Introduction to the course Afterlife the soul or self atman is immortal and unchanging mind, consciousness, perception, and body are sheaths or coverings of atman karma 1. consequence impartial 3. ethical (good for good, evil for evil) C. rebirth or reincarnation 1. results from karma 2. karma determines varna III. Liberation A. samsara is the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth 1. unending 2. undesirable 3. full of suffering 4. ends in death B. moksha is the state of liberation from birth, death, and rebirth

C. moksha usually takes many lifetimes to achieve; two major ways are 1. devotion 2. discipline Myth: the most honest truth Theistic: Existance of beings like “gods” Monism: All reality is one united thing Nontheistic: abscense of any god Polytheism: the belief in many devine beings Monotheism: belief that devine is one Henotheism: Admisson of polytheism, but honoring only one at a time Atheism: rejection of any devine being Revelation: From somewhere, knowledge, feelings etc. Teaching us in ways we don’t learn Forms: texts writting by any means, whose information or sound is sacred Hierophanies: Appearance of sacred (visions, hearings, out of body experience) Ethics: How should we live, good vs. bad (morals) Motality: Question of our being or our purpose Divine reality: Brahman (Infinite being, awareness and bliss [sat, chit, anada] Daulist: Shows the difference, a form of brahman is upanishads. Upanishads: A collection of early philosophical texts OM: The sound in which the univest manifested from in Brahman Bhagavad Gita: Best known sacred text Atman: whose nature is not limited o the physical body Karma: “action and consequence” of the action Dharma: Law, duty, righteousness or “religion” , everyone has one or a “destiny” Samsara: The cycle of birth, death and rebirth (extremely painful) Moksha: freedom from samsara or liberation Karma marga: to be able to act without consequences, Story of guy who thought he was the “best musician in the world” he learned to act w out consequences