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Sanskrit Glossary

April 2, 2020
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You may be in a yoga class and hear the teacher using Sanskrit words for yoga poses (asanas) and concepts…

This list should help you to understand some of the more commonly used terms.

Adho-mukha	Face downwards.
Adho-mukha svanasana	Downward facing dog pose.
Anga	The body; a limb or a part of the body; a constituent part.
Apana	One of the vital airs which move in the sphere of the lower abdomen.
Ardha	Half.
Asana Posture	The third stage of yoga.
Asta	The number eight.
Astanga Yoga	The eight limbs of Yoga described by Patanjali.
Aum	Like the Latin word ‘Omne’, the Sanskrit word ‘Aum’ means ‘all’ and conveys concepts of ‘Omniscience’, ‘Omnipresence’ and ‘Omnipotence’.
Baddha	Bound, caught, restrained, firm.
Bakasana	Elbow balancing pose.
Balasana	Child’s pose.
Bandha	Bondage or fetter. It means a posture where certain organs or parts of the body are contracted and controlled.
Bhakti	Worship, adoration.
Bhuja	The arm or the shoulder.
Bhuja-pida	Pressure on the arm or shoulder.
Bhujanga	A serpent, a snake.
Bhujangasana	Cobra pose.
Chakra	Literally, a wheel or circle. Energy (prana) is said to flow in the human body through three main channels (nadis), namely, Susumna, Pingala and Ida. Susumna is situated inside the spinal column. Pingala and Ida start respectively from the right and left nostrils, move up to the crown of the head and course downwards to the base of the spine. These two nadis intersect with each other and also the Susumna. These junctions of the nadis are known as chakras or the fly-wheels which regulate the body mechanism.
Chandra	The moon.
Chatur	The number four.
Chaturanga	Four limbs; a push-up position a few inches off the ground.
Chitta	The mind in its total or collective sense, being composed of three categories: (a) Mind, having the faculty of attention, selection and rejection; (b) Reason, the decisive state which determines the distinction between things and (c) Ego, the I-maker.
Danda	A staff.
Dhanu	A bow.
Dharana	Concentration or complete attention. The sixth stage of Yoga mentioned by Patanjali.
Dhyana Meditation	The seventh stage of Yoga mentioned by Patanjali.
Dwi	Two, both.
Dwi-hasta	Two hands.
Dwi-pada	Two feet or legs.
Eka	One, single, alone, only.
Gu	First syllable in the word ‘Guru’, meaning darkness.
Guru	Spiritual preceptor, one who illumines the darkness of spiritual doubt.
Ha	First syllable of the word ‘Hatha’, which is composed of the syllables ‘ha’ meaning the sun, and ‘tha’ meaning the moon. The object of Hatha-yoga is to balance the flow of solar and lunar energy in the human system.
Hala	A plough.
Hasta	The hand.
Hatha	Sun/moon; balance.
Hatha-yoga	The way towards realisation through rigorous discipline.
Janu	The knee.
Jnana	Sacred knowledge derived from meditation on the higher truths of religion and philosophy, which teaches a man how to understand his own nature.
Kapota	A dove, pigeon.
Karma	Action.
Karma-yoga	The achievement of union with the Supreme Universal Soul through action.
Karna	The ear; also one of the heros in the Mahabharata.
Karna Pidasana	Pressure on ears pose.
Kriya	An expiatory rite, a cleaning process.
Kundalini	The Kundalini (kundala=coil of a rope; Kundalini=a coiled female serpent) is the divine cosmic energy. This force or energy is symbolised as a coiled and sleeping serpent lying dormant in the lowest nerve centre at the base of the spinal column, the Muladhara-chakra. This latent energy has to be aroused and made to ascend the main spinal channel, the Susumna piercing the chakras right up to the Sahasrara, the thousand-petalled lotus in the head. Then the Yogi is in union with the Supreme Universal Soul.
Mala	A garland, wreath.
Mandala	A circle.
Mantra	A sacred thought or a prayer.
Matsya	A fish.
Mudra	A seal; a sealing posture.
Mukha	Face.
Nama	Name.
Namaste	Commonly said at the end of yoga class by the instructor and the students. One beautiful interpretation: I honor that place in you where the whole Universe resides. And when I am in that place in me and you are in that place in you, there is only one of us.
Nava	A boat.
Nirodha	Restraint, suppression.
Niyama	Self-purification by discipline. The second stage of yoga mentioned by Patanjali.
Pada	The foot or leg; also part of a book.
Padangustha	The big toe.
Padma	A lotus.
Parigha	A beam or a bar used for bolting or shutting a gate.
Parighasana	Lateral side stretch.
Paripurna	Entire, complete.
Paripurna Navasana	Boat pose.
Parivrtta	Turned around, revolved.
Parivrtta Trikonasana	Twisting triangle.
Parsva	The side, flank; lateral.
Pasa	A fetter, trap, noose.
Paschima	West; the back side of the body.
Paschimottana	Intense stretch of the back side of the body from the nape to the heels.
Paschimottanasana	Seated forward bend.
Patanjali	The author of the yoga sutras. The propounder of Astanga yoga. He put it on paper, so the world could experience it.
Pida	Pain, suffering, pressure.
Prajna	Intelligence, wisdom.
Prana	Breath, respiration, life, vitality, wind, energy, strength. It also connotes the soul.
Pranayama	Rhythmic control of the breath. The fourth stage of yoga.
Prasarita	Spread out, stretched out.
Pratyahara	Withdrawal and emancipation of the mind from the domination of the senses and sensual objects. The fifth stage of yoga.
Purva	East, the front of the body.
Purvottana	The intense stretch of the front side of the body.
Purvottanasana	Pose of the intense stretch of the front side of the body.
Raja	A king, a ruler.
Raja-kapota	King pigeon.
Raja-yoga	The achievement of union with the Supreme Universal Spirit, by becoming the ruler of one’s own mind by defeating its enemies. The chief of these enemies are: Kama (passion or lust), krodha (anger or wrath), lobha (greed),moha (delusion), mada (pride) and matsara(jealousy or envy). The eight-fold yoga of Patanjali shows the royal road (raja-marga) for achieving this objective.
Ru	The second syllable in the word ‘guru’, meaning light.
Salabha	A locust.
Salamba	With support.
Samadhi	A state in which the aspirant is one with the object of his meditation, the Supreme Spirit pervading the universe, where there is a feeling of unutterable joy and peace.
San	Six.
Sarva	All, whole.
Sarvanga	The whole body.
Sarvangasana	Shoulderstand.
Sava	A corpse, a dead body.
Savasana	Corpse pose.
Setu	A bridge.
Setu-bandha	The construction of a bridge. Name of an asana in which the body is arched.
Siddha	A sage, seer or prophet; also a semi-divine being of great purity and holiness.
Sirsa	The head.
Supta	Sleeping.
Supta Virasana	Supine hero pose.
Surya	The sun.
Svana	A dog.
Tada	A mountain.
Tadasana	Mountain pose; standing tall.
Tan	To stretch, extend, lengthen out.
Tapas	Burning away impurities through self-discipline.
Tha	The second syllable of the word ‘hatha’. The first syllable ‘ha’ stands for the sun, while the second syllable ‘tha’ stands for the moon. The union of these two is Hatha-yoga.
Tola	A balance.
Tri	Three.
Trikona	A triangle.
Ujjayi	A type of pranayama in which the lungs are fully expanded and the chest is puffed out.
Upavistha	Seated.
Urdhva	Raised, elevated, tending upwards.
Urdhva-mukha	Face upwards.
Ustra	A camel.
Ut	A particle, denoting intensity.
Utkata	Powerful, fierce.
Uttana	An intense stretch.
Uttanasana	Standing forward bend intense stretch.
Utthita	Raised up, extended, stretched.
Vajra	A thunderbolt, the weapon of Indra.
Vasistha	A celebrated sage, author of several Vedic hymns.
Vira	A hero; brave.
Virabhadra	A powerful hero created out of Siva’s matted hair.
Virabhadrasana I	Warrior I pose.
Vrksa	A tree.
Vritta	Fluctuation.
Yama	The god of death. Yama ia also the first of the eight limbs or means of attaining yoga. Yamas are universal moral commandments or ethical disciplines transcending creeds, countries, age and time. The five mentioned by Patanjali are: non-violence, truth, non-stealing, continence and non-coveting.
Yoga	Union, communion.
Yoga-mudra	A posture.
Yogi or Yogini	One who follows the path of yoga.