Roberto Calasso - Ka

ā

ras, later anglicized to Beuares

V

ā

ra

ṇ

ā

vata

City where the P

ā

ṇ

ḍ

avas live before fleeing the burning of the lacquer house

Varg

ā

Name of an Apsaras

rarṇa

Color, caste

Varu

ṇ

a

All-embracing; one of the

Ā

dityas

Var

ū

thin

ī

Name of an Apsaras

rasatīrarī

Overnight waters; used in the

soma

rites

Vasi

ṣ

ṭ

ha

Born from the seed of Mitra and Varu

ṇ

a squirted into a bowl. one of the Saptar

ṣ

is, author, as tradition has it, of the seventh

maṇḍala

of the

Ṛ

g Veda

V

ā

sto

ṣ

pati

Lord of the Place. Lord of the Sacrificial Residue; one of the names of Rudra

V

ā

suki

Snake, one of the kings of the N

ā

gas, used by the Devas and the Asuras in the churning of the ocean

Vasus

Group of eight divinities, including Soma, Agni, and V

ā

yu; with the

Ā

dityas, the Rudras, and the A

ś

vins, they make up the thirty-three Vedic gods

rārātā

Favorite One: the second in rank of the king’s wives

V

ā

yu

Wind; the god who generates Bh

ī

ma through his union with Kunt

ī

Vedas

A collection of texts including the books of hymns, the Br

ā

hma

ṇ

as, the Ara

ṇ

yakas, the Upani

ṣ

ads, and the S

ū

tras. They are divided into the

Ṛ

g Veda, S

ā

ma Veda, Yajur Veda, and Atharva Veda (the latter is sometimes excluded, in which case one speaks of the Three Vedas)

veda

Knowledge

vedi

Altar

Ve

ṇ

uvana

Bamboo Wood, one of the Buddha’s favorite parks

ri

-

Prefix indicating separation and pervasiveness

Vicitrav

ī

rya

Son of

Ś

ā

ṃ

tanu and Satyavat

ī

, husband of Ambik

ā

and Amb

ā

lik

ā

Videhas

A people in northeast India

Vidura

Son of Vy

ā

sa and one of Ambik

ā

’s maids, uncle of the P

ā

ṇ

ḍ

avas and the Kauravas

Vijay

ā

Maid of P

ā

rvat

ī

Vikrampur

A city in Bengal

Vimalakau

ṇ

ḍ

inya

Son of

Ā

mrap

ā

l

ī

rīṇā

A musical instrument with strings, emblem of Sarasvat

ī

Vinat

ā

Daughter of Dak

ṣ

a, sister of Kadr

ū

, mother of Garu

ḍ

a and Aru

ṇ

a; according to the

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa

, 3.2.4.1. Kadr

ū

and Vinat

ā

were two

māyūs

, “magic forms,” evoked by the Devas to conquer the

soma

Vin

ā

yaka

Without husband; epithet of Ga

ṇ

e

ś

a, born from P

ā

rvat

ī

alone

Vip

ā

ś

ā

A river in the Punjab

ripras

Vibrant; epithet of the

ṛṣis

V

ī

rabhadra

Terrifying manifestation of

Ś

iva

viraha

Separation

virāj

A Vedic meter of four lines of ten syllables

Vir

ā

ṭ

a

King of the Matsyas (Fishes), father of Uttar

ā

V

ī

ri

ṇ

ī

Wife of Dak

ṣ

a

Vir

ū

ḍ

haka

King of the Kosalas

Vi

ṣ

ṇ

u

All-pervasive One; from

riś

, “to enter,” or

vy-aś

, “to penetrate,” “to pervade.” “For he penetrates in everything” (

Vāyu Purāṇa

, 5.36). One of the

Ā

dítyas

visṛj

-

To expand, to emit

Vi

ś

v

ā

mitra

Friend of everyone; one of the Saptar

ṣ

is; according to tradition, author of most of the third and fourth

maṇḍala

of the

Ṛ

g Veda

Vi

ś

var

ū

pa

Omniform One; another name of Tva

ṣ

ṭ

ṛ

and of his son Tri

ś

iras

Vi

ś

v

ā

vasu

Beneficent to everyone; a Gandharva

Vi

ś

ve Devas

The All-gods

Vivasvat

Irradiant, Brilliant One; the Sun, one of the

Ā

dityas

Voice

V

ā

c

Vraja

V

ṛ

nd

ā

vana; the forest where K

ṛ

ṣ

ṇ

a would meet the

gopīs

, near Mathur

ā

vrata

Way of life, vow

vrāta

Band, fraternity, group of initiates

vrātya

Member of a wandering band (

vrāta

) bound by a vow,

vrata

V

ṛ

ddhak

ṣ

atra

Father of Jayadratha

Vrnd

ā

vana

Forest where K

ṛ

ṣ

ṇ

a and R

ā

dh

ā

pleasure each other; there is a celestial V

ṛ

nd

ā

vana and a terrestial V

ṛ

nd

ā

vana, also known as Vraja, near Mathur

ā

V

ṛ

ṣ

ṇ

is

The people of K

ṛ

ṣ

ṇ

a

V

ṛ

tra

Obstruction, obstacle; his mother is Danu; alternatively, born from the dregs of the

soma

Indra drank

Vy

ā

sa

Son of Satyavat

ī

and Par

ā

ś

ara, natural father of P

ā

ṇ

ḍ

u, Dh

ṛ

tar

ā

ṣ

t

ṛ

a, and Vidura; according to tradition, he arranged the texts of the

Ṛ

g Veda and was author of the

Mahābhārata

Wagner

Richard Wagner, 1813–1883

Waters

Ā

pa

ḥ

White Horse

Uccai

ḥ

ś

ravas, one of the

ratnas

, “gems,” that appeared during the churning of the ocean

Wind

V

ā

yu

Wittgenstein

Ludwig Wittgenstein, 1889–1951

Wolf’s Belly

V

ṛ

kodara; epithet of Bh

ī

ma

Word

V

ā

c

ya evaṃ veda

“He who knows thus,” a recurring formula in the Br

ā

hma

ṇ

as and the Upani

ṣ

ads

yajña

Sacrifice

Y

ā

jñavalkya

A

ṛṣi

, named at the end of the fourteenth book of the

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa

as author of the whole work

Yak

ṣ

a

Mysterious; genie, demon; the word appears in the

Jaiminīya Brāhmaṇa

, 3.203, where it means “prodigious element or being”; all Hindu divinities, and the Buddha, are occasionally referred to as Yak

ṣ

as

Yama

Twin; son of Vivasvat and Sara

ṇ

y

ū

, twin brother of Yam

ī

, king of the dead

Yam

ī

Twin; daughter of Vivasvat and Sara

ṇ

y

ū

, twin sister of Yama

Yamun

ā

Sacred river, daughter of Vivasvat; in symbolic relationship with Ga

ṅ

g

ā

as the Sun is to the Moon

Ya

ś

od

ā