Glossary of yantra, mantra and astrology terms

Terms, A to Z

Aarti

The waving of a lit lamp before the deity at the close of a puja, and the song sung while it is waved, which carries the same name. The texts of aartis, stotras and chalisas are gathered in the Knowledge Hub.

Amavasya

The new-moon tithi, when the Moon and the Sun stand together in the sky and the Moon is not seen. See the Amavasya dates.

Ayanamsa

The difference, in degrees, between the tropical zodiac of Western astrology and the sidereal zodiac of Vedic astrology. Rashis and nakshatras on this site use the Lahiri ayanamsa; how we compute explains why.

Bija mantra

A "seed" syllable, short and usually a single sound, held in tradition to carry the essence of a deity. Shreem (श्रीं) is the bija of Mahalaxmi; Aim (ऐं) is the bija of Saraswati. Each Bhagya Card's bija mantra is printed on the activation card that travels with it.

Bindu

The point at the centre of a yantra. In tradition it is the seat of the deity, the seed from which the whole diagram unfolds, and the place the eye returns to.

Chalisa

A devotional poem of forty verses in praise of a deity, such as the Hanuman Chalisa.

Choghadiya

A traditional division of the day, and of the night, into eight periods each. Every period has its own name, and by custom some are treated as favourable for beginning something and others as unfavourable. See today's choghadiya in Mumbai.

Dasha

A planetary period in Vedic astrology, during which one graha is held to colour the events of a life. The mahadasha is the major period; the antardasha is a sub-period within it.

Devghar

The Marathi word for the home shrine: the place where a family keeps its deities and does its daily puja, often a wooden devhara. Hindi-speaking homes call it the puja ghar.

Diya

A small lamp of clay or metal, burning ghee or oil, lit during puja. The third of the seven steps to begin a card starts with a small ghee lamp.

Dosha

In Vedic astrology, a combination in the birth chart that tradition reads as a difficulty, such as Mangal Dosha or Pitru Dosha. Tradition meets it with devotion, through an upaya, offered as practice and never as a promised result.

Gayatri

Devi Gayatri, the mother of the Vedic mantras: the Gayatri verse of the Rig Veda in the form of the Devi. In tradition she is honoured for wisdom, light and right discernment, and students keep her yantra on the study desk.

Graha

A planet, or a celestial influence, in Vedic astrology. The nine grahas together are the Navagraha.

Ishan

The northeast. In Vastu it is the corner held most auspicious in a home or a shop, where the puja ghar and sacred objects are traditionally placed.

Japa

The repetition of a mantra, usually counted on a mala of 108 beads.

Kundali

The birth chart of Vedic astrology, cast for the moment and the place of birth. In tradition it is read for the patterns of a life and the timing of its periods. See Birth date astrology: the kundali.

Mahalaxmi

Goddess Mahalaxmi, the consort of Vishnu, honoured in tradition as the Devi of prosperity, abundance and dignity. Families welcome her home on Diwali night. Her bija is Shreem (श्रीं).

Mala

A string of 108 beads for counting the repetitions of a mantra. One round of 108 is the traditional unit of japa. The large bead at its head, the sumeru, is never counted across.

Mantra

A sacred sound, syllable or verse, repeated in japa or recited in puja to hold the mind on the deity. The Gayatri mantra is among the most widely recited in the Vedic tradition.

Muhurat

A window of time held auspicious, in tradition, for beginning something. As a unit of time, a muhurta is 48 minutes: one thirtieth of a day and night.

Nakshatra

One of the 27 lunar mansions of Vedic astrology: equal segments of 13°20′ of the zodiac, each named after a star group. The Moon's nakshatra at birth is the janma nakshatra, and a child's name traditionally begins with its syllable. See all 27 nakshatras.

Navagraha

The nine grahas of Vedic astrology: Surya (the Sun), Chandra (the Moon), Mangal (Mars), Budh (Mercury), Guru (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Shani (Saturn), Rahu and Ketu. See the Navagraha and their yantras.

Panchang

The Hindu almanac. For each day it lists five limbs (panch-anga): tithi, vara (the weekday), nakshatra, yoga and karana. The panchang on this site is our own, worked out for each city. See today's panchang.

Pran Pratishtha

Literally "establishing the breath": the rite by which, in temple and household tradition, a murti or a yantra is invoked and installed for worship. In tradition, from then on the image is treated as the deity's own seat.

Puja

The act of worship: offering light, flowers and water to a deity with mantras, at home in the puja ghar or at a temple. Every Bhagya Card is consecrated with Vedic puja in Pune before it is dispatched.

Puja ghar

The home shrine: the room, corner or cabinet where a family keeps its deities and does its daily puja. Marathi homes call it the devghar, and many say the home mandir. A Bhagya Card can be kept here, or carried in a wallet.

Purnima

The full-moon tithi. See the Purnima dates.

Rahu kaal

A period of about ninety minutes that recurs every day, at a different time on each weekday. By custom it is left aside for beginning something new, while work already under way carries on. See today's rahu kaal in Mumbai.

Rashi

One of the 12 signs of the Vedic (sidereal) zodiac, each 30° wide, from Mesha (Aries) to Meena (Pisces). In India a person's rashi usually means the sign the Moon was in at birth. See yantras by rashi.

Rudraksha

The seed of the rudraksha tree (Elaeocarpus ganitrus), associated with Lord Shiva and strung into malas for counting a mantra. See yantra and rudraksha compared.

Sankalpa

Your intention, said in one sentence before a practice begins: specific, in the present tense, and only one. In tradition, the sankalpa is what turns an act into a practice.

Sri Yantra

Called in tradition the mother of all yantras: nine interlaced triangles that form 43 smaller triangles around a central bindu. It is the yantra of the Devi as the source of creation.

Stotra

A hymn of praise to a deity, such as the Kanakadhara Stotra or the Ram Raksha Stotra.

Tithi

A lunar day: the time the Moon takes to gain 12° on the Sun. A lunar month has 30 tithis, 15 in the waxing half (shukla paksha) and 15 in the waning half (krishna paksha). Family birthdays and shraddhas are often kept by tithi, so their date moves from year to year.

Upaya

In Vedic astrology, a practice of devotion that tradition suggests for a graha that is weak or troubled in a chart: its mantra, a gift in charity, a fast on its day, or its yantra. An upaya is offered as devotion, never as a promised result.

Yantra

A sacred diagram of triangles, circles and lotus petals around a single point, kept as a focus for meditation, mantra and devotional practice. In tradition each yantra is the form of one deity drawn in geometry, and is kept with that deity's mantra. See how to begin your yantra.