The vocabulary of the sacred.
140 terms, with pronunciation, original script, and etymology where meaningful. Covenant, agape, dharma, tao, jihad, hesed, zazen.
The period of four weeks before Christmas, observed as a time of waiting and preparation.
The Greek word for a self-giving, unconditional love — the love God has for humanity, and the command Christ gives his disciples. Distinguished in classical Greek from eros (desire), philia (friendship), and storge (family affection).
- — Hebrew loving-kindness — the covenantal love of God
- — Hindu devotional love directed at a personal god
- — Islamic 'doing the beautiful' — worship as if seeing God
Non-legalistic rabbinical texts dealing with biblical history, legends, and moral exhortations.
Hebrew for 'the Binding' — the narrative of Genesis 22 in which Abraham prepares to sacrifice Isaac. Read annually at Rosh Hashanah and foundational to Jewish theological reflection on obedience and divine mercy.
The belief in the afterlife, including resurrection, judgment, heaven, and hell.
- — akhira is the Islamic afterlife state; samsara is the Hindu/Buddhist cycle of rebirth that conditions individual lives — both name the destiny-frame beyond the present, though their structures differ
- — akhira is one of the central topoi of Islamic eschatology — paired here as a specific within the broader academic field
- — the Christian Second Coming — judgment-day cousin
The Arabic word for God. Cognate with Hebrew Elohim; used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews before and after Islam. The Qur'an emphasises His oneness (tawhid) and ninety-nine 'most beautiful names'.
- — cognate Hebrew term — both from a Semitic root for 'god'
- — the doctrine of God's absolute oneness
- — the absolute in Hindu metaphysics
- — the Christian Word, sometimes mapped to the divine attribute of speech
The doctrine of non-self, stating that there is no permanent, unchanging soul.
- — directly contrasts the Hindu permanent self
- — Mahayana extends anatta to all phenomena — emptiness
- — anatta-realization is the Theravada path to nirvana
Impermanence, the understanding that all conditioned things are transient.
Writings of uncertain authorship or authenticity, often excluded from the canonical scriptures.
One of the twelve disciples chosen by Jesus to preach the gospel and establish the church.
In early Buddhism, one who has reached nirvana and will not be reborn. In the Mahayana tradition, the arhat is a lesser goal than the bodhisattva, who postpones nirvana to help others.
- — Mahayana contrast — postponed liberation for the sake of all
- — the school that holds up the arhat as the ideal
- — what the arhat has attained
A lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures for spiritual goals.
The true self or soul, distinct from the ego and the physical body.
- — in Advaita they are identical — 'tat tvam asi'
- — the Buddhist denial of an enduring atman
The reconciliation of God and humans through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ.
A 'descent' of a deity into earthly form. In Vaishnavism, Vishnu has ten major avatars including Krishna, Rama, and (often) the Buddha. Not identical to Christian incarnation: avatars are many and episodic.
- — the Christian doctrine — a single, full descent vs. many partial
- — Buddhist saviour-figure with chosen rebirths
- — Abrahamic expected deliverer
A verse of the Quran, often considered a sign or miracle of God.
The eight trigrams used in Taoist cosmology to represent fundamental principles of reality.
A Christian rite of admission and adoption, almost invariably with the use of water, into Christianity.
A Jewish coming-of-age ritual for boys at age thirteen, marking religious responsibility.
Devotional love directed to a personal god — one of the three classical paths the Gita names alongside karma and jnana yoga. Especially prominent in Vaishnavism and central to the later devotional literature of medieval India.
- — Christian self-giving love
- — Hebrew faithful love — covenantal
- — the Islamic mystical path of love-of-God
- — the perfection of worship in Islamic ethics
A being on the path to full Buddhahood who, in Mahayana teaching, vows to postpone final entry into nirvana until all sentient beings can be liberated. Central in Mahayana Buddhism; Theravada gives more weight to the arhat ideal.
- — Theravada contrast — solitary liberation vs. the bodhisattva vow
- — the tradition that elevated the bodhisattva above the arhat
- — Hindu descents of a deity — narratively similar saviour-figures
- — Abrahamic expected deliverer — different metaphysics, similar role
The ultimate, unchanging reality that underlies all existence — the ground of being in Upanishadic thought. Not to be confused with Brahma (the creator god) or Brahmin (the priestly caste). In Advaita Vedanta, identical with the individual Atman (self).
- — in Advaita Vedanta, the inner Self is identical to Brahman
- — the Christian Word/reason underlying creation
- — the unnameable source the Daodejing approaches
- — the one God of Islamic monotheism
- — the Hebrew name of the divine acting in creation
The chief Muslim civil and religious ruler, regarded as the successor of Muhammad.
The authoritative collection of sacred texts recognized by a religious community.
Energy centers within the subtle body, often visualized as spinning wheels of light.
A binding agreement between God and a people. The Noahic covenant with humanity (rainbow), the Abrahamic (circumcision, land), the Mosaic (Sinai, the Law), the Davidic (dynasty), and the New Covenant (the blood of Christ in Christian theology; the Qur'anic mithaq in Islam) are the great covenantal moments of Abrahamic tradition.
- — the commands by which the covenant is kept
- — the Prophet's binding example — Islamic structural parallel
The act of seeing and being seen by a deity or holy person, considered spiritually auspicious.
Virtue or power, the inherent integrity of a thing when aligned with the Tao.
A Sanskrit term spanning 'cosmic law,' 'duty,' 'the teachings of the Buddha,' and 'religion' itself. In Hinduism, the moral order to which a given caste or life-stage must conform. In Buddhism, the truth revealed by the Buddha — the middle term of the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha).
- — both name a divinely-given moral and cosmic order
- — the Way one harmonizes with
- — the rational/ordering principle of the cosmos
- — the path of practice — Jewish 'walking' of the law
Suffering, unsatisfactoriness, or stress, identified as the first Noble Truth.
- — the no-self insight that, with anicca, sees through dukkha
- — the impermanence that conditions dukkha
One of the names of God in the Hebrew Bible, grammatically plural but used with singular verbs when referring to the God of Israel. Genesis 1 uses Elohim throughout; the personal name YHWH first appears in Genesis 2:4 as part of the composite YHWH-Elohim.
- — cognate Semitic term, used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews too
- — the absolute in Hindu metaphysics
- — the grammatical plurality of Elohim has been read as a hint of triunity in some Christian traditions; most modern scholarship classifies it as pluralis excellentiae (majestic plural)
The awakening (bodhi) that ends the cycle of rebirth and suffering — the Buddha's experience under the Bodhi tree. Approached variously through the Eightfold Path (Theravada), the bodhisattva-bhumi (Mahayana), or sudden recognition (Chan/Zen and tantric streams).
- — one who has attained but stays for others
- — the Theravada ideal — one fully awakened
- — the Eastern-Christian deification
- — the goal of awakening
A letter, especially a formal letter, often referring to the New Testament letters written by apostles.
The part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul.
- — Indic alternative to linear eschatology — cyclic instead
- — the figure most eschatologies hinge upon
The central sacrament of Christian worship: the ritual of bread and wine instituted by Christ at the Last Supper. The name is Greek for 'thanksgiving'. Catholic and Orthodox traditions hold that the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ; most Protestant traditions differ.
- — the Last Supper as Passover meal — direct ritual ancestry
- — the table-liturgy that became eucharistic structure
A legal opinion or ruling issued by an Islamic scholar on a specific issue.
A system of laws considered to govern spatial arrangement and harmony with the environment.
The 'good news' of Jesus Christ — both the oral proclamation and the four canonical narratives of his life (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John). From Old English godspel, a translation of Greek euangelion.
The free and unmerited favor of God, manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.
The three fundamental qualities of nature: sattva (purity), rajas (passion), and tamas (inertia).
A report of something the Prophet Muhammad said, did, or approved of. Hadith are second only to the Qur'an as a source for Islamic law and practice; the two most authoritative Sunni collections are those of Bukhari and Muslim.
The pilgrimage to Mecca, required once in the life of every Muslim who is physically and financially able. The fifth of the Five Pillars. Performed in the last month of the Islamic calendar; Umrah is the non-prescribed 'lesser pilgrimage' made at any time.
The collective body of Jewish religious laws derived from the Written and Oral Torah.
- — the path of walking the written Torah
- — Islamic equivalent — the Prophet's way
- — duty and right conduct in Hindu thought
The Hebrew word often translated 'lovingkindness' or 'steadfast love'. Stronger than benevolence: the loyal, covenantal love that acts beyond obligation. A defining attribute of God throughout the Psalms.
- — the closest Christian analogue — self-giving love
- — Hindu devotional love
- — unearned favor — Christian theological term
The 622 CE migration of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina, marking year one of the Islamic calendar. Not the 'flight' — the Prophet departed only after Meccan persecution reached a critical point.
The Book of Changes, an ancient Chinese divination text and classic of Taoist philosophy.
Spiritual excellence, worshiping God as if you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He sees you.
Independent reasoning or effort by a qualified scholar to derive legal rulings from Islamic sources.
Faith or belief in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day.
Beings who have achieved longevity and spiritual transcendence through Taoist practices.
The Christian doctrine that the eternal Son of God took on human nature in the person of Jesus Christ — fully God and fully human. Defined at the Council of Chalcedon (451 CE). Rejected by Islamic theology.
- — Hindu descents — note the differences in scope and number
- — what becomes flesh in Christian theology
- — the relational frame within which Incarnation is understood
The Supreme Lord or personal God, often identified with Vishnu or Shiva in various traditions.
Stories recounting the previous births of the Buddha.
Literally 'striving'. Classical Islamic jurisprudence distinguishes the 'greater jihad' — the internal striving against one's lower self — from the 'lesser jihad,' armed struggle, which is itself tightly circumscribed by rules of proportionality and non-combatant immunity.
Supernatural creatures in Islamic theology made of smokeless fire, possessing free will.
The act of God declaring a sinner righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.
The cube-shaped structure at the heart of the Great Mosque in Mecca, toward which all Muslims pray. Islamic tradition attributes its original construction to Abraham and Ishmael. Circumambulation (tawaf) is a central rite of the Hajj.
A school of thought in Judaism that seeks to explain the relationship between the eternal God and the mortal universe.
Action and its moral fruit. In Hindu and Buddhist thought, the law by which intentional acts shape one's future — in this life or across rebirths. Not fate: karma accrues from chosen action and can be worked out in practice.
- — the cycle that karma propels souls through
- — the Islamic Day of Judgment weighs deeds similarly
- — Islamic divine decree — a contrasting framework for what happens to us
- — where deeds-meet-judgment in every tradition
The self-emptying of Jesus' own will to become entirely receptive to God's will.
A paradoxical question or story used in Zen Buddhism to provoke insight beyond rational analysis. Example: 'What is the sound of one hand clapping?' The tradition arose in Chinese Chan Buddhism and is central to the Japanese Rinzai school.
The solemn Christian season of preparation before Easter — traditionally 40 days of fasting, observed within a 46-day liturgical period (Sundays are excluded as fasting days).
- — Islamic month-long fast — comparable spiritual discipline
- — the underlying practice of fasting in Islam — paired with Lent's traditional 40 fasting days (within a 46-day liturgical period, Sundays excluded)
Greek: 'word, reason, principle'. In the prologue of John's Gospel, applied to the pre-existent Christ: 'In the beginning was the Word'. Already a technical term in Stoic and Jewish-Hellenistic (Philo) thought before the Gospel used it.
- — both name an underlying ordering principle that gives birth to the world
- — the cosmic order/teaching across Hindu and Buddhist traditions
- — rabbinic mysticism speaks of the Torah as the blueprint of creation
- — Brahman names the absolute — variously the impersonal Nirguna Brahman of Advaita Vedanta and the personal Saguna Brahman (Ishvara) of theistic Vedanta; the Logos parallels the cosmic-ordering aspect of either reading
The Great Vehicle, a major branch of Buddhism emphasizing the bodhisattva path.
A geometric configuration of symbols used as a spiritual guide or representation of the cosmos.
A sacred utterance, sound, or phrase used in meditation and prayer to aid concentration.
Unleavened bread eaten during Passover to commemorate the haste of the Exodus from Egypt.
The illusory power of the universe that veils the true nature of reality.
'Anointed one' — the expected deliverer of Israel in Jewish tradition. The Greek equivalent is Christos; hence 'Jesus Christ' = 'Jesus the Anointed'. In the Qur'an, al-Masih is a title of Jesus (Isa), but without the divine-messianic theology of Christianity.
- — Moshiach is the Hebrew form; the Greek Christos renders it in the New Testament. Modern Jewish messianic expectation differs substantively from Christian usage of 'Christ'
- — Hindu divine descent — narratively analogous saviour
- — the bodhisattva who postpones nirvana for the sake of all beings is sometimes likened to a saviour-figure, though primarily a Mahayana ideal (Theravada gives more weight to the arhat path)
- — the broader category of divinely-sent figures
A method of biblical interpretation and the literature produced by that method.
A commandment. Rabbinic tradition enumerates 613 mitzvot (plural) in the Torah: 248 positive commands and 365 prohibitions. Colloquially, any good deed.
- — the commands by which Israel keeps the covenant
- — the walking-out of the mitzvot in daily life
- — both prescribe normative practice, though mitzvot are divine commandments and Sunnah is the divinely-guided prophetic example; the closer legal parallel is halakha ↔ sharia
Liberation from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth (samsara).
- — both name liberation; conceptually convergent, though from distinct Sanskrit roots (√muc 'release' vs √vā 'extinguishing')
- — Christian deliverance from sin and death
- — Eastern-Christian deification — perhaps the closest Christian analogue
- — atonement addresses sin and guilt in Christian soteriology; moksha addresses release from rebirth — paired as 'liberating mechanism' but not equivalent
The belief in the existence of only one god, central to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
The anointed king or savior who will redeem the Jewish people and bring world peace.
A symbolic hand gesture used in meditation and ritual to convey specific meanings.
The pursuit of achieving communion with the divine through contemplation and spiritual experience.
The 'blowing out' of the fires of craving, aversion, and delusion — the end of suffering and the cycle of rebirth. Not annihilation but the unconditioned; the Buddha refused to characterise it in positive terms.
- — Hindu liberation — both denote escape from samsara
- — the release-from-bondage motif across traditions
- — anatta (non-self) is the doctrinal insight that opens onto Nirvana, not Nirvana itself
- — in Mahayana (esp. Madhyamaka), shunyata is the empty nature of all phenomena, while Nirvana is the cessation of suffering — closely paired but not identical
The sacred syllable of Hinduism (and Buddhism and Jainism), held to be the vibrational ground of the universe. Recited at the opening and close of prayers and meditations. The Mandukya Upanishad is a single-verse meditation on Om.
Authorized or generally accepted theory, doctrine, or practice within a religious tradition.
An advocate, comforter, helper. Christ's title for the Holy Spirit in John's farewell discourse. Some Islamic scholars identify the Paraclete of John 14 with the prophet Muhammad (via the Syriac Menahem).
The second coming of Christ, often associated with the end of the world and final judgment.
- — parousia is the Christian return-of-Christ event; akhira names the broader Islamic afterlife realm — paired loosely as eschatological topoi rather than direct equivalents
- — the figure who returns
- — the broader study
A Christian festival celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles.
The Jewish festival of Passover, commemorating the liberation of the Israelites from slavery.
- — the Last Supper was a Passover meal — Christian sacrament rooted in Pesach
- — the structured Pesach meal itself
Wisdom or insight into the true nature of reality, essential for enlightenment.
The vital life force or energy that flows through all living beings.
- — Chinese parallel — both name a subtle vital force
One who speaks for God. Jewish tradition distinguishes the 'former prophets' (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings) from the 'latter' (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the Twelve). Christianity includes John the Baptist as the last and Jesus as greater than any. Islam recognises 124,000 prophets beginning with Adam and ending with Muhammad, the 'seal of the prophets'.
A religious ritual of worship offered to a deity, often involving offerings and prayers.
Divine destiny or predestination, the belief that God has decreed all things.
The vital energy or life force that flows through all things in the universe.
- — Indian counterpart — the Sanskrit cousin of qi
The direction of prayer. For Muslims worldwide it is the Kaaba in Mecca — a direction fixed by Muhammad in Medina after an initial period of praying toward Jerusalem (Qur'an 2:144).
Literally 'the Recitation'. The final, complete, untranslatable scripture of Islam, revealed to Muhammad through the angel Jibril over 23 years. 114 surahs, arranged roughly from longest to shortest (not chronologically).
- — the Qur'an presents the Torah (Tawrat) as an earlier revelation given to Musa, partially preserved and (per Islamic theology) partially altered in transmission
- — Hebrew scripture — the Qur'an confirms the identity of many Tanakh prophets while differing on key narrative details (e.g. the binding of Isaac vs Ishmael)
- — Buddhist scripture — totally different revelatory model, useful contrast
- — the Buddhist canon
Hebrew for 'my master'; a teacher authorised to interpret Jewish law. The title emerges in the late Second Temple period; Jesus is addressed as 'Rabbi' in the Gospels.
The ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, during which healthy adult Muslims fast from dawn to sunset. The month in which the Qur'an began to be revealed (Qur'an 2:185). Celebrated at its end with Eid al-Fitr.
- — Christian 40-day fast — different theology, similar discipline
- — the Islamic act of fasting itself
The disclosure of divine truth or knowledge to humanity by a deity.
- — in Islamic usage, risala typically denotes the prophetic mission or a scholarly epistle; the act of revelation itself is wahi, and a verse is an ayah
- — a 'sign' or verse — the unit of Qur'anic revelation
- — in Islamic theology, Wahi (Quranic revelation) is strictly distinguished from Sunnah/Hadith (the divinely-guided prophetic example) — the latter is normative tradition, not a second revelation
- — Hindu seeing — a non-verbal mode of revelatory encounter
The concept of prophethood and the message delivered by prophets to humanity.
The Jewish New Year, a time for introspection and prayer for the coming year.
The ritual prayer performed five times a day, one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
- — embodied prayer in Hindu tradition
- — Buddhist seated discipline
- — Hindu/Buddhist repeated formula — analogue to dhikr
Deliverance from sin and its consequences — variously articulated in Christian traditions through faith, sacramental life, sanctification, and union with Christ.
- — Hindu liberation from rebirth
- — Buddhist extinction of craving
- — Eastern-Christian becoming-divine
- — the mechanism in Christian soteriology
The cycle of birth, death, and rebirth in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh thought. Not a reward or punishment but a condition to be moved beyond — through liberation (moksha / nirvana) in the Indic schools, or through union with the divine in Sikh thought.
- — the moral mechanism that drives rebirth
- — the Islamic afterlife — a different post-death structure to compare against
- — the academic study of end-times concepts across traditions
The process of being made holy, set apart for God's purposes, throughout a believer's life.
The community of Buddhist monks and nuns, one of the Three Jewels.
- — Islamic worldwide community
Fasting during the month of Ramadan, one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
A ritual feast that marks the beginning of Passover, involving the retelling of the Exodus story.
The ten attributes or emanations through which God interacts with the world in Kabbalah.
The Jewish day of rest and spiritual enrichment, observed from Friday evening to Saturday night.
The Islamic profession of faith: 'There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God.' Recitation before two witnesses constitutes conversion to Islam.
- — Hebrew daily confession — same monotheistic shape
- — the doctrine the Shahada confesses
Hebrew for 'peace' — but more richly, wholeness, completeness, flourishing. Used as both greeting and farewell. Cognate with Arabic salaam.
The dwelling or settling presence of God, especially in the Tabernacle or Temple.
The central declaration of Jewish faith: 'Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one' (Deuteronomy 6:4). Recited twice daily.
- — Islamic doctrine of God's oneness — direct theological cousin
- — the Islamic confession that begins 'there is no god but God'
Emptiness, the concept that phenomena lack inherent existence.
The study of religious doctrines of salvation and deliverance from sin.
A mound-like structure containing relics, used as a place of meditation and worship.
The mystical dimension of Islam, emphasising inward purification (tazkiyah) and the direct experience of God. Rumi, Ibn Arabi, and Al-Ghazali are among its canonical figures.
The Feast of Tabernacles, celebrating the harvest and the Israelites' wandering in the desert.
The 'path' or 'example' of the Prophet — his sayings, actions, and tacit approvals — preserved in the hadith and used alongside the Qur'an as a source of Islamic law. The Sunni branch takes its name from adherence to the Sunnah.
- — Jewish equivalent — daily walking of the Law
- — the source-texts that transmit the Sunnah
- — both are normative guidance for daily life
A chapter of the Quran, the holy book of Islam.
A pan-Indian text-genre — a 'thread' of aphoristic teaching. In Buddhism, sutras (Pali: sutta) are the discourses attributed to the Buddha; in Hinduism, the genre includes the Yoga Sutras, Brahma Sutras, and Vedic ritual sutras; Jain sutras likewise.
- — both are foundational text-traditions, very different in source-claim
- — instructive contrast in revelatory model
- — the canonical collection sutras live in
The supreme ultimate, representing the unity of yin and yang.
The Hebrew Bible. An acronym for Torah (Law), Nevi'im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings) — the three-fold division of the 24-book canon. Largely overlaps in content with the Christian Old Testament but orders the books differently.
- — Islamic scripture — narratively overlaps in the prophets
- — Indian discourse-text genre, contrast for revelation models
- — Buddhist 'three baskets' — analogous canonical division
The Way. The underlying principle of the universe in Chinese philosophy — central to Taoism, where it is both the source and the pattern of all things; Confucian usage of dao names a more practical 'right way of conduct' than the unnameable cosmological Tao. Famously: 'the Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao.'
- — both name a universal order one ought to align with — though dharma typically implies duties to follow, while the Tao implies a natural flow to yield to
- — the underlying word/reason; both unnameable in their fullness
- — the Way is followed not by striving but by effortless action
- — the spontaneous self-so-ness of all things
The concept of the oneness of God, the fundamental principle of Islamic monotheism.
- — Hebrew declaration of God's oneness — the parallel monotheistic confession
- — the doctrine Islamic theology most often contrasts itself against
- — the verbal declaration of tawhid in daily Muslim life
The Eastern Orthodox concept of deification — humans becoming partakers of the divine nature by participation in God's energies, while retaining creaturely distinction (i.e. union, not absorption).
- — the becoming-divine pattern is shared, though theosis preserves creaturely distinction (union, not absorption)
- — Eastern-Christian framing of the same end
- — love-of-God as the vehicle of union
The School of the Elders, the oldest surviving Buddhist school, prevalent in Southeast Asia.
In the narrow sense, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Genesis through Deuteronomy), attributed to Moses. In a broader sense, all divine instruction — the written Torah plus the oral Torah preserved in the Mishnah and Talmud.
- — the cosmic teaching/duty in Hindu and Buddhist thought
- — Christian theology often reads Torah as the Logos in textual form
- — the lived practice that walks out the Torah
- — the Prophet's path — Islamic counterpart to oral Torah
- — the second great Abrahamic revelation
The triple deity of supreme divinity in Hinduism, comprising Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.
The Christian doctrine that God exists as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, yet is one being.
- — Hindu triple deity — analogous shape, very different theology
- — Islamic strict oneness — the doctrine Trinity is most often contrasted with
- — some Christian traditions read the grammatical plurality of Elohim as a hint of triunity, though scholars commonly classify it as pluralis excellentiae
The traditional threefold division of the Buddhist canon: Vinaya, Sutta, and Abhidhamma.
- — tripartite Hebrew canon — analogous structural division
- — single-book canon for contrast
- — the discourse texts that fill one of the three baskets
The worldwide community of Muslim believers, united by faith rather than nationality.
- — the Buddhist community of practitioners — analogous body
Ancient Sanskrit texts that contain philosophical concepts and form the basis of Vedanta.
The Diamond Vehicle, a form of Buddhism involving esoteric practices and tantric rituals.
Inexertion or effortless action, aligning one's will with the natural flow of the universe.
- — Indian discipline; wu-wei is its non-striving counterpart
- — the Buddhist practice that closely mirrors wu-wei in spirit
- — the Christian self-emptying of the Logos in Philippians 2 — both name a yielding rather than a striving
The masculine, active, light, and creative principle in nature.
A mystical diagram used for meditation and worship, representing the deity's energy.
A Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts.
The feminine, passive, dark, and receptive principle in nature.
A 'yoking' or discipline directed at union with the divine. The Bhagavad Gita teaches three yogas — of knowledge (jnana), action (karma), and devotion (bhakti). Patañjali's eight-limbed yoga (raja) is sometimes counted as a fourth. Modern postural yoga (hatha) is a narrow and historically late branch.
- — Islamic ritual prayer — discipline of the body too
- — Zen sitting meditation
- — the broader pattern of bodily discipline for spiritual ends
- — the Gita names three classical paths — Bhakti (devotion), Karma (action), Jnana (knowledge); Patañjali's eight-limbed yoga is sometimes counted as a fourth
The Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish year, focusing on repentance and fasting.
Almsgiving, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, requiring a fixed portion of wealth to be given to the poor.
Seated meditation in the Zen tradition — the central practice through which awakening is sought. The Soto school emphasises 'just sitting' (shikantaza); the Rinzai school uses koans.
- — zazen descends from Chinese Chan, itself a development of Indian dhyana — practically akin to yogic meditation, though not a direct branch of Patañjali's yoga
- — Islamic embodied prayer with prescribed posture
- — the riddle that breaks ordinary thought in Rinzai zazen
Naturalness or spontaneity, the state of being self-so or as it is.