The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran

glossary ╯
Purushottama “Highest Person,” Supreme Being, God.
rāja yoga “The Royal Path”; the path of meditation taught especially
by Patanjali in the Yoga Sūtras .
rajas See under guna .
Rāma “Prince of Joy,” name of the son of Dasharatha, who was king
of Ayodhyā. Rāma was the famous prince who killed the
evil demon Rāvana to reclaim his wife Sītā. He is regarded
as an incarnation of Vishnu.
Rig Veda The oldest of the four Vedas, the most ancient and sacred
Hindu scriptures.
Rudras A group of gods associated with storm and destruction.
Sometimes the Rudras are mentioned as a group; at other
times they are thought of as a single god, Rudra. In later
Hinduism, Shiva is called Rudra.
sādhana A body of disciplines or way of life which leads to the
supreme goal of Self-realization.
sādhu A holy man, sage.
Sahadeva One of the junior Pāndava brothers.
Sāma Veda The Veda of songs and chants. One of the four Vedas.
samādhi Mystical union with God; a state of intense concentration
in which consciousness is completely unified.
samsāra The world of flux; the round of birth, decay, death and
rebirth.
Sanjaya The sage who divinely perceives what is taking place on the
battlefield and reports it to the blind king Dhritarāshtra.
Sānkhya One of the six branches of Hindu philosophy. Sānkhya
seeks to liberate the individual Purusha (spirit) from
prakriti (mind and matter).
sannyāsa Renunciation.
sat [from as “to be”] The Real; truth; goodness.
sattva See under guna .
satya Truth, truthful; good, the Good.
285 ╯