RELS 203 Jainism (copy)

Acharyas: Spiritual leaders

Achaurya: Non-stealing

Adharma: The medium of rest that creates the condition of rest

Agamas: A collection of scriptures revered by the svetambara sect consisting of the angas and the kalpa sutra

Ahimsa: Nonviolence, to prevent new karma from accumulating

Ajiva: Without soul

Akasha: Space

Anekanta: Refers to doctrine about metaphysical truths that states that the ultimate truth and reality is complex and has multiple aspects

Anga Bahy/Upangas: Scripture of the svetambara sect, meaning outside the limbs

Angas: Scripture of the svetambara sect, meaning the limbs, thought to be lost by the digambara sect

Aparigraha: Non-possession

Ardhamagadhi: A Middle Indian language used in Jain texts

Arihantas: Liberated beings

Asrava: Inflow of karma

Beginnings of Jainism: Not known, but possibly rooted in indigenous Indic culture before Aryan and Vedic age

Brahmacharya: Sexual purity

Candragupta Maurya: The founder of the Maurya Empire in ancient India who supported the Jain tradition

Caturmas: A holy period of four months from July to October, in which travel is curtailed and fasting is frequent

Cause of Passions: Previously accumulated karma, which ripens and gives rise to attachment, which leads to the passions

Danas: Charity

Devapuja: Worship of tirthankaras

Dharma: The medium of motion that creates the condition for motion

Digambaras: Sky-clad sect of Jainism which focus on total nudity as clothing is seen as a form of attachment and therefore, women cannot reach moksha

Digha Nikaya: Long discourses of the Buddha

Dipavali: A festival marking the anniversary of Mahavira's liberation, which is celebrated at the same time as the Hindu festival of the same name

Five Auspicious Events in Mahavira's Life: Conception of Mahavira, birth, renunciation, enlightenment, and final release

Five Great Vows: Ahimsa, achaurya, brahmacharya, satya, and aparigraha

Five Types of Ajiva: Dharma, adharma, pudgala, akasha, and kala

Five-Sense Jivas: Humans, with all five senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing

Four-Sense Jivas: Flies, senses are touch, taste, smell, and sight

Guru-Upasti: Veneration of teachers

Hagiography: The writing of the lives of saints

Jains: Followers of the Jina

Jinas: Tirthankaras

Jiva: Soul, which is completely individual, eternal and weighed down by karma, thus preventing its ascent to realms of bliss after death

Kala: Time

Kalpa Sutra: Scripture revered by the svetambara sect, which contains the life stories of the tirthankaras

Kashayas: Four passions

Kevala-Jnana: Omniscience

Krodha: Anger

Lobha: Greed

Loka: World/universe, which is without beginning or end and contains of the siddhashila of liberated jivas, the upper world of heavenly beings, the middle world of humans and animals, and the lower world of hellish beings

Maha-Vratas: Five great vows

Mahamastabhiseka: Grand head anointing

Mahavira: The twenty-fourth and last Tirthankara, who became a follower of Parsva and renounced all his wealth, property and family to become an ascetic and achieved Kevala-Jnana

Malli: The nineteenth female tirthankara

Mana: Pride

Maya: Deceit

Moksha: Liberation, release from the cycle of rebirths

Murti: Image

Namaskara Mantra: Hymn to the twenty-four Jinas, which destroys all sinful karma and of all holies is the most holy

Nigoda: One-sense jivas, microscopic organisms

One-Sense Jivas: Microscopic organisms and plants, only sense is touch

Paap: Bad karma particles

Panca Kalyanaka: Five auspicious events

Pandita-Marana: Someone who is not afraid of death and who accepts it willingly and at ease

Parsva: The twenty-third Tirthankara

Pratikramana: A ritual during which Jains repent for their sins and non-meritorious activities committed knowingly or inadvertently during their daily life through thought, speech or action

Pudgala: Matter

Puja: Act of worship

Punya: Good karma particles

Rsabha: The first tirthankara of our current time cycle, also called Adinath

Sallekhana: Fasting unto death, ideal form of death undertaken by both ascetics and laypeople, not considered suicide

Samvara: Blockage of karma

Samyak Caritra: Right conduct, opposite of passions

Samyak Darshana: Right faith, opposite of delusion

Samyak Jnana: Right knowledge, opposite of false views

Samyama: Restraint

Satya: Truthfulness

Shravanabelagola: An ancient pilgrimage centre and rock statue of Bahubali located in Karnataka, India, which is said to be the largest monolithic statue in the world

Siddh-Loka: Abode of the liberated soul

Siddhanta: Jain scriptures compiled during 1000 years between death of Mahavira and Valabhi Council in 5th C, CE

Siddhas: Liberated souls/jivas

Siddhashila: A place one goes after obtaining moksha

Six Practices of Jaina Laypeople: Devapuja, guru-upasti, svadhyaya, samyama, tapas on holy days, and dana

Sramana: Ascetic, wanderer

Svadhyaya: Study of scriptures

Svetambaras: White-clad sect of Jainism which wear distinctive white garb, women are capable of moksha

Swastika: A symbol in Jainism, with each arm symbolizing the four states of existence: heavenly beings, human beings, hellish beings, and the subhuman (plants and animals)

Tapas: Heat, asceticism, to eliminate the old karma

The Eight Substances of Puja: Camphor, flowers, rice, incense, light, sweets, fruit, and water

The Four Passions: Krodha, lobha, mana, and maya

The Four States the Soul May Live in: Heaven, human, animal, and hell

The Puja of Eight Substances: A worship involving eight substances that takes place in the morning and involves initial clockwise circumambulation of the image three times, image bathed and anointed, and offerings of food substances

The Three Jewels of Jain Practice: Samyak darshana, samyak jnana, and samyak caritra

Three-Sense Jivas: Ants, senses are touch, taste, and smell

Tirthankara: A saviour who has succeeded in crossing over life's stream of rebirths and has made a path for others to follow through meditation and self-realization, each was born at a time when humanity needed a new vision of religion, also known as a Jina

Two Aspects of the Path to Moksha: Ahimsa and tapas

Two-Sense Jivas: Worms, senses are touch and taste

Upadhyayas: Spiritual teachers

Upangas: Scripture of the svetambara sect, meaning "subsidiary texts"

Vardhamana: The given name of Mahavira

Yaksa/Yaksi: Celestial being