Key terms & definitions

A professional entertainer who amuses a ruler or household through jokes and fooling; Trinculo is the King of Naples’s jester.

A member of the Society of Jesus, a Catholic religious order involved in missionary work and promoting the Catholic faith.

A band of fast-moving winds high in the atmosphere that helps steer weather systems.

Objects worn for decoration, such as necklaces, earrings, rings and ornamental headbands.

People connected by Jewish religion, traditions and communal life. Medieval English Jewish communities maintained synagogues, religious learning and links with Jewish communities overseas.

A statement presented by Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg at Assisi in 1986, explaining Jewish responsibilities towards nature through compassion, moral duty and care for God’s creation.

A state of deep meditative absorption and concentration. In the Maha-Saccaka Sutta, the Buddha describes progressing through four jhanas before attaining liberating knowledge.

The Mughal emperor’s public appearance at a balcony, allowing subjects to see him and pay their respects. Aurangzeb ended this practice because of its religious associations.

A method of slaughter intended to kill an animal immediately and minimise its suffering.

The angel who delivered Allah’s revelations of the Qur’an to Muhammad.

A device that locates a component or guides an operation so that a task can be repeated accurately.

The personal or collective struggle against evil and effort to live according to Allah’s will.

Laws enforcing racial segregation and discrimination, particularly in the Southern states of the USA.

State and local laws that enforced racial segregation and restricted African Americans' rights in the American South.

Aggressive patriotism that supports asserting national power through threats, military action or conquest.

A person who is spiritually liberated while still alive, free from the grip of selfish ego and centred on God.

Liberation while still alive: union with God rather than a state that can only begin after death.

Liberation attained while a person is still living in a physical body.

Compassion for living beings.

A tax imposed on non-Muslim subjects, reintroduced by Aurangzeb in 1679.

Spiritual knowledge or insight that overcomes ignorance about the true self.

The spiritual path of knowledge, involving study, reflection, meditation and insight.

Investigating a job to identify its tasks and responsibilities and the skills and qualities needed to perform it.

A document setting out the features of a job, including its duties, responsibilities, hours, location and pay.

Making a job more challenging and meaningful, often by giving an employee greater responsibility.

The classification of a job into a pay grade through an assessment of its demands, such as the skill required.

A production method in which each individual product or customer order is completed separately to meet specific requirements.

Making an individual product, usually to a customer's specific requirements; also called custom-made, bespoke or one-off production.

Legal restrictions reserving particular occupations, especially skilled jobs, for white workers.

The tasks and duties an employee is expected to carry out.