Whose Praises are sung by Brahma (Birancha) alongwith the hymns of the Vedas and for whom Shiva (the ascetic) holds fast on the Kahlasa (Kailasa) mountain and does not leave it... (Swayye Mahle Chauthe Ke, p. 1404) Kailasa is a mountain situated like Meru to the north of Himalayas.

MACHHINDARNATHA (Matsyendranatha), also known as Minanatha, i.e. Fish-Lord, Minapa, Luipa (in Tibet), and Avilokitesvara (in Nepal), who flourished in the 10th century AD, was one of the eighty-four siddhas or Perfect ones of Tantric Buddhism. According to Tibetan-Buddhist belief, he was a fisherman who, while devoured alive by a

PURIS (Shiva Puri, Brahama Puri, Vishnu Puri and Indra Puri) Death will ultimately come in Indra Puri (heaven of Indra), Brahma Puri (heaven of Brahma) will not be there for ever;Shiva Puri (heaven of Shiva) will also come to an end..... (Gauri M. 5, p. 237) All the Puris,

RAKTAVIJA The Lord destroyed Jarasandha and Kalayavana. The Lord also killed Raktavija (Raktabija) and Kalanemi. (Gauri M. l, p. 224) Raktavija was a demon killed by Durga or Chandi. It is said about this Asura that each drop of his blood, as it fell on the ground produced a

SANDA MARKA Sanda and Marka made a petition to the demon king Hiranyakashipu against Prahlada..... (Bhairo M. 3, p. 1154) Sanda, Marka cried out to the king that Prahlada does not take interest in the studies and they were tired of instructing him. (Bhairo Namdev, p. 1165) Sanda and

RAJ KAREGA KHALSA, lit. "the Khalsa shall rule," a phrase expressive of the will of the Sikh people to sovereignty, is part of the anthem which follows the litany or ardas recited at the end of every religious service of the Sikhs. While the ardas is said by an officiant

BHAI: Bhai, literally means brother. In the Sikh culture this term is used to show respect for a person. A saintly person, an intellectual, a humanitarian, a leader may be addressed as Bhai. The British adopted conferring the title of Sardar Bahadur to the persons loyal to their regime.

ONKAR, generally written down as Oankar in Sikh Scriptural writings, is derived from the Upanisadic word Oankara (om+kara) originally signifying pronouncing or rendering into writing the syllable Om. Known as synonym of Om it has been used in the Vedic literature and, in particular in its religio philosophical texts known

AKHAND PATH (akhand = uninterrupted, without break; path = reading) is nonstop, continuous recital of the Guru Granth Sahib from beginning to end. Such a recital must be completed within 48 hours. The entire Holy Volume, 1430 large pages, is read through in a continuous ceremony. This reading must

DASVANDH or Dasaundh, lit. a tenth part, refers to the practice among Sikhs of contributing in the name of the Guru one-tenth of their earnings towards the common resources of the community. This is their religious obligation a form of seva or humble service so highly valued in the Sikh

NITNEM (nit: daily; nem; practice, rule or regimen) is the name given to the set prayers which every Sikh is commanded to say daily, alone or in company. These prayers or texts are five in number for early morning Guru Nanak`sJa/w and Guru Gobind Singh`s Jdpu and Savaiyye, for the

SIKH CALENDAR or system of reckoning chronology or dates of events in Sikh history is generally based on the Vikrami Samvat (Bikrami Sammat, in Punjabi), a system mostly in vogue in northern India, although other systems the Hijri during the Muslim period and Christian since the advent of the