| ananda | bliss, tranquillity, serenity |
| Apsara | water-nymph, celestial dancer |
| ashrama | stage in life |
| Asura | subterranean being who hoards wealth |
| atma | soul |
| avatar | incarnation |
| bhakti | passionate devotion |
| bhoga | sensory indulgence |
| chitta | consciousness, spirit, mind |
| daan | charity |
| dakshina | service fee |
| Deva | celestial being who draws and distributes wealth |
| devata | personal deity |
| dharma | order, regulations |
| Gandharva | celestial musicians |
| jiva | living organism |
| jiva-atma | soul of a living organism that is crumpled/knotted |
| kalpa | lifetime of the world |
| kama | desire |
| karma | action and reaction |
| manas | mind |
| Manava | human |
| mantra | potent Vedic chants |
| marga | path or approach |
| maya | delusion; a limited, conditional understanding of the world |
| mithya | relative truth seen through a frame of reference |
| moksha | liberation |
| murti | image |
| nivritti | inward |
| param-atma | soul of god that is uncrumpled/unknotted |
| Prakriti | ever-changing aspect of life, mind and matter |
| pravritti | outward |
| puja | adoration or worship of a deity with flowers, incense and food |
| Purusha | unchanging aspect of life, soul |
| Rakshasa | wild forest spirit who follows the law of the jungle |
| rasa | material fluids |
| Rishi | sage with a deep understanding of Vedic lore |
| samadhi | using spiritual powers to break free from the world |
| samaja | society |
| samhita | collection of chants |
| samsara | the material world that changes constantly |
| samskara | rite of passage |
| sat | absolute truth without a frame of reference |
| shakti | energy, matter |
| shanti | peace |
| sharira | body |
| siddhi | the act of using spiritual powers to change the working of the world |
| Tantra | occult practices based on Vedic understanding of the world |
| tapa | spiritual fire |
| Tapasvin | an ascetic who churns spiritual fire |
| tapasya | practices that churn spiritual fire |
| tat tvam asi | that’s what you are |
| tirtha | pilgrimage to a waterbody: river or lake or tank |
| Upanishad | deliberations and discussions on the Veda |
| varna | station in society |
| Veda | ancient revelations containing timeless truths |
| yagna | invocation of celestial beings through chants and offerings |
| Yaksha | wild forest spirit who guards treasures |
| yantra | potent Tantrik diagrams |
| yatra | journey |
| yoga | sensory discipline |
| Yogi | he who practises yoga |
| yuga | an era in the lifetime of the world |