ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Hinduism's Online Lexicon - A-z Dictionary H hallowed: Sacred. hamsa: (Sanskrit) "Swan;" more accurately, the high-flying wild goose Anser indicus. The vahana, vehicle, of the God Brahma. It has various meanings, including Supreme Soul and individual soul.

It is a noble symbol for an adept class of renunciates (paramahamsa)--winging high above the mundane, driving straight toward the goal, or of the discriminating yogi who--like the graceful swan said to be able to extract milk from water--can see the Divine and leave the rest. The hamsa mantra indicates the sound made by the exhalation (ha) and inhalation (sa) of the breath. See: paramahamsa.

Harihara: (Sanskrit) "Vishnu-Siva." Also known as Shankaranarayana, an icon of the Supreme One, in which the right half is Siva and left half is Vishnu. It symbolizes the principle that Siva and Vishnu are not two separate Deities. See: Brahma, murti, Parameshvara, Vishnu.

hatha yoga: (Sanskrit) "Forceful yoga." Hatha yoga is a system of physical and mental exercise developed in ancient times as a means of rejuvenation by rishis and tapasvins who meditated for long hours, and used today in preparing the body and mind for meditation.

Its elements are 1) postures (asana), 2) cleansing practices (dhauti or shodhana), 3) breath control (pranayama), 4) locks (bandha, which temporarily restrict local flows of prana) and 5) hand gestures (mudra), all of which regulate the flow of prana and purify the inner and outer bodies. Hatha yoga is broadly practiced in many traditions. It is the third limb (anga) of Patanjali's raja yoga. It is integral to the Saiva and Shakta tantra traditions, and part of modern ayurveda treatment.

In the West, hatha yoga has been superficially adopted as a health-promoting, limbering, stress-reducing form of exercise, often included in aerobic routines. Esoterically, ha and tha, respectively, indicate the microcosmic sun (ha) and moon (tha), which symbolize the masculine current, pingala nadi, and feminine current, ida nadi, in the human body. The most popular hatha yoga manuals are Hatha Yoga Pradipika and the Gheranda Samhita. See: asana, kundalini, nadi, yoga, raja yoga.

Hatha Yoga Pradipika: (Sanskrit) "Light on hatha yoga." A 14th-century text of 389 verses by Svatmarama Yogin which describes the philosophy and practices of hatha yoga. It is widely used in yoga schools today.