The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (72 page)

BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions
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KARMA
.
Agape
(Gk.).
1
‘Love’ (avoiding the sexual associations of
er
s
), the word used in the New Testament for the love of God or Christ, or of Christians, of a new and different quality.
2
The ‘love feast’ celebrated by early Christians (1 Corinthians 11. 17–34).
Agastya
or Agasti
.
A great
Vedic
sage said to have been born of Mitra and
Varu
a
in a large earthenware pot (
kumbha
), hence known as Kumbhayon
. He is the legendary pioneer of the
ryan
occupation of peninsular India.
Age of Aquarius
(time of spiritual advance)
:
Aggadah
/Haggadah
(Heb., ‘narrative’). Rabbinic teaching which is not
halakhah
and which includes stories, legends, history, ethical maxims, and witticisms. The
rabbis
themselves maintained that aggadah was not authoritative and insisted that ‘no halakhah may be derived from the aggadot’ (
TJ Peéah
2. 6, 17a); but its status in relation to insight and piety is high.

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