YogiMilan - Online Yoga Community

Yoga Philosophy

Introduction to Yoga

Rāja Yoga

Bhakti Yoga

Jnāna Yoga

Karma Yoga

Hatha Yoga

Other Yoga Paths

Tantra

Yoga In Action

Choosing a Yoga Path

Choosing a Guru

Obstacles of a Yogi

Yoga in daily life

Benefits of Yoga

Spiritual Sanghas

Sanskrit Dictionary

This glossary contains close to 900 common Sanskrit words that a person practicing yoga would come across. We have used diacritical marks in as many words as possible, to help the reader pronounce each word correctly. Please refer to the pronunciation guide below. A list of sources for this glossary is given at the end.

Alphabet	Pronounced as
A	Awe
Ī	Ee
Ū	Oo
Chh	Hard - midway between ch & sh - as in chaw
ḥ	Haw
Jñ	Gaw with g nasal
ā	Ah
E	Eh
Ch	In chosen

Alphabet	Pronounced as
ḍ	Rh (r hard)
ṁ&ṅ	Ong as in song
ṇ	Naw as in gnaw
ṛ	Rhi
T	Th (soft)
v	Wa
Ś orṣ	Sh as in shilling
ṭ	Taw (hard)
y	Yaw

Nā da - Inner mystical sound

Nā dā nusandhā na - Examiniation, planning, arrangement or suitable connection. It is the close scrutiny of the sound of rhythmic patterns of breath during the practice of prā ṇā yā ma and total absorption in the sound.

Nā ḍḹ - A tubular organ of the subtle body through which energy flows

Nā ḍḹ chakra - Ganglia or plexuses in the gross, subtle and causal bodies

Nā ḍḹ Ś odhana Prā ṇā yā ma - Prā ṇā yā ma done for the purification or cleansing of the nadḹs. It is the highest and most difficult type of prā ṇā yā ma. Nā ga vā yu - One of the five subsidiary vā yus which relieves abdominal pressure by belching.

Nā ma - Name

Namaste - A tradtional Indian greeting. Two hands pressed together and held near the heart with the head gently bowed. Namaste means "I bow and honor the divine presence in you." NamaskÄ r is another variation of Namaste. NÄrada - Name of a divine sage. He is said to be the messenger between the gods and men

Natarā j - Ś iva as lord of the cosmic dance

Neti - Not this. Used by the intellect whenever it is thought that the Self might be some 'thing' observed e.g. body, mind etc

Neti Neti - Literally 'not this, not this', the expression used to denote that brahman is beyond all dualities and human thought

Nididhyā sana - Meditating upon the essence of what has now been intellectually understood until there is total conviction

Nidrā - Dreamless sleep (as distinguished from sleep with dreams)

Nirā kā ra - 'without form', referring to brahman as Unmanifest

Niraya - Infernal region

Nirbḹja - Seedless. Objectless concentration. One-pointedness

Nirbḹja Dhyā na - Dhyā na, where the practitioner does not have to resort to the bḹja mantra.

Nirbḹja Prā ṇā yā ma - Prā ṇā yā ma, where the practitioner does not have to resort to the bḹja mantra.

Nirguṇa - Attributeless

Nirguṇa ḹŚ vara - Attributeless godhead

Nirmā ṇa chitta - Created mind. Yogins may, if they desire, assume such a mind after the attainment of emancipation for propagating the gospel of liberation

Nirodha - Restriction

Nirodha bhūmi - Arrested state of the mind

Niruddha - Stopped; obstructed; checked; curbed; arrested

Nirupakrama - Action which has not started producing result

Nirvā ṇa - Liberated from corporeal existence; final emancipation

Nirvichā ra - Relating to subtle objects without the help of words

Nirviṣaya - Without sensuality

Nirvikalpa - An exclusive concentration upon an entity without distinct and separate consciousness of the knower, the knowable and the process of knowing

Nirvitarka - Relating to gross objects without the help of words

Niṣpatti - Perfection, ripeness

Niṣpatti avasthā - The state of perfection or ripeness. Consummation

Nivṛtti - Suspension; termination; abstention; renunciation

Nivṛtti mā rga - The path of realization by abstaining from worldly acts, and being uninfluenced by worldly desires

Niyama - Observance as an accessory to yoga comprising cleanliness, contentment, tapas, svÄdhyÄya and á¸¹Åšvara pranidhÄna

NiŚ kā ma karma - Desireless or 'right' action; the manner in which one ought to act so as not to incur any karmaphala

Nitya karma - Ordinary, usual, obligatory duties

Niyata vipā ka - Fruition of action restricted to one life

Nyā sa - The Tantric practice of infusing various body parts with life force prā ṇa by touching or thinking of the respective physical area

Nyā ya - A system of Indian philosophy stressing logic and primarily concerned with the laws of thought relying on reason and analogy

Web Design Tryangled Solutions

YogiMilan - Online Yoga Community