om

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit ओम् (om) (symbol ॐ (oṃ)). The former (om) is used in both Buddhist and Hindu settings, while the latter (aum) is usually used only in Jain and Hindu settings.

lbor

In fact it sounded exactly like the voice of Livia, her vanished sister, and, like her, it was intoning the Aum just as she used once to do at the beginning of her yoga sessions.

1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance (Avignon Quintet), Faber & Faber, published 2004, page 800:

Om is pronounced "a-a-o-o-u-u-m-m" and is repeated slowly for as long as possible.

2001 October 20, Hazel Curry, The Guardian:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A sacred, mystical syllable used in prayer and meditation.


sit

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *sed-
Proto-Indo-European *-yeti
Proto-Indo-European *sédyeti
Proto-Germanic *sitjaną
Proto-West Germanic *sittjan
Old English sittan
Middle English sitten
English sit
From Middle English sitten, from Old English sittan, from Proto-West Germanic *sittjan, from Proto-Germanic *sitjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *sed- (“sit”).
Cognates
Cognate with West Frisian sitte, Low German sitten, Dutch zitten, German sitzen, Swedish sitta, Norwegian Bokmål sitte, Norwegian Nynorsk sitja; and with Irish suigh, Latin sedeo, Russian сиде́ть (sidétʹ).

etymon

(rare, Buddhism) An event, usually lasting one full day or more, where the primary goal is to sit in meditation.


Sabbath

From Middle English sabat, sabbat, sabath, from Old English sabat and Old French sabbat, both from Latin sabbatum, from Ancient Greek σάββατον (sábbaton, “Sabbath”), from Hebrew שַׁבָּת (shabát, “Sabbath”), with the spelling ending in -th, probably influenced by the traditional transliteration of the Hebrew as shabbāth, being attested since the 14th century and widespread since the 16th. Doublet of Shabbat. Possibly from the Sumerian sa-bat ("mid-rest")


dharma

en-noun

dharma (countable and uncountable, plural dharmas)

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit धर्म (dhárma, “that which upholds or supports”). The definitions pertaining to Buddhism are influenced by dhamma, a loan word from Pali. Doublet of dhamma and firm.

lbor

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) The natural order of the universe; natural law, cosmic order.

(Buddhism) The teachings of the Buddha as one's personal path to enlightenment.

(Buddhism) The teachings of the Buddha as a practice to be promulgated and taught.


aggregate

en-noun

aggregate (countable and uncountable, plural aggregates)

/ˈæɡ.ɹɪ.ɡət/

From Latin aggregātus, perfect passive participle of aggregō (“I flock together”), from ag- (combining form of ad (“to, toward”)) + gregō (“I flock or group”), from grex (“flock”). Compare gregarious.

(Buddhism) Any of the five attributes that constitute the sentient being.

سْكَانْدَا

any of the five aspects constituting the sentient being in Buddhism

skandha

attribute of the sentient being in Buddhism


vehicle

Borrowed from French véhicule, from Latin vehiculum (“a carriage, conveyance”), from vehere (“to carry”).

uder

(Buddhism) A mode or method of spiritual practice; a yana.


Maya

Transliteration of Sanskrit माया (māyā́) or Pali Māyā.

translit

(Buddhism) The mother of Gautama Buddha.


nirvana

en-noun

nirvana (countable and uncountable, plural nirvanas)

/nɪɾˈʋɑːn(ə)/

Borrowed from Sanskrit निर्वाण (nirvāṇa, “blown or put out, extinguished”), from निस् (nis, “out”) + वा (vā, “to blow”), the second part cognate with Russian ве́тер (véter, “wind”), weather, vent and wind.

bor+

(Buddhism) Complete cessation of suffering; a blissful state attained through realization of sunyata; enlightened experience.


arhat

Transliteration of Sanskrit अर्हत् (arhat, “worthy of worship”), used as a title for sanctified Buddhists. Doublet of arahant.

translit

1954: Over and against the arhat, retreating from appearances into an entirely transcendental Nirvana, stands the Bodhisattva, for whom Suchness and the world of contingencies are one — Aldous Huxley, The Doors of Perception (Chatto & Windus 1954, p. 32)

(Buddhism) One who has attained enlightenment; a Buddhist saint.


zazen

en-noun

zazen (usually uncountable, plural zazens)

Borrowed from Japanese 坐(ざ)禅(ぜん) (zazen), from 坐(ざ) (za, “sitting”) + 禅(ぜん) (zen, “meditation”).

If Professor Jaynes had extended his studies of introspection into zazen or yogic forms of meditation, he would understand that the ego is just such a construction that is extended over the gaps in time from moment to moment.

1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 269:

They had sent out scouts to try and locate the original cave where the practice of Zazen was first initiated.

1985, Lawrence Durrell, Quinx, page 1226:

In the practice of Zen there is an exercise called zazen—similar, I think, to the Theravedic practice of vipassana. One sits facing a blank wall. No matter the emotion one feels, no matter how strong or violent, one remains motionless. Facing the wall. The discipline, of course, is in continuing to sit.

For everyone—everyone—who first takes it up, zazen is tedious and awful... Zazen isn't about blissing out or going into an alpha brainwave trance. It's about facing who and what you really are, in every single goddamn moment. And you aren't bliss, I'll tell you that right now. You're a mess. We all are.

2003, Brad Warner, Hardcore Zen, page 92:

(Buddhism) A form of seated meditation in Zen Buddhism.


merit

merit (countable and uncountable, plural merits)

The noun is derived from Middle English merit, merite (“quality of person’s character or conduct deserving of reward or punishment; such reward or punishment; excellence, worthiness; benefit; right to be rewarded for spiritual service; retribution at doomsday; virtue through which Jesus Christ brings about salvation; virtue possessed by a holy person; power of a pagan deity”), from Anglo-Norman merit, merite, Old French merite (“moral worth, reward; merit”) (modern French mérite), from Latin meritum (“that which one deserves, deserts; benefit, reward, merit; service; kindness; importance, value, worth; blame, demerit, fault; grounds, reason”), neuter of meritus (“deserved, earned, obtained; due, proper, right; deserving, meritorious”), perfect passive participle of mereō (“to deserve, earn, obtain, merit; to earn a living”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mer- (“to allot, assign”). The English word is probably cognate with Ancient Greek μέρος (méros, “component, part; portion, share; destiny, fate, lot”) and cognate with Old Occitan merit.
The verb is derived from Middle French meriter, Old French meriter (“to deserve, merit”) (modern French mériter), from merite: see further above. The word is cognate with Italian meritare (“to deserve, merit; to be worth; to earn”), Latin meritāre (“to earn regularly; to serve as a soldier”), Spanish meritar (“to deserve, merit; to earn”).

cog

to acquire or make merit

It is no small tax upon the people to support their [Buddhist] priests, but they do it with a willing heart. When I was once at the old capital, I saw a woman, from her own stock, feed more than fifty priests, who came to her in his turn, and received his portion. [...] If I had asked her why she thus spent so much of her living, her answer would have been, 'To make merit.'

1855 October, “Siamese Merit-making”, in The Church Missionary Gleaner, volume V (New Series), London: Seeley, Jackson and Halliday […], →OCLC, page 118:

At funerals, acts of sharing religious merit are central and relatives of the deceased make merit in order to ensure that the departed family member will have a favourable rebirth.

2015, Monica Lindberg Falk, “Communication across Boundaries”, in Post-Tsunami Recovery in Thailand: Socio-cultural Responses (The Modern Anthropology of Southeast Asia), Abingdon, Oxfordshire, New York, N.Y.: Routledge, →ISBN, page 90:

(uncountable, Buddhism, Jainism) The sum of all the good deeds that a person does which determines the quality of the person's next state of existence and contributes to the person's growth towards enlightenment.

ကုသိုလ်

(Buddhism, Jainism) sum of all the good deeds that a person does


dhamma

en-noun

dhamma (countable and uncountable, plural dhammas)

Transliteration of Pali dhamma. Doublet of dharma and firm.


Tara

(Buddhism) A female Buddha typically associated with Buddhist tantra practice as preserved in Tibetan Buddhism. She is the "mother of liberation", and represents the virtues of success in work and achievements.


householder

From Middle English housholdere, equivalent to household + -er. The Buddhist sense is a semantic loan from Pali gahapati (literally “house-master”).

semantic loan

(Buddhism, Hinduism) A layperson, lay devotee, gahapati, grihastha.


stupa

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit स्तूप (stūpa). Doublet of tope.

lbor

He mounded so much honey on the top of the buns that they looked like miniature stupas.

(Buddhism) A dome-shaped Buddhist monument, used to house relics of the Lord Buddha.


Sati

(Buddhism) mindfulness, as in anapanasati; A state of mind in meditation


mandala

Borrowed from Sanskrit मण्डल (máṇḍala). Doublet of mandal.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A graphic depiction of the spiritual universe and its myriad realms and deities.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) Any ritualistic geometric design, symbolic of the Universe, used as an aid to meditation.


sutra

Borrowed from Sanskrit सूत्र (sū́tra, “thread, yarn, string; rule”). Doublet of sutta; more distantly related to sew and suture.

bor

Shepard: This Code of the Justicar seems central to your life.
Samara: It is five thousand sutras, and covers every situation one can encounter. I have memorized every word. There is only the Code.

2010, BioWare, Mass Effect 2 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Normandy SR-2:

(Buddhism, Hinduism) A scriptural narrative, especially a discourse of the Buddha.


karma

en-noun

karma (countable and uncountable, plural karmas)

Borrowed from Sanskrit कर्म (kárma), nom.sg. of कर्मन् (kárman, “act, action, performance”); first attested in English in 1785 in a translation of the Bhagavad Gita by Charles Wilkins.

‘We are all part of a circle of karma. We will be rewarded for the good deeds of our forefathers, and pay the price for their sins.’

2023, Santanu Bhattacharya, One Small Voice, Fig Tree, pages 59-60:

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism) The sum total of a person's actions, which determine the person's next incarnation in samsara, the cycle of death and rebirth.

كَارْمَا

the total effect of a person’s actions and conduct during the successive phases of his existence


ordination

ordination (countable and uncountable, plural ordinations)

From Middle French ordination, from Old French ordinacion, from Latin ordinatio.

(Buddhism) the ceremony in which a bhikkhu or bhikkhuni is ordained into the sangha


urna

From Sanskrit ऊर्णा (ūrṇā, “wool, thread”).

The urna is not worn by all, nor the monastic dress of the magnificent image of the Buddhistic prince on the right side of the great Buddha in the chanḍi Mĕndut.

1901, Isaac Groneman, translated by A. Dolk, The Hindu Ruins in the Plain of Parambanan, translation of original in Dutch:

The ûrna or mark upon the forehead and the long pierced ear lobes so generally characteristic of Buddhist images are not present in this instance.

1916, “Notes on Chinese statuary”, in The Museum Journal, volume 7, University of Pennsylvania University Museum, page 156:

Between the eyes is a curl of hair (urna), one of the identifying features of a Buddha, and the thing that looks like a nose is a miraculous light emanating from the urna (it can also be interpreted as the Nepali figure “one”, conveying the unity of all things).

2009, David Reed, The Rough Guide to Nepal, page 107:

(Buddhism) A spiral or circular dot placed on the forehead of Buddhist images as an auspicious mark.


bhikshu

Transliteration of Sanskrit भिक्षु (bhikṣu, “beggar, mendicant, religious mendicant”).


bodhisattva

Borrowed from Sanskrit बोधिसत्त्व (bodhisattva, “enlightened existence”).

bor

Hanoi
Hà Nam Province
Vietnam
Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts
bodhisattva

Kimi was a true bodhisattva, and her English skills were excellent.

2021, Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness, Canongate Books (2022), page 414:

(Buddhism) A person who has taken specific lay or monastic vows and who is on the road to perfect knowledge; specifically, one who foregoes personal nirvana in order to help others achieve enlightenment.

(Buddhism) An enlightened being existing in a form of existence beyond the ordinary forms of physical reality understood and acknowledged by scientific thought, resembling the Western notion of angels, but with a wealth of its own nuances and expectations. These include the compassionate working for enlightenment of all sentient beings.


Chan

Borrowed from the pinyin romanization of the Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 禪 /禅 (Chán), a development and clipping of Middle Chinese 禪那 (MC dzyen na), a transcription of Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna, literally “meditation”). Doublet of dhyana and Zen.

der

It is possible that highly calligraphic painting styles, including the extreme forms of “flung-ink,” began at this time, but probably not under Ch’an Buddhist influence, which figured in the religious life of the dynasty.

[1964, Sherman E. Lee, “The Rise of the Arts of Painting and Ceramics in China”, in A History of Far Eastern Art, New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 261, column 2:

(Buddhism) A major Chinese school of Mahayana Buddhism characterized by sudden enlightenment achieved by indirect means, developed in Japan as Zen.


Lent

Shortened form of Lenten, from Old English lencten, from Proto-West Germanic *langatīn (“spring”), as in a season into which days lengthen as it progresses. Related to German Lenz and Dutch lente (“springtime”).

الصَّوْم الْأَرْبَعِينِيّ

Christian period of penitence before Easter

(Buddhism, Myanmar) vassa, period of the Buddhist lent during the rainy season


lamasery

/ləˈmɑːsəɹi/

From French lamaserie, irregular formation from lama.

purposeful melody, reminding veterans of duty on the Himalayan station, of transmundane melody performed upon ancient horns fashioned from the thigh-bones of long-departed priests, in wind-beaten lamaseries miles above the level of a sea at this distance belonging more to legend than geography.

2006, Thomas Pynchon, Against the Day, Vintage, published 2007, page 490:


adharmic

en-adj

adharmic (comparative more adharmic, superlative most adharmic)

more adharmic (comparative)
most adharmic (superlative)

Anything that represents itself as a method of liberation, and yet promotes that which leads to the opposite of liberation is adharmic.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) unrighteous; contrary to universal law


gau

(Tibetan Buddhism) A prayer box or small container worn as jewelry and containing an amulet or similar item.


anatta

en-noun

anatta (countable and uncountable, plural anattas)

From Pali anattan, from Sanskrit अनात्मन् (anātman, “no soul”), from अन्- (an-, “non-, un-, a-”) + आत्मन् (ātman, “soul”).

The texts indicate that when the Buddha's first disciples heard about anatta, their hearts were filled with joy and they immediately experienced Nirvana.

2009, Karen Armstrong, The Case for God, Vintage, published 2010, page 33:

three marks of existence
three marks of existence

(Buddhism) The idea that there is no separate self or soul; egolessness. One of the three marks of existence.

ဢၼတ်ႉတႃႉ

ʼǎ nâ̰t tâ̰a


maya

Shankara prescribed meditative reflection, through which each individual could pierce the veil of maya and come to recognize the identity between his or her essence and the universal spirit.

2016, Sunil Khilnani, Incarnations, Penguin, published 2017, page 58:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The power by which the universe is made to appear; the illusion of the phenomenal world, as opposed to its true or spiritual reality.


ahimsa

Already, at this very early date, the ritualists were moving towards the ideal of ahimsa ("harmlessness") that would become the indispensable virtue of the Indian Axial Age.

2006, Karen Armstrong, The Great Transformation, Atlantic Books, published 2007, page 79:

This, in essence, is the Jain doctrine of ahimsa – a direct inversion of Vedic beliefs about the sustaining powers of animal sacrifice.

2016, Sunil Khilnani, Incarnations, Penguin, published 2017, page 9:

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) A doctrine of non-violence, concerned with the sacredness of all living things and an effort to avoid causing harm to them.

不殺生 /不杀生

doctrine of non-violence in Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism


manji

(Buddhism) A left-facing Japanese swastika, primarily used in Buddhism.


Gautama

(Buddhism) Siddhartha Gautama - the personal name of the Buddha.

ၵေႃႉတမႃႉ

kâ̰u tǎ mâ̰a


wheel of life

(Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism) A mandala, representing the continuous cycle of birth, life and death.

roue de l’existence karmique

mandala representing the continuous cycle of birth, life and death


talapoin

From French talapoin, from Portuguese talapão, from Mon တၠဳ ပိုဲ (tloe poi, “our lord”).

(archaic, Buddhism) A Buddhist monk or priest.


mindstream

(Buddhist philosophy) The succession of moments of consciousness proceeding endlessly from lifetime to lifetime.


rupa

From Sanskrit रूप (rūpá, “form, shape, figure”).

bor

(Buddhism) form, shape, outward appearance.


marga

en-noun

marga (countable and uncountable, plural margas)

Borrowed from Sanskrit मार्ग (mārga). Doublet of marg.

noble eightfold path
noble eightfold path


mara

Mara means demon, or demonic influence, that hinders the practice of virtue. It may be an external spirit or an aspect of our own imperfect condition. All hindrances on the path to liberation are subsumed under the four maras. The first mara is the mara of the aggregates.[…]The second of the maras is the mara of the afflictions, which are the same as the afflictive obstructions. They are identified as a mara because they precipitate all harmful actions, from malicious gossip to murder.[…]The third mara is Devaputra, literally "son of a god," an external troublemaker who specializes in interfering with beings who are endeavoring to achieve something positive.[…]The last mara is the mara of death.

2011, Graham Woodhouse, Lobsang Gyatso, Tsongkhapa's Praise for Dependent Relativity, Wisdom Publications, page 20:

(Buddhism) A type of god that prevents accomplishment or success.

魔羅

Buddhism: god preventing accomplishment or success

The mara is the spirit that causes illness, accidents, and mishaps. The only protection against it is another mara who befriends a person or a group. A mara who becomes friendly is called a gunik. This transformation occurs when a mara comes to a person in a dream and states a desire to be friendly. But there are deceitful maras who pretend to be friendly, yet will betray the person who trusts them.

2002, Sarvananda Bluestone, The World Dream Book, page 73:

(Buddhism) Any malicious or evil spirit.


impermanence

impermanence (usually uncountable, plural impermanences)

From Middle French impermanence, equivalent to im- + permanence.

(Buddhism) Anicca, the doctrine which asserts that all of conditioned existence is transient.


hungry ghost

(Buddhism, Chinese folk religion) A type of supernatural being, condemned to desire more than it can consume; often depicted with large belly and tiny mouth.

ပြိတ္တာ

in Buddhism, a type of supernatural being


tonsure

en-verb

tonsure (third-person singular simple present tonsures, present participle tonsuring, simple past and past participle tonsured)

tonsures (present singular third-person)
tonsuring (participle present)
tonsured (participle past)
tonsured (past)

From Middle English tonsure, from Anglo-Norman and Old French tonsure, from Latin tonsūra (“a clipping, trimming”), from tondeō (“shear, clip, trim”).

(Christianity, Buddhism) To shave the crown of the head as a sign of humility and religious vocation.


bodhi tree

(Buddhism) The specific fig tree under which the Buddha sat when he attained enlightenment; the descendant of that tree on the same spot at Bodh Gaya.


Dalai Lama

/ˈdælaɪ ˈlɑːmə/

/ˈdɑːlaɪ ˈlɑːmə/

Borrowed from Tibetan ཏཱ་ལའི་བླ་མ (tā la'i bla ma), compound of Mongolian ᠳᠠᠯᠠᠢ (dalai, “ocean”) + Tibetan བླ་མ (bla ma, “lama”).

bor+

Of the Mongall Tartars.
The Mongalls are a numerous people, and occupy a large extent of country, from this place to the Kallgan, which ſignifies the everlaſting Wall, or the great wall of China. From this wall they ſtretch themſelves northward as far as the river Amoor; and from the Amoor, weſtward, to the Baykail ſea ; where they border with the territories of the Kontayſha, or prince of the black Kalmucks. On the ſouth, they are bounded by a nation called Tonguts, among whom the Delay Lama has his residence.

[1767, Annual register, or a view of the history and politics and literature for the year, page 38, column 2:

Szechuen troops defending recognized Chinese territory against the raids of the Tibetans declare that by crossing the Kinsha River the forces of the Da Lai Lama have violated the recent truce. The truce established the stream as the boundary between Tibet and China Proper.

[1933 December 2, “Tibetan Troops Renew Attack on Sikong”, in The China Weekly Review, volume 67, number 1, →OCLC, page 32, column 2:

I got a laugh from the Chinese audience when I said I thought that if Jiang and the Dalai Lama did meet, they would like each other very much.

2005, Bill Clinton, My Life, volume II, New York: Vintage Books, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 435:

I was pleased that President George W. Bush presented the Congressional Gold Medal to the Dalai Lama at the Capitol in October 2007.
In March 2008, I led a Congressional delegation to India. Part of our mission was to meet with the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, the headquarters of Tibetan exiles.

2008, Nancy Pelosi, “A Voice That Will Be Heard”, in Know Your Power: A Message to America's Daughters, Doubleday, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 95:

At the 2007 APEC Summit in Sydney, I told President Hu I planned to attend a ceremony where the Dalai Lama would receive the Congressional Gold Medal. The Buddhist leader was a source of distress for the Chinese government, which accused him of stirring up separatists in Tibet. I met with the Dalai Lama five times during my presidency, and I found him to be a charming, peaceful man. I told China’s leaders they should not fear him. “This is not meant as a slap at China,” I said, “but as a measure of my respect for the Dalai Lama and for the U.S. Congress. You know my strong belief in religious freedom.”

2010, George W. Bush, Decision Points, →ISBN, →OCLC, →OL, page 428:

(Tibetan Buddhism) The supreme head of Tibetan Buddhism, believed to be an incarnation of Avalokitesvara, and considered the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people.


bodhi

en-noun

bodhi (usually uncountable, plural bodhis)

From Sanskrit बोधि (bodhi). Doublet of synonymous bodai, which came via Japanese.

(Buddhism) The state of enlightenment that finally ends the cycle of death and rebirth and leads to nirvana.


Obon

It was coming up to Obon, and spirits were cruising about like travelers arriving at the airport with their suitcases, looking for a place to check in. Obon was their summer vacation, too, when they could come back from the land of the dead to visit us here, in the land of the so-called living.

2013, Ruth Ozeki, A Tale for the Time Being, Canongate Books (2019), page 222:

(Buddhism) A Japanese festival to honour the spirits of one's ancestors.


noble eightfold path

(Buddhism) The path to the end of suffering, involving eight steps: Right View, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration.


jnana

jnana (countable and uncountable, plural jnanas)

/dʒəˈnɑː.nə/

From Sanskrit ज्ञान (jñāna, “knowledge”).

(Buddhism) Pure awareness that is free of conceptual encumbrances.


kalpa

From Sanskrit कल्प (kalpa, literally “formation”).

bor

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A period of 4.32 billion years (1000 chatur-yugas or cycles of the four yugas).


muni

Disguising himself, he ventured into the countryside, where he spied a muni meditating beneath a plane tree.

1980, Gene Wolfe, chapter XVII, in The Shadow of the Torturer (The Book of the New Sun; 1), New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 158:

(Jainism, Buddhism) A holy man; a sage or ascetic.


metta

(Buddhism) Lovingkindness or compassion, especially if developed through meditation or mindfulness.


mindfulness

en-noun

mindfulness (countable and uncountable, plural mindfulnesses)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-mindfulness.wav

(Buddhism, psychology) Paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgementally.

正念

paying attention on purpose in the present moment


Panchen Lama

Tibetan པན་ཆེན་བླ་མ (pan chen bla ma). From Sanskrit पण्डित (paṇḍita, “scholar”) + Tibetan ཆེན་པོ (chen po, “big”) + Tibetan བླ་མ (bla ma).

Hastings sent two embassies to Tibet, those of George Bogle in 1774-5 and Samuel Turner in 1783. Both envoys went to the Panchen Lama’s residence near Shigatse (Jihkatse), but neither visited the Dalai Lama at Lhasa.

1985, Alastair Lamb, “Introduction”, in India and Tibet, Hong Kong: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, →OCLC, page v:

(Tibetan Buddhism) The second-highest-ranking lama of the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism, after the Dalai Lama.

Panchen Lama

second-highest ranking lama of the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism


Buddhahood

(Buddhism) The state of being a buddha, or being spiritually enlightened by Buddhist or other teachings.

佛境

state of being enlightened by Buddhist teachings


skandha

Borrowing from Sanskrit स्कन्ध (skandhá, “mass, heap”).

(Buddhism) Any of the five attributes that constitute the sentient being; aggregate


suchness

suchness (usually uncountable, plural suchnesses)

From English dialect, from Middle English swichnesse (“the quality or nature of a thing”), from Old English swilċnes (“quality”), equivalent to such + -ness. Reinforced also as a calque of Sanskrit तथाता (tathātā).

inh

ca. 1928, Hans Driesch, "Philosophy of Nature", in, 1928, Edward Leroy Schaub, ed., Philosophy Today: Essays on Recent Developments in the Field of Philosophy, page 431,
The same relation may prevail between the suchness of willing in men and the realization of that willing.

1955, J. D. Salinger, "Franny", in, 1961, Franny and Zooey, 1991 LB Books edition, page 22,
Without any apparent regard for the suchness of her environment, she sat down.

Rather than give an answer, you have to section the tangerine and invite the questioner to have a taste. Doing this, you allow him or her to enter the suchness of the tangerine without any verbal or conceptual description.

1988, Thich Nhat Hanh, The Sun My Heart: From Mindfulness to Insight Contemplation, Parallax Press, →ISBN, page 94:

(philosophy, chiefly Buddhism) Existence per se.


atman

From Sanskrit आत्मन् (ātmán, “soul; self; ego; essence”). Doublet of edder (“blood vessel”) and cognate with Old English ǣþm (“breath”).

bor

However, we have been led beyond this to a threefold analysis which in its western version is body-soul-spirit and in its eastern version body-mind-atman.

1994, John Hick, Death and Eternal Life, page 450:

Atman is the manifestation of brahman in the human body. The central theme of the Upanishads is that in the liberated state the atman is identical with brahman.[…]The word atman is generally translated as soul, self or spirit. However, in view of the Western definition of the soul, atman and soul are not the same.[…]In the Western view, the soul is created by God. In the Hindu view, the atman, being eternal, is not created by God. It is a part of God.

2005, Bansi Pandit, Explore Hinduism, page 63:

The human being in Hindu thought comprises Atman (or Punisha) and Maya (or Prakriti). The Hindu doctrine of Atman concerns one's deepest identity.

2006, Donald Goergen, Fire of Love: Encountering the Holy Spirit, page 151:

The priests who were immersed in the ritual science of the Brahmanas began to speculate on the nature of the self, and gradually the word "atman" came to refer to the essential and eternal core of the human person, which made him or her unique.

2006, Karen Armstrong, The Great Transformation, Atlantic Books, published 2007, page 84:

The Brahmanic tradition that Buddhism is both connected to and a reaction against was, according to almost every scholar, over the top as regards atman. So, not only were individuals possessed of an immutable, indestructible atman. Some, perhaps many Brahmins were asserting that they were ATMAN.

2011, Owen Flanagan, The Bodhisattva's Brain: Buddhism Naturalized, page 124:

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Vedanta) The true self of an individual beyond identification with worldly phenomena, the essence of an individual, an infinitesimal part of Brahman.


bija

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The origin or cause of things.


Maitreya

Transliteration of Sanskrit मैत्रेय (maitreya, “friendly, benevolent”).

translit

(Buddhism) A bodhisattva who is considered to be a future Buddha.

ဢရီႉမိတ်ႈတေႇယႃႉ

ʼǎ rḭ̂i mīt tèe yâ̰a


Asura

Transliteration of Sanskrit असुर (asura). Doublet of Ahura. Compare English Æsir.

(Buddhism) The lowest class of deities and demigods of the Kāmadhātu.


bardo

Borrowed from Tibetan བར་དོ (bar do), from བར (bar, “interval”) + དོ (do, “two”), in the sense of an interval between two states.

According to the belief of the Tibetans, that is considered an untimely death, which, in opposition to the ordinary course of nature, is accelerated by evil spirits, such as Sringan, Dechad, Jungpo, and others. As a consequence of premature decease, the "Bardo," is prolongated. This is the middle state between the death and the new re-birth, which does not follow immediately, but there exists an interval, which is shorter for the good than for the bad. The prolongation of this intermediate state is considered as a punishment caused by evil spirits who have only power over sinful men.

1863, Emil Schlagintweit, “Details Characteristic of the Religion of the People”, in Buddhism in Tibet: Illustrated by Literary Documents and Objects of Religious Worship. With an Account of the Buddhist Systems Preceding It in India. … With a Folio Atlas of Twenty Plates and Twenty Tables of Native Print in the Text, Leipzig: F. A. Brockhaus; London: Trübner & Co., →OCLC, page 109:

The soul's gradual progress to God in terms of a spiralling pathway up the side of the cosmic mountain, from one spiritual station to the next, is an image common to almost all of the world's mystical systems; but few mention the direct path from the base of the mountain straight up to the summit. Even the Bardo Thodol mentions the direct path only once, and then glancingly, confining itself solely to a description of the soul's circuitous afterlife journey through the heaven-worlds. The shortcut for heroes that bypasses the heaven-worlds or bardos and takes them straight to the divine world—in one lifetime, so it is said—is so well guarded in religious literature that the relevant Tibetan Buddhist texts are written in the "twilight language," a cipher that can be understood only with the help of revelation.

1996, Victoria LePage, “The Perfection of the Shortest Path”, in Shambhala: The Fascinating Truth behind the Myth of Shangri-La, 1st Quest edition, Wheaton, Ill.: The Theosophical Publishing House, →ISBN, page 95:

The bardo in Tibetan means an intermediate state, most specifically the one after death when your soul wanders through the heavens and hell, trying to avoid rebirth into samsara—the realm of the material—and achieve nirvana or Buddhahood. […] Like everything the bardo journey takes place both inside you and outside. Like everything it's both a metaphor and not. I was born in the fifties in a nation suspended in the bardo state between a war a decade over and the hellsmoke light of a new war pulling in the East.

1998, Susanne Paolo, “Prologue”, in Bardo (The Brittingham Prize in Poetry), Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press, →ISBN, page xiii:

Some writers have suggested the near-death experience expresses the stages of the dissolution process in the bardo of dying. It is premature, I feel, to try to link the near-death experience too precisely with the bardo descriptions, […]

2013, Sogyal Rinpoche, “The Near-Death Experience”, in Lee W. Bailey, Jenny Yates, editors, The Near-Death Experience: A Reader, Routledge, →ISBN, page 173:

Possessing both omniprescence and omniscience, they now stared beyond the abyss of astral space—beyond the six bardos of Tibetan Buddhism—spreading their karmic seeds across the infinite coordinates of the cosmological Minkowski continuum.

2014, C. J. Cala, “Babble On”, in Four Different Faces, [s.l.]: C. J. Cala, →ISBN, page 151:

"Bardo," as noted, means in-between state. So whenever we're in between two states, no matter what the scale, we're in a bardo state. These two states could be living and dying or being awake and being asleep, but they could also be the just-past moment of thought and the moment to come. Thus "bardo" includes the gap between the cessation of one moment of thought and the arising of the next moment.

2015, Evan Thompson, “Dying: What Happens when We Die?”, in Waking, Dreaming, Being: Self and Consciousness in Neuroscience, Meditation, and Philosophy, New York, N.Y.: Columbia University Press, →ISBN, page 292:

For internees the war was experienced in exile. The Buddhists in Crystal City understood it as a bardo state—a provisional period between the lives before their confinement, and the dream of freedom after the war.

2015 January, Jan Jarboe Russell, “The All-American Camp”, in The Train to Crystal City: FDR’s Secret Prisoner Exchange Program and America’s only Family Internment Camp during World War II, New York, N.Y.: Scribner, →ISBN, page 233:

(Tibetan Buddhism) The state of existence between death and subsequent reincarnation.


Mara

From Sanskrit मर (mara), from Proto-Indo-European *mer- (“to die”). Doublet of mortality.

(Buddhism) The Buddhist archangel of evil or demon


Yama

Borrowed from Sanskrit यम (yamá). Doublet of Enma.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The Hindu lord of death, who rides a buffalo.

যম

the Hindu lord of death, who rides a buffalo


Adi-Buddha

Transliteration of Sanskrit आदिबुद्ध (ādibuddha).

(Buddhism) The Primordial Buddha, a self-emanating, self-originating Buddha, present before anything else existed.


dhyana

en-noun

dhyana (countable and uncountable, plural dhyanas)

From Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna, literally “meditation”). Doublet of Zen and Chan.

bor

Thus the Kaivalyopanisad accords equal importance to Sraddha (faith-regard), devotion (bhakti) and meditation (dhyana) for the attainment of the highest knowledge.

The beginning must be made with pathawi-kasina, and then the dhyánas, &c., must be taken alternately, as from the first dhyána to the third, then to ákásánancháyatana, and so on to the end.

1860, Robert Spence Hardy, Eastern monachism, page 262:

Each of the three planes may be experienced through developing the dhyānas in meditation - so here we have yet another way of describing higher states of consciousness.

1997, Meditation: The Buddhist Way of Tranquillity and Insight, page 86:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A type of profound meditation.


Rāhu

Transliteration of Sanskrit राहु (rāhu).

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The ascending lunar node. An asura and god of the solar eclipse.

(Tibetan Buddhism) A supernatural being in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, particularly the Nyingma lineage. Usually depicted as dark blue in colour and having nine heads one of which is that of a raven. He has a face in his belly the mouth of which swallows up the moon or sun during eclipses. He is master of the nine planets and the god of solar and lunar eclipses.


Theravada

Transliteration of Pali theravāda, inherited from Sanskrit स्थविरवाद (sthaviravāda, literally “doctrine of the elders”), from स्थविर (sthavira, “elder”) + वाद (vāda, “doctrine”).

der

(Buddhism) A sect of Buddhism, whose teachings are based on Buddha's scriptures in the Pali canon, widely practised in Southeast Asia, mainly in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar. It tends to be conservative in contrast to the more liberal Mahayana, rejects reliance on celestial beings, and teaches non-universal salvation.


tulpa

en-noun

tulpa (plural tulpa or tulpas or (often in sense 2) tulpae)

tulpa (plural)
tulpas (plural)
tulpae (often plural)

From Tibetan སྤྲུལ་པ (sprul pa, “emanation, magical creation”), equivalent to a calque of Sanskrit निर्मित (nirmita, “build”) or निर्माण (nirmāṇa, “build”).

bor

When the year was up, the tulpa began growing. It lost its fear of its master and began taking on new forms of its own. It ceased to run errands ....

1966, Nikos Kazantzakis, England: A Travel Journal, page 110:

(Buddhism, mysticism) A magical creature that attains corporeal reality, having been originally merely imaginary.

トゥルパ

magical creature that attains corporeal reality, having been imaginary


jodo

A borrowing of Japanese 浄土 (jōdo, literally “pure land”), q.v.

(Japanese Buddhism) Synonym of pure land: the various realms of the buddhas and boddhisattvas.


bhumi

(Buddhism) One of the ten hierarchically arranged stages through which bodhisattva passes to the path to awakening in the Mahayana tradition.


Zen Buddhism

(Buddhism) The Zen denomination of Buddhism.


gatha

Transliteration of Sanskrit गाथा (gāthā). Doublet of Gatha.

translit

(Buddhism) A poem or mantra, especially one recited mentally as part of meditation or mindfulness practice.


samana

/sɑːˌmɑːnɑː/

From Pali samaṇa. Doublet of sramana and shaman in some contexts.

(Buddhism) An ascetic monk, a Buddhist hermit.

شامانيّ؛ سامانيّ؛ شامان؛ سامان؛ عرّاف، ناسِك شامانيّ


kashaya

Borrowed from Sanskrit कषाय (kaṣāya, “astringent; dull; yellowish red; dirt; passion”), from Proto-Indo-European *kars-. Cognates include Sanskrit कष्ट (kaṣṭa) and English harsh.

bor+

(Buddhism) Robes of fully ordained monks and nuns


yana

Transliteration of Sanskrit यान (yāna, “vehicle”).

translit

The Tibetan word for yana is thekpa, which means "that which lifts you up." Anything that lifts you up and takes you to your destination is a yana.

2013, Chögyam Trungpa, chapter 1, in Judith L. Lief, editor, The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion, volume 2:

(Buddhism) Any of the vehicles of Buddhist or Tantric practice.

ယာန

any of the three vehicles of Buddhist practice


Ananda

Transliteration of Sanskrit आनन्द (ānanda) or Pali ānanda.

(Buddhism) The foremost disciple of Gautama Buddha.


Suiten

Borrowed from Japanese 水(すい)天(てん) (Suiten, literally “water deva”).

ja-r

(Japanese Buddhism) Japanese translation for Varuna.


Hinayana

Transliteration of Sanskrit हीनयान (hīnayāna, “lesser vehicle”).

translit

1913, Buddhism, article in Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 3: Brownson–Clairvaux,
It was known as the Mahayana, or Great Vehicle, in distinction to the other and earlier form of Buddhism contemptuously styled the Hinayana or Little Vehicle, which held its own in the South.

1921, Charles Eliot, Hinduism And Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Volume II, Book IV: The Mahayana, 2005 Gutenberg Ebook edition,
The obscurest period in the history of Buddhism is that which follows the reign of Asoka, but the enquirer cannot grope for long in these dark ages without stumbling upon the word Mahayana. […] The word_([1]) signifies Great Vehicle or Carriage, that is a means of conveyance to salvation, and is contrasted with Hinayana, the Little Vehicle, a name bestowed on the more conservative party though not willingly accepted by them.

"Do it yourself" is a modern phrase which expresses the Hinayana way to salvation.

1979, Ward J. Fellows, Religions East and West, page 171:


Mahayana

/ˌmɑːhəˈjɑːnə/

/ˌmʌhəˈjɑːnə/

Borrowed from Sanskrit महायान (mahāyāna, literally “Great Vehicle”).

bor+

(Buddhism) A school of Buddhism widely practised in East Asia and Vietnam which accepts non-Pali canon scriptures, recognizes a broader array of buddhas and bodhisattvas, and whose spiritual objective is to achieve Buddhahood and liberate other beings, rather than simply to achieve personal enlightenment, as in Theravada Buddhism.


Madhyamika

(Buddhism) The central philosophy of Buddhism that was systematized by Nagarjuna. It establishes that all phenomena are empty of independent reality.


Buddha-nature

en-noun

Buddha-nature (countable and uncountable, plural Buddha-natures)

(Buddhism) The potential of achieving the nature of the Buddha through study and religious practice.

佛性

the potential of achieving the nature of the Buddha through study and religious practice


dukkha

dukkha (countable and uncountable, plural dukkhas)

(Buddhism) The three main types of pain, suffering, or stress: physical and mental, impermanence, and conditioned states. One of the three marks of existence.


Dzogchen

In Dzogchen, the way of behaving is the key to the practice, not because there are fixed rules as to what one should and should not do, but because the principle is that one must learn to become responsible for oneself, working with one's own awareness.

1996, Kloṅ-chen-pa Dri-med-ʼod-zer, Dzogchen: The Self-perfected State, page 124:

(Tibetan Buddhism) The Great Perfection; the state of contemplation beyond the mind; not unconscious, but mental processes not conditioning of awareness.

(Tibetan Buddhism) The corresponding teachings found in Nyingmapa and the non-Buddhist Bonpo.


rinpoche

(Tibetan Buddhism) A title warranting great respect, prefixed to the names of Tibetan Buddhists.


anatman

(Buddhism) The doctrine that there is no transcendental ego or soul; that the perceived true self is an illusion. Corresponds to the Hinayana or Theravada Buddhist doctrine of anattā.

အနတ္တ

Buddhist doctrine that there is no transcendental ego or soul


tulka

Since the Dalai Lama is a tulka, he can choose to be reborn as he pleases to serve humanity.

(Buddhism) In Tibetan Mahayana, a particular high-ranking lama who can choose their own manner of rebirth.


darshan

darshan (countable and uncountable, plural darshans)

From Sanskrit दर्शन (darśana, “vision”), from a root दृश् (dṛś, “to see”).

A common sight in India is a crowd of people gathered in the courtyard of a temple or at the doorway of a streetside shrine for the darshan of the deity.

2002, S. Brent Plate, Religion, Art, and Visual Culture: A Cross-Cultural Reader, →ISBN, page 171:

Hindus take darshan of a holy person, object, or place, believing that its mere presence, particularly the sight of it, conveys blessings.

2006, Linda Hess, chapter 8, in The Life of Hinduism, page 183:

When approaching a soul who is known to give darshan, be in the same area of the superconscious mind that you feel he must be in.

2007, Editors of Hinduism Today, What Is Hinduism?: Modern Adventures Into a Profound Global Faith, page 151:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) Hierophany, theophany; being in the presence of the divine or holy (as a person or object).


Lotus Sutra

From a calque of Sanskrit सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्र (Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra).

cal

सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्र

(Hinduism, Buddhism) "Sūtra on the White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra", a popular Sanskrit treatise which forms the basis of many forms of Buddhism.


sunyata

en-noun

sunyata (countable and uncountable, plural sunyatas)

From Sanskrit शून्यता (śūnyatā), from शून्य (śūnya, “zero, nothing”) + ता (-tā, “generalizing suffix”). Cognate with Pali suññatā.

1993, Sunyata, Emptiness and Self-emptying, Kenosis by Ven. Dr. Rewata Dhamma published in Buddhist - Christian Dialogue London, 27th March
However since emptiness empties itself and so cannot itself be an object of attachment, dynamic 'sunyata' empties itself out as just the things themselves.

(Buddhism) Emptiness, the absence of an intrinsic essence or nature which is stable and separable from other things.


Naraka

(Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism) The underworld or Hell according to Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism, where souls are sent for the expiation of their sins.


gompa

And when finally I got to the end of the five-hour drive over the highest motorable pass in the world, it was to learn that the gompa in Hunder was closed.

2009 March 13, Pico Iyer, “Heaven’s Gate”, in New York Times:

(Buddhism) A Buddhist ecclesiastical fortification of learning, lineage and sadhana in Tibet, India, Nepal, or Bhutan.


tanha

The Buddhist concept of tanha, for example — roughly translated as “blind demandingness” — encapsulates many tenets of R.E.B.T. and points the way toward emotional equanimity: stop asking more of the universe than it can possibly deliver.

2009 May 10, “Enlightenment Therapy”, in New York Times:


Guanyin

zh-l

觀音／观音 (Guānyīn)

(religion, Buddhism) The bodhisattva of compassion, venerated by Buddhists in East and Southeast Asia; depicted variously as male or female.

Avalokiteśvara
Guanyin
Haiphong
Hanoi
Vietnam
Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts


lamrim

(Buddhism) The stages in the path to Buddhist enlightenment.


om mani padme hum

From Sanskrit ॐ मणि पद्मे हूँ, (oṃ maṇi padme hūm̐,, “the wish-fulfilling jewel in the lotus”), internally derived from मणि (maṇi, “wish-fulfilling jewel”) and पद्म (padma, “lotus”). ॐ (oṃ) and हूँ (hūm̐) are not translated.

bor

ॐ मणि पद्मे हूँ,

(Buddhism) A mantra associated with Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, the primary mantra of Tibetan Buddhism.


apsara

Borrowed from Hindi अप्सरा (apsarā), descended from Sanskrit अप्सरस् (apsaras).

But the boy's relatives don't sit on their behinds and wait for a pari or an apsara to drop out of the heavens.

1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 40:

But here was an apsara rising out of the waters of a holy Ganga, raising her arms in salutation to the sun rising above the range of hills and offering her behind to him to marvel at and worship.

2004, Khushwant Singh, Burial at Sea, Penguin, published 2014, page 102:

Don't burn us with your fierce austerities, O master. I'll have to send apsaras to distract you.

2006, Vikram Chandra, Sacred Games, volume 1, Penguin, published 2007, page 17:

(Indian mythology, Hinduism, Buddhism) A female spirit of the clouds and waters.

অপ্সরা

a female spirit of the clouds and waters


nonreturner

(Buddhism) A partially enlightened person.


Nārada

Transliteration of Sanskrit नारद (nārada) or Pali Nārada.

translit

(Buddhism) The name of the 12th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Tripitaka

Borrowed from Sanskrit त्रिपिटक (tripiṭaka, “Three Baskets”). Compare Pali tipiṭaka (“Three Baskets”).

bor

(Buddhism) Any of several canons of Buddhist scripture.

ত্রিপিটক

any of several canons of Buddhist scripture


Daikokuten

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism, Shinto) The Japanese name for Mahākāla, a Buddhist god of wealth, commerce and trade. In Japanese folk tradition, he is one of the seven gods of luck. In Shinto, he is syncretized with the deity Ōkuninushi. Daikokuten is often depicted paired with Ebisu in statuary or in the form of masks on the walls of small retail shops.


Bishamonten

(mythology, Buddhism, Shinto) The Japanese name for the Buddhist god Vaiśravaṇa, guardian of the North and a patron god of warriors in Japan.


Yakushi Nyorai

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) The Japanese name for Bhaiṣajyaguru, the Buddha of medicine.


paramita

From Sanskrit पारमिता (pāramitā, “perfection; completeness”).

der

(Buddhism) perfection or culmination of certain virtues


big mind

(Buddhism) In the Zen tradition, an awareness of reality that transcends the merely personal or subjective.


Hachiman

(Japanese mythology, Shinto, Buddhism) the Japanese god of archery and tutelary deity of samurai.


Dainichi Nyorai

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) The Japanese name for the sun Buddha, Vairocana, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas.


Kannon

From Japanese 観音 (Kannon), from Middle Chinese 觀音 (MC kwan 'im), a translation of Sanskrit अवलोकितेश्वर (avalokiteśvara).

अवलोकितेश्वर

“A long time ago, Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, made a deep vow to free all beings and help us wake up to our true and luminous nature.”

2021, Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness, Canongate Books (2022), page 413:

(religion, Buddhism) Kannon, the Japanese version of Guanyin, the Chinese translation of Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of mercy and compassion.


Fukūjōju Nyorai

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) Fukūjōju Nyorai; the Japanese name for the Northern Buddha, Amoghasiddhi, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas.


Hōshō Nyorai

As we face Dainichi, the Buddha seated at our near left is Hōshō Nyorai, the Buddha of the South.

2007, Philip L. Nicoloff, Sacred Koyasan, SUNY Press, →ISBN, page 127:

The Hōshō Nyorai sculpture sits on a lotus base, which rests on the back of several seated, winged horses. The deity's left hand grasps the edge of the robe, the left rests on the knee, palm facing upward in the wish-granting mudra.

2010, Hillary Pedersen, The Five Great Space Repository Bodhisattvas (dissertation), University of Kansas, page 208:

Or if the dying person should manifest a sign presaging rebirth among any of the thirty-six kinds of hungry ghosts, the attendant should immediately intervene to save that person by performing the rites of Hōshō Nyorai, Kokūzō, Jizō, Thousand-Armed Kannon, Bodhisattva Perfection of Giving, and the rite of offering Deathbed Attendants

2016, Jacqueline I. Stone, Right Thoughts at the Last Moment, University of Hawaii Press, →ISBN, pages 289–290:

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) The Japanese name for the Southern Buddha, Ratnasaṃbhava, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas.


Amida Nyorai

The Tendai may indeed be regarded as the mother sect of all later developments of Japanese Buddhism, and Amida Nyorai is even of greater importance in Japanese art than Sakya Muni, the founder of the religion.

1906, Edward Dillon, The Arts of Japan (Little books on art), Methuen, →OCLC, page 36:

The 13m-tall image represents Amida Nyorai, the future Buddha who receives souls into the Western Paradise, and was built under the orders of Minamoto Yoritomo to rival the larger Nara Buddha, near Kyoto.

2011 February 1, Jan Dodd, Simon Richmond, The Rough Guide to Japan (Rough Guide to...), Penguin, →ISBN, →OCLC:

Pure Land Buddhism suggests that the problem of suffering should not be addressed as a spiritual matter but at the level of change in the social environment. The desired social environment is the peaceful and equalitarian environment envisioned by Amida Nyorai’s vows in the Larger Sūtra and especially in the First Vow.

2019, U. Dessì, “The Pure Land and this World in Hishiki Masaharu’s Shin Buddhist Ethics”, in G. T. Halkias, R. K. Payne, editors, Pure Lands in Asian Texts and Contexts, University of Hawaii Press, →ISBN, page 578:

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) The Japanese name for the Western Buddha, Amitābha, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas.


Ashuku Nyorai

Vajra Division (kongō-bu): The eternal life force. The central deity is Ashuku Nyorai.

1988, Taikō Yamasaki, Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism, Shambhala, →ISBN, page 139:

Finally, behind Fukūjōju sits Ashuku Nyorai. Ashuku is the Buddha of the East. His left hand holds a piece of detached sleeve. His right hand hangs pendent in front of his right knee, palm turned inward, fingers pointing toward the ground.

2007, Philip L. Nicoloff, Sacred Koyasan, SUNY Press, →ISBN, page 128:

It contains statues of Ashuku Nyorai, Hōshō Nyorai, Muryōju Nyorai, and Fukūjōju Nyorai surrounding a statue of Dainichi Nyorai.

2008, Tatsuro Muro, David C. Moreton, A Journey of the Soul, Education Publishing Center, →ISBN, page 14:

Establish the connection with the Imperturbable Buddha Ashuku Nyorai through the distant contact. Greet him with the words: “Dear Ashuku Nyorai, I come to you as a sick person and request healing. […]”

2006, Mark Hosak, Walter Luebeck, The Big Book of Reiki Symbols, Lotus Press, →ISBN, page 263:

On the left is a third guest Buddha, a seated image of Ashuku Nyorai carved in 1322 by Inkō, about whom little is known.

2021, Burritt Sabin, Kamakura: A Contemplative Guide, Partridge, →ISBN:

(Japanese mythology, Buddhism) The Japanese name for the Eastern Buddha, Akṣobhya, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas.


klesha

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A mental state, such as fear or ignorance, that clouds the mind and leads to unwholesome actions.


Kajin

Borrowed from Japanese 火神 (かじん, Kajin, literally “fire god”).

bor

(Buddhism) Japanese translation for Agni.


Tenjin

From Japanese 天神 (Tenjin), from 天 (tʰen, “Heaven”) + 神 (ʑiɪn, “deity”, “god”).


prayer wheel

(Buddhism) A rotating cylinder either inscribed with or containing prayers, mainly used by Tibetan Buddhists.


prajna

/ˈpɹɑːd͡ʒnə/

(Buddhism) Wisdom; understanding; insight.

ပညာ

(Buddhism) wisdom; understanding; insight


prajnaparamita

Borrowed from Sanskrit प्रज्ञापारमिता (prajñāpāramitā).

bor

प्रज्ञापारमिता

(Buddhism) A central concept in Mahayana Buddhism, suggesting that all things appear as thoughtforms (conceptual constructs).


parikrama

en-noun

parikrama (countable and uncountable, plural parikramas)

(Buddhism, Hinduism) The circumambulation of a sacred place.


thusness

thusness (countable and uncountable, plural thusnesses)

(philosophy, chiefly Buddhism) The state of things being as they are.


samjna

(Buddhism) perception, cognition, conceptualization.


mahā

From Sanskrit महा (mahā́), form of महत् (mahát, “great, big, high”) used in compounds.

The Tantra of Secret Essence is the ati of mahā, which is the same as the mahā of ati in terms of three divisions of the great perfection.

2009, Jamgon Mipham, Luminous Essence: A Guide to the Guhyagarbha Tantra, page 5:

(Buddhism) one of the three vehicles of mastery in means to achieve liberation


merit field

A translation of Tibetan ཚོགས་ཞིང (tshogs zhing, “field of merit”).

cal

(Tibetan Buddhism) a pictorial representation, usually represented on a thangka, of the triratna and lama for the purpose of veneration when taking Refuge.


pratyekabuddha

(Buddhism) One who achieves enlightenment alone, without a teacher or guide.


vipassana

Transliteration of Pali vipassanā, from Sanskrit विपश्यना (vipaśyanā).

(Buddhism) Insight into the true nature of reality, namely as the three marks of existence: impermanence, suffering or unsatisfactoriness, and the realisation of nonself.


yidam

From Tibetan ཡི་དམ (yi dam), (Sanskrit: समादान (samādān) or སམཱདཱནི (samādāni)).

Yidams are not to be equated with the patron saints or guardian angels found in the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions.

2004, Chogyam Trungpa, The Collected Works of Chogyam Trungpa, volume 7:

(Tibetan Buddhism) A type of deity associated with tantric or Vajrayana Buddhism said to be manifestations of Buddhahood or enlightened mind.


adhisthana

en-noun

adhisthana (plural adhisthanas or adhisthana)

adhisthanas (plural)
adhisthana (plural)

(Buddhism) An initiation or blessing in Vajrayana schools such as Tibetan Buddhism and Shingon Buddhism.


tathata

tathata (countable and uncountable, plural tathatas)


bhava

bhava (countable and uncountable, plural bhavas)

(Buddhism) A feeling or mood, especially one of maturation that arises from understanding of the continuity of life and death (reincarnation).


manodanda

Borrowed from Sanskrit मनोदण्ड (manodaṇḍa, “complete control over one's thoughts”).

bor

(Hinduism, Buddhism) complete control over one's thoughts


kayadanda

Borrowed from Sanskrit कायदण्ड (kāyadaṇḍa, “complete control over one's body”).

(Hinduism, Buddhism) complete control over one's bodys


ekagrata

Borrowed from Sanskrit एकाग्रता (ekāgratā, “concentration, singlemindedness”).

(Hinduism, Buddhism) Extreme focus on a particular point.


rainbow body

(Buddhism) According to Dzogchen beliefs, a body made of pure light, acquired after reaching a certain level of spiritual realization.


jataka

From Sanskrit जातक (jātaka, “born under”).

In the centuries after the Buddha's life, many ordinary, non-literate Indians would have learned of him through Jatakas, popular morality tales about his imagined previous lives […]

2016, Sunil Khilnani, Incarnations, Penguin, published 2017, page 4:

(Buddhism) Any of a large number of Indian tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha.


bonsho

(Buddhism, music) A very large bell used in Buddhist temples in Japan to mark time and call monks in for prayer.


anāgāmi

Transliteration of Pali anāgāmin; the final 'n' is omitted in keeping with the Pali nominative and vocative singular.

(Buddhism) A “non-returning” person, who will not be reborn into the physical word before achieving nirvana.


kshanti

(Buddhism) patience, forbearance and forgiveness: one of the paramitas in Theravāda and Mahāyāna Buddhism.


Nalanda

(Buddhism) A large Buddhist monastery in the ancient kingdom of Magadha (modern-day Bihar) in India.


trisula

It may be wondered, at first sight, that the innumerable texts left by Buddhism give us no positive information with regard to the meaning and origin of the trisula.

1894, Eugène Goblet d'Alviella, The Migration of Symbols:

The trisula placed upon a pillar surmounted by flames is the monogram of Buddha.

1945, William J. Fielding, Strange Superstitions and Magical Practices, page ii. 15:

She had a trishul in one hand. Her long raven-black hair was left loose.

2004, Khushwant Singh, Burial at Sea, Penguin, page 96:

The trishula is most commonly associated with the god Shiva, one of the most prominent Hindu deities and the primary god in the sect of Hinduism known as "Shaivism."

2014, Micah Issitt, Carlyn Main, Hidden Religion, page 168:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A trident, seen as a religious symbol of Hinduism and Buddhism.


chorten

Borrowed from Tibetan མཆོད་རྟེན (mchod rten).


trichiliocosm

From tri- + chilia- + cosmos, partially calquing Sanskrit त्रिसहस्रमहासहस्रलोकधातु (trisahasramahāsahasralokadhātu, literally “three thousand million world element”).

der

त्रिसहस्रमहासहस्रलोकधातु

(Buddhism) A concept in cosmology of a "third-order" universe containing one thousand second-order clusters, which are made of one thousand first-order clusters, which are in turn made of a thousand worlds each. Billion-fold universe.


anicca

(Buddhism) Impermanence, the doctrine claiming that all of conditioned existence, without exception, is transient. One of the three marks of existence.

ဢၼိၵ်ႈၸႃႉ

ʼǎ nīk tsâ̰a


garbhagriha

Transliteration of Sanskrit गर्भगृह (garbhagṛha).

transliteration

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) The innermost sanctum of a temple, where the murti of the primary deity is found.


gandharva

Borrowed from Sanskrit गन्धर्व (gandharva).

(Buddhism) A being in the intermediate state between death and rebirth.


sadhaka

(Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism) A person who follows a particular sadhana, or goal-directed spiritual practice.


Abhidharma

Borrowed from Sanskrit अभिधर्म (abhidharma, literally “higher dharma”).

bor+

(Buddhism) Ancient Buddhist texts, dating from the 3rd century BCE onward, that contain detailed scholastic reworkings of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist sutras, according to schematic classifications.


inter-be

en-verb

inter-be (third-person singular simple present inter-is, present participle inter-being, simple past inter-was, past participle inter-been)

inter-is (present singular third-person)
inter-being (participle present)
inter-was (past)
inter-been (participle past)


anitya

Transliteration of Sanskrit अनित्य (anitya).


three marks of existence

en-noun

three marks of existence pl (plural only)

Calque of Pali tilakkhaṇa, Sanskrit त्रिलक्षण (trilakṣaṇa).

(Buddhism) Three characteristics of all phenomena: anicca (“impermanence”), dukkha (“suffering”) and anatta (“non-self”).


Tissa

(Buddhism) The name of the 20th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


pudgala

From Sanskrit पुद्गल (pudgala, “body, soul”).

(Buddhism) person, individual (constancy across reincarnations)


Amitābha

en-proper noun

Amitābha (usually uncountable, plural Amitābhas)

Amitābha
Five Dhyani Buddhas
Guimet Museum

Borrowed from Sanskrit अमिताभ (amitābha, “Immeasurable Light”), from अमित (amita, “unmeasured, boundless, infinite”) + आभा (ābhā, “splendor, light”).

bor

Devotion to Amitābha Buddha is found within most schools of the Mahāyāna, but is the essence of Pure Land practice, which centres on the ‘Buddha invocation’ (Ch. nien-fo, Jap. nembutsu). This is the repetition of ‘Nan-mo A-mi-t’o Fo’ (Ch.) or ‘Nama Amida Butsu’ (Jap.), translations of the Sanskrit ‘Namo Amitābhāya Buddhāya’, meaning ‘Hail to Amitābha Buddha’.

1990, Peter Harvey, “Buddhist Practice: Devotion”, in An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 187:

"Pure Land Buddhism" refers to a set of beliefs and practices that espouses for its aspirants the realization of the stage of non-retrogression (avaivartika; pu t'ui-chuan) either in the present life or through rebirth in a Buddha land or realm (Buddha-kṣetra; fo-kuo) called "Sukhāvatī" (Land of Bliss). […] The Buddha Amitāyus (Wu-liang-shou; Immeasurable Life) or Buddha Amitābha (Wu-liang-kuang; Immeasurable Light) is the 'transcendant' Buddha who presides over the Sukhāvatī world-realm.

1990, Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka, “Pure Land Buddhist Development in India and China prior to Hui-yüan”, in The Dawn of Chinese Pure Land Buddhist Doctrine: Ching-ying Hui-yüan's Commentary on the Visualization Sutra (SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies), Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, →ISBN, page 1:

The Shorter Sukhavativyuha Sutra is chiefly concerned with describing the wonders of Amitabha Buddha's Pure Land, although it also discusses in some detail the characteristics of Amitabha himself.

2004, Mark L. Blum, “Mahayana Scriptures”, in Kevin Trainor, editor, Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 202:

Less well recognized, however, is the central role played in much of early medieval Pure Land Buddhism by deathbed practices and accompanying beliefs about the radical salvific power of one's last nenbutsu, whether understood as the contemplation of the Buddha Amitābha (or Amitāyus, Jpn. Amida) or the invocation of his name.

2004, Jacqueline I. Stone, “By the Power of One's Last Nenbutsu: Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan”, in Richard K[arl] Payne, Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka, editors, Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha (Kuroda Institute Studies in East Asian Buddhism; 17), Honolulu, Hi.: University of Hawai‛i Press, →ISBN, page 77:

The overall programme of the Pure Land Hall represents the process of rebirth in Sukhāvatī, and the three standing Amitābhas in the shrine represent the three possible manifestations of Amitābha to the dying believer on earth, which is the beginning of that process.

2007, Amy McNair, “Salvation for One”, in Donors of Longmen: Faith, Politics, and Patronage in Medieval Chinese Buddhist Sculpture, Honolulu, Hi.: University of Hawai‛i Press, →ISBN, pages 151–152:

In East Asia, the cult of Amitābha eventually became so widespread that it transcended sectarian distinction, and Amitābha became the most popular buddha in the region. In Tibet, Amitābha worship dates to the early propagation of Buddhism in that country in the eighth century, although it never became as prevalent as in East Asia.

2013, Robert E[vans] Buswell Jr., Donald S[ewell] Lopez Jr., “Amitābha”, in The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, →ISBN, page 35, column 1:

(Buddhism) A particular buddha; an artistic depiction of this buddha.

In Pure Land Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism, the name of the principal buddha regarded as of celestial origin.

阿彌陀佛 /阿弥陀佛

Pure Land Buddhism: name of the principal buddha

A letter from Mr. [Brian Houghton] Hodgson to Mr. Bayley, was then read, giving an outline of the theocracy of the Buddha system of Nepal. […] According to the information now communicated, the northern Buddhas acknowledge four sets of divine beings, or of superhuman objects of veneration. The first of these is, contrary to the generally supposed atheistical tendency of the faith, one primæval and uncreated deity. This first Buddha manifested five of his attributes, as five secondary Buddhas; in one of whom, Amitabha, or the 'immeasurably splendid,' in Prakrit and Pali, Amitabo, we recognise the Amito of the Japanese.

1827 July, “Asiatic Society of Calcutta”, in The Oriental Herald, and Journal of General Literature, volume XIV, number 43, London: Printed [by J. R. Gordon, 147, Strand] for the editor, and sold by all booksellers, →OCLC, page 147:

In the upper corner, above Mañjushrī's sword, is the figure of the Dhyāni Buddha Amitābha, the 'One of Boundless (or Incomprehensible) Light', of whom the Tashi Lāmas are believed to be incarnations. […] Amitābha presides over the Western Paradise known as Devachān.

2000, “Description of Illustrations”, in W[alter] Y[eeling] Evans-Wentz, editor, The Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation: Or the Method of Realizing Nirvāṇa through Knowing the Mind, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page xxi:

In Vajrayāna Buddhism, the name of the western buddha, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas representing the five qualities of the Buddha.

阿彌陀如來 /阿弥陀如来

Vajrayana Buddhism: name of the western buddha


pure land

A calque of Chinese 淨土 /净土 (jìngtǔ) and Japanese 浄土 (jōdo), both meaning "pure land".

(Buddhism) The celestial realm or pure abode of a buddha or bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism.


śarīra

Borrowed from Sanskrit शरीर (śarīra, “body”).

(Buddhism) A relic, especially a pearl-like object, found in the cremated ashes of Buddhist spiritual masters.


Nanda

From Sanskrit सुन्दरी नन्दा (sundarī nandā) or Pali Sundarī Nandā.

nc

सुन्दरी नन्दा

(Buddhism) The half-sister of Gautama Buddha.


Nanda

From Sanskrit सुन्दरनन्द (sundarananda) or Pali Sundarananda.

(Buddhism) The half-brother of Gautama Buddha.


pitaka

Borrowed from Sanskrit पिटक (piṭaka), from Proto-Indo-Aryan *pirtakas.

(Buddhism) A collection of Buddhist scriptures.


dharmachakra

Transliteration of Sanskrit धर्मचक्र (dharmacakra).

translit

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) The wheel of dharma (natural law; cosmic order), a motif in dharmic religions.


manusya

Transliteration of Sanskrit मनुष्य (manuṣyà).

If not a devata – let's try to become at least worth a manusya, what we look in appearance. For us to become a manusya, we must take care that we don't take anything from anyone more than what is due to us. As a manusya we cannot and should not cheat others.

2005, Dr. Harish Chandra, Ph. D., As Simple As It Gets, Hyderabad: Center for Inner Sciences, →ISBN, page 69, →ISBN:

Three classes of Prajapati's progeny—Devas (gods), Manusyas (men) and Asuras (demons)—lived a life of discipline under their father, Prajapati […]

2006, Mahendra Kulasrestha, Culture India: a compendium of Indian philosophy, religion, arts, literature and society, New Delhi: Lotus Press, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 74, →ISBN:

The Manusyas or men are placed next to gods, Gandharvas and Apsarâs were inferior gods who ruled over forests and rivers.

1880, Mahadev Moreshwar Kunte, The Vicissitudes of Âryan Civilization in India: An Essay, which Treats of the History of the Vedic and Buddhistic Polities, Explaining Their Origin, Prosperity, and Decline, Bombay: Printed at the Oriental Print. Press, →OCLC, page 215:

In the Anguttara Nikaya, He said: ‘I am not indeed a deva, nor a gandharva, nor a yaksa, nor a manusya. Know ye that I am the Buddha.’ After Enlightenment, the Buddha could no longer be classified even as a ‘manusya’ or an ordinary human being.

2013 August 31, “Was Buddha an Incarnation of God?”, in Tsem Rinpoche, archived from the original on 2020-08-12:

(rare outside of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and related philosophy) man, human being

rare outside of Hinduism; Jainism and related philosophy; rare outside of Hinduism; Jainism and related philosophy


Kathina

(Buddhism) An annual festival during which robes are presented to priests, usually falling between the 1st day of the waning moon of the 11th month and the middle of the 12th month under the lunar calendar.


sesshin

(Buddhism) A period of intensive zazen meditation in a Buddhist monastery.


Amida

A borrowing of Japanese 阿弥陀 (Amida), q.v.

(Buddhism) Synonym of Amitābha, the most important buddha of the Pure Land sect.


chiliocosm

From chilia- + Ancient Greek κόσμος (kósmos, “world”).

It is he who in the Fa houa king is called the Lord of the Savaloka, the great Brahma, who governs the grand chiliocosm, that is the greatest of the three aggregations of universes, containing a thousand million of suns, of Sumerus, and quadruple continents such as we behold.

1848, Faxian, Abel Rémusat, & Julius von Klaproth, The Pilgrimage of Fa Hian, page 131:

Beyond one such chiliocosm, there lies another and so on to endless. All chiliocosms alike are under the domination of the Supreme Law of Nature of the Law of Karma.

2003, Pram Nguyen, The Ultimate Theory of the Universe, →ISBN, page 233:

It has the similar meaning with a poem written by William Blake, a British poet: To See a World in a Grain of Sand, And a Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand, And Eternity in an hour. So, a better translation is put forward: A tiny flower represents a chiliocosm, as a single tree covers the bodhi.

2015, Ford Lumban Gaol, Interdisciplinary Behavior and Social Sciences, →ISBN:

The first order chiliocosm encompasses one thousand worlds, each of them identically structured, with Mount Meru at the center, surrounded by four major continents and eight subcontinents. The second order chiliocosm has one thousand times as many worlds as the first, and the third order chiliocosm has one thousand times as many worlds as the second.

2016, Text, History, and Philosophy: Abhidharma across Buddhist Scholastic Traditions, →ISBN, page 319:


vijnana

From Sanskrit विज्ञान (vijñāna, “consciousness”).

bor

(Buddhism, Hinduism) consciousness; life force


Avalokiteshvara

From Sanskrit अवलोकितेश्वर (Avalokiteśvara, literally “Lord of Perception”).

अवलोकितेश्वर

(Buddhism) A bodhisattva who embodies compassion.


Budai

Derived from Mandarin 布袋 (Bùdài, “cloth sack”).

der+

(Buddhism) A 10th-century monk, revered as Maitreya, a bodhisattva, in the Mahayana Buddhist pantheon; the Laughing Buddha.


Buddahood

But yet Gautama did all this, and this was the means he adopted to attain Buddahood.

1878, Buddhism and Christianity Face to Face, page 62:

Unless he enters Buddahood, he will fall into the hells and suffer.

1986, Yoshiko Kurata Dykstra, The Konjaku Tales: From a Medieval Japanese Collection. Indian section:

Whatever the contingent and occasional purpose of a ritual, its primary concern is always the attainment of Buddahood in the body by an immediate perception of the unobstructed interpenetration of all dharmas.

1987, Religious Traditions - Volume 10, page 21:

The Buddhist who bows before an image of the Buddha understands himself not as honoring an individual, but expressing his respect for Buddahood, a potentiality of all humans (or in some cases all beings) and devoting himself to the cultivaton of his own "enlightenment."

1997, Gary David Comstock, Susan E. Henking, Que(e)rying Religion: A Critical Anthology, →ISBN, page 275:

The eternity and omnipresence of the True Nature is equivalent to the omnipresence of the Mean; Buddahood or the dharma-nature is, crypto-pantheistically, present everywhere and in everything.

2000, Brook Ziporyn, Evil And/or/as the Good, →ISBN:

(Buddhism) The state of being a buddha, enlightenment or nirvana.


zeroism

Zeroism is distinct from nihilism. It is a true central philosophy because it is neither Absolutism nor nihilism.

1964, Ramchandra Narayan Dandekar, Summaries of papers; supplement, page 190:

The conception of Emptiness in Taoist Mysticism of China was influenced by the conception of Vedic representation of Sanya (zero) and Buddhist conception of Sinyāta (zeroism) of India.

1984, Prācī-jyoti: Digest of Indological Studies - Volumes 16-17, page 244:

Gandhi set a high ideal, which actually does not attract much interest in The whole idea of "zeroism"--"to be the last in the peace research community.

1986, International peace research newsletter - Volumes 24-27, page 10:

(Buddhism) A belief that the physical world is illusion.


three fires

(Buddhism) Three Poisons; three primary causes of unskillful action that lead to the creation of "negative" karma


Triple Gem

Calque of Pali tisaraṇaṃ, Sanskrit त्रिशरण (triśaraṇa).

(Buddhism) The three main elements of Buddhism, i.e., Buddha, his teachings, and his clergy


Four Noble Truths

the Four Noble Truths (canonical plural)

Calque of Sanskrit चत्वारि आर्यसत्यानि (catvāri āryasatyāni).

calque

चत्वारि आर्यसत्यानि

(Buddhism) Four central Buddhist teachings: (i) that suffering is an innate characteristic of existence with each rebirth; (ii) that it is caused by cravings or desires; (iii) that it can be ended by eliminating the cravings or desires; and (iv) that the noble eightfold path is the way to achieve this.


Five Precepts

Calque of Pali pañcasīla, Sanskrit पञ्चशील (pañcaśīla).


five aggregates

(Buddhism) five skandhas (aggregates) of being


bhavacakra

Borrowed from Sanskrit भवचक्र (bhavacakra).

(Buddhism) symbolic representation of saṃsāra (or cyclic existence)


Hariti

(Buddhism) goddess and yakshini in certain Buddhist traditions


Eight Legions

(Buddhism) group of eight Buddhist deities protecting the Dharma


Mahavamsa

(Buddhism) Epic poem recounting the history of ancient Ceylon.


Eight Precepts

Calque of Pali aṭṭha-sīla, aṭṭhaṅga-sīla or Calque of Sanskrit अष्टा-सील (aṣṭā-sīla), अष्टाण्ग-शील (aṣṭāṇga-śīla).

(Buddhism) Eight rules that are observed by lay Buddhists on observance days and festivals: to abstain from (i) taking life, (ii) taking what is not given, (iii) unchastity, (iv) false speech, (v) intoxicants which cause a careless frame of mind, (vi) taking food at the wrong time, (vii) dancing, music, visiting shows, flowers, make-up, the wearing of ornaments and decorations, and (viii) a tall, high sleeping place.


Sakra

Transliteration of Sanskrit शक्र (śakra).

translit

(Buddhism) The Buddhist equivalent of Indra, ruler of the Trāyastriṃśa heaven in Buddhist cosmology.


Upali

Transliteration of Sanskrit उपालि (upāli) or Pali upāli.

(Buddhism) One of Ten Principal Disciples of Gautama Buddha.


Rahula

Transliteration of Sanskrit राहुल (rāhula) or Pali Rāhula.


Suddhodana

Transliteration of Sanskrit शुद्धोदन (śuddhodana) or Pali Suddhōdana.

(Buddhism) The father of Gautama Buddha.


Mahapajapati Gotami

Transliteration of Pali Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī, from Sanskrit महाप्रजापती गौतमी (mahāprajāpatī gautamī).

cog

महाप्रजापती गौतमी

(Buddhism) The stepmother and maternal aunt of Gautama Buddha.


Sariputta

Transliteration of Pali Sāriputta, from Sanskrit शारिपुत्र (śāriputra).


Anuruddha

Transliteration of Sanskrit अनुरुद्धा (anuruddhā) or Pali Anuruddhā.


Maudgalyayana

Transliteration of Sanskrit मौद्गल्यायन (maudgalyāyana).


Devadatta

Transliteration of Sanskrit देवदत्त (devadatta) or Pali Devadatta.

(Buddhism) The cousin and former disciple of Gautama Buddha.


Yasodhara

Transliteration of Sanskrit यशोधरा (yaśodharā) or Pali Yasodharā.

(Buddhism) The former wife of Gautama Buddha.


Mahanipata Jataka

Transliteration of Pali mahānipāta jātaka.

(Buddhism) The ten great birth stories (or jatakas) of the Buddha.


Girimekhala

(Buddhism) The name of an elephant in Buddhist mythology.


Mucalinda

(Buddhism) A naga in Buddhist mythology.


dharmapala

(Buddhism) Buddhist deity; protector of Buddhism


kumbhanda

Transliteration of Sanskrit कुम्भाण्ड (kumbhāṇḍa) or Pali kumbhaṇḍa.

(Buddhism) A dwarfish spirit in Buddhist mythology.


Apalala

Transliteration of Sanskrit अपलाल (apalāla) or Pali Apalāla.

(Buddhism) The name of a water-dwelling naga in Buddhist mythology.


Ten Perfections

(Buddhism) ten principal virtues or perfections (paramita) recognized in Buddhist scholarship


Manimekhala

Transliteration of Sanskrit मणिमेखल (maṇimekhala) or Pali Maņīmekhalā.

(Buddhism, Hinduism) The goddess in Hindu-Buddhist mythology; guardian of the seas.


parinirvana

en-noun

parinirvana (countable and uncountable, plural parinirvanas)

Borrowed from Sanskrit परिनिर्वाण (parinirvāṇa).

(Buddhism) The final release from rebirth.


devaloka

Transliteration of Sanskrit देवलोक (devaloka).

translit

(Hinduism, Buddhism) In Indian religions, a plane of existence where gods and devas exist.


Mahakala

(Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism) A deity in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Sikhism, sometimes considered a manifestation of Shiva.


arahantship

according to the scriptures arahantship is possible as long as the Dhamma exists. He went on to say, however, that while arahantship may be theoretically or doctrinally possible, it is realistically impossible because of the absence today of both suitable teachers and people with pure, clear minds.

1992, George D. Bond, The Buddhist Revival in Sri Lanka: Religious Tradition, Reinterpretation and Response, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., →ISBN, page 140:

First the fruit of arahantship arises, then the knowledge of destruction.

2005, The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 746:

He attempts in his sermons to help his audience bring together several components of practice: faith (P. saddhā) in the Buddha as the exemplary arahant, understanding the special place of the Paṭṭhāna in the quest for arahantship,

2011, Jason A. Carbine, Sons of the Buddha: Continuities and Ruptures in a Burmese Monastic Tradition, Walter de Gruyter, →ISBN, page 156:


emaho

(Tibetan Buddhism) exclamation of wonder, joy and amazement


Gokuraku

(Buddhism) The abode of Amitabha Buddha; heaven, paradise.


dharma talk

I'd never given a dharma talk before, much less in the local Lao dialect, to hundreds of people. I just got up there, and he said, "Tell them what you know of the dharma, go to it."

2011, Jack Kornfield, Bringing Home the Dharma: Awakening Right Where You Are:

It is important to note that a dharma talk is not a lecture, although it has a didactic purpose. Such a talk is given usually as an accompaniment to a period of meditation.

2014 February 19, Charles R. Strain, The Prophet and the Boddhisattva: Daniel Berrigan, Thich Nhat Hanh, and the Ethics of Peace and Justice, Wipf and Stock Publishers:

(Buddhism) A public discourse by a Buddhist teacher, similar to a sermon or homily, and distinguished from a lecture by being shorter and less formal.


Nagarjuna

(Buddhism) Second century philosopher credited with founding a school of Buddhism.


nibbana

en-noun

nibbana (countable and uncountable, plural nibbanas)

Transliteration of Pali nibbāna, from Sanskrit निर्वाण (nirvāṇa).


overnegation

Firmly based in meditative practice and reacting to a perceived overnegation tending toward the nihilistic in Madhyamaka teachings, Yōgacāra doctrines are concerned with the non duality ^([sic]) of subject and object, which for them are impositions upon the non-dual flow of perceptions, sometimes termed Mind.

1998, Gay Watson, The Resonance of Emptiness, page 80:


samvega

samvega (countable and uncountable, plural samvegas)

Transliteration of Sanskrit संवेग (saṃvega, “desire for emancipation”).

translit

(Buddhism) Dismay at the futility of life as normally lived; a sense of urgency to escape the cycle of samsara and achieve nirvana.


Vajraratna

(Buddhism) a bodhisattva in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism


Saraṇaṅkara

(Buddhism) The name of the 3rd of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Sumana

(Buddhism) The name of the 7th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Vajratīkṣṇa

From Sanskrit वज्रतीक्ष्ण (vajratīkṣṇa).


Sangharama

(Buddhism) a monastic settlement where Sangha dwells. e.g. Valukarama of Vesali , Kukkutarama of Paliputra


Atthadassi

(Buddhism) The name of the 17th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Revata

(Buddhism) The name of the 8th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Taṇhaṅkara

(Buddhism) The name of the 1st of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.

តណ្ហង្ករៈ

tɑɑnhɑɑngkɑɑrĕəʼ


Sikhī

(Buddhism) The name of the 23rd of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Vajrapāramitā

From Sanskrit वज्रपारमिता (vajrapāramitā).


Mandāravā

(Buddhism) A bodhisattva in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.


Anomadassi

(Buddhism) The name of the 10th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Piyadassi

(Buddhism) The name of the 16th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Dhammadassī

(Buddhism) The name of the 18th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Vessabhū

(Buddhism) The name of the 24th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Siddhattha

(Buddhism) The name of the 19th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Maṅgala

(Buddhism) The name of the 6th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.

មង្គលៈ

mɔɔngkɔɔlĕəʼ


Sumedha

(Buddhism) The name of the 14th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Akasagarbha

(Buddhism) a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism


Sobhita

(Buddhism) The name of the 9th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Medhaṅkara

(Buddhism) The name of the 2nd of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Paduma

(Buddhism) The name of the 11th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Supuṣpacandra

From Sanskrit सुपुष्पचन्द्र (supuṣpacandra).

bor

सुपुष्पचन्द्र


Vipassī

(Buddhism) The name of the 22nd of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Cundi

(Buddhism) a bodhisattva in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism


Koṇḍañña

(Buddhism) The name of the 5th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.

កោណ្ឌញ្ញៈ

-kaondɔɔññĕəʼ


Bhaiṣajyarāja

From Sanskrit भैषज्यराज (bhaiṣajyarāja).


Bhaiṣajyasamudgata

From Sanskrit भैषज्यसमुद्गत (bhaiṣajyasamudgata).

भैषज्यसमुद्गत


Mahāsthāmaprāpta

From Sanskrit महास्थामप्राप्त (mahāsthāmaprāpta).

महास्थामप्राप्त


Kṣitigarbha

From Sanskrit क्षितिगर्भ (kṣitigarbha), literally “earth-womb”.


Viśuddhacāritra

From Sanskrit विशुद्धचारित्र (viśuddhacāritra).

विशुद्धचारित्र


Samantabhadra

From Sanskrit समन्तभद्र (samantabhadra).


Supratiṣṭhitacāritra

From Sanskrit सुप्रतिष्ठितचारित्र (supratiṣṭhitacāritra).

सुप्रतिष्ठितचारित्र


Viśiṣṭacāritra

From Sanskrit विशिष्टचारित्र (viśiṣṭacāritra).

विशिष्टचारित्र


Koṇāgamana

(Buddhism) The name of the 26th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Padumuttara

(Buddhism) The name of the 13th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Padmasambhāva

From Sanskrit पद्मसम्भाव (padmasambhāva).


Dīpaṃkara

(Buddhism) The name of the 4th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Kassapa

Transliteration of Pali कस्सप (kassapa), from Sanskrit कश्यप (kaśyapa).

(Buddhism) The name of the 27th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Bhaiṣajyaguru

From Sanskrit भैषज्यगुरु (bhaiṣajyaguru).

(Buddhism) A bodhisattva in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.


Phussa

(Buddhism) The name of the 21st of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Candraprabha

From Sanskrit चन्द्रप्रभ (candraprabha).

Coordinate term: Sūryaprabha


Sūryaprabha

Coordinate term: Candraprabha


Vairocana

(Buddhism) a celestial Buddha in Mahayana Buddhism


Virūpa

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit विरूप (virūpa).

lbor

(Buddhism) A mahasattva in Vajrayana Buddhism.


Sujāta

(Buddhism) The name of the 15th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Battabara

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit बत्तबर (battabara).


Sadāparibhūta

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit सदापरिभूत (sadāparibhūta).


Jambhala

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit जम्भल (jambhala).

(Buddhism) a deity in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism


Anantacaritra

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit अनन्तचारित्र (anantacāritra).

bor

अनन्तचारित्र


Cintāmaṇicakra

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit चिन्तामणिचक्र (cintāmaṇicakra).

चिन्तामणिचक्र


Mahāpratisarā

Transliteration of Sanskrit महाप्रतिसरा (mahāpratisarā).


Aryadeva

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit अर्यदेव (aryadeva).


Sarvanivāraṇaviṣkambhin

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit सर्वनिवारणविष्कम्भिन् (sarvanivāraṇaviṣkambhin).

lbor

सर्वनिवारणविष्कम्भिन्


Kurukullā

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit कुरुकुल्ला (kurukullā).


kasaya

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit काषाय (kāṣāya).

(Buddhism) A monastic robe worn by ordained Buddhist monks and nuns.


Vajrapāṇi

(Buddhism) a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism


Kakusandha

(Buddhism) The name of the 25th of 27 named Buddhas immediately preceding Gautama.


Akṣayamati

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit अक्षयमति (akṣayamati).


Mahāmāyūrī

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit महामायूरी विद्याराज्ञी (mahāmāyūrī vidyārājñī, “great peacock”), from मह (maha) + मयूर (mayūra).

bor

महामायूरी विद्याराज्ञी


bhutatathata

(Buddhism) The unchanging essence of all things.


pratityasamutpada

(Buddhism) Dependent origination: a doctrine of Buddhist philosophy stating that all dharmas arise in dependence upon other dharmas: "if this exists, that exists; if this ceases to exist, that also ceases to exist".


dakini

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A sacred female spirit.


nonabiding

(Buddhism) The practice of avoiding mental constructs during daily life, except when meditating.


vinaya

(Buddhism) The rules that regulate Buddhist monastic life.


nenbutsu

(Buddhism) The chanting of the name of Amitābha Buddha, thought to rescue the devotee to the pure land.


nonascertaining

(Buddhism) Of or relating to unconscious cognition, in which the mind does not engage with objects or recognize them.


getsul

(Buddhism) A novice monk in Tibetan Buddhism.


nirmanakaya

en-noun

nirmanakaya (countable and uncountable, plural nirmanakayas)

Coordinate term: sambhogakaya

(Buddhism) The third aspect of the Trikaya: the physical manifestation of a Buddha in time and space.


tallapoi

From French talapoin, from Portuguese talapão, from Mon တၠဳ ပိုဲ (tloe poi, “our lord”).

1667, The English Rogue, by Richard Headhttps://www.gutenberg.org/files/50416/50416-h/50416-h.htm
Their Priest, which they call Tallapoi, are seeming very zealously superstitious: they somewhat incline to Mahometanism; for they pretend they will not drink wine, being forbidden it by their Law, yet are abominable hypocrites: for, though they wear a sheep-skin with the wool thereon, not suffering any hair to be on their bodies, and in shew lead a chaste life, yet I found the contrary; as you shall understand by what past between one of them and my self.


vedana

vedana (countable and uncountable, plural vedanas)

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit वेदन (vedana).


ajari

(Buddhism) In Japanese Buddhism, a senior monk who teaches students.


parinibbana

en-noun

parinibbana (countable and uncountable, plural parinibbanas)

(Buddhism) Alternative form of parinirvana


Amidism

From Amida (“Amitabha”) + -ism (“forming nouns concerning schools of thought”).

suffix

(Buddhism) Synonym of Pure Land Buddhism.


Pure Land

Calque of Chinese 淨土 /净土 (Jìngtǔ) and Japanese 浄土 (Jōdo), both meaning "pure land" and used as the common name of the Buddhist sect devoted to Amitabha and rebirth into his pure land.

(Buddhism) A school of Mahayana Buddhism focused on the Pure Land sutras and the buddha Amitabha.

(Buddhism) The specific pure land of the buddha Amitabha, generally understood as a paradise wherein believers will be led to enlightenment.


Pure Land

(Buddhism) Alternative letter-case form of pure land: any of the various celestial realms of other buddhas and boddhisattvas.


Jodo

A borrowing of Japanese 浄土 (Jōdo, literally “Pure Land”), q.v.

bor

...zealous persons, chiefly the followers of the Sect of Siodo...

1727, Engelbert Kaempfer, translated by John Gaspar Scheuchzer, History of Japan, volume I, page 287:

The Jō-do-shū, or Pure Land sect.

1886, Bunyiu Nanjio, chapter IX, in A Short History of the Twelve Japanese Buddhist Sects:

In 1579, the two great sects of Nichiren and Jōdo held a great discussion upon religious subjects.

1876, William Elliot Griffis, Mikado's Empire, page 233:

In the far off West there is said to be the home of Amida... He is free from the chain of transmigration and enjoys a conscious and happy immortality in ‘Jodo’,—that is, in the Pure Land.

1901, R.L. Halsey, The Religion of Japan & the Present Attitude of the Japanese, page 13:

The Jōdo appeals naturally more to plebeian requirements because of the simpleness of its faith and teaching.

1938, Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Zen Buddhism and Its Influence on Japanese Culture, page 37:

Jodo Buddhism... had in its structure a grace-based doctrine of salvation of trusting in its goddess that was similar to the doctrine of grace in Christianity.

2012, Atsuyoshi Fujiwara, Theology of Culture in a Japanese Context, page 175:

(Japanese Buddhism) Synonym of Pure Land: a sect of Buddhism and its primary afterlife, the seat of the Amida Buddha.


Jodo

Simple faith in Buddha's grace was all that one needed to cross this ocean of samsara to the Jodo or 'Pure Land'.

(Japanese Buddhism) Alternative letter-case form of jodo: any of various other pure lands.


Upāli

Transliteration of Sanskrit उपालि (upāli).

translit

(Buddhism) one of the ten disciples of the Buddha


three poisons

(Buddhism) The three root kleshas of Moha (delusion and confusion), Raga (greed and sensual attachment) and Dvesha (aversion and hate), which are considered to be innate in a being.


suddenism

Unqualified suddenism is as impossible to maintain as unqualified gradualism.

1983, Luis O. Gómez, “The Direct and Gradual Approaches of Zen Master Mahāyāna: Fragments of the Teachings of Mo-ho-yen”, in Robert M. Gimello, Peter N. Gregory, editors, Studies in Ch'an and Hua-yen, University of Hawaii Press, page 96:

(Buddhism) The achievement of sudden enlightenment.


sambhogakaya

Coordinate term: nirmanakaya

(Buddhism) The second aspect of the Trikaya: a subtle body of limitless form.


Lokapala

intercardinal direction
intercardinal direction

(Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism) Any of a number of gods associated with specific cardinal and intercardinal directions.


Tantra

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed in India from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards.


ordination hall

(Buddhism) a Buddhist building specifically consecrated and designated for the performance of the Buddhist ordination ritual and other rites


Katyayana

Transliteration of Sanskrit कात्यायन (kātyāyana)

(Buddhism) One of Ten Principal Disciples of Gautama Buddha.


Puṇṇa Mantānīputta

Transliteration of Sanskrit सुभूति (subhūti) or Pali Subhūti.


avadana

(Buddhism) A form of Buddhist literature correlating the virtuous deeds of past lives with events taking place in subsequent lives.


avidya

Borrowed from Sanskrit अविद्या (avidyā).

(Buddhism, Hinduism) Ignorance or delusion.


Vajradhara

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit वज्रधर (vajradhara).

lbor

(Buddhism) The ultimate primordial Buddha, according to the Sakya, Gelug and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism.


Mahasamghika

(Buddhism, historical) An early school of Buddhism, originally based in Magadha.


Vaibhasika

(Buddhism, historical) An ancient Buddhist tradition of Abhidharma that was very influential in north India, especially Kashmir.


Simhamukha

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit सिंहमुख (siṃhamukha).

(Tibetan Buddhism) A wisdom dakini of the Dzogchen tradition.


Sukhavati

(Buddhism) The pure land of Amitābha in Mahayana Buddhism.


etoki

Borrowed from Japanese 絵解き (e toki, literally “painting explanation”).

bor+

(Buddhism) The practice of explaining a religious concept using an emaki.


tathagata

/təˈtɑːɡətə/

Borrowed from Sanskrit तथागत (tathāgata).

(Buddhism) A term of address to a buddha.


mani stone

From the mantra usually inscribed on them, from Tibetan ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྃ (oṃ ma ṇi pdme hūm̐), from Sanskrit ॐ मणिपद्मे हूं (oṃ maṇipadme hūṃ).

der

ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྃ

ॐ मणिपद्मे हूं

om mani padme hum
om mani padme hum#English

(Buddhism) A stone, rock or pebble usually inscribed with the mantra om mani padme hum, used as a form of prayer in Tibetan Buddhism.


Trikaya

(Buddhism) A fundamental doctrine within Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism that delineates the multidimensional nature of a Buddha's existence in three distinct bodies or aspects.


Tantric Buddhism

(Buddhism) A tradition focusing on mystical practices and concepts as a path to enlightenment.


tukdam

Borrowed from Tibetan ཐུགས་དམ (thugs dam).

bor+

Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche passed away quite suddenly, but after he died he remained in tukdam for quite a while, longer than the sun was in the sky that day.

1999 August 1, Erik Pema Kunsang, Marcia Binder Schmidt, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, As it is, volume 1, Rangjung Yeshe Publications, →ISBN, page 25:

The signs of tukdam are that the heart remains warm, rigor mortis does not set in, and the body does not begin to deteriorate.

2009 November 10, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, Uncommon Happiness, Rangjung Yeshe Publications, →ISBN, page 9:

At noon, after his breathing had stopped, he manifested the state of tukdam, the ultimate meditation at the moment of death.

2012 April 16, Lama Kunsang, Lama Pemo, Marie Aubele, History of the Karmapas: The Odyssey of the Tibetan Masters with the Black Crown, Shambhala Publications, →ISBN, page 42:

(Tibetan Buddhism) An advanced state of meditation believed to be attained by some experienced meditators following their deaths.


Drukpa Kagyu

Borrowed from Dzongkha and Tibetan འབྲུག་པ་བཀའ་བརྒྱུད ('brug pa bka' brgyud).

འབྲུག་པ་བཀའ་བརྒྱུད

(Tibetan Buddhism) The leading school of Tibetan Buddhism in Bhutan.


jhana

en-noun

jhana (countable and uncountable, plural jhanas)

The first time I heard about the jhanas, they sounded too good to be true. These special mental states are described in the sacred texts of an ancient school of Buddhism.

2024 March 4, Ross Andersen, “The Meditation Start-Up That’s Selling Bliss on Demand”, in The Atlantic:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) Alternative spelling of dhyana


karsevak

Transliteration of Hindi कारसेवक (kārsevak), in turn from Sanskrit कार (kāra, “work”) + सेवा (sevā, “service done with devotion”).

translit

The karsevaks built a new shelter to protect homeless people.

Huge number of karsevaks had gathered in Ayodhya in support for Ram temple campaign.

(India, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism) A person who freely offers their service to a religious cause; particularly in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.


shankha

Transliteration of Sanskrit शङ्ख (śaṅkha).

etymon

(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism) The conch-shell, considered sacred and of ritual importance.


maitrī

(Buddhism) Benevolence, lovingkindness or compassion, especially if developed through meditation or mindfulness.


Bhairava

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshipped by Hindus and Buddhists.