We’ve gathered up a whole slough of terms that are popping up in your
daily meditations.
If you come across anything we’ve missed, hop on over to the challenge
Facebook group and let us know. We want things to be crystal clear, just like your 7th chakra.
Anapana sati: Sanskrit term. Meaning to simply observe your natural breath coming in and out of your body, typically referenced in Buddhist forms of meditation.
Asana: Sanskrit word. Meaning “to sit”, but has since been adapted to refer to all yoga postures, meaning we take our seat in any form.
Chakras: Hindu/Yogic in origin and refers to energy points or “wheels” in the subtle body or energetic body. There are 7 chakras in the subtle human body.
Dharma: Sanskrit. To cultivate the knowledge and practice of laws and principles that hold together the fabric of reality, natural phenomena and personality of human beings in dynamic interdependence and harmony. Or, more simply put, the universal order of things (like, everything).
Dosha: Sanskrit. An Ayurevedic term referring to one of the 3 bodily humours that make up one’s constitution or overall character.
Drishti: Sanskrit. Meaning one’s point of focus or where your gaze rests in yoga or meditation.
Dhyana: Simply means meditation in sanskrit. If you like wordy descriptions - a series of cultivated states of mind, which lead to a "state of perfect equanimity and awareness”.
Mala: Sanskrit. Meaning “garland”; also a string of beads used to count mantra as a method of meditation.
Mantra: Sanskrit. Means “sacred utterance” of a word, sound, phrase or passage believed to have psychological and/or spiritual power. Often used as a tool for meditation.
Meditation: A practice where an individual trains the mind or induces a mode of consciousness, either to realize some benefit or for the mind to simply acknowledge its content without becoming identified with that content, or as an end in itself**.
Mindfulness: The intentional, accepting and non-judgmental focus of one's attention on the emotions, thoughts and sensations occurring in the present moment, which can be trained by meditational practices.
Mudra: Sanskrit. Means “seal” or “gesture”. Some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers and symbolize different qualities and energies.
Pranayama: Sanskrit.
Yogic breathing practice. Literal translation is to extend or draw out the breath or life force of the body.
Sanskrit: Sanskrit is the classical language of India and the liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. The name Sanskrit means "refined", "consecrated" and "sanctified".
Sukhasana: Sanskrit. In yoga, the word for “easy pose”, meaning to sit comfortably, usually on the floor cross-legged.
Ujayii: Sanskrit. Means “victorious”. A breathing technique used in pranayama and yoga asana practice where the breath is slightly audible due to a gentle constriction at the back of the throat/glottis while breathing.
Bhoga. (Go look that one up).
**Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation
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