The 12 Beliefs of Saivism

Glossary

The following definitions are simple descriptions of words used in the twelve preceding beliefs.§

Absolute Reality: The timeless, formless, spaceless, unchanging and transcendent God Siva—Parasiva. It is the Self God, the essence of man’s soul. §

Agama: An enormous collection of ancient Sanskrit scriptures. They are sruti, or, revealed scriptures and have equal authority to the Vedas. The major Hindu sects—Saivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism—each have their own Agamas. Agamas are the primary source for instructions on temple ritual and construction, philosophy and yoga.§

anava: Individualizing veil of duality that enshrouds the soul. One of the three malas or bonds, along with karma and maya, that bind the soul. The effect of anava is to make us think we are separate and distinct from God. After many lifetimes, we finally break this veil of ignorance and realize the Truth—that we are one with God.§

astral body: The subtle, nonphysical body in which the soul functions in the astral plane, or inner world also called Antarloka. The astral body includes the pranic sheath, the instinctive-intellectual sheath and the cognitive sheath. The pranic sheath is discarded at the death of the physical body. §

causal plane: The highest or most subtle world of existence, Sivaloka.§

charya: The first of the four stages we go through to realize God. The stage of good conduct where one learns to live according to dharma and serve selflessly. §

Ganesha: “Lord of Categories.” Ganesha is a Mahadeva, the beloved elephant-faced Deity honored by Hindus of every sect. He is the Lord of Obstacles, revered for His great wisdom and invoked first before any undertaking, for He knows all intricacies of each soul’s karma and the perfect path of dharma that makes action successful. §

grace: A gift from God given out of His love. Lord Siva’s revealing grace is how souls awaken to their true, Divine nature.§

gross plane: The physical world. See: three worlds§

immanent: Indwelling; inherent and operating within. Relating to God, immanent means present in all things and throughout the universe, not aloof or distant. §

inscrutable: That which cannot be analyzed or understood. Mysterious; beyond examining or defining.§

intrinsic evil: Inherent, inborn badness or negativity. Hinduism holds that there is no intrinsic evil, and the real nature of man is his divine, soul nature, which is goodness.§

jnana: The fourth of the four stages of religious development according to Saiva Siddhanta (and many other schools of Hindu philosophy). The mature state of the soul after God Realization.§

karma: “Action,” “deed.” One of the most important principles in Hindu thought, karma refers to 1)-any act or deed; 2) the principle of cause and effect; 3) a consequence, which sooner or later returns upon the doer. What we sow, we shall reap in this or future lives. Selfish, hateful acts will bring suffering. Good actions will bring loving reactions. Karma is a neutral, self-perpetuating law of the inner cosmos, much as gravity is an law of the outer cosmos.§

Karttikeya: Child of the Pleiades, from Krittika, “Pleiades.” A son of Siva. A great Mahadeva worshiped in all parts of India and the world. Also known as Murugan, Kumara, Skanda, Shanmukh­a­natha and Subramanya, He is the God who guides that part of evolution which is religion, the transformation of the instinctiveness into Divinity through the practice of yoga. §

kriya pada: The stage of worship and devotion, second of four progressive stages to God Realization.§

marga: “Path; way.” From marg, “to seek.”§

maya: The world of form, created by God, of God, through His grace as an arena for the soul’s evolution. One of the soul’s three bonds which must be overcome to attain God Realization.§

moksha: “Liberation.” Release from the cycle of births and deaths, after karma has been resolved and God Realization attained.§

Panchakshara Mantra: “Five-lettered chant.” Namasivaya. The foremost mantra for Saivites. It means “Praise to Siva,” and appears in Yajur Veda.§

Paramesvara: Name of Lord Siva as the Supreme Mahadeva, origin of the universe. Siva as a person—who has a body, with head, arms and legs—who acts, wills, blesses, gives darsana, guides, creates, preserves, reabsorbs, obscures and enlightens.§

Parashakti: “Supreme power; primal energy.” God Siva as the energy and consciousness behind all creation.§

Parasiva: The Supreme, Transcendent Siva, beyond time, form and space. The Self God—beyond the grasp of consciousness. It defies description and can only be understood through direct experience, God Realization.§

Primal Soul: Siva, the uncreated, original, perfect God. The first soul, source of all other souls. See: Paramesvara.§

Primal Substance: The subtle energy and form from which the manifest world in its infinite diversity is derived. See: Parashakti. §

Pure Consciousness: See: Parashakti. §

samsara: “Flow.” The world, existence, fraught with change. The cycle of birth, death and rebirth; the total pattern of successive earthly lives experienced by a soul. §

self-effulgent: Producing its own light; radiating light.§

soul: The innermost part of us, created by Lord Siva. Called atman in Sanskrit. The soul never dies, but takes on one physical body after another until we know God. The essence or nucleus of the soul is eternally identical and at one with God Siva.§

substratum: “Layer underneath.” In philosophy, that which is “underneath,” not visible, the substance or underlying force which is the foundation of any and all creation.§

subtle plane: The unseen world of existence between our physical world and the world of the Gods, Antarloka. Souls between birth live here as devas. We can also enter this world while we sleep.§

supplicate: To ask for humbly. To pray for earnestly.§

three worlds: The three worlds of existence, the primary divisions of the cosmos. 1)-Bhuloka: “Earth world,” the physical plane. 2) Antar­loka: “Inner or in-between world,” the subtle or astral plane where souls go during sleep and after death. 3) Sivaloka: “World of Siva,” and of the Gods and highly evolved souls; the causal plane. §

yoga: “Union.” The many practices, such as meditation, breathing, japa, postures of the body, that are used by yogis to reach divine consciousness. Prominent among the many forms of yoga are hatha yoga (emphasizing bodily perfection in preparation for meditation), kriya yoga (emphasizing breath control), as well as karma yoga (selfless service) and bhakti yoga (devotional practices).§