The terms identified in this glossary are terms used commonly in the Agni Yoga teachings. Since many of the terms come from a wide variety of traditions, I have tried to indicate where the term comes from, what its meaning or meanings are in that tradition (and sometimes other teachings as well), and if necessary, to clarify how it is used in Agni Yoga. Writing this glossary was motivated both by the desire to provide a tool for clarifying the meaning of terms used, but also to provide another form of study for those wishing greater insight into the philosophy and psychology of Agni Yoga. When used for study, a pattern of understanding can be developed through taking up a theme represented, at least in part, by a particular heading and then continuing to explore this theme through following the related terms (and ideas) identified in the ‘See also’ section for that term.
In this glossary there are a number of Sanskrit terms that are used often in the Agni Yoga teachings as well as in the Hindu, Buddhist and other traditions. Only those terms that are used fairly often have been defined here. For a more extensive listing of Sanskrit terms, see The Shambhala Encyclopedia of Yoga by Georg Feuerstein (with over 2000 entries), and for Buddhist terms see The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen (with over 1500 entries). We are indebted to both (among other sources) in developing this glossary, and they are highly recommended.
I have decided not to include very many references to spiritual traditions or specific individuals, primarily because of the time this would take. The few that have been included represent some that are referred to often or have been particularly influential in the development of Agni Yoga, though there are many others that have not been included at this point, especially non-physical sources. Additional entries could also be added if we were to include even the most general suggestion of the world’s major spiritual and religious traditions, and some of their most significant luminaries. A small number of such entries are included, leaving the task of a larger selection to a separate project.

Absolute – A term often used to refer to the transcendent Reality or God. Often used in contrast to the term Relativity, the later referring to the realms of duality including both the realms of form and manifestation, and the spiritual worlds of soul, universality and the unmanifest that, although deeply suffused with unity, are still to varying degrees tainted by duality. The Absolute is used in Agni Yoga to refer to the nondual reality, which not only transcends the phenomenal, dualistic universe, but is also the very essence of Relativity or the dualistic universe. In Agni Yoga, the Absolute is synonymous with nirvana, (Nirguna) Brahman, Impersonal God, the Transcendent or Universal Self, emptiness (sunyata), the Tao, Buddha-nature, the nondual reality and the primordial reality. See also Nirvana, Emptiness, Relativity, Brahman, Buddha-nature, God, Self, True-nature, Maya, Samsara.

Absolute Wisdom – The fundamental insight or realization into the nature of the Absolute and the truth that the apparent, relative universe is none other than a manifestation or ‘appearance’ of the Absolute. This realization is intuitive and leads to a profound liberation from identification with Relativity or attachment to samsara, giving freedom from suffering and limitation. Absolute wisdom is the essential insight into the identification of the individual (and all relative phenomena) with the Absolute. See also Absolute, Relative Wisdom, Rigpa, Samadhi, Self-Realization, Awakening.

Adi-Buddha – This term is used in certain schools of Buddhism to refer to the universal enlightened Presence within the universe. Adi means ‘one’ or ‘first’ and so indicates here the primordial or ‘original’ Buddha, the cosmic archetypal teacher or guru. Like Patanjali’s definition of the term Ishvara as a universal Deity in the ‘Yoga Sutras’, the Adi-Buddha is not a Creator Deity who is responsible for the existence of the relative universe, so much as the archetypal, universal teacher and savior. This term is used in Agni Yoga with the same meaning and is synonymous with our understanding of the Christ Logos or Universal Christ. See also Christ Logos, God and Ishvara.

Advaita Vedanta – A Hindu philosophy meaning ‘nondual end of the Vedas’. Usually used to refer to the philosophical tradition most significantly espoused by Shankara, Advaita Vedanta teaches the radical nondual view that there is ultimately no distinction between the Absolute and Relativity (the relative universes), and that even the ‘Creator’ is a dualistic, relative reality (although a very lofty one). The path to God-consciousness in Advaita Vedanta is typically jnana yoga or the path of wisdom, and the goal is sahaja samadhi or jivanmukti, liberated enlightenment while living in the world. One of the greatest modern examples of the Advaita sage is Ramana Maharshi. See also Absolute, Relativity, Nondualism, Jnana Yoga, Shankara, Ramana Maharshi, Maya.

Agni – A Sanskrit term meaning ‘fire’. The spiritual fire of awakening within all life, active as both a universal principle of love and wisdom, and as a personal Presence – the Christ Spirit. The word Agni first appears in the Rig Veda, the oldest known scripture of humanity, where it is used to name the Fire of the spiritual sacrifice, the Deity of transformation. Agni is said in the Vedas to issue seven tongues of flame – that is, to be the source of the seven rays or elements that are the foundational essences of relative existence. Agni is the primordial fire of spiritual evolution, expressing both the power of transformation and awakening, as well as the essence of enlightenment itself. See also Rig Veda, Vedas, Agni Yoga, Presence, Christ Logos, Adi-Buddha, Seven Rays, Elements.

Agni Yoga – Agni Yoga, as we use the term, is an integral path sharing much in common with other more comprehensive approaches such as Taoism, Hindu Tantra and Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga. The current form of Agni Yoga is similar to Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga in including an emphasis on world engagement and working more from the soul aspect than with complex technical processes – although these are not entirely excluded and may be made more available within the context of Agni Yoga in time. Agni Yoga includes aspects of karma, bhakti, jnana, raja, ati and tantra yogas – giving it much in common with such paths as Tibetan Buddhism and Integral Yoga. Some elements that are more unique to Agni Yoga include a distinctive understanding of many tantric principles, a more comprehensive science of the seven elements/rays, a wider synthesis of techniques from Hindu, Buddhist and others sources, and a unique science of planetary consciousness and evolution. Agni Yoga, then, is a comprehensive and modern path, that, although having a Sanskrit name, is really a planetary path expressing a growing integration of elements from many traditions. Perhaps one of the most succinct and descriptive terms we may use for Agni Yoga is that it is a path of ‘planetary integral tantra’. Agni Yoga can also be understood as an expression of the work of the ‘Trans-Himalayan School’ or tradition. See also Agni, Yoga, Integral Path, Trans-Himalayan School.

Ajata-vada – Sanskrit: ajata – ‘non-causality’; vada – ‘theory’. A theory from the teachings of Advaita Vedanta concerning the question of how the universe came into being. Ajata-vada, or the ‘theory of non-causality’ suggests that, from a nondual ‘point of view’, the concept of causality, or the cause or creation of the universe by a being or principle, is not a meaningful perspective because of its inherent dualism. The nondual ‘view’ does not recognize an ultimate distinction between past, present and future, or between a cause and a result. Hence, the appearance of the relative universe cannot, from a nondual or Absolute perspective, be considered to be ‘intended’, ‘created’ or ‘caused’ by any transcendent source. This perspective likewise sets aside questions about the nature of that cause (since it does not recognize such a notion), such as how did the universe begin, why did it arise and where it is going. These questions are considered as not having meaning from a nondual perspective. This perspective also sets to rest any questions about the origins and purpose of suffering and evil, as well as who or what is to blame for them. Perhaps one way to attempt to express the nature of the universe from a nondual ‘perspective’ is that it ‘simply is’.
Concepts or stories of ‘creation’ can have limited meaning from a relative point of view, but have no meaning from an Absolute perspective. Ajata-vada is considered by some to be the most difficult perspective to understand on ‘creation’ or the cause of the universe. See also Divine Will, Nondual, God, Advaita Vedanta, Absolute, Relativity.

Akasha – Sanskrit: ‘radiance’. Often translated as ‘space’ or ‘ether’. The term akasha has been used in a number of ways in the Hindu tradition, but is very often defined as the fifth element, subtler than earth, water, fire and air. It is generally considered the ‘root’ or primordial element that is the ‘space’ or foundation for the other elements. Forms or objects must manifest in space, and this space is considered to be an actual substance. It is the unmanifest source and context for the more concrete levels of the universe. Within the context of the physical world, the akasha corresponds to the etheric levels that form the molding pattern for the more concrete level of our physical body and universe at large. On a deeper level, the akasha corresponds to the formless levels beyond the physical universe and the psychological realms, the realms of form. This is the level of our ‘causal body’, where karmic seeds are stored, and from which they sprout during each incarnation. So although this ‘space’ of akasha is formless or unmanifest, it is rich with the seeds or potentials of manifestation, and therefore has a kind of substance to it. The phrase ‘reading the akashic records’, therefore, can be understood as gaining the ability to see into the individual or collective memory or store of karmic impressions and reviewing the past or envisioning the future workings out of karma. See also Elements, Formless, Karma, Etheric Body.

Amrita Nadi – In traditional Hindu tantric teachings on the energy body, the sushumna nadi is understood as the central nadi that runs along the spine from the root chakra to the crown of the head, terminating in the crown chakra. The amrita nadi, as described by Ramana Maharshi, is a subtle channel that continues the sushumna nadi from the crown and arcing downwards to the heart. In Agni Yoga, this nadi is understood as bringing the flow of kundalini from the crown center, which it reaches on the path of ascent (which culminates at the third initiation and leads to absorption in nirvikalpa samadhi – internal nondual realization), back to the heart culminating in the fourth initiation – sahaja samadhi or rigpa, the integration of nondual realization into ordinary life. The Buddha termed this state ‘nirvana-with-elements’ (meaning liberation while maintaining awareness of the phenomenal universe) and also the Arhat stage of enlightenment. Many systems view the 3rd initiation, or the bringing of kundalini to the crown center, as final liberation. The amrita nadi is the etheric channel involved in the process of passing beyond the third stage into higher levels of awakening, when viewed from an energetic angle. It is also related to the path of bodhisattvahood which, following the path of the heart, leads to stages beyond personal liberation. See also Nadi(s), Chakras, Kundalini, Sushumna Nadi, Initiation.

Anitya – Sanskrit term used commonly in Buddhism meaning ‘impermanence’ or ‘transitory’. Anicca in Pali. See Impermanence

Anatman – Sanskrit term used commonly in Buddhism meaning ‘no-self’ or ‘nonself’. Anatta in Pali. See No-self.

Anu – Sanskrit word meaning ‘atom’. Term used in Kashmiri Shaivism (a school of North Indian Tantra) that means the aspect of the individualized self, the seed ‘atom’, that records karmic impressions (called anava-mala in Sanskrit). Virtually identical to term ‘permanent atom’ used in some Western teachings. See also Permanent Atom.

Archangel – A Greek term meaning ‘chief messenger’. We use the term Archangel to refer to the various orders of super-intelligences that work in support of the spiritual evolution of individuals, groups, kingdoms, planets and other orders of life. One of the most important orders of Archangels for humanity to understand and cooperate with is the Archangels of the elements. These are seven orders of Archangels who ensoul the four elements of form (earth, water, air and fire) and the three etheric or ‘mind’ elements. Archangels express both the Nature or the Shakti aspect of creation and the Logoic or Shiva aspect. They create, sustain and dissolve the various bodies of humanity and the nature kingdoms, creating the elemental lives that are the nature spirits, and also work with the development of the soul or consciousness aspect of all forms of life. Archangels are also called Dhyani-Buddhas or ‘Buddha Families’ in some forms of Buddhism, and Devas and Devis (the masculine and feminine forms) in Hinduism. See also Holy Spirit, Deva(s), Elements, Hierarchy.

Archetype – In Agni Yoga the term archetype is used in its more spiritual significance, rather than in the Jungian sense in which it carries more personal, although collective, meaning. Spiritual archetypes are the patterns behind manifest forms – the universal molds that give shape and soul to the outer forms of things and beings. These archetypes are related to the notion of Platonic Ideas, Universal Principles and similar ordering realities. See also Principle, Essence, Laws, Ideas.

Arhat – A term used by the Buddha for the fourth of four stages of personal enlightenment (or the arya-marga, the ‘noble or holy path’). The first stage he called ‘stream-entry’ (meaning entering the stream to nirvana), the second stage he called the ‘once-returner’ (because it would, on the Buddhist path, usually take no more than one further incarnation to become an arhat), the third he called a ‘non-returner’ (because all physical karma was now exhausted and so further development would not require returning to physical incarnation). The fourth stage, the arhat, was considered the final stage in Buddha’s description of the path of individual liberation, but higher stages on the path of bodhisattvahood would lead to Buddhahood, which in Agni Yoga we understand to be the 8th stage of enlightenment. Stages beyond the arhat do not lead to any greater degree of personal liberation, but do expand one’s relative wisdom and the capacity to manifest absolute or nondual enlightenment in the relative universe.
The term arhat comes from the same root as the term Aryan, a Sanskrit term meaning ‘noble’. Arhats were considered the ‘noble ones’, as the Buddha described the arhat as free of egoism and hence pure in motive. If the stage of arhatship is fully integrated with the physical world, the individual is in the state known in Vedanta as sahaja samadhi, or in Dzogchen as rigpa. See also Rigpa, Sahaja Samadhi, Initiation, Bodhicitta, Bodhisattva, Buddha.

Astral Body – Also called the emotional body, this is the next more subtle body than the physical. It is the body through which we feel ordinary sentiments, emotions and desires. Awareness of some of the experiences of the astral body are registered primarily through the solar plexus chakra (for primitive and ordinary emotions and desires), and the heart chakra for more elevated feelings. Although the astral body has the same basic shape as the physical, it is made of a higher spectrum of vibrations and can be extended and shaped in different ways through intention (using such methods as visualization, sound and feeling). The astral body, like the physical, has various senses that can be used to experience the astral plane (astral environments, landscapes, etc.) and astral forms including desires and emotions. When the physical self uses these astral senses, we call them psychic abilities such as astral clairvoyance, clairaudience, etc. The astral body also has active capacities and can be extended or projected beyond the physical form. This gives rise to various forms of ‘astral projection’ or out-of-body experiences, and other forms of astral activity. The astral body has an etheric aspect, just as does the physical body, which has astral chakras, nadis and so on. The various bodies are joined by their etheric counterparts. All physical forms have an astral body or counterpart. This body is sometimes called the subtle body or the psychic body. See also Astral Plane, Body(s), Planes of Consciousness, Etheric Body.

Astral Plane – A dimension or realm of consciousness of the next octave of energy beyond the physical world. This realm of energy is not directly perceivable by ordinary senses, or by the instruments of modern science. It is formed by modes of perception that emphasize the water element. Although water is the dominant element of the astral plane, all seven elements are reflected in the each plane, creating seven major subdivisions or subplanes of the astral world. People leave their physical consciousness and function, usually unconsciously, each night on the astral plane in sleep, though during normal sleep the environment is formed by the subconscious content of one’s own psyche rather than the astral plane at large, much of which is formed by the archangels, just as with the physical universe. See also Planes of Consciousness, Body(s), Astral Body, Elements.

Ati Yoga – This is a term from the Tibetan Buddhist/Dzogchen tradition indicating a form of practice that becomes available at more advanced stages and emphasizes direct nondual contemplation. This path is similar to what might be called samadhi yoga in the Hindu tradition (though it emphasizes ‘external’ samadhi rather than the common emphasis on ‘internal’ samadhi in most Hindu forms of yoga), and refers to that stage of the path that begins with the ability to approach or enter deep states of nondual realization or spiritual presence. As such, it is a culminating path that is usually combined with other yogas that are preparatory to it. See also Dzogchen, Rigpa, Samadhi, Yoga.

Atman – A Sanskrit word meaning ‘Self’. Refers to the liberated spiritual Self, resting in a state of nondual realization. In Vedanta, the Atman is considered to be the innermost being or essence that is unrealized or obscured in most people because they confuse themselves with their bodies or personality. In Agni Yoga, we identify these bodies or coverings as primarily of four types, each subtler than the last – physical, astral or emotional, mental and intuitive. The Atman is the true Self residing beyond, and yet animating and illuminating, the four bodies or levels of experience. Although the Atman is part of the relative universe (we view the Atman as the ‘residing’ on the 3rd plane counting from ‘above’ – see Planes of Consciousness), the Atman is a level of nondual illuminated identity. This means that the essence of the Atman’s sense of identity is the realization that it and all beings are the Absolute. See also Rigpa, Body(s), Planes of Consciousness, Presence.

Atteshlis, Stylianos – See Daskalos.

Attunement – To develop an intuitive rapport with. To sense a person, being, idea, feeling, energy or other reality in a direct, soulful manner. Related to what in Sanskrit is called dhyana, which is often translated as ‘meditation’, attunement is a depth of relationship that goes beyond preliminary concentration into a state of intuitive communion that reveals insight or understanding beyond sensory or conceptual knowledge. Attunement is a degree of entering into a state of inner resonance with, a knowing through ‘co-vibrating’ with the other. Attunement is developed through various stages culminating in complete union or ‘at-one-ment’, wherein one knows a being or reality by fully merging with them or it. This later form of understanding has been called in Sanskrit prajna (intuitive wisdom) or samadhi. Attunement is a bridge to samadhi, which partakes of a greater degree of direct communion and merging, while being less complete than samadhi. See also Samadhi, Meditation, Dhyana, Intuition.

Aurobindo, Sri – (1872-1950), Hindu mystic and twentieth century India’s most famous philosopher. Originally a political activist, Aurobindo experienced a spiritual conversion while imprisoned for political agitation, leading to his renunciation of politics upon release and dedicated the rest of his life to yoga. Sri Aurobindo eventually formed a spiritual partnership with a French woman named Mira Richard who later became known as ‘the Mother’, and who continued their work after his passing. Aurobindo considered the Mother as an incarnation of Shakti or the Goddess. Aurobindo was a prolific writer, some of his most important works being The Life Divine and The Synthesis of Yoga. He also wrote a profound work about Agni based on passages from the Rig Veda called Hymns to the Mystic Fire. Aurobindo and the Mother taught and embodied a modern path of integrated spirituality called Purna or Integral Yoga, which sought to fuse the process of transcendence with the path of manifestation and service. Aurobindo’s philosophy combined traditional yogic ideals with the modern notion of evolution and the vision of integrating one’s individual spiritual path with the planet’s evolutionary development – what he sometimes called ‘planetary yoga’. Aurobindo saw Agni or spiritual Fire as the transformational power of this yoga. Aurobindo and the Mother also believed that in our time period a new level of human and planetary evolution was emerging, marked by what he termed ‘the descent of supermind’, or the birth of buddhic or Christ-consciousness at a new level within the consciousness of the Earth. See also Purna Yoga, Integral Path, Mother, Agni, Agni Yoga, Planes of Consciousness.

Awakening – Spiritual awakening can take many forms. Core spiritual awakening involves the direct perception of the true nature of oneself and all beings and things. It is an awakening to the underlying nondual or transcendent essence of the universe. Although this realization usually emerges gradually, there can be moments along the way in which one experiences acute illuminations or openings to God, Buddha-nature or the Tao. In Zen these are called experiences of kensho or satori, and have also been termed mystical experiences, cosmic consciousness and so on. The first experience for a soul in its long cycle of incarnations of profound Satori or Awakening was called by the Buddha ‘entering the stream’, or what we often call the first initiation, which establishes a soul firmly in the spiritual life, or the ‘stream’ to Nirvana. The realization of this primordial reality will mature, eventually, into a persistent awareness that permeates one’s entire life. In Vedanta this state of persistent illumination or awakening is called sahaja samadhi – effortless and persistent God-consciousness, even during daily activity, which brings one to full Self-realization or liberation.
These deeper forms of realization are often called ‘awakenings’ because, whether sudden or gradual, their emergence frequently feels like a revelation, the uncovering of a forgotten truth. In the context of awakening, the previous state of understanding and being seems like a dream in which one was not really aware of the true nature of life and oneself.
There are also more incremental dimensions of spiritual awakening that take the form of various stages, and forms of, coming to deeper spiritual perspectives and values. We can awaken to the beauty of love and kindness, the value of detachment and self-control, and the importance of living in the present moment rather than constantly distracted by thoughts of the past and future. These are all important forms of awakening also, and their cultivation gradually leads to the ‘great awakening’. See also Sahaja Samadhi, Initiation, Stream-Enterer, Samadhi.

Awareness Practice – The various forms of spiritual practice can be generally categorized according to the primary quality that is emphasized. A given practice may emphasize either devotion, concentration, inquiry, love, surrender or other qualities. Those forms of practice that make awareness or mindfulness the foremost quality we term ‘awareness practices’. Buddhism is the tradition that most stresses awareness practices, although other forms of practice are also widely used. Examples of awareness practice include vipassana, zazen (including shikan-taza), and the core practices of Dzogchen. Although all these practice emphasize awareness, other qualities such as concentration, effort and equanimity are cultivated as well to support the development of awareness. See also Shikan-taza, Zazen, Vipassana, Seven Factors of Enlightenment.
Babaji – Name of an anonymous or ‘hidden’ Himalayan master the existence of whom was first revealed to the general public in Paramahamsa Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yoga (1946). Babaji is believed by some to have been born in 203 AD and having achieved soruba samadhi or ‘immortality’ at the age of sixteen, and continues to appear in that form to this day. He is said by some to have been initiated by the great Siddhas (perfected masters) Boganathar and Agastyar. He is a member of the Trans-Himalayan School (although he appears to have been trained in the closely related South Indian Siddha Tradition), with the dharma of embodying the essence of Hinduism. He has said that he initiated Shankara and Kabir (among others), working for centuries behind the scenes, sending masters into the world to sustain and reform the world’s spiritual traditions. In the 19th century he gave the teachings of kriya yoga to his disciple Lahiri Mahasaya, who transmitted this ancient form of tantric practice to numerous disciples, including Sri Yukteswar, master of the famous Paramahansa Yogananda. It was Babaji’s plan to spread kriya yoga to the West through Yogananda, who came to the United States in 1920 and taught there for three decades, initiating tens of thousands. Babaji continues to maintain an ashram or cite of training in the Himalayan mountains, and working through various disciples in both the East and West. The famous Bulgarian initiate Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov met Babaji in India in 1959, and other modern students testify to his continued physical existence. Yogananda also described Babaji’s spiritual ‘sister’, Mataji, in his autobiography. See also Siddha Tradition, Trans-Himalayan School, Mataji, Yogananda, Shankara, Kriya Yoga, Tantric Yoga, Samadhi.

Bailey, A. A. – (1882-1949) English born esoteric teacher and author, Alice Bailey first embraced Theosophy in her thirties and later worked independently. Bailey was a prolific writer, working under the inspiration of a Tibetan Buddhist master (called variously ‘the Tibetan’, ‘Djwal Khul’ or ‘DK’) who lived in Tibet and with whom she sustained a telepathic relationship for thirty years during which time they wrote eighteen books together (‘the Tibetan’ telepathically inspiring Bailey). Bailey also formed the Arcane School for the education of modern spiritual disciples that combined Eastern and Western teachings in an integral path of spiritual development emphasizing study, meditation and service.
Bailey was also a disciple of an Indian master (not to be confused with ‘the Tibetan’ with whom she wrote most of her books) known as Kuthumi – a name taken from an ancient Vedic sage. Kuthumi (also known as KH) was born a Sikh in India but lived much of the time in Tibet and was an advanced member of the Trans-Himalayan School. The Tibetan master with whom she wrote most of her books was himself also the most advanced disciple of Kuthumi. Bailey met the sage Kuthumi at the age of fifteen when he visited her in his physical form in Scotland. Although a Sikh by birth, Kuthumi was profoundly learned in Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, Christian and other traditions, and is considered by many to be one of our planets most dedicated and advanced bodhisattvas (he is believed by some, for instance, to have been the Buddhist sage Nagarjuna and also Pythagoras). Bailey maintained a conscious ‘interior’ relationship with her guru Kuthumi from her thirties onward. Her writings and ideas have had a profound influence on the development of modern Western spirituality and the ‘New Age’ movement, her influence remaining largely unrecognized today. The Arcane School exists to this day, and has trained many tens of thousands of students. See also Trans-Himalayan School, Blavatsky, Theosophy.

Bhakti Yoga – The path of devotion, love, surrender, faith and grace. This is a practice emphasizing the heart (though having a deep relationship to the sacral and often the throat centers), and cultivating a relationship of devotion and surrender towards a guru or Deity. This is the essence of Christianity, Islam and many others faiths, and plays a central role in such traditions as Sikhism, Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism. Bhakti and karma yogas are the most common forms of spirituality. See also Yoga, Deity Yoga, Tantric Yoga, Grace, Guru Yoga, Lineage Yoga.

Blavatsky, H. P. – (1831-1891) Born in Russia, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky was the founder of the Theosophical Society in 1875, and a charismatic figure in 19th century Indian, European and American culture. She met her spiritual master Morya at the age of twenty in England and began a long period of training under his guidance that culminated in spending two and a half years in his Tibetan ashram near Shigatse around 1870. During this long training period (from about 1850 to the early 1870s) she was guided by Morya to study with numerous spiritual adepts in various locations and traditions including Canada, United States, Europe, Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, India and Tibet. These included Tibetan Buddhists, Sikhs, Coptics, Christians, Native Americans, Kabalists, Hindus and others. Among these were quite a few advanced members of the Trans-Himalayan School, including the senior physical teacher of the entire lineage known as the Mahachohan (‘Great Lord’) who lived in Tibet and was her master’s guru, as well as other masters such as one known as Serapis Bey who was head of the Egyptian sub-school (although being Greek by birth). She appears to have met over twenty liberated bodhisattvas and members of the Trans-Himalayan School during her life.
Closely inspired by her Master Morya, his close companion the Master Kuthumi, and the Mahachohan, Blavatsky wrote several major works including the Secret Doctrine and the Voice of the Silence (about nada yoga and bodhisattvahood). Part of her dharma (in addition to the general vision of the Theosophical Society – see Theosophy) included making known to the world the existence of the Trans-Himalayan School of planetary spirituality, some of its members (such as her master and his co-workers) and some indications of their advanced system of understanding (hence the ‘secret doctrine’). Blavatsky was a profound initiate who faced very difficult conditions, yet succeeded in initiating, with the help of her teachers, a wave of inspiration and influence that is widely recognized as both deeply influencing the modern ‘New Age’ spirituality, contributing significantly to the rejuvenation of Indian spirituality and its transmission to the West, and stimulating the interaction of science, Eastern spirituality and numerous streams of Western spirituality. See also Theosophy, Trans-Himalayan School, Bailey, Mataji.

Bodhicitta – Bodhicitta is the altruistic motivation to seek enlightenment for the welfare of all beings. Just as the aspiration to personal liberation is the motivating cause of arhatship or individual enlightenment, so bodhicitta is the karmic or motivating cause resulting in buddhahood (this motivational aspect is sometimes called ‘relative bodhicitta’). Buddhahood is liberating enlightenment realized and expressed in it fullest potential through cultivation of the complete spectrum of spiritual virtues and capacities in service to universal awakening. The awakening of bodhicitta results in the birth of a bodhisattva, a being who strives for buddhahood as the highest form of service. The bodhisattva follows the path of perfect balance of love and wisdom through the practice of the full potential of human spirituality. The deepest aspect of bodhicitta (sometimes called ‘absolute bodhicitta’) is the realization of nonduality, which supports the fullest development of love and wisdom. See also Bodhisattva, Arhat, Buddha, Initiation.

Bodhisattva – From the Sanskrit bodhi – ‘awake’ or ‘awakening’, and sattva – ‘being’ or ‘beingness’. Bodhisattva literally means ‘awakened or awakening being’. In Buddhism, the term bodhisattva has several meanings. The most common and essential meaning is that of a being who is motivated by bodhicitta, or the aspiration to achieve supreme enlightenment or buddhahood in order to be of the greatest benefit to all beings. The term bodhisattva is generally used in three ways. Most commonly it is used to refer to those who are following the spiritual path, developing love and wisdom, with the motivation of bodhicitta. It is sometimes also used more specifically to mean those who have achieved profound personal liberation but continue to return to the realms of samsara (reincarnating in the human or other realms even though they no longer have any personal karma compelling them to) in order to serve the awakening of others. These may be called enlightened or liberated bodhisattvas. Lastly, the term bodhisattva is sometimes used more as a kind of title to refer to one who has but one more incarnation before becoming a buddha. An example of this type is the Bodhisattva Maitreya. Although this term is from the Buddhist tradition, bodhisattvas can be of any faith or path. See also Bodhicitta, Buddha, Buddhism, Initiation, Sattva.

Body(s) – Also referred to as vehicles, sheaths, coverings and veils. The human soul incarnates through a series of three form bodies (physical, emotional/astral and mental), all of which have three-dimensional shape, and one formless body (intuitional or buddhic). The three form bodies are identical in shape but are made of different levels of energy. The physical body is generally familiar to us, and the emotional and mental bodies are made of the more subtle energy of higher, non-physical worlds – the mental being made of the finest energies. The intuitional body is relatively more formless than the first three, although it is ‘made’ of a subtle substance that still veils the light of the inner self or Atman. See Intuitive Body.
The three bodies having form make up the temporary vehicles of experience for an incarnating human soul. Each body has an etheric aspect made up of the finer three elements, what the Buddha termed the three ‘mind elements’, where the chakras and nadis are located. In the normal state of consciousness, these three bodies are superimposed on each other, but during sleep, out-of-body-experiences or certain meditation states, the higher bodies (astral/emotional and mental) may be separated from the physical. These higher or subtler bodies have senses just as do the physical body, which can be used to experience the corresponding astral and mental worlds. When these subtler senses (along with other astral/mental abilities) are used by the individual in his or her ordinary, physical awareness, we call them psychic abilities. Impressions from each of these bodies are passed to the others and are also experienced by the soul or inner self. Our personality vehicles, or three bodies, are built for us by the Archangels of the elements and the Holy Spirit. Also see Planes of Consciousness, Atman, Etheric Body, Chakras, Personality, Soul, Physical Body, Physical Plane, Astral Body, Astral Plane, Mental Body, Mental Plane, Archangels, Elements.

Body of Light – see Dzogchen.

Brahma-Viharas – Four virtues extolled in both Buddhist teachings and in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. Approximately translated as meaning the ‘divine abodes’ or ‘heavenly stations’, the brahma-viharas are lovingkindness (metta), sympathetic joy or gladness (mudita), compassion (karuna) and equanimity (upeksha). A prominent practice in both these traditions, work with the brahma-viharas consists of methods of developing and extending these qualities towards oneself and other beings through specific practices – especially meditation practices. The practice of metta or lovingkindness is particularly popular in American Buddhism.

Brahman – A Sanskrit word found as far back as the Vedas used generally to mean the Absolute. Brahman, or God, is sometimes distinguished into Saguna Brahman and Nirguna Brahman. Saguna means ‘with qualities’, indicating a level of transcendent reality that may be experienced in a more personal, although very universal, form. Saguna Brahman has identifiable characteristics (such as love, power, bliss and intelligence). Thus Saguna Brahman is ‘God with attributes’. We may consider this level to be profoundly universal yet still within the realm of Relativity, as it has characteristics which are relative or definable in relationship to other characteristics. Nirguna means ‘without qualities’ – referring to the radically transcendent nondual or unqualified Absolute – a ‘level’ or ‘dimension’ of reality fully transcending all categories and descriptions. Saguna Brahman is also sometimes called Shabda Brahman – the Absolute manifesting as transcendent sound, the Word or Logos. See also Nondualism, Nirvana, Tao, Emptiness, Buddha Nature, God, Absolute, Relativity, Christ Logos, Ishvara, Nada, Holy Spirit.

Buddha – A Sanskrit word meaning ‘awakened’, from the root budh, ‘to awaken’. Used in Buddhism in two ways. The first is the pratyeka-buddha – one who has achieved transcendence of ego and individual karma, but who reached this goal through a path motivated by the pursuit of personal liberation; equivalent to the Arhat. The second type of buddha is a being who has fulfilled the path of bodhisattvahood and attained supreme enlightenment, whose purity is the same as a pratyeka-buddha, but who has developed profound capacity for serving the enlightenment of others through a richer and more complete development of virtue and wisdom. This second type is termed a samyak-sambuddha. In Agni Yoga, we use the term ‘buddha’ to refer to this second type. Buddhism teaches that there have been numerous past buddhas, and buddhas will continue to appear from time to time in the future.
The most recent buddha (samyak-sambuddha) was, according to some teachings, Gautama Buddha (563-483 BC), who predicted that the coming buddha would be Maitreya. Gautama Buddha was born in the foothills of the Himalayas in a small kingdom in the region that is now Nepal. He was born a prince in the Shakyas clan, his first name being Siddhartha, and family name Gautama. He is commonly called the Buddha (‘the awakened one’), Shakyamuni (‘silent sage of the Shakyas’) Buddha, and is often called Siddhartha Gautama when referring to his life before his entry into the path of renunciation at the age of twenty-eight. He attained full enlightenment at the age of thirty-five, and spent the next approximately forty years teaching. He is widely viewed (for instance, in the Trans-Himalayan School) as the supreme embodiment of the union of love and wisdom for our age. See also Buddhism, Initiation, Bodhisattva, Bodhicitta, Planetary Logos, Trans-Himalayan School.

Buddha Nature – A Buddhist term meaning one’s essential or fundamental being or essence, which is the same for all beings. Identical with, and therefore see also, such terms as Absolute, Self, Brahman, Atman, Sunyata, Nirvana, Nondual, Tao and True Nature.

Buddhi – A Sanskrit term, the feminine form of buddha, ‘awakened’. It is used in various ways in the Hindu tradition, one of the most common being ‘intuitive intelligence’ or ‘wisdom faculty’. It is related (with various shades of meaning) to such terms as gnosis, prajna, intuition, higher mind, illumined mind and wisdom mind. Very commonly we find two general meanings ascribed to the term buddhi – one being what might be called the higher or abstract mind (ordinarily called the intellect), and the other being pure intuition. The former is the function of the higher aspect of the mental body (called the vijnana-maya-kosa in Vedanta), the later to the formless intuitional ‘body’ (the ananda-maya-kosa). Ordinarily, the ‘lower buddhi’ (as it is sometimes called), that is, the higher mind, is oriented towards the senses and functions as the worldly or psychological intellect. Yet this level of the mind can be illumined through spiritual practice. The ‘higher buddhi’ or intuition is more naturally illuminated, being less veiled. The one gives illuminated intellectual ‘wisdom’ or buddhi, the other pure intuitive wisdom – so we can see why both uses of the term buddhi have arisen – the two being closely related. Normally in Agni Yoga, buddhi is used to mean ‘pure intuition’, and the term ‘higher mind’ is used to mean intellect or illumined intellect. Further clarification can be found under intuition, which is synonymous with our use of buddhi. See also Body(s), Intuition, Kosas, Mental Body, Causal Body.

Buddhism – Religion or path founded by Gautama Buddha around 500 BC in India. The Buddha’s teachings are essentialized in the Four Noble Truths. Buddhism gradually evolved into several main sects. The one that seems to be most strongly based on the Buddha’s original oral teachings later came to be called Hinayana Buddhism, the last remaining version of which in our times being Theravada Buddhism, or ‘the Way of the Elders’. Within several centuries Mahayana Buddhism arose. Mahayana is a Sanskrit word meaning ‘the Greater Vehicle’, referring to the notion that Mahayanists viewed their approach as serving the liberation of a larger number of people due to making central the ideal of the bodhisattva. The Mahayanists renamed the ‘other’ school Hinayana, meaning the ‘Lesser Vehicle’, as it put its emphasis on personal liberation. Mahayana Buddhism eventually spread to various non-Indian regions such as China, Tibet, Japan, Korea and Vietnam. During the first millennium in India, another form of Buddhism arose as a result of incorporating tantra, which was simultaneously blossoming within Hinduism. This form of Buddhism eventually migrated primarily to Tibet where it has come to be called Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhism (it was also transmitted as far as Japan where it became Shingon Buddhism). This form of Buddhism, sometimes called the ‘third turning of the wheel of the Dharma’, combined elements of Hinayana and Mahayana with tantra. It is subsequently often considered a tantric form of Mahayana Buddhism. Just as Buddhism took new forms as it migrated to various cultures such as China, Japan and Tibet, many feel we are witnessing a ‘fourth turning of the wheel’ in our times. Often called American Buddhism, this new Western form of Buddhism seems to have certain already emerging distinguishable characteristics such as being non-hierarchical, lay-centered rather that monastic-centered, striving for gender balance, and drawing on modern psychology. See also Buddha, Bodhisattva, Four Noble Truths, Tantra.

Causal Body – The term causal body is used in many teachings, often with differing but related meanings. Perhaps the common element in its various usages is that it refers to a level of being that is more essential and contains the seeds or causes of what emerges on the planes ‘below’ it. In this sense we might also refer to the causal level or body as the ‘unmanifest’ body or dimension. It is like the soil out of which more manifest levels grow. Because reality, in its relative nature, has many levels of being, what is ‘causal’ and what is ‘effect’ or manifest is somewhat relative. For instance, the emotional plane can be considered causal to the physical, yet the mental can be considered causal to the emotional. So we find various usages of the terms causal or causal body.
In certain Sikh teachings, for instance, the term causal body is used to mean the concrete mental body, probably because this body is the subtlest aspect of the manifested personality, at least as regards the sensory or concrete experience of the personality. Yet, from a slightly subtler point of view, the higher aspect of the mental body, the etheric or abstract mind, can be considered more deeply causal to the general field of the personality. We find this usage of causal body in some teachings such as later Theosophy (Leadbeater/Besant) and Alice Bailey. Perhaps the most widely used meaning of the term causal body is found in the Hindu teachings such as the classical yoga of Patanjali (The Yoga Sutras) where the term probably originated a few thousand years ago (karana sarira means ‘causal body’ in Sanskrit). In this system the term refers to what may also be called the higher buddhic, intuitive or soul body, which is often considered the final resting place of the incarnating self in between incarnations. Here are stored the karmic impressions from each cycle of incarnation as ‘seeds’ or latent karmic traces, awaiting opportunity to manifest again and seek fulfillment on their respective planes. This meaning has a more essential significance as the body or storehouse of all (even the most subtle) karmic causes that gives rise to human manifestation. Beyond this level is the liberated spiritual self or atman resting in nondual realization, beyond all personal desire (personality ‘causes’) and karmic entanglement.
Blavatsky considered the causal body as a combination of the last two definitions, the union of the intuitive and higher mental bodies. A final example of the use of the term ‘causal’ by Daskalos is with reference to the highest three planes, all of which he called causal planes, because from a more macrocosmic point of view, this trinity of levels of being are the primordially unmanifest levels from which arise all levels and aspects of the manifest universe, human and non-human. Thus we can see that every plane (from the lower mental, higher mental, intuitive and beyond) has been considered ‘causal’ in one or another teaching. In Agni Yoga, we generally use the classical yogic meaning of ‘causal body’ (partially because it is the most widespread usage) as referring to the intuitive level of identity, although we sometimes, usually when indicated, refer to the Bailey usage as referring to the higher mental body. See also Body(s), Intuition, Intuitive Body.

Center(s) – See Chakra

Chakra – Also spelled cakra; Sanskrit for ‘wheel’. Most commonly, the term chakra is used to refer to psychophysical centers found in the pranic or etheric body. There are numerous of these chakras throughout the human body, with seven major centers along the spine and in the head. Each of these centers is a point of convergence and interplay of physical, psychological and spiritual energy and consciousness. The meaning of each chakra varies according to the level from which it is viewed, and the level of spiritual development of the individual. Each of the chakras arises in the body through being a focus for one of the seven fundamental elements or principles. The four material elements (earth, water, air and fire) are focused in the lower centers, and the three ethereal or ‘mind’ elements are focused in the throat and head. The activity of these chakras creates a vortex of whirling energy, which is why they are often viewed clairvoyantly as wheels or vortices. These centers exist not only in the etheric or pranic aspect of the physical body, but also in the etheric aspect of the astral/emotional and mental bodies. The seven major chakras with their Sanskrit names and corresponding elements as traditionally understood are:

1st Crown Sahasrara Chakra (‘thousand-petaled wheel’) Self-Essence
2nd Brow Ajna Chakra (‘command wheel’) Consciousness
3rd Throat Vishuddha Chakra (‘pure wheel’) Akasha (‘space’)
4th Heart Anahata Chakra (‘wheel of the unstruck sound’) Air
5th Solar Plexus Manipura Chakra (‘wheel of the jeweled city’) Fire
6th Sacral Svadhishthana Chakra (‘wheel of her true abode’) Water
7th Root Muladhara Chakra (‘root-foundation wheel’) Earth

The chakras serve as points of transmission and interchange between the various levels of human nature. For instance, they are used to transmit sensory information to the mind, and to transmit awareness of emotions, desires and thoughts to the physical body. The energy associated with the chakras can be transformed and spiritualized, so that one can approach spiritual development in terms of working with the chakras and their purification, transformation and awakening. Tantric/transformational approaches are often particularly interested in working with the chakras. Chakras are key elements to many esoteric approaches to spirituality, and can be very valuable to understand for work in fields like healing and psychotherapy. As essential elements to the pattern of the microcosm (the human being), they are also a profound key to exploration of the macrocosm. See also Etheric Body, Nadi(s), Body(s), Kundalini, Esotericism, Tantra, Elements, Planes of Consciousness.

Chi – see Etheric Vitality

Chi Gong – Name of very ancient Chinese system of esoteric development (according to the Chi Gong adept Yan Xin, the roots of Chi Gong date to about 7000 years ago). Chi means ‘energy’ and gong means ‘ability’ or ‘mastery’, so Chi Gong may be translated as ‘mastery of life energy’. The deeper science of Chi Gong approaches spiritual practice through various exercises including movement (such as in Tai Chi), breathing practices, visualizations, cultivation of virtue, working with chakras, and sound. Chi Gong is often combined with other traditions such as Buddhism and Taoism. It is also the deeper practice behind some of the Chinese martial arts. Chi Gong practice for health, vitality and longevity are extremely popular in China. Chi Gong is a key element of the teachings of the Chinese School, a sister lineage to the Trans-Himalayan School. See also Etheric Vitality, Esotericism, Trans-Himalayan School, Chinese School.

Chinese School – One of the several major branches of our planets underlying spiritual lineage, with its ‘headquarters’ in the Kunlun mountains of China. Its closest affiliation is with the Trans-Himalayan School, and is also of very ancient origin. The Chinese School oversees the development of the Far Eastern culture and spiritual traditions of China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan, etc. The primary elements making up the transmission of the Chinese School or lineage are Taoism, Buddhism and Chi Gong. Although the activity of this tradition is seriously inhibited by the current situation in China, the Chinese School continues to exist to this day, with dozens of its leading members (or ‘Immortals’ as they are called in Taoism) working and teaching in seclusion in the mountains of China. See also Chi Gong, Trans-Himalayan School, Planetary Lineage, Buddhism, Tao(ism).

Christ Consciousness – Essentially the same as Presence (see Presence). All beings have the potential for fully developed Christ Consciousness. In Agni Yoga, the term is used to mean the full spectrum of spiritual qualities (such as love, wisdom, joy, peace, power, creativity, harmony, etc.), rather than on the special qualities sometimes perceived to be distinctive of the historical Jesus – love, forgiveness, sacrifice, etc. Identical to (and therefore see also): Rigpa, Sahaja Samadhi, Agni, (Absolute) Bodhicitta, Presence, Self-Realization.

Christ Logos – This term is usually used in Agni Yoga to refer to the Universal Presence or personification of Christ Consciousness, the same as Adi-Buddha in Buddhism, or Ishvara for Patanjali. In some cosmologies (such as Daskalos’), the Christ Logos is used a little differently as the universal personification of love and wisdom (similar to Shiva in Tantric philosophy), and complimentary to the Holy Spirit as the personification of love and power (similar to Shakti). In Agni Yoga, we use the term Christ Logos to mean the union of Shiva and Shakti, Universal Male and Female. See also Adi-Buddha, Ishvara, God, Holy Spirit, Shiva, Shakti, Christ Consciousness, Logos, Deity, Daskalos.

Christianity – See Esoteric Christianity

Dark Night of the Soul – A phrase used by St. John of the Cross to describe a period of spiritual difficulty which can include a sense of despair, diminished hope and faith, loss of connection to Spirit, feelings of spiritual failure, loss of meaning, acute sense of imperfections, and similar challenges. St. John identified two forms of the dark night – the dark night of the senses and of the spirit. Of these he says “The one night or purgation will be sensory, by which the senses are purged and accommodated to the spirit, and the other night or purgation will be spiritual, by which the spirit (inner being) is purged and denuded as well as accommodated and prepared for union with God through love.” The ‘dark night’ is essentially a death preceding a rebirth, and so in some traditions such as Zen has been referred to by such terms as the ‘Great Death’. In the view of Agni Yoga (and various other traditions) these major death and rebirth cycles are several – the death of identification with the physical body, the emotional self, the mind and finally the intuitive self or soul. Each of these involves a corresponding ‘dark night’, culminating in the fourth, which is the final and most thorough transformation, resulting in sahaja samadhi or Self-realization. See also St. John of the Cross, Self-realization, Initiation, Sahaja Samadhi, Arhat.

Daskalos – Name by which the 20th Century Christian mystic Stylianos Atteshlis was known to his students and colleagues. Born on the island of Cyprus in 1912, died 1995. Daskalos was a teacher of what he termed ‘Esoteric Christianity’, or Christian Kabalah. His teachings have a great deal in common with many Eastern teachings, especially Hindu and Tibetan Tantrism, as well as various forms of Western esotericism such as Theosophy, and include a rich training in mastery of energy for spiritual growth, healing and service. Agni Yoga makes use of many of these practices. See also Kabalah, Esoteric Christianity.

Deity – A term usually referring to God or the various facets of God or Divinity in personified terms. Deities need not have bodies or forms, but do, as described in various traditions, have specific spiritual qualities and powers. Included in the category of ‘Deities’ would be Archangels, Devas, Dhyani-Buddhas and Gods and Goddesses. Examples of various types of Deities include Ishvara, Adi-Buddha, the Christ-Logos, the Holy Spirit, Isis, Kali, Tara, Kuan Yin, Shiva and Vishnu. In some definitions of Deity, not all Deities are enlightened or fully enlightened. Yet in their corresponding traditions, all of the Deities mentioned above are usually considered fully enlightened beings. Some teachings understand Deities as usually being great enlightened Presences who were human at some point in their history, somewhere, and are now a type of higher order master who have progressed in spiritual evolution into having a more universal scope of expression. Deities typically have specific defining characteristics such as compassion, power or wisdom, yet other Deities are considered more all encompassing – such as the Adi-Buddha or Christ Logos. Some cosmologies view one or more Deities as being ‘Creators’ in the sense of being responsible for the existence of the universe. Nondual cosmology (such as Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism and Agni Yoga) does not see any Deity as an ‘Absolute Creator’, that is, an ultimate source of the universe, but rather recognize various forms of Deities as having relative creativity (such as the Archangels of the Elements) or as being more like universal teachers or saviors. See also Deity Yoga, Adi-Buddha, Christ Logos, God, Holy Spirit, Archangel, Form, Ajata-vada.

Deity Yoga – A form of devotional spiritual practice involving some form of focus on, or worship of, a Deity. Used commonly within such traditions as Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, Deity Yoga typically makes use of sound (as in prayer and mantra) and visualization (such as with mandalas and yantras) to invoke and commune with a Deity. Advanced forms of Deity Yoga concern the process of ‘transforming’ oneself into the Deity, thereby gaining profound enlightenment and the various qualities of the Deity through identification and, therefore, direct transmission. This practice has its purest expression in what in Hinduism is called Bhakti Yoga, the path of devotion, surrender and grace. See also Deity, Bhakti Yoga, Yantra, Mantra, Yoga.

Deva – From the Sanskrit root div, ‘to shine’, Devas are ‘the shining ones’. In Hinduism, the terms deva (masculine) and devi (feminine) are used to describe both the universal enlightened Deities such as Shiva, Tara, Kali and Vishnu, as well as the Nature deities that are essentially the same as some of the orders of the Archangels of the Judeo-Christian tradition. In Agni Yoga, we most often use the term ‘deva’ in a way synonymous with Nature Archangel. See also Archangel, Holy Spirit, Elements, Nature, Hierarchy, Deity.

Dharma – A Sanskrit word with various meanings, used in numerous traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism. One of the ways it is used in Hinduism is in its name. The Hindus did not traditionally called themselves ‘Hindus’, nor their religion ‘Hinduism’, just as the Native Americans did not traditionally call themselves ‘Native Americans’. The Hindu name for their own tradition is the Santana-Dharma, which can be translated as ‘The Ageless Wisdom’ or ‘The Eternal Teachings’. So in both Hinduism and Buddhism, one meaning of the term Dharma (often capitalized) is ‘The Teachings’ or ‘The True Way’. So sometimes when we use the term Dharma, especially when phrased ‘the Dharma’, it means the teachings of the Ageless or Primordial Wisdom Tradition. All authentic spiritual teachings are manifestations of ‘the Dharma’, although some may be more profound or complete than others, while none begin to exhaust vast richness of the Dharma.
Another meaning of ‘dharma’ (usually not capitalized) is ‘righteousness’ or ‘virtue’. This is related to the first meaning but is limited to its outer significance. Yet another meaning is as someone’s duty or role in life. In this sense, a person’s dharma refers to their nature, their natural place in life, dictated by their karma, their level of evolution and so on. This is related to the notion of having a ‘life purpose’, or a ‘calling’ or ‘mission’. But this ‘dharma’ need not be a special or glamorous role. Everyone’s essential dharma or calling is to pursue the path to Self-realization, which may or may not involve fulfilling a role such as being a teacher, healer, leader, etc.
In Agni Yoga, we use the term dharma to mean either ‘the Teachings’ (when capitalized or phrased as ‘the Dharma’), or to mean an individual’s ‘way’ or unique calling or role (not capitalized). See also Divine Will, Dharma Yoga.

Dharma Yoga – A term used in Agni Yoga teachings to refer to the path (or an aspect of a broader approach) which concerns the development of a sense of one’s essential or spiritual purpose or direction, especially regarding the field of action. In this light, dharma yoga may be considered an aspect or form of karma yoga, the path of spiritual action. The word ‘dharma’ is used here with its meaning of one’s role or duty in life, which can be applied to cultivating action in each moment that is in harmony with one’s true nature, and also the sense of having an experience of a general ‘calling’ or life-work, and also to more specific instances of the experience of inspiration arising from a higher or divine will.
A common element of dharma yoga can therefore involve the experience of the alignment of the individual will with a deeper, more profound source of direction, meaning or purpose – the Divine Will, the Tao, the universal Dharma, one’s higher self, or other sources of transcended guidance, inspiration and empowerment. Dharma yoga is particularly a path concerned with exploring the relationship between one’s individual will and some source of more universal direction or purpose. There are a variety of approaches to dharma yoga, which reflect differences of style, stages of development as well as differing sources of higher will with which one is aligning, cooperating or surrendering. Dharma yoga can also have strong connections with other yogas, such as bhakti yoga with its emphasis on surrender and devotion. See also Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Dharma, Divine Will.

Divine Will – The Universal Spirit (whether called Adi-Buddha, Ishvara, Christ Logos, etc.) has both and active and passive aspects. The passive aspect includes such qualities as its essential beingness and wisdom, while its active aspect reflects the aspects of caring, love and activity. This latter aspect may be called, among other terms, the Divine Will. It may also be called Enlightened Shakti, the Tao, Universal Will and so on. In a nondual cosmology such as Agni Yoga, the Divine Will is viewed not so much as the causative or motivating power of the universe, that which brings ‘Creation’ into being, but rather more as the active aspect of the universal teaching, healing and uplifting or evolutionary Spirit in the universe. When experienced as arising from a transcendent and apparently ‘other’ source, and entering into our lives as grace, empowerment or guidance, the Divine Will is essentially motivated by love and may indeed be thought of as the universal source of love, wisdom and empowerment. The intention of Divine Will, at least as understood from a relative angle, is to serve the spiritual evolution, the awakening and liberation, of all beings. Those who have come into harmony with this Spirit can become empowered agents of the universal will to awakening. See also Adi-Buddha, God, Shakti, Christ Logos, Ajata-vada.

Duhkha – Sanskrit word (Pali: dukkha) meaning ‘suffering’ or ‘discontentedness’. A term used in both Hindu and Buddhist teachings to describe an unavoidable characteristic of the experience of being a separate self, and the desires and attachments that arise from that misunderstanding. Duhkha names the fact that suffering is the constant companion of ordinary life, the fact that no matter how much temporary happiness we achieve, it is always tainted by limitation, and will always pass. Profound insight into the truth of duhkha is that deep and profound realization that separative existence is inherently limited, painful, discouraging and disappointing. Insight into the truth of duhkha is the sobering realization that the ego-centric mode of existence that keeps us bound to samsara, and in fact is the very basis of the existence of samsara, is not working and is not what we really want. It is a waking up to realizing we are addicted to a narcotic, one that seems to give us what we want, or at least the hope of achieving it, but that this is an illusion because it can never deliver what it promises. Even when we get what we think we want, we will eventually loose it. And the very mode of seeking happiness through attaining something we perceive as separate from us always carries with it suffering, because unless we transcend the experience of separation permanently, we will continue to suffer, because suffering is intrinsic to the experience of separation.
Duhkha is the insight into the fact that our addiction to ego and desire is unsatisfactory. The complimentary insight to duhkha is the realization that there is another mode of being beyond samsara, beyond ego, which is in fact our true nature. In order to fully enter this mode of being (nirvana, the Tao, Christ Consciousness) we must become fully disillusioned with samsaric existence. These two insights grow together as we gradually awaken – disillusionment with the old, and emergence into the new. See also Impermanence, Nirvana, Ego, Samsara, Separation, Suffering.

Dhyana – Sanskrit term for deep meditation, which is past the stage of basic concentration, but short of the stage of samadhi. See also Samadhi, Attunement, Meditation.

Dzogchen – A spiritual transmission that emerged somewhere in Northern India about 2200 years ago through the great master Garab Dorje, received in inspiration by him from transcendent sources (said to have been transmitted from the Adi-Buddha via Vajrasattva). Dzogchen migrated to Tibet where it merged with, and continues to be transmitted by, aspects of both the Bon and Tibetan Buddhist traditions. Dzogchen, which means ‘Great Perfection’, is essentially a nondual transmission emphasizing the awakening of the individual, after appropriate preparation, to rigpa or nondual realization by direct transmission from master to student. The heart of Dzogchen takes the form of two primary practices (trekcho and togal) used to ‘cut through’ into direct, nondual awareness, and then to integrate this awareness into daily life. The practices of Dzogchen tend to emphasis the integration of nondual realization and vision.
In Tibetan Buddhism, Dzogchen is transmitted primarily in the Nyingmapa Lineage where it is coupled with traditional and tantric practices used to prepare one for the very advanced nondual practices that are the essence of Dzogchen. Dzogchen is also characterized by an emphasis on ‘the Great Transfer’ as the culmination and expression of the highest realization or ‘attainment’. The Great Transfer, also known as the ‘Body of Light’, is the experience of culminating one’s incarnation by so fully realizing nondual presence or enlightenment within one’s physical body that the body and its elements are resolved into their light essence, causing the body to disappear from the physical world (leaving only the hair and nails behind). A realization nearly as advanced as the Great Transfer is called the ‘Rainbow Body’, wherein the body is gradually dissolved into light over the course of several days just after death. Garab Dorje, Padmasambhava and many other Dzogchen masters up until our times have achieved these consummating stages of realization, including a North American who apparently achieved the Great Transfer while training in the Himalayas in recent years. See also Rigpa, Nondualism, Ati Yoga.

Ego – From the Latin meaning ‘I’. In a spiritual context the term ‘ego’ is used to refer to the essential experience of ‘I-ness’, or separate existence. The sense of ego arises with subject-object dualism, that is, the experience of being an individual looking out at an ‘other’ – that is, other beings and the world at large. Arising from this sense of being a separate self comes a sense of incompleteness, since our true nature is nondual and intrinsically complete. With the illusion of being a separate self we also feel deep within our experience a sense of loss, of incompleteness, and a desire for ‘something’ to fill that lack. This gives rise to the unfoldment of various conceptions of what will fulfill us, and the various desires that are then formed. Yet only the realization of our natural state of underlying wholeness or Buddha Nature, our union with God, or our nondual Self, will fully eliminate this sense of lack and the feelings of craving, imperfection, loneliness and suffering that must come with it.
Ego has various levels of expression. There is unconscious ego, normal human ego and spiritual ego. Spiritual ego can take the form of making spirituality a way to prolong the ego rather than transcend it. But there is also a mature form or ‘spiritual ego’ that is the ‘selfhood’ that aspires to enlightenment and self-transcendence or Self-fulfillment. See also Soul, Separation, Personality, Self, Hindrances, Permanent Personality, Self-realization.

Elements - The elements are fundamental aspects of experience. They are not mental concepts, but rather can be directly perceived by ‘bare attention’ – pure intuitive awareness. Experiences like noticing an airplane overhead, an emotional state like grief, or the choice to buy a loaf of bread – these types of experiences are conditioned by mental concepts. The elements are more fundamental components of experience, and can be directly perceived with intuition, beyond intellect and concepts. The following are the seven primordial elements or building blocks of all experience:

1st Element Self The Knower Atman/Purusha
2nd Element Consciousness Knowing Mind Essence, Prajna, Intuition
3rd Element Akasha – Space The Known Prakriti, Root Substance
4th Element Air or Wind – Vibration, Movement, Motion, Vitality
5th Element Fire – Heat and Cold, Light and Color, Radiation,
6th Element Water – Fluidity, Cohesion
7th Element Earth – Hardness, Solidity, Firmness

The Elements may be grouped into two categories – the first three, the essential Trinity, and the other four, the Quaternary. The Buddha referred to the first three elements (which he also called paramattha dharmas or ‘ultimate realities’) as the ‘mind elements or dharmas’, and the last four as ‘material elements or dharmas’, because they have form. The seven principles or rays are different ways of experiencing these essential elements. Each element also reflects within it all the other elements, so there are also 49 ‘sub-elements’, and so on. All beings, forms and states on every plane of the universe, manifest and unmanifest, are made up of various combinations of these elements. These elements or essences are the building blocks of Relativity. Beyond all seven elements or rays is the unconditioned, nondual reality – the Absolute. See also Elementals, Principles, Rays.

Elemental – The basic building blocks of the relative universe are the seven elements, which form a spectrum of material/psychological/spiritual energy or substance. All objects and beings, physical and psychological, are constructed from various combinations of these elements. These ‘elementals’, sometimes called ‘thought-forms’, make up the physical and psychological (astral and mental) worlds. Physical objects and bodies, emotions, desires, thoughts, inner environments, planets, etc. are elementals or groups of elementals. Our entire personality is made up of a great collection of elementals expressing our thoughts, attitudes, beliefs, emotions, motivations and bodies. Elementals formed through spiritual motivation are karmically uplifting, and those formed from ordinary or primitive motivations (strongly conditioned by egotism and ignorance) are karmically limiting, painful and conflicted. Through spiritual practice, we learn to create positive or enlightened elementals, and to transform and neutralize negative or unwholesome elementals. See also Elements, Form, Karma, Mind, Subconscious.

Emotional Body – See Astral Body

Emotional Plane – See Astral Plane

Emptiness – Translation of the Sanskrit word sunyata, a term used often in Mahayana Buddhism to refer to the Absolute or nondual essence of reality. Use of the term ‘emptiness’ in Buddhism, in place of nirvana, seems to have been initiated by Nagarjuna who used the term to describe the Absolute as having the characteristic of being ‘empty’ or ‘void’ of a self-nature or other eternally permanent characteristics. All phenomena, even spiritual phenomena, are ultimately relatively ‘fleeting manifestations in a stream of endless transformations’. Emptiness can be considered, therefore, the nature of the Absolute because it points to the lack of an eternal substance distinguishing one thing from another. The appearance of ‘essence’, even self-essence, is actually temporary and changing. All that persists is the Absolute – so the realization of the ‘emptiness’ of all impermanent phenomena, even the ‘self’, is the same as the realization of its true nature, which is Buddha-nature or the Absolute Self. Notice under the category of the Elements that the subtlest element is Self or self-essence. Although it is the subtlest, most universal and apparently enduring, it too is one of the conditioned elements and is therefore part of samsara or transitory phenomena. Beyond all seven elements is the ‘emptiness’ or Absolute, which is the context for all phenomena and their ultimate nature.
The term emptiness, therefore, does not mean that the Absolute or nondual is missing or lacking something, only that its nature is so transcendent that it is not possible to attach any limiting label or characteristic to it. It is ‘empty’ of conditional or limiting characteristics, yet is the very ground or ‘substance’ of all phenomena. Like any other name for the transcendent reality, it is inherently limited and has strengths and weaknesses. Emptiness is synonymous with nirvana, Brahman, the Absolute, etc. See also Nondualism, Nirvana, Tao, Buddha Nature, God, Absolute, Brahman, No-self, Elements.

Esotericism – The word ‘esoteric’ means that which is not well known to the general population. Many fields of human knowledge or experience are esoteric. In a spiritual context, esotericism has been used in several ways. The most general meaning is to indicate an approach to spirituality that understands the capacity of individuals to themselves become Christ Conscious or enlightened. Esoteric religion or spirituality is a direct and personal approach to transcendence or illumination. Since this is not the approach to religion or spirituality that the great majority of humanity takes, it can be considered ‘esoteric’. Under this meaning Gnosticism and Rosicrucianism, Christian and Jewish Kabalah, Hindu yoga and Buddhist practice, Taoism and shamanism are all examples of esoteric spirituality (when pursued for true spiritual transformation). By contrast, the approach of the average Christian or Hebrew, Hindu or Buddhist can be considered exoteric or ‘outer’ religion.
Esotericism is often used within a yet more restricted context to refer to those forms of practice that involve working with subtle energy such as various tantric practices. Tibetan or Tantric Buddhism, for instance, may be considered a more esoteric spiritual practice. Other examples would include Chi Gong, Taoist yoga, Theosophy, Hermeticism, and the teachings of Daskalos. See also Tantra, Daskalos, Trans-Himalayan School.

Esoteric Christianity – All major religious traditions can be divided into their exoteric and esoteric aspects. The exoteric involves the beliefs and practices followed by the bulk of its members and typically involve a blind acceptance of the doctrine, the performance of rituals and an attempt to live a good life. The esoteric aspect of a religion is usually limited to a much smaller group of those who are seeking to profoundly embrace the inner meaning of their faith, and follow in the footsteps of the founder(s) and initiates of that tradition by seeking deep levels of spiritual development.
Within the Christian tradition, there has been less tolerance among the hierarchy of exoteric officials, and even their followers, towards esoteric Christians. Subsequently, esoteric forms of Christianity have not always been entirely visible to the world. Yet there have been, and continue to be, many forms of Esoteric Christianity. Some have expressed their mysticism within the context of the exoteric orders, at least to some extent. Of these, some have challenged the views of the outer order, others less so. Examples of these include St. Francis, Origen, Hildegard of Bingen, St. Theresa, Meister Eckhart and St. John of the Cross.
There have also existed other forms of Esoteric Christianity that have not been as compatible with the exoteric institutions, many of which have remained hidden or secret for many centuries. In the last century or so, some of these traditions have become more visible. These include Christian Gnosticism (a synthesis of Eastern, Greek and Christian ideas), the Coptic tradition (as blending of Egyptian and Christian streams), Christian Kabalah (see below), Freemasonry (Egyptian, Christian and others), Celtic Christianity, and Rosicrucianism (see below). As examples, we can briefly trace two of these into modern times.
Rosicrucianism has been one of the most influential forms of Esoteric Christianity in the last millennia. Though there are various versions of the history of Rosicrucianism, it is commonly believed to have been founded (or rejuvenated or reformed) in about 1459 by Christian Rosencreutz (although some historians believe he was an allegorical figure), who traveled to the Middle East and studied with Sufis and other mystics and was said to also have been initiated into the Egyptian mysteries. Upon returning to Europe, he developed a form of Esoteric Christianity that gave Christian form to the teachings he received in the Middle East. The Rosicrucian teachings have been passed down secretly since that time, and many influential members of European and, eventually, North American culture have been Rosicrucians. Examples of historical figures who may have been members (remember that this was an secret order), or at least were rather ‘Rosicrucian’ in there thought, include such figures as Newton, Goethe, Francis Bacon, John Dee, Robert Fludd and Leibniz. Some historians of esoteric and occult traditions believe that Rosicrucianism was significantly influential in the founding of the ‘New World’ (USA), which Bacon termed the ‘New Atlantis’.
With the emergence of modern esotericism in the 19th and 20th centuries, Rosicrucianism and its influence emerged into greater public view in various forms. Rudolf Steiner claimed that his life work was to externalize or make public the long hidden teachings of Rosicrucianism. Peter Caddy, co-founder of the Findhorn community in Scotland (mother of all ‘New Age’ centers), said that he believed Findhorn to be a modern manifestation of Rosicrucianism. And although many other modern teachers of Esoteric Christianity are not explicitly identified with Rosicrucianism, we can see very strongly the influence of this tradition at some level in their teachings and practices. Examples of these include Charles Leadbeater and Alice Bailey (who both, in different contexts, helped give Theosophy a ‘Rosicrucian’ flavor), Stylianos Atteshlis (Daskalos, whose teachings show various close parallels to the Rosicrucian) and David Spangler. Yet various forms of organized Rosicrucianism also persist to this day.
The Christian Kabalah is a form of Esoteric Christianity based particularly on the Tree of Life (see Symbol of Life). Stylianos Atteshlis traces the development of this symbol from its emergence in early Egypt, and its modification in the age of Akhenaten (Ankh-en-Aton) around 1400 BC by the hierophant Khoraton (reformer of the Egyptian mysteries in line with monotheism). According to Daskalos, the Tree of Life was eventually modified into its Jewish form in the Hebrew Kabalah by Moses around 1250 BC by the removal of the Egyptian gods and symbols and the insertion of Hebrew (the Sephira) and Greek. It is said that it was through his mastery of the Tree of Life that Moses performed the miracles described in the Bible. In the 3rd century AD, the early Eastern Church father Origen transformed the Tree of Life into the Christian ‘Symbol of Life’ by changes in the symbolism based on the Revelation of St. John in the New Testament. This version of the Symbol was then entrusted to the Essenes. In the 20th century, Daskalos taught this Christian Kabalah as given by Origen.
Various forms of Esoteric Christianity are alive today, receiving new inspiration and rejuvenation from various sources – particularly from the Eastern traditions. See also Symbol of Life, Daskalos, Bailey, A. A., Kabalah, Esotericism, Theosophy, St John of the Cross.

Essence – Typically used to mean the inner, spiritual nature of someone or something. This may be either its soul, spirit or ultimately, the nondual or Absolute nature – each being progressively more essential. Essence is therefore a somewhat relative term, but is generally used to indicate the inner spiritual reality. See also Soul, Spirit, Nondualism, Absolute.

Etheric Body – The aspect of the body composed of the three etheric or pranic elements or levels of energy. Sometimes called the energy body or the prana-maya-kosha (Sanskrit: ‘energy sheath’), or the ‘vajra’ (Sanskrit: ‘diamond’) body in Tibetan Buddhism, the etheric body is the template for the dense physical body, the later being made up of the ‘form’ elements – fire, air, water and earth. The subtler etheric body is composed of an etheric counterpart to every atom, cell, organ, etc. of the physical body, as well as various additional etheric organs such as chakras and nadis. The essential life force flows through the etheric body and animates the dense physical body. Disturbances of the flow of vitality in the etheric body can lead to disease in the dense physical body. The emotional and mental bodies also have corresponding etheric aspects, just as the physical does. The three bodies are linked through the chakras of their etheric bodies. See also Body(s), Elements, Etheric Vitality, Chakras, Nadi(s).

Etheric Vitality – Also called prana, chi or life-force, etheric vitality in its broadest definition, is universal energy making up the vibratory ‘substance’ of all the planes or worlds of the relative universe. It is from this vitality or energy that all forms are built. Its deepest nature is the same as Shakti or Holy Spirit, although at this level we are relating to the deepest Spirit behind the multitude of the manifestations of Nature or Shakti. On the most accessible level, etheric vitality is the subtle energy that flows through our etheric body (nadis and chakras), like electricity, except that it is more refined and not perceptible to the ordinary senses or even most scientific instruments. This vitality animates the physical body, supplying the energy that builds our bodies, maintains their metabolic processes (digestion, respiration, elimination, etc.), supports the operation of our senses and motor abilities, and so on. We gain this vitality from such sources as food, breathing and especially from the Sun, though our most profound source is learning to draw this vitality directly from the universal reservoir, the ‘ethers’ or Mind. All our bodies – including emotional and mental – are sustained by etheric vitality. It is our ‘daily bread’. When our physical etheric energy is low, we are tired or lethargic, do not perform physical activities as well, and may become ill. When our psychological vitality is low, we are depressed, confused, can’t concentrate, lack motivation and suffer more emotionally. Spiritual practice gradually increases our vitality, and there are also specific practices aimed at ‘energy mastery’ through awakening latent energy, guiding and projecting energy, and forming vitality into positive elementals for healing, protection, strength and spiritual development. See also Etheric Body, Chakras, Nadi(s), Mind, Shakti, Holy Spirit, Chi Gong.

Feeling – This term is used to mean the full spectrum of contact or sensation ranging from the physical senses (especially touch, but including all the senses as well, for each is a form of sense or contact), to emotional forms of feeling, to ‘mental’ feeling (less familiar to most people, but a very real form of feeling), merging into intuition. The sense of feeling, sensation or concreteness or contact is in contrast to the experience of mind or abstraction. Consciousness may be cool, aloof, detached, even ‘abstracted’, or it may involve contact, feeling, warm, sensation. When feeling and mind merge, so that they are indistinguishable, we have intuition. Feeling has both active and receptive aspects that are desire and sense, respectively. Our ability to feel is conditioned by our level of consciousness. Feeling can be transformed so that it is spiritualized, liberated from the confines and distortions of ego-identification. Our feeling nature, spiritualized, manifests as such qualities as love, compassion, peace, bliss, joy, contentment, vitality, beauty and harmony. See also Intuition, Mind.

Feminine Principle – See Shakti, Nature, Holy Spirit

Form – The outer appearance, body or symbol for something or someone. Everything has an inner essence or ‘soul’, and manifests in the worlds of separation, time and space through a ‘form’ or body. The inner essence of something or someone does not have shape or size in the ordinary sense, but its form is its reflection in more concrete dimensions (mental, astral and physical), where it takes on spatial dimensions and temporal characteristics. The form dimensions are dominated by the four ‘material’ or concrete elements – earth, water, air and fire – whereas the soul or formless dimensions are dominated by the ‘ethereal’ or ‘mind’ elements.
The realm of inner essence or formless soul participates in a radically different experience of time and space than the form aspect. The form aspect of a person or object is relatively more temporary or impermanent – the soul or essence more lasting or permanent, although even the soul is part of Relativity and is neither eternal nor unchanging – only apparently less so. For instance, the higher self or soul of a human being is continuous in some sense from one life to another, and therefore appears to be more enduring or even eternal. The soul or essence aspect can also exist without the outer form, whereas the form cannot exist without the essence. But the soul, too, is evolving and is, relative to the Absolute, impermanent. Only the nondual ‘essence’ of any being, which is the same for all beings, is ultimately permanent and beyond death and birth. See also Formless, Elements, Soul, Personality, Quality, Planes of Consciousness, Body(s), Relativity.

Formless – Those dimensions or planes of being dominated by the abstract elements, or ‘mind’ elements as the Buddha called them. These are such elements as akasha or space, consciousness and beingness. The ‘formless’ is a dimension beyond time and space as we normally experience these – it is comprised of states of realization and qualities. Our higher self or soul is formless, and incarnates into the realms of form, or time and space, and of bodies and senses. The psychological realms of emotion and mind are also realms of form and body. The formless realm is the realm of universal laws, principles, qualities, essences, archetypes, Ideas, souls and similar realities. Both the form and formless realms are contained within Relativity – the universes of conditioned, dualistic experience (even though the dualism of the formless realms is subtle and secondary to unity or universality). Beyond both form and formlessness, and comprising the ultimate essence of both, is the nondual Absolute. The formless realms and states, although part of Relativity, are more spiritually expansive states, less veiled, and therefore more reflective of the nondual, though never fully revealing its ultimate nature. See also Nondual, Absolute, Relativity, Elements, Form, Soul, Body(s).

Four Noble Truths – Soon after his enlightenment, the Buddha gave his first talk in which he offered the teachings called the Four Noble Truths. These summarize the essence of the Buddha’s original teachings. These four truths are: the truth of suffering; the cause of suffering; the truth of nirvana or liberation from suffering; and the cause of realizing nirvana, or following the Noble Eightfold Path.
The first truth in Pali is called the truth of dukkha, which is usually translated as ‘suffering’. Yet the literal translation is closer to ‘difficult to bear’, ‘unsatisfactory’ or ‘frustrating’. This was a basic truth that the Buddha observed – that life as ordinarily lived was flawed, imperfect, inevitably involving suffering, frustration, disease and so on. It does not mean that life is only suffering, rather that life as ordinarily pursued inevitably includes suffering, and that even positive experiences of fulfilling worldly desires, when examined closely enough, are often disappointing or tainted with imperfection. The truth of suffering means that life lived through the experience of being a separate self, seeking fulfillment through experiences in the transitory worlds of form and mind, will inevitably involve suffering. This is simply an observation, a truth of Nature.
The second truth – the cause of suffering – is identified as tanha in Pali, which means ‘thirst’. This truth points to the experience of desires, our needs and drives, our insatiable thirst or craving for fulfillment in ways that are misguided. Since we seek satisfaction of our desires through that which is imperfect and transitory, our experience of fulfilling desires, even when successful, is always flawed and also will not last. We are subsequently doomed to suffer and remain entangled in samsara. The Buddha did not believe that the observation of the first two truths was a form of pessimism, but rather simply an observation of a fact of Nature.
The third and fourth truths may be called the ‘good news’ or ‘positive’ truths – the truths of nirvana, just as the first two are the ‘bad news’ or the ‘negative’ truths – the truths of samsara. The third Noble Truth is the pointing out that we are not doomed, therefore, to inevitable suffering. There is an alternative – nirvana. Nirvana is the state of transcendence of suffering. It is a state of perfect transcendence of the illusion of separation, and therefore of ego, desire, suffering, disease and death. The Buddha taught that it was possible to realize nirvana here and now, in this human life.
The fourth Noble Truth is the Buddha’s identification of a path to nirvana. If ordinary living is doomed to involve suffering, how must we live and think to come to nirvana? The Buddha’s answer to this is called the Noble Eightfold Path – a set of guidelines for conduct, motivation, perspective and meditation that would lead the sincere practitioner to nirvana. The are: Right Action, Right Speech, Right Livelihood, Right View, Right Intentions, Right Effort, Right Concentration and Right Mindfulness.
See also Buddha, Nirvana, Samsara, Duhkha, Separation, Awakening, Buddhism.

Free Will – The experience of having the capacity to use higher intelligence to reflect on a situation or condition (rather than reacting instinctually), to exercise self-control to inhibit unconscious reactivity or the unexamined influences of our past or environment, and to make a conscious choice about how one wishes to direct one’s attention and energy in thought and action. The experience of ‘free will’, or conscious intentionality, is at the very foundation of spiritual practice and gives the ability, along with grace, to overcome karma and direct the course of one’s evolution. And, as conscious or free will is based on our individualization, our experience of self-awareness and individuality, it gives a sense of personal or individual responsibility for our choices as well. Recognition of the principle of free will also calls us to honor the freedom of others to choose for themselves. We do not have the right to violate another’s freedom or ‘self authority’.
The experience of ‘freedom’ of will or intention is a relative experience. That is, it is experienced as a result of contrast with other states. From a nondual perspective (an Absolute or non-relative ‘view’), free will is part of the relative universe and has only a limited experiential meaning. It does not have an absolute meaning. In the liberated state (sahaja samadhi), one moves beyond issues and experiences of ‘free will’ or ‘determinism’ or karma. This movement beyond is called ‘the Great Death’, the ‘Crucifixion/Resurrection’, ‘entering the great non-action’, or ‘merging with the Divine Will’ or the Tao. Yet the use of ‘free will’ or spiritual intention is an essential ingredient to spiritual awakening, a foundational ‘tool’, which is then transcended upon attaining Self-Realization or entering nondual realization. See also Sahaja Samadhi, Practice, Grace, Nondualism, Presence, Divine Will.

God – Used with a wide variety of meanings, the definitions of God may be reduced to two general areas – God as the impersonal, transcendent or nondual reality, and God as a personal Divine Presence. In the case of the latter, in some theologies God is the Supreme and Absolute Being who is Creator of the universe and has various additional characteristics such as justice, mercy and compassion. In other cosmologies, this universal personal Deity is more like a cosmic teacher or savior. In Agni Yoga, the term God is sometimes used in the impersonal, nondual sense, and sometimes in the personal. When used in the more personal sense, the term God is used to refer to the universal teacher/savior rather than designating a supreme Creator. See also Adi-Buddha, Ishvara, Deity, Christ Logos, Agni, Brahman, Tao, Nirvana, Deity, Absolute.

Grace – In Nature, evolution proceeds according to natural rhythms. The lives of the nature kingdoms and unconscious human beings evolve and grow conditioned by the laws of karma, the working out of causes in their effects, learning from these experiences that leads to new causes (desires) and new effects and further learning, and so on. There are two forces that allow individuals to rise above natural evolution, accelerate growth and modify the working out of karma, eventually leading to liberation. These are conscious intention (taking the form of individual practice) and grace. The latter is the expression of the activity of a relatively more transcendent source of empowerment and support which enters into the life and being of an individual (or group, planet, etc.) and stimulates evolution and awakening. In one school of Buddhism these two forces are called ‘self power’ and ‘other power’. ‘Self power’ is the capacity of the individual to consciously influence his or her own evolution (spiritual practice), and ‘other power’ is grace. Grace can take many forms such as contact with spiritual teachings and instruction in practice through literature, oral teachings and personal example, and direct transmission of spiritual energy and realization directly from a teacher to a student. Direct transmission is sometimes also referred to by such terms as initiation and empowerment.
Grace, considered generally, can flow from many sources. The view in Agni Yoga is that the fact of being able to incarnate in a human form, provided by Nature, is one of our most profound sources of grace. Our family and culture in general offers various transmissions that may support our awakening. And, of course, some of the most important sources of grace are spiritual lineages and teachers, and ultimately the Universal Self or Primordial Buddha. There are specific forms of practice that are aimed at invoking grace, or establishing contact with sources of grace. Such practices emphasize qualities like appreciation, refuge, devotion, surrender, invocation and faith. See Free Will, Practice, Initiation, Teachers, Guru, Guru Yoga, Lineage Yoga, Human Idea.

Guru – A Sanskrit term literally meaning ‘weighty one’ – one whose words are given great weight. The term guru is traditionally reserved for a spiritual teacher recognized as having achieved an advanced stage of enlightenment, and whose dharma includes initiating and guiding others on the path. Understandings of what constitutes adequate realization or liberation for one to be considered a guru seem to vary from one tradition to another, but most uses of the term seem to imply someone of at least the third initiation. In profound guru yoga, the practice of emphasizing the guru as the primary means of spiritual development, the guru serves as a living manifestation of the Divine or a manifestation of Self-realization, giving personification and accessibility to the transcendent Reality. Guru-disciple relationships can take various forms, but many traditions believe that a strong connection between a student and an authentic teacher is one of the most important elements of an effective spiritual path. Some traditions, such as Tibetan Buddhism, recognize the validity of having more than one guru, while others emphasize loyalty to one. The guru not only serves as a role model and instructor in teachings and practices, by also serves as an initiator, transmitting spiritual energy and realization directly to the disciple. The guru(s) need not have a physical form, many people having teachers in the inner worlds, which their physical self may or may not be aware of. The majority of individuals on the spiritual path will awaken most efficiently and safely by having one or more physical teachers in addition to the inner teachers they may have. See Initiation, Guru Yoga, Teachers.

Guru Yoga – A form of practice using the guru or spiritual teacher as the focus of the practice. Forms of guru yoga may range from the practice of cultivating respect and appreciation for the guru, to performing service for the guru, to surrendering to the guru’s will, to meditation on the guru in order to invoke grace, to seeking to merge one’s being in the enlightened presence of the guru. Some traditions make guru yoga the central or only practice. The practice of guru yoga, especially in some of its forms, is controversial. Being widely recognized as being a profoundly powerful path when engaged in a mature and authentic form, it likewise is strongly prone to abuse and can be powerfully damaging when misused. Subsequently, in some traditions that strongly emphasize guru yoga, such as Tibetan Buddhism, it is recommended that one use great caution in selecting a guru, and some, like the 14th Dalai Lama, have suggested that guru yoga is an advanced practice that is not suitable for beginners. The two main issues that clash in the controversy over guru yoga is that on the one hand many people experience and observe that the practice of guru yoga can be a profoundly effective dimension of spiritual practice, whereas on the other hand, we so commonly see abuses of the guru-disciple relationship that one can certainly wonder whether the good outweighs the harm. Clearly we are entering a time when heightened awareness of these issues can lead to a more mature and sophisticated understanding of guru yoga. See Guru, Teachers, Divine Will, Lineage Yoga, Yoga.

Hatha Yoga – the most popular form known to the West. This focuses primarily on the use of postures (asanas) and breathing practices (pranayama) for cleansing karma and maintaining health and vitality. In its deeper implications, hatha yoga is a form of kundalini yoga, aiming to awaken the primordial fire for the purpose of spiritual liberation through an emphasis on technical physical/energetic practices. See also Tantric Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, Pranayama, Yoga.

Hierarchy – From the Greek; hier- meaning ‘holy’ or ‘sacred’, and arch having various meanings including ‘ruler’ or ‘principle’ – therefore a ‘holy order of rulers or principles’. The term hierarchy is used in a variety of ways. Often the term is applied to an order of ruling or governing beings such as a church hierarchy or the Judeo-Christian concept of a system of spiritual rulership in the cosmos populated with spiritual beings such as Archangels. In various traditions around the world it is believed that there is a group of beings associated with the Earth, including some who are in human incarnation, who form the spiritual ‘hierarchy’ of our planet. In the Sufi tradition, advanced members of this group are called ‘Sufis’ (regardless of what spiritual tradition they may be outwardly associated with). Other terms that have been used for this group are ‘Enlightened Bodhisattvas and Buddhas’ (Buddhism); Mahatmas, Gurus, Avatars, Siddhas (‘Perfected Ones’) and other terms from Hinduism; the ‘Immortals’ (Taoism); the ‘Righteous Ones’ (Judaism); The Elder Brothers (Rosicrucianism); and various other terms.
From a more organic point of view, we can see the existence of hierarchy as related to the experience of ‘elders’. In many or most traditional cultures, the concept of human elders was and is seen as an integral element of human experience, for the older generations embody the wisdom of greater experience, and so form a guiding principle and serve to sustain and educate younger generations. If we extend this idea beyond incarnated generations, as many cultures do, and expand it into a larger spiritual context, then the greater nonphysical spiritual powers that have a creative, protective, guiding, healing and enlightening presence, not only in human culture but in the universe at large, can be seen as simply participants in an eternal chain of relationships, or generations of beings extending into infinity, the cultural, human, planetary and cosmic ‘elders’. This is a basic meaning of hierarchy, the spiritual chain of being.
From a functional and qualitative point of view, the spiritual hierarchy or ‘elders’ of the Earth, and of the cosmos, has a feminine and masculine subdivision. We may speak of the feminine lineage and the masculine lineage of the spiritual hierarchy. Humans, in general, are a creation or offspring of the spiritual activity or creativity of these two lineages – male and female. This hierarchy of spiritual beings exercises a beneficent influence over not only the spiritual traditions and activity of the Earth, but also over human culture in general, and over the evolution of the nature kingdoms as well. See also Initiation, Kingdoms, Bodhisattvas, Buddhas, Guru, Trans-Himalayan School.

Higher Self – A term used in various ways in different teachings. In Agni Yoga used synonymously with ‘soul’. See also Soul, Spirit, Atman, Permanent Personality, Personality, Self.

Hindrances – Synonymous with: vices, limitations, fetters, obstructions and similar terms. The most essential hindrances or obstructions to spiritual awakening are generally considered to be ignorance and egotism. In a spiritual context, the term ego is generally used with a broader connotation than normal to mean the false concept of a separate self. ‘Ignorance’, at its root, can be understood as the delusion of a separate self, or the misunderstanding of oneself as separate from God, being incomplete, needing something outside of oneself, being imperfect or other related implications of primary separation. This is the original ‘fall’, which was not a mistake or sin against a Deity, but instead was the emergence of a misunderstanding. Other hindrances evolve out of this basic condition of ‘ignorance/ego’ such as desire, aversion, judgment, pride, inferiority, boredom, attachment, confusion, doubt, restlessness, ambition, greed, materialism and so on. We may consider the central or primary hindrances to spiritual realization to be ignorance, ego, desire and aversion. These are all interdependent, and all the others are variations on these, or arise out of them. See also Ego, Separation, Quality, Seven Factors of Enlightenment.

Hinduism – See Sanatana-Dharma

Holy Spirit – Identical to Shakti in the Tantrism of India, the Holy Spirit is the Christian term for the dynamic, creative aspect of Relativity, which is seen in some cosmologies (such as Daskalos’) as being in polar relationship to the Christ Logos (equivalent to Shiva), which is the passive principle of consciousness. The Holy Spirit is the principle of movement, energy, phenomena, expression, power and dynamism. It is the creative force of Nature and gives rise, through the activity of a vast hierarchy of intelligences (the Archangels or Devas), to all the forms of Nature, physical and subtle. Our bodies are Holy Spiritual in nature, just as our souls are Logoic. In Agni Yoga, although we are comfortable with equating the Holy Spirit and Shakti, we do not prefer to use the term Christ Logos (or Christ Presence, Spirit, etc.) as meaning the same as Shiva or the Universal Masculine. In our terminology, the Christ Logos or Christ Spirit is a fusion of masculine and feminine. See also Archangel, Christ Logos, Body(s), Elements, Shakti, Shiva.

Human Idea – Term coined by Daskalos referring to the essential spiritual Idea (much like a Platonic Idea) or archetype of the human being. This Idea or Divine Pattern exists in the formless, unmanifest planes of universal Being. It is similar to what some Theosophists would call the ‘monad’, or monadic essence, and exists on the second plane of consciousness. A ray of spirit must ‘pass through’ this archetype or Idea in order to individualize as a human being and begin the process of human incarnation. Seeded in the Human Idea are all stages of the human cycle of life, including before and after incarnation, all stages of human reincarnation or soul evolution, and all possible forms of human expression on this and other worlds. The Human Idea is the essence or seed Idea of humanness in all its forms and potentials. In Agni Yoga, this Idea is seen as having been created by the Universal Christ or Adi (Primordial) Buddha offering a form of experience – human reincarnation and evolution – as an opportunity for greatly accelerated spiritual evolution. See also Archangels, Ideas, Grace, Planes of Consciousness, Christ Logos.

Ida Nadi – Sanskrit term for one of the three main nadis or etheric channels in the etheric body and running along the spine from the root center to the left nostril. The ida nadi is the lunar channel, and is related to the solar or pingala nadi. See Pingali Nadi, Sushumna Nadi, Nadi(s), Etheric Body.

Ideas – When capitalized, ‘Ideas’ refers to the transcendent archetypes and principles as realized in the Universal Mind. The term ‘Ideas’ is used in much the same sense as Platonic Ideas. This notion is different from the notion of ‘ideas’ as experienced by the ordinary intellect. Intellectual ideas are but pale reflections of the universal Ideas knowable through intuition and spiritual realization. These Ideas form part of the underlying matrix of the manifest universes. Ideas exist beyond time and space, as potentials and building blocks of manifestation. They may be considered part of the ‘unmanifest’, when viewed relative to the worlds of form or manifestation. They exist in the realms of Beingness and Universal Consciousness, and all that exists in the worlds of form are shadow reflections of combinations of these transcendent Ideas. Examples of Ideas and Archetypes in this realm are Time, Space, Number (Oneness, Duality, Trinity, etc.), Beingness, Humanness, Movement, the Seven Elements, Love, Harmony, etc.
There are various planes on which these Ideas exist, the more expansive being where those Ideas which are more unifying or encompassing have their being, and the more ‘concrete’ planes being those where Ideas begin combining to form a greater diversity of Archetypes, Principles and Potentials. All of these are still ‘formless’, in that although the Ideas of Space, Time and Form exist there, they have not yet combined and emanated into the realms of particular expressions of these universal archetypes. It is analogous to the difference between a universal category like ‘tree’, and the concrete expression of a specific tree. Incarnate in all trees everywhere and in all times is the underlying Idea of a ‘tree’, the soul or essence of ‘treeness’. The Idea of ‘tree’ does not have a location in time and space, as does the specific tree. The Idea of essential ‘treeness’ is formless and exists in the realm of universals, whereas the specific tree also has a form and exists or is manifested in the realm of particulars. All that exists in form is based on, or emanates from, the realm of universals, of soul or spirit. Ideas are part of the basic structure or ‘content’ of the formless realms of soul. The nondual reality is the essence of both the realm of universals and particulars. Ideas may be directly perceived by spiritual intuition and higher forms of realization. Direct perception of Ideas brings illumination, bliss, rapture, clarity, expansion and a profound sense of unity. See also Intuition, Principle, Soul, Laws, Archetype, Form, Formless, Elements.

Ignorance – In Agni Yoga, fundamental ignorance or ‘the essential misunderstanding’ is considered to be the belief in a distinction between oneself, the universe and the Absolute. Ignorance is the experience of separation or dualism. This ‘belief’ or experience is not just intellectual. It subtly conditions even the higher self or soul, and is only fully overcome by nondual awakening. Although only radically transcended in nondual awakening or Self-realization, ignorance and separation are gradually overcome by increasing cultivation of spiritual qualities such as love, wisdom, equanimity, contentment, joy, discipline, devotion and concentration.
The misunderstanding of oneself as separate is the core illusion or ignorance that gives rise to desire and suffering, disease, birth and death. Over the core of primary ignorance, layers of secondary and tertiary misunderstanding develop so that we can speak of other, less primary forms of ignorance. Yet these have their root cause in the illusion of separation. See also Suffering, Separation, Nondual, Presence, Awakening.

Impermanence – Called anitya in Sanskrit and anicca (pronounced ‘aneecha’) in Pali, the view of impermanence or transitoriness is the recognition that everything that is part of the conditional universe (which includes all seven planes of consciousness), is subject to time (of some form) and therefore has a beginning, and period of existence and then comes to an end. ‘That which begins must end’ is the law of time, the cycle of life. One of the profound insights of the Buddha was that even the Atman or spiritual essence is ultimately part of the relative or conditional universe and so, too, is ultimately impermanent. Nirvana, or the nondual Absolute, is the only reality that is unconditioned, ‘permanent’ and therefore free of suffering. See also Nirvana, Planes of Consciousness, No-self, Duhkha.

Initiation – Initiation has several meanings in Agni Yoga. One general meaning is the process of transmission of spiritual energy and consciousness from teachers and lineages to students. This can take place in many forms including oral and written teachings about spiritual theory and practice, the ‘arrangement’ of teaching situations and opportunities for training and learning, and direct transmission of spiritual energy and realization. This process of transmission can be referred to in many ways including teachings, empowerment, grace and shakti-pata. Initiation serves to awaken the aspiration and will of the individual, empower practice and generally stimulate transformation and awakening. Sources of initiation or transmission may be physical or non-physical, human or non-human. Non-human and ‘trans-human’ sources may include archangels, liberated buddhas and bodhisattvas and Deities such as the Christ Logos or Tara.
Another more specific but related meaning of initiation is in making reference to certain major transitions in an individual’s spiritual evolution. These may be called the arya-marga or the ‘noble or holy path’ (Buddhism), ‘stations of the soul’ (Sufism), the sapta-jnana-bhumi or ‘seven stages of wisdom’ (Vedanta), and similar terms. Each of these, and many similar systems, identifies the major stages on the path of spiritual growth. The various stages are each related to a fundamental transition, a major cycle of spiritual death and rebirth. And each of these stages is also related to one of the major elements, bodies, chakras, planes and so on. For instance, the first major initiation relates to the root chakra, the physical plane and body, and the earth element (to indicate a few correlations). These stages of initiation are deep cycles of purification, transformation and enlightenment, and the process of passing through several of these initiations generally take place over the course of numerous lifetimes.
Agni Yoga recognizes a cycle of five initiations culminating in liberation from personal ego and karma, and another cycle of five (5 – 9) which may be called the path of advanced bodhisattvahood, culminating in planetary ‘mastery’ or perfected buddhahood (the 5th initiation is both the culmination of the first cycle, and the first stage of the next cycle). The turning point of each of these initiations (a ‘satori’ or non-linear moment of awakening) is also a time of receiving a powerful moment of transmission from an initiating source, although this process may take place primarily in subtler dimensions and so be outside of the awareness of the physical self. The corresponding names or related stages or concepts from various traditions are listed here:

1st – The Stream-enterer (Buddhism), Birth of the Christ, Awakening, Station of the Heart (Sufi)
2nd – The Once-returner (Buddhism), The Baptism, Station of the Soul (Sufi)
3rd – The Non-returner (Buddhism), Transfiguration, Station of Divine Secrets (Sufi)
4th – The Arhat (Buddhism), Crucifixion/Resurrection, Station of Nearness to Allah (Sufi)
5th – 1st Planetary Initiation, Mastery, Station of Union with Allah (Sufi); those of this stage and beyond are also called ‘Sufis’ or awliya, liberated bodhisattvas (Buddhism), jivanmuktis or Siddhas (Hinduism), Sants (Sikhism) and so on.
6th – 2nd Planetary Initiation, Senior Lineage Holders and Bodhisattvas
7th – 3rd Planetary Initiation, Highest Bodhisattvas
8th – 4th Planetary Initiation, Buddhahood, Planetary Arhatship
9th – 5th Planetary Initiation, Full Planetary Mastery

The following is an overview of the first five stages of initiation, with some indications of the focus that tends to be most prominent at each level. Of course, because each person has individual traits as well as there being differences between various paths, aspects of each persons experience of the each stage vary to some extent. Yet underlying these differences is a somewhat universal pattern that we seek to outline briefly below:

Initiation Element Plane Qualities and Characteristics
1st Birth Earth Physical Practice, Discipline, Karma Yoga, Self-
7th Ray control, Physical Equanimity & Purification,
Physical opening and transformation.
Breaking through identification with the physical body - establishing foundation of spiritual practice and dharmic behavior. The foundations of Agni Yoga include this and the 2nd initiation.

2nd Baptism Water Emotional Aspiration, Devotion, Love, Emotional
6th Ray Equanimity, Heart, Bhakti and Tantric/
Transformational Yogas may be emphasized.
Breaking though identification with the emotional/desire level - depending on approach, devotion, love and aspiration may deepen, and tantric approaches are now more suitable.

3rd Transfiguration Air Mental Mental Equanimity, Profound
5th Ray Concentration, Power, Clarity, Knowledge,
Integration, End of Physical Karma, Jnana,
Raja and Tantric Yogas applicable.
Breaking through identification with the mental body - bringing deep intuitive opening. Direct nondual contemplation and path of self-surrender now accessible. Karma Yoga perfected. Tantric practices still relevant in meditative and daily practices. Deeper stages of Agni Yoga.

4th Arhat Fire Intuitive Intuitive Equanimity, Wu-wei, Profound
4th Ray (Higher Buddhic) Love and Wisdom, Selflessness, Rigpa
(Dzogchen), Christ-consciousness, Sahaja
Samadhi, End of Emotional/Astral Karma
Jnana Yoga, Tantra, Agni Yoga.
Breaking identification with the intuitive, spiritual self (soul or discriminating self) - leading to constant God-consciousness, whether on path of nondual awareness or Divine Presence, or both. Activity arises as wu-wei (Taoism), or ‘choiceless action’ spontaneously arising in harmony with Spirit.

5th Realization Akasha Atman Self-Realization, Absorption in Trans-
(Etheric) human Beingness, Nondual Consciousness,
3rd Ray Mastery, Completion of Human Karma,
Siddhas (Perfected Beings), Body of Light
(Dzogchen).
Exhaustion of mental karma, culminating the process of complete transcendence of personality/ego identification. If this level is fully integrated with the physical body, it results in the ‘Body of Light’ or ‘Great Transfer’, the transformation of the material elements into their inner essences. Therefore, those attaining the 5th or higher stages of initiation whose dharma is to remain in physical incarnation must not fully integrate this initiation or level of realization into their physical body (hence the notion of advanced bodhisattvahood as a sacrifice).
See also Grace, Arhat, Body(s), Self-Realization, Wu-wei, Planes of Consciousness, Elements.

Integral Path – An approach to spiritual development working with the fullness of human nature and spiritual potential, rather than focusing on working with a more limited spectrum of potentials or facets. Examples of integral paths include Taoism, Tibetan Buddhism, Hindu Raja Yoga and Tantric/Kundalini Yogas, and Sri Aurobindo’s Purna Yoga. The increasingly common use of the term ‘integral’ when referring to a spiritual path or yoga probably derives from Aurobindo’s usage, which has also been adapted by Ken Wilber to describe his and similar approaches. Agni Yoga is another example of an integral approach. See Agni Yoga, Raja Yoga, Purna Yoga, Tantric Yoga, Yoga.

Intuition – The experience of direct understanding or realization without the use of the intellect, emotions or the senses (whether physical or psychic senses). Intuition is a mode of relationship and insight that transcends the dualism of mind and sense, giving the capacity to commune with a thing or being and know them from deep identification and attunement. Intuition is sometimes used synonymously with psychic abilities such as clairvoyance or telepathy, but psychic sensitivities are still based on the dualistic sensory modes of the subtler bodies (even though being less dualistic than physical senses), and therefore they do not represent the true spiritual understanding that is the deeper meaning of ‘intuition’. Although intuition may accompany or inform the intellect, symbols, words, sensory and psychic experience, and emotion, it is essentially formless in nature and is not dependent on any of these for its functioning.
Intuition is at the heart of spiritual development, and its gradual unfoldment brings a growing experience of love, wisdom, clarity, equanimity, peace and ultimately nondual illumination. The term ‘intuition’ is synonymous with prajna, gnosis, supermind (Aurobindo), buddhi (Hindu), noetic experience (Daskalos) and the ananda-maya-kosa (Vedanta). See also Planes of Consciousness, Body(s), Buddhi, Kosas, Psychic Abilities.

Intuitive Body – Although not having a three-dimensional shape