Tattva (Shaivism)The tattvas in Indian philosophy are elements or principles of reality. Tattvas are the basic concepts to understand the nature of absolute, the souls and the universe in Samkhya and Shaivite philosophies. Samkhya philosophy lists 25 tattvas while later Shaivite philosophies extend the number to 36. Tattvas are used to explain the structure and origin of the Universe.
ShaivismShaivism (; Sanskrit: शैवसंप्रदायः, romanised: Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is an umbrella-term for a number of Hindu religious traditions, which worship Shiva as the supreme being. The followers of Shaivism are called Shaivas or Shaivites, numbering about 385 million people, across South Asia predominantly in India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
ParashaktiParashakti (IAST: Paraśakti, Sanskrit: पराशक्ति) or Parā refers to Shakti in her unmanifest state before manifesting in the physical realm. In Siddhantic perspective, Parashakti is the counterpart of Paramshiva—an epithet for the ultimate form of Shiva in Shaiva Siddhanta and Kashmiri Shaivism. Parashakti is the power of this primordial Shiva, and is emanated from him.
ShivaShiva (; Sanskrit: शिव, IAST: Śiva, lit. 'The Auspicious One'), also known as Mahadeva (; Sanskrit: महादेव, IAST: Mahādevaḥ, [mɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh], lit. 'The Great God') and Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. In the Shaivite tradition, Shiva is the Supreme Lord who creates, protects and transforms the universe.
Kashmir ShaivismKashmir Shaivism is a 19th-century umbrella-term for a body of Sanskrit exegetical literature of non-dualShaiva-Shaktatantric and monistic religious traditions from Kashmir, "principally the Trika and the Krama," both subschools of the Kaula-tradition. This exegetical tradition developed in Kashmir after 850 CE, as an adaptation to upper-class Hindu norms of 'wild' tantric Kaula traditions, replacing Shaiva Siddhanta as the dominant form of Saivism.
LingamA lingam (IAST: liṅga, lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the HindugodShiva in Shaivism. The word lingam is found in the Upanishads and epic literature, where it means a "mark, sign, emblem, characteristic", the "evidence, proof, symptom" of Shiva and Shiva's power.Shaiva SiddhantaShaiva Hindu sect Shaiva Siddhanta (IAST: Śaiva-siddhānta) (Tamil: சைவ சித்தாந்தம் "Caiva cittāntam") is a form of Shaivism from South India and Sri Lanka that propounds a dualistic philosophy where the ultimate and ideal goal of a being is to become an enlightened soul through Shiva's grace. It draws primarily on the Tamil devotional hymns written by Shaiva saints from the 5th to the 9th century, known in their collected form as Tirumurai.
NondualismNonconceptual awareness and interconnectednessNondualism, also called nonduality, originates from Indian philosophy and Hinduism, where it is used in various, related contemplative philosophies that aim to negate dualistic thinking or conceptual proliferation (prapanca) and thereby realize nondual awareness, 'that which is beyond discursive thinking', a state of consciousness described in contemplative traditions as a background field of unified, immutable awareness that exists prior to conceptual thought.
Gopinath KavirajGopinath Kaviraj (7 September 1887 – 12 June 1976) was an Indian Sanskrit scholar, Indologist and philosopher. First appointed in 1914 a librarian, he was the Principal of Government Sanskrit College, Varanasi from 1923 to 1937. He was also the editor of the Sarasvati Bhavana Granthamala (Sarasvati Bhavana Texts) during that period.
Parameshvara (epithet)Parameshvara (IAST: Parameśvara, Sanskrit: परमेश्वर) is an epithet used in Hindu literature. The term usually indicates the Supreme Being and Supreme Reality in Hinduism. Vaishnavas consider Vishnu and his avatars such as Rama and Krishna as Parameshvara, while Shaivas consider Shiva as Parameshvara. Parameshvara is the ultimate and highest reality that eternally pervades all matter for Hindus.
SanskritAncient Indo-Aryan language of South AsiaSanskrit (; stem form संस्कृत; nominal singular संस्कृतम्, saṃskṛtam,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late Bronze Age.International Alphabet of Sanskrit TransliterationThe International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during the 19th century from suggestions by Charles Trevelyan, William Jones, Monier Monier-Williams and other scholars, and formalised by the Transliteration Committee of the Geneva Oriental Congress, in September 1894.
Dvaita VedantaDvaita Vedanta (, originally known as Tattvavada; IAST: Tattvavāda), is a sub-school in the Vedanta tradition of Hindu philosophy. The term Tattvavada literally means "arguments from a realist viewpoint". The Tattvavada (Dvaita) Vedanta sub-school was founded by the 13th-century Indian philosopher-saint Madhvacharya. Madhvacharya believed in two entities: God, jiva (soul), and jada (maya, matter).*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.