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དགོངས་པ་ངེས་འགྲེལ།

Unraveling the Intent
Prologue

Saṃdhi­nirmocana
འཕགས་པ་དགོངས་པ་ངེས་པར་འགྲེལ་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa dgongs pa nges par ’grel pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra “Unraveling the Intent”
Āryasaṃdhinirmocana­nāmamahāyānasūtra

Toh 106

Degé Kangyur, vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–55.b

Imprint

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Translated by the Buddhavacana Translation Group (Vienna)
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2020

Current version v 1.0.27 (2025)

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· Setting and Summary
· The Context
· Main Points of the Subject Matter
+ 3 sections- 3 sections
· The Basis
· The Path
· The Result
· Source Text and Various Versions
· Translation Issues and Academic Research
+ 5 sections- 5 sections
· 1. Identifying and organizing source texts 
· 2. Evaluating the available translations
· 3. Checking intertextual patterns and delineating the scope of primary sources
· 4. Collating academic research
· 5. Organizing academic resources according to the text structure and specific translation issues
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Translating the text
tr. The Translation
+ 10 chapters- 10 chapters
p. Prologue
1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
ab. Abbreviations
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
+ 2 sections- 2 sections
· Tibetan Sources
+ 1 section- 1 section
· Other Canonical Sources for Samdh.
· Other Sources
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

In Unraveling the Intent, the Buddha gives a systematic overview of his three great cycles of teachings, which he refers to in this text as the “three Dharma wheels” (tri­dharma­cakra). In the process of delineating the meaning of these doctrines, the Buddha unravels several difficult points regarding the ultimate and relative truths, the nature of reality, and the contemplative methods conducive to the attainment of complete and perfect awakening, and he also explains what his intent was when he imparted teachings belonging to each of the three Dharma wheels. In unambiguous terms, the third wheel is proclaimed to be of definitive meaning. Through a series of dialogues with hearers and bodhisattvas, the Buddha thus offers a complete and systematic teaching on the Great Vehicle, which he refers to here as the Single Vehicle.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

Translation by the Buddhavacana Translation Group.

The text was translated by Gregory Forgues and edited by Casey Kemp. With special thanks to Harunaga Isaacson, Matthew Kapstein, Klaus-Dieter Mathes, Jonathan Silk, Lambert Schmithausen, Tom Tillemans, and William Waldron for their helpful comments and advice.

The translation was completed under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha.


ac.­2

The generous sponsorship of Qiang Li (李强) and Ya Wen (文雅), which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.


i.

Introduction

Setting and Summary

i.­1

In Unraveling the Intent, the Buddha gives a systematic overview of his three great cycles of teachings, which he refers to in this text as the “three Dharma wheels” (tri­dharma­cakra). In the process of delineating the meaning of these doctrines, the Buddha unravels several difficult points regarding the ultimate and relative truths, the nature of reality, and the contemplative methods conducive to the attainment of complete and perfect awakening, and he also explains what his intent was when he imparted teachings belonging to each of the three Dharma wheels. Through a series of dialogues with hearers and bodhisattvas, the Buddha thus offers a complete and systematic teaching on the Great Vehicle, which he refers to here as the Single Vehicle .

The Context

Main Points of the Subject Matter

The Basis

The Path

The Result

Source Text and Various Versions

Translation Issues and Academic Research

1. Identifying and organizing source texts 

2. Evaluating the available translations

3. Checking intertextual patterns and delineating the scope of primary sources

4. Collating academic research

5. Organizing academic resources according to the text structure and specific translation issues

Translating the text


Text Body

The Translation
The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra
Unraveling the Intent

p.

Prologue

[F.1.b]


p.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!


Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in an unfathomable palace, built with the blazing seven precious substances,34 that emitted35 great light rays suffusing countless universes.36 Each of its rooms was well arranged and its design was infinite. It was the undivided maṇḍala, the domain transcending the three worlds. Arising from the supreme roots of virtue of the one who transcends the world,37 it was characterized by the perfectly pure cognition of the one who has achieved complete mastery.38 Abode of the Tathāgata where the assembly of innumerable bodhisattvas gathered, it was attended by countless gods, nāgas, [F.2.a] yakṣas, gandharvas, demigods, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and nonhumans. Supported by the great joy and bliss of savoring the Dharma and designed to accomplish the complete welfare of all beings, it was free of any harm caused by the stains of afflictions and clear of any demon. Surpassing all manifestations, this unfathomable palace was displayed by the sovereign power of the Tathāgata. Mindfulness, intelligence, and realization were its pathway;39 mental stillness and insight were the vehicle leading to it; the great gates of liberation‍—emptiness, appearancelessness, and wishlessness‍—were its entrance. It was set on foundations adorned with an infinite accumulation of excellent qualities, which were like great kings of jeweled lotuses.40

p.­2

The Blessed One had a perfectly realized mind and was free from dualistic behavior. Absorbed in the Dharma of the nonexistence of defining characteristics, he was residing in the domain of the buddhas. He had attained equality with all buddhas. His realization was unobstructed and his qualities41 were irreversible. He could not be overcome by objects of experience.42 His abode was inconceivable.43 Perfectly skilled in the sameness of the three times,44 his five bodies were present in all worlds. His knowledge of all phenomena was free from doubt. He understood all practices. His knowledge of phenomena was without uncertainty. [F.2.b] His body was unimaginable. He possessed the gnosis bodhisattvas vow to accomplish.45 He had attained the nondual abode of the buddhas, the sublime perfection, the supreme indivisible gnosis of the Tathāgata’s liberation.46 He had realized the sameness [of all phenomena], the state of a buddha in which there is neither a center nor a periphery,47 and reached the ultimate within the domain of truth, the point where the sphere of space ends.48

p.­3

The Blessed One was accompanied by the entire immeasurable assembly of hearers. Children of noble family, they were the heirs of the Buddha. Their minds were liberated, their wisdom was emancipated, and their discipline was completely pure. They happily gathered with those who longed for the Dharma. They had heard much, kept in mind what they had heard, and accumulated [merit from] what they had heard. They excelled in thought, speech, and deeds. Their wisdom was swift, quick, sharp, emancipating,49 discerning,50 vast, extensive, profound, and unequaled. They possessed the jewel of wisdom and the three forms of knowledge. They had attained the supreme state of happiness in this life. The purity of their merit,51 the excellence of their peaceful conduct, their patience, and their gentleness were vast.52 They were fully engaged in the teaching of the Tathāgata.

p.­4

The Blessed One was also accompanied by all the innumerable bodhisattvas assembled from various buddha realms. Firmly settled and engaged in a vast state, they had gone forth through the Dharma of the Great Vehicle. Impartial toward all beings, they were free from all conceptions, conceptualizations, and fabrications. Victorious over all demons and opposition, they were not involved with the considerations of the hearers and solitary realizers. [F.3.a] Steadfast through the great joy and happiness of savoring the Dharma, they were free from the five great fears. Solely progressing toward the stages from which there is no regression, they had perfectly actualized the stage in which one pacifies the torment of beings. Among them were thus the bodhisattva mahāsattvas Gam­bhīrārtha­saṃdhi­nirmo­cana, Vidhi­vatpari­pṛcchaka, Dharmodgata, Su­viśuddha­mati, Viśālamati, Guṇākara, Para­mārtha­samud­gata, Āryāva­loki­teśvara, Maitreya, and Mañjuśrī.


1.

Chapter 1

1.­1

At that time, the bodhisattva Vidhi­vatpari­pṛcchaka questioned the bodhisattva Gam­bhīrārtha­saṃdhi­nirmo­cana on the ultimate whose defining characteristic is inexpressible and nondual:53 “O son of the Victorious One, when it is said that all phenomena are nondual, what are these phenomena? In what way are they nondual?”

Gam­bhīrārtha­saṃdhi­nirmo­cana replied, “Noble son, all phenomena, what we refer to as all phenomena, are of just two kinds: conditioned and unconditioned. With respect to these, the conditioned is neither conditioned nor unconditioned. The unconditioned is neither unconditioned nor conditioned.”


2.

Chapter 2

2.­1

Then the bodhisattva Dharmodgata spoke these words: “Blessed One, very long ago in ancient times, beyond as many universes as there are grains of sand in seventy-seven Ganges rivers, I was residing in the world Kīrtimat of the tathāgata Viśālakīrti. There I saw 7,700,000 non-Buddhists, together with their teachers, who had gathered in one place to consider the ultimate defining characteristic of phenomena.65 [F.5.b] Although they had examined, analyzed, investigated, and considered in detail the ultimate defining characteristic of phenomena, they did not understand it. They had changing opinions, lacked certainty, and were slow-witted as well as argumentative. Insulting one another with harsh words, they became abusive, agitated, unprincipled, and violent. Then, Blessed One, I thought to myself, ‘This is so sad, and yet, how marvelous, how wonderful are the manifestations of the tathāgatas in the world and, through their manifestations, the realization and actualization of the ultimate whose defining characteristic is beyond all speculation!’ ”66


3.

Chapter 3

3.­1

Then the bodhisattva Su­viśuddha­mati addressed the Blessed One, “Blessed One, at an earlier time, you spoke these words: ‘The ultimate is subtle and profound. Characterized as transcending what is distinct or indistinct74 [from conditioned phenomena], it is difficult to understand.’ How wonderful indeed are these words of yours! Blessed One, regarding this point, I once saw many bodhisattvas who, having attained the stage of engagement through aspiration,75 assembled in one place to discuss in the following way whether conditioned phenomena and the ultimate are distinct or indistinct. Among them, some declared, ‘The defining characteristic of conditioned phenomena and the defining characteristic of the ultimate are indistinct.’76 Others replied, ‘It is not the case that the defining characteristic of conditioned phenomena and the defining characteristic of the ultimate are indistinct, for they are distinct indeed.’ [F.7.a] Some others, who were perplexed and lacked certainty, said, ‘Some pretend that the defining characteristic of conditioned phenomena and the defining characteristic of the ultimate are distinct. Some pretend that they are indistinct. Which bodhisattvas speak the truth? Which speak falsity? Which are mistaken? Which are not?’ Blessed One, I thought to myself, ‘So, none of these noble sons understands the ultimate whose subtle defining characteristic transcends whether it is distinct or indistinct from conditioned phenomena. These bodhisattvas are truly77 naive, confused, dull, unskilled, and mistaken.’ ”


4.

Chapter 4

4.­1

Then the Blessed One spoke these words to Subhūti: “Subhūti, do you know how many beings in the world90 display their knowledge91 under the influence of conceit? Do you know how many beings in the world display their knowledge without conceit?”

Subhūti answered, “Blessed One, according to my knowledge, there are only a few in the world of beings who present their knowledge without conceit, but countless, innumerable, and inexpressible in number are those who do so under its influence. Blessed One, at one time I was staying in a hermitage set in a great forest. There were many monks living in the vicinity who had also established themselves there. At sunrise, I saw them gather together. They showed their knowledge and revealed their understanding by taking various aspects of phenomena as referential objects.92


5.

Chapter 5

5.­1

Then, the bodhisattva Viśālamati asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when bodhisattvas who are skilled in the secrets of mind, thought, and cognition are called ‘skilled in the secrets of mind, thought, and cognition,’ what does it mean?101 When they are designated in this way, what does it refer to?”

The Blessed One answered, “Viśālamati, you are asking this for the benefit and happiness of many beings, out of compassion for the world, and for the welfare, benefit, and happiness of all beings, including gods and humans. Your intention is excellent when questioning the Tathāgata on this specific point. Therefore, listen, Viśālamati. I will explain to you in which way bodhisattvas are skilled in the secrets of mind, thought, and cognition.


6.

Chapter 6

6.­1

Then, the bodhisattva Guṇākara asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when bodhisattvas who are skilled in the defining characteristics of phenomena are called ‘skilled in the defining characteristics of phenomena,’ what does it mean? Moreover, when the Tathāgata designates them as such, what does it refer to?”

6.­2

The Blessed One replied to the bodhisattva Guṇākara, “Guṇākara, for the benefit and happiness of many beings, out of compassion for the world, for the welfare, benefit, and happiness of all beings, including gods and humans, you are asking this. Your intention is excellent when questioning the Tathāgata on this specific point. Therefore, listen, Guṇākara, I will explain to you in which way bodhisattvas are skilled in the defining characteristics of phenomena.


7.

Chapter 7

7.­1

At that time, the bodhisattva Para­mārtha­samud­gata asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when I was alone in a secluded place, I had the following thought: ‘The Blessed One also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic specific to the five aggregates, mentioning the defining characteristic of their arising, disintegration, abandonment, and comprehension.137 In the same way, he spoke of the twelve sense domains, dependent arising, and the four kinds of sustenance. The Blessed One also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic of the four noble truths, mentioning the comprehension of suffering, the abandoning of the cause of suffering, the actualization of the cessation of suffering, and the practice of the path. The Blessed One also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic specific to the eighteen constituents, mentioning their varieties, manifoldness, abandonment, and comprehension. The Blessed One also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic specific to the four applications of mindfulness, mentioning their adverse factors, antidotes, practice, their arising from being non-arisen, their remaining after they arose, and their maintaining, resuming, or increasing. Similarly, he also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic specific to the four correct self-restraints, the four bases of supernatural powers, the five faculties, the five forces, and the seven branches of awakening. [F.16.b] The Blessed One also spoke in many ways of the defining characteristic specific to the eight branches of the path, mentioning their adverse factors, antidotes, and practices, their arising from being non-arisen and remaining after they arose, and their maintaining, resuming, or increasing.’


8.

Chapter 8

8.­1

Then, the bodhisattva Maitreya asked a question to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when bodhisattvas practice mental stillness and insight in the Great Vehicle, what is their support and basis?”

The Blessed One answered, “Maitreya, their support and basis are the discourses teaching Dharma and the constant aspiration to attain the unsurpassable, complete and perfect awakening.

8.­2

“The Blessed One taught that four things are the referential objects of mental stillness and insight: the image with conceptualization; the image without conceptualization; the point where phenomena end; and the accomplishment of the goal.”


9.

Chapter 9

9.­1

Then the bodhisattva Avaloki­teśvara addressed the Blessed One, “Blessed One, the ten stages of the bodhisattva are called (1) Utmost Joy, (2) Stainless, (3) Illuminating, (4) Radiant, (5) Hard to Conquer, (6) Manifest, (7) Far Reaching, (8) Immovable, (9) Excellent Intelligence, and (10) Cloud of Dharma. When taken together with the eleventh, [called] Buddha Stage, in how many kinds of purification and subdivisions are they included?”


10.

Chapter 10

10.­1

Then the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī addressed the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when you mention ‘the truth body of the tathāgatas,’ what is the defining characteristic of this truth body of the tathāgatas?”

The Blessed One answered, “Mañjuśrī, the truth body of the tathāgatas is characterized when one has fully achieved a shift in one’s basis of existence, the emergence [from cyclic existence] through the practice of the stages and the perfections.308 Because of the two [following] reasons, you should know that this truth body is characterized by inconceivability: (1) it is beyond mental elaborations and is not produced by intentional action,309 (2) while beings are fixated on mental elaborations and produced by intentional action.”


ab.

Abbreviations

Bd Bardan (Zanskar) canonical collection
C Choné xylograph Kangyur
Cbeta Chinese Electronic Buddhist Association, (www.cbeta.org)
Cz Chizhi Kangyur
D Degé xylograph Kangyur
Dd Dodedrak Kangyur
Dk Dongkarla Kangyur
Do Dolpo canonical collection
F Phukdrak manuscript Kangyur
Go Gondhla (Lahaul) canonical collection
Gt Gangteng Kangyur
H Lhasa xylograph Kangyur
He Hemis I Kangyur
J ’jang sa tham/Lithang xylograph Kangyur
Kʙ Berlin manuscript Kangyur
Kǫ774 Peking 1737 xylograph Kangyur
L London (Shelkar) manuscript Kangyur
Lg Lang mdo Kangyur
Mvyut Mahāvyutpatti
N Narthang xylograph Kangyur
Ng Namgyal Kangyur
Np Neyphug Kangyur
O Tawang Kangyur
Pj Phajoding I Kangyur
Pz Phajoding II Kangyur
R Ragya Kangyur
S Stok manuscript Kangyur
Saṃdh. Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra
Saṃdhdh Dunhuang manuscript: Stein Tib. n°194 (49 folios) and Stein Tib. n°683 (1 folio) (Hakamaya 1984–1987)
T Tokyo manuscript Kangyur
Taishō 676 解深密經, translated by Xuanzang (596–664 ᴄᴇ)
TrBh Sthiramati’s Triṃśikāvijñaptibhāṣyam
U Urga xylograph Kangyur
V Ulaanbaatar manuscript Kangyur
VD Degé; xylograph of the Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī of the Yogācāra­bhūmi from the Tengyur
VG Golden; xylograph of the Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī of the Yogācāra­bhūmi from the Tengyur
VP Peking; xylograph of the Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī of the Yogācāra­bhūmi from the Tengyur
VinSg Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī of the Yogācāra­bhūmi
X Basgo manuscript Kangyur
YBht P ’i Tibetan translation of Acarya Asanga’s Yogācāra­bhūmi from the Peking Tengyur (n°. 5540, sems-tsam, ’i 143aI-382a5 (vol. I l l : 121-217)
Z Shey Palace manuscript Kangyur

n.

Notes

n.­1
See glossary entry “ultimate.”
n.­2
See Brunnhölzl 2018, p. 1590, n. 89 on this point.
n.­3
The numbering of paragraphs of the Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra follows Lamotte’s critical edition.
n.­4
See Radich 2007, p. 1257 on the relationship between āśraya­parivṛtti and dauṣṭhulyakāya. Saṃdh. is the only text in the entire Kangyur in which the term dauṣṭhulyakāya is found.
n.­5
In bold are textual resources I used to translate the text into English.
n.­6
See Powers 2015. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to consult this reference work at the time of completing this translation.
n.­7
Here is a list of the sigla I used to identify the various witnesses of Saṃdh.:
(1) Witnesses of the sūtra found in the available Kangyurs and canonical collections (MsK = manuscript Kangyur, PK = xylograph): Kʙ: Berlin MsK, C: Choné PK, Cz: Chizhi, D: Degé PK, Dd: Dodedrak, Dk: Dongkarla, F: Phukdrag MsK, H: Lhasa PK, Gt: Gangteng, He: Hemis I, J: ’jang sa tham/Lithang PK, L: London (Shelkar) MsK, Lg: Lang mdo, N: Narthang PK, Ng: Namgyal, Np: Neyphug, O: Tawang, Pj: Phajoding I, Pz: Phajoding II, Kǫ: Peking 1737 PK, R: Ragya, S: Stok MsK, T: Tokyo MsK, U: Urga PK, V: Ulaanbaatar MsK, W: Wangli supplement, X: Basgo MsK, Z: Shey Palace MsK. Other canonical collections: Ba: Basgo fragments (Ladakh), Bd: Bardan (Zanskar), Go: Gondhla (Lahaul), Do: Dolpo. Source: http://www.rkts.org (last accessed on July 20, 2020). I am following the typology of Kangyur groups suggested by rKTs (Vienna University). I would like to warmly thank Professor Helmut Tauscher and Bruno Lainé for making available to me the editions I used for this translation project. For a general discussion of some Tibetan sources, see Skilling 1994, p. 775.
(2) Xylographs of the Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī of the Yogācāra­bhūmi from the Tengyur: VD Degé, VG Golden, VP Peking. My thanks go to Kojirō Katō for having shared with me the bibliographical detail of these witnesses. The Viniścaya­saṃ­grahaṇī is also available in Chinese under the following title: 瑜伽師地論卷第七十六攝決擇分.
n.­8
For the reference of possible additional folios, see Chayet 2005, p. 67 (n°615‍—1 folio, n°590‍—6 folios).
n.­34
rin po che sna bdun does not refer to jewels only, as found in Lamotte (1935) and Keenan (2000). I follow here Powers (1995), Cornu (2005), and Cleary (1999).
n.­35
The logical subject of ’jig rten gyi khams dpag tu med pa rgyas par ’gengs pa’i ’od zer chen po shin tu mnga’ ba is the palace (khang). Cornu (2005) and Keenan (2000) seem to read this phrase as a qualifier for the seven precious substances.
n.­36
The first paragraph of the nidāna is a presentation of the place where the Buddha is dwelling. As already mentioned in the introduction, a succession of compounds, mainly bahuvrīhis, enables the topicalization of the temple (khang). Lamotte’s translation reflects this literary device, contrary to Powers who does not topicalize the palace to the same degree on account of some ambiguities regarding the logical subject of a few clauses describing this palace. To illustrate this point, it seems unclear whether the adjectives “steadfast,” “enduring,” or “free” in Powers’ translation qualify the temple or the beings attending it. Cornu mainly follows Powers here but the grammatical necessity to indicate the gender and number of qualifiers in French limits the risk of confusion, which is obviously not the case in English. Regarding the usage of tenses, Lamotte is the only translator who uses both narrative past and present in this first paragraph. He thus switches from the past tense to the present tense in order to describe the characteristics of the temple, a decision I chose not to follow in the present translation.
n.­37
Lamotte, Cornu, and Powers do not translate the anaphoric pronoun de in ’jig rten las ’das pa de’i bla ma’i dge ba’i rtsa ba las byung ba. Powers explains in a footnote (see Power 1995, p. 313, n. 3) that this pronoun refers to gnosis according to Wonch’uk, although his translation does not reflect this interpretation. Since wisdom has not been mentioned earlier in the text and since the pronoun de is anaphoric, I read de as referring to the Buddha. Moreover, the concept of “root of virtue” is usually associated with persons and we have a reference to dbang sgyur ba in the next qualifying phrase.
n.­38
The clause dbang sgyur ba’i rnam par rig pa shin tu rnam par rig pa’i mtshan nyid is problematic. Lamotte translates it in the following way: “très pur, il se caractérise par une pensée maîtresse de soi.” Cornu and Powers follow the reading found in D, folio  2.a; S, folio 4.a; Kǫ, folio 1.a; L, folio 3.a; and H, folio 3.a ( dbang sgyur ba’i rnam par rig pa shin tu rnam par rig pa’i mtshan nyid) and render the two occurrences of rnam par rig pa by an apposition: “It was characterized by perfect knowledge, the knowledge of one who has mastery.” (Powers 1995, p. 5). However, in F, folio 4.b we find a variant reading which, I believe, makes more sense: dbang byed pa’i rnam par rig pa shin tu rnam par dag pa’i mtshan nyid. The Tibetan verbal prefix shin tu rnam par is used to render the upasarga su- in Sanskrit, like in suviśuddha. In Mvyut 351, blo shin tu rnam par dag pa thus translates the Sanskrit suviśuddhabuddhiḥ.
n.­39
nges par ’byung ba. In Skt. niḥsaraṇa or niryāṇa, which have the meaning of setting forth, issue, exit, departure, escape, a road out of town. The analogy here is not about emancipation or renunciation as Powers and Cornu translated it but rather with the metaphor of the journey. In that sense, what is meant here is the departure to reach the palace. Lamotte (1935), Keenan (2000), and Cleary (1999) follow Xuanzang’s translation: 大念慧行以為游路 (Cbeta, Taishō 676). Interestingly enough, F does not have nges par ’byung ba but just ’byung ba.
n.­40
rin po che’i pad ma’i rgyal po chen po yon tan gyi tshogs mtha’ yas pas brgyan pa’i bkod pa la rten pa na bzhugs te. This clause has been translated in various ways depending on how one understands the compound rin po che’i pad ma’i rgyal po chen po yon tan gyi tshogs mtha’ yas pas. Lamotte (1935), Powers (1995), and Cornu (2005) read it as a dvandva: “II est orné de qualités infinies, de joyaux, de lotus et de grands rois” (Lamotte 1935, p. 167); “this pattern was adorned with boundless masses of excellent qualities, and with great kingly jeweled lotuses” (Powers 1995, pp. 5–6); “paré d’infinies qualités et de grands lotus royaux incrustés de pierreries” (Cornu 2005, p. 26). However, it seems to me that it would be better to read this compound as a karmadhāraya. Folio 5.a offers a variant reading that could support this interpretation: yon ten gyi tshogs mtha’ yas pas/ brgyan pa’i rin po che chen po pad mo’i rgyal po’i bkod pa’i gnas na nyan thos kyi dge ’dun tshad med pa dang / thabs gcig tu bzhugs te. In addition to this problem, one should note that Lamotte’s translation of the compound rin po che’i pad ma’i rgyal po chen po as a dvandva is inaccurate here. Powers’ reading of this term is correct.
n.­41
chos in the sense of qualities as understood by Lamotte (1935), Powers (1995), and Cleary (1999).
n.­42
spyod yul; gocara. This term refers here to an object perceived by the six senses, so its semantic field pertains to perception as opposed to meditative practice, in which case it would be close in meaning to ālambana (“referential object”). Translating all these terms with “object” would conflate these various semantic fields in the context of the present text.
n.­43
bsam gyis mi khyab pa rnam par ’jog pa (cf. rnam par gzhag pa bsam gyis mi khyab pa; acintyavyavasthānaḥ, see Mvyut 359). Compare with Lamotte: “ses attributs sont inconcevables” (Lamotte 1935, p. 168); Powers: “positing [doctrines] inconceivably” (Powers 1995, p. 7); Cornu: “il était entré dans l’indicible” (Cornu 2005, p. 26).
n.­44
dus gsum mnyam pa nyid tshar phyin pa; tryadhvasamatāniryātaḥ (Mvyut 360). The term niryāta means here “adept, perfected, perfectly skilled” (see Edgerton 1953, p. 303).
n.­45
byang chub sems dpa’ thams cad kyis ye shes yang dag par blangs pa. See Mvyut 366: ye shes byang chub sems dpa’ thams cad kyis yang dag par mnos pa; sarvabodhisattvasampratīcchitajñānaḥ. One should follow here the translations of Lamotte (1935), Keenan (2000), and Cleary (1999).
n.­46
de bzhin gshegs pa ma ’dres pa’i rnam par thar par mdzad pa’i ye shes kyi mthar phyin pa. See Mvyut 368: de bzhin gshegs pa ma ’dres pa’i rnam par thar pa’i mdzad pa’i ye shes kyi mthar phin pa/ de bzhin gshegs pa ma ’dres pa’i rnam par thar par mdzad pa’i ye shes kyi mthar phin pa; asaṃbhinnatathāgata-vimokṣajñānaniṣṭhāgataḥ. See also Mvyut 5192: dbyer med pa; ma ’dres pa; ma ’dres pa’m dbyer med pa; asaṃbhedaḥ. If we understand ma ’dres pa in the sense of dbyer med pa, or even zung ’jug (yuganaddha), the meaning of the term is “indivisible/in unity,” conveying the notion of nonduality of the sameness mentioned several times in this introduction. Lamotte translates ma ’dres pa with “non diversifié,” Cornu with “distinctement,” Powers with “uniquely,” Keenan with “unified.” I don’t think one should understand ma ’dres pa with the meaning of kevala in the present case since it is associated with ye shes in other contexts where the idea of being exclusive to a particular person (e.g., buddhas) is negated (see Keenan 1980, p. 782ff.).
n.­47
mtha’ dang dpung med pa’i sangs rgyas kyis mnyam pa nyid thugs su chud pa. One should read here instead: mtha’ dang dbus med pa’i sangs rgyas kyi sa mnyam pa nyid bu thugs su chud pa; anantamadhyabuddhabhūmisamatādhigataḥ (see Mvyut 369).
n.­48
D, folio 2.b: nam mkha’i khams kyi mthas gtugs pa, which stands in apposition to chos kyi dbyings kyis klas pa (“the ultimate within the domain of truth”). See Mvyut 6430: nam mkha’i dbyings kyi mtha’ gtugs pa, nam mkha’i khams kyi mthar gtugs for the Sanskrit ākāśadhātuparyavasānaḥ. Compare with Mvyut 371: nam mkha’i khams kyi mtha’ klas pa, nam mkha’i khams kyi mthas klas pa as Tibetan equivalents of ākāśadhātuparyavasānaḥ. In Mvyut 431, don gyi mthar gtugs pa and don gyi mthar thug pa are Tibetan translations of paryavasitārthaḥ.
n.­49
nges par ’byung ba; niryāṇika (?). Powers (1995) and Cornu (2005) translate it as “renunciation.”
n.­50
See Mvyut 7450: nges par rtog pa/nges par rtogs pa; nirūpaṇā. Translated by Lamotte with “pénétrante” and by Keenan with “penetrating,” while Powers and Cornu opted respectively for “certain realization” and “réalisation certaine.”
n.­51
See Mvyut 1113: yon yongs su sbyong ba chen po; mahādakṣiṇāpariṣodhakaḥ. D, 4,5; Kǫ, folio 2.b; and H, 7,2 omit yon. However, it is present in S, 7,2 and L, folio 5.a: yon tan, while F.5.b reads sbyin pa.
n.­52
Powers (1995) and Cornu (2005) read nges pa, but one should read here instead the graphically very similar des pa (“gentleness”) as in Mvyut 1115 where this expression is also found extensively: bzod pa dang des pa chen po dang ldan pa; mahākṣāntisauratyasamanvāgataḥ.
n.­53
brjod du med pa dang / gnyis su med pa’i mtshan nyid. I read this compound as a bahuvrīhi. The full clause [brjod du med pa dang / gnyis su med pa’i mtshan nyid] + [don dam pa] is a karmadhāraya meaning literally “the ultimate that is that whose defining characteristic is inexpressible and absolute.” Powers’ suggestion is also possible here (“the ultimate whose defining characteristic is inexpressible and non-dual”). Lamotte leaves out mtshan nyid. Cornu somewhat mixes qualifiers and qualified terms in his rendering of this clause.
n.­65
brtsams pa; ārabhya with the meaning of “referring to/having to do with,” a frequent occurrence in Saṃdh. See Edgerton 1953, p. 102.
n.­66
rtog ge thams cad las yang dag par ’das pa; sarva­tarka­samati­krānta. Regarding the translation of the term rtog ge (tarka), Powers 1995, p. 25 suggests “argumentation,” but the emphasis in the present context is not on logical reasoning. The term tarka denotes here any kind of assumption, presupposition, representation, or conjecture regarding the absolute that is the product of the intellect (manas).
n.­74
I am using the adjective “indistinct” here in the sense of the first definition given in the Oxford English Dictionary: “1. Not distinct or distinguished from each other, or from something else; not kept separate or apart in the mind or perception; not clearly defined or marked off.” Oxford English Dictionary Online, s.v. “indistinct,” accessed July 20, 2020, https://www-oed-com.ezproxy.leidenuniv.nl:2443/view/Entry/94602?redirectedFrom=indistinct#eid.
n.­75
mos pa; praṇidhāna. See mos pa spyod pa’i sa. See Mvyut 897: mos pa spyod pa’i sa; adhimukticaryābhūmiḥ.
n.­76
Schmithausen reads don dam pa’i mtshan nyid (paramārthalakṣaṇa) as “the defining characteristic that is the ultimate” in 3.­5 (see Schmithausen 2014, p. 558, §512.3). However, Saṃdh. chapter 3 is about conditioned phenomena in relation to the ultimate when their respective defining characteristics are examined. The question here is not to determine whether the ultimate is the defining characteristic of conditioned phenomena. Rather, it is to determine whether the conditioned and the ultimate are different by examining their defining characteristics. Therefore, I read don dam pa’i mtshan nyid as “the defining characteristic of the ultimate,” namely, as a genitive tatpuruṣa and not as a karmadhāraya.
n.­77
To render sha stag.
n.­90
Lit. “in the world of beings.”
n.­91
F reads here shes pa in agreement with D. See F, folio 14.bff.
n.­92
dmigs pa; ālambana. I think it is important here to read dmigs pa as meaning “object” because in folio 11.a the Buddha contrasts these various objects (aggregates, sense sources, constituents, truths, etc.) with the “object conducive to purification” (rnam par dag pa’i dmigs pa, *viśuddhyālambana; see Schmithausen 2014, p. 362, §306.5 and n. 1644). Translating dmigs pa here as “observing” would weaken the central opposition between (a) the objects taken as a reference point for their practice by those who have not realized the defining characteristic of the ultimate and (b) the object conducive to purification, which is present within all phenomena. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce this fundamental point.
n.­101
ji tsam gyis; kiyant. The complete sentence reads, “In what sense are they skilled in the secrets of mind, thought, and cognition?”
n.­137
This enumeration follows the structure found in 4.­2.
n.­308
See translation of VinSg 16 in Sakuma 1990, p. 202: “Der Dharmakāya der Tathāgatas ist dadurch charakterisiert, daß die [ihn konstituierende] ‘Umgestaltung der Grundlage’ daraus hervorgegangen ist, daß man die [Bodhisattva-]Stufen und Vollkommenheiten durch intensive Übung gemeistert hat.”
n.­309
mngon par ’du bya ba med pa; anabhisaṃskāraṇa.

b.

Bibliography

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Other Canonical Sources for Samdh.

Bd3.7 vol. 3 (ta) pha, folios 1.b–84.a

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Do (mdo sde, da), folios 196.a–246.b

F156 vol. 68 (mdo sde, tsha), folios 1.b–72.a

Go19,01 vol. 19 (ka), folios 1.b–36.a

Gt028-001 (mdo na), folios 1.b–72.b

H109 vol. 51 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–87.b

He64.6 (mdo, wa), folios 62.b–125.b

J51 vol. 44 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–59.b

Kǫ774 vol. 29 (mdo sna tshogs, ngu), folios 1.b–60.b

L82 vol. 42 (mdo sde, na), folios 1.b–80.b

N94 vol. 51 (mdo sde, ca) folios 1.a–81.a.

Np012-001 (mdo na), folios 1.b–87.a

Pj043-001 (mdo ca), folios 1.b–62.b

Pz045-001 (mdo ca), folios 1.b–61.a

R106 vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–55.b

S106 vol. 63 (mdo sde, na), folios 1.b–80.b

U106 vol. 49 (mdo sde, ca), folios 1.b–55.b

X (mdo sde, wa), folios 66.a–132.a

Z137 vol. 59 (mdo, na), folios 1.b–93.a

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Schmithausen, Lambert (1984). “On the Vijñaptimātra Passage in Saṁdhinirmocanasūtra VIII.7.” Acta Indologica 6 (1984): 433–55.

Schmithausen, Lambert (1987). Ālayavijñāna: On the Origin and the Early Development of a Central Concept of Yogācāra Philosophy. Tokyo: International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 1987.

Schmithausen, Lambert (2005). On the Problem of the External World in the “Ch’eng wei shih lun.” Studia Philologica Buddhica. Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 2005.

Schmithausen, Lambert (2014). The Genesis of Yogācāra-Vijñānavāda: Responses and Reflections. Kasuga Lectures Series 1. Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist Studies, 2014.

Skilling, Peter (1994). “Kanjur Titles and Colophons.” In Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the 6th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Fagernes 1992, edited by Per Kvaerne, 2:768–80. Oslo: The Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture, 1994.

Skilling, Peter (2013). “Nets of Intertextuality: Embedded Scriptural Citations in the Yogācāra­bhūmi.” In The Foundation for Yoga Practitioners: The Buddhist “Yogācāra­bhūmi” Treatise and Its Adaptation in India, East Asia, and Tibet, edited by Ulrich Timme Kragh, 772–90. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2013.

Steinkellner, Ernst. “Who is Byaṅ chub rdzu ’phrul? Tibetan and non-Tibetan Commentaries on the Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra – A Survey of the Literature.” Berliner Indologische Studien 4/5 (1989): 229–52.

Takahashi, Kōichi. “A Premise of the trilakṣaṇa theory in the Sandhinirmocanasūtra.” In Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies (=Indobukkyogaku Kenkyu) 54, no. 3 (2006): 85–92.

Takasaki, Jikido. A Study on the Ratnagotravibhāga (Uttaratantra): Being a Treatise on the Tathāgatagarbha Theory of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Serie Orientale Roma 32. Roma: Istituto italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, 1966.

Tillemans, Tom J. F. “On a recent translation of the Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra.” In Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 20, no. 1 (1997): 153–64.

Tucci, Giuseppe. Minor Buddhist Texts Part III: Third Bhāvanākrama. Serie Orientale Roma 43. Roma: Istituto italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, 1971.

Vinay, Jean-Paul, and Jean Darbelnet. Comparative Stylistics of French and English: A Methodology for Translation. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 1958.

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Ware, James. Review of Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra, l’explication des mystères, by Étienne Lamotte. Journal of the American Oriental Society 57, no. 1 (1937): 122–24.

Wayman, Alex. “The Mirror as a Pan-Buddhist Metaphor-Simile.” History of Religions 13, no. 4 (1974): 251–69.

Wedemeyer, Christian K. “Review of Jñānagarbha’s Commentary on Just the Maitreya Chapter from the Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra: Study, Translation and Tibetan Text, by John Powers.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 123, no. 3 (2003): 681–84.

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Yoshimizu, Chizuko (1996). “On the Four Kinds of yukti in the Tenth Chapter of the Saṃdhi­nirmocana­sūtra.” Journal of Naritasan Institute for Buddhist Studies 19 (1996): 123–68.

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g.

Glossary

Types of attestation for names and terms of the corresponding source language

AS

Attested in source text

This term is attested in a manuscript used as a source for this translation.

AO

Attested in other text

This term is attested in other manuscripts with a parallel or similar context.

AD

Attested in dictionary

This term is attested in dictionaries matching Tibetan to the corresponding language.

AA

Approximate attestation

The attestation of this name is approximate. It is based on other names where the relationship between the Tibetan and source language is attested in dictionaries or other manuscripts.

RP

Reconstruction from Tibetan phonetic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the Tibetan phonetic rendering of the term.

RS

Reconstruction from Tibetan semantic rendering

This term is a reconstruction based on the semantics of the Tibetan translation.

SU

Source unspecified

This term has been supplied from an unspecified source, which most often is a widely trusted dictionary.

g.­1

abiding in phenomena

Wylie:
  • chos gnas pa nyid
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་གནས་པ་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmasthititā

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 4.­10
g.­2

absorption

Wylie:
  • snyoms par ’jug pa
Tibetan:
  • སྙོམས་པར་འཇུག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • samāpatti

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Sanskrit literally means “attainment,” and is used to refer specifically to meditative attainment and to particular meditative states. The Tibetan translators interpreted it as sama-āpatti, which suggests the idea of “equal” or “level”; however, they also parsed it as sam-āpatti, in which case it would have the sense of “concentration” or “absorption,” much like samādhi, but with the added sense of “attainment.”

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­34-35
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­5
  • g.­359
g.­3

absorption in the state of cessation

Wylie:
  • ’gog pa la snyoms par zhugs pa
Tibetan:
  • འགོག་པ་ལ་སྙོམས་པར་ཞུགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirodhasamāpatti

See Mvyut 1500 and 1988.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 10.­9
g.­6

accomplishment of the goal

Wylie:
  • dgos pa yongs su grub pa
Tibetan:
  • དགོས་པ་ཡོངས་སུ་གྲུབ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kṛtyānuṣṭhāna

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­35-36
  • n.­230-231
  • n.­239
g.­7

accumulated

Wylie:
  • kun tu bsags pa
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་བསགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ācita

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­6
  • 7.­32
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­13
  • n.­118
g.­13

actualization

Wylie:
  • mngon du bya ba
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་དུ་བྱ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • sākṣātkāra

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1
  • 4.­3-4
  • 7.­1
  • 10.­5
  • g.­181
g.­15

affliction

Wylie:
  • kun nas nyon mongs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ནས་ཉོན་མོངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃkleśa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A term meaning defilement, impurity, and pollution, broadly referring to cognitive and emotional factors that disturb and obscure the mind. As the self-perpetuating process of affliction in the minds of beings, it is a synonym for saṃsāra. It is often paired with its opposite, vyavadāna, meaning “purification.”

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • i.­8
  • i.­10
  • i.­12
  • i.­17
  • i.­23
  • p.­1
  • 3.­4-6
  • 6.­11-12
  • 7.­9-10
  • 7.­12-13
  • 8.­19-20
  • 8.­22
  • 8.­30-31
  • 8.­35-36
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­7
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­22
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­7-8
  • n.­279
g.­16

aggregate

Wylie:
  • phung pho
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་ཕོ།
Sanskrit:
  • skandha

The five skandhas (pañcaskandha) are: forms (rūpa), sensation (vedanā), conception (saṃjñā), formations (saṃskāra), consciousness (vijñāna).

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • i.­11
  • i.­14
  • i.­19
  • 2.­3
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­13
  • 7.­25
  • 8.­20-21
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­32
  • n.­92
g.­24

appearancelessness

Wylie:
  • mtshan ma med pa
Tibetan:
  • མཚན་མ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • animitta

One of the three gates of liberation along with emptiness and wishlessness.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • p.­1
  • 9.­18
  • g.­188
  • g.­408
g.­25

applications of mindfulness

Wylie:
  • dran pa nye bar gzhag pa
Tibetan:
  • དྲན་པ་ཉེ་བར་གཞག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • smṛtyupasthāna

The four foundations of mindfulness refers to the application of mindfulness to: the body, sensations, the mind, phenomena.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­26
  • 8.­21
  • 10.­7
g.­28

aspiration

Wylie:
  • smon lam
Tibetan:
  • སྨོན་ལམ།
Sanskrit:
  • praṇidhāna

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­1
  • 9.­8
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­13
  • 9.­33
g.­30

assumption

Wylie:
  • mngon par zhen pa
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་ཞེན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhiniviśanti

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­13
  • n.­66
g.­34

Avaloki­teśvara

Wylie:
  • spyan ras gzigs
  • ’phags pa spyan ras gzigs dbang phyug
Tibetan:
  • སྤྱན་རས་གཟིགས།
  • འཕགས་པ་སྤྱན་རས་གཟིགས་དབང་ཕྱུག
Sanskrit:
  • avaloki­teśvara
  • āryāva­loki­teśvara

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the “eight close sons of the Buddha,” he is also known as the bodhisattva who embodies compassion. In certain tantras, he is also the lord of the three families, where he embodies the compassion of the buddhas. In Tibet, he attained great significance as a special protector of Tibet, and in China, in female form, as Guanyin, the most important bodhisattva in all of East Asia.

In this text:

Also mentioned in this text as Āryāva­loki­teśvara, the noble Avaloki­teśvara.

Located in 34 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • p.­4
  • 9.­1-3
  • 9.­5-31
  • 9.­33
g.­35

awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhi

Located in 43 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­5-6
  • i.­21
  • i.­56
  • 1.­2-3
  • 2.­2
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­6
  • 4.­7
  • 6.­6
  • 7.­15-16
  • 7.­19
  • 7.­33
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­13
  • 8.­17
  • 8.­20-21
  • 8.­36
  • 8.­40-41
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­18-19
  • 9.­23-24
  • 9.­31
  • 10.­4-5
  • 10.­9-10
  • n.­80
  • n.­82
  • n.­95
  • n.­126
  • n.­191
  • n.­231
  • g.­178
g.­39

bahuvrīhi

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • bahuvrīhi

Type of Sanskrit compound.

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • i.­42
  • i.­45
  • i.­50
  • n.­36
  • n.­53
  • n.­73
  • n.­86
  • n.­94
  • n.­135
  • n.­165
  • n.­311
  • n.­327
  • n.­361
  • n.­370
g.­40

bases of supernatural powers

Wylie:
  • rdzu ’phrul gyi rkang pa
Tibetan:
  • རྫུ་འཕྲུལ་གྱི་རྐང་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ṛddhipādaḥ

The four bases of supernatural powers (ṛddhipāda, rdzu ’phrul gyi rkang pa bzhi) are: (1) concentration through will (chanda, ’dun pa), (2) concentration through vigor (vīrya, brtson ’grus), (3) concentration through the mind (citta, bsam pa), and (4) concentration through investigation (mīmāṃsā, dpyod pa ). See Rahula 2001, p. 163.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­26
g.­45

blessed one

Wylie:
  • bcom ldan ’das
Tibetan:
  • བཅོམ་ལྡན་འདས།
Sanskrit:
  • bhagavān
  • bhagavat

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

Located in 114 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1-4
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­4
  • 3.­1-2
  • 3.­7
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­6-7
  • 4.­12
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­7
  • 6.­1-2
  • 6.­12
  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­18-19
  • 7.­24-33
  • 8.­1-3
  • 8.­5-10
  • 8.­12-19
  • 8.­24-36
  • 8.­38-41
  • 9.­1-2
  • 9.­4-33
  • 10.­1-12
  • n.­167
  • n.­173
  • n.­200
g.­47

branches of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi yan lag
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་ཡན་ལག
Sanskrit:
  • bodhyaṅgāni

The seven branches of awakening are: (1) correct mindfulness, (2) correct discrimination of dharmas, (3) correct vigor, (4) correct joy, (5) correct flexibility, (6) correct concentration, and (7) correct equanimity.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­26
  • n.­93
g.­49

buddha field

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi zhing
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཞིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • buddhakṣetra

Also translated as “buddha realm.”

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­37
  • 10.­4
  • g.­50
g.­50

buddha realm

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi zhing
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཞིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • buddhakṣetra

Also translated as “buddha field.”

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • p.­4
  • 10.­9
  • g.­49
g.­51

Buddha Stage

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi sa
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ས།
Sanskrit:
  • buddhabhūmi

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­3-6
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­29
g.­55

changing opinions

Wylie:
  • blo gros tha dad pa
Tibetan:
  • བློ་གྲོས་ཐ་དད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • matibheda

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­1
g.­56

characterized by

Wylie:
  • rab tu phye ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་ཕྱེ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • prabhāvita

See Schmithausen 2014, p. 557, §512.1. Also translated here as “consisting in” and “constituted.”

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • i.­8
  • i.­10
  • i.­22
  • i.­42
  • i.­45
  • p.­1
  • 2.­2
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­5-6
  • 4.­6-11
  • 6.­11-12
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­9
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­9-10
  • n.­165
  • n.­180-181
  • n.­370
  • g.­83
  • g.­87
g.­59

Cloud of Dharma

Wylie:
  • chos kyi sprin
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་སྤྲིན།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmameghā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­60

cognition

Wylie:
  • rnam par shes pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་ཤེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vijñāna

Located in 26 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­9-10
  • i.­12
  • i.­16
  • i.­18
  • i.­22
  • i.­44
  • i.­55
  • i.­58
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3-6
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­37
  • 10.­9
  • n.­101
  • n.­108
  • n.­181
  • g.­16
  • g.­161
  • g.­258
g.­66

comprehension

Wylie:
  • yongs su shes pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡོངས་སུ་ཤེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • parijñā

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • i.­44
  • 4.­3
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­25-26
  • 8.­21
  • 8.­23-24
  • 10.­5
  • n.­187
  • g.­181
g.­68

concentration

Wylie:
  • ting nge ’dzin
Tibetan:
  • ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
Sanskrit:
  • samādhi

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.

In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.

Located in 23 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16-17
  • 8.­4-5
  • 8.­7
  • 8.­9-10
  • 8.­17
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­30
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­3-4
  • 9.­18
  • 9.­33
  • n.­181
  • n.­200
  • g.­167
  • g.­168
  • g.­258
  • g.­359
g.­69

conception

Wylie:
  • ’du shes
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་ཤེས།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃjñā

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • i.­10
  • i.­44
  • 1.­4-5
  • 7.­10
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­18-20
  • 10.­5
  • n.­191
  • g.­16
g.­70

conception

Wylie:
  • rtog pa
Tibetan:
  • རྟོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kalpanā

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­4
  • 4.­11
g.­71

conceptualization

Wylie:
  • rnam rtog
  • rnam par rtog pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་རྟོག
  • རྣམ་པར་རྟོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vikalpa

Located in 13 passages in the translation:

  • i.­12
  • i.­16
  • p.­4
  • 1.­5
  • 5.­2
  • 7.­25-27
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­36-37
  • n.­84
g.­74

conditioned

Wylie:
  • ’du byas
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་བྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃskṛta

Located in 25 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6-10
  • i.­12
  • i.­17
  • 1.­1-5
  • 3.­5
  • 4.­10
  • 8.­36
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­17
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­7
  • n.­64
  • n.­76
  • n.­88
  • n.­125
  • n.­290
  • g.­161
g.­75

conditioned phenomena

Wylie:
  • ’du byed
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་བྱེད།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃskāra

Also translated here as “conditioning mental factors.”

Located in 33 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­8
  • i.­10-11
  • i.­13
  • i.­15
  • i.­17
  • i.­20
  • 3.­1-7
  • 6.­12
  • 7.­11-13
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­29
  • 10.­7
  • n.­76
  • n.­80
  • n.­82
  • n.­100
  • n.­217
  • n.­337
  • n.­339
  • g.­76
  • g.­182
g.­76

conditioning mental factors

Wylie:
  • ’du byed
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་བྱེད།
Sanskrit:
  • saṃskāra

Also translated here as “conditioned phenomena.”

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­5
  • 8.­30
  • n.­134
  • g.­75
g.­78

conducive

Wylie:
  • grogs
Tibetan:
  • གྲོགས།
Sanskrit:
  • sahāya

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­19-20
  • 9.­28
  • 10.­7
g.­82

consideration

Wylie:
  • yongs su rtog pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡོངས་སུ་རྟོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • paritarka

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • i.­59
  • p.­4
  • 8.­4
g.­83

consisting in

Wylie:
  • rab tu phye ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་ཕྱེ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • prabhāvita

Also translated here as “characterized by” and “constituted.” See Schmithausen 2014, p. 557, §512.1.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­42
  • 8.­30
  • 9.­4-5
  • n.­162
  • n.­290
  • g.­56
  • g.­87
g.­85

constant

Wylie:
  • rnam par gnas pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་གནས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vyavasthita

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­10
  • 8.­1
g.­86

constituent

Wylie:
  • khams
Tibetan:
  • ཁམས།
Sanskrit:
  • dhātu

The eighteen constituents are: eye, visual object, visual consciousness; ear, sound, auditive consciousness; nose, smell, olfactory consciousness; tongue, taste, gustative consciousness; body, touch, tactile consciousness; mind, mental objects, mental consciousness. When it refers to six elements, they are: earth, water, fire, air, space, and consciousness.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­4
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­25
  • n.­92
  • n.­100
  • n.­286
g.­87

constituted

Wylie:
  • rab tu phye ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་ཕྱེ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • prabhāvita

See Schmithausen 2014, p. 557, §512.1. Also translated here as “characterized by” and “consisting in.”

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16
  • 8.­7
  • n.­181
  • g.­56
  • g.­83
g.­91

correct concentration

Wylie:
  • yang dag pa’i ting nge ’dzin
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པའི་ཏིང་ངེ་འཛིན།
Sanskrit:
  • samyaksamādhi

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­27
  • g.­47
g.­99

defining characteristic

Wylie:
  • mtshan nyid
Tibetan:
  • མཚན་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • svabhāvalakṣaṇa

Located in 70 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­8
  • i.­10-11
  • i.­13-15
  • i.­17
  • i.­20-21
  • i.­55
  • 1.­1
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­3
  • 3.­1-7
  • 4.­3
  • 4.­6
  • 4.­8
  • 4.­10-12
  • 6.­1-3
  • 6.­6
  • 6.­9
  • 6.­11-12
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­4-5
  • 7.­7-8
  • 7.­10
  • 7.­12-13
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24
  • 8.­20-21
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­31
  • 9.­31
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­9-10
  • n.­76
  • n.­80
  • n.­82
  • n.­88
  • n.­92
  • n.­94
  • n.­124-125
  • n.­133-134
  • n.­151
  • n.­162-163
  • n.­343
  • n.­370
g.­109

Dharma of the nonexistence of defining characteristics

Wylie:
  • mtshan nyid med pa’i chos
Tibetan:
  • མཚན་ཉིད་མེད་པའི་ཆོས།
Sanskrit:
  • alakṣaṇadharma

Mahāvyutpatti 353.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­110

Dharmodgata

Wylie:
  • chos ’phags
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་འཕགས།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmodgata

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­50
  • p.­4
  • 2.­1-4
g.­112

diligence

Wylie:
  • brtson ’grus
Tibetan:
  • བརྩོན་འགྲུས།
Sanskrit:
  • viryā

Also translated here as “vigor.”

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 6.­6
  • 9.­9-12
  • 9.­14
  • 9.­18
  • g.­176
  • g.­398
g.­116

discerning

Wylie:
  • nges par rtog pa
  • nges par rtogs pa
Tibetan:
  • ངེས་པར་རྟོག་པ།
  • ངེས་པར་རྟོགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirūpaṇā

Mahāvyutpatti 7450.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­3
g.­117

discipline

Wylie:
  • tshul khrims
Tibetan:
  • ཚུལ་ཁྲིམས།
Sanskrit:
  • śīla

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Morally virtuous or disciplined conduct and the abandonment of morally undisciplined conduct of body, speech, and mind. In a general sense, moral discipline is the cause for rebirth in higher, more favorable states, but it is also foundational to Buddhist practice as one of the three trainings (triśikṣā) and one of the six perfections of a bodhisattva. Often rendered as “ethics,” “discipline,” and “morality.”

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­9-12
  • 9.­18
  • 9.­23
  • 10.­9
  • 10.­12
  • g.­176
g.­118

discourses teaching Dharma

Wylie:
  • chos gdags pa rnam par gzhag pa
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་གདགས་པ་རྣམ་པར་གཞག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmaprajñaptivyavasthā(pa)na

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­1
  • 8.­3
g.­120

discrimination of dharmas

Wylie:
  • chos rab tu rnam par ’byed pa
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་རབ་ཏུ་རྣམ་པར་འབྱེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmapravicaya

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • g.­47
g.­121

distinct

Wylie:
  • tha dad pa
Tibetan:
  • ཐ་དད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • bheda

Located in 24 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­8
  • i.­20
  • 3.­1-7
  • 4.­10-12
  • 8.­6-8
  • 8.­36
  • 9.­32-33
  • 10.­9
  • n.­82
  • n.­147
  • n.­181
  • n.­230
g.­130

dvandva

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • dvandva

Type of Sanskrit compound.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­42
  • n.­40
  • n.­161
  • n.­230
g.­136

emancipation

Wylie:
  • nges par ’byung ba
Tibetan:
  • ངེས་པར་འབྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • niḥsaraṇa
  • niryāṇa

Also translated here as “pathway.”

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • n.­286
  • g.­178
  • g.­193
  • g.­285
g.­137

emptiness

Wylie:
  • stong pa nyid
Tibetan:
  • སྟོང་པ་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • śūnyatā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Emptiness denotes the ultimate nature of reality, the total absence of inherent existence and self-identity with respect to all phenomena. According to this view, all things and events are devoid of any independent, intrinsic reality that constitutes their essence. Nothing can be said to exist independent of the complex network of factors that gives rise to its origination, nor are phenomena independent of the cognitive processes and mental constructs that make up the conventional framework within which their identity and existence are posited. When all levels of conceptualization dissolve and when all forms of dichotomizing tendencies are quelled through deliberate meditative deconstruction of conceptual elaborations, the ultimate nature of reality will finally become manifest. It is the first of the three gateways to liberation.

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­8
  • i.­17
  • p.­1
  • 7.­19
  • 7.­30
  • 8.­29-31
  • 9.­18
  • n.­172
  • n.­186
  • g.­24
  • g.­188
  • g.­194
  • g.­408
g.­141

equanimity

Wylie:
  • btang snyoms
Tibetan:
  • བཏང་སྙོམས།
Sanskrit:
  • upekṣā

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­11
  • 8.­18
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­18
  • g.­47
g.­143

essence

Wylie:
  • ngo bo nyid
Tibetan:
  • ངོ་བོ་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • svabhāva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

This term denotes the ontological status of phenomena, according to which they are said to possess existence in their own right‍—inherently, in and of themselves, objectively, and independent of any other phenomena such as our conception and labelling. The absence of such an ontological reality is defined as the true nature of reality, emptiness.

Located in 42 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10-13
  • i.­19
  • i.­22
  • i.­34
  • i.­58
  • 6.­4
  • 6.­9
  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­4
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­8-9
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24-28
  • 7.­30-31
  • 8.­26
  • 8.­29
  • 9.­18
  • 9.­26
  • 9.­32
  • 10.­7-8
  • n.­64
  • n.­124
  • n.­133
  • n.­147
  • n.­162-163
  • n.­168-169
  • g.­205
g.­152

examine

Wylie:
  • ’jal ba
Tibetan:
  • འཇལ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­1
g.­154

excellence of their peaceful conduct

Wylie:
  • bzod pa dang des pa chen po dang ldan pa
Tibetan:
  • བཟོད་པ་དང་དེས་པ་ཆེན་པོ་དང་ལྡན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahākṣāntisauratyasamanvāgataḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 1115.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­3
g.­155

Excellent Intelligence

Wylie:
  • legs pa’i blo gros
Tibetan:
  • ལེགས་པའི་བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • sādhumatī

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­160

fabrication

Wylie:
  • yongs su rtog pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡོངས་སུ་རྟོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • parikalpa

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­4
g.­163

faith

Wylie:
  • dad pa
Tibetan:
  • དད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • śraddhā

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­18-19
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­22
  • g.­167
  • g.­168
g.­164

falsity

Wylie:
  • skyon chags pa
Tibetan:
  • སྐྱོན་ཆགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • duṣṭatā

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­1
  • 6.­7
g.­165

Far Reaching

Wylie:
  • ring du song ba
Tibetan:
  • རིང་དུ་སོང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • dūraṅgamā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­167

five faculties

Wylie:
  • dbang po lnga
Tibetan:
  • དབང་པོ་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcendriyāṇi

The five faculties are those of (1) faith, (2) vigor, (3) mindfulness, (4) concentration (samādhi), and (5) wisdom (prajñā). These are similar to the five forces but in a lesser stage of development.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 7.­1
  • g.­162
  • g.­168
g.­168

five forces

Wylie:
  • stobs lnga
Tibetan:
  • སྟོབས་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcabalāni

Differing only in intensity, the five forces are similar to the five faculties: (1) faith, (2) vigor, (3) mindfulness, (4) concentration (samādhi), and (5) wisdom (prajñā).

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 7.­1
  • g.­167
  • g.­174
g.­169

five great fears

Wylie:
  • ’jigs pa chen po lnga
Tibetan:
  • འཇིགས་པ་ཆེན་པོ་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcamahābhaya

The five great fears are “the fear concerning livelihood, fear of disapproval, fear of death, fear of bad transmigrations, and fear that is timidity when addressing assemblies.” (Powers 1995, p. 316, n. 19).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­4
g.­171

flexibility

Wylie:
  • shin tu sbyangs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་སྦྱངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • praśrabdhi

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Fifth among the branches or limbs of awakening (Skt. bodhyaṅga); a condition of calm, clarity, and composure in mind and body that serves as an antidote to negativity and confers a mental and physical capacity that facilitates meditation and virtuous action.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­3-5
  • 9.­18
  • n.­191
  • g.­47
g.­177

four correct self-restraints

Wylie:
  • yang dag par spong ba bzhi
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པར་སྤོང་བ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catvāri prahāṇāni

The four correct self-restraints are: giving up nonvirtues, avoiding nonvirtues, generating virtues, developing virtues. See Edgerton 1953, p. 389,2.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­5
  • 7.­1
  • g.­92
g.­179

four kinds of sustenance

Wylie:
  • zas bzhi
Tibetan:
  • ཟས་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catvārāhārāḥ

The four kinds of sustenance are the sustenance of material ingestion, the sustenance of contact, the sustenance of will, and the sustenance of consciousness.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­2
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­25
  • g.­352
g.­181

four noble truths

Wylie:
  • ’phags pa’i bden pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • འཕགས་པའི་བདེན་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • catvāri āryasatyāni

The four noble truths, as stated in this sūtra, are: the comprehension of suffering, the abandoning of the cause of suffering, the actualization of the cessation of suffering, and the practice of the path.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 4.­3
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­30
  • 8.­36
  • 10.­7
  • g.­267
  • g.­375
g.­185

Gam­bhīrārtha­saṃdhi­nirmo­cana

Wylie:
  • don zab dgongs pa nges par ’grel
Tibetan:
  • དོན་ཟབ་དགོངས་པ་ངེས་པར་འགྲེལ།
Sanskrit:
  • gam­bhīrārtha­saṃdhi­nirmo­cana

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • p.­4
  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­4
  • 1.­6
g.­186

gandharva

Wylie:
  • dri za
Tibetan:
  • དྲི་ཟ།
Sanskrit:
  • gandharva

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of generally benevolent nonhuman beings who inhabit the skies, sometimes said to inhabit fantastic cities in the clouds, and more specifically to dwell on the eastern slopes of Mount Meru, where they are ruled by the Great King Dhṛtarāṣṭra. They are most renowned as celestial musicians who serve the gods. In the Abhidharma, the term is also used to refer to the mental body assumed by sentient beings during the intermediate state between death and rebirth. Gandharvas are said to live on fragrances (gandha) in the desire realm, hence the Tibetan translation dri za, meaning “scent eater.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • 10.­12
g.­187

garuḍa

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • garuḍa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­188

gates of liberation

Wylie:
  • rnam par thar pa’i sgo
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་ཐར་པའི་སྒོ།
Sanskrit:
  • vimokṣamukha

Emptiness, appearancelessness, and wishlessness.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • p.­1
  • g.­24
  • g.­408
g.­193

gone forth

Wylie:
  • nges par ’byung ba
Tibetan:
  • ངེས་པར་འབྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • niryātaka
  • parivrājaka

Having left one’s home to become a wandering mendicant. Also translated here as emancipation and as pathway.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­4
  • g.­285
g.­195

Guṇākara

Wylie:
  • yon tan ’byung gnas
Tibetan:
  • ཡོན་ཏན་འབྱུང་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • guṇākara

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­53
  • p.­4
  • 6.­1-12
  • n.­133-134
g.­196

had realized the sameness [of all phenomena], the state of a buddha in which there is neither a center nor a periphery

Wylie:
  • mtha’ dang dbus med pa’i sangs rgyas kyi sa mnyam pa nyid bu thugs su chud pa
Tibetan:
  • མཐའ་དང་དབུས་མེད་པའི་སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ས་མཉམ་པ་ཉིད་བུ་ཐུགས་སུ་ཆུད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • anantamadhyabuddhabhūmisamatādhigataḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 369.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­197

Hard to Conquer

Wylie:
  • shin tu sbyang dka’
Tibetan:
  • ཤིན་ཏུ་སྦྱང་དཀའ།
Sanskrit:
  • sudurjayā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­198

hearer

Wylie:
  • nyan thos
Tibetan:
  • ཉན་ཐོས།
Sanskrit:
  • śrāvaka

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”

Located in 28 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1-3
  • i.­13
  • i.­19
  • i.­21
  • p.­3-4
  • 7.­14-16
  • 7.­28
  • 7.­30
  • 7.­33
  • 8.­20-21
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­41
  • 9.­31-32
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­6
  • 10.­10
  • n.­171
  • n.­226
  • g.­343
g.­200

how

Wylie:
  • ji tsam du
Tibetan:
  • ཇི་ཙམ་དུ།
Sanskrit:
  • tāvatā
  • tāvat
  • yāvat

With the meaning of “truly, really, indeed.”

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­1
  • 4.­6
  • 7.­25
g.­202

Illuminating

Wylie:
  • ’od byed pa
Tibetan:
  • འོད་བྱེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • prabhākarī

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­16
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­203

image

Wylie:
  • gzugs brnyan
Tibetan:
  • གཟུགས་བརྙན།
Sanskrit:
  • pratibimba

Also translated as “reflection.”

Located in 20 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16-17
  • 8.­2
  • 8.­4-10
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­30
  • 8.­36-37
  • n.­181
  • n.­199-200
  • n.­223
  • g.­258
  • g.­317
g.­208

Immovable

Wylie:
  • mi g.yo ba
Tibetan:
  • མི་གཡོ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • acalā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
  • n.­301
g.­213

Inexpressible

Wylie:
  • brjod du med
Tibetan:
  • བརྗོད་དུ་མེད།
Sanskrit:
  • anabhilāpya

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­6-7
  • i.­56
  • 1.­1-6
  • 2.­2
  • 4.­1
  • 7.­24
  • 9.­26
  • n.­67
  • n.­71
  • g.­378
g.­219

insight

Wylie:
  • lhag mthong
Tibetan:
  • ལྷག་མཐོང་།
Sanskrit:
  • vipaśyanā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An important form of Buddhist meditation focusing on developing insight into the nature of phenomena. Often presented as part of a pair of meditation techniques, the other being śamatha, “calm abiding”.

Located in 41 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­16-18
  • i.­59
  • p.­1
  • 3.­7
  • 8.­1-6
  • 8.­9-10
  • 8.­12-20
  • 8.­24-26
  • 8.­32-36
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­10
  • n.­126
  • n.­186
  • n.­200
  • n.­230-231
  • n.­239-240
g.­220

intelligence

Wylie:
  • blo gros
Tibetan:
  • བློ་གྲོས།
Sanskrit:
  • mati

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­221

intention

Wylie:
  • bsam pa
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • āśaya

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • i.­19
  • i.­22
  • 5.­1
  • 6.­2
  • 7.­2
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­23-24
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­32
  • 10.­7-8
  • 10.­11-12
  • n.­230
g.­223

investigation

Wylie:
  • dpyod pa
Tibetan:
  • དཔྱོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vicāra

In our text, the specific quality of vicāra is to remain mindful of nimitta in the sense of “mentally watching” or noting them without engaging in a more discursive way.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16
  • 8.­17
  • 10.­5
  • g.­40
g.­225

joy

Wylie:
  • dga’ ba
Tibetan:
  • དགའ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • prīti

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • p.­4
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­18
  • 8.­37
  • 8.­40
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­14
  • g.­47
g.­226

karmadhāraya

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • karmadhāraya

Type of Sanskrit compound.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­42
  • n.­40
  • n.­53
  • n.­76
  • n.­120
  • n.­162
  • n.­181
  • n.­370
g.­230

kinnara

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • kinnara

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings that resemble humans to the degree that their very name‍—which means “is that human?”‍—suggests some confusion as to their divine status. Kinnaras are mythological beings found in both Buddhist and Brahmanical literature, where they are portrayed as creatures half human, half animal. They are often depicted as highly skilled celestial musicians.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­231

Kīrtimat

Wylie:
  • grags pa can
Tibetan:
  • གྲགས་པ་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • kīrtimat

World of the tathāgata Viśālakīrti.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­1
g.­233

lacked certainty

Wylie:
  • yid gnyis can
Tibetan:
  • ཡིད་གཉིས་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • vimati

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1
  • 3.­1
g.­239

mahoraga

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • mahoraga

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally “great serpents,” mahoragas are supernatural beings depicted as large, subterranean beings with human torsos and heads and the lower bodies of serpents. Their movements are said to cause earthquakes, and they make up a class of subterranean geomantic spirits whose movement through the seasons and months of the year is deemed significant for construction projects.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­240

Maitreya

Wylie:
  • byams pa
Tibetan:
  • བྱམས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • maitreya

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”

For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).

Located in 49 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­16
  • i.­18
  • i.­44
  • p.­4
  • 8.­1
  • 8.­3
  • 8.­5-41
  • n.­181
  • n.­185
  • n.­199-200
g.­241

Manifest

Wylie:
  • mngon du gyur pa
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་དུ་གྱུར་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhimukhī

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­242

Mañjuśrī

Wylie:
  • ’jam dpal
Tibetan:
  • འཇམ་དཔལ།
Sanskrit:
  • mañjuśrī

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Mañjuśrī is one of the “eight close sons of the Buddha” and a bodhisattva who embodies wisdom. He is a major figure in the Mahāyāna sūtras, appearing often as an interlocutor of the Buddha. In his most well-known iconographic form, he is portrayed bearing the sword of wisdom in his right hand and a volume of the Prajñā­pāramitā­sūtra in his left. To his name, Mañjuśrī, meaning “Gentle and Glorious One,” is often added the epithet Kumārabhūta, “having a youthful form.” He is also called Mañjughoṣa, Mañjusvara, and Pañcaśikha.

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­20
  • p.­4
  • 10.­1-12
  • n.­370
g.­245

meditative absorption

Wylie:
  • bsam gtan
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་གཏན།
Sanskrit:
  • dhyāna

See Hayal 1978, p. 221.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­11
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­9-12
  • 9.­18
  • g.­176
  • g.­334
g.­247

mental elaboration

Wylie:
  • spros pa
Tibetan:
  • སྤྲོས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • prapañca

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • i.­7
  • i.­20
  • i.­25
  • 1.­6
  • 8.­40
  • 9.­14
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­8
g.­252

mental stillness

Wylie:
  • zhi gnas
Tibetan:
  • ཞི་གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • śamatha

Located in 36 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­16-18
  • p.­1
  • 3.­7
  • 8.­1-6
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­11-20
  • 8.­24-26
  • 8.­32-36
  • n.­186
  • n.­199
  • n.­231
  • n.­239-240
g.­254

mind

Wylie:
  • sems
Tibetan:
  • སེམས།
Sanskrit:
  • citta

Located in 70 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­6
  • i.­8-12
  • i.­14
  • i.­16
  • i.­18
  • i.­22
  • i.­34
  • i.­45
  • i.­51
  • i.­55-56
  • i.­58
  • p.­2-3
  • 1.­5
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­6
  • 6.­6
  • 7.­8
  • 7.­10
  • 7.­13-14
  • 7.­16
  • 7.­19
  • 7.­33
  • 8.­3-9
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­18
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­28
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­36-37
  • 8.­41
  • 9.­3-4
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­14
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­9
  • n.­69-70
  • n.­101
  • n.­106-107
  • n.­118
  • n.­148
  • n.­181
  • n.­199
  • n.­242
  • g.­25
  • g.­40
  • g.­161
  • g.­255
  • g.­324
  • g.­345
g.­256

mindfulness

Wylie:
  • dran pa
Tibetan:
  • དྲན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • smṛti

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

This is the faculty that enables the mind to maintain its attention on a referent object, counteracting the arising of forgetfulness, which is a great obstacle to meditative stability. The root smṛ may mean “to recollect” but also simply “to think of.” Broadly speaking, smṛti, commonly translated as “mindfulness,” means to bring something to mind, not necessarily something experienced in a distant past but also something that is experienced in the present, such as the position of one’s body or the breath.

Together with alertness (samprajāna, shes bzhin), it is one of the two indispensable factors for the development of calm abiding (śamatha, zhi gnas).

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • g.­25
  • g.­47
  • g.­167
  • g.­168
g.­257

nāga

Wylie:
  • klu
Tibetan:
  • ཀླུ།
Sanskrit:
  • nāga

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings who live in subterranean aquatic environments, where they guard wealth and sometimes also teachings. Nāgas are associated with serpents and have a snakelike appearance. In Buddhist art and in written accounts, they are regularly portrayed as half human and half snake, and they are also said to have the ability to change into human form. Some nāgas are Dharma protectors, but they can also bring retribution if they are disturbed. They may likewise fight one another, wage war, and destroy the lands of others by causing lightning, hail, and flooding.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­264

nidāna

Wylie:
  • gleng gzhi
Tibetan:
  • གླེང་གཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • nidāna

Introductory part of a sūtra .

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­29
  • i.­33
  • i.­50
  • n.­36
g.­265

nirvāṇa

Wylie:
  • mya ngan las ’das pa
Tibetan:
  • མྱ་ངན་ལས་འདས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirvāṇa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

In Sanskrit, the term nirvāṇa literally means “extinguishment” and the Tibetan mya ngan las ’das pa literally means “gone beyond sorrow.” As a general term, it refers to the cessation of all suffering, afflicted mental states (kleśa), and causal processes (karman) that lead to rebirth and suffering in cyclic existence, as well as to the state in which all such rebirth and suffering has permanently ceased.

More specifically, three main types of nirvāṇa are identified. (1) The first type of nirvāṇa, called nirvāṇa with remainder (sopadhiśeṣanirvāṇa), is the state in which arhats or buddhas have attained awakening but are still dependent on the conditioned aggregates until their lifespan is exhausted. (2) At the end of life, given that there are no more causes for rebirth, these aggregates cease and no new aggregates arise. What occurs then is called nirvāṇa without remainder ( anupadhiśeṣanirvāṇa), which refers to the unconditioned element (dhātu) of nirvāṇa in which there is no remainder of the aggregates. (3) The Mahāyāna teachings distinguish the final nirvāṇa of buddhas from that of arhats, the nirvāṇa of arhats not being considered ultimate. The buddhas attain what is called nonabiding nirvāṇa (apratiṣṭhitanirvāṇa), which transcends the extremes of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, i.e., existence and peace. This is the nirvāṇa that is the goal of the Mahāyāna path.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • i.­11
  • i.­49
  • 2.­3
  • 3.­3
  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­8-9
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­28
  • 7.­30-31
  • 8.­12-13
  • 8.­35
  • 8.­38
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­8
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­7
  • n.­80
  • n.­82
  • n.­168
  • n.­191
  • g.­182
g.­268

non-Buddhist

Wylie:
  • mu stegs pa
Tibetan:
  • མུ་སྟེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tīrthika

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Those of other religious or philosophical orders, contemporary with the early Buddhist order, including Jains, Jaṭilas, Ājīvikas, and Cārvākas. Tīrthika (“forder”) literally translates as “one belonging to or associated with (possessive suffix –ika) stairs for landing or for descent into a river,” or “a bathing place,” or “a place of pilgrimage on the banks of sacred streams” (Monier-Williams). The term may have originally referred to temple priests at river crossings or fords where travelers propitiated a deity before crossing. The Sanskrit term seems to have undergone metonymic transfer in referring to those able to ford the turbulent river of saṃsāra (as in the Jain tīrthaṅkaras, “ford makers”), and it came to be used in Buddhist sources to refer to teachers of rival religious traditions. The Sanskrit term is closely rendered by the Tibetan mu stegs pa: “those on the steps (stegs pa) at the edge (mu).”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­3
  • 2.­1
g.­269

nonduality

Wylie:
  • gnyis su med pa
Tibetan:
  • གཉིས་སུ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • advaya

Mahāvyutpatti 1717.

Located in 19 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­6-9
  • i.­13
  • i.­15
  • i.­22
  • i.­56
  • p.­2
  • 1.­1
  • 1.­6
  • 4.­9
  • 7.­24
  • 10.­10
  • n.­365
  • n.­370
  • g.­378
g.­270

object

Wylie:
  • dngos po
  • yul
Tibetan:
  • དངོས་པོ།
  • ཡུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • vastu

Located in 80 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10-12
  • i.­16-18
  • i.­21
  • i.­34
  • 1.­2-5
  • 5.­3-6
  • 6.­7
  • 7.­25-27
  • 8.­4-7
  • 8.­9-10
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­19-27
  • 8.­29-30
  • 8.­33-38
  • 8.­40
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­14
  • 9.­17-18
  • 10.­4-5
  • 10.­7
  • n.­63
  • n.­68
  • n.­92
  • n.­95
  • n.­157
  • n.­181
  • n.­186
  • n.­189
  • n.­199-200
  • n.­202
  • n.­218
  • n.­230-231
  • n.­239-240
  • n.­290
  • n.­325
  • n.­329
  • n.­333
  • g.­129
  • g.­194
  • g.­258
  • g.­324
  • g.­334
  • g.­363
g.­271

object conducive to purification

Wylie:
  • rnam par dag pa’i dmigs pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་དག་པའི་དམིགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • *viśuddhyālambana

See Schmithausen 2014, p. 362, §306.5 and n. 1644.

Located in 11 passages in the translation:

  • i.­55
  • 4.­8
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­25-27
  • 8.­20
  • n.­92
  • n.­95
  • n.­125
  • n.­222
g.­272

object of experience

Wylie:
  • spyod yul
Tibetan:
  • སྤྱོད་ཡུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • gocara

Also translated here as “sphere of activity.” See n.­42.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­2
  • g.­337
g.­277

of a single nature

Wylie:
  • ro gcig pa
Tibetan:
  • རོ་གཅིག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ekarasa

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­8
  • i.­17
  • 4.­6-12
  • n.­94
  • g.­378
g.­283

Para­mārtha­samud­gata

Wylie:
  • don dam yang dag ’phags
Tibetan:
  • དོན་དམ་ཡང་དག་འཕགས།
Sanskrit:
  • para­mārtha­samud­gata

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 30 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • i.­11
  • i.­14
  • p.­4
  • 7.­1-11
  • 7.­14-15
  • 7.­17-18
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­23
  • 7.­25
  • 7.­29-30
  • 7.­32-33
  • n.­133-134
  • n.­147
g.­285

pathway

Wylie:
  • nges par ’byung ba
Tibetan:
  • ངེས་པར་འབྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • niḥsaraṇa
  • niryāṇa

Setting forth, issue, exit, departure, escape, a road out of town. Also translated here as “emancipated” and “gone forth.”

See also n.­39.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • g.­136
  • g.­193
g.­286

patience

Wylie:
  • bzod pa
Tibetan:
  • བཟོད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A term meaning acceptance, forbearance, or patience. As the third of the six perfections, patience is classified into three kinds: the capacity to tolerate abuse from sentient beings, to tolerate the hardships of the path to buddhahood, and to tolerate the profound nature of reality. As a term referring to a bodhisattva’s realization, dharmakṣānti (chos la bzod pa) can refer to the ways one becomes “receptive” to the nature of Dharma, and it can be an abbreviation of anutpattikadharmakṣānti, “forbearance for the unborn nature, or nonproduction, of dharmas.”

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­9
  • 9.­11-12
  • 9.­14
  • 9.­18
  • g.­176
g.­288

perfection

Wylie:
  • pha rol tu phyin pa
Tibetan:
  • ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • pāramitā

Located in 25 passages in the translation:

  • i.­19-20
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­6
  • 9.­9-24
  • 9.­26-27
  • 9.­33
  • 10.­1
  • n.­291
g.­290

perfectly pure cognition

Wylie:
  • blo shin tu rnam par dag pa
Tibetan:
  • བློ་ཤིན་ཏུ་རྣམ་པར་དག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • suviśuddhabuddhiḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 351.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­291

perfectly skilled in the sameness of the three times

Wylie:
  • dus gsum mnyam pa nyid tshar phyin pa
Tibetan:
  • དུས་གསུམ་མཉམ་པ་ཉིད་ཚར་ཕྱིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tryadhvasamatāniryātaḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 360.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­292

phenomenal appearance

Wylie:
  • mtshan ma
Tibetan:
  • མཚན་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • nimitta

Located in 41 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6
  • i.­10
  • i.­17-18
  • 2.­2-3
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­7
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­4-5
  • 4.­11
  • 5.­2
  • 6.­7
  • 6.­10
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­12
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­17
  • 8.­26-27
  • 8.­29-30
  • 8.­32
  • 8.­34-37
  • 9.­3-5
  • 9.­18
  • n.­70
  • n.­82
  • n.­162-165
  • n.­185
  • n.­301
  • g.­223
g.­294

point where phenomena end

Wylie:
  • dngos po’i mtha’
Tibetan:
  • དངོས་པོའི་མཐའ།
Sanskrit:
  • vastvanta

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­2
  • 8.­36
g.­295

point where the sphere of space ends

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’i khams kyi mthas gtugs pa
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའི་ཁམས་ཀྱི་མཐས་གཏུགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ākāśadhātuparyavasānaḥ

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­297

possessed the gnosis bodhisattvas vow to accomplish

Wylie:
  • ye shes byang chub sems dpa’ thams cad kyis yang dag par mnos pa
Tibetan:
  • ཡེ་ཤེས་བྱང་ཆུབ་སེམས་དཔའ་ཐམས་ཅད་ཀྱིས་ཡང་དག་པར་མནོས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • sarvabodhisattvasampratīcchītajñanaḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 366.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­301

primordially in the state of peace

Wylie:
  • gzod ma nas zhib
Tibetan:
  • གཟོད་མ་ནས་ཞིབ།
Sanskrit:
  • ādiśānta

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­8-9
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­28
  • 7.­30-31
  • n.­168
g.­309

purification

Wylie:
  • rnam par dag pa
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་དག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • viśuddhi

Located in 31 passages in the translation:

  • i.­10-11
  • i.­13
  • i.­17-18
  • i.­23
  • 6.­11-12
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­24
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­19-20
  • 8.­22
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­31
  • 8.­36
  • 9.­1-2
  • 9.­4
  • 9.­6-7
  • 9.­18-19
  • 10.­5
  • 10.­7-8
  • n.­95
  • n.­191
  • n.­279
  • n.­292
g.­310

purity of their merit

Wylie:
  • yon yongs su sbyong ba chen po
Tibetan:
  • ཡོན་ཡོངས་སུ་སྦྱོང་བ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahādakṣiṇāpariṣodhakaḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 1113.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­3
g.­312

Radiant

Wylie:
  • ’od ’phro ba can
Tibetan:
  • འོད་འཕྲོ་བ་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • arciṣmatī

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­316

referential object

Wylie:
  • dmigs pa
Tibetan:
  • དམིགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ālambana

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

dmigs (pa) translates a number of Sanskrit terms, including ālambana, upalabdhi, and ālambate. These terms commonly refer to the apprehending of a subject, an object, and the relationships that exist between them. The term may also be translated as “referentiality,” meaning a system based on the existence of referent objects, referent subjects, and the referential relationships that exist between them. As part of their doctrine of “threefold nonapprehending/nonreferentiality” (’khor gsum mi dmigs pa), Mahāyāna Buddhists famously assert that all three categories of apprehending lack substantiality.

Located in 45 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16-17
  • i.­21
  • 4.­1-6
  • 4.­8
  • 8.­2-3
  • 8.­5-7
  • 8.­9
  • 8.­12-17
  • 8.­19-20
  • 8.­25-27
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­31
  • 8.­34
  • 8.­36-37
  • 9.­10
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­4-5
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­10
  • n.­42
  • n.­92
  • n.­95
  • n.­181
  • n.­199-200
g.­317

reflection

Wylie:
  • gzugs brnyan
Tibetan:
  • གཟུགས་བརྙན།
Sanskrit:
  • pratibimba

Also translated as “image.”

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • i.­9
  • i.­22
  • 5.­5
  • 7.­2
  • 8.­7
  • 9.­12
  • 10.­10
  • n.­215
  • n.­365
  • g.­203
g.­319

room

Wylie:
  • gnas
Tibetan:
  • གནས།
Sanskrit:
  • sthāna

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
g.­324

sense domain

Wylie:
  • skye mched
Tibetan:
  • སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • āyatana

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

These can be listed as twelve or as six sense sources (sometimes also called sense fields, bases of cognition, or simply āyatanas).

In the context of epistemology, it is one way of describing experience and the world in terms of twelve sense sources, which can be divided into inner and outer sense sources, namely: (1–2) eye and form, (3–4) ear and sound, (5–6) nose and odor, (7–8) tongue and taste, (9–10) body and touch, (11–12) mind and mental phenomena.

In the context of the twelve links of dependent origination, only six sense sources are mentioned, and they are the inner sense sources (identical to the six faculties) of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • i.­11
  • i.­14
  • i.­19
  • 4.­2
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­1
  • 7.­25
  • 8.­20-21
  • 9.­32
g.­325

sentient being

Wylie:
  • sems can
Tibetan:
  • སེམས་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • sattva

Often rendered simply as “being.”

Located in 56 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­5-7
  • i.­12-13
  • i.­20-22
  • p.­1
  • p.­4
  • 1.­5
  • 3.­7
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­6
  • 5.­2
  • 6.­2
  • 7.­2
  • 7.­10-12
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­17-20
  • 7.­24
  • 8.­3
  • 8.­8
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­23
  • 8.­40-41
  • 9.­6-10
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­15
  • 9.­17
  • 9.­24-25
  • 9.­31
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­4-5
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­9-10
  • 10.­12
  • n.­90
  • n.­102
  • n.­147
  • n.­290
  • g.­359
g.­327

seven precious substances

Wylie:
  • rin po che sna bdun
Tibetan:
  • རིན་པོ་ཆེ་སྣ་བདུན།
Sanskrit:
  • saptaratna

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The set of seven precious materials or substances includes a range of precious metals and gems, but their exact list varies. The set often consists of gold, silver, beryl, crystal, red pearls, emeralds, and white coral, but may also contain lapis lazuli, ruby, sapphire, chrysoberyl, diamonds, etc. The term is frequently used in the sūtras to exemplify preciousness, wealth, and beauty, and can describe treasures, offering materials, or the features of architectural structures such as stūpas, palaces, thrones, etc. The set is also used to describe the beauty and prosperity of buddha realms and the realms of the gods.

In other contexts, the term saptaratna can also refer to the seven precious possessions of a cakravartin or to a set of seven precious moral qualities.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • n.­35
g.­329

shift in one’s basis of existence

Wylie:
  • gnas gyur pa
Tibetan:
  • གནས་གྱུར་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • āśraya­parivṛtti

See n.­191.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16
  • i.­20
  • i.­56
  • 8.­13
  • 10.­1
  • n.­191
  • n.­276
g.­330

Single Vehicle

Wylie:
  • theg pa gcig pa
Tibetan:
  • ཐེག་པ་གཅིག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • ekayāna

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­4
  • i.­13
  • i.­19
  • i.­57
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­24
  • 9.­32
  • n.­171
g.­332

slow-witted

Wylie:
  • blo gros ngan pa
Tibetan:
  • བློ་གྲོས་ངན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • kumati

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­4
  • 2.­1
g.­333

solitary realizer

Wylie:
  • rang sangs rgyas
Tibetan:
  • རང་སངས་རྒྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • pratyekabuddha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally, “buddha for oneself” or “solitary realizer.” Someone who, in his or her last life, attains awakening entirely through their own contemplation, without relying on a teacher. Unlike the awakening of a fully realized buddha (samyaksambuddha), the accomplishment of a pratyeka­buddha is not regarded as final or ultimate. They attain realization of the nature of dependent origination, the selflessness of the person, and a partial realization of the selflessness of phenomena, by observing the suchness of all that arises through interdependence. This is the result of progress in previous lives but, unlike a buddha, they do not have the necessary merit, compassion or motivation to teach others. They are named as “rhinoceros-like” (khaḍgaviṣāṇakalpa) for their preference for staying in solitude or as “congregators” (vargacārin) when their preference is to stay among peers.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • p.­4
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­28
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­34
  • 9.­31
  • 10.­2
  • 10.­10
g.­334

sovereign power

Wylie:
  • byin gyi rlabs
Tibetan:
  • བྱིན་གྱི་རླབས།
Sanskrit:
  • adhiṣṭhāna
  • adhiṣṭhita

This term is usually translated into English with “blessings.” However, as explained in Edgerton 1953, p. 15; Eckel 1994, pp. 90–93; Gómez 2011, pp. 539 and 541; and Fiordalis 2012, pp. 104 and 118, adhiṣṭhāna conveys the notions of control (of one’s environment as a result of meditative absorption), authority, or protection (see Abhidharmakośa VII.51, cf. La Vallée Poussin 1925, p. 119ff.). Adhiṣṭhāna is also used to convey the idea of transformation through exerting one’s control over objects, people, and places. The term “sovereign power” seems to cover all these shades of meaning as well as the various usages of the Sanskrit term, for example satyādhiṣṭhāna “the sovereign power of truth” and adhiṣṭhānādhiṣṭita “empowered by the sovereign power (of the Tathāgata).”

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • i.­21
  • p.­1
  • 10.­3-4
  • 10.­10-11
g.­335

space

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའ།
Sanskrit:
  • ākāśa

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • i.­11
  • 4.­11
  • 7.­7
  • 7.­28-29
  • 8.­11
  • 8.­37
  • n.­277
  • g.­86
  • g.­194
g.­336

specific defining characteristic

Wylie:
  • rang gi mtshan nyid
Tibetan:
  • རང་གི་མཚན་ཉིད།
Sanskrit:
  • svalakṣaṇa

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 7.­1
  • 7.­8
  • 8.­36
  • 9.­13
  • n.­124
g.­337

sphere of activity

Wylie:
  • spyod yul
Tibetan:
  • སྤྱོད་ཡུལ།
Sanskrit:
  • gocara

Also translated here as “object of experience.”

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 10.­9
  • g.­272
g.­339

stage

Wylie:
  • sa
Tibetan:
  • ས།
Sanskrit:
  • bhūmi

Located in 42 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4-5
  • i.­18-20
  • i.­40-41
  • i.­46-47
  • p.­4
  • 7.­20
  • 8.­16
  • 8.­35-36
  • 9.­1-6
  • 9.­20
  • 9.­27-28
  • 9.­31
  • 9.­33
  • 10.­1
  • 10.­4
  • n.­126
  • n.­276
  • n.­301
  • g.­51
  • g.­59
  • g.­155
  • g.­165
  • g.­167
  • g.­197
  • g.­202
  • g.­208
  • g.­241
  • g.­312
  • g.­342
  • g.­392
g.­340

stage of engagement through aspiration

Wylie:
  • mos pa spyod pa’i sa
Tibetan:
  • མོས་པ་སྤྱོད་པའི་ས།
Sanskrit:
  • adhimukticaryābhūmiḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 897.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 3.­1
g.­342

Stainless

Wylie:
  • dri ma med pa
Tibetan:
  • དྲི་མ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • vimalā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­343

Subhūti

Wylie:
  • rab ’byor
Tibetan:
  • རབ་འབྱོར།
Sanskrit:
  • subhūti

The name of a hearer.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • 4.­1
  • 4.­7-12
g.­350

superior knowledge

Wylie:
  • mngon par shes pa
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhijñā

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­5
  • g.­367
g.­353

Su­viśuddha­mati

Wylie:
  • blo gros shin tu rnam dag
Tibetan:
  • བློ་གྲོས་ཤིན་ཏུ་རྣམ་དག
Sanskrit:
  • su­viśuddha­mati

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 13 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • p.­4
  • 3.­1-7
  • n.­80-82
g.­354

tathāgata

Wylie:
  • de bzhin gshegs pa
Tibetan:
  • དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • tathāgata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A frequently used synonym for buddha. According to different explanations, it can be read as tathā-gata, literally meaning “one who has thus gone,” or as tathā-āgata, “one who has thus come.” Gata, though literally meaning “gone,” is a past passive participle used to describe a state or condition of existence. Tatha­(tā), often rendered as “suchness” or “thusness,” is the quality or condition of things as they really are, which cannot be conveyed in conceptual, dualistic terms. Therefore, this epithet is interpreted in different ways, but in general it implies one who has departed in the wake of the buddhas of the past, or one who has manifested the supreme awakening dependent on the reality that does not abide in the two extremes of existence and quiescence. It is also often used as a specific epithet of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

Located in 53 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4-5
  • i.­20-22
  • i.­55
  • p.­1
  • p.­3
  • 2.­1
  • 4.­10
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­6
  • 6.­1-2
  • 6.­11
  • 7.­2
  • 7.­12
  • 7.­14
  • 7.­16-17
  • 7.­19
  • 7.­29
  • 7.­33
  • 8.­14
  • 8.­21
  • 8.­31-32
  • 8.­35-37
  • 8.­39
  • 8.­41
  • 9.­33
  • 10.­1-4
  • 10.­7-12
  • n.­173
  • n.­308
  • n.­358
  • n.­370
  • g.­178
  • g.­231
  • g.­334
  • g.­359
  • g.­400
g.­355

tatpuruṣa

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • tatpuruṣa

Type of Sanskrit compound.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • i.­42
  • n.­76
  • n.­86
  • n.­120
  • n.­124
  • n.­181
  • n.­222
  • n.­327
  • n.­370
g.­361

the sublime perfection, the supreme indivisible gnosis of the Tathāgata’s liberation

Wylie:
  • de bzhin gshegs pa ma ’dres pa’i rnam par thar par mdzad pa’i ye shes kyi mthar phyin pa
Tibetan:
  • དེ་བཞིན་གཤེགས་པ་མ་འདྲེས་པའི་རྣམ་པར་ཐར་པར་མཛད་པའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་ཀྱི་མཐར་ཕྱིན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • asaṃbhinnatathāgatavimokṣajñānaniṣṭhāgataḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 368.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­363

thing

Wylie:
  • dngos po
  • ngo bo
Tibetan:
  • དངོས་པོ།
  • ངོ་བོ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhāva

Also translated here as “object.”

Located in 19 passages in the translation:

  • i.­12
  • i.­16
  • i.­50
  • 1.­4-5
  • 8.­2-3
  • 10.­7
  • 10.­12
  • n.­100
  • n.­124
  • n.­169
  • n.­218
  • n.­339-340
  • n.­353
  • n.­357
  • n.­365
  • g.­178
g.­366

thought

Wylie:
  • yid
Tibetan:
  • ཡིད།
Sanskrit:
  • manas

Regarding the term “thought” as a translation for the Sanskrit manas, see Schmithausen 2014.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • i.­9
  • i.­22
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­6
  • 8.­20
  • 10.­9
  • n.­101
g.­367

three forms of knowledge

Wylie:
  • rigs pa gsum
Tibetan:
  • རིགས་པ་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • trividyā

The three knowledges are the superior knowledge that is the realization of the recollection of former states (pūrvanivāsanānusmṛtisākṣātkārābhijñā ), the superior knowledge that is the realization of death and rebirth (cyutyupapādasākṣātkārābhijñā), and the superior knowledge that is the realization of the cessation of outflows (āsravakṣayasākṣātkārābhijñā). See Powers 1995, p. 316, n. 17.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­3
g.­368

three worlds

Wylie:
  • khams gsum
Tibetan:
  • ཁམས་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • tridhātu
  • traidhātuka

The three worlds are: the desire realm (kāmadhātu, ’dod khams), form realm (rūpadhātu, gzugs khams) and the formless realm (ārūpyadhātu, gzugs med khams). These three worlds include all of saṃsāra.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­1
  • 8.­20
g.­374

truly

Wylie:
  • ji tsam du
Tibetan:
  • ཇི་ཙམ་དུ།
Sanskrit:
  • yāvat
  • tāvatā
  • tāvat

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 9.­5
  • 9.­31
  • g.­200
g.­375

truth

Wylie:
  • bden pa
Tibetan:
  • བདེན་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • satya

See the “two truths” and “four noble truths.”

Located in 31 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­22
  • 1.­5
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­3
  • 4.­8-10
  • 7.­20-23
  • 7.­26
  • 8.­13-14
  • 8.­20
  • 9.­3
  • 9.­9
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­7
  • n.­80-82
  • n.­92
  • n.­191
  • n.­217
  • n.­366
  • g.­334
  • g.­377
g.­376

truth body

Wylie:
  • chos kyi sku
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་སྐུ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmakāya

Located in 16 passages in the translation:

  • i.­16
  • i.­18
  • i.­20
  • i.­22
  • 8.­15
  • 8.­35
  • 9.­3
  • 10.­1-3
  • 10.­9-10
  • 10.­12
  • n.­191
  • n.­230
  • n.­308
g.­377

two truths

Wylie:
  • bden pa gnyis
Tibetan:
  • བདེན་པ་གཉིས།
Sanskrit:
  • satyadvaya

The ultimate and relative, or conventional, truth.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­5
  • i.­7
  • i.­57
  • n.­64
  • g.­375
g.­378

ultimate

Wylie:
  • don dam pa
  • don dam
Tibetan:
  • དོན་དམ་པ།
  • དོན་དམ།
Sanskrit:
  • paramārtha

The ultimate is said to be inexpressible, nondual, transcending speculation, transcending difference and sameness, and of a single nature (i.e., anabhilāpya, advaya, sarva­tarka­samati­krānta, bhe­dābhe­dasa­mati­krānta, ekarasa).

Located in 63 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1
  • i.­4-11
  • i.­13
  • i.­15
  • i.­18
  • i.­21-22
  • 1.­1
  • 2.­1-4
  • 3.­1-7
  • 4.­6-12
  • 5.­6
  • 7.­6
  • 7.­18
  • 7.­24-27
  • 7.­33
  • 8.­21
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­37
  • 9.­12
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­7
  • n.­1
  • n.­53
  • n.­67-68
  • n.­71
  • n.­76
  • n.­80
  • n.­82
  • n.­92
  • n.­94-95
  • n.­125
  • n.­151
  • n.­191
  • g.­377
g.­381

ultimate within the domain of truth

Wylie:
  • chos kyi dbyings kyis klas pa
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་དབྱིངས་ཀྱིས་ཀླས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmadhātuparamaḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 6429.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • p.­2
  • n.­48
g.­382

unborn

Wylie:
  • ma skyes pa
Tibetan:
  • མ་སྐྱེས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • anutpanna

Located in 14 passages in the translation:

  • i.­11
  • i.­14
  • 7.­1-2
  • 7.­8-9
  • 7.­17
  • 7.­20
  • 7.­22
  • 7.­24
  • 7.­28
  • 7.­30-31
  • n.­168
g.­383

unconditioned

Wylie:
  • ’du ma byas
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་མ་བྱས།
Sanskrit:
  • asaṃskṛta

Located in 17 passages in the translation:

  • i.­6-8
  • i.­11
  • i.­22
  • i.­25
  • 1.­1-5
  • 7.­9
  • 8.­29
  • 8.­36
  • 10.­8
  • n.­64
  • n.­88
g.­385

understood all practices

Wylie:
  • spyod pa thams cad dang ldan pa’i blo
Tibetan:
  • སྤྱོད་པ་ཐམས་ཅད་དང་ལྡན་པའི་བློ།
Sanskrit:
  • sarvacaryāsamanvāgatabuddhiḥ

Mahāvyutpatti 363.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­2
g.­392

Utmost Joy

Wylie:
  • rab tu dga’ ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་དགའ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • pramuditā

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 8.­16
  • 9.­1
  • 9.­4
g.­397

Vidhi­vatpari­pṛcchaka

Wylie:
  • tshul bzhin kun ’dri
Tibetan:
  • ཚུལ་བཞིན་ཀུན་འདྲི།
Sanskrit:
  • vidhi­vatpari­pṛcchaka

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • p.­4
  • 1.­1-2
  • 1.­4
g.­398

vigor

Wylie:
  • brtson ’grus
Tibetan:
  • བརྩོན་འགྲུས།
Sanskrit:
  • vīrya

Also translated here as “diligence.”

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • g.­40
  • g.­47
  • g.­112
  • g.­167
  • g.­168
g.­400

Viśālakīrti

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • viśālakīrti

The name of a tathāgata

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­1
  • g.­231
g.­401

Viśālamati

Wylie:
  • blo gros yangs pa
Tibetan:
  • བློ་གྲོས་ཡངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • viśālamati

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Located in 10 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • i.­4
  • p.­4
  • 5.­1-7
g.­405

whose defining characteristic is beyond all speculation

Wylie:
  • rtog ge thams cad las yang dag par ’das pa
Tibetan:
  • རྟོག་གེ་ཐམས་ཅད་ལས་ཡང་དག་པར་འདས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • sarva­tarka­samati­krānta

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • 2.­1-2
  • 2.­4
g.­407

wisdom

Wylie:
  • shes rab
Tibetan:
  • ཤེས་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • prajñā

Located in 23 passages in the translation:

  • p.­3
  • 1.­4-5
  • 7.­13
  • 7.­18
  • 7.­20
  • 8.­10
  • 8.­14
  • 8.­20
  • 8.­24
  • 8.­32
  • 9.­2
  • 9.­5
  • 9.­9-12
  • 9.­18
  • 10.­9
  • g.­167
  • g.­168
  • g.­176
  • g.­242
g.­408

wishlessness

Wylie:
  • smon pa med pa
Tibetan:
  • སྨོན་པ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • apraṇihita

One of the three gates of liberation along with appearancelessness and emptiness.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2
  • p.­1
  • 9.­18
  • g.­24
  • g.­188
g.­413

yakṣa

Wylie:
  • —
Tibetan:
  • —
Sanskrit:
  • yakṣa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings who inhabit forests, mountainous areas, and other natural spaces, or serve as guardians of villages and towns, and may be propitiated for health, wealth, protection, and other boons, or controlled through magic. According to tradition, their homeland is in the north, where they live under the rule of the Great King Vaiśravaṇa.

Several members of this class have been deified as gods of wealth (these include the just-mentioned Vaiśravaṇa) or as bodhisattva generals of yakṣa armies, and have entered the Buddhist pantheon in a variety of forms, including, in tantric Buddhism, those of wrathful deities.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • p.­1
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