Sadhu

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈsɑːduː/

Definitions

1. A person within Hinduism who dedicates themselves to spiritual practices while renouncing material existence
2. An ascetic figure in Indian culture engaged in meditation and simplicity to achieve spiritual enlightenment
3. A spiritually devoted individual in Hinduism often living a life of renunciation and austerity while focusing on meditation and self-realization

Etymology: In Sanskrit, "sādhú" meant "good," "straight," or "successful," and it was applied to a good person as well as to a holy man. The word's core sense is one of straightness and accomplishment, the idea of something that goes right or reaches its goal, and this moral and religious sense carried over into the Hindu tradition of the wandering ascetic. English borrowed the word from Hindi and related Indian languages, where it survives as a term for a renunciant who has left household life behind. Its earliest English uses describe these figures as they appeared to British observers in India, so the word entered the language as part of colonial-era travel writing rather than through classical study. Its popular image is of a bare-bodied or ash-smeared wanderer with few possessions, living on alms and devoted to meditation. The word thus carries a Sanskrit idea of goodness and completion into English as a label for a figure who has deliberately given up worldly attachments.

Synonyms: sage, holy man, ascetic, hermit, mystic