies) |
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| and entitiy that is believed to connect the heavens and the earth |
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| use of various techniques for gaining knowledge about and individuals future |
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| ritual practitioners who specialize in the art of divination (Yoruba) |
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| mythic time of Aboriginal religion when the ancestors inhabited the earth |
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| (head source) various Yoruba deities who are the main objects of ritual attention |
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| (feathered serpent) mesoamerican creator god |
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| ritual of Lakota that celebrates the new year and prepares for the buffalo hunt |
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| system of social ordering that dictates that specific objects and activities are meant for some and forbidden to others |
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| capital city of the Aztec empire believed to be the center of the world |
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| a natural entity such as an animal that has special significance for a particular group |
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| a dimension of religion that deals with how we are to act while living in the world |
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| experience of the divine or holy presence emphasizing personal trust |
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| the belief in only one god |
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| a category of religious experiences charactarized by communing or uniting with the divine through inward contemplation |
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| a story that tends to answer questions of origins and serves as a source of sacred truth |
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| belief that the divine reality exists in everything |
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| transmission of the divine will or knowledge to human beings |
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| formal worship practice often based on the re-enactment of a myth |
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| the complete fulfillment of spiritual potential |
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| the overcoming of the normal limitations imposed by the human condition |
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| matetial success and social prestige, one of the four goals of life for hindus |
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| one who renounces physical pleasures and worldly attachments for the sake of spiritual advancement |
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| The eternal self which the Upanishads identify with Brahman |
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| an incarnation or living embodiment of a deity, usually vishnu, who is sent to earth to accomplish a divine purpose |
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| a short section of the epic poem Mahabharata-Hinduisms most popular sacred text |
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| (path of devotion) most popular of the three Hindu paths to salvation |
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| the eternal essence of reality and the source of the universe |
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| the highest of the four classes of the caste system made up of preists |
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| traditional division of Hindu society into four main varnas or classes (more than three thousand catagories) |
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| ehtical duty based on the divine order of reality one of the four goals of life for Hindus |
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| (path of knowledge) one of three Hindu paths to salvation emphasizing knowing the true nature of reality through learning and meditation |
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| pleasure especially of sensual love; one of the four goals of life for Hindus |
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| the moral law of cause and effect of actions for Hindus |
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| (path of works) one of three hindu paths to salvation emphasizing performing right actions |
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| the second caste made up of warriors and administrators |
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| cosmic illusion brought about by divine creative power in Hinduism |
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| liberation or release of the individual self from the bondage of samsara (salvation) one of the four goals of life for Hindus |
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| the doctrine that reality is ultimately made up of only one essence |
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| a collection of 1017 Sanskrit hymns composed about 1500 BC (Hinduisms oldest text) |
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| a trancelike state in which self conciousness is lost and the mind is absorbed into the ultimate reality |
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| the wheel of rebirth or reincarnation |
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| a system of Hindu philosophy and one approach within jnana marga (reality as matter or eternal selves) |
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| a wandering ascetic who has advanced to the fourth and highest stage of life |
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| the traditional practice of burning a widow on her husbands funeral pyre; outlawed in 1829 |
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| the lowest of the four classes of the caste system made up of servants and laborers |
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| (sitting near a teacher) a collection of over 200 texts that provide commentary on the Vedas |
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| the third of the four classes of the caste system made up of producers such as farmers, merchants, and artisans |
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| a system of Hindu philosophy and one approach within jnana marga holding that all reality is essentially Brahman |
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| one approach within jnana marga seeking to free the eternal self form the bondage of personhood culminating in samadhi |
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| One of the three marks of existence; the Buddhist doctrine denying a personal self |
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| one of the three marks of existence; the Buddist doctrine that all existent things are constantly changing |
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| One who has become enlightened; the ideal type for theraveda Buddhism |
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| future Buddhas -the ideal type for Mahayana Buddhism |
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| (awakened one) Siddhartha Gautama and all others who have by their own insight attained perfect enlightenment |
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| the spiritual leader of Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism |
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| the teachings of the Buddha and one ot the three jewels of Buddhism |
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| (suffering) the first of the four noble truths |
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| the basic moral requirements that are binding for all Buddhists |
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| the central teachings of Buddhism; to live is to suffer; suffering is caused by desire; suffering can be stopped; the solution is the noble eight fold path |
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| the moral law of cause and effect of actions; determines the nature of ones rebirth |
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| (the great vehicle) largest of Buddhisms three divisions prevalent in China |
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| patterned icons that visually excite |
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| chants to evoke a deity or to enhance meditation |
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| basic Buddhist teaching that rejects both pleasures and asceticism |
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| choreographed hand movements used in the rituals of Vajrayana Buddhism |
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| (blowing out) the ultimate goal of all Buddhists |
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| the fouth of the four noble truths; defines the basic practices of Buddhism |
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| an ancient language of India, used in the writing of Buddhism |
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| the wheel of rebirth or reincarnation |
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| (assemblage) the Buddhist community of monks and nuns; one of the three jewels of Buddhism |
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| (desire) the second of the four noble truths, selfish desire which causes dukkha |
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| (the way of the elders) Prevalent form of Buddhism in Cambodia and Myanmar |
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| Caracteristics that summarize the changing nature of reality: anatta, anicca, and dukkha |
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| (Vehicle of the diamond) prevalent for of Buddhism in Tibet; emphasizes the harnessing of sensual energies to attain nirvana |
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| (nonviolence) principle of nonviolence, a basic principle of Jainism, Hinduism, and Buddhism |
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| the nonliving components of the Jain universe; space, time, motion, rest, and all forms of matter |
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| the renunciation of physical pleasures and worldly attachments for the sake of spiritual advancement |
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| (those whose garment is the sky) second largest Jain sect, whose monks go about naked; more conservative |
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| the vows that are binding fo r Jain ascetics: dont injure other life forms; avoid lying; dont steal; renounce sexual activity; renounce possesion |
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| (conqueror) One who has conquered samsara; synonymous with tirthankara |
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| (action) the moral law of cause and effect of actions |
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| the perfect and complete knowledge that is Jain enlightenment |
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| the Jain universe often depicted as having the shape of a giant man |
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| (those whose garment is white) the largest Jains sect; generally more liberal |
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| (makers of the river crossing) Jain spiritual heroes such as Parshva and Mahavira who have shown the way to salvation; synonymous with jinas |
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| (first book) Sikhisms most important sacred text and the Guru since 1708; also called the Guru Granth Sahib |
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| (doorway of the Guru) A special building that is reserved for Sikh worship and houses a copy of the Adi Granth |
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| spiritual teacher and revealer of truth or when capitalized it means God |
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| (self-reliance) the human inclination toward being self centered rather than God centered |
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| the divine order of the universe according to Sikhism |
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| Indwelling; Sikhs maintain that God dwells within nature and human beings |
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| (pure ones) an order within Sikhism to which most Sikhs belong founded by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699 |
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| (meditation) the chinese sect of Buddhism that focuses on the experience of enlightenment; Japanese Zen |
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| A periodic meeting for Zen pupils with their masters in which the disciple is offered a koan to be answered |
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| a verbal puzzle designed to short circuit the workings of the rational mind, used especially in Rinzai Zen as a means of triggering Satori |
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| the school of sudden awakening brought to Japan in 1100s; one of the two major sects of Zen Buddhism |
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| Zen masters who are deemed competent to teach others |
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| the Zen experience of enlightenment |
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| the school of gradual awakening brought to Japan in the 1200s; one of the two major sects of Zen |
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| (seated meditation) the basic method of Zen meditation, traditionally practiced while seated in the lotus position in a meditation hall |
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