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Vidyā
Vidyā (Skt.) or vijja (Pāli). ‘Knowledge’, the total and integral knowledge which precedes and comes after the incomplete non-knowledge (avidyā) or ignorance which binds people to the wheel of transmigration (saṃsāra). Vidyā penetrates māyā and thus enables us to apprehend all things (however apparently different) as they really are. In Hinduism, it is of two types: (i) apara-vidyā, lower knowledge, acquired through intellect; (ii) para-vidyā, higher, spiritual knowledge, leading to enlightenment and liberation (mokṣa).
Vidyā is defined more precisely than jñāna, which also means knowledge. There were originally four branches of vidyā: trayī-vidyā, knowledge of the triple Veda; ānvīkṣikī, metaphysics and logic; daṇḍa-nīti, the art of government; and vārttā, or agriculture, trade, and medicine. A fifth, ātma-vidyā, the knowledge of the ātman, was added later. |
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JOHN BOWKER. "Vidyā." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Vidyā." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Vidy.html JOHN BOWKER. "Vidyā." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Vidy.html |
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vidyā
vidyā (Skt.).
1. General term for ‘knowledge’ in an everyday sense. 2. Science or art, in the technical sense of applied skills or crafts, and in particular the occult arts. 3. In tantric Buddhism, the term connotes any manifestation of enlightenment (bodhi) in the form of spells (mantras) and gestures (mudrās), as well as various embodiments of its qualities, usually in female form. |
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DAMIEN KEOWN. "vidyā." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAMIEN KEOWN. "vidyā." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-vidy.html DAMIEN KEOWN. "vidyā." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-vidy.html |
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Vidya
VidyaIn Theosophy, the knowledge by which man on the Path of Life can discern the true from the false and so direct his efforts correctly by means of the mental faculties which he has learned to use. It is the antithesis of avidya (ignorance). Both terms are borrowed from Hindu religious philosophy. |
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Cite this article
"Vidya." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Vidya." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403804738.html "Vidya." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403804738.html |
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