Glossary
331
M
Mahājanas —great souls, spiritual authorities.
Mahā-mantra —the great chanting for deliverance:
Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.
Mahat-tattva —the total material energy.
Mantra —a sound vibration that can deliver the mind from illusion.
Manvantara-avatāras —the Manu incarnations, administrators of the universe.
Mathurā —Lord Kṛṣṇa's abode, surrounding Vṛndāvana, where He took birth and later returned to after performing His Vṛndāvana pastimes.
Māyā —( mā —not;  yā —this), illusion; forgetfulness of one's relationship with Kṛṣṇa.
Māyāvādis —impersonal philosophers who say that the Lord cannot have a transcendental body.
Mṛdaṅga —a clay drum used for congregational chanting.
Muni —a great thinker.
N
Nirguṇa —transcendental to the modes of material nature; free from all material contamination.
P
Padma —the lotus flower held by Lord Viṣṇu.
Paramahaṁsa —the highest stage of the  sannyāsa  order; a topmost devotee of the Lord.
Paramparā —the chain of spiritual masters in discipline succession.
Prajāpatis —the demigods in charge of populating the universe.
Prasāda —the Lord's mercy; anything first offered to the Lord and then utilized by His devotees.
Puruṣa —the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the supreme enjoyer.
R
Rṣis —great sages.