Śruti Authoritative scripture of Hinduism, created by Rishis (sages), after inspired creativity Shruti or Shruthi (Sanskrit: श्रुति, IAST: Śruti, IPA: [ɕrʊtɪ]) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" and refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism.[1] Manusmriti states that Śrutistu vedo vigneyah (Sanskrit: श्रुतिस्तु वेदो विज्ञेय:, lit. means "Know that Vedas are Śruti"). Thus, it includes the four Vedas including its four types of embedded texts—the Samhitas, the early Upanishads, the Brahmanas and the Aranyakas.[2][3] Śrutis have been variously described as a revelation through anubhava (direct experience),[4] or of primordial origins realized by ancient Rishis.[1] In Hindu tradition, they have been referred to as apauruṣeya (not created by humans).[5] The Śruti texts themselves assert that they were skillfully created by Rishis (sages), after inspired creativity, just as a carpenter builds a chariot.[6] Etymology[edit]
Pratītyasamutpāda Pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद; Pali: पटिच्चसमुप्पाद paṭiccasamuppāda) is commonly translated as dependent origination or dependent arising. The term is used in the Buddhist teachings in two senses: On a general level, it refers to one of the central concepts in the Buddhist tradition—that all things arise in dependence upon multiple causes and conditions.On a specific level, the term is also used to refer to a specific application of this general principle—namely the twelve links of dependent origination. Etymology[edit] Pratityasamutpada (Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद) consists of two terms: pratitya: "having depended"samutpada: "arising", "rise, production, origin"[web 1] The term has been translated into English variously as dependent origination, dependent arising,[citation needed] interdependent co-arising,[citation needed] conditioned arising,[citation needed] and conditioned genesis. The Dalai Lama explains: In Sanskrit the word for dependent-arising is pratityasamutpada.
Jainism Indian religion Jainism () also known as Jain Dharma, is an ancient Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four Tirthankaras (supreme preachers of Dharma), with the first in the current time cycle being Rishabhadeva, whom the tradition holds to have lived millions of years ago; the twenty-third tirthankara Parshvanatha, whom historians date to 9th century BCE; and the twenty-fourth tirthankara, Mahavira around 600 BCE. Jainism is considered to be an eternal dharma with the tirthankaras guiding every time cycle of the cosmology. Jain monks, after positioning themselves in the sublime state of soul consciousness, take five main vows: ahiṃsā (non-violence), satya (truth), asteya (not stealing), brahmacharya (chastity), and aparigraha (non-possessiveness). Beliefs and philosophy[edit] The hand symbolizes Ahiṃsā, the wheel dharmachakra, the resolve to halt saṃsāra (transmigration). Dravya (Ontological facts)[edit] Soul and karma[edit]
Pali Middle Indo-Aryan language native to the Indian subcontinent Burmese Kammavaca manuscript written in Pali in the 'Burmese' script. Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. Origin and development[edit] Etymology[edit] The word 'Pali' is used as a name for the language of the Theravada canon. The name Pali does not appear in the canonical literature, and in commentary literature is sometimes substituted with tanti, meaning a string or lineage.[3]: 1 This name seems to have emerged in Sri Lanka early in the second millennium CE during a resurgence in the use of Pali as a courtly and literary language.[4][3]: 1 As such, the name of the language has caused some debate among scholars of all ages; the spelling of the name also varies, being found with both long "ā" [ɑː] and short "a" [a], and also with either a retroflex [ɭ] or non-retroflex [l] "l" sound. Geographic origin[edit] Early history[edit] Manuscripts and inscriptions[edit] T. According to K.
Mīmāṃsā Mīmāṃsā is a Sanskrit word that means "reflection" or "critical investigation".[1][2] Also known as Pūrva-Mīmānsā or Karma-Mīmānsā,[3]) it is one of six orthodox (astika) schools of Hinduism. The school is known for its philosophical theories on the nature of dharma, based on hermeneutics of the Vedas.[4] The Mīmāṃsā school was foundational and influential for the vedāntic schools, which were also known as Uttara-Mīmāṃsā. The differences were that the Mīmāṃsā school developed and emphasized karmakāṇḍa, or the study of ritual actions, using the four early Vedas, while the Vedānta schools developed and emphasized jñanakāṇḍa, the study of knowledge and spirituality, using the later parts of Vedas like the Upaniṣads.[4] Mīmāṃsā has several sub-schools, each defined by its epistemology. The Mīmāṃsā school is a form of philosophical realism.[12] A key text of the Mīmāṃsā school is the Mīmāṃsā Sūtra of Jaimini.[3][13] Terminology[edit] Mīmāṃsā scholars are referred to as Mīmāṃsākas. Anumana[edit]
Saṃsāra Cyclicality of all life, matter, existence Bhavachakra in Buddhism describing saṃsāra Saṃsāra (Devanagari: संसार) is a Pali/Sanskrit word that means "world". It is also the concept of rebirth and "cyclicality of all life, matter, existence", a fundamental belief of most Indian religions.[3][4] Popularly, it is the cycle of death and rebirth.[5] Saṃsāra is sometimes referred to with terms or phrases such as transmigration, karmic cycle, reincarnation or Punarjanman, and "cycle of aimless drifting, wandering or mundane existence".[6] Etymology and terminology[edit] Saṃsāra (Devanagari: संसार) means "wandering", as well as "world" wherein the term connotes "cyclic change". saṃsāra, a fundamental concept in all Indian religions, is linked to the karma theory and refers to the belief that all living beings cyclically go through births and rebirths. The word saṃsāra is related to Saṃsṛti, the latter referring to the "course of mundane existence, transmigration, flow, circuit or stream".[19]
Ambiguity Type of uncertainty of meaning in which several interpretations are plausible The concept of ambiguity is generally contrasted with vagueness. In ambiguity, specific and distinct interpretations are permitted (although some may not be immediately obvious), whereas with vague information it is difficult to form any interpretation at the desired level of specificity. Linguistic forms[edit] Ambiguity in human language is argued to reflect principles of efficient communication.[2][3] Languages that communicate efficiently will avoid sending information that is redundant with information provided in the context. Lexical ambiguity[edit] The context in which an ambiguous word is used often makes it clearer which of the meanings is intended. Lexical ambiguity can be addressed by algorithmic methods that automatically associate the appropriate meaning with a word in context, a task referred to as word-sense disambiguation. Semantic and syntactic ambiguity[edit] Philosophy[edit] Expressions[edit] . . or
Gautama Buddha Founder of Buddhism Names and titles Besides "Buddha" and the name Siddhārtha Gautama (Pali: Siddhattha Gotama), he was also known by other names and titles, such as Shakyamuni ("Sage of the Shakyas").[note 5] In the early texts, the Buddha also often refers to himself as Tathāgata (Sanskrit: [tɐˈtʰaːɡɐtɐ]). The term is often thought to mean either "one who has thus gone" (tathā-gata) or "one who has thus come" (tathā-āgata), possibly referring to the transcendental nature of the Buddha's spiritual attainment.[17] A common list of epithets are commonly seen together in the canonical texts, and depict some of his spiritual qualities:[18] Historical person Scholars are hesitant to make unqualified claims about the historical facts of the Buddha's life. Historical context Ancient kingdoms and cities of India during the time of the Buddha (c. 500 BCE) One of Gautama's usual names was "Sakamuni" or "Sakyamunī" ("Sage of the Shakyas"). Earliest sources John S. Traditional biographies Previous lives
Mahabharata Manuscript illustration of the Battle of Kurukshetra The Mahabharata or Mahābhārata (Sanskrit: महाभारतम्, Mahābhāratam, pronounced [məɦaːˈbʱaːrət̪əm]) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Ramayana.[1] Besides its epic narrative of the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pandava princes, the Mahabharata contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four "goals of life" or purusharthas (12.161). Traditionally, the authorship of the Mahabharata is attributed to Vyasa. The Mahabharata is the longest known epic poem and has been described as "the longest poem ever written".[5][6] Its longest version consists of over 100,000 shloka or over 200,000 individual verse lines (each shloka is a couplet), and long prose passages. The other notable version of Mahabarath is Andhra mahabharatam, a Telugu language manuscript written by Kavitrayam in between 11-14th century AD. Textual history and structure B. Synopsis
Buddhism Indian religion or philosophy based on the Buddha's teachings Buddhism ( BUU-dih-zəm, BOOD-), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (transl. "doctrines and disciplines"), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha.[3] It originated in present-day North India as a śramaṇa–movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia via the Silk Road. Two major extant branches of Buddhism are generally recognized by scholars: Theravāda (lit. Etymology Buddhism is an Indian religion[22] or philosophy. Followers of Buddhism, called Buddhists in English, referred to themselves as Sakyan-s or Sakyabhiksu in ancient India.[25][26] Buddhist scholar Donald S. The Buddha Ancient kingdoms and cities of India during the time of the Buddha (circa 500 BCE) – modern-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan Enlightenment of Buddha, Kushan dynasty, late 2nd to early 3rd century CE, Gandhara Worldview The cycle of rebirth Saṃsāra
Rishabhanatha Rishabhanatha (also Rishabhadeva, Ṛṣabhadeva or Ṛṣabha which literally means "bull") is the first Tirthankara (ford-maker)[note 1] in Jainism. Jain legends depict him as having lived millions of years ago. He is also known as Ādinātha which translates into "First (Adi) Lord (nātha)", as well as Adishvara (first ishvara), Yugadideva (deva of yuga, lord of an era), Prathamaraja (first king), and Nabheya (son of Nabhi).[9] Along with Mahavira, Parshvanatha and Neminatha, Rishabhanatha is one of the four Tirthankaras that attract the most devotional worship among the Jains. Introduction[edit] According to Jain cosmology, the universe does not have a temporal beginning or end. Rishabhanatha is credited in Jainism to have invented and taught fire, cooking, and all skills needed for human beings to live. Historicity[edit] Rishabhanatha is said to be the founder of Jainism by the different Jain sub-traditions. Vedic literature[edit] Biography per Jain traditions[edit] Birth[edit] Renunciation[edit]