The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2585 page)

Read The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions Online

Authors: John Bowker

BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions
4.6Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
A priestly device for telling oracles in the ancient Israelite religion. The
high priest
wore the Urim and Thummim on his breastplate. It was used for questioning God on behalf of the ruler (Numbers 27. 21) and it seems to have given a ‘yes-or-no’ answer (1 Samuel 23. 10–12). The underlying meaning of the two words is not known.
r
(Skt., ‘wool’). A circle of hair between the eyebrows. In both Hindu and Jain understanding, this is, or conceals, the jewel or ornament of the ‘third eye’, which is derived from
iva's
production of his third, burning, eye: see
TRILOCANA
.
‘Urs
(Arab.). Bride and bridegroom, hence marriage. From this, it is also the collective name for ceremonies observed at the anniversary of the death of a
S
f
saint or
murshid
. The death of a saint is regarded as a time of reunion with his Lord and therefore considered a happy occasion. Each S
f
order celebrates its particular annual ‘urs programme.

Other books

Next Spring an Oriole by Gloria Whelan
Have You Found Her by Janice Erlbaum
Last to Leave by Clare Curzon
Come and Talk to Me by June Kramin
The Great Arc by John Keay
Dead Man's Wharf by Pauline Rowson
Girls in Charge by Debra Moffitt
The Pleasure Trap by Elizabeth Thornton