Sanskrit Articles at Sutra Journal

Sanskrit Articles

What is Dharma?

August, 2015 by Pankaj Seth

What is Dharma? There is Hindu Dharma. There is Buddha Dharma. The root of Dharma means ‘support’, so Dharma is ‘that which supports’. Dharma refers to teachings and a way of life which support what the Rg Veda calls ‘Rta’ or ‘Rtam’. The words ‘rhythm' and 'ritual' are derived from ‘Rta’. The movement of the stars, the ﬂowing of rivers and seasonal and biological rhythms are all aspects of Rta. Rta is the cosmic order observed with the senses, discerned through reason, and directly known... read more

The Flowering of Freedom: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Part Six

June, 2016 by Richard Miller

Enlightenment is supported by our ability to maintain sustained intention and attention for recognizing our underlying and unchanging Essential Nature. The tendency of the mind to get involved with, and distracted by changing phenomena (vikṣepaḥ) needs to shift so that we are able to sustain self-inquiry (antarāyaḥ), no matter what else may be arising in the body, mind, or world. read more

Sanskrit in Croatia: From Sarasvati to Hrvati

November, 2015 by James Cooper

For most of the Croatian people (or as they call themselves, Hrvati) when it comes to defining their origins and tracing their ancient roots they turn towards the land of Iran and Persia. According to academia the name Hrvat comes from Hrovat which comes from the Slavic Horvat which originates from the Indo/Slavic Harvat and which is ultimately traced to Persia and the name Harahvaiti. read more

The Love Song of Devi and Bhairava

December, 2015 by Lorin Roche

Your heart is a free and open space, always pulsating with the mantra of life itself. The most intimate core of your being is a temple, luscious like a flower, with gorgeous colors, shapes, scent, nectar flowing. Meditate here. Here is treasure - everything you love, everything you long for is here. Bathe in this splendor. This is your essence. Drink of this elixir and be happy, listen to the primordial mantra of your being and melt into god consciousness. read more

Beloved I am Listening: Reflections on the Vijnana Bhairava Tantra

January, 2016 by Lorin Roche

The Bhairava Tantra is a conversation between The Goddess Who is the Creative Power of the Universe, and the God who is the Consciousness That Permeates Everywhere. For short, they call each other Devi and Bhairava, or Shakti and Shiva. They are lovers and inseparable partners, and one of their favorite places of dwelling is in the human heart. read more

A Hippie in Bhairava’s Clothing: the dangers of cultural appropriation

March, 2016 by Christopher Wallis

When spiritual practitioners who are not also trained intellectuals attempt any kind of translation or re-rendering of a foreign work (especially one from the ‘mystic East’), they often read into the text what they wish to find there, while being unable to see that they are doing so, because of lack of both linguistic competence and lack of historical awareness. read more

Abhinavagupta's Maṅgala verse No. 2 (video talk) from Parātrīśikā Vivaraṇa & Tantrāloka 13 103-107

May, 2016 by Boris Marjanovic

Boris Bhāskara Marjanovic, the eminent Kashmiri Shaiva scholar, shines a light on the verses from Abhnavagupta's Tantrāloka and Parātrisika Vivaraņa. (Video) read more

Flowering of Freedom: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Part Five

May, 2016 by Richard Miller

Dr. Miller has translated several classical Indian texts from Sanskrit into English. This is the fifth part of Richard's translation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, along with his rich insights and incisive commentary. read more

Pāṇini and Bharata on Grammar and Art

May, 2016 by Subhash Kak

What could Pāṇini, perhaps the greatest grammarian of all time, have to do with Bharata Muni and his theories of art, drama and music? But speaking of grammar in the same breath as art is not as incongruous as one thinks when it is noted that both language and creations of art are governed by rules and conventions. read more

Sanskrit in the Mughal Court

December, 2015 by Vikram Zutshi and Audrey Truschke

Audrey Truschke’s work concerns literary and historical interactions between members of the Sanskrit and Persian traditions in Mughal India. Her current project investigates the literary, social, and political history of Sanskrit as it thrived in the Mughal courts from 1560 to 1650. read more

The Flowering of Freedom: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Part Four

March, 2016 by Richard Miller

In this chapter, Richard Miller presents further six sutras from Patañjali's YS, which differentiate ever subtler states of meditation that enable us to go beyond what normally binds attention (prakṛti), in order to attain a glimpse of Essential Nature (puruṣa) and the flowering of freedom from suffering. read more

The Flowering of Freedom: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Part Three

February, 2016 by Richard Miller

Dr. Miller has translated several classical Indian texts from Sanskrit into English. This is the third part of Richard's translation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, along with his rich insights and incisive commentary, published here as a four part series. read more

The Flowering of Freedom: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Part Two

January, 2016 by Richard Miller

Dr. Miller has translated several classical Indian texts from Sanskrit into English. In the last issue we published a seminal text of Advaita Vedanta - Drg-Drsya-Viveka: An Inquiry into the Nature of the Seer and the Seen. We now bring you part two of Richard's translation of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras four part series along with his rich insights and incisive commentary. read more

Light on the Language of Yoga — Variances in Sanskrit Pronunciation

October, 2015 by Yogi Baba Prem Yogacharya, Veda Visharada

Sanskrit, the language of yoga, is often a mystery to many students of yoga. Yet, it would be correct to say that most students of yoga commonly use Sanskrit terms and the language has permeated the nomenclature of everyday English; as many people are familiar with terms such as OM or Namaste, Guru, Karma or a host of other terms which are from the Sanskrit language. read more

dharma	yoga	tantra
ayruveda	meditation	buddha

Sanskrit Articles

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