Page 123 - SBV (English)

Glossary 497

Dä—(Bengali) suffix appended to a name of an elder brother or a male of similar
status, connoting both affection and respect.

Daiva-varëäçrama-dharma—the authentic caste system, based not on birth (in
contradistinction to äsura-varëäçrama, prominent in Kali-yuga) but on
one’s qualities and activities. See also Varëäçrama-dharma.
Dakñiëä—an offering, in cash or kind, presented to a guru, a brähmaëa, or a
similarly worshipable person.
Daëòa—(1) stick; (2) staff carried by a sannyasi. See also Ekadaëòa; Tridaëòa.
Daëòavat—“like a rod.” In Bengali, this word is used for daëòavat-praëäma
(prostration offered by falling flat on the ground).
Darçana—(1) vision; (2) philosophy, or a philosophical system; (3) audience of
the Supreme Lord or His representative.

Däsa—(generally lowercase) (1) servant; (2) surname given to a devotee at
initiation, denoting him as a servant of Kåñëa; (3) (capital) family name in
Bengal and Orissa.
Daçakam—poem consisting of ten verses.
Däsya-rasa—the mellow of affectionate servitude. See also Rasa.
Deity—(1) the manifestation of the Supreme Lord as a scripturally authorized
form for accepting worship; (2) worshipable forms of pure devotees and
demigods. The deity form of the Lord appears in eight materials: stone,
wood, metal, earth, paint, sand, the mind, or jewels (see SB 11.27.12).
Demigod—a resident of the higher planets. Principal demigods are assigned roles
by the Supreme Lord for overseeing universal affairs, and are worshiped
for material boons by materialistic followers of Vedic culture.
Desire tree—a spiritual tree that fulfils the desires of its supplicants.
Deva—(1) the Supreme Lord, a demigod, or a godly person; (2) honorific suffix
for the Supreme Lord, a demigod, or a godly male.
Devé—(1) goddess or godly female; (2) honorific suffix for a goddess or godly
female.
Devotional service—the process of worshiping the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, Çré Kåñëa, by dedicating one’s thoughts, words, and actions to
Him in loving submission. See also Kåñëa consciousness.
Dhäma—the transcendental abode of the Lord, eternally existing as the spiritual
world beyond the material universes and also manifested within the
material world as certain holy places.