The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (434 page)

(Skt., literally, ‘growth’ or ‘expansion’). The one supreme, all pervading Spirit; the impersonal Absolute, beyond attributes, which is the origin and support of the visible universe. This neuter noun, Brahman (or Brahma) should be distinguished from the masculine form,
Brahm
, the personal Creator-god in the Hindu triad of
Brahm
,
Vi
u
and
iva
.
The etymology of Brahman is obscure, but is traditionally derived from the verb root
b
h
or
b
h
, ‘to grow great’, ‘to increase’. In the earliest use of the word in the
Vedas
, and especially in
Atharva Veda
, the meaning of Brahman is the mysterious force behind a magical formula. It then means the sacred utterance through which the
devas
become great, and thus also ritual power and those in charge of it (i.e.
brahmans
). In the
atapata Br
hma
a
, and then in the Upani
ads, the word Brahman comes to mean the source of power, and thus the impersonal, supreme, eternal principle behind the origin of the universe and the gods. It is this later meaning that is developed in the systematic philosophy of
Ved
nta
which teaches that Brahman, the impersonal Absolute, is the essence, the Self (
tman