marga

Marga is a Sanskrit-derived term meaning path, way, or method. It is used across Indian languages and has been adopted into Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu discourse to signify a way of living or progressing toward a goal. The concept has been carried into religious and philosophical writing in South and Southeast Asia and beyond.

In Hindu thought, marga denotes a spiritual or ethical path toward realization or liberation. Well-known subpaths include Karma-marga (the path of action), Jnana-marga (the path of knowledge), Bhakti-marga (the path of devotion), and Raja-marga (the path of meditation). In Buddhism, the related term magga (Pali form) refers to the path to enlightenment, notably the Noble Eightfold Path. Jain literature likewise discusses path-based approaches to spiritual progress.

In Indonesian and Malay contexts, marga means lineage, clan, or family name and often functions as a surname or kinship identifier. Within Batak and other Indonesian communities, marga names signal ancestral affiliation and social identity, reflecting traditional structures of lineage and belonging.

Beyond religious and linguistic usage, the word appears in geographic and personal names in various languages, reflecting its broad semantic range from pathway to lineage. The term remains common in scholarly and cultural discussions of religion, linguistics, and Southeast Asian anthropology.