Core Glossary
08 Core Glossary — Gospel of John → Manipuri
This glossary extends translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json (Romans baseline) for the John curriculum. Table A lists baseline terms confirmed for reuse, exact, with John-specific occurrence notes. Table B lists new terms required by John’s distinctive vocabulary, following the baseline’s risk-tier and citation conventions. All script is Bengali script per the established convention; provisional renderings are explicitly marked and require native-speaker/theologian confirmation before Phase 2 deployment, in keeping with the baseline’s own honesty standard for uncertain terms.
Table A — Baseline Terms Reused Exactly in John (No Change Permitted)
| Term | Manipuri (exact, from baseline) | Risk (baseline) | Key John Passages | John-Specific Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| god | তেংবাং মপু | Critical | 1:1,18; 3:16-18; 4:24; 5:18; 17:3 | Continues to avoid ঠাকুর and সানামাহি |
| jesus | জিসু | Critical | throughout | — |
| lord | মপু ইবুংগো | Critical | 20:28; 21:7 | Climactic use at 20:28, “My Lord and my God” |
| son_of_god | তেংবাং মপুগী মচানুপা | Critical | 1:34,49; 3:18; 5:25; 10:36; 11:27; 20:31 | Extended with monogenes qualifier — see Table B |
| holy_spirit | থাওয়াই অসেংবা | Critical | 1:32-33; 3:5-8; 7:39; 14:16-17,26; 15:26; 16:13; 20:22 | Never bare থাওয়াই; foundational to Counselor doctrine (Table B) |
| father | ইপা | Critical | 1:14,18; 3:35; 5:17-26; 10:30; 14:6-28; 17 | Central to Unity-of-Father-and-Son doctrine |
| abba | আব্বা | High | (not directly used in John; retained for cross-curriculum consistency) | — |
| resurrection | সিবদগী হিংজত-লকপা | Critical | 5:29; 6:39-54; 11:24-25; 20-21 | Never পুনর্জন্ম; anchors John 11:25 “I am the resurrection” |
| incarnation | মীওইগী মহৈ লৌবা | Critical | 1:14 | Never অবতার; primary textual anchor for the doctrine |
| grace | মথৌ তাদনা পীবা তেংবাং | Critical | 1:14,16-17 | First introduced in John at 1:14,16 (“grace upon grace”) |
| glory | মতিক চাউবা | High | 1:14; 2:11; 11:4,40; 12:41,43; 17:5,22,24 | Extended by verb form মতিক চাউহনবা (glorify) — Table B |
| salvation | অহানবা | Critical | 3:17; 4:22,42; 12:47 | Never মোক্ষ; basis for “Savior of the world” (Table B) |
| faith / believe | থাজবা | High | ~98 occurrences, the book’s most frequent theological verb | Object of belief must always be tracked contextually |
| sin | পাপ | High | 1:29; 8:34,46; 9:41; 16:8-9; 20:23 | Basis for “forgive sins” (Table B) |
| law | য়াথাং | Medium | 1:17,45; 7:19-23; 8:5,17; 19:7 | Basis for “new commandment” (Table B) |
| messiah | ক্রিস্তো | Critical | 1:20,25,41; 4:25,29; 7:26-31,41-42; 9:22; 10:24; 11:27; 20:31 | John explicitly glosses “Messiah” as “Christ” at 1:41, 4:25 |
| prophet | তোঙান তোঙানবা ফোংদোকপা | Low | 1:21,25; 4:19; 6:14; 7:40; 9:17 | No new risk |
| election | তেংবাং মপুগী খনবা | High | 15:16,19 | ”You did not choose me, but I chose you” — direct reuse |
| peace | ইনগবা | Medium | 14:27; 16:33; 20:19,21,26 | ”Peace be with you” post-resurrection greetings |
| kingdom_of_god | তেংবাং মপুগী লৈপাক | Medium | 3:3,5; 18:36 (“my kingdom”) | Basis for contrast with Meitei ningthou/Pakhangba kingship model |
| israel | ইস্রায়েল | Medium | 1:31,49; 3:10; 12:13 | — |
| apostle | তবিদগী থাবিরকপা | Medium | (root reused for “sent”/Paraclete compounds, Table B) | Structural root for “sent” and “Counselor” |
| obedience_of_faith | থাজবগী ইনবা (root ইনবা) | High | 21:19,22 (“follow me”) | Root reused for discipleship “follow” language |
| sanctification | অসেংবা ওইহনবা | High | 17:17,19 | ”Sanctify them in the truth” |
| holy | অসেংবা | High | 6:69 (“Holy One of God”) | — |
Table B — New Terms Introduced by John (Full Fields)
| Term | Original (Greek) | Transliteration | Literal Meaning | Semantic Range | English Variants | Contextual Theological Meaning (John) | Manipuri Rendering | Manipuri Transliteration | Doctrine | Risk | Key Passages | Rejected Alternatives / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Word (Logos) | Λόγος | Logos | word, speech, reasoned utterance | Personal divine title in John 1; elsewhere in Greek philosophy, an impersonal ordering principle | the Word, the Logos | Christ as eternal, pre-existent, personal, creative divine agent | তেংবাং মপুগী ৱাহৈ / ৱাহৈ | Tengban Mapugi Waihei / Waihei | Deity and Pre-existence of Christ | Critical | 1:1-3,14 | শব্দ ব্রহ্ম (Śabda-Brahman, the Hindu philosophical concept of sound/word as ultimate reality — never use as an equivalence); must retain personal, capitalized-title sense, not “a message.” [PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian] |
| only Son / only-begotten | μονογενής | monogenēs | one-of-a-kind, only-of-its-kind | Uniqueness of kind, not birth order | only Son, only-begotten Son, one and only Son | Christ’s exclusive, unshared divine Sonship | অমা খক্তা ওইবা মচানুপা | ama khakta oiba machanupa | Sonship of Christ; Deity of Christ | Critical | 1:14,18; 3:16,18 | অবতার-sequence framing (Krishna as one avatar among several) — explicitly rejected |
| eternal life | ζωὴ αἰώνιος | zōē aiōnios | unending / age-lasting life | Qualitatively new, God-given life, present possession and future hope | eternal life, everlasting life | Relational knowledge of God through Christ (17:3), not liberation or absorption | অতৈ লৈতবা হিংবা | atai leitaba hingba | Eternal Life through Faith in Christ | Critical | 3:15-16,36; 4:14,36; 5:24,39; 6:27,40,47,54,68; 10:28; 12:25,50; 17:2-3 | মোক্ষ (never); union/absorption into Krishna’s presence in Vaikuntha/Goloka (never, per baseline salvation entry) [PROVISIONAL] |
| life | ζωή | zōē | life | Ordinary physical life; also, distinctively in John, the divine life the Word/Son possesses and gives | life | The Word “had life in himself” (1:4; 5:26) and gives it to believers | হিংবা | hingba | Eternal Life; Deity of Christ | High | 1:4; 5:26; 6:33,35,48,51,63; 11:25; 14:6 | — |
| light | φῶς | phōs | light | Christ as revealer, moral exposer, and life-giver; contrasted with darkness | light | ”I am the light of the world” (8:12; 9:5); light exposes and judges | মমাং | mamang | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief; Deity of Christ | Critical | 1:4-9; 3:19-21; 8:12; 9:5; 12:35-36,46 | Atiya Guru Sidaba’s primordial formless light (Sanamahi cosmology); Ras Lila’s staged divine radiance (cf. baseline glory caution) [PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian] |
| darkness | σκοτία / σκότος | skotia / skotos | darkness | Moral/spiritual blindness and opposition to God | darkness | Default fallen condition, actively preferred over the light (3:19) | অমম্বা | amamba | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | Medium | 1:5; 3:19; 8:12; 12:35,46 | [PROVISIONAL] |
| world | κόσμος | kosmos | world, ordered universe, humanity | Dual range: (1) the created order/humanity, object of God’s love (3:16); (2) the fallen world-system opposed to God (15:18-19) | world, the world of humanity | Must be disambiguated per occurrence — loved-object vs. hostile-system sense | মালেম | malem | God’s Love for the World | High | 1:9-10,29; 3:16-17,19; 4:42; 8:12,23,26; 12:31,46-47; 15:18-19; 16:33; 17:6,9,14-16,18,21,23,25 | Risk that মালেম functions as a specific cosmological “middle-earth plane” in local cosmology, narrowing κόσμος’s intended sense |
| born again / new birth | γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν | gennēthē anōthen | be begotten from above / again | Deliberate double sense (again + from above) | born again, born anew, born from above | Spirit-wrought regeneration, a definite one-time event, not a repeatable cycle | অনৌবা পোকপা | anouba pokpa | The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit | Critical | 3:3-8 | পুনর্জন্ম (rebirth/reincarnation — absolutely forbidden, per baseline resurrection entry’s same logic) [PROVISIONAL] |
| born of the Spirit | γεγεννημένος ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος | gegennēmenos ek tou pneumatos | begotten out of the Spirit | The Spirit as the efficient cause of the new birth | born of the Spirit | Contrasted with birth “of the flesh” (3:6) and ordinary human birth “of blood… of the will of the flesh” (1:13) | থাওয়াই অসেংবাদগী পোকপা | Thawai Asengbadagi pokpa | The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit | Critical | 1:13; 3:5-8 | Always retains অসেংবা; never bare থাওয়াই |
| flesh | σάρξ | sarx | flesh, physical body | Human nature in its natural, fallen capacity; distinct from Spirit | flesh, human nature | ”Flesh gives birth to flesh” (3:6); contrasted with the Word “becoming flesh” (1:14, a positive, unique event) | হাক্চাং | hakchang | The New Birth; Deity and Pre-existence of Christ | Medium/High | 1:14; 3:6; 6:51-56,63; 8:15 | Distinguish generic হাক্চাং (fallen human capacity) from the unique redemptive event মীওইগী মহৈ লৌবা (incarnation, baseline) |
| Spirit/wind wordplay | πνεῦμα | pneuma | spirit; wind; breath | Single Greek word spans natural wind and the divine Spirit — deliberate pun in 3:8 | wind, Spirit, breath | The Spirit’s invisible, sovereign, uncontrollable work likened to wind | নুংশিৎ (wind) / থাওয়াই অসেংবা (Spirit) | nungsit / Thawai Asengba | The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit | High | 3:8 | Wordplay largely untranslatable; mandatory translator’s note recommended; never substitute bare থাওয়াই for either sense |
| witness / testimony | μαρτυρέω / μαρτυρία | martyreō / martyria | to testify; testimony | Firsthand, authoritative attestation — a major structural device across the whole book | witness, testify, testimony | Chain of testimony (John the Baptist, the Father, Scripture, works, the Spirit) authenticating Christ | সাক্ষী পীবা | sakkhi piba | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | Medium/High | 1:7-8,15,19-34; 3:11,26-33; 5:31-39; 8:13-18; 15:26-27; 19:35; 21:24 | Distinguish from a maibi’s trance-mediated oracular testimony during Lai Haraoba |
| truth | ἀλήθεια | alētheia | truth, reality | Ultimate reality revealed in and by Christ, not mere factual accuracy | truth | Climaxes in “I am…the truth” (14:6) | অচুম্বা | achumba | The Seven “I Am” Statements; Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | High | 1:14,17; 3:21; 4:23-24; 8:32,44; 14:6,17; 16:13; 17:17,19; 18:37-38 | Prefer অচুম্বা over the Sanskrit/Bengali loan সত্য, to maintain root-consistency with baseline righteousness (অচুম্বা চৎনবিরাক) and avoid competing bhakti-attribute resonance |
| Lamb of God | ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ | ho amnos tou theou | the lamb of God | Passover/sacrificial substitutionary imagery | Lamb of God | ”who takes away the sin of the world” (1:29,36); confirmed at 19:36 | তেংবাং মপুগী য়াওবী | Tengban Mapugi Yaobi | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | High | 1:29,36; 19:36 | Sheep/lamb not a major traditional Meitei sacrificial animal; Vaishnavism rejects animal sacrifice on ahimsā grounds — requires explicit OT background teaching [PROVISIONAL] |
| Son of Man | ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου | ho huios tou anthrōpou | the son of man/humanity | Messianic-apocalyptic self-designation (Daniel 7) pairing full humanity with divine authority | Son of Man | Jesus’ preferred self-title, holding humanity and heavenly authority together | মীওইগী মচানুপা | miwoigi machanupa | Deity and Pre-existence of Christ | High | 1:51; 3:13-14; 5:27; 6:27,53,62; 9:35; 12:23,34; 13:31 | Structural parallel to তেংবাং মপুগী মচানুপা (Son of God); must preserve the humanity+authority paradox |
| heaven | οὐρανός | ouranos | sky, heaven | God’s own eternal dwelling/realm | heaven, the heavens | The Son’s unique origin and destination (3:13); permanent post-resurrection destination for believers (implicitly, 14:2-3) | স্বর্গ | sorgo | Deity and Pre-existence of Christ | High/Critical | 1:32,51; 3:13,27,31; 6:31-51 | Pan-Indic loanword also naming the Puranic temporary heavenly realm and the Vaishnava devotee’s Vaikuntha/Goloka aspiration — requires explicit distinguishing teaching; no clean native alternative available [PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian] |
| descend/ascend from heaven | καταβαίνω / ἀναβαίνω | katabainō / anabainō | to go down / go up | Movement between heaven and earth expressing the Son’s pre-existent origin | come down, descend; ascend, go up | Establishes the Son’s heavenly origin — not appearing on earth from nowhere, but coming from heaven | স্বর্গদগী কুম্থরকপা / স্বর্গদা কাখৎপা | sorgodagi kumtharakpa / sorgoda kakhatpa | Deity and Pre-existence of Christ | CRITICAL | 3:13,31; 6:33,38,41-42,50-51,58 | Sanskrit avatāra literally means “descent” — the single sharpest avatāra-collision risk in the whole book; must be taught as unique, permanent, once, never a repeatable divine-descent pattern [PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian] |
| serpent (bronze serpent typology) | ὄφις | ophis | serpent, snake | Numbers 21 typology: judgment remedied by looking to what God provided, not veneration of the serpent itself | serpent, snake | Points forward to Christ’s being “lifted up” on the cross | লিং | ling | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | CRITICAL | 3:14 | Pakhangba, the ancestral serpent-deity of Sanamahi cosmology (elder-brother relationship to Sanamahi), is an object of positive ancestral-divine veneration and royal-lineage significance — sharply opposite valence to the OT judgment-image; explicit OT background teaching required |
| lifted up | ὑψωθῆναι | hypsōthēnai | to be raised high, exalted | Double meaning: physical crucifixion-raising AND exaltation/glorification | lifted up, raised up, exalted | The cross itself as the moment of glorification | থাংজিনবা | thangjinba | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | High | 3:14; 8:28; 12:32,34 | Distinguish from ceremonial raising/processional display of a deity’s image in Vaishnava or Sanamahi festival practice |
| perish | ἀπόλλυμι | apollymi | to be destroyed, lost, ruined | Eternal ruin, negative counterpart to eternal life | perish, be destroyed, be lost | The alternative fate for the unbeliever | মানখিবা | mankhiba | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | Medium | 3:16; 10:28; 17:12 | Must retain full weight of final loss |
| judgment / condemn | κρίσις / κρίνω | krisis / krinō | judgment, verdict / to judge | God’s righteous verdict, revealed by response to Christ | judgment, condemnation, condemn | Present-tense verdict based on belief/unbelief (3:18-19), plus future/final judgment (5:29; 12:48) | ৱায়েল | wayel | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | High | 3:17-19; 5:22,24,27,29-30; 8:15-16,26; 9:39; 12:31,47-48; 16:8,11 | Distinguish from a customary clan-council (yumnak/lup) verdict and from a maibi’s oracular divinatory verdict |
| wrath of God | ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ | hē orgē tou theou | the anger/wrath of God | Holy, judicial, settled opposition to unbelief — not capricious anger | wrath of God, God’s anger | Negative counterpart to eternal life for the one who rejects the Son (3:36) | তেংবাং মপুগী অসাউবা | Tengban Mapugi asauba | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief | High/Critical | 3:36 | Distinguish from a capricious Umang Lai deity’s ritual-neglect anger (addressed by propitiatory offerings) and from Vaishnava prāyaścitta appeasement rites [PROVISIONAL] |
| love (agapē/agapaō) | ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάω | agapē / agapaō | self-giving, sacrificial love | Unconditioned, initiating, costly love — distinct from ἔρως (romantic desire) and closely related to but distinct from φιλέω (affectionate love) | love | God’s self-giving love for the world (3:16); Christ’s love for his own, unto death (13:1,34; 15:13) | নুংশিবা | nungsiba | God’s Love for the World | CRITICAL | 3:16; 13:1,34-35; 14:15,21,23-24; 15:9-13; 17:23-26; 21:15-17 | Ras Lila’s Krishna-Radha prema (romantic-mystical devotional love) is a live, UNESCO-recognized, prestigious cultural-religious practice — the single most important comparative love-language risk in the whole book; must be explicitly taught against this framework, not assumed to transfer via a shared word |
| sign | σημεῖον | sēmeion | sign, mark, token | Self-authenticating divine work pointing to Christ’s identity, structuring the book’s first half (the “Book of Signs”) | sign(s), miracle(s) | Distinct from mere wonder-display or omen | খুদম | khudam | The Seven “I Am” Statements (supporting); general Christology | Medium | 2:11,23; 3:2; 4:48,54; 6:2,14,26,30; 7:31; 9:16; 11:47; 12:18,37; 20:30 | Distinguish from a maiba/maibi’s divinatory omen-reading; [PROVISIONAL] |
| authority / right | ἐξουσία | exousia | authority, right, delegated power | Delegated right, distinct from raw power (δύναμις) | authority, right, power | Right to become God’s children (1:12); Son’s authority to judge, to lay down/take up life (5:27; 10:18) | অধিকার | adhikar | Deity and Pre-existence of Christ; Christ’s Substitutionary Death | Medium/High | 1:12; 5:27; 10:18; 17:2; 19:10-11 | Distinguish from শক্তি (forbidden per baseline power_of_god) and from the Meitei ningthou’s Pakhangba-descent political authority |
| children of God | τέκνα θεοῦ | tekna theou | children of God | Organic, birth-based family belonging — via new birth (1:13; 3:1-8), not merit | children of God, sons of God | Complements, does not duplicate, Paul’s legal-adoption image (baseline: মচা ওইনা লৌবা) | তেংবাং মপুগী মচা | Tengban Mapugi macha | The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit | High | 1:12-13; 11:52 | Teach as two compatible pictures of the same reality (organic birth + legal adoption), not conflated into one |
| sent | ἀποστέλλω / πέμπω | apostellō / pempō | to send, dispatch with authority | The Father-Son sending relationship — over 40 occurrences; expresses unity of purpose with distinction of persons | sent, sends | Foundational to the Unity-of-Father-and-Son doctrine; also basis for 20:21’s commissioning of the disciples | থাবিরকপা | thabirakpa | Unity of the Father and the Son | High | 3:17,34; 5:36-38; 6:29,38-39,44,57; 7:29; 8:42; 10:36; 11:42; 17:3,8,18,21,23,25; 20:21 | Built on baseline apostle root; must not be read as a subordinate maiba/maibi-style messenger relationship |
| worship | προσκυνέω | proskyneō | to bow down, prostrate, worship | Reverent submission/homage, due exclusively to God | worship | True worship (4:20-24) is Spirit-and-truth-grounded, not place-bound; directed explicitly at Jesus in 9:38 | খুরুম্জবা | khurumjaba | God’s Love for the World (worship response); Deity of Christ | High | 4:20-24; 9:38; 12:20 | খুরুম্জবা is also ordinary respectful obeisance to elders/royalty/deities generically — must be marked as exclusive worship of the true God/Christ when so intended |
| Savior of the world | ὁ σωτὴρ τοῦ κόσμου | ho sōtēr tou kosmou | the savior of the world | Universal scope of Christ’s saving identity | Savior of the world | The Samaritans’ confession (4:42) | মালেমগী অহানবিরকপা | malemgi ahanbirakpa | Eternal Life through Faith in Christ; God’s Love for the World | Critical (root) | 4:42 | Built on baseline অহানবা |
| living water | ὕδωρ ζῶν | hydōr zōn | living/flowing water | Metaphor for Spirit-given, self-renewing life Christ supplies | living water | Permanently satisfies spiritual thirst (4:10-14; 7:38) | হিংবগী ঈশিং | hingbagi ising | Eternal Life; Holy Spirit | Medium | 4:10-14; 7:38-39 | Distinguish from ritual-purity flowing water in Lai Haraoba/Vaishnava ablution |
| draw | ἕλκω | helkō | to draw, pull | The Father’s sovereign initiative bringing a person to Christ | draw, bring | ”No one can come to me unless the Father…draws him” (6:44); “I…will draw all people to myself” (12:32) | থিংথোকপা | thingthokpa | Effectual Calling / Election (baseline-linked) | High | 6:44; 12:32 | Connects to baseline election/calling; never ৱাইফম (fate) |
| I Am statements (seven, plus absolute uses) | ἐγώ εἰμι | egō eimi | I am | (1) predicate “I am X” statements (bread of life, light, door, good shepherd, resurrection and life, way/truth/life, true vine); (2) absolute unqualified “I am,” echoing the divine name of Exodus 3:14 LXX | I am…, I AM | Christ’s self-revelation through seven vivid metaphors, culminating in the absolute divine-name claim | ঐ…অসি (predicate) / ঐহাক ঐ অসি (absolute) | ei…asi / eihak ei asi | The Seven “I Am” Statements | CRITICAL | 6:35,48; 8:12,24,28,58; 9:5; 10:7,9,11,14; 11:25; 13:19; 14:6; 15:1,5; 18:5-6,8 | Absolute form requires mandatory translator’s note connecting it to Exodus 3:14, since Manipuri has no exact grammatical equivalent to the Greek’s emphatic unqualified construction |
| bread of life | ὁ ἄρτος τῆς ζωῆς | ho artos tēs zōēs | the bread of life | Christ as sole, sufficient, permanent spiritual nourishment, contrasted with wilderness manna | bread of life, living bread | First “I Am” statement | হিংবগী রুটি | hingbagi ruti | The Seven “I Am” Statements | Medium | 6:35,48,51 | রুটি (loanword) preferred over চাক (rice) to preserve manna/Passover-bread typology |
| flesh and blood (eucharistic language) | σάρξ καὶ αἷμα | sarx kai haima | flesh and blood | Figurative language for total reliance on Christ’s atoning death | eat my flesh, drink my blood | Not literal cannibalism nor a merit-generating rite | হাক্চাং অমসুং ঈ | hakchang amasung ee | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | High | 6:53-56 | Distinguish from Vaishnava prasādam (consecrated food/grace-transmission) framework |
| good shepherd | ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός | ho poimēn ho kalos | the good shepherd | Voluntary, sacrificial shepherd, contrasted with a fleeing hired hand | good shepherd | Fourth “I Am” statement | য়াও চৌথোকপা ফবা | yao chouthokpa phaba | The Seven “I Am” Statements; Christ’s Substitutionary Death | Medium/High | 10:11,14 | Pastoral imagery culturally distant from Manipur’s rice-agrarian economy; requires background teaching [PROVISIONAL] |
| door / gate | θύρα | thyra | door, gate | Sole legitimate access to salvation/the sheepfold | door, gate | Third “I Am” statement | থোঙাল | thongal | The Seven “I Am” Statements | Low/Medium | 10:7,9 | — |
| lay down (one’s) life | τίθημι τὴν ψυχήν | tithēmi tēn psychēn | to lay down [one’s] soul/life | Voluntary, purposeful, substitutionary self-giving | lay down his life | Central anchor for Christ’s Substitutionary Death doctrine | হিংবা পীথোকপা | hingba pithokpa | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | High | 10:11,15,17-18; 13:37-38; 15:13 | Deliberately avoids থাওয়াই to prevent collision with the fixed Holy Spirit compound; distinguish from Vaishnava prapatti self-surrender and maibi trance self-offering |
| resurrection and the life | ἡ ἀνάστασις καὶ ἡ ζωή | hē anastasis kai hē zōē | the resurrection and the life | Christ himself IS resurrection/life, present tense | I am the resurrection and the life | Fifth “I Am” statement | সিবদগী হিংজত-লকপা অমসুং হিংবা | sibadagi hingjat-lakpa amasung hingba | The Seven “I Am” Statements; Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | Critical | 11:25 | Built entirely on baseline resurrection root |
| ruler of this world | ὁ ἄρχων τοῦ κόσμου τούτου | ho archōn tou kosmou toutou | the ruler of this world | Satan’s derivative, temporary, already-judged rule over the fallen world-system | ruler of this world, prince of this world | Cast out through Christ’s death/exaltation (12:31; 16:11) | মালেমগী মপু | malemgi mapu | Judgment and Belief/Unbelief; Christ’s Substitutionary Death | High | 12:31; 14:30; 16:11 | মপু is the same root as Christ’s own Lordship title — must be clearly marked as illegitimate/temporary when applied to Satan |
| new commandment | ἐντολὴ καινή | entolē kainē | a new commandment | Christ’s command to love one another as he has loved | new commandment | The defining mark of discipleship | অনৌবা য়াথাং | anouba yathang | God’s Love for the World | Medium | 13:34 | Built on baseline law/commandment root |
| Counselor / Paraclete | ὁ παράκλητος | ho paraklētos | one called to one’s side; helper, advocate | The Holy Spirit’s personal, distinct helping/advocating role after Christ’s departure | Counselor, Comforter, Advocate, Helper | Anchor term for “The Holy Spirit as Counselor” doctrine | পাংজিনবিরকপা থাওয়াই অসেংবা | Pangjinbirakpa Thawai Asengba | The Holy Spirit as Counselor | CRITICAL | 14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7 | Must always retain অসেংবা; never assimilated to a maibi’s mediumistic channeling role or an ancestral household spirit (Apokpa) [PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian] |
| Spirit of truth | τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας | to pneuma tēs alētheias | the Spirit of truth | Parallel Paraclete title | Spirit of truth | Guides believers into all truth | অচুম্বাগী থাওয়াই অসেংবা | Achumbagi Thawai Asengba | The Holy Spirit as Counselor | Critical | 14:17; 15:26; 16:13 | Built on baseline Holy Spirit root |
| Father is greater than I | ὁ πατὴρ μου μείζων μού ἐστιν | ho patēr mou meizōn mou estin | my Father is greater than I | Functional/mission-role statement of the incarnate Son, not an essential-nature statement | the Father is greater than I | Must be taught alongside 10:30’s essential unity | ইপা ঐদগী হেন্না চাউই | Ipa eidagi henna chaui | Unity of the Father and the Son | Critical | 14:28 | Requires explicit tandem teaching with I-and-the-Father-are-one to avoid subordinationist misreading |
| I and the Father are one | ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν | egō kai ho patēr hen esmen | I and the Father are one | Essential unity of nature/being (neuter ἕν = one reality) | I and the Father are one | Direct textual anchor for Unity of Father and Son doctrine | ঐগা ইপাগা অমা ওইবি | eiga ipaga ama oibi | Unity of the Father and the Son | CRITICAL | 10:30 | Distinguish co-essential Trinitarian unity from pantheistic absorption/merging (bhakti mystical union; Advaita-style Brahman-Atman identity) |
| that they may be one, as we are one | ἵνα ὦσιν ἕν καθὼς ἡμεῖς ἕν | hina ōsin hen kathōs hēmeis hen | that they may be one as we are one | Believers’ relational unity, patterned on but not identical to the Father-Son ontological unity | that they may be one | Links the Trinitarian unity doctrine to the church’s own call to unity | অমা ওইবা | ama oiba | Unity of the Father and the Son; Church as God’s People | CRITICAL | 17:11,21-22 | Must not be taught as believers attaining the same essential divine unity |
| true vine | ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀληθινή | hē ampelos hē alēthinē | the true vine | OT vineyard=Israel covenant imagery; fruitfulness only through organic connection to Christ | true vine | Seventh “I Am” statement | অচুম্বা লৈহাও | achumba leihao | The Seven “I Am” Statements | Medium | 15:1,5 | Viticulture culturally distant from Manipur’s rice-agrarian economy; OT background required [PROVISIONAL] |
| abide / remain | μένω | menō | to remain, stay, dwell | Continuing, dependent relational connection to Christ | abide, remain | ”Apart from me you can do nothing” (15:5) | লৈরিবা | leiriba | The Seven “I Am” Statements (vine); Christian Identity in Christ | Medium | 15:4-10 | Distinguish from geographic/ritual proximity to a sacred grove or temple |
| overcome the world | νενίκηκα τὸν κόσμον | nenikēka ton kosmon | I have overcome the world | Christ’s decisive, already-accomplished victory over the hostile world-system | I have overcome the world | Grounds assurance in Christ’s finished victory | মায়ক ফাংবা | mayok phangba | Assurance of Salvation (baseline-linked) | Medium | 16:33 | Avoid martial-heroic framing resonant with Meitei warrior traditions (Thang-Ta) [PROVISIONAL] |
| I AM HE (to the soldiers) | ἐγώ εἰμι | egō eimi | I am | Absolute self-identification repeated at the arrest | I am he | Echoes 8:58’s divine-name claim even in submission to arrest | ঐহাক ঐ অসি | eihak ei asi | The Seven “I Am” Statements; Deity of Christ | CRITICAL | 18:5-6,8 | See I Am statements entry |
| It is finished | τετέλεσται | tetelestai | it has been completed/accomplished | Completed, sufficient, once-for-all atoning work | it is finished, it is accomplished | Christ’s death requires no ritual or devotional supplementation | মপুং ফাউরে | mapung phaoure | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | CRITICAL | 19:30 | Distinguish from ongoing bhakti seva or repeated Lai Haraoba propitiatory offerings [PROVISIONAL] |
| My Lord and my God | ὁ κύριός μου καὶ ὁ θεός μου | ho kyrios mou kai ho theos mou | my Lord and my God | Thomas’s climactic, unqualified deity-confession | My Lord and my God | The Gospel’s theological climax | ঐগী মপু ইবুংগো অমসুং ঐগী তেংবাং মপু | eigi Mapu Ibungo amasung eigi Tengban Mapu | Deity of Christ | CRITICAL | 20:28 | Built entirely on baseline lord/god terms; render forcefully, no ঠাকুর |
| forgive sins | ἀφίημι τὰς ἁμαρτίας | aphiēmi tas hamartias | to forgive/release sins | Delegated declarative authority grounded in the gospel, not independent sacramental power | forgive sins | Post-resurrection commissioning | ময়ামদা কোকপা | mayamda kokpa | Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection | High | 20:23 | Distinguish from a maibi’s/maiba’s independent ritual absolution act |
| that you may believe…and have life in his name | ἵνα πιστεύητε…ζωὴν ἔχητε ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ | hina pisteuēte…zōēn echēte en tō onomati autou | that you may believe…have life in his name | John’s explicit purpose statement for the whole Gospel | that you may believe…and have life in his name | Thesis-level statement, parallel in weight to Romans 1:16-17 | থাজবা তৌনবগী…মহাক্কী মিংদা হিংবা লৈনবা | thajaba tounabagi…mahakki mingda hingba leinaba | Eternal Life through Faith in Christ | Critical | 20:31 | Recommend fixed, cross-document-consistent rendering (parallel to the baseline’s Romans 1:16-17/8:28 consistency rules) |
Risk Summary (New Terms, Table B)
| Risk Tier | Count | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 20 | Human theologian |
| High | 13 | Human theologian |
| Medium | 12 | Native speaker review |
| Low | 2 | Automated review |
| Total new terms | 47 | — |
Combined with the 24 baseline terms reused exactly in Table A (all already Critical/High/Medium under the baseline’s own risk tiers), this curriculum’s full term inventory requires human theologian review for the substantial majority of load-bearing vocabulary, consistent with the baseline’s own review-routing proportions for Romans.
Notes for Phase 2 Preparation
- All [PROVISIONAL] renderings above must be confirmed against a current printed Manipuri Bible (Bible Society of India edition) and/or reviewed with a Manipuri-speaking theologian before Phase 2 segment translation begins, exactly as the baseline required for covenant, fellowship, and imputed_righteousness.
- The descent/avatāra collision cluster (Word, Son of Man, descend/ascend from heaven, the seven I Am statements, lifted up) should be treated as a single connected doctrinal-risk unit spanning chapters 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, and 18.
- The serpent typology at John 3:14 is a uniquely Manipuri-specific risk (Pakhangba collision) not paralleled anywhere in the Romans baseline and should receive dedicated translator training.
- The love (ἀγάπη) / Ras Lila (prema) collision is judged as significant as the baseline’s grace/bhakti (κρις) collision and should receive equivalent curriculum weight.
- John 20:31’s purpose statement should be added to the cross-document consistency rules already governing Romans 1:16-17, 8:28, and 10:9-10 in
12_ai_translation_requirements.mdwhen that document is extended for John.
Critical Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: মথৌ তাদনা পীবা তেংবাং
Transliteration: mathou tadana piba tengbang
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: কৃপা (bhakti-responsive favor of Krishna, avoid as primary term), পুণ্য (devotional merit, never use)
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. First appears in John at 1:14,16-17 (‘grace upon grace,’ ‘full of grace and truth’), paired explicitly with truth (অচুম্বা) echoing Exodus 34:6; this pairing should be taught rather than assumed to transfer automatically through a shared word for favor.
Messiah
Approved rendering: ক্রিস্তো
Transliteration: Christo
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Original: Χριστός / מָשִׁיחַ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John explicitly glosses ‘Messiah’ as ‘Christ’ for a non-Hebrew audience (1:41, 4:25), a built-in teaching opportunity for the term’s specific Jewish covenant background against any avatara-sequence reading.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: সিবদগী হিংজত-লকপা
Transliteration: sibadagi hingjat-lakpa
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Rejected alternatives: পুনর্জন্ম (rebirth/reincarnation, never use)
Original: ἀνάστασις
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Anchors John 11:25 (‘I am the resurrection’), the Lazarus narrative (ch. 11), and the full resurrection narrative (chs. 20-21); never পুনর্জন্ম under any circumstance.
Lord
Approved rendering: মপু ইবুংগো
Transliteration: Mapu Ibungo
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ঠাকুর (Krishna-specific devotional title, avoid as primary term)
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Reaches its climactic use in Thomas’s confession, John 20:28, ‘My Lord and my God.‘
Son Of God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী মচানুপা
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi machanupa
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: অবতার (avatar, an explicit downgrade and rejected)
Original: υἱὸς θεοῦ
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. In John this must always be taught alongside the exclusivity-marking monogenes qualifier (see only_begotten_son below), repeated at 1:34,49; 3:18; 5:25; 10:36; 11:27; 20:31.
Incarnation
Approved rendering: মীওইগী মহৈ লৌবা
Transliteration: miwoigi mahai louba
Doctrine: Incarnation
Rejected alternatives: অবতার (NEVER use; Manipuri Vaishnavism’s highest-salience wrong word)
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John 1:14 (‘the Word became flesh’) is this doctrine’s primary textual anchor across the entire Bible, not just this curriculum.
Salvation
Approved rendering: অহানবা
Transliteration: ahanba
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: মোক্ষ (Vaishnava liberation, never use), লাইনিং (union/absorption into a deity’s presence, never use)
Original: σωτηρία / σῴζω
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John 3:17, 4:22,42, 12:47 all use the verb form of this root; also the base for the new savior_of_the_world entry.
God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপু
Transliteration: Tengban Mapu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ঠাকুর (Krishna-devotional title, avoid as primary term), সানামাহি (never use as primary term for the biblical God)
Original: θεός / אֱלֹהִים
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John 1:1’s climactic clause ‘the Word was God’ and 20:28’s ‘my Lord and my God’ both depend on this term carrying full, unqualified deity.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: থাওয়াই অসেংবা
Transliteration: Thawai Asengba
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: থাওয়াই alone (general spirit/soul, includes ancestral Apokpa spirits and Umang Lai nature-deities, never use without অসেংবা), শক্তি (maibi’s oracular trance-power, never use)
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: Pneumatology
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Foundational to John 3:5-8 (new birth) and John 14-16 (the Counselor); must always appear in full, with zero exceptions.
Father
Approved rendering: ইপা
Transliteration: Ipa
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Central to John’s Father-Son relational theology (1:14,18; 3:35; 5:17-26; 10:30; 14; 17); chosen for warmth over a royal-divine title tied to Pakhangba lineage.
Word Logos
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী ৱাহৈ
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi Waihei
Doctrine: The Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: শব্দ ব্রহ্ম (Śabda-Brahman, the Hindu philosophical concept of sound/word as ultimate divine reality — never use as equivalence)
Original: ὁ Λόγος
Category: Christology
PROVISIONAL — confirm with Manipuri theologian before Phase 2 deployment. Anchors John 1:1-3,14. Must always retain a personal, capitalized-title sense, never ‘a message.’ The ἦν/ἐγένετο (‘was’/‘came into being’) grammatical distinction of 1:1-3 requires a mandatory translator’s note since Manipuri tense-aspect marking cannot unambiguously carry it.
Only Begotten Son
Approved rendering: অমা খক্তা ওইবা মচানুপা
Transliteration: ama khakta oiba machanupa
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: অবতার-sequence framing (Krishna as one avatar among several recognized descents of Vishnu) — explicitly rejected
Original: μονογενής
Category: Christology
Exclusivity qualifier (μονογενής) required at John 1:14,18; 3:16,18. Must always accompany son_of_god in these passages to rule out any ‘one among several avatars’ reading of Christ’s Sonship.
Descend Ascend From Heaven
Approved rendering: স্বর্গদগী কুম্থরকপা / স্বর্গদা কাখৎপা
Transliteration: sorgodagi kumtharakpa / sorgoda kakhatpa
Doctrine: The Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: Any framing suggesting a repeatable avatara-style periodic descent (as in Krishna’s ‘coming down’ from Vaikuntha, celebrated in the Ras Lila) — explicitly rejected
Original: καταβαίνω / ἀναβαίνω
Category: Christology
PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian. The single sharpest doctrinal collision risk in the whole book: Sanskrit avatara literally means ‘descent.’ Occurs at 3:13,31; 6:33,38,41-42,50-51,58. Must be taught as one unique, permanent descent of the eternal Son, never a repeatable pattern. Treat as a connected teaching unit with the I Am statements and ‘lifted up’ language across chs. 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 18.
Heaven
Approved rendering: স্বর্গ
Transliteration: sorgo
Doctrine: The Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: Equating with the Puranic/Vedic temporary heavenly realm within a rebirth cosmology — never, Equating with Vaikuntha/Goloka, the Vaishnava devotee’s aspiration of eternal nearness to Krishna — never
Original: οὐρανός
Category: God
PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian. No clean native alternative exists; স্বর্গ is a pan-Indic loanword permanently double-booked with both non-Christian associations above. Requires a distinguishing translator’s note at every occurrence (1:32,51; 3:13,27,31; 6:31-51).
Equal With God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগা মান্নবা
Transliteration: Tengban Mapuga mannaba
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: ἴσος τῷ θεῷ
Category: Christology
John 5:18, the Jewish leaders’ accusation against Jesus for calling God his own Father — a hostile witness correctly recognizing the very truth John’s Gospel affirms. Render forcefully, without softening, even though voiced by a hostile speaker.
I Am Absolute
Approved rendering: ঐহাক ঐ অসি
Transliteration: eihak ei asi
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι
Category: Christology
The unqualified, no-predicate ‘I am,’ echoing Exodus 3:14 LXX. Manipuri grammar has no exact structural equivalent to the Greek’s emphatic absolute construction; every occurrence (8:24,28,58; 13:19; 18:5-6,8) requires a MANDATORY translator’s note connecting it to the divine name revealed to Moses.
I Am Predicate
Approved rendering: ঐ…অসি
Transliteration: ei…asi
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι + predicate
Category: Christology
The seven predicate ‘I am’ statements (bread of life, light of the world, the door, the good shepherd, the resurrection and the life, the way/truth/life, the true vine). Anchor term for the named curriculum doctrine; teach as one connected set, cross-checked against the descent/avatara collision cluster since several overlap directly.
Light
Approved rendering: মমাং
Transliteration: mamang
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: φῶς
Category: Judgment
PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian. Christ as revealer and judge (1:4-9; 3:19-21; 8:12; 9:5; 12:35-36,46). Sanamahi cosmology’s Atiya Guru Sidaba (primordial formless light) and Ras Lila staging’s deliberate evocation of Krishna’s own radiance both collide with this title; treat with the same seriousness as the baseline’s glory caution.
Resurrection And Life
Approved rendering: সিবদগী হিংজত-লকপা অমসুং হিংবা
Transliteration: sibadagi hingjat-lakpa amasung hingba
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: পুনর্জন্ম (never, per baseline resurrection root)
Original: ἡ ἀνάστασις καὶ ἡ ζωή
Category: Christology
Fifth ‘I Am’ statement (11:25). Christ himself, not merely a future event, IS resurrection and life; the Lazarus narrative previews Christ’s own bodily, historical resurrection and must remain sharply distinct from any cyclical-rebirth reading.
Way Truth Life
Approved rendering: লম্বী, অচুম্বা, অমসুং হিংবা
Transliteration: lambi, achumba, amasung hingba
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωή
Category: Christology
John 14:6, exclusive access to the Father (‘no one comes to the Father except through me’). The exclusivity clause (14:6b) must never be softened. Combines new term লম্বী (path/road) with reused অচুম্বা (truth) and হিংবা (life).
Serpent
Approved rendering: লিং
Transliteration: ling
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: Any honorific reading resonant with Pakhangba, the positively-venerated ancestral serpent-deity of Sanamahi cosmology — explicitly and forcefully rejected
Original: ὄφις
Category: Salvation
The single most Manipuri-specific doctrinal risk in the entire curriculum. Pakhangba (elder-brother relationship to Sanamahi, marker of historic Meitei royal lineage) is an object of positive ancestral-divine veneration; the Numbers 21 bronze serpent (John 3:14) is the OPPOSITE image — a symbol of judgment remedied only by looking to what God provided. Requires dedicated, non-optional translator training, not merely a note, at every occurrence.
It Is Finished
Approved rendering: মপুং ফাউরে
Transliteration: mapung phaoure
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: Any framing implying need for supplementation through ongoing bhakti seva (devotional service) — rejected, Any framing implying need for repeated Lai Haraoba propitiatory offerings — rejected
Original: τετέλεσται
Category: Salvation
PROVISIONAL. A perfect-tense declaration (19:30) of a completed, sufficient, once-for-all atoning work. Directly extends the baseline’s grace/imputed-righteousness cautions to the cross itself.
New Birth
Approved rendering: অনৌবা পোকপা
Transliteration: anouba pokpa
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Rejected alternatives: পুনর্জন্ম (rebirth/reincarnation — ABSOLUTELY FORBIDDEN, same logic as the baseline resurrection entry)
Original: γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν
Category: Salvation
PROVISIONAL. John 3:3-8, this curriculum’s core-passage anchor term. The Greek ἄνωθεν’s double sense (‘again’ + ‘from above’) is largely lost in Manipuri and requires an explicit translator’s note; Nicodemus’s own confusion (3:4) dramatizes exactly this ambiguity and should be used as a deliberate teaching hook.
Born Of Water And Spirit
Approved rendering: ঈশিংদগী অমসুং থাওয়াই অসেংবাদগী পোকপা
Transliteration: ishingdagi amasung Thawai Asengbadagi pokpa
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: γεννηθῇ ἐξ ὕδατος καὶ πνεύματος
Category: Salvation
John 3:5. Water (ঈশিং) must not be read as a ritual purification act sufficient in itself, paralleling Lai Haraoba or Vaishnava ritual-purity water rites; regeneration is Spirit-caused, water is sign, not cause. Always retains অসেংবা.
Counselor Paraclete
Approved rendering: পাংজিনবিরকপা থাওয়াই অসেংবা
Transliteration: Pangjinbirakpa Thawai Asengba
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Rejected alternatives: Assimilation to a maibi’s mediumistic channeling role for an Umang Lai deity — forbidden, Assimilation to an ancestral household spirit (Apokpa) invoked for protection — forbidden
Original: ὁ παράκλητος
Category: Pneumatology
PROVISIONAL — confirm with theologian. Anchor term for the named curriculum doctrine (14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7). Built in deliberate structural parallel to তবিদগী থাবিরকপা (‘one sent’). Must always retain অসেংবা so this personal, distinct-but-not-separate divine Helper is never assimilated to Manipur’s populated spirit-world.
Spirit Of Truth
Approved rendering: অচুম্বাগী থাওয়াই অসেংবা
Transliteration: Achumbagi Thawai Asengba
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας
Category: Pneumatology
A parallel Paraclete title (14:17; 15:26; 16:13), emphasizing the Spirit’s role in guiding believers into all truth. Built on the baseline Holy Spirit root; must always retain অসেংবা in full.
Eternal Life
Approved rendering: অতৈ লৈতবা হিংবা
Transliteration: atai leitaba hingba
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Rejected alternatives: মোক্ষ (Vaishnava liberation, never), Union/absorption into Krishna’s presence in Vaikuntha/Goloka, never
Original: ζωὴ αἰώνιος
Category: Salvation
PROVISIONAL. The single most frequent positive-outcome term in John (17 occurrences, e.g. 3:15-16,36; 5:24,39; 6:27-68; 17:2-3; 20:31). John 17:3 provides the strongest textual basis for teaching eternal life as relational knowledge of the true God through the Son, not a liberative or absorptive state, and should be taught as the interpretive key for every other occurrence.
Love Agape
Approved rendering: নুংশিবা
Transliteration: nungsiba
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Rejected alternatives: Assumed equivalence with Ras Lila’s Krishna-Radha romantic-mystical prema — must never be assumed transferable through the shared word without explicit contrast
Original: ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάω
Category: Love
God’s self-giving, initiating, sacrificial love (3:16; 13:1,34-35; 15:9-13; 17:23-26). Manipuri Vaishnavism’s most celebrated devotional expression, the UNESCO-recognized Ras Lila, portrays Krishna-Radha love as intensely romantic and mystical — a prestigious, currently performed practice, not a distant classical reference. This is the single most important comparative love-language risk in the whole book.
Wrath Of God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী অসাউবা
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi asauba
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Rejected alternatives: A capricious Umang Lai deity’s ritual-neglect anger (addressed by propitiatory Lai Haraoba offerings) — rejected, Vaishnava prayaschitta appeasement rites — rejected
Original: ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Judgment
PROVISIONAL. God’s holy, judicial, settled opposition to unbelief (John 3:36), resolved only through faith in the Son, never through ritual appeasement.
I And Father Are One
Approved rendering: ঐগা ইপাগা অমা ওইবি
Transliteration: eiga ipaga ama oibi
Doctrine: Unity of the Father and the Son
Rejected alternatives: A bhakti devotee’s aspiration for mystical union with Krishna — rejected as equivalence, Monistic Brahman-Atman identity concept — rejected as equivalence
Original: ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν
Category: Christology
Essential unity of nature/being (the neuter ἕν denotes one reality, not merely one person or purpose); direct textual anchor for Unity of Father and Son (10:30). Must be taught in explicit tandem with father_greater_than_i (14:28).
Father Greater Than I
Approved rendering: ইপা ঐদগী হেন্না চাউই
Transliteration: Ipa eidagi henna chaui
Doctrine: Unity of the Father and the Son
Original: ὁ πατὴρ μου μείζων μού ἐστιν
Category: Christology
A functional/relational statement about the incarnate Son’s submitted mission-role (14:28), not an essential-nature statement. Must always be taught paired with i_and_father_are_one to prevent a subordinationist misreading.
That They May Be One
Approved rendering: অমা ওইবা
Transliteration: ama oiba
Doctrine: Unity of the Father and the Son
Original: ἵνα ὦσιν ἕν καθὼς ἡμεῖς ἕν
Category: Church
Believers’ relational unity, patterned on but not identical to the Father-Son ontological unity (17:11,21-22). Must not be read through a mystical-absorption bhakti lens or a monistic Brahman-Atman lens.
My Lord And My God
Approved rendering: ঐগী মপু ইবুংগো অমসুং ঐগী তেংবাং মপু
Transliteration: eigi Mapu Ibungo amasung eigi Tengban Mapu
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: ঠাকুর — forbidden entirely, no exceptions
Original: ὁ κύριός μου καὶ ὁ θεός μου
Category: Christology
Thomas’s climactic confession (20:28), the most direct, unqualified deity-confession in the entire Gospel. Built entirely on the baseline lord/god terms; render forcefully, without qualification.
Purpose Statement Belief Life
Approved rendering: থাজবা তৌনবগী…মহাক্কী মিংদা হিংবা লৈনবা
Transliteration: thajaba tounabagi…mahakki mingda hingba leinaba
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ἵνα πιστεύ[σ]ητε…ζωὴν ἔχητε ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ
Category: Salvation
John’s explicit purpose statement for writing the entire Gospel (20:31), parallel in weight to Romans 1:16-17 as this curriculum’s thesis anchor. Recommend a fixed, cross-document-consistent rendering, on the same footing as the baseline’s Romans 1:16-17/8:28/10:9-10 consistency rules.
Savior Of The World
Approved rendering: মালেমগী অহানবিরকপা
Transliteration: malemgi ahanbirakpa
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ὁ σωτὴρ τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Salvation
The Samaritans’ confession of Christ’s universal saving identity (4:42), anticipating the universal scope stressed in 3:16-17. Built on the baseline salvation root; carries the same Critical cautions against মোক্ষ and devotional-union readings.
High Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: নুংঙাইবগী পাউ
Transliteration: nungngaibagi pao
Doctrine: Gospel
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Continues to require distinction from festive announcements associated with the Vaishnava devotional calendar (e.g. Ras Lila performances). Underlies John 20:31’s purpose statement, this curriculum’s thesis-level anchor verse.
Faith
Approved rendering: থাজবা
Transliteration: thajaba
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: ভক্তি (bhakti, devoted loving worship, too specific to Vaishnava devotional practice)
Original: πίστις / πιστεύω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John’s central invitation-verb (πιστεύω), used roughly 98 times, more than any other NT book; the object of belief must always be tracked contextually (belief in Jesus’ word, in his name, in him).
Sin
Approved rendering: পাপ
Transliteration: pap
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John 1:29 names Christ as the one ‘who takes away the sin of the world’; 16:8-9 names the Spirit’s convicting work regarding sin. Distinguish from ritual offenses addressed through Lai Haraoba purification or Vaishnava prayaschitta.
Election
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী খনবা
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi khanba
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: ৱাইফম (fate/destiny, never use)
Original: ἐκλέγομαι / ἐκλογή
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Directly reused at John 15:16,19 (‘You did not choose me, but I chose you’); connects to the new ‘draw’ entry (6:44; 12:32).
Obedience Of Faith
Approved rendering: থাজবগী ইনবা
Transliteration: thajabagi inba
Doctrine: Obedience of Faith
Rejected alternatives: ভক্তিগী সেবা (devotional service performed to build bhakti standing, a works-based misreading)
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Root ইনবা reused for John’s discipleship ‘follow me’ language (21:19,22).
Sanctification
Approved rendering: অসেংবা ওইহনবা
Transliteration: asengba oihanba
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἁγιάζω / ἁγιασμός
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John ties sanctification specifically to truth (17:17,19, ‘sanctify them in the truth’), not to a ritual state as in Lai Haraoba or Vaishnava temple preparations.
Holy
Approved rendering: অসেংবা
Transliteration: asengba
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: শেংবা (physically clean, ritual-purity sense only)
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Anchors Peter’s confession ‘the Holy One of God’ (John 6:69).
Glory
Approved rendering: মতিক চাউবা
Transliteration: matik chauba
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Revealed through Christ’s signs (John 2:11), climactically through the cross (12:23-28), and as pre-incarnate glory (17:5,24); avoid metaphors conflating with Ras Lila’s staged divine-radiance imagery.
Abba
Approved rendering: আব্বা
Transliteration: Abba
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: אַבָּא
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Not directly attested in John’s own text but retained for cross-curriculum vocabulary consistency with the Romans package’s Abba-Father adoption teaching.
Son Of Man
Approved rendering: মীওইগী মচানুপা
Transliteration: miwoigi machanupa
Doctrine: Son of Man as Messianic Self-Designation
Original: ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου
Category: Christology
Built in deliberate structural parallel to son_of_god. Pairs full humanity with divine authority (Daniel 7:13-14 background); occurs at 1:51; 3:13-14; 5:27; 6:27,53,62; 9:35; 12:23,34; 13:31. Must not be flattened into ‘merely a man’ nor, given the attached heaven-descent language at 3:13, an avatar-style divine visitor.
Good Shepherd
Approved rendering: য়াও চৌথোকপা ফবা
Transliteration: yao chouthokpa phaba
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός
Category: Christology
PROVISIONAL. Fourth ‘I Am’ statement (10:11,14). Pastoral/herding imagery is culturally distant from Manipur’s rice-agrarian valley economy and requires explanatory background so voluntary substitutionary self-sacrifice is not lost to unfamiliarity with the shepherd role.
Lamb Of God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী য়াওবী
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi Yaobi
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Salvation
PROVISIONAL. Sacrificial/Passover imagery, ‘who takes away the sin of the world’ (1:29,36), confirmed at 19:36. Sheep/lamb are not a major traditional Meitei sacrificial animal (Sanamahi sacrifice more typically uses fowl, pig, or buffalo; Vaishnavism’s ahimsa rejects animal sacrifice outright) — requires full explicit OT Passover/Levitical background teaching since neither living tradition offers a ready bridge.
Lay Down Life
Approved rendering: হিংবা পীথোকপা
Transliteration: hingba pithokpa
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: থাওয়াই-rooted phrasing (rejected to avoid collision with the fixed Holy Spirit compound থাওয়াই অসেংবা), Vaishnava prapatti self-surrender framing (rejected), maibi trance-state self-offering framing (rejected)
Original: τίθημι τὴν ψυχήν
Category: Salvation
Central textual anchor for Christ’s Substitutionary Death (10:11,15,17-18; 13:37-38; 15:13). Must be taught as a unique, historical, once-for-all voluntary act, not a repeatable devotional posture.
Lifted Up
Approved rendering: থাংজিনবা
Transliteration: thangjinba
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: Ceremonial processional raising/display of a deity’s image at Lai Haraoba or Ras Lila festival observance (rejected as an associative reading)
Original: ὑψωθῆναι
Category: Salvation
Double meaning: physically raised on a cross, and exalted/glorified (3:14; 8:28; 12:32,34). The cross itself is the moment of the Son’s glorification; must preserve both senses.
Flesh
Approved rendering: হাক্চাং
Transliteration: hakchang
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: σάρξ
Category: Anthropology
Human nature in its natural, fallen capacity, contrasted with Spirit (3:6); also used positively of the Word’s unique assumption of flesh (1:14, the incarnation event) and in eucharistic language (6:51-56,63). Must be distinguished from মীওইগী মহৈ লৌবা (incarnation), the unique redemptive event, the opposite pole from ordinary fallen human capacity.
Spirit Wind Wordplay
Approved rendering: নুংশিৎ (wind) / থাওয়াই অসেংবা (Spirit)
Transliteration: nungsit / Thawai Asengba
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Rejected alternatives: Bare থাওয়াই for either sense — forbidden, risks activating the populated Sanamahi spirit-world sense
Original: πνεῦμα / πνεῖ
Category: Pneumatology
A single Greek word (πνεῦμα) covers both ‘wind’ and ‘spirit,’ a deliberate pun in John 3:8 illustrating the Spirit’s sovereign, invisible, uncontrollable work. Largely untranslatable in Manipuri, which uses two distinct words; a translator’s note is required to preserve the analogy’s force.
Life
Approved rendering: হিংবা
Transliteration: hingba
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ζωή
Category: Salvation
Ordinary physical life; also, distinctively in John, the divine life the Word/Son possesses in himself and gives (1:4; 5:26; 6:33-63; 11:25; 14:6). Must be kept distinct from an impersonal vital-energy concept of soul/spirit (থাওয়াই) in Sanamahi belief.
World Kosmos
Approved rendering: মালেম
Transliteration: malem
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Original: κόσμος
Category: Salvation
Dual range: (1) the created order/humanity, loved by God (3:16); (2) the fallen world-system opposed to God (15:18-19). Risk that মালেম functions locally as a specific tiered cosmological ‘middle-earth’ plane, narrowing the term to a location rather than ‘humanity in its fallen totality.’ Each occurrence must be checked for which sense is active.
Children Of God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী মচা
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi macha
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: τέκνα θεοῦ
Category: Salvation
Organic, birth-based family belonging received through the new birth (1:12-13; 11:52), ‘not of blood nor of the will of the flesh…but of God.’ Complements, does not duplicate, the baseline’s legal-adoption image (মচা ওইনা লৌবা); teach both as compatible pictures of the same reality.
Sent
Approved rendering: থাবিরকপা
Transliteration: thabirakpa
Doctrine: Unity of the Father and the Son
Rejected alternatives: Subordinate maiba/maibi-style messenger relationship framing — rejected
Original: ἀποστέλλω / πέμπω
Category: Christology
The Father-Son sending relationship, over 40 occurrences across the book; expresses unity of purpose with distinction of persons and grounds the commissioning of the disciples (20:21). Built on the baseline apostle root.
Witness Testimony
Approved rendering: সাক্ষী পীবা
Transliteration: sakkhi piba
Doctrine: The Chain of Testimony to Christ
Rejected alternatives: A maibi’s trance-mediated oracular testimony during Lai Haraoba — rejected as equivalence
Original: μαρτυρέω / μαρτυρία
Category: Revelation
Firsthand, authoritative attestation — a major structural device across the whole book (John the Baptist, the Father, Scripture, works, the Spirit, the disciples all ‘testify’ to Christ: 1:7-8,15,19-34; 3:11,26-33; 5:31-39; 8:13-18; 15:26-27; 19:35; 21:24). Sober, verifiable, historical eyewitness attestation, not trance-mediated revelation.
Truth
Approved rendering: অচুম্বা
Transliteration: achumba
Doctrine: Truth as Ultimate Reality Revealed in Christ
Rejected alternatives: সত্য (Sanskrit/Bengali loanword; avoid for John’s theological uses to prevent competing with its broader bhakti-devotional-attribute resonance)
Original: ἀλήθεια
Category: Revelation
Not merely factual accuracy but ultimate reality revealed in Christ, climaxing in ‘I am…the truth’ (14:6). অচুম্বা is preferred to maintain root-consistency with the baseline righteousness term (অচুম্বা চৎনবিরাক).
Worship
Approved rendering: খুরুম্জবা
Transliteration: khurumjaba
Doctrine: Worship Rightly Directed to Christ
Original: προσκυνέω
Category: Worship
Reverent submission/homage due exclusively to God (4:20-24; 9:38; 20:28). খুরুম্জবা is also the ordinary Meitei verb for respectful greeting given to elders, royalty, and deities generically; must be marked clearly as exclusive worship whenever directed at Jesus/God.
Judgment Krisis
Approved rendering: ৱায়েল
Transliteration: wayel
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: κρίσις / κρίνω
Category: Judgment
God’s righteous verdict, revealed by response to Christ (3:17-19,36; 5:22,24,27,29-30; 8:15-16,26; 9:39; 12:31,47-48; 16:8,11). ৱায়েল is the ordinary Meitei word for a judicial verdict, including customary clan-council (yumnak/lup) verdicts; must be clearly marked as God’s own verdict, distinct from human customary law and from a maibi’s oracular verdict.
Ruler Of This World
Approved rendering: মালেমগী মপু
Transliteration: malemgi mapu
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: ὁ ἄρχων τοῦ κόσμου τούτου
Category: Judgment
Satan’s derivative, temporary, already-defeated rule (12:31; 14:30; 16:11). মপু is the same honorific root as Christ’s own Lordship title (মপু ইবুংগো); when applied to Satan, must be clearly marked as illegitimate and temporary, never suggesting parity with Christ’s exclusive Lordship.
Draw
Approved rendering: থিংথোকপা
Transliteration: thingthokpa
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: ৱাইফম (impersonal fate) — forbidden, per baseline
Original: ἕλκω
Category: Salvation
The Father’s sovereign initiative bringing a person to Christ (6:44), and Christ’s own universal drawing power exercised through the cross (12:32). Connects to election and calling entries.
Forgive Sins
Approved rendering: ময়ামদা কোকপা
Transliteration: mayamda kokpa
Doctrine: Delegated Authority to Declare Forgiveness of Sins
Rejected alternatives: A maibi’s/maiba’s independent ritual absolution act — rejected as equivalence
Original: ἀφίημι τὰς ἁμαρτίας
Category: Salvation
Delegated declarative authority for the apostolic community (20:23), grounded in the gospel message, not an independent sacramental power.
New Commandment Love
Approved rendering: অনৌবা য়াথাং
Transliteration: anouba yathang
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Original: ἐντολὴ καινή
Category: Church
Christ’s command ‘love one another as I have loved you’ (13:34-35; 15:12-13,17), built on the baseline law/commandment root. Must be clearly distinguished from Ras Lila’s romantic-devotional Radha-Krishna love paradigm; this is the mark of discipleship, not a devotional-affective practice.
Convict
Approved rendering: মায়োক্তা পীথোকপা
Transliteration: mayokta pithokpa
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: ἐλέγχω
Category: Pneumatology
The Spirit’s convicting work in the world regarding sin, righteousness, and judgment (16:8), tied to the Counselor doctrine. Must be distinguished from a customary community shaming/correction process.
Flesh And Blood Eucharistic
Approved rendering: হাক্চাং অমসুং ঈ
Transliteration: hakchang amasung ee
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Rejected alternatives: A Vaishnava prasadam (consecrated-food) framework in which consuming blessed food/drink transmits divine grace as a repeatable devotional practice — rejected
Original: σάρξ καὶ αἷμα
Category: Salvation
Figurative/sacramental language for total reliance on Christ’s atoning death (6:53-56); not literal cannibalism and not a ritual-merit-generating rite. Requires explicit teaching against both crude literalism and Vaishnava prasadam assimilation.
Scripture Cannot Be Broken
Approved rendering: অসেংবা ৱারোল থুগাইথোকপা য়াদে
Transliteration: asengba warol thugaithokpa yade
Doctrine: Inspiration and Authority of Scripture
Original: οὐ δύναται λυθῆναι ἡ γραφή
Category: Revelation
Full authority and reliability of the Old Testament Scriptures (10:35). Ties to the baseline’s Inspiration of Scripture doctrine, with specific sensitivity to Meitei cultural memory of the 1729 Puya Meithaba manuscript-burning; teach with emphasis on God’s providential preservation of his word.
Medium Risk Terms
Law
Approved rendering: য়াথাং
Transliteration: yathang
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: ধর্ম (Vaishnava religious-duty sense, never use)
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Root reused in John for the ‘new commandment’ (13:34, see new_commandment_love).
Peace
Approved rendering: ইনগবা
Transliteration: ingba
Doctrine: Peace with God
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Christ’s own peace, distinct from worldly peace (John 14:27; 16:33) and from post-resurrection greetings (20:19,21,26).
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: তেংবাং মপুগী লৈপাক
Transliteration: Tengban Mapugi leipak
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. John 3:3,5 conditions entry on the new birth; 18:36 (‘my kingdom is not of this world’) distinguishes Christ’s kingship from the historic Meitei ningthou’s Pakhangba-descent political-religious kingship.
Israel
Approved rendering: ইস্রায়েল
Transliteration: Israel
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Original: Ἰσραήλ
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Referenced at John 1:31,49; 3:10; 12:13.
Apostle
Approved rendering: তবিদগী থাবিরকপা
Transliteration: tabidagi thabirakpa
Doctrine: Apostleship
Original: ἀπόστολος / ἀποστέλλω
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Structural root for the new ‘sent’ entry below, which carries far greater doctrinal weight in John (40+ occurrences of the Father-Son sending relationship).
Bread Of Life
Approved rendering: হিংবগী রুটি
Transliteration: hingbagi ruti
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Rejected alternatives: চাক (rice, the Manipuri dietary staple) — rejected because substituting it would lose the wilderness-manna/Passover-bread typology entirely
Original: ὁ ἄρτος τῆς ζωῆς
Category: Christology
First ‘I Am’ statement (6:35,48,51). রুটি, a pan-Indic loanword for flatbread, preserves fidelity to the manna/Passover typological background.
Darkness
Approved rendering: অমম্বা
Transliteration: amamba
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: σκοτία / σκότος
Category: Judgment
PROVISIONAL. Moral/spiritual blindness and opposition to God, the default fallen human condition actively preferred over the light (1:5; 3:19; 8:12; 12:35,46); carries full moral-spiritual weight, not mere physical absence of light.
Door Gate
Approved rendering: থোঙাল
Transliteration: thongal
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἡ θύρα
Category: Christology
Third ‘I Am’ statement (10:7,9). Sole legitimate access to salvation and the sheepfold; no significant comparative-religion collision identified, but exclusivity of access must be retained in phrasing.
True Vine
Approved rendering: অচুম্বা লৈহাও
Transliteration: achumba leihao
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀληθινή
Category: Christology
PROVISIONAL. Seventh ‘I Am’ statement (15:1,5). Draws on OT vineyard-Israel covenant imagery (Isaiah 5, Psalm 80); viticulture is agriculturally distant from Manipur’s rice-based economy and requires explicit OT background teaching.
Sign
Approved rendering: খুদম
Transliteration: khudam
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Rejected alternatives: A maiba/maibi’s divinatory omen-reading — rejected as equivalence
Original: σημεῖον
Category: Revelation
PROVISIONAL. A self-authenticating divine work pointing to Christ’s identity, structuring John’s ‘Book of Signs’ (2:11,23; 3:2; 4:48,54; 6:2,14,26,30; 7:31; 9:16; 11:47; 12:18,37; 20:30). A sign authenticates identity; it is not an independently interpretable portent.
Perish
Approved rendering: মানখিবা
Transliteration: mankhiba
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: ἀπόλλυμι
Category: Judgment
Eternal ruin/destruction, the negative counterpart to eternal life (3:16; 10:28; 17:12); must retain full weight of final loss, not softened to disappointment or temporary setback.
Authority Exousia
Approved rendering: অধিকার
Transliteration: adhikar
Doctrine: The Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: শক্তি (forbidden per baseline power_of_god entry, associated with maibi trance-power)
Original: ἐξουσία
Category: Christology
Delegated right, distinct from raw power; the believer’s right to become God’s children (1:12), and the Son’s authority to judge and to lay down/take up his life (5:27; 10:18). Also distinguish from the Meitei ningthou’s Pakhangba-descent political authority.
Living Water
Approved rendering: হিংবগী ঈশিং
Transliteration: hingbagi ising
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ὕδωρ ζῶν
Category: Salvation
Metaphor for the Spirit-given, self-renewing life Christ supplies, permanently satisfying spiritual thirst (4:10-14; 7:38-39). Distinguish from ritually ‘living’ (flowing) water used in Lai Haraoba or Vaishnava ablution rites, where flowing water carries ritual-purity significance rather than Christ’s self-giving life.
Abide Remain
Approved rendering: লৈরিবা
Transliteration: leiriba
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: μένω
Category: Sanctification
Continuing, dependent relational connection to Christ, not a one-time event; ‘apart from me you can do nothing’ (15:4-10). A relational, ongoing dependence, not geographic/ritual proximity to a sacred grove or temple.
Overcome The World
Approved rendering: মায়ক ফাংবা
Transliteration: mayok phangba
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: νενίκηκα τὸν κόσμον
Category: Salvation
PROVISIONAL. Christ’s decisive, already-accomplished victory over the hostile world-system (16:33). Care should be taken that this is not heard through a martial-heroic lens resonant with Meitei warrior traditions (e.g. Thang-Ta, associated with Sanamahi ancestor-heroes); the victory is spiritual and already accomplished.
Low Risk Terms
Prophet
Approved rendering: তোঙান তোঙানবা ফোংদোকপা
Transliteration: tongan tonganba phongdokpa
Doctrine: Inspiration of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: মৈবা (Sanamahi ritual specialist/healer, never use)
Original: προφήτης
Category: Revelation
Inherited from Romans package, unchanged. Referenced at John 1:21,25; 4:19; 6:14; 7:40; 9:17 in debates over Jesus’ identity.
Law Root Reuse Note
Approved rendering: N/A
Transliteration: N/A
Doctrine: Cross-reference marker
Administrative entry only, retained to flag that ‘law’ (য়াথাং) is the structural root for the new_commandment_love entry below; no independent translation required.
Referenced passages