abhang Marathi devotional song
acharya religious master
adhyay chapter of a book
advaita non-dualistic
ahl-e bait the family of the Prophet Muhammad
‘alam standard that is part of Muharram commemoration of Imam Husain’s martyrdom
alankara figure of speech
alankarashastra lit. science of ornaments, rhetoric
arilla short poetical form in Brajbhasha
arthav exposition
azan call to prayer
bada notebook
band baja music with brass band
bandijan musician
basti neighbourhood
batin hidden, esoteric
bayaz poetic scrapbook
bhajan devotional song
bhakha lit. language, term for Hindi
bhaktamal biographical compilation of devotees and saints
bhakti lit. “sharing”, devotion
bhang drink laced with marijuana
bhanita poet’s signature line at the end of a poem
bhattarak head of Digambara Jain institution
bhava emotion
bhramargit lit. “songs of the bee”, song-poems in which Krishna is compared to a bee which sucks nectar from many flowers
bol syllable, drum/dance mnemonic
brahmachari celibate
brahman the ultimate reality underlying all phenomena
buzurg elder, important man
charan panegyric singer and genealogist in the Rajput domains
charya Bengali sung poem
chaumasa, chaturmasa the four months of the rainy season, in which itinerant ascetics do not travel
chaupai quatrain
daitya, dait race of giants who fought against the gods; in Persian translations of Sanskrit texts usually assimilated to asuras and rakshasas, demons
dapha genre of Newar devotional singing
darbar court
dargah lit. threshhold, sufi shrine, see also khanqah
darshan polysemic word, may mean ritual and mutual viewing of god/spiritual master and devotee or system of philosophy
dastan story
devata god
dhadhi musician specialising in drum and sarangi accompaniment and panegyric and martial singing
dharma religious duty
dhatu the melodic component of a song (as in dhatu-matu)
dhrupad (also dhurpad) preeminent courtly song genre in Braj language
dhyana, ragadhyana poetical description of the iconic form of a raga (see below)
din faith
divan, diwan book of poetry
doha verse couplet
drishtant example, verse used as an example
dunya, duniya the world
gaddi seat
ghazal Persian and Urdu lyrical poem
gita song
goshti, goshthi (religious) discussion
gotra clan lineage
gunigana knowledgeable audience
guru master, teacher
guthi voluntary society
gyan goshti knowledge discussion
hadis traditions of the Prophet
hun kar lit. “hmm”, listener’s assent that prompts a storyteller to continue
‘ibadat worship
imam the twelve leaders of Shi‘a Islam; leader of a mosque
imambara, imambargah Shi‘a commemoration hall
islah critique and correction of poetry
jati caste, community (see also qaum)
jawab response (as in call and response, Q&A)
jinn spirits, lower than the angels, who appear in human and animal form
kahani story
kalam discourse
kalawant hereditary court musician of high status
kalima, kalma Muslim declaration of faith
karamat miracles performed by saints
Karbala location of a battle in 680 CE which gave rise to the split between Sunnis and Shi‘is and which Shi‘is commemorate every year during the month of Muharram
karma lit. action, and the consequences that each action has in one’s past, present, or future existence
katha story
kathak, kathakar, kathavachak storyteller (kathak only began to designate a dance form in the twentieth century)
kavi poet
kavitt, kavitta poem, which may also be sung
kavya poetry
Kayasth professional scribal caste
khanqah sufi monastery, see also dargah
khandan family, hereditary lineage
khatima concluding section of a text
Khatri professional caste of scribes and merchants
khayal virtuosic courtly song genre
kinnara celestial musician in Buddhist and Hindu mythology
kirtan religious song form
kirtankar religious public performer of kirtan
lazzat taste, pleasure (see also zauq)
lila dance, play
madrasa school, teaching institution
mahant head of a monastery (math)
mahatmya text describing the greatness of a place, a god/goddess, or a sacred text
mahfil, mehfil assembly, gathering
mahotsav (devotional) festival
maidan public park
majlis (pl. majalis) assembly, gathering
maktab literary school or circle
malfuz (pl. malfuzat) sayings (of a sufi saint)
manaqib an Arabic biographical-hagiographic genre about the qualities of noble individuals
mandali small group
mandir temple
mangalkabya Bengali genre of narrative poetry about the relationship between gods, humans, and places
mansabdar Mughal officer
marsiya sung or recited Muharram elegy in poetical form
marsiya-go performer of marsiya
ma‘sumin pure and flawless ones
masjid mosque
masnavi Persian or Urdu narrative poem
matam physical self-mortification during Muharram ritual
math monastery
matu the textual component of a song (as in dhatu-matu)
maulvi, mawlawi person who has completed full course of Arabic and Persian studies
mazhab belief
mela fair
mo‘jizat miracle stories
mohajir, muhajir migrant to Pakistan from India, usually at Partition
muktaka independent verse
musha‘ira Persian and Urdu poetry recital
mushkil-kusha resolver of difficulties
naga warrior ascetic
nama Persian narrative, chronicle
namaz prayer, one of the five mandatory Islamic prayers
naqqal actor, mime
nayak hero, protagonist
nayika heroine, protagonist
nayika-bhed poetic genre detailing the different types of heroines
nazar offering
niqabposh hidden, in disguise
niti lit. ethics or policy, genre of instructional texts
nitya lila lit. “eternal play”, the notion that Krishna is eternally playing with the milkmaids of Braj in a higher sphere (loka)
niyaz ritual offering
nritya dance
ojas martial spirit
pakhawaj double-headed barrel drum that accompanies dhrupad songs
pan digestive made of betel nut and leaves
panchali Bengali genre of performed poetry
pande, pandit educated Brahmin or (among Jains) temple ritual specialist; scholar
parchai biography
parhna to read
paryushana season of sermons given by Jain monks during the rainy season
patur(a) courtesan, female singer/dancer
pir sufi master
pirzada living descendent of a sufi saint
pothi manuscript book, often compilation
prasad offering received back with god’s blessing
prasang, prastav context of an example
pravachan spiritual discourse
prem-katha love story
Purana lit. old, compilation of narratives about gods, communities, and places
qasba small town
qasida Arabic, Persian, or Urdu ode/praise poem
qaum caste, community (see also jati)
qawwal, qavval professional sufi musician who also performed at court
qawwali song performances of qawwals, usually at sufi shrines
qiyamat, qayamat the Day of Judgement in Islam
qissa story
qissa-khwan storyteller
raga melodic mode
ragamala lit. garland of ragas; 6 male ragas each with 5 wives called raginis
raja king (also maharaja, great king)
rajguru royal guru
rakshas demon
ramat itinerancy in a group of followers
ramshala place where Dadupanthi ascetics spend the rainy months
ras lila performance of Krishna’s life
rasa juice, sentiment, one of nine affective essences
rasika connoisseur
rishi seer, sage
riti lit. style, courtly style of poetry in Brajbhasha
ritigranth manual of poetics
sabad lit. word, devotional song-poem
sadhu ascetic
sadhvi female ascetic
sajjada-nishin current head of a sufi shrine
sakhi poetic couplet, often gnomic in kind
sakhi the female confidante of the nayika
salam greeting; the first item in a series of performances
sama‘ lit. audition, sufi musical assembly
samasyapurti poetic game in which poets are given a word or part of a verse and have to complete it to a set metre
sampradaya religious group, association
samskara polysemic word which means life-ritual and ceremony, and the trace and influence that actions and thoughts leave
sangita music, dance, and drama; lyrical arts
sangitashastra musical science, music treatise
sant lit. “good man”, holy person in a devotional context
saqi-nama poems addressed to the saqi or cup-bearer
sarvangi comprehensive compilation of devotional songs
satsang congregation of devotees with music and discourses
savab religious merit
sayyid descendant of the Prophet Muhammad
seva service
shakti the power of the goddess
shauq desire, pleasure
shudra lower caste
silsila lit. chain, lineage
sipara chapter of the Qur’an
soz Persian or Urdu elegy to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Husain (the Prophet Mohammad’s grandson) and his family at Karbala
stotra hymn
sufi mystical branch of Islam, based on observance of a path under the guide of a pir
sukhan speech, discourse
sunna to listen, to hear
svadhyaya self-study
tabarruk blessed food
tabla set of two drums that is the pre-eminent accompaniment to classical music genres
takhyil deception
tala rhythmic cycle
tamasha spectacle, and a Marathi performance genre
tappa courtly Panjabi song genre
tarikh chronogram
tariqa sufi path and organisation
tasha drum associated with Muharram
ta‘sir effect, impact
taza-gui “fresh speech”, new style of Persian poetry in Safavid and Mughal times
ta‘ziya, tazia replica of a mausoleum used in Muharram processions
tazkira biographical dictionary, prosopography (usually of poets or sufi saints)
tirthankara one of the 24 founding Jinas
‘urs lit. “marriage”, death anniversary of a sufi saint.
ustad master
vacana speech
vaggeyakar song-poet
vani (also bani) lit. speech, collected sayings of a saint or poet
varnashrama the system of four major castes (varna) and four stages of life (ashrama)
varta story
vira heroic, the heroic sentiment (rasa)
virah the longing and pain of separation
virahini woman pining for her absent beloved
virakt renunciant, in the specific case, Dadupanthi itinerant sadhu
virudavali panegyric genre panegyric made of linked chain of epithets
vistar exposition (of a raga)
vrat-katha ritual story with vow and fast
wazn rhythmic emphasis in a poetical or musico-rhythmic cycle
yuga epoch
zahir apparent, exoteric
zakir one who remembers
zauq taste, pleasure, see also lazzat
zikr, zekr repetitive chanting in sufi ritual practice
ziyarat pilgrimage
