aura

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n., pl., au·ras, or au·rae (ôr'ē).

1. An invisible breath, emanation, or radiation.
2. A distinctive but intangible quality that seems to surround a person or thing; atmosphere: An aura of defeat pervaded the candidate's headquarters.
3. Pathology. A sensation, as of a cold breeze or a bright light, that precedes the onset of certain disorders, such as an epileptic seizure or an attack of migraine.

[Middle English, gentle breeze, from Latin, from Greek aurā, breath.]

From the Greek meaning ‘breath’, the word aura is mostly used in the metaphorical sense of someone having simply ‘an aura’ about him or, more vividly, one of ‘wisdom’, ‘saintliness’, or ‘evil’. However, for those suffering migraine or epilepsy, an aura is no longer simply a metaphor relating to their perception of a person in the external world but now a disagreeable perceptual experience heralding an impending attack of their sick headache or convulsion (grand mal). In the case of migraine the aura is most commonly visual. The images do not relate to previous visual experience but can take the form of scintillating, wavy patterns of bright, silvery light that superimpose on the current visual image — but in contrast to the latter they persist when the eyes are closed.

In epilepsy the simplest form of aura may be an ill-defined feeling of uncertainty or nausea preceding a convulsion. This may be an expression of changes in the cardiovascular and digestive systems induced by the autonomic nervous system as an early aspect of the epileptiform activity within the brain. Undoubtedly the most remarkable ‘aura’ occurs in the particular type known as ‘temporal lobe epilepsy’. At its simplest the aura may take the form of a familiar odour, or more commonly a disagreeable or even disgusting one. At its most complex the aura can be a perceptually complete image of a person with no counterpart in the external world. Such an image is to be distinguished from one summoned voluntarily in the mind's eye, or from an illusion due to the brain's interpretation of conflicting visual stimuli from the external world. Instead, that of the aura is a remarkable product of the uncontrollable discharge of neurones associated with an epileptiform focus in the temporal lobe(s) of the brain, demonstrable in the recording of the electrical activity of the brain, and, when the severity of the condition demands, abolished by surgical removal of the offending lobe.

— Tom Sears

See also epilepsy; migraine.

noun

A general impression produced by a predominant quality or characteristic: air, ambiance, atmosphere, feel, feeling, mood, smell, tone. See be.

n

The brief period of heightened sensory activity that immediately precedes the onset of a seizure. It may be characterized by numbness, nausea, or unusual sensitivity to light, odor, or sound.

A peculiar sensation preceding the appearance of more definite symptoms. It is a well-known phenomenon in humans and, on good clinical grounds, assumed to occur in animals, appearing as behavioral abnormalities.

IN BRIEF: A psychic atmosphere that emanates from a person.

Linda's aura was full of goodness and light.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - aura, æterisk udstråling, udstråling

Nederlands (Dutch)
sfeer om iets heen, aura (bepaalde lichtkring om persoon heen), geur (van bloemen etc.), subjectieve voortekens van epileptisch insult

Français (French)
n. - aura, émanation, atmosphère, ambiance

Deutsch (German)
n. - Aura

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (μετεωρ.) αύρα, (παθολ.) αύρα (παροξυσμού), (μτφ.) πνοή, απόπνοια, ύφος, αέρας, ατμόσφαιρα, φωτοστέφανος, αίγλη, ακτινοβολία

Italiano (Italian)
aura

Português (Portuguese)
n. - aura (f), aragem (f), emanação (f)

Русский (Russian)
аура, тонкий аромат

Español (Spanish)
n. - aura, emanación, aureola

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - utstrålning

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
气味, 灵气, 气氛, 预兆

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 氣味, 靈氣, 氣氛, 預兆

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 냄새, 전조, 첨단 방전에 의한 기류

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 発気, 雰囲気, アウラ, 霊気

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) جو, إحساس, مميز يصيب الشخص قد يتسبب من شخص أو حاله معينه, احساس, معين يسبق نوبه الصرع أو الهستيريا‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮הילה, אווירה‬

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