|
INTRODUCTION
Scope of the Work In this "Glossary and Index" are listed proper names – personal, geographical, historical, fictional, mythological, etc. – used by Sri Aurobindo in his writings. The volumes referred to are the twenty-nine text volumes of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library and Volumes 1 to 11 <1977 to 1987) of the semiannual journal Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research. (For the purpose of the Glossary the scope is extended to include the unpublished portion of Sri Aurobindo’s "Record of Yoga", which will continue to be published in future issues of the journal.) To collect the names all of the texts in each of these volumes have been carefully perused. Names occurring in footnotes and introductory notes, whether written by the author or added by the editors, have also been included. The most salient characteristic of proper names is, of course, their initial capital, but not all terms capitalized by Sri Aurobindo have been listed in this book. A selection had to be made on the lines indicated below. Besides the names of persons, places and things, real or imaginary, the book lists words of following categories: 1. Names of races, nations, tribes, clans, dynasties, etc. 2. Names of ancient Indian varnas and modern castes and sub-castes. 3. Most generic terms denoting supernatural beings, e.g. Deva, Yaksha, Siddhadeva, Asura, Pani, Rakshasa, etc. 4. Names of important institutions, societies, associations, etc. 5. Names of political parties and events like wars, revolutions, etc. 6. Names of religions, sects, and sub-sects, and terms denoting their followers. 7. Names of traditional yogic disciplines – Hathayoga, Rajayoga, and Tantra. 8. Names of languages and dialects. 9. Titles of books, periodicals, newspapers, etc., and of poems and plays (among Sri Aurobindo’s own poems and plays, only those titles to which there is some reference in the prose writings). All these titles have been printed in italics. 10. Most generic terms denoting scriptures and religio-philosophical works, such as Veda, Upanishad, Purana, Darshana, etc. 11. Names of yugas, ages, periods, etc. 12. Names of heavenly bodies and mythological worlds or lokas. xi 13. Titles of rulers, e.g. Czar, Caesar, Mikado, etc. 14. Some miscellaneous terms such as the East, the West, Samurai, Demi- urge, etc. Terms of the following types, although they are usually capitalized in Sri Aurobindo’s works, have been omitted: 1. Certain common terms whose occurrence is so frequent that it would not serve any purpose to list them here, e.g., India, Yoga, etc. 2. Philosophical and technical terms which, although not truly names, are used as equivalents of names or epithets, e.g., Sacchidananda, Karmayoga, Muladhara, etc. In the "Record of Yoga" Sri Aurobindo generally referred to people by their initials (often a single letter). Such references have been included under the full name, even if the full name was not supplied by the editors of the "Record". Names also are represented by a single letter in some of Sri Aurobindo’s letters; but in such cases the initial is an editorial substitution, and therefore not included in this "Glossary and Index".
General Arrangement Entries are all in boldface type, and are listed alphabetically letter by letter (up to the comma if one occurs in inverted names having two or more elements). Accordingly "Sarathi" precedes "Sarat Maharaj", while "Baroda, Maharani of" precedes "Baroda College". Alternatives, variants, and derivatives that have been used by Sri Aurobindo are also printed in bold. The alternatives are generally mentioned in the glossary-article, and the variants and derivatives after the text of the article. If a derivative needs to be explained, the explanation follows it in parentheses or is included in the body of the article. A few derivatives appear as independent entries, especially if they occur very frequently. Variants with a minor change in spelling – an additional letter or two – have not been shown separately but are indicated by the additional letter(s) put within brackets. Thus "Vasis(h)tha" stands for "Vasistha" and "Vasishtha"; "Barin(dra)" for "Barin" and "Barindra". In personal names the surname (if present) comes first and is followed by a comma. In other names containing two or more words, the most important word occupies the first place and is followed by a comma. Prefixes and suffixes that are not an integral part of the name have been omitted. The initial articles "A", "The", "Le", "Les", etc. have also usually been omitted or placed after a comma, and, if retained, are disregarded in alphabetization. But articles coming in the middle of an entry, as well as letters or words put within brackets, have been taken into consideration in alphabetization. Where necessary, plural endings have been dropped. xii Indian names comprising two words are at times written as. one word, e.g., "Ram Mohan" as "Rammohan". Such variations have been overlooked. For names denoting two or more different persons, places, or things, separate entries have been made except where there is an overlap. Such entries have been distinguished from one another by superior figures, e.g., Bharat’, Bharat(a)2, Bharat(a)3 Sri Aurobindo’s spelling of a name sometimes differs from its usual spelling as given in reference books. In most of such cases the glossary-article commences with this usual spelling. If the form occurring in Sri Aurobindo’s writings is an obvious misprint or misspelling, the fact has been mentioned. The Appendix provides some guidance for locating such names in the book. The book does not, as a rule, give pronunciations. However, certain names from Indian mythology which are likely to be unfamiliar appear in the article in their transliterated form (transliterated according to the standard internationally accepted system). Transliterated forms have also been used to avoid confusion where two or more differently pronounced names are spelled in English similar- ly. These names are not transliterated each time they occur in the book but only where considered necessary. Names occurring in Bengali writings have been listed either in their transliterated form or as they are ordinarily spelled in English.
Glossary-article The glossary-articles are intended to facilitate a fuller understanding of Sri Aurobindo’s writings and, in most cases, to provide some useful general information. They are based on information gathered from (1) reference books and other standard books, periodicals, etc., (2) institutions and individuals, and (3) the writings of Sri Aurobindo. His works have been drawn on particularly when information was not available from other sources. The sources of categories (1) and (3) have been indicated, mostly in abbreviated form, at the end of the article. If no source is mentioned, it is because the article in question is entirely based on records and documents in possession of the Ashram Archives and Research Library, or on information obtained from the sources of category (2). Dates cited in the articles are of the Christian Era, except where it is otherwise mentioned. Bengali years and those of the Vikram Era have generally been converted to the Christian Era by applying the rule of adding 593 to the former and subtracting 57 from the latter. Since the year in these eras does not begin on the same day, an error of one year is possible in marginal cases. Regarding the population figures and names of political entities, particularly when appearing in statements beginning with words like "now" or "presently", the reader must keep in mind that this information may no longer be correct. Changes may have taken place after its collection from the sources concerned. xiii It must also be stressed that views or opinions expressed or implied in an article are not to be taken as Sri Aurobindo’s, except where this is clearly stated. Those interested in Sri Aurobindo’s own ideas are advised to make use of the index references that follow the article.
Index References The references given for each entry comprise all noted occurrences of the name and also (without distinction) of the alternatives, variants, and derivatives of the name that appear in boldface type within or after the article. Boldfaced Arabic numerals denote the volume number of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, and boldfaced Roman numerals the issues of the journal Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research in the order of their publication, I standing for the issue of April 1977, II for the issue of December 1977, III for that of April 1978, and so on. (The reader should note that these Roman numerals do not refer to the volume numbers of the journal.) The Arabic or Roman numerals are followed by a colon, after which come the page numbers. These numbers refer not only to the text matter on the page but also to the footnotes and to notes, quotations, etc. sometimes placed above the text matter. Each of the following terms has in effect almost a whole volume of the Centenary Library devoted to it. No index references to this term have therefore been given with respect to that volume; instead "passim" appears after the volume number. Agni (and its equivalents) Vol. 11 Hymns to the Mystic Fire Bhagavadgita and Gita Vol. 13 Essays on the Gita The Mother Vol. 25 The Mother Sri Aurobindo Vol. 26 On Himself Upanishads Vol. 12 The Upanishads Veda Vol.10 The Secret of the Veda Cross references appear often, identified by the particular term printed in small capitals, or else by "see" or "see also". xiv |