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karma
karma or karman , [Skt.,=action, work, or ritual], basic concept common to Hinduism , Buddhism , and Jainism . The doctrine of karma states that one's state in this life is a result of actions (both physical and mental) in past incarnations, and action in this life can determine one's destiny...
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nirvana
nirvana , in Buddhism , Jainism , and Hinduism , a state of supreme liberation and bliss, contrasted to samsara or bondage in the repeating cycle of death and rebirth. The word in Sanskrit refers to the going out of a flame once its fuel has been consumed; it thus suggests both the end of suffe...
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transmigration of souls
transmigration of souls or metempsychosis [Gr.,=change of soul], a belief common to many cultures, in which the soul passes from one body to another, either human, animal, or inanimate. The Australian aborigines believe that an infant is a reincarnation of deceased ancestors and that the soul i...
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Bhagavad-Gita
Bhagavad-Gita [Skt.,=song of the Lord], Sanskrit poem incorporated into the Mahabharata , one of the greatest religious classics of Hinduism. The Gita (as it is often called) consists of a dialogue between Lord Krishna and Prince Arjuna on the eve of the great battle of Kurukshetra. Arjuna is ov...
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Jainism
Jainism [i.e., the religion of Jina], religious system of India practiced by about 5,000,000 persons. Jainism, Ajivika , and Buddhism arose in the 6th cent. BC as protests against the overdeveloped ritualism of Hinduism , particularly its sacrificial cults, and the authority of the Veda. Jaina ...
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yoga
yoga [Skt.,=union], general term for spiritual disciplines in Hinduism , Buddhism , and throughout S Asia that are directed toward attaining higher consciousness and liberation from ignorance, suffering, and rebirth. More specifically it is also the name of one of the six orthodox systems of Hin...
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Hinduism
Hinduism , Western term for the religious beliefs and practices of the vast majority of the people of India. One of the oldest living religions in the world, Hinduism is unique among the world religions in that it had no single founder but grew over a period of 4,000 years in syncretism with the rel...
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Buddhism
Buddhism , religion and philosophy founded in India c.525 BC by Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha . There are over 300 million Buddhists worldwide. One of the great world religions, it is divided into two main schools: the Theravada or Hinayana in Sri Lanka and SE Asia, and the Mahayana in Chin...
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