| Term | Meaning or definition as related to yoga in Sanskrit or another language. |
| Madhyama vak | in the theory of speech (vak), this is the middle state, where one resides only in thoughts.
|
| Magamuch | Kashmiri name for the god Ganesha.
|
| Maha | great
|
| Maha bandha | the great lock - combines the three locks in yoga - the moola bandha, jalandhara bandha and uddiyana bandha - together with breath retention.
|
| Maha mudra | the great gesture - combines the practice of moola bandha, shambhavi and khechari mudras simultaneously.
|
| Maha nadi | literally means 'great nadi', which is the 'sushumna' in yoga.
|
| Makara | crocodile
|
| Makarasana | crocodile pose.
|
| Malasana | Garland Pose.
|
| Manas chakra | the energy center above the ajna chakra - is depicted with six petals.
|
| Manipura chakra | the energy centre in the spinal column located behind the navel - corresponding to the solar plexus.
|
| Mantra | sound of syllables repeated by Yogis to produce a change in consciousness.
|
| Mantra devata | the particular universal force toward which a mantram is directed.
|
| Mantra pramatribhava | state of meditation in which the breath becomes balled and enters the central channel for the rise of kundalini.
|
| Mantra | subtle sound vibration, which through repetition aims at expanding one's awareness or consciousness.
|
| Mantra shakti | the power of mantra.
|
| Mantreshwara pramatribhava | state of meditation in which one experiences perception of worldly activities and then God-consciousness in the background.
|
| Manu | semi-mythical sage; progenitor of the human race.
|
| Matrikachakra | in Kashmir Shaivism, the theory of the alphabet.
|
| Matsyendrasana | a spine twisting pose.
|
| Maya | the illusion of individuality.
|
| Mayashakti | power as manifested in all states, enabling one to be fixed in contemplation of one's own nature.
|
| Mayiyamala | the state of impurity that creates differentiation in one's consciousness.
|
| Mayur | peacock
|
| Mayurasana | peacock' pose - advanced pose aims at strengthening the arms and stimulating the manipura chakra.
|
| Meditation | a state of complete silence and inner awareness, reflection, a process of introspect.
|
| Moksha | liberation from the cycle of birth and death, liberation, freedom, release.
|
| Moola | root
|
| Moola bandha | energy lock created by the contraction of the perineum in the male and the cervix in the female.
|
| Mooladhara chakra | lowest energy centre in the human body where the kundalini shakti (serpent power) resides - situated in the perineal floor in men and the cervix in women.
|
| Moorchha pranayama | fainting or swooning breath' in which the breath is inhaled slowly and retained for an extended period.
|
| Mouna | silence - the practice of silence.
|
| Mudha | unconscious or unaware state of mind.
|
| Mudra | literally means 'gesture' - mudra expresses and channelizes cosmic energy within the mind and body.
|
| Mulabhanda | a lock, or tightening, of the rectal muscles.
|
| Muladhara | chakra located at the base of the spine "energy center in the subtle body".
|
| Muni | saint, sage. |
