Proper sastra based terms of an Enlightened, Libreated Person:
mukta, jīvanmukta, videhamukta, jñānī, sthita-prajña, jñāna-niṣṭhā, parā-bhakta, guṇātīta, brahmavit, brahmavidvara, brahmavidvarīyān, brahmavidvariṣṭha, tattvavit, viditātmā, brahma-bhūtaḥ, brahma-niṣṭhaḥ, brahmaṇi-sthitaḥ, sarva-karma-sannyāsī, jñāna-karma-sannyāsī, vidvat-sannyāsī, kṛtsna-karma-kṛt, niṣkarmaḥ, paṇḍitaḥ, buddhimān, dhīraḥ, samadarśī, ṛṣi, jñāna-vijñāna-tṛptātmā, antaḥsukhaḥ, antarārāmaḥ, antarjyotiḥ, yogī, muni, kṛtakṛtyaḥ, āpta-kāmī, mahātmā.
Here are the brief explanations for each term based on the teachings:
- mukta: A free or liberated person who has resolved the illusion of separation and is completely free from the cycle of saṃsāra.
- jīvanmukta: One who is liberated while living, enjoying absolute inner freedom, peace, and independence from the world, even while the physical body continues to exist.
- videhamukta: One who attains liberation after disembodiment; when the momentum of past actions (prārabdha karma) is exhausted, the physical body falls away, and the sage remains as un-embodied consciousness without rebirth.
- jñānī: The wise person who has successfully gained self-knowledge through the scriptures and directly recognises their absolute non-difference from the Lord.
- sthita-prajña: A person of steady, well-established wisdom who naturally drops all binding desires as they arise and remains completely satisfied in oneself.
- jñāna-niṣṭhā (or jñāna-niṣṭha): One whose knowledge of the true Self is completely steadfast, spontaneous, and free from any internal obstructions, doubts, or contrary habitual orientations.
- parā-bhakta: The supreme devotee whose devotion has culminated in the ultimate realization that the devotee and the Lord are one and the same (also referred to as advaita bhakta or abheda bhakta).
- guṇātīta: One who has entirely transcended the three binding qualities of nature (sattva, rajas, and tamas) by knowing that the true Self is the changeless witness untouched by them.
- brahmavit, brahmavidvara, brahmavidvarīyān, brahmavidvariṣṭha: Four categories of knowers of Brahman; the brahmavidvariṣṭha is the best knower of Brahman who is entirely devoid of mental modifications and is completely liberated.
- tattvavit: The knower of Truth who possesses the clear discriminative knowledge that the true Self is completely distinct from the body-mind-sense complex and performs no action.
- viditātmā: One who has known the Ātmā; a wise sage whose mind is fully restrained and who has successfully assimilated the spiritual teachings.
- brahma-bhūtaḥ: One who has “become” Brahman while living, meaning they have shifted their identification from the physical body and ahaṅkāra (ego) to the all-pervading consciousness.
- brahma-niṣṭhaḥ: One whose knowledge that “Ātmā is Brahman” is completely steadfast and free from doubt.
- brahmaṇi-sthitaḥ: One who is firmly established in Brahman, remaining totally unshaken by the ups and downs of worldly life.
- sarva-karma-sannyāsī: One who has renounced all actions entirely through the knowledge that the true Self is an actionless non-doer.
- jñāna-karma-sannyāsī: Identical to the above; a renunciate who has given up all actions and the sense of doership purely through the fire of self-knowledge.
- vidvat-sannyāsī: A wise renunciate who formally gives up all obligatory worldly duties specifically because they already possess self-knowledge and have no further personal obligations.
- kṛtsna-karma-kṛt: One who has accomplished all that is to be done; by recognising the actionless nature of the Self, they have successfully fulfilled all human purposes.
- niṣkarmaḥ: One from whom all karmas have fallen away because of the clear knowledge of oneself as the actionless Brahman.
- paṇḍitaḥ: A wise person in whom true self-knowledge (paṇḍā) has firmly arisen, allowing them to see with equal vision and remain free from grief.
- buddhimān: A person of true wisdom and discrimination who sees inaction in action and action in inaction.
- dhīraḥ: A discriminating, wise person who remains completely unswayed and equal in the face of all pairs of opposites, such as pleasure and pain.
- samadarśī (or samadarśanaḥ): One of equal vision who sees the exact same changeless Brahman residing equally in a learned scholar, a cow, an elephant, a dog, and an outcaste.
- ṛṣi: A sage; derived from the root meaning “to know”, it designates a wise person who has assimilated the Truth, regardless of whether they wear ascetic robes or modern clothing.
- jñāna-vijñāna-tṛptātmā: One whose mind is absolutely contented through indirect knowledge (jñāna) that has been successfully converted into direct, immediate experience of the Self (vijñāna).
- antaḥsukhaḥ: One whose absolute fulfillment and happiness are discovered entirely within oneself, independent of external objects.
- antarārāmaḥ: One who revels and finds complete amusement only within oneself.
- antarjyotiḥ: One whose mind is fully awake to the light of the Self, recognising that the knower, the known, and the knowledge itself are all one awareness.
- yogī: While often used for a seeker, in its ultimate, primary sense it refers to the jñānī who has accomplished the final realization that the individual and the Lord are identical.
- muni: A person of clear vision and discrimination who is capable of profound inquiry (mananam) and who has committed themselves entirely to the pursuit of ultimate freedom.
- kṛtakṛtyaḥ: One who has found complete fulfillment because they know their true nature is entirely free from any limitation, and all that is to be done is done.
- āpta-kāmī: One who is completely fulfilled in all their desires because they recognise themselves as the limitless whole, making them incapable of inappropriate anger or sorrow.
- mahātmā: A great soul whose mind is big and whose heart is imbued with love and compassion, having recognized that their ātmā is the limitless Brahman.