Annotations to James Joyce's Ulysses/Cyclops/289

thumb|600px|center|page=292 Annotations tantras5(Sanskrit) A tantra is a Hindu religious text.Gifford (1988) 329. In Theosophy, tantras are mystical and magical words comprising rituals associated with black magic or sorcery.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p. 296. etheric double5(Theosophy) In Theosophy, the double, or Astral Body, is the ethereal counterpart or shadow of a man or animal's physical body.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p. 35.Gifford (1988) 330. jivic rays5(Theosophy) In Theosophy, jiva refers to Life, as the Absolute.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p. 153.Gifford (1988) 330. It may also refer to the Monad, the immortal part of man which is reincarnated.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p. 201. The adjectival form jivic appears to be Joyce's own coinage. prālāyā5(Sanskrit) dissolution.Gifford (1988) 330. In The Theosophical Glossary, Helen Blavatsky defines Pralaya as: A period of obscuration or repose—planetary, cosmic or universal—the opposite of Manvantara.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p.242. In the context of Theosophy, pralaya refers to the period between death and reincarnation. In transliterating Sanskrit terms from Devanagari to Roman script, a macron is placed over a long vowel. There are no long vowels in pralaya; Joyce's macrons here and below (lines 16 and 19) are whimsical. See also 041.04. tālāfānā, ālāvātār, hātākāldā, wātāklāsāt5telephone, elevator, hot and cold [plumbing], water closet.Gifford (1988) 330. The whimsical spellings and macrons parody the Theosophists' predilection for Sanskrit terms. See prālāyā above. Māyā5(Sanskrit) Illusion. In both Hindu philosophy and Theosophy māyā refers to the idea that the physical world of sense perception is not part of true reality.Helen Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary, p. 195. In this case, Joyce's whimsical macrons are justified, but it is probably fair to say he would have added them even if they were not. References Annotations to James Joyce's UlyssesPreceding Page | Page Index | Next Page