Glossary

GLOSSARY

Baba
A term of affection for a Saint or holy man.

Baha-Ullah
Baha Ullah or Baha Allah [Arabic = glory of God], 1817-92, Persian religious leader originally named Mirza Husayn Ali Nuri. He and his half-brother Subhi Azal became the leaders of the Babi faith. It was foretold that Baha-Ullah would be the next manifestation of God, the Promised One. He then founded Baha'ism and wrote its fundamental book, Kitabi Ikan (translated, The Book of Certitude). He died in Acre, Israel; his tomb there is one of the monuments of the Baha'i faith.

King Bali
A prosperous and generous king, who unfortunately also made offerings unto the undeserving.

Balsatsang
Satsang for children.

Balsanskar varg
Childrens' moral education classes.

Bandha
(lit. stop or block). It means stopping or blocking the flow of spiritual energy in a specific channel (nadi) of the body by a particular yogic posture. It also means getting rid of the cycles of birth and death.

Bapuji
A respectful way in India of addressing elder men, one of the loving titles of Mahatma Gandhi.

Baroque
Relating to or characteristic of a style in art and architecture developed in Europe from the early 17th to mid-18th century. Used in some old churches, especially in Europe.

Basic Principles of Spirituality
There are six basic principles of the practice of Spirituality:

1.	Going from many to one – For example, from the many words in a prayer, one should strive to progress to one word, The Lord's Name.
2.	Gross to subtle – For example, instead of being physically present at worship with the mind elsewhere, it is better to do mental worship by repeating (chanting) the Lord's Name wherever one is.
3.	According to spiritual level – For example, at a spiritual level of 40%, the appropriate spiritual practice is repeating the Lord's Name.
4.	According to ashram – Spiritual practice should correspond to the stage of life.
5.	According to varna (class) – One should serve God by offering one's body, wealth earned by righteous means, by studying the principles of Spirituality in order to teach others, and be willing to offer even one's life for God.
6.	According to kal (time) – The most appropriate spiritual practice varies according to the era (yug). In the current era, the kaliyug, the most appropriate spiritual practice is repeating The Lord's Name.

Basilica
Indicates either the architectural style of a church, or a church that has been accorded certain privileges by the Pope.

Saint Belsare
H. H. Belsare, a twentieth century Saint from Maharasthra, India. He was a disciple of H.H. Gondavalekar Maharaj and was an author of many spiritual texts.

Bengali
The regional language of Bengal. It is spoken in West Bengal in India and Bangladesh (formerly, East Bengal, India).

Bhag
The presiding deity over the lunar asterism Purva phalguni, present on the day of Holi.

Bhagavadgita
Same as Gita.

Bhagvan
The Lord.

Bhajans
Devotional songs

Bhajanamrut
Collection of bhajans composed and sung by H.H. Bhaktaraj Maharaj.

Bhajiya
Onion pakoda or a fried, non-sweet dish made out of flour and onions.

Bhakta
A devotee.

Saint Bhaktaraj Maharaj

Saint Bhaktaraj Maharaj
A great Saint from Indore, India. Fondly addressed as Baba. Baba neither spoke of ritualistic worship nor did He confuse the listener with discourses on the 'Path of Knowledge'. The essence of His teachings was "Experience Bliss through the spiritual practice of chanting The Name of God, service, sacrifice and unconditional love for others," and He made His disciples do accordingly. More information about H.H. Bhaktaraj Maharaj is found here.

Bhaktiyoga
Bhakti means devotion and yoga mean pathway leading to the union with God. Hence, the path of devotion.

Bhajans
Devotional songs

Bhandara
A festival of serving food.

Bharatiya Sanskrutikosh
A series of spiritual texts of India.

Bhav
Spiritual emotion. When one's spiritual emotion is heightened, one experiences ashtasattvik bhav.

Bhav Satsang
A satsang for increasing the spiritual emotion (bhav) in the attendees. The format of the satsang consists of 30 minutes of narration of principles and spiritual experiences related to spiritual emotion, four 15 minute collective chanting sessions, a total of 30 minutes of silent prayer over the course of two hours, and ending with five minutes of paying gratitude. The benefit of bhav satsang is due to the resolve (sankalpa) of Shri Durga Devi. For more detailed information, see the Weekly Online, Issue 229, Messages to Seekers.

Bhavana
Psychological emotion

Bhavani
A form of the female deity or Shakti (Divine Energy).

Bhramarandra
Cavity in the Sahasrar Chakra, located in the top of the head.

Bhulok
The earth region. The lowest of the seven regions (lokas).

Bhuvalok
The nether region. The second lowest of the seven regions (lokas), where the subtle bodies of most go after death.

Bhuvalok Seekers
Seekers from the ‘Subtle Department’ of the Sanatan organization combat distressing energies through the subtle dimension. Spiritual love is the foundation of the spiritual practice of seekers from the Subtle department. It is said that even the enemy has to be won over with love. The Sanatan organization feels that each living being should be uplifted. Hence, seekers from the Subtle department lovingly teach distressing energies to undertake spiritual practice before resorting to combat. As a result, many distressing energies have commenced spiritual practice by The Lord’s grace and are now seekers from the subtle region of Bhuvlok. These seekers from Bhuvlok have also started combating distressing energies, as assistance to the divine mission of ‘Reinstatement of Righteousness (Dharma)’. Seekers from Bhuvlok impart guidance to seekers on earth on various occasions.

Holy Bible
The holy text of the Christian religion, containing two main books, the Old Testament and New Testament. The New Testament describes the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Bija
Seed. A bija mantra is a letter or group of letters that generate spiritual energy, e.g., lum, tum, shum. Chanting these words or letters helps to relieve problems due to obstacles in the flow of spiritual energy.

Bijakshar

"Bija" is the seedling of the mantra. It is from this seedling that springs the science of mantra.

The energy of any mantra lies in its bija (seed) and the mantra is only capable of producing its desired effect if the appropriate bija is selected. The bijas activate the divine energy or deity that the mantra invokes.

The following bijakshar mantras correspond to the different chakras:

The chakra	The bijakshar mantra	The organ
Muladhar	Iam, Irum	The anus
Svadhishthan	vam	The sex organs
Manipur	ram, rum	The organs of digestion
Anahat	yam	The heart and lungs
Vishuddha	ham	The organs of speech
Adnya	Om	The nervous system (mind & intellect)

Note: While the above explains which bijakshar mantras are helpful for which chakra/organ, one should consult a spiritually evolved person about the accurate bijakshar mantra for one's problems.

Bikrami Calendar
This is the calendar used in the Sikh religion that is based on the lunar calendar. This calendar is currently being adopted by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) at Amritsar, Punjab India, as the authority for celebration dates of the Gurpurbs.

Bliss
Supreme happiness of the highest quality, an experience of the soul beyond the comprehension of the mind and intellect.

Sri Anil Bokil
A worshipper of Shakti (Divine Energy) and expert in science of subtle weapons (astravidya), Pune, India.

Brahmacharyashrama
The stage of life of a celibate.

Brahmamahurat
The auspicious time before dawn.

Brahma
God in His aspect as the Creator of the universe. The Supreme Lord in the Hindu Trinity – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva (see Hari-Hara). Also refers to the Principle of Bliss, one of the five principle deities (Panchadevata).

Brahman
The God principle

Brahmarshi
Sages Who perform Their spiritual practice in higher subtle planes. They sometimes guide seekers at lower planes, such as the Earth. These sages are highly evolved, continually in Bliss and Serenity, and very close to attaining the Final Liberation (Moksha).

Brahmin (or Brahman)
Please note that Brahmin is different from Brahman. A Brahmin is a priest from the Hindu religion ie a seeker who serves God by offering his mind and intellect to study Spirituality and impart spiritual knowledge.

Brahmanand Maharaj
A Saint from Maharashtra, India.

Buddha
(560 - 480 BC) Born in northern India, Siddharta Gautama renounced his kingdom to seek enlightenment. When sitting under a bodhi tree in Gaya (a place in India), he attained enlightenment. Founder of Buddhism.

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