Glossary

Definitions

Words Associated with the Sahaja Yoga Religious Cult

Sahaja Yogis throw around a lot of unusual terms. They like to think that their "self realization" magically transformed them into scholars, which is laughable.

However, there are a few intelligent people in the cult of Sahaja Yoga and the belief system itself draws on long standing religious traditions. In many cases, the terms mean much the same to Sahaja Yogis as they do in the religions where they originated. Sometimes however, they mean something entirely different.

The religious philosophy of Sahaja Yoga is interesting and internally, pretty consistent. That is a selling point for intelligent young individuals searching for meaning in life. The fatal flaw, of course, is that the central belief regarding the absolute divinity of Mrs. Srivastava is pretty obviously not true and generally kept hidden from people until the brain-washing process is well under way.

Below is a table of some terms commonly used by Sahaja Yogis. No need to be in the dark.

Term	Definition	Source
Adharma	Anti-dharma*	The Advent p. 416.
Adi or AAdi	Sanskrit for beginning, first, primeval, original, origin, etc.	Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary
Adi Guru	Primordial Master*	The Advent p. 416.
Adi Shakti	Primordial Power, i.e., Power of God*	The Advent p. 416.
Adi Shakti	Sahaja Yogis believe and Mrs. Srivastava claims to be an incarnation of Adi Shakti.	N.D.
Advocate	See Counselor.
Amrit	Nectar, flow of bliss*	The Advent p. 416.
Apocalypse	Coming of Kalki *	The Advent p. 416.
Atman	The Self*	The Advent p. 416.
Atman	(Sanskrit) "The soul; the breath; the principle of life and sensation." The soul in its entirety - as the soul body (anandamaya kosa) and its essence (Parasakti and Parasiva). One of Hinduism’s most fundamental tenets is that we are the atman, not the physical body, emotions, external mind or personality.	International Dictionary of Hinduism
Auspiciousness	The Quality of being tuned to the Unconscious.*	The Advent p. 416.
Bhairawa	Archangel Saint Michael*	The Advent p. 416.
Brahmadeva	God's aspect of creation*	The Advent p. 416.
Brahman	God as undifferentiated, all pervading consciousness*	The Advent p. 416.
Brahmarandhra	Apex of the brain*	The Advent p. 416.
Buddha	Incarnation of the Ego of God*	The Advent p. 416.
Buddha	Usual title given to the founder of Buddhism who probably lived from 563 to 483 B.C. The story of his life is overlaid with legend, the earliest written accounts dating 200 years after his death. His name was Siddhartha Gautama. He was born the son of a king of the warrior caste in the Himalayan foothills in what is now S Nepal. It was predicted at his birth that he would become either a world ruler or a world teacher. Hhis father, King Suddhodana, who wished Siddhartha to succeed him as ruler, took great pains to shelter him from all misery and anything that might influence him toward the religious life. Siddhartha spent his youth in luxury, married, and fathered a son. The scriptures relate that at the age of 29, wishing to see more of the world, he left the palace grounds in his chariot. He saw on successive excursions an old man, a sick man, a corpse, and a monk. From the first three of these sights he learned the inescapability of suffering and death, and in the serenity of the monk he saw his destiny. Forsaking his wife and his son he secretly left the palace and became a wandering ascetic. Siddhartha first studied yogic meditation and after mastering their techniques, decided that these did not lead to the highest realization. He then undertook fasting and extreme austerities, but after six years gave these up fearing that they might cause his death before he attained illumination. Taking moderate food, he seated himself under a tree and swore not to stir until he had attained the supreme enlightenment. On the night of the full moon, after overcoming the attacks and temptations of Mara, “the evil one,” he reached enlightenment, becoming a Buddha at the age of 35. Leaving what was now the Tree of Enlightenment, he proceeded to the Deer Park at Sarnath, N of Benares (Varanasi), where he preached his first sermon to five ascetics who had been with him when he practiced austerities. They became his first disciples. The first sermon, known as “the setting into motion of the wheel of the dharma,” contained the basic doctrines of the “four noble truths” and the “eightfold path.” For the remainder of his life he traveled instructing disciples and giving his teaching to all who came to him, regardless of caste or religion. He spent much of his time in monasteries donated to the sangha, or community of monks, by wealthy lay devotees. Tradition says that he died at the age of 80. He appointed no successor but on his deathbed told his disciples to maintain the sangha and achieve their own liberation by relying on his teaching.	Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
Chaitanya	Divine Vibrations, life force*	The Advent p. 416.
Chakras	Subtle centers of energy within the human body*	The Advent p. 416.
Chakras	(Sanskrit) "Wheel." Any of the nerve plexes or centers of force and consciousness located within the inner bodies of man. In the physical body there are corresponding nerve plexuses, ganglia and glands. The seven principal chakras can be seen psychically as colorful, multi-petaled wheels or lotuses. They are situated along the spinal cord from the base to the cranial chamber. Additionally, seven chakras, barely visible, exist below the spine. They are seats of instinctive consciousness, the origin of jealousy, hatred, envy, guilt, sorrow, etc. They constitute the lower or hellish world, called Naraka or patala. Thus, there are 14 major chakras in all. The seven upper chakras, from lowest to highest, are - 1) muladhara (base of spine) - memory, time and space; 2) svadhisthana (below navel) - reason; 3) manipura (solar plexus) - willpower; 4) anahata (heart center) - direct cognition; 5) visuddha (throat) - divine love; 6) ajna (third eye) - divine sight; 7) sahasrara (crown of head) - illumination, Godliness. The seven lower chakras, from highest to lowest, are 1) atala (hips) - fear and lust; 2) vitala (thighs) - raging anger; 3) sutala (knees) - retaliatory jealousy; 4) talatala (calves) - prolonged mental confusion; 5) rasatala (ankles) - selfisness; 6) mahatala (feet) - absence of conscience; 7) patala (located in the soles of the feet) - murder and malice.	International Dictionary of Hinduism
Collective consciousness	State in which the awareness encompasses other beings*	The Advent p. 416.
Collective subconscious	Superego of the Virata *	The Advent p. 416.
Collective supraconscious	Ego of the Virata *	The Advent p. 416.
Counselor	Shri Mataji Srivastava claims to be the Counselor or Holy Spirit.
	15"If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever-- 17the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[3] in you. 18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." 22Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, "But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?" 23Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. 25"All this I have spoken while still with you. 26But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. 28"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. 30I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, 31but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me. "Come now; let us leave.	John 14 :: New International Version
	18"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.'[2] If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me. 22If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. 23He who hates me hates my Father as well. 24If I had not done among them what no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: 'They hated me without reason.'[3] 26"When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. 27And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.	John 15 :: New International Version
cult	a. A religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader. b. The followers of such a religion or sect. A system or community of religious worship and ritual. The formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual. A usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease. a. Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing. b. The object of such devotion. An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest.	Dictionary.com
cult	formal religious veneration : WORSHIP a system of religious beliefs and ritual; also : its body of adherents a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious; also : its body of adherents a system for the cure of disease based on dogma set forth by its promulgator <health cults> a : great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book); especially : such devotion regarded as a literary or intellectual fad b : a usually small group of people characterized by such devotion	Merriam-Webster
Darshan	Physical presence of a divine incarnation*	The Advent p. 416.
Dattatrya	Primordial Master*	The Advent p. 416.
Deities	Aspects of God*	The Advent p. 417.
Devatas	Aspects of God*	The Advent p. 417.
Dharma	Righteousness as the sustaining factor of ecology and evolution*	The Advent p. 417.
Dhyana	Meditation*	The Advent p. 417.
Durga	Name of Parvati when manifesting without Shiva*	The Advent p. 417.
Ego	Side of the Psyche which manifest and develop the individual identity*	The Advent p. 417.
Ganesha	God's aspects of innocence, wisdom and contentment*	The Advent p. 417.
Ganesha	In Hinduism, Ganesha ("lord of the hosts," also spelled Ganesa) is the god of wisdom, intelligence, education and prudence. He is a son of Shiva and Parvati, and a husband of Bharati. In art, he is depicted as a fat yellow or red man with four hands and the head of a one-tusked elephant, riding or attended to by a rat, who is sometimes given the name Mooshika.	Word IQ
Gauri	The divine virgin, power of purity, the Kundalini *	The Advent p. 417.
Griha Laxshmi	Laxshmi's aspect of the goddess of the household*	The Advent p. 417.
Guna	Mood of the Virata *	The Advent p. 417.
Guru	Teacher, Master*	The Advent p. 417.
Hanumana	Archangel Saint Gabriel*	The Advent p. 417.
Hatha Yoga	Yoga of the sympathetic nervous system* (a definition that makes no sense)	The Advent p. 417.
Holy Ghost	See Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit	Shri Mataji Srivastava claims to be a divine incarnation of the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost.
	Adi Shakti *	The Advent p. 417.
	The Spirit of God which appears in the Old Testament both as the power that inspires the prophets and causes them to speak in the name of God, and as the power that accomplishes the works of God through men as works that bear his own mark. In Hebrew the word was ruah, which, like the Greek pneuma and the Latin spiritus, means first "breath," and more particularly, "life's breath." St. John describes the complete revelation of the Spirit's role to us as an essential note of Jesus' last conversation with His followers. They are to rejoice that Jesus is leaving them, for his departure to the Father will result in the Spirit's coming down to them (John 16,7). The Spirit will be among them as a counselor, who both defends and counsels his client. It is the Father who will send the Spirit through the intercession of the Son, but it is also the Son who will send Him on behalf of the Father, for He is the Spirit of truth who will remind them of everything Jesus had told them, who will teach them all things, and who will glorify the Father in taking what is the Son's in order to make it known to them.	Dictionary of Theology, pp. 208-209.
	The very best educated Sahaja Yogis will point out that references to the Holy Spirit were generally gender neutral in the original Greek text of the New Testament and only translated as male. True, but not all pronouns in the original text were neutral. Some indicated male. They will also point out that references to the Holy Spirit in many Gnostic scriptures were feminine. Hell, I was the one who did the research in the Boston Public Library that let them know this was the case. Furthermore, the argument that the Holy Spirit is the female aspect of the trilogy makes perfectly logical sense. However, that hardly proves Sri Mataji Srivastava is the Counselor. Being clever is one thing. Being the author of Existence is quite another. Shri Mataji is certainly the former and even more certainly NOT the latter.	N.D.
Ida Nadi	Moon channel presiding over emotions, the past .*	The Advent p. 417.
Jagadamba	Durga as the Mother of the Universe*	The Advent p. 417.
Jesus	Incarnation of the son of God*	The Advent p. 417.
Kali	Fierce form of Parvati *	The Advent p. 417.
Kali Yuga	Age of Darkness*	The Advent p. 417.
Kalki	Forthcoming tenth Incarnation of Vishnu *	The Advent p. 417.
Karma	Consequences of past actions*	The Advent p. 417.
Kingdom of God	State of consciousness of the Sahasrara chakra *	The Advent p. 417.
Krishna	Incarnation of the Father aspect of God*	The Advent p. 417.
Kundalini	Residual divine consciousness of the Holy Spirit within man*	The Advent p. 417.
Kundalini	(Sanskrit) "She who is coiled; serpent power." The primordial cosmic energy in every individual which, at first, lies coiled like a serpent at the base of the spine and eventually, through the practice of yoga, rises up the sushumna nadi. As it rises, the kundalini awakens each successive chakra. Nirvikalpa samadhi, enlightenment, comes as it pierces through the door of Brahman at the core of the sahasrara and enters! Kundalini sakti then returns to rest in any one of the seven chakras. Sivasayujya is complete when the kundalini arrives back in the sahasrara and remains coiled in this crown chakra.	International Dictionary of Hinduism
Laxshmi	Shakti of Vishnu *	The Advent p. 418.
Loka	Cosmic realm*	The Advent p. 418.
Mahakali	Divine seed energy of existence and destruction*	The Advent p. 418.
Mahalaxshmi	Divine seed energy of evolution*	The Advent p. 418.
Mahamaya	In one of the great cons of our time, Shri Mataji claims to be an incarnation of Mahamaya, which explains why her decidedly undivine behavior and human failings don't seem to fit with her preposterous claim to be the highest of high as far as divine incarnations go. Whenever caught in a decidedly human failing, Sahaja Yogis invariably explain it away by saying, "she is mahamaya." How convenient.	N.D.
Mahamaya	The transcendent power of illusion (a form of Durga). Makes the universe appear as if it really exists and thus is cognizable by way of the senses. Though immanent in the world, she only becomes manifest when carrying out divine purposes.	Dictionary of Hinduism p. 171.
Mahasaraswati	Divine seed energy of creation*	The Advent p. 418.
Mahavira	Incarnation of the superego of God*	The Advent p. 418.
Mandala	System of awareness-energy around chakra *	The Advent p. 418.
Mary	Shakti of Jesus*	The Advent p. 418.
Maryada	Boundaries*	The Advent p. 418.
Mataji	Holy Mother*	The Advent p. 418.
Maya	Illusion, delusion, confusion*	The Advent p. 418.
Nadi	Channel*	The Advent p. 418.
Paramatma	The Universal Unconscious*	The Advent p. 418.
Parasympathetic	Part of the autonomous nervous system balancing and restoring energy*	The Advent p. 418.
Parvati	Shaktiof Shiva*	The Advent p. 418.
Pingala Nadi	Sun channel presiding over physical and mental activities, the future*	The Advent p. 418.
Prakriti	Nature*	The Advent p. 418.
Purusha	Spirit*	The Advent p. 418.
Radha	Shaktiof Krishna*	The Advent p. 418.
Radha	In Hinduism, Radha is the favorite herdwoman or gopi of Krishna. She is His heart and soul.	WordIQ
Rajo Guna	Mood, mode of operation of Mahasaraswati *	The Advent p. 418.
Rama	Seventh incarnation of Vishnu *	The Advent p. 418.
Ravana	King of the demons*	The Advent p. 418.
Sadashiva	God the Almighty*	The Advent p. 418.
Sahaja	Spontaneous, inborn*	The Advent p. 418.
Samadhi	Self-realisation*	The Advent p. 418.
Sangha	Community of the realized souls*	The Advent p. 418.
Saraswati	Shaktiof Brahmadeva*	The Advent p. 418.
Sat Chit Ananda	Truth, consciousness, bliss*	The Advent p. 418.
Satan	Collective principle of evil*	The Advent p. 418.
Satguru	True guru, Adi Guru*	The Advent p. 418.
Sattwa guna	Mood, Mode of operation of Mahalaxshmi*	The Advent p. 418.
Sattya Yuga	Age of Revelation, Golden Age*	The Advent p. 419.
Self	God within man*	The Advent p. 419.
Self-realization	Opening of the Brahmarandhra Power*	The Advent p. 419.
Shakti	Power*	The Advent p. 419.
Shiva	God's aspect of existence and destruction*	The Advent p. 419.
Shri	Lord, Lady; also a name of the Goddess*	The Advent p. 419.
Siddhi	Superhuman Power*	The Advent p. 419.
Sita	Shaktiof Rama*	The Advent p. 419.
Spiritual Libido	Desire to be the instrument of necessity, fate, the unconscious*	The Advent p. 419.
Sri Chakra	Instrument of the Holy Spirit*	The Advent p. 419.
Subconscious	Field of Ida Nadi and the superego *	The Advent p. 419.
Subconscious	The part of the mind below the level of conscious perception.	Dictionary.com
Superego	Side of the psyche which stores Conditionings, past experiences* This is one of those terms where the Sahaja Yoga definition is completely different than the commonly understood one. Standard definition is from psychoanalysis as follows:	The Advent p. 419.
Superego	that part of the unconscious mind that acts as a conscience	HyperDictionary
Supraconscious	Field of Pingala Nadi and the ego*	The Advent p. 419.
Surrender	Disposition, attitude leading to the opening of the Sushumna Channel*	The Advent p. 419.
Tamo Guna	Mood, mode of operation of Mahakali*	The Advent p. 419.
Tandava	Shiva's dance of destruction*	The Advent p. 419.
Tantra	Instrument*	The Advent p. 419.
Thoughtless Awareness	The state of awareness beyond mental activity*	The Advent p. 419.
Tree of Life	The Sushumna Nadi and the chakras*	The Advent p. 419.
Units of Psychic Interference	Entities, spirits Intruding on the psyche*	The Advent p. 419.
Universal Unconscious	Mind of the Virata *	The Advent p. 419.
Vaikuntha	Celestial abode of Vishnu*	The Advent p. 419.
Vibratory awareness	Awareness of the Chaitanya*	The Advent p. 419.
Vilamba	Space of silence between two thoughts*	The Advent p. 419.
Virata	The Great Primordial being, God manifested*	The Advent p. 419.
Vishnu	God's aspect of evolution*	The Advent p. 419.
Water of life	River of chaitanya and also amrit*	The Advent p. 419.
Yantra	Technique*	The Advent p. 419.
Yoga	Union *	The Advent p. 419.

*According to Sahaja Yoga and the teachings of Shri Mataji Srivastava. Not necessarily correct.

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Definitions

Words Associated with the Sahaja Yoga Religious Cult

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