Cosmic principleUltimate reality underlying existence in Vedantic discourse
Brahman
Brahman — Ultimate reality underlying existence in Vedantic discourse; distinct from the creator Brahma.
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The divine
Characters & Cosmic Entities.
Beings, divine forms, sages and epic figures. The editorial power roster contains 720 ranked entries.
929 Characters · 929 Ranked Beings
Open Advanced ExplorerCosmic principle
Cosmic principleSupreme Self or indwelling divine presence
Paramatman
Paramatman — Supreme Self or indwelling divine presence; its relation to Brahman and personal deity depends on school.
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Cosmic principleTerm for the personal divine or Lord possessing fullness of divine excellences
Bhagavan
Term for the personal divine or Lord possessing fullness of divine excellences; not a single universally separate person.
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Cosmic principleLord or governing divine principle
Ishvara
Lord or governing divine principle; identity and status vary by philosophical and devotional tradition.
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Cosmic principlePrimordial Shakti understood as the source of divine power
Adi Shakti
Primordial Shakti understood as the source of divine power, especially in Shakta traditions.
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Cosmic principleGreat divine power or Shakti
Mahashakti
Great divine power or Shakti; frequently overlaps with Adi Shakti and Mahadevi rather than constituting a separate being.
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Cosmic principleCosmic Person in Vedic imagery and conscious principle in Samkhya
Purusha
Cosmic Person in Vedic imagery and conscious principle in Samkhya; distinguish these meanings.
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Cosmic principlePrimordial nature or material principle
Prakriti
Primordial nature or material principle; relationship to divinity and consciousness differs across philosophical schools.
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Cosmic principlePower of manifestation or appearance
Maya
Power of manifestation or appearance; meanings include divine potency and the conditions of misapprehension.
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Cosmic principleCosmic time
Kala
Cosmic time, sometimes personified; distinguish time as principle from particular divine forms.
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Cosmic principleCosmic and ethical order
Dharma
Cosmic and ethical order; distinct uses include a principle and a personified deity.
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Cosmic principleCosmic Intelligence
Mahat
Mahat is the great principle of cosmic intelligence: the first differentiation of Prakriti in the creation sequence described by the Vishnu Purana and Samkhya. It makes ordered manifestation possible before Ahamkara, the senses and the elements emerge.
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Cosmic principleThe Principle of Individuation
Ahamkara
Ahamkara is the principle of individuation or I-making. In Samkhya and related Puranic creation accounts, it develops from Mahat and supports the differentiation of sensory faculties and material elements. Its meaning is wider than ordinary pride or vanity.
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Cosmic principleThe Faculties of Perception and Action
Indriyas
The Indriyas are the faculties through which embodied beings perceive and act. Samkhya’s elevenfold group comprises five perceptive faculties, five active faculties and Manas, the mind that coordinates both. They form a distinct development from Ahamkara alongside the five Tanmatras.
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Cosmic principleThe Five Subtle Qualities
Tanmatras
The Tanmatras are the five subtle principles of sound, touch, visible form, taste and smell. In Samkhya and related Puranic accounts, they emerge through Ahamkara and provide the subtle basis from which the five gross elements develop.
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Cosmic principleSpace, Air, Fire, Water and Earth
Pancha Mahabhutas
The Pancha Mahabhutas are the five gross elements: Akasha, Vayu, Tejas or Agni, Apas, and Prithvi—space, air, fire, water and earth. They are the differentiated elemental constituents of the embodied world in Samkhya and Puranic cosmology.
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Cosmic principleGolden embryo or germ associated with cosmic emergence
Hiranyagarbha
Golden embryo or germ associated with cosmic emergence; later identifications vary.
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Cosmic principleThe Manifested Cosmic Universe
Brahmanda
Brahmanda is the cosmic egg: the enclosed, manifested universe described in Puranic cosmology. Mountains, oceans, worlds, celestial bodies and living beings belong within it, while successive enclosing layers place the formed cosmos within a larger account of creation.
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