The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2551 page)

Twice-born
.

An epithet of the first three
varnas
,
brahmans
,
k
atriyas
, and
vai
yas
, since the males of these three groups are seen as achieving a second, spiritual, birth (
dvija
, ‘twice-born’) at the investiture of the sacred thread (
upanayana
). ‘Twice-born’ is also used of those who have undergone a ‘born-again’ experience in religion. Although it is usually used of Christians who have undergone a reconversion experience, William
James
recognized it as a category in all religions.

 
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(1767–1847).
Born Ty
gabrahmam, the
primus inter pares
of three S. Indian composers, the others being Muttusvami D
k
itar (1777–1835) and
y
m
stri (1762–1821). Ty
gar
ja was a devotee of
R
ma
, who resisted invitations to become a court musician—many of his compositions were spontaneous reactions to places of pilgrimage. He believed profoundly that music rested in the primordial creativity of sound (see
MANTRA
), and that music combined with
bhakti
would lead more directly to
mok
a
(release) than any other route, including
yoga
.