The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (634 page)

Read The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions Online

Authors: John Bowker

BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions
9.49Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
‘Slaves of the
deva
’, women in Hindu temples devoted to the God or gods, especially
iva
, the lord of the
dance
, hence temple-dancers. But their dedication was also understood as a marriage to the God, the sexual realization of which was enacted by
brahmans
and by other devotees, until eventually they were liable to become temple prostitutes.
Devadatta
(‘god-given’). In Hinduism,
(i) the name of
Arjuna's
conch shell;
(ii) the white horse that P
r
raya (
Kalki
as universal ruler) will ride;
(iii) a
pr
a
(cosmic energy) stream initiated by yawning to distribute power/
breath
to an exhausted body.
In Buddhism, the cousin of the
Buddha
(known in Japanese as Daiba (datta)), who joined the
sa
gha
after hearing a discourse of the Buddha, but who plotted to murder him.
Deva-d
ta
.
The Buddhist ‘messengers from the
deva
’, sickness, old age, and death.

Other books

Northern Proposals by Julia P. Lynde
High Wire by Melanie Jackson
Capture the Rainbow by Iris Johansen
Love a Sailor by Amanda Sandton
Given by Susan Musgrave
The Last Resort by Oliver, Charlotte
Has to Be Love by Jolene Perry