vihara

[ vi-hahr-uh ]

noun

(initial capital letter)Also called Brahma Vihara. one of the four states of mind, namely love, compassion, sympathetic gladness, and equanimity, to be developed by every Buddhist.

Origin of vihara

First recorded in 1875–80, vihara is from the Sanskrit word vihāra

This disagreement is very embarrassing when people try to conjecture the antiquity of this or that vihara or chaitya.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan | Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
A path, or rather a ledge cut along the perpendicular face of a rocky mass 200 feet high, led from the chief temple to our vihara.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan | Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
In a few minutes more we were on the verandah of our vihara, where we found our Hindu friends, who had arrived by another path.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan | Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
In the chief hall of the vihara was a life-sized statue of Bhavani, the feminine aspect of Shiva.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan | Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
Of course, in this case it would be perfectly right to think it is a Buddhist vihara.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan | Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky

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