Sanskrit has a number of letters representing the English ' s '. Where the pronunciation of the ' s ' in the Sanskrit is as sh, as in English she, this will be indicated: where not indicated the pronunciation is an ordinary 's' as in English sat. Sanskrit also has a number of aspirated letters indicated with an `h' following the consonant. When these combinations of letters occur, the reader is advised to separate the two consonants in pronunciation to gain a more accurate sound: thus artha ' wealth ' is art (as in English art) plus ha (as in English have). The particular sound th as in English that or theatre should be avoided. Sanskrit consonants carry the vowel ' a ' with them, which is why translated Sanskrit words have so many ' a ' s in them, like Mahabharata. This ' a ' is normally more like the ' u ' in the English word but. Where this is not so, diacritical marks are usually added in transliteration to indicate a change of sound. The text of the book does not contain these indicators but the reader will acquire a nearer pronunciation by using a `u' sound rather than the long ' a ' as in father.
 
     adharma contrary to what is right; evil. Of dharma. Aditi Vedic goddess, the `mother' of the gods. Adityas Vedic sun deities, offspring of Aditi. advaita non-dualism. Agamas mystical scriptures pertaining to specific Hindu sects such as Vaisnavaites or Saivites. Agni Vedic god of fire. ahimsa non-violence. amma mother, a compound often used in the names of female  goddesses. amratva a nectar which was believed to bestow immorrality. Ananda bliss; the bliss of union with Brahman. Aranyakas forest writings; mystical Vedic treatises which prefigure much 
Vedantic thought. Arjun one of the sons of Pandu and the main (human) character of the Bbagavad Gitrs. artha wealth and social status. arti act of worship celebrating light. Aryans migrant invaders of India from approximately 1500 BCE. asat non-being, that is to say the unreality of the world as opposed to the true Being (sat) which is Brahman. asram (pronounced ashram) place of quiet and solitude, often in a forest, where a Hindu sage Iives alone or with his disciples. asrams (pronounced ashramas) the four stages of life in Hinduism. asvamedha (pronounced ashvamedha) probably the most prestigious of  Vedic sacrificial rites. 
 
     Atharva Veda ' Knowledge of Incantations ', one of the four Vedas. Atman the presence of Brahman as the deepest essence of the self in all entities; a synonym of Brahman. Aum the sacred sound and symbol which represents Brahman in its unmanifest and manifest aspects. avatars literally ' descents ', the incarnations of Visnu and his consort Laksmi.' avidya ignorance. Bhagavad Gita Hindu scripture dated to approximately the first two centuries BCE. Bhajans hymns in praise of a deity. bhakta ardent devotee of a deity who expresses loving-devotion to the divine. Bhakti ecstatic loving-devotion to the divine. bhakti marga the path of devotion. Bindi mark worn on the centre of the forehead to show that a woman is married. Brahma Creator God. Brahmachari young boy at the first of the four stages of life, the stage of the student. Brahman the impersonal. Absolute of Hinduism which is the source of all manifest existence and which is present in all things as their deepest essence or atman. Brahmanas manuals of instruction on the Vedas. Brahmin a priest ana member of the most prestigious of the four classes of Hinduism. Chela disciple and student of a guru. cit the Pure Consciousness equated with moksa when the egoistic self is lost. Dalit person outside the class system of Hinduism who was formerly termed an Untouchable.

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