A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism Klaus K Klostermaie

163 Saögam
holder and forest dweller. Usually the
formal entry into samnyäsa is preceded
by a period of instruction in the particular
customs of a sapradäya (sect) and
solemnly confirmed through an initiation
ceremony (dïk•ä) by the GURU. This
includes stripping and symbolic selfcremation,
the acceptance of a new
name and the transmission of a MANTRA
(3), through which the initiate becomes
a member in the line of succession (guru
paraƒparä). Samnyäsa, while freeing
the initiate from all normal religious
and social obligations, is strictly
regulated by the rules of the yatidharma
(see YATI).
samnyäsi
(fem. samnyäsinï, ‘renouncer’)
Someone who has taken up SAMNYÄSA.
Normally acceptance by a GURU from
an acknowledged order is a prerequisite
for becoming a samnyäsi. However,
there are cases of self-initiation, socalled
svatantra samnyäsis. The number
of samnyäsis and samnyäsinïs in India is
fairly large: estimates range from 7 to
15 million. There are associations of
samnyäsis, such as the Akhila Bhäratïya
Sädhu Samäj, and some Hindu orders
have also begun to accept non-Indians.
saƒpradäya (‘tradition’)
Usage, denomination, sect.
saƒsära
The transient world, the cycle of birth
and rebirth.
saskära (‘sacrament’)
A rite of passage, through which a
Hindu of the three higher VARŒAS
becomes a full member of the community.
While in former times a great number
of saskäras were performed, today
there are mainly four that are important
in the life of a Hindu: birth
(jäta-karma), initiation (upanayana,
investiture with the sacred thread), marriage
(vivaha), and last rites (ÿraddha or
antye•fli). A Hindu who wilfully neglects
the saskäras is no longer a member of
the community.
samudra manthana
See CHURNING OF THE OCEAN.
samvat
A Hindu era, beginning in 57 BCE, a
widely used chronological system in
modern India.
samyama
In PATAÑJALI YOGA, the triad of dhäraæa,
dhyäna and samädhi.
sanätana dharma (‘eternal law’)
A self-designation of ‘Hinduism’ by
Hindus, implying either that the DHARMA
is eternal or that it has been promulgated
by an eternal lawgiver. Many Hindus
derive from this explanation the universal
validity of Hindu dharma for the
whole of humankind and for all of history.
‘Sanätanists’ are those who rigidly
adhere to traditional law.
Sanat-kumära
The most prominent of the four mindborn
sons of BRAHMÄ. (See also
KUMÄRAS.)
Ÿäæõilya (c. 100 CE)
The author of the Chäæõogya Upani-
•ad, of a law book, and of a Bhaktisütra.
Saögam (‘confluence’) (1)
The place near Präyäga (Allähabad)
where the YAMUNÄ flows into the
GA¢GÄ, merging with the (invisible)
SARASVATÏ.