Sanskrit language

Sampradaya (Sanskrit: सम्प्रदाय; IAST: Saṃpradāya), in Indian-origin religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, can be translated as 'tradition', 'spiritual lineage', 'sect', or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and transmission of dharma, various sampradayas have the Guru-shishya parampara in which a parampara or lineage of successive gurus (masters) and shishyas (disciples) serves as a spiritual channel and provides a reliable network of relationships that lends stability to a religious identity. Shramana is vedic term for seeker or shishya. Identification with and followership of sampradayas is not static, as sampradayas allows flexibility where one can leave one sampradaya and enter another or practice religious syncretism by simultaneously following more than one sampradaya. Samparda is a Punjabi language term, used in Sikhism, for sampradayas.

Dharma (/ˈdɑːrmə/; Sanskrit: धर्म, pronounced [dʱɐrmɐ] ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term dharma does not have a single, clear translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit dhr-, meaning to hold or to support, thus referring to the law that sustains things—from one's life to society, and to the Universe at large. In its most commonly used sense, dharma refers to an individual's moral responsibilities or duties; the dharma of a farmer differs from the dharma of a soldier, thus making the concept of dharma dynamic. As with the other components of the Puruṣārtha, the concept of dharma is pan-Indian. The antonym of dharma is adharma.

In Hinduism, dharma denotes behaviour that is considered to be in accord with Ṛta—the "order and custom" that makes life and universe possible. This includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues, and ethics to form the “righteous way of living”. Dharma is believed to have a transtemporal validity, and is one of the Puruṣārtha. The concept of dharma was in use in the historical Vedic religion (1500–500 BCE), and its meaning and conceptual scope has evolved over several millennia.

The following list consists of notable concepts that are derived from Hindu culture and associated cultures’ (Indian, Nepali, Balinese) traditions, which are expressed as words in Sanskrit or other Indic languages and Dravidian languages. The main purpose of this list is to disambiguate multiple spellings, to make note of spellings no longer in use for these concepts, to define the concept in one or two lines, to make it easy for one to find and pin down specific concepts, and to provide a guide to unique concepts of Hinduism all in one place.

Separating concepts in Hinduism from concepts specific to Indian culture, or from the language itself, can be difficult. Many Sanskrit concepts have an Indian secular meaning as well as a Hindu dharmic meaning. One example is the concept of Dharma. Sanskrit, like all languages, contains words whose meanings differ across various contexts.

Śruti or shruti (Sanskrit: श्रुति, IAST: Śruti, IPA: [ɕruti]) in Sanskrit means "that which is heard" and refers to the body of most authoritative, ancient religious texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism. Manusmriti states: Śrutistu vedo vijñeyaḥ (Devanagari: श्रुतिस्तु वेदो विज्ञेयः) meaning, "Know that Vedas are Śruti". Thus, it includes the four Vedas including its four types of embedded texts—the Samhitas, the Upanishads, the Brahmanas and the Aranyakas.

Śrutis has been variously described as a revelation through anubhava (direct experience), or of primordial origins realized by ancient Rishis. In Hindu tradition, they have been referred to as apauruṣeya (not created by humans). The Śruti texts themselves assert that they were skillfully created by Rishis (sages), after inspired creativity, just as a carpenter builds a chariot.

Smṛti (Sanskrit: स्मृति, IAST: smṛti, transl. 'what is remembered'), also spelled smriti or smruti, is a body of Hindu texts representing the remembered, written tradition in Hinduism, rooted in or inspired by the Vedas. Smṛti works are generally attributed to a named author and were transmitted through manuscripts, in contrast to Vedic or śruti literature, which is based on a fixed text with no specific author, and preserved through oral transmission. Smṛti are derivative, secondary works and considered less authoritative than śruti in Hinduism, except in the Mīmāmsa school of Hindu philosophy. The authority of smṛti accepted by orthodox schools is derived from that of śruti, on which it is based.

The smṛti literature is a corpus of varied texts that includes: the six Vedāṅgas (the auxiliary sciences in the Vedas), the epics (the Mahābhārata and Rāmāyaṇa), the Dharmasūtras and Dharmaśāstras (or Smritiśāstras), the Arthasaśāstras, the Purāṇas, the kāvya or poetical literature, extensive Bhashyas (reviews and commentaries on śruti and non-śruti texts), and numerous nibandhas (digests) covering politics, ethics (nītiśāstras), culture, arts and society.

The Upanishads (/ʊˈpʌnɪʃʌdz/; Sanskrit: उपनिषद्, IAST: Upaniṣad, pronounced [ˈupɐniʂɐd]) are Sanskrit texts of the late Vedic and post-Vedic periods that "document the transition from the archaic ritualism of the Veda into new religious ideas and institutions" and the emergence of the central religious concepts of Hinduism. They are the most recent addition to the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, and deal with meditation, philosophy, consciousness, and ontological knowledge. Earlier parts of the Vedas dealt with mantras, benedictions, rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices.

While among the most important literature in the history of Indian religions and culture, the Upanishads document a wide variety of "rites, incantations, and esoteric knowledge" departing from Vedic ritualism and interpreted in various ways in the later commentarial traditions. The Upanishads are widely known, and their diverse ideas, interpreted in various ways, informed later traditions of Hinduism. The central concern of all Upanishads is to discover the relations between ritual, cosmic realities (including gods), and the human body/person, postulating Ātman and Brahman as the "summit of the hierarchically arranged and interconnected universe", but various ideas about the relation between Atman and Brahman can be found.

Puranas (Sanskrit: पुराण, romanized: Purāṇa, lit. 'Ancients') are a vast genre of Indian literature that include a wide range of topics, especially legends and other traditional lore. The Puranas are known for the intricate layers of symbolism depicted within their stories. Composed originally in Sanskrit and in other Indian languages, several of these texts are named after major Hindu deities such as Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, and Devi. The Puranic genre of literature is found in both Hinduism and Jainism.

The Puranic literature is encyclopedic, and it includes diverse topics such as cosmogony, cosmology, genealogies of gods, goddesses, kings, queens, heroes, heroines, sages, other gods, other goddesses, folk tales, pilgrimages, temples, medicine, astronomy, grammar, mineralogy, humor, love stories, theology, philosophy, etc. The content is highly inconsistent across the Puranas, and each Purana has survived in numerous manuscripts which are themselves inconsistent. The Hindu Maha Puranas are traditionally attributed to Vyasa, but many scholars consider them likely the work of many authors over the centuries; in contrast, most Jaina Puranas can be dated and their authors assigned.

The Mahābhārata (/məˌhɑːˈbɑːrətə, ˌmɑːhə-/ mə-HAH-BAR-ə-tə, MAH-hə-; Sanskrit: महाभारतम्, IAST: Mahābhāratam, pronounced [mɐɦaːˈbʱaːrɐt̪ɐm]) is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics of Hinduism known as the Itihasas, the other being the Ramayana. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succession between two groups of princely cousins, the Kauravas and the Pāṇḍavas. It contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four "goals of life" or puruṣārtha (12.161). Among the principal works and stories in the Mahābhārata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, the story of Shakuntala, the story of Pururava and Urvashi, the story of Savitri and Satyavan, the story of Kacha and Devayani, the story of Rishyasringa and an abbreviated version of the Rāmāyaṇa, often considered as works in their own right.

Traditionally, the authorship of the Mahābhārata is attributed to Vyāsa. There have been many attempts to unravel its historical growth and compositional layers. The bulk of the Mahābhārata was probably compiled between the 3rd century BCE and the 3rd century CE, with the oldest preserved parts not much older than around 400 BCE. The text probably reached its final form by the early Gupta period (c. 4th century CE).

The Bhagavad Gita (/ˈbʌɡəvəd ˈɡiːtɑː/; Sanskrit: भगवद्गीता, IPA: [ˌbʱɐɡɐʋɐd ˈɡiːtɑː], romanized: bhagavad-gītā, lit. 'God's song'), often referred to as the Gita (IAST: gītā), is a Hindu scripture, likely composed in the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Indian religious thought, including the Vedic concept of dharma (duty, rightful action); Sankhya-based yoga and jnana (knowledge); and bhakti (devotion). Among the Hindu traditions, the Gita holds a unique pan-Hindu influence as the most prominent sacred text and is a central text in the Vedanta and Vaishnava traditions.

While traditionally attributed to the sage Veda Vyasa, the Gita is historiographically regarded as a composite work by multiple authors. Incorporating teachings from the Upanishads and the samkhya yoga philosophy, the Gita is set in a narrative framework of dialogue between the Pandava prince Arjuna and his charioteer guide Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, at the onset of the Kurukshetra War.

Karma (/ˈkɑːrmə/, from Sanskrit: कर्म, IPA: [ˈkɐɾmɐ] ; Pali: kamma) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called the principle of karma, wherein individuals' intent and actions (cause) influence their future (effect): Good intent and good deeds contribute to good karma and happier rebirths, while bad intent and bad deeds contribute to bad karma and worse rebirths. In some scriptures, however, there is no link between rebirth and karma.

In Hinduism, karma is traditionally classified into four types: Sanchita karma (accumulated karma from past actions across lifetimes), Prārabdha karma (a portion of Sanchita karma that is currently bearing fruit and determines the circumstances of the present life), Āgāmi karma (future karma generated by present actions), and Kriyamāṇa karma (immediate karma created by current actions, which may yield results in the present or future).