PrakṛtiPrakriti (प्रकृति ) is "the original or natural form or condition of anything, original or primary substance". It is a key concept in Hinduism, formulated by its Sāṅkhya school, where it does not refer to matter or nature, but "includes all the cognitive, moral, psychological, emotional, sensorial and physical aspects of reality", stressing "Prakṛti's cognitive, mental, psychological and sensorial activities". Prakriti has three different innate qualities (guṇas), whose equilibrium is the basis of all observed empirical reality.
Nimbarka SampradayaThe Nimbarka Sampradaya (IAST: Nimbārka Sampradāya, Sanskrit निम्बार्क सम्प्रदाय), also known as the Kumāra Sampradāya, Hamsa Sampradāya, and Sanakādi Sampradāya (सनकादि सम्प्रदाय), is one of the four Sampradāyas. It was founded by Nimbarka, a Telugu Brahmin yogi and philosopher. It propounds the Vaishnava Bhedabheda theology of Dvaitadvaita (dvaita-advaita) or dualistic non-dualism. Dvaitadvaita states that humans are both different and non-different from Isvara, God or Supreme Being.
VenkateswaraVenkateswara (alternatively spelt as Venkateshvara) is a form of the Hindu god Vishnu and is the presiding deity of the Venkateswara Temple, located in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India. Venkateswara is also known by various other names. Venkateswara literally means, "Lord of Venkata". The word is a combination of the words Venkata (the name of a hill in Andhra Pradesh) and iswara ("Lord"). According to the Brahmanda and Bhavishyottara Puranas, the word "Venkata" means "destroyer of sins", deriving from the Sanskrit words vem (sins) and kata (power of immunity).
Karma yogaKarma yoga (कर्म योग), also called Karma marga, is one of the four classical spiritual paths in Hinduism, one based on the "yoga of action", the others being Jnana yoga (path of knowledge), Rāja yoga (path of meditation) and Bhakti yoga (path of loving devotion to a personal god). To a karma yogi, right action is a form of prayer. The three paths are not mutually exclusive in Hinduism, but the relative emphasis between Karma yoga, Jnana yoga and Bhakti yoga varies by the individual.
NammalvarNammalvar (Tamil: நம்மாழ்வார், lit. 'Our Alvar') was one of the twelve Alvar saints of Tamil Nadu, India, who are known for their affiliation to the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. The verses of the Alvars are compiled as the Naalayira Divya Prabandham, where praises are sung of 108 temples that are classified as divine realms, called the Divya Desams. Nammalvar is considered to be the fifth in the line of the twelve Alvars. He is highly regarded as a great mystic of the Vaishnava tradition.
PrasthanatrayiPrasthanatrayi (प्रस्थानत्रयी, IAST: ), literally, three sources (or axioms), refers to the three canonical texts of theology having epistemic authority, especially of the Vedanta schools. It consists of: The Upanishads, known as (injunctive texts), and the (the starting point or axiom of revelation), especially the Principal Upanishads.
YamunacharyaYamunacharya (IAST: Yamunāchārya), also known as Alavandar and Yamunaithuraivan, was a Vishistadvaita philosopher based in Srirangam, Tamil Nadu, India. He is best-known for being a preceptor of Ramanuja, one of the leaders of the Sri Vaishnava tradition. He was born in the early 10th century CE, and was the grandson of Nathamuni, a famed yogi, who collected the works of the Tamil Alvars. Yamunacharya grew up learning Vedic texts from Rama Misra, and was skilled in the concept of mimamsa.
TattvaAccording to various Indian schools of philosophy, tattvas (तत्त्व) are the elements or aspects of reality that constitute human experience. In some traditions, they are conceived as an aspect of deity. Although the number of tattvas varies depending on the philosophical school, together they are thought to form the basis of all our experience. The Samkhya philosophy uses a system of 25 tattvas, while Shaivism recognises 36 tattvas. In Buddhism, the equivalent is the list of dhammas which constitute reality, as in Nama-rupa.
Videha muktiVideha mukti (विदेहमुक्ति meaning "liberation after death or literally liberation from the body") refers to the moksha (liberation from the death and rebirth cycle) after death. It is a concept found in Hinduism and Jainism in relation to ending the samsara (the cycle of death and rebirth). The concept contrasts with Jivanmukti, which refers to achieving "liberation while alive". The concepts of Jivanmukta and Videhamukta are particularly discussed in Vedanta and Yoga schools of Hindu philosophy.
VedarthasamgrahaThe Vedarthasamgraha (वेदार्थसंग्रह), also rendered Vedarthasangraha, is a treatise by the Hindu philosopher Ramanuja, comprising his exegesis of a number of Upanishadic texts. The first of his three major works, Ramanuja propounds the doctrine of the Vishishtadvaita philosophy in this work and offers a discourse on the concepts of Brahman, bhakti, and moksha in Vedanta philosophy. Vedarthasamgraha literally means "summary of the meaning of the Veda" in Sanskrit.
