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Gandhi, Mohandas K. (1869-1948): born in India, he studied law in England, then moved to South Africa where he spent twenty years defending the rights of immigrants. He returned to India in 1914 and became active in the political movement to gain independence from Great Britain, for which he was jailed several times. Gandhi's enormously successful movement combined non-violence (ahimsa) and civil disobedience, which led to India's independence in 1947.  He was shot to death by a Hindu fanatic in 1948.

Ganesha: the elephant-faced deity, remover of obstacles and incarnation of wisdom. It corresponds to the money (earth) center.

gayatri mantra: the 24-syllable Vedic mantra for spiritual evolution and liberation.

ghee: Sanskrit word meaning clarified butter.

Girish Ghose: a householder devotee of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, who was completely transformed from extreme negativity to deepest spirituality.

gita (Sanskrit word meaning “song”): usually refers to the Bhagavad Gita, “The song of the Lord”.

God-consciousness: every thought, word, and action are God-oriented; there are no other thoughts.

God-realization: the state beyond duality and ego, in which the soul is perfectly absorbed in peace, bliss and joy..

golden fleece: a Greek youth named Phrixus, who was on the point of being sacrificed, was carried off to safety by a flying golden ram to the island of Colchis, where he sacrificed the ram to the gods and hung its fleece in a grove. The king Aeetes had it guarded by a dragon. It was said that ownership of the golden fleece would save the land from famine and infertility.

Govinda: one of the names of Krishna.

granthi: Sanskrit word meaning knot; attachment.

guhya: Sanskrit word meaning "hidden" or "secret"

guhyavidya (Sanskrit word meaning “secret science”): Kriya Yoga, which is personally from the teacher to the qualified disciple.

gunas (Sanskrit word meaning “strand” or “quality”): the three qualities of nature known as: tamas (idleness and sloth), rajas (extreme activity and restlessness) and sattvas (spirituality).

gunatita (Sanskrit word meaning “transcending the qualities”): beyond the play of the three qualities of nature (gunas).

guru (Sanskrit word meaning “weighty one”), gurudev(a): spiritual preceptor in the Hindu and yogic tradition.


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