Yoga Glossary

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Abhaya mudra	–			gesture of fearlessness
Abhinivesha	–			fear of death
Adhara mudra	–			perineal mudra
Adharas	–			16 bases which support the body
Adharmic	–			not fulfilling one's natural role in life
Advaita	–			non-dual experience; unity of the individual soul
Agni	–			fire, in all its aspects. Agni encompasses all fires, from the densest (the power of digestion) to the most rarefied (the essence of cosmic fire).
Agni mandala	–			'zone of fire'; visualizing entire body in the form of agni
Agnisar kriya	–			practice of emptying the lungs and pumping the stomach to strengthen the diaphragm and lower stomach region
Agocharam	–			beyond sensory perception
Agochari mudra	–			another name for nasikagra drishti
Aham Bhramasmi	–			vedic mantra, I am Brahman'
Ahamkara	–			ego
Ahimsa	–			absence of violence from within; non-violence
Ajapa japa	–			continuous, spontaneous repetition of mantra
Ajna chakra	–			'third eye'; command center
Ajna mandala	–			ajna chakra symbol at the eyebrow center
Akhanda kirtan	–			ongoing, unbroken kirtan
Akara	–			form, link, continuity
Akasha	–			space; ether
Akasha tattwa	–			ether element
Akashi mudra	–			awareness of the inner space; practice of the external stage of dharana; gazing into space with the head tilted back
Amaroli	–			auto-urine procedure; drinking of one's own urine in order to detoxify the body and develop stamina and vitality
Anadi	–			endless
Anahada nada	–			unheard, unstuck sound
Anahata chakra	–			heart chakra or emotional center
Anahata kshetram	–			trigger point of anahata chakra
Ananda	–			everlasting bliss
Ananda samadhi	–			fourth state of samadhi; blissful absorption
Anandamaya kosha	–			sheath or body of bliss, beatitude
Annamaya kosha	–			sheath or body of matter
Antah	–			inner
Antah karana	–			inner instrument; experienced or manifest mind which includes the four aspects of manas, buddhi, chitta and ahamkara
Antar kumbhaka	–			internal breathe retention
Antar lakshya	–			internal aim to be aspired for in dharana
Antar mouna	–			inner silence; meditative technique
Antaranga yoga	–			four internal stages of raja yoga
Anuman	–			inference
Anusandhana	–			discovery
Apah	–			water
Apana	–			sub-prana, which is located in the lower abdominal region, responsible for elimination and reproduction
Aparigraha	–			non-possessiveness
Ardhanareshwara	–			form of Shiva, which is half male and half female
Arjuna	–			one of the five Pandava back brothers; he to whom Lord Krishna addressed the Bhagavad Gita
Artha	–			material need; wealth
Asamprajnata samadhi	–			transitional stage of samadhi where the traces of the mind become active according to their intensity
Asamprayoge	–			'not coming into contact'
Asana	–			a physical posture in which one is at ease and in harmony with oneself
Asevitah	–			faith
Ashrama	–			four stages of life
Ashtanga yoga	–			eightfold path of yoga
Ashwini mudra	–			contraction of anal sphincter
Asmita	–			state where the ego and the sense of individuality are completely transcended and there is only pure awareness
Asmita klesha	–			feeling of 'I' identified with an action
Asmita samadhi	–			fifth state of samadhi; dissolution of ego; merging of body, mind and soul
Asteya	–			honesty
Asthi	–			bone found in the body tissues
Atadroop pratishtha	–			knowledge of false identity; inability to link name with form
Atma	–			individual soul; spirit
Aum	–			primordial sound; mantra
Avachetan	–			subconscious
Avidya	–			ignorance; lack of conscious awareness; mistaking the non-eternal for the eternal; confined cognition
Avyakta	–			unmanifest; unseen
Awarohan	–			descending passage to the subtle body; spinal passage
Ayurveda	–			vedic system of medical diagnosis and treatment

Bahir	–			external
Bahir kumbhaka	–			external breath retention
Bahir lakshya	–			external aim to focus on in order to achieve concentration
Bahiranga yoga	–			four external stages of raja yoga
Baikhari	–			audible sound produced by striking two objects
Bandha	–			psychic lock that concentrates the flow of energy in the body at one point or plexus; postural contraction of the body
Basti	–			excretory cleansing technique for the intestines and colon
Beeja	–			'seed'
Bhadrasana	–			gentleman's pose
Bhagavad Gita	–			Lord Krishna's discourse to Arjuna delivered on the battlefield of Kurukshetra during the great Mahabharata war
Bhaja Govindam	–			ode to Shakti by Adi Shankaracharya
Bhakti	–			devotion
Bhal bhati	–			forehead bellows
Bhastrika pranayama	–			'bellows' breathing technique
Bhati	–			to shine
Bhava samadhi	–			absorption' in meditation due to emotional cause, e.g. kirtan
Bheda	–			to pass through, pierce, purify
Bhoochari mudra	–			practice of the external stage of dharana; gazing into space after focusing on the finger nail of the hand held in front of the face
Bhoota	–			element
Bhrumadhya	–			eyebrow center
Bhrumadhya drishti	–			eyebrow center gazing
Bindu visarga	–			center or source of individual creation from where the psychic vibrations first emanate
Brahma	–			Lord of creation; manifest force of life and creation; potentiality of mooladhara chakra
Brahma dhyana	–			meditation on the concept of Brahma
Brahma granthi	–			perineal knot or psychic block
Brahma nadi	–			subtle pranic flow within sushumna nadi through which kundalini ascends
Brahmacharya	–			one who lives in higher consciousness; sexual control; redirection of sexual energy towards spiritual or meditational practices
Brahmacharya ashrama	–			first stage of life up to 25 years, which is devoted to study and learning
Brahman	–			absolute reality; 'ever-expanding consciousness'
Buddha	–			the enlightened one
Buddhi	–			discerning, discriminating aspect of mind; from the root 'bodh', 'to be aware of', 'to know'; intellect.

Chaitanya jyoti	–			eternal flame of spirit
Chakra	–			psychic center in the subtle body; circle, wheel or vortex of energy; conjugation point of the nadis
Chakrasana	–			wheel pose
Chandra bheda pranayama	–			breathing technique that pierces and purifies the ida nadi
Chandra mandala	–			another name for ajna mandala
Charvak	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian thought; philosophy which accepts only the perceivable phenomena as valid, not the unperceivable
Chaturmas	–			four months of the rainy season
Chetana	–			consciousness; unmanifest aspect of consciousness and energy
Chidakasha	–			space of consciousness experienced in the head region
Chidakasha dharana	–			technique of meditation involving awareness of the chidakasha
Chin mudra	–			attitude of chitta or consciousness; upward hand position with thumb and first finger touching
Chit	–			eternal consciousness
Chit shakti	–			mental force governing the, subtle dimensions
Chitta	–			individual consciousness, including the subconscious and unconscious levels of mind; memory, thinking, concentration, attention, enquiry
Chitta vritti	–			mental modification

Daharakasha	–			lower or deep space; encompassing mooladhara, swadhisthana and manipura
Daharakasha dharana	–			concentration on the symbols of chakra and tattwa within the lower space
Dakshina nadi	–			another name for pingala nadi
Danta dhauti	–			method of cleaning the teeth
Darshana	–			to glimpse; to see; to have a vision
Deerghakaala	–			for a long period of time
Dehasamya	–			body stillness
Desha	–			place
Deva tattwa	–			first tattwa: the divine element
Devadutta	–			minor prana
Devata	–			deity
Devi	–			female deity; goddess
Dhananjaya	–			minor prana
Dhara	–			stream, flow
Dharana	–			holding or binding of the mind to one point; concentration
Dharma	–			the natural role we have to play in life; ethical law; duty
Dhatu	–			layers of tissue in the body
Dhauti	–			cleansing practices for the stomach region involving gentle washing with air, water, cloth or stick
Dhyana	–			meditation
Divya	–			divine
Divya loka	–			plane of divine or transcendental experience
Divyabhava	–			divine feeling
Doshas	–			humors of the physical body
Drashta	–			seer, observer; awareness
Dridha bhoomihi	–			solid foundation
Drishti	–			vision, eyesight
Drishtisamya	–			stillness of vision
Drona	–			teacher of the Pandava and Kaurava princes from the Mahabharata epic
Durga	–			devi; goddess; representing energy
Dwesha	–			repulsion, aversion

Garbha	–			womb Ida
Gayatri mantra	–			vedic mantra of 24 matras or syllabes
Gherand Samhita	–			traditional yogic text by Rishi Gherand
Gomukasana	–			cow face pose
Granthis	–			psychic knots
Grihastha ashrama	–			second stage of life from 25-50 years; householder
Guna	–			attribute, quality or nature of the phenomenal world
Guna rahita akasha	–			one of the five mental spaces of vyoma panchaka; attributeless space
Gupta nadi	–			runs from the knees along the inside of the thighs into the perineum
Guru	–			one who dispels darkness

Hasta uttanasana	–			a pre-pranayama exercise
Hatha yoga	–			yoga of attaining physical and mental purity, and chanelling of the pranas in the body
Hatha Yoga Pradipika	–			yogic text, 'light on hatha yoga'
Himsa	–			anything which disrupts the natural flow of human perception and consciousness
Hiranya	–			'golden'
Hiranyagarbha	–			golden womb; golden egg
Hreem	–			beeja mantra
Hridayakasha	–			space of the heart, experienced between manipura and vishuddhi chakra
Hridayakasha dharana	–			vedic meditative process involving concentration on the heart space

Ida nadi	–			major pranic channel in the body; passive aspect of prana manifesting as mental force, chit shakti; lunar force governing the manifest subtle dimension
Indra	–			king of the vedic gods
Indriyas	–			sensory organs
Ishwara	–			higher reality; non-decaying principle of Samkhya philosophy; unmanifest existence; being; non-changing principle or quality
Ishwara pranidhana	–			cultivation of faith in the higher reality
Iti	–			`through' or 'thus'

Jagriti	–			wakefulness
Jala	–			water
Jala neti	–			nasal cleansing using warm and saline water, or oil, ghee, milk, yogurt or amaroli
Jalandhara bandha	–			chin lock; technique that frees ' the blockages of rudra granthi; controls the network of nadis, nerves and blood vessels flowing to the brain
Janma chakra	–			wheel of life
Japa yoga	–			yoga of mantra repetition
Jaya	–			victory, success
Jiva	–			individual identity
Jnana	–			intuitive knowledge
Jnana kanda	–			path of knowledge
Jnana mudra	–			hand position that joins fingers and thumb; gesture of intuitive knowledge
Jnana yoga	–			yoga of knowledge and wisdom attained through spontaneous self-analysis and investigation of abstract or speculative ideas
Jnanendriyas	–			five sensory organs
Jyoti mandir	–			temple of light

Kagra	–			tip
Kaivalya	–			state of consciousness beyond duality
Kala	–			time
Kala loka	–			plane that comes under the influence of time and its secondary aspect, space
Kama	–			emotional need or fulfillment
Kapalbhati pranayama	–			frontal brain bellowing technique used to raise the pranic energy of the body and center it at ajna chakra
Kapalshodhan	–			variation of kapalbhati
Kapha	–			phlegm, one of the three humors described in ayurveda
Karana	–			cause
Kari	–			that which produces
Karma	–			action; law of cause and effect, which shapes the destiny of each individual
Karma kanda	–			path of ritual
Karma shaya	–			deep layers of consciousness where the karma are stored in the form of impressions, symbols or archetypes
Karma yoga	–			yoga of action; action performed with meditative awareness; yoga of dynamic meditation
Karmendriyas	–			five physical organs of action (feet, hands, speech, excretory and reproductive organs)
Kama dhauti	–			ways to clean the ears
Khechad mudra	–			tongue lock
Kirtan	–			singing of God's name
Kleem	–			beeja mantra
Koorma	–			tortoise
Koormasana	–			tortoise pose
Kosha	–			sheath or body
Krishna	–			incarnation of Vishnu
Kriya	–			action or motion
Kriya yoga	–			practices of kundalini yoga
Kukkutasana	–			cockerel pose
Kumbha	–			a pot
Kumbhaka	–			internal or external retention of breath
Kundalini	–			'serpent power'; spiritual energy; evolutionary potential
Kundalini yoga	–			path of yoga, which awakens the dormant spiritual force
Kunjal kriya	–			cleansing the stomach by voluntary vomiting using warm saline water
Kuru princes	–			opponents of the Pandava princes in the Mahabharata epic

Laghoo	–			'short form'
Lakshya	–			aim; stage
Lalana upa chakra	–			minor chakra at the back of the throat
Lam	–			beeja mantra of mooladhara chakra
Laya	–			to dissolve
Laya yoga	–			yoga of conscious dissolution of individuality
Lokas	–			seven planes of consciousness

Madhya	–			intermediate
Madhya lakshya	–			intermediate stage
Maha	–			great
Maha bheda mudra	–			great piercing attitude
Mahamrityunjaya mantra	–			a long universal mantra
Maha mudra	–			great attitude
Maha samadhi	–			final liberation experienced on the departure of the spirit from the body
Mahabandha	–			great lock
Mahabharata	–			great epic of ancient India
Mahakasha	–			one of the five mental spaces of vyoma panchaka; bright like the middle of the sun
Mahaprana	–			prana in its cosmic, unmanifest aspect
Mahat	–			greater mind
Majja	–			nerves found in the body tissues
Mala	–			garland
Mananat	–			bondage of mind
Manas	–			mind
Manasi	–			mental
Mandala	–			zone; area; pictorial representation
Manduki	–			frog
Manduki mudra	–			frog attitude
Mandukya Upanishad	–			one of the major Upanishads, which describes the three states of consciousness, represented by the three syllables of AUM
Manipura chakra	–			psychic center behind the navel, associated with vitality and energy; 'city of jewels'
Manomaya kosha	–			mental sheath or body Mantra? – sound or vibration of power, which liberates the mind from bondage
Mantra yoga	–			path of yogawhich liberates the mind through sound vibration
Mantraha	–			force of vibration
Maya	–			illusion; partial understanding; wrong or false notions about self-identity
Mayurasana	–			peacock pose
Medha	–			fat found in the body tissues
Mehdra	–			plexus of the pranic body; nadi plexus located just a few centimeters below the nave
Mitahara	–			balanced diet
Moksha	–			liberation; freedom
Moola	–			`root'
Moola bandha	–			perineal lock; technique for locating and awakening mooladhara chakra; used to release brahma granthi
Mooladhara anusandhana	–			discovery of mooladhara chakra
Mooladhara chakra	–			root chakra, situated at the perineum; seat of the primal energy
Mooladhara dhyana	–			practice involving visualization of mooladhara chakra and sensing the vortex of energy at this point
Mouna	–			silence
Mrityu tattwa	–			decay able element; manifest aspect of tattwa
Mudra	–			psychic gesture; psycho-physiological posture, movement or attitude.
Mukti	–			liberation
Mumsa	–			muscle found in the body tissues
Mumukshutva	–			desire for liberation

Nabho mudra	–			another name for khechari mudra
Nada	–			psychic or internal sound
Nada Yoga	–			yoga of internal sound
Nadi	–			prana flow or channel
Nadi shodhana	–			purification of nadis
Nadi shodhana pranayama	–			practice of alternate nostril breathing by which the pranic channels are purified
Naga	–			one of the five minor pranas
Nairantarya	–			continuously without a break
Nara	–			decaying principle
Nashwara	–			decaying principle described in Samkhya philosophy; manifest existence; becoming; changeable
Nasi	–			nose
Nasikagra drishti	–			nose tip gazing
Nasikagra upa chakra	–			minor chakra at the nose tip
Natya mudras	–			dance mudras that express different attitudes or moods, such as love or anger
Nauli	–			practice of rotation of the abdominal muscles
Neti	–			cleansing practice for the head; nasal cleaning
Nidra	–			deep sleep
Nigraha	–			control
Nirbeeja samadhi	–			final state of samadhi where there is absorption without seed; total dissolution
Nirguna dhyana	–			meditation without gunas or qualities
Nirvichara samadhi	–			transitional stage of samadhi; absorption without reflection
Nirvichara dhyana	–			meditation without special attributes
Nirvichara samadhi	–			transitional stage of samadhi involving purification of memory which gives rise to true knowledge of the object of perception
Niyama	–			inner discipline
Nyaya	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian philosophy; `logic'; recognition of the real spiritual experience by the omniscient mind

Om Namah Shivaya	–			Shiva mantra; `I salute Shiva (consciousness)'
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudeva	–			Krishna mantra; `I salute Krishna (consciousness)'
Om Namo Narayana	–			Narayan or Vishnu mantra; 'I salute Narayan (consciousness)'

Padmasana	–			lotus pose
Pancha klesha	–			five afflictions (ignorance, ego, attraction, aversion and fear of, death)
Panchaka	–			five
Pandavas	–			the five brothers in the Mahabharata epic
Para nada	–			transcendental sound
Param	–			supreme
Paramakasha	–			one of the five mental spaces of vyoma panchaka; 'deep, dark space with a twinkling star-like light'; state of shoonya, nothingness
Parigraha	–			collection
Pashubhava	–			instinctive personality
Pasyanti	–			mental
Patanjali	–			ancient rishi who codified the meditative stages and states into the system of raja yoga
Pawanmuktasana	–			series of wind releasing postures; preliminary asana series
Pingala nadi	–			major pranic channel in the body which conducts the dynamic force manifesting as prana shakti
Pitta	–			bile,. One of the three humors described in ayurveda
Pooraka	–			inhalation
Poorna	–			full
Poorna dhanurasana	–			full bow pose
Poorva Mimamsa	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian philosophy in the form of answers; contains theory of karma kanda or ritual
Prajna	–			knowledge with awareness; the seer who observes the state of nidra; the all knowing; what is known; represents the 'M' of AUM; awareness of the 'one without a second'
Prakasha	–			light
Prakasha mandala	–			white light at the center of ajna chakra
Prakriti	–			individual nature
Pramana	–			direct knowledge; knowledge based on direct experience
Prana	–			vital energy; inherent vital force pervading every dimension of matter
Prana mudra	–			a technique of raising the prana
Prana nigraha	–			control of prana
Prana shakti	–			dynamic solar force governing the dimension of matter
Prana tattwa	–			third element representing the vital or life giving force
Prana vidya	–			knowledge and control of prana
Pranamaya kasha	–			energy sheath or body
Pranava	–			mantra Aum; primal sound vibration
Pranava dhyana	–			meditation on the mantra Aum
Pranayama	–			expansion of the range of vital energy
Pranidhana	–			'to believe in'
Pranothana	–			awakening of the pranas in the different chakras
Pratishtha	–			awareness of identity
Pratyahara	–			withdrawal of the mind from the senses
Pratyaya	–			seeds or impressions in the field of consciousness, which do not disappear even in samadhi
Pravrittis	–			four instincts; (i) desire for food, (ii) desire for sleep; (iii) desire to procreate and (iv) fear of death
Prithvi	–			earth or matter
Purusha	–			totality of consciousness
Purusharthas	–			four efforts which man must make in order to fulfill his individual existence: (i) artha (wealth), (ii) kama (love), (iii) dharma (duty), (iv) moksha (liberation)

Raga	–			attraction
Rahita	–			without
Raja yoga	–			yoga of awkening the psychic awareness and faculties through meditation
Rajas	–			one of the three gunas; dynamism; state of activity and the creativity combined with full ego involvement
Rakta	–			blood found in the body tissues
Rasa	–			serum found in the body tissues
Rechaka	–			exhalation
Rishi	–			seer; realized sage; one who contemplates or meditates on the Self
Rityam	–			the changing principle
Roodan	–			the cry
Roopa	–			form
Rud	–			to cry
Rudra	–			howling energy
Rudra granthi	–			psychic knot or block between ajna and sahasrara chakras

Sabeeja samadhi	–			absorption with seed where the form of awareness remains
Sadhaka	–			spiritual aspirant
Sadhana	–			spiritual practice
Saguna dhyana	–			meditation to develop awareness of the ttranscendental qualities
Sah	–			with
Sahaja	–			spontaneous; easy
Sahaja samadhi	–			spontaneous meditative experience where the mind is totally withdrawn from the external world
Sahajoli mudra	–			contraction and release of the urinary passage in the female body to stimulate Swadhisthana chakra and promote brahmacharya
Sahasrara chakra	–			abode of Shiva or superconsciousness; 'the thousand petalled lotus'; highest chakra or psychic center, which symbolizes the threshold between the psychic and spiritual realms; located at the crown of the head
Sahita	–			'combined with something'
Sakama karma	–			ego-inspired actions
Sakshi	–			witness; drashta aspect
Sam	–			perfect, balanced
Samadhi	–			culmination of meditation; state of unity with the object of meditation and the universal consciousness
Samana	–			one of the five sub-pranas; situated between the navel and diaphragm
Samapatti	–			complete absorption; samadhi
Samkhya	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian philosophy; associated with yoga; based on the division of existence into purusha, prakr;ti and a number of elements
Samprajnata samadhi	–			first sate of samadhi; transcendental state where there is knowledge with awareness
Samskara	–			unconscious memories; impressions that do not fit into the known categories of our present personality
Samya	–			stillness
Samyam	–			harmonious control; culmination of pratyahara, dharana and samadhi
Sanatan	–			eternal
Sankalpa	–			resolve
Sannyasa	–			renunciation; dedication
Sannyasa ashram	–			fourth stage of life from 75 years onwards; total renunciation
Sanskrit	–			`language of the gods": original vedic language
Santosha	–			contentment
Sapta	–			seven
Saptavatan	–			awareness of seven things simultaneously
Saraswati	–			goddess of learning
Sat	–			true
Satchitananda	–			three divine attribrates of truth, consciousness and bliss
Satkaara	–			with faith
Satsang	–			gathering in which the ideals and principles of truth are discussed
Sattwa	–			one of the three gunas; pure, unadulterated quality; state of luminosity and harmony
Sattwic	–			pertaining to sattwa
Satya	–			truth, reality
Satyam	–			the unchanging principle
Savdhan	–			attention; alert
Savichara samadhi	–			third state of samadhi where the mind alternates between time, space and object
Savishesha dhyana	–			meditation with special qualities: awareness of the concept of Shakti as a powerful force equal to that of Brahman
Savitarka samadhi	–			second state of samadhi where there is alternating association of the consciousness between word, knowledge and sensory perception
Shaiva	–			one who worships Shiva as the supreme reality
Shaivism	–			practice of worshipping Shiva
Shakta	–			one who worships the various manifestations of Shakti in the form of Kali, Saraswati, Durga etc.
Shakti	–			primal energy; manifest consciousness
Shaktism	–			practice of worshiping Shakti as the supreme reality
Shambhavi	–			name for Parvati, consort of Shiva
Shambhavi mudra	–			eyebrow center gazing
Shambhu	–			name for Shiva
Shankhaprakshalana	–			cleaning the conch; shatkarma that uses saline water to clean the small and large intestines
Shankha mudra	–			conch Mudra
Shanmukhi mudra	–			closing the seven gates
Shat	–			six
Shatkarmas	–			group of six purificatory techniques of hatha yoga
Shaucha	–			cleanliness of the body
Sheetali pranayama	–			'cooling breath'; breathing principle technique where the breath is drawn in through the folded tongue
Sheetkan pranayama	–			'hissing breath'; practice of object drawing the breath in through clenched teeth
Shiva	–			pure consciousness
Shodhana	–			purification
Shoonya	–			nothingness; void
Shuddha	–			pure in nature
Shuddhata	–			virtue; purity
Shuddhi	–			to purify
Shukra/arthata	–			reproductive tissues in the body
Siddha	–			perfected being
Siddha yoni asana	–			female version of siddhasana
Siddhasana	–			accomplished pose
Siddhi	–			paranormal or supernormal accomplishment
Simhasana	–			lion pose
Smashan bhoomi	–			cremation ground
Smritti	–			memory; memory field
Soham	–			mantra of the breath; used in the practice of ajapa japa
Sthiti	–			condition
Sthoola	–			gross
Sukha poorvaka	–			'simple preliminary practice'
Sukhasana	–			easy pose
Sukshma	–			subtle dimension
Sumeru	–			mountain; tassle on mala
Surya	–			sun
Surya bheda	–			pranayama that pierces and purifies the pingala nadi
Surya mandala	–			image of the sun visualized at the eyebrow center
Surya namaskara	–			'salute to the sun'; series of 12 asanas for revitalizing prana
Surya tantra	–			path of realization through visualization and evocation of the vital energy within the sun
Surya vijnana	–			another name for surya tantra
Suryakasha	–			one of the five mental spaces of vyoma panchaka; luminous space of the sun or the soul
Sushumna	–			central nadi in the spine, which conducts the kundalini or spiritual force from mooladhara to sahasrara
Sutra	–			threads of thought which outline the ancient spiritual texts
Sutra neti	–			nasal cleansing using a catheter
Sva, Swa	–			one's own
Swadharma	–			acceptance of one's own duty in life
Swadhisthana chakra	–			'one's own abode'; second chakra associated with the sacral plexus
Swadhyaya	–			self study
Swami	–			master of the self
Swapna	–			dream state
Swara yoga	–			science of the breathing cycle
Swastikasana	–			auspicious pose

Tabla	–			Indian drums
Tadroop pratishta	–			knowledge of true identity; linking of name with form
Tamas	–			one of the three gunas; state of inertia or ignorance
Tamasic	–			pertaining to tamas
Tanmatra	–			nature, quality or essence of the five elements the sun visualized at
Tantra	–			ancient, universal science and culture which deals with the transcendence of human nature from the present level of evolution and understanding to transcendental level of knowledge, experience and awareness
Tapas	–			austerity; heat; process of burning impurities
Tarka	–			process of understanding through discussion and analysis
Tat	–			'that'
Tattwa	–			element
Tattwakasha	–			one of the five mental spaces of vyoma panchaka; elemental space of perfect stillness
Tattwamaasi	–			'Thou Art That'; vedic mantra
Teerthasthan	–			holy places of India
Tejas	–			luminosity; golden light or flame; the seer who observes the state of swapna
Tham, ksham	–			syllable or sound representing the sun or solar force
Trataka	–			to gaze steadily; dharana practice of gazing steadily at one point to focus the mind
Trayate	–			freed, liberated
Trimoorti dhyana	–			meditation on the three aspects of personality: sattwa, rajas and tamas
Turiya	–			fourth dimension of consciousness; super consciousness; simultaneous awareness of all three states of consciousness
Tyaga	–			renunciation or gradual dissociation of the mind from worldly objects and from the seed of desire

Udana	–			one of the five sub-pranas; energy located in the extremities of the body arms,legs and head
Uddiyana	–			'to raise up', 'to fly up'
Uddiyana Bandha	–			lock applied to the abdomen which causes the diaphragm to rise into the chest, thereby directing prana into sushumna
Ujjayi pranayama	–			psychic breathing performed by contracting the epiglottis, producing a light sonorous sound
Upa-pranas	–			five minor pranas responsible for such actions as sneezing, yawning, itching, belching and blinking
Upanishads	–			vedantic texts conveyed by ancient sages and seers containing their experiences and teachings on the ultimate reality
Upanshu	–			whispered sound
Upasana kanda	–			ritual of worship
Usha pan	–			drinking water through the nose; traditional form of cold water neti
Uttara Mimamsa	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian philosophy which deals with the knowledge of ritual in the form of questions
Utthita Lolasana	–			'swinging while standing pose'; a pre-pranayama exercise

Vacha	–			speech
Vairagya	–			non-attachment
Vaisheshika	–			a treatise on the subtle, causal and atomic principles in relation to the five elements
Vaishnava	–			one who worships Vishnu in the form of Rama, Krishna, Narayana etc.
Vaishnavism	–			sect of Vishnu
Vaishwa	–			manifest universe
Vaishwanara	–			seer who observes the manifest universe or the, external, waking consciousness
Vajrasana	–			thunderbolt pose
Vajroli Mudra	–			contraction and release of the urinary passage in the male body to stimulate swadhisthana chakra and promote brahmacharya
Vama dhauti	–			method of cleaning the stomach by voluntary vomiting; includes kunjal kriya and vyaghra Kriya
Vanaprastha ashrama	–			third stage of life from 50-75 years; retirement from worldly life in order to practise sadhana in relative seclusion
Vashishtasana	–			balancing asana invented by Sage Vashishta
Vastra dhauti	–			cleansing of the stomach and esophagus, using a cloth
Vata	–			wind, one of the three humors described in ayurveda
Vata nadi	–			nadi running along the back of the neck and head into the brain; controls gas formation and elimination
Vatsara dhauti	–			form of stomach cleansing performed by drinking air through the mouth and belching
Vayu	–			wind, prana
Vedanta	–			one of the six darshana or systems of Indian philosophy; 'the end of perceivable knowledge'; the mind experiencing its own limits and going beyond them; gaining realization and understanding of that exploration
Vedas	–			ancient spiritual texts of the Sanatan Dharma
Veerabhava	–			warrior personality
Veerasana	–			warrior pose (also known as the philosopher's pose or the thinker's pose)
Vichara	–			reflection
Vidya	–			knowledge
Vidyut mandala	–			visualization of lightning within the white light of prakash mandala
Vijnana	–			intuitive ability of mind; higher understanding
Vijnanamaya kosha	–			higher mental sheath or body
Vikalpa	–			fancy; unfounded belief; imagination
Vikshepa	–			dissipation
Vipareeta	–			inverted
Vipareeta karani mudra	–			inverted psychic attitude
Viparyaya	–			wrong knowledge
Vishaya	–			object
Vishnu granthi	–			psychic knot or block between manipura, anahata and vishuddhi chakras, symbolizing the bondage of personal and emotional attachment
Vishuddhi chakra	–			psychic center located at the level of the throat; center of purification
Vishwa	–			eternal
Vitara	–			reasoning
Viveka	–			right knowledge or understanding
Vrischikasana	–			scorpion pose
Vritti	–			circular movement of consciousness; mental and modifications described in raja yoga
Vyaghra kriya	–			cleansing the stomach by voluntary vomiting using warm saline water (performed on a full stomach)
Vyakta	–			manifest; seen
Vyakta prang	–			manifest life force
Vyana	–			one of the sub-pranas; reserve of pranic energy pervading the whole body
Vyoma	–			space
Vyoma Panchaka	–			the five subtle spaces

Yam	–			beeja mantra of anahata chakra
Yama	–			self-restraint, first step of ashtanga or raja yoga
Yantra	–			visual form of mantra used for concentration and meditation
Yoga angas	–			parts or aspects of yoga
Yoga mudra	–			psychic union pose
Yoga mudras	–			gestures, which help to channel the flow of prana in the body
Yoga nidra	–			technique of yogic or psychic sleep which induces deep relaxation
Yoga Sutras	–			ancient authorative text on raja yoga by Patanjali
Yoni	–			womb, source
Yoni mudra	–			attitude by which the primal energy inherent in the womb, or source of creation, is invoked