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  • Toh 181

This rendering does not include the entire published text

The full text is available to download as pdf at:
/translation/toh181.pdf

ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ་ལྔ་བསྟན་པ།

Teaching the Five Perfections
Glossary

Pañcapāramitānirdeśa
འཕགས་པ་ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ་ལྔ་བསྟན་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།
’phags pa pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo
The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra “Teaching the Five Perfections”
Āryapañcapāramitānirdeśanāmamahāyānasūtra

Toh 181

Degé Kangyur vol. 61 (mdo sde, tsa), folios 1.b–76.b

ᴛʀᴀɴsʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛɪʙᴇᴛᴀɴ ʙʏ
  • Jinamitra
  • Bandé Yeshé Dé

Imprint

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Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee
under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2021

Current version v 1.1.12 (2024)

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co.

Table of Contents

ti. Title
im. Imprint
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
+ 6 sections- 6 sections
1. The Perfection of Generosity
+ 9 chapters- 9 chapters
· Chapter 1: Rejoicing
· Chapter 2: The Skillful Means of Generosity
· Chapter 3: Analogies
· Chapter 4: Nonconceptuality
· Chapter 5: Showing Generosity to Be Illusory
· Chapter 6: The Activity of Bodhisattvas and the Teachings of Buddhas in Countless Worlds
· Chapter 7: The Level of Nonregression
· Chapter 8: Engaging in Bodhisattva Training
· Chapter 9
2. The Perfection of Discipline
+ 7 chapters- 7 chapters
· Chapter 1
· Chapter 2
· Chapter 3
· Chapter 4
· Chapter 5
· Chapter 6
· Chapter 7
3. The Perfection of Patience
+ 3 chapters- 3 chapters
· Chapter 1
· Chapter 2
· Chapter 3
4. The Perfection of Diligence
+ 1 chapter- 1 chapter
· Chapter 1
5. The Perfection of Concentration
+ 4 chapters- 4 chapters
· Chapter 1
· Chapter 2
· Chapter 3
· Chapter 4
c. Colophon
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
g. Glossary

s.

Summary

s.­1

Teaching the Five Perfections is a compilation of five short sūtras that each present the practice of one of the five perfections in which bodhisattvas train on the path of the Great Vehicle: generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, and concentration. These five perfections embody the skillful methods of the bodhisattva path, and, as these sūtras show, they should always be combined with an understanding of the state of omniscience, the sixth perfection of insight that is supposed to permeate the practice of the first five perfections. The teachings are delivered by the Buddha as well as two of his close disciples, Śāradvatīputra and Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra, who both teach the five perfections inspired by the Buddha’s blessing.


ac.

Acknowledgements

ac.­1

Translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee under the guidance of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. The translation was produced by Andreas Doctor and Zachary Beer with assistance from Lama Tenzin Zangpo and Karma Oser.

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


ac.­2

The generous sponsorship of Liu Fan and family, which helped make the work on this translation possible, is most gratefully acknowledged.


i.

Introduction

i.­1

Teaching the Five Perfections is a compilation of five individual sūtras that each present the practice of one of the five perfections (pāramitā) in which bodhisattvas train on the path of the Great Vehicle: generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, and concentration. These five perfections embody the skillful methods of the bodhisattva path, and, as these sūtras emphasize, they should always be practiced in conjunction with an understanding of the state of omniscience, the sixth perfection of insight that is supposed to permeate the practice of the first five perfections. Throughout this sūtra, the perfection of insight is taught as the practice of turning one’s mind to the omniscient state while transcending conceptual reference points. Only by integrating the perfection of insight into the practice of the other five trainings do they become genuine perfections.


Text Body

The Translation
The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra
Teaching the Five Perfections

1.

The Perfection of Generosity

[F.1.b]


1.­1

Homage to all buddhas and bodhisattvas!

Chapter 1: Rejoicing

1.­2

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park, attended by a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks, all of whom were worthy ones who had exhausted their defilements, were without afflictions, self-controlled, their minds liberated, and their insight liberated; were of noble birth, great elephants who had accomplished their tasks, completed their work, laid down their burden, reached their goal, and had destroyed the bonds of existence; and, due to their perfect knowledge, had liberated their minds [F.2.a] and obtained supreme perfection in mastering all mental states. He was also attended by bodhisattva great beings, most of whom were youthful,6 and had only a single birth remaining; in keeping with the wishes of beings they had freed themselves from existence, yet accepted to be born within existence; and all of them were progressing irreversibly toward unsurpassed and perfect awakening.

Chapter 2: The Skillful Means of Generosity

Chapter 3: Analogies

Chapter 4: Nonconceptuality

Chapter 5: Showing Generosity to Be Illusory

Chapter 6: The Activity of Bodhisattvas and the Teachings of Buddhas in Countless Worlds

Chapter 7: The Level of Nonregression

Chapter 8: Engaging in Bodhisattva Training

Chapter 9


2.

The Perfection of Discipline

Chapter 1

2.­1

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park, along with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks. All of the monks were worthy ones who had exhausted their defilements. They were without afflictions and self-controlled. Their minds were liberated and their insight was liberated. They were of noble birth. They were great elephants. They had accomplished their tasks and completed their work. They had laid down their burden and reached their goal. They had destroyed the bondages of existence and, due to their perfect knowledge, their minds were liberated. They had obtained supreme perfection in mastering all mental states. Also present there were bodhisattva great beings who had gathered from buddhafields in all the ten directions, as well as splendorous gods, nāgas, yakṣas, gandharvas, asuras, garuḍas, kinnaras, mahoragas, humans, and others who attended on and served the Blessed One. At that time, the Blessed One taught the Dharma to the four assemblies on the topic of the six perfections.

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7


3.

The Perfection of Patience

Chapter 1

3.­1

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park, along with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks. At that time the Blessed One said to Venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra, “Pūrṇa, could you please elucidate the perfection of patience practiced by those bodhisattva great beings who seek to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood.”

Chapter 2

Chapter 3


4.

The Perfection of Diligence

Chapter 1

4.­1

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Śrāvastī, in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park, along with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks. At that time Venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra said to the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when bodhisattva great beings strive to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood, how should they practice the perfection of diligence?”

4.­2

The Blessed One said to Venerable Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra, [F.59.b] “Pūrṇa, bodhisattva great beings who wish to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood should first enter this vehicle and arouse the mind of awakening. To arouse the mind of awakening they should think, ‘I shall devote this body and mind of mine to the welfare and needs of others. I will fulfill the dreams of all beings, just like a servant who fetches water.’ Such a servant thinks, ‘I shall forfeit my own independence, without sitting around or resting. If I should wish to leave this house to go to the market, I will only do so with the permission of my master and my lady. Even when it is time for meals and drinks, I shall postpone them if I am called for. I will remain under my Lord’s command.’ Pūrṇa, in the same way bodhisattva great beings who wish to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood should engender the mind of awakening, thinking, ‘I am not the master of my own body. Instead, I will use it to benefit others with their work and needs.’ Pūrṇa, in this way bodhisattva great beings should avoid straying from the perfection of diligence. In this way they should practice the perfection of diligence.


5.

The Perfection of Concentration

Chapter 1

5.­1

Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was staying in Rājagṛha, on Vulture Peak Mountain, along with a great saṅgha of 1,250 monks. At that time Venerable Śāradvatīputra asked the Blessed One, “Blessed One, when bodhisattva great beings strive to awaken to unsurpassed and perfect buddhahood, how should they train in the perfection of concentration? Blessed One, how should they practice the perfection of concentration?”

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4


c.

Colophon

c.­1

This was translated, edited, and finalized by the Indian preceptor Jinamitra, together with the translator-editor, Bandé Yeshé Dé, and others.


n.

Notes

n.­1
See Bongard-Levin (1997) and Karashima (2004) for transliterations of the Sanskrit fragments. The fragments correspond to the following passages in the Degé Kangyur: 23.b.6–25.a.2 (Karashima 2004) and 36.a.7–37.a.3 (Bongard-Levin 1997).
n.­2
Taishō 220 (11–15).
n.­3
This is further corroborated by the fact that the Phukdrak and Gondhla Kangyur versions contain individual Tibetan translator colophons for each of the five sūtras, thus reflecting their status as separate texts in Tibet too, not just in China (Tauscher 2015: p. 380).
n.­4
Taishō 220 (16). In the Degé Kangyur, this sūtra is placed separately from the other five, in the Prajñāpāramitā section (Toh 14). See also Bongard-Levin 1997: pp. 93–94.
n.­5
The Denkarma catalog is dated to c. 812 ᴄᴇ. Denkarma, folio 297.b.1. See also Herrmann-Pfandt 2008: pp. 59–60, no. 104.
n.­6
Tib. byang chub sems dpa’ sems dpa’ chen po phal cher gzhon nur gyur pa; Skt. probably bodhisattvā mahāsattvā bhūyas tena sarve kumārabhūtāḥ, see Mahāvyutpatti 883. Among standard descriptions of bodhisattvas in the introductory openings of sūtras, this is less frequent than some others. It may be directly or indirectly related to “the category of bodhisattvas who are still youths” (gzhon nur gyur pa’i byang chub sems dpa’ rnam par gzhag pa), the eighth of the ten categories of bodhisattva (byang chub sems dpa’ rnam par gzhag pa bcu), successive stages described in the tenth chapter of the Avataṃsaka and also in the Ratnolkādhāraṇī (Toh 145); see Jackson, D. (tr.), The Dhāraṇī of the Jewel Torch (2020), 1.78–1.79.

b.

Bibliography

pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa (Pañca­pāramitā­nirdeśa). Toh 181, Degé Kangyur vol. 61 (mdo sde, tsa), folios 1.b–76.b.

pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripitaka Collation Bureau of the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–9, vol. 61, pp. 3–184.

Denkarma (pho brang stod thang ldan [/ lhan] dkar gyi chos ’gyur ro cog gi dkar chag). Degé Tengyur, vol. 206 (sna tshogs, jo), folios 294.b–310.a.

Bongard-Levin, G., Moscow Watanabe, and Shōgo Watanabe. “A Fragment of the Sanskrit Text of the Śīlapāramitā.” Wiener Zeitschrift Für Die Kunde Südasiens/Vienna Journal of South Asian Studies 41 (1997): 93–98. 

Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid. Die lHan kar ma: ein früher Katalog der ins Tibetische übersetzten buddhistischen Texte. Vienna: Verlag der österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008.

Karashima, Seishi. “Sanskrit fragments of the Kāśyapaparivarta and the Pañca­pāramitā­nirdeśa in the Mannerheim collection.” Annual Report of The International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University 7 (2004): 105–18.

Tauscher, Helmut. “Manuscripts en Route.” In Cultural Flows across the Western Himalaya, edited by Patrick McAllister et al., 365–92. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2015.


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

Affliction

Wylie:
  • nyon mongs
Tibetan:
  • ཉོན་མོངས།
Sanskrit:
  • kleśa

Literally “pain,” “torment,” or “affliction.” In Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit it literally means “impurity” or “depravity.” In its technical use in Buddhism it means any negative quality in the mind that causes continued existence in saṃsāra. There are said to be 84,000 of these negative mental qualities for which the 84,000 categories of the Buddha’s teachings serve as the antidote. These mental disturbances can be subsumed into the three or five poisons of attachment, anger, and ignorance plus arrogance and jealousy. Also translated here as “disturbing emotions.”

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­54
  • 2.­80
  • 5.­31
  • 5.­43
  • g.­10
  • g.­89
g.­2

aggregate

Wylie:
  • phung po
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • skandha

Five collections of similar phenomena, under which all compounded dharmas may be included: form, feeling, perception, formation, and consciousness. On the individual level the five aggregates refer to the basis upon which the mistaken idea of a self is projected.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­36
g.­3

Ānanda

Wylie:
  • kun dga’ bo
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་དགའ་བོ།
Sanskrit:
  • ānanda

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).

Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­79
  • 1.­170-171
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­116-118
  • 4.­22-23
g.­4

asura

Wylie:
  • lha ma yin
Tibetan:
  • ལྷ་མ་ཡིན།
Sanskrit:
  • asura

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­103
  • 1.­171
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­85
  • 2.­118
  • 3.­29
  • 4.­9-10
  • 4.­18
  • 4.­23
  • 5.­69
g.­5

attainment

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

A technical term referring to a meditative state attained through the practice of concentration. (The word “attainment” is also used here to translate non-technical words that have the sense of “obtain” or “acquire.”)

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­121
  • 5.­3-7
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­58-60
  • 5.­62
  • 5.­66
  • 5.­68
  • g.­27
  • g.­53
g.­6

blessed one

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

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 172 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2-8
  • 1.­21-22
  • 1.­38
  • 1.­44-46
  • 1.­78-79
  • 1.­81-82
  • 1.­86-91
  • 1.­94-95
  • 1.­97-100
  • 1.­102-113
  • 1.­115-130
  • 1.­135-144
  • 1.­170-171
  • 2.­1-3
  • 2.­64-65
  • 2.­67-72
  • 2.­84
  • 2.­96-98
  • 2.­104-118
  • 3.­1-2
  • 3.­28-29
  • 4.­1-2
  • 4.­11-15
  • 4.­17-23
  • 5.­1-2
  • 5.­4-11
  • 5.­16-36
  • 5.­38-45
  • 5.­49
  • 5.­51-56
  • 5.­58-59
  • 5.­61-66
  • 5.­69
g.­7

Brahmā

Wylie:
  • tshangs pa
Tibetan:
  • ཚངས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • brahmā

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­13
  • 1.­103
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­69
g.­8

defilement

Wylie:
  • zag pa
Tibetan:
  • ཟག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • āsrava

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Literally, “to flow” or “to ooze.” Mental defilements or contaminations that “flow out” toward the objects of cyclic existence, binding us to them. Vasubandhu offers two alternative explanations of this term: “They cause beings to remain (āsayanti) within saṃsāra” and “They flow from the Summit of Existence down to the Avīci hell, out of the six wounds that are the sense fields” (Abhidharma­kośa­bhāṣya 5.40; Pradhan 1967, p. 308). The Summit of Existence (bhavāgra, srid pa’i rtse mo) is the highest point within saṃsāra, while the hell called Avīci (mnar med) is the lowest; the six sense fields (āyatana, skye mched) here refer to the five sense faculties plus the mind, i.e., the six internal sense fields.

Located in 15 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 1.­116
  • 1.­120
  • 1.­124
  • 1.­131-133
  • 2.­1
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­22
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­63
  • g.­29
  • g.­73
  • g.­77
g.­9

dependent origination

Wylie:
  • rten cing ’brel par ’byung ba
Tibetan:
  • རྟེན་ཅིང་འབྲེལ་པར་འབྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • pratītyasamutpāda

The relative nature of phenomena, which arises in dependence upon causes and conditions. Together with the four truths of the noble ones, this was one of the first teachings given by the Buddha.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­36
  • 4.­14
g.­10

disturbing emotion

Wylie:
  • nyon mongs
Tibetan:
  • ཉོན་མོངས།
Sanskrit:
  • kleśa

See “affliction.”

Located in 9 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­37
  • 1.­66
  • 1.­68
  • 1.­112
  • 1.­151
  • 2.­97
  • 2.­112
  • 3.­4
  • g.­1
g.­11

Eight liberations

Wylie:
  • rnam par thar pa brgyad
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་པར་ཐར་པ་བརྒྱད།
Sanskrit:
  • aṣṭavimokṣa

A series of progressively more subtle states of meditative realization or attainment. There are several presentations of these found in the canonical literature. One of the most common is as follows: (1) One observes form while the mind dwells at the level of the form realm. (2) One observes forms externally while discerning formlessness internally. (3) One dwells in the direct experience of the body’s pleasant aspect. (4) One dwells in the realization of the sphere of infinite space by transcending all conceptions of matter, resistance, and diversity. (5) Transcending the sphere of infinite space, one dwells in the realization of the sphere of infinite consciousness. (6) Transcending the sphere of infinite consciousness, one dwells in the realization of the sphere of nothingness. (7) Transcending the sphere of nothingness, one dwells in the realization of the sphere of neither perception nor nonperception. (8) Transcending the sphere of neither perception and nonperception, one dwells in the realization of the cessation of conception and feeling.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­121
g.­12

eighteen unique features of a buddha

Wylie:
  • sangs rgyas kyi chos ma ’dres pa bcwa brgyad
Tibetan:
  • སངས་རྒྱས་ཀྱི་ཆོས་མ་འདྲེས་པ་བཅྭ་བརྒྱད།
Sanskrit:
  • aṣṭā­daśāveṇika­buddha­dharma

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Eighteen special features of a buddha’s behavior, realization, activity, and wisdom that are not shared by other beings. They are generally listed as: (1) he never makes a mistake, (2) he is never boisterous, (3) he never forgets, (4) his concentration never falters, (5) he has no notion of distinctness, (6) his equanimity is not due to lack of consideration, (7) his motivation never falters, (8) his endeavor never fails, (9) his mindfulness never falters, (10) he never abandons his concentration, (11) his insight (prajñā) never decreases, (12) his liberation never fails, (13) all his physical actions are preceded and followed by wisdom (jñāna), (14) all his verbal actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (15) all his mental actions are preceded and followed by wisdom, (16) his wisdom and vision perceive the past without attachment or hindrance, (17) his wisdom and vision perceive the future without attachment or hindrance, and (18) his wisdom and vision perceive the present without attachment or hindrance.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­9
g.­13

eighth-lowest level

Wylie:
  • brgyad pa
Tibetan:
  • བརྒྱད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • aṣṭamaka

A person who is eight steps away in the arc of their development from becoming an arhat (Tib. dgra bcom pa). Specifically, this term refers to one who is on the cusp of becoming a stream-enterer (Skt. srotaāpanna; Tib. rgyun du zhugs pa), and is the first and lowest stage in a list of eight stages or classes of a noble person (Skt. āryapudgala). The person at this lowest stage in the sequence is still on the path of seeing (Skt. darśanamārga; Tib. mthong lam), and then enters the path of cultivation (Skt. bhāvanāmārga; Tib. sgoms lam) upon attaining the next stage, that of a stream-enterer (stage 7). From there they progress through the remaining stages of the śrāvaka path, becoming in turn a once-returner (stages six and five), a non-returner (stages four and three), and an arhat (stages two and one). This same “eighth stage” also appears in set of ten stages (Skt. daśabhūmi; Tib. sa bcu) found in Mahāyāna sources, where it is the third step out of the ten. Not to be confused with the ten stages of the bodhisattva’s path, these ten stages mark the progress of one who sequentially follows the paths of a śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, and then bodhisattva on their way to complete buddhahood. In this set of ten stages a person “on the eighth stage” is similarly one who is on the cusp of becoming a stream-enterer.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­43
  • 2.­45-51
g.­14

elder

Wylie:
  • gnas brtan
Tibetan:
  • གནས་བརྟན།
Sanskrit:
  • sthavira

A senior student of the Buddha.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­79
  • 1.­170
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­116
g.­15

elements

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

One way of describing experience and the world in terms of eighteen elements (eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, odor, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; mind, mental objects, and mind consciousness).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­36
g.­16

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 4 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­40
  • 2.­90
  • 4.­15
  • g.­44
g.­17

faithful one

Wylie:
  • dad pas rjes su ’brang ba
Tibetan:
  • དད་པས་རྗེས་སུ་འབྲང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • śraddhānusārin

According to the Mahāyāna, one of the seven types of noble beings (āryapudgala), and also one of the twenty types of members of the saṅgha (viṃśatiprabhedasaṃgha).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­110
g.­18

field of limitless consciousness

Wylie:
  • rnam shes mtha’ yas skye mched
Tibetan:
  • རྣམ་ཤེས་མཐའ་ཡས་སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • vi­jñānānantyāyatana

Name of the second of the four formless realms and of the second formless meditative absorption, so termed because in its preparatory phase limitless consciousness is the object of meditation.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­3
  • 5.­66
  • 5.­68
  • g.­27
g.­19

field of limitless space

Wylie:
  • nam mkha’ mtha’ yas skye mched
Tibetan:
  • ནམ་མཁའ་མཐའ་ཡས་སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • ākāśānantyāyatana

Name of the first of the four formless realms and of the first formless meditative absorption, so termed because in its preparatory phase limitless space is the object of meditation.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­3
  • 5.­66
  • 5.­68
  • g.­27
g.­20

field of neither perception nor non-perception

Wylie:
  • ’du shes med ’du shes med min skye mched
Tibetan:
  • འདུ་ཤེས་མེད་འདུ་ཤེས་མེད་མིན་སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • naiva­saṃ­jñānāsaṃ­jñāyatana

Name of the fourth of the four formless realms and of the fourth formless meditative absorption, so termed because conceptions are weak in it, but not entirely absent.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­109
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­66
  • 5.­68
  • g.­27
g.­21

field of nothing whatsoever

Wylie:
  • ci yang med pa’i skye mched
Tibetan:
  • ཅི་ཡང་མེད་པའི་སྐྱེ་མཆེད།
Sanskrit:
  • a­kiñ­canyāyatana

Name of the third of the four formless realms and of the third formless meditative absorption, so termed because in its preparatory phase absolute nothingness is the object of meditation.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­3
  • 5.­66
  • 5.­68
  • g.­27
g.­22

five superknowledges

Wylie:
  • mngon par shes pa lnga
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ་ལྔ།
Sanskrit:
  • pañcābhijñā

Five extraordinary abilities that result from meditative concentration: divine sight, divine hearing, knowing others’ minds, recollecting past lives, and the ability to perform miracles. See also “six superknowledges.”

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­38
  • 2.­110
  • 5.­2
  • g.­73
g.­23

Follower of the Dharma

Wylie:
  • chos kyi rjes su ’brang ba
Tibetan:
  • ཆོས་ཀྱི་རྗེས་སུ་འབྲང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • dharmānusārin

According to the Mahāyāna, one of the seven types of noble beings (āryapudgala), and also one of the twenty types of members of the saṅgha (viṃśatiprabhedasaṃgha).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­110
g.­24

formative factor

Wylie:
  • mngon par ’du byed pa
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་འདུ་བྱེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • abhisaṃskāra

Mental factors that perpetuate karmic activity.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­4
g.­25

foundations for training

Wylie:
  • bslab pa’i gzhi
Tibetan:
  • བསླབ་པའི་གཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • śikṣāpada

A basic precept observed as the foundation for one’s spiritual life. Here it refers to the five precepts of abstaining from killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and using intoxicants.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­104
  • 5.­49
g.­26

four assemblies

Wylie:
  • ’khor bzhi po
Tibetan:
  • འཁོར་བཞི་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • catuḥ­pari­ṣad

The assemblies of monks (Skt. bhikṣu) and nuns (Skt. bhikṣuṇī), along with laymen (Skt. upāsaka) and laywomen (Skt. upāsikā).

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 2.­1
g.­27

four attainments of the formless realm

Wylie:
  • gzugs med pa’i snyoms par ’jug pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • གཟུགས་མེད་པའི་སྙོམས་པར་འཇུག་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturārūpyasamāpatti

These are typically listed as follows: (1) the attainment of the sense field of limitless space, (2) the attainment of the sense field of limitless consciousness, (3) the attainment of the sense field of nothing whatsoever, and (4) the attainment of the sense field of neither perception nor non-perception.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­7
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­15
  • 5.­55
g.­28

four concentrations

Wylie:
  • bsam gtan bzhi
Tibetan:
  • བསམ་གཏན་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturdhyāna

The four progressive levels of concentration of the form realm that culminate in pure one-pointedness of mind, and are a requirement for cultivation of the five or six superknowledges, and so on. These are part of the nine gradual attainments.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­7
  • 5.­10
  • 5.­15
  • g.­53
g.­29

four types of fearlessness

Wylie:
  • mi ’jigs pa bzhi
Tibetan:
  • མི་འཇིགས་པ་བཞི།
Sanskrit:
  • caturabhaya
  • caturvaiśāradya

Fearlessness in declaring that one has (1) awakened, (2) ceased all defilements, (3) taught the obstacles to awakening, and (4) shown the way to liberation.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­55
g.­30

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 7 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­171
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­118
  • 3.­29
  • 4.­23
  • 5.­69
g.­31

garuḍa

Wylie:
  • mkha’ lding
Tibetan:
  • མཁའ་ལྡིང་།
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 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 2.­1
g.­32

go forth

Wylie:
  • rab tu ’byung ba
Tibetan:
  • རབ་ཏུ་འབྱུང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • pra + √vraj

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Sanskrit pravrajyā literally means “going forth,” with the sense of leaving the life of a householder and embracing the life of a renunciant. When the term is applied more technically, it refers to the act of becoming a male novice (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or female novice (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma), this being a first stage leading to full ordination.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­104
  • 2.­8
g.­33

Great Assemblage

Wylie:
  • phung po chen po
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་པོ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha in the world known as Illusory.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­96
g.­34

great being

Wylie:
  • sems dpa’ chen po
Tibetan:
  • སེམས་དཔའ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahāsattva

An epithet of advanced bodhisattvas, often defined as having attained at least the seventh bhūmi and the path of vision. These bodhisattvas have several special qualities that bodhisattvas on the lower bhūmis do not have.

Located in 195 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 1.­4
  • 1.­6-9
  • 1.­13-14
  • 1.­17-18
  • 1.­20
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­26-28
  • 1.­30
  • 1.­32-43
  • 1.­46
  • 1.­48-56
  • 1.­59-61
  • 1.­63
  • 1.­66-71
  • 1.­74-78
  • 1.­81-85
  • 1.­87
  • 1.­90
  • 1.­92
  • 1.­94-95
  • 1.­98
  • 1.­101
  • 1.­103-105
  • 1.­108
  • 1.­111
  • 1.­130
  • 1.­132-135
  • 1.­140
  • 1.­146-148
  • 1.­150
  • 1.­163
  • 1.­166-170
  • 2.­1-3
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­15
  • 2.­20-22
  • 2.­30-31
  • 2.­33-34
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­54
  • 2.­57-58
  • 2.­72
  • 2.­74
  • 2.­80
  • 2.­86
  • 2.­90
  • 2.­92-94
  • 2.­97-98
  • 2.­102
  • 2.­104-108
  • 2.­110
  • 2.­112-113
  • 2.­117-118
  • 3.­1-2
  • 3.­4-6
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­11-13
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­17
  • 3.­19-20
  • 3.­28
  • 4.­1-10
  • 4.­13-15
  • 4.­18-19
  • 4.­22
  • 5.­1-11
  • 5.­13
  • 5.­15
  • 5.­17
  • 5.­21
  • 5.­23
  • 5.­25
  • 5.­27
  • 5.­29
  • 5.­31-34
  • 5.­36
  • 5.­40-41
  • 5.­43-50
  • 5.­55-56
  • 5.­60
  • 5.­62-65
  • 5.­68
g.­35

Head

Wylie:
  • mgo
Tibetan:
  • མགོ
Sanskrit:
  • —

The name of one of the hearers in the world known as Torch.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­69
g.­36

hearer

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

A person who practices according to the vehicle of the hearers, or the vehicle focusing on individual liberation from cyclic existence through attaining the state of a worthy one the monastic lifestyle and one’s own liberation from cyclic existence.

Located in 111 passages in the translation:

  • i.­2-3
  • 1.­8
  • 1.­10-15
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­37-38
  • 1.­42
  • 1.­55
  • 1.­66-67
  • 1.­70-73
  • 1.­96
  • 1.­98
  • 1.­104
  • 1.­112-113
  • 1.­130
  • 1.­148-152
  • 1.­169
  • 1.­171
  • 2.­5
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­13-15
  • 2.­19-20
  • 2.­22-30
  • 2.­36
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­54
  • 2.­57-59
  • 2.­61-65
  • 2.­69
  • 2.­74-75
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­90-91
  • 2.­97
  • 2.­101
  • 2.­105
  • 2.­114-115
  • 2.­118
  • 3.­3-4
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­11
  • 3.­17-18
  • 3.­27
  • 3.­29
  • 4.­9
  • 4.­21
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­21
  • 5.­29
  • 5.­36
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­40-43
  • 5.­45-48
  • 5.­50-52
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­58-60
  • 5.­69
  • g.­35
  • g.­44
  • g.­56
  • g.­58
  • g.­69
  • g.­76
  • g.­89
g.­37

Heaven of Joy

Wylie:
  • dga’ ldan
Tibetan:
  • དགའ་ལྡན།
Sanskrit:
  • tuṣita

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Tuṣita (or sometimes Saṃtuṣita), literally “Joyous” or “Contented,” is one of the six heavens of the desire realm (kāmadhātu). In standard classifications, such as the one in the Abhidharmakośa, it is ranked as the fourth of the six counting from below. This god realm is where all future buddhas are said to dwell before taking on their final rebirth prior to awakening. There, the Buddha Śākyamuni lived his preceding life as the bodhisattva Śvetaketu. When departing to take birth in this world, he appointed the bodhisattva Maitreya, who will be the next buddha of this eon, as his Dharma regent in Tuṣita. For an account of the Buddha’s previous life in Tuṣita, see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 2.12, and for an account of Maitreya’s birth in Tuṣita and a description of this realm, see The Sūtra on Maitreya’s Birth in the Heaven of Joy, (Toh 199).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­104
g.­38

Illusory

Wylie:
  • sgyu ma
Tibetan:
  • སྒྱུ་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha realm to the east.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­96
  • g.­33
g.­39

Jambu

Wylie:
  • ’dzam bu
Tibetan:
  • འཛམ་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • jambu

A mythical, divine river.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 3.­9-11
g.­40

Jambu continent

Wylie:
  • ’dzam bu’i gling
Tibetan:
  • འཛམ་བུའི་གླིང་།
Sanskrit:
  • jambudvīpa

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The name of the southern continent in Buddhist cosmology, which can signify either the known human world, or more specifically the Indian subcontinent, literally “the jambu island/continent.” Jambu is the name used for a range of plum-like fruits from trees belonging to the genus Szygium, particularly Szygium jambos and Szygium cumini, and it has commonly been rendered “rose apple,” although “black plum” may be a less misleading term. Among various explanations given for the continent being so named, one (in the Abhidharmakośa) is that a jambu tree grows in its northern mountains beside Lake Anavatapta, mythically considered the source of the four great rivers of India, and that the continent is therefore named from the tree or the fruit. Jambudvīpa has the Vajrāsana at its center and is the only continent upon which buddhas attain awakening.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­7
g.­41

Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park

Wylie:
  • rgyal bu rgyal byed kyi tshal mgon med zas sbyin gyi kun dga’ ra ba
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་བུ་རྒྱལ་བྱེད་ཀྱི་ཚལ་མགོན་མེད་ཟས་སྦྱིན་གྱི་ཀུན་དགའ་ར་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • jetavanam anāthapiṇḍadasyārāmaḥ AO

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the first Buddhist monasteries, located in a park outside Śrāvastī, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kośala in northern India. This park was originally owned by Prince Jeta, hence the name Jetavana, meaning Jeta’s grove. The wealthy merchant Anāthapiṇḍada, wishing to offer it to the Buddha, sought to buy it from him, but the prince, not wishing to sell, said he would only do so if Anāthapiṇḍada covered the entire property with gold coins. Anāthapiṇḍada agreed, and managed to cover all of the park except the entrance, hence the name Anāthapiṇḍadasyārāmaḥ, meaning Anāthapiṇḍada’s park. The place is usually referred to in the sūtras as “Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park,” and according to the Saṃghabhedavastu the Buddha used Prince Jeta’s name in first place because that was Prince Jeta’s own unspoken wish while Anāthapiṇḍada was offering the park. Inspired by the occasion and the Buddha’s use of his name, Prince Jeta then offered the rest of the property and had an entrance gate built. The Buddha specifically instructed those who recite the sūtras to use Prince Jeta’s name in first place to commemorate the mutual effort of both benefactors.

Anāthapiṇḍada built residences for the monks, to house them during the monsoon season, thus creating the first Buddhist monastery. It was one of the Buddha’s main residences, where he spent around nineteen rainy season retreats, and it was therefore the setting for many of the Buddha’s discourses and events. According to the travel accounts of Chinese monks, it was still in use as a Buddhist monastery in the early fifth century ᴄᴇ, but by the sixth century it had been reduced to ruins.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 2.­1
  • 3.­1
  • 4.­1
g.­42

Jinamitra

Wylie:
  • dzi na mi tra
Tibetan:
  • ཛི་ན་མི་ཏྲ།
Sanskrit:
  • jinamitra

A Kashmiri paṇḍita who was resident in Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries. He worked with several Tibetan translators on the translation of several sūtras. He is also the author of the Nyāya­bindu­piṇḍārtha (Degé no. 4233), which is contained in the Tengyur (bstan ’gyur).

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • c.­1
g.­43

Kinnara

Wylie:
  • mi ’am ci
Tibetan:
  • མི་འམ་ཅི།
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 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 2.­1
g.­44

limit of reality

Wylie:
  • yang dag pa’i mtha’
Tibetan:
  • ཡང་དག་པའི་མཐའ།
Sanskrit:
  • bhūtakoṭi

This term has several meanings, depending on the context: (1) the dividing line between saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, (2) the inferior realization of the hearers and solitary buddhas, (3) the nature of phenomena (emptiness), and (4) full realization of the ultimate truth. In this text it is the second meaning that should be understood.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­150
  • 2.­12-13
  • 2.­76-78
  • 2.­89
  • 5.­68
g.­45

Mahāmaudgalyāyana

Wylie:
  • maud gal gyi bu chen po
Tibetan:
  • མཽད་གལ་གྱི་བུ་ཆེན་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • mahāmaudgalyāyana

One of the closest disciples of the Buddha, known for his miraculous abilities.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­137
g.­46

mahoraga

Wylie:
  • lto ’phye chen po
Tibetan:
  • ལྟོ་འཕྱེ་ཆེན་པོ།
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 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 2.­1
g.­47

Māra

Wylie:
  • bdud
Tibetan:
  • བདུད།
Sanskrit:
  • māra

A demonic being often bearing the epithet of the “Evil One” (pāpīyān, sdig can), sometimes said to be the principal deity in the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations, the highest paradise in the desire realm; also one of the names of the god of desire, Kāma in the Vedic tradition. He is portrayed as attempting to prevent the Buddha’s awakening.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­35
  • 1.­137
  • 2.­21
  • 3.­19-20
g.­48

mark

Wylie:
  • mtshan
Tibetan:
  • མཚན།
Sanskrit:
  • lakṣaṇa

The thirty-two primary physical characteristics of a “great being,” mahāpuruṣa, which every buddha and cakravartin possesses.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­78
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­94
  • g.­13
g.­49

Meru

Wylie:
  • ri rab
Tibetan:
  • རི་རབ།
Sanskrit:
  • meru

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

According to ancient Buddhist cosmology, this is the great mountain forming the axis of the universe. At its summit is Sudarśana, home of Śakra and his thirty-two gods, and on its flanks live the asuras. The mount has four sides facing the cardinal directions, each of which is made of a different precious stone. Surrounding it are several mountain ranges and the great ocean where the four principal island continents lie: in the south, Jambudvīpa (our world); in the west, Godānīya; in the north, Uttarakuru; and in the east, Pūrvavideha. Above it are the abodes of the desire realm gods. It is variously referred to as Meru, Mount Meru, Sumeru, and Mount Sumeru.

Located in 8 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­65
  • 2.­69-71
  • 3.­11
  • 3.­24
  • 4.­8
  • g.­85
g.­50

Mīmāṃsaka

Wylie:
  • spyod pa pa
Tibetan:
  • སྤྱོད་པ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • mīmāṃsaka

The follower of the Mīmāṃsā non-Buddhist philosophical school in ancient India. The term mīmāṃsā means “thoroughgoing analysis or investigation.” The school is commonly divided into two groups, the first of which (pūrvamīmāṃsā, karmamīmāṃsa) focuses on the correct interpretation of the Vedic hymns and rituals, and the second of which (uttaramīmāṃsā, brahmamīmāṃsā, etc.) focuses on the nature of universal reality.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­57
g.­51

Moonlight

Wylie:
  • zla ’od
Tibetan:
  • ཟླ་འོད།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A buddha in a far-away world.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­69
g.­52

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 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 2.­1
  • g.­31
g.­53

nine gradual attainments

Wylie:
  • mthar gyis gnas pa’i snyoms par ’jug pa dgu
Tibetan:
  • མཐར་གྱིས་གནས་པའི་སྙོམས་པར་འཇུག་པ་དགུ
Sanskrit:
  • navānupūrvavihārasamāpatti

Nine states of concentration that one may attain during a human life, corresponding to the four concentrations found in the form realm, the four concentrations found in the formless realm, and the attainment of the state of cessation.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 5.­58
  • g.­28
g.­54

Nirgrantha

Wylie:
  • gcer bu pa
Tibetan:
  • གཅེར་བུ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • nirgrantha

In Buddhist literature this term often refers to followers of the Jain religion, but it can also refer to members of any other “naked ascetic” order.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­57
g.­55

non-Buddhist

Wylie:
  • mu stegs can
Tibetan:
  • མུ་སྟེགས་ཅན།
Sanskrit:
  • tīrthika

An ascetic or mendicant follower of a non-Buddhist philosophy or religion.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­104
  • 2.­57
  • 2.­65
  • 2.­110
  • 2.­113
  • g.­50
  • g.­59
g.­56

non-returner

Wylie:
  • phyir mi ’ong ba
Tibetan:
  • ཕྱིར་མི་འོང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • anāgāmin

One who has achieved the third level of attainment on the path of the hearers, and who is free from further rebirth in the desire realm.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­76
  • 1.­166
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­110
  • 3.­15
  • g.­13
g.­57

nonregression

Wylie:
  • phyir mi ldog pa
Tibetan:
  • ཕྱིར་མི་ལྡོག་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • avaivartika

A stage on the bodhisattva path where the practitioner will never turn back, or be turned back, from progress toward the full awakening of a buddha.

Located in 41 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­16-17
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­26-27
  • 1.­32
  • 1.­51
  • 1.­53
  • 1.­101
  • 1.­103
  • 1.­124-126
  • 1.­130-135
  • 1.­138
  • 1.­140-141
  • 1.­143-146
  • 1.­148
  • 1.­153-155
  • 2.­85-86
  • 2.­93
  • 2.­98
  • 2.­105
  • 2.­108
  • 2.­117
  • 4.­4
  • 4.­19
  • 5.­32
  • 5.­64
g.­58

once-returner

Wylie:
  • lan cig phyir ’ong ba
Tibetan:
  • ལན་ཅིག་ཕྱིར་འོང་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • sakṛdāgāmin

One who has achieved the second level of attainment on the path of the hearers, and who will only be reborn in saṃsāra once more.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­76
  • 1.­166
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­110
  • 3.­15
  • g.­13
g.­59

Parivrājaka

Wylie:
  • kun tu rgyu ba
Tibetan:
  • ཀུན་ཏུ་རྒྱུ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • parivrājaka

A class of traveling ascetics (both male and female) who held a variety of differing non-Buddhist views.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­57
g.­60

perfection

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

This term is used to refer to the main trainings of a bodhisattva. Because these trainings, when brought to perfection, lead one to transcend saṃsāra and reach the full awakening of a buddha, they receive the Sanskrit name pāramitā, meaning “perfection” or “gone to the farther shore.” Most commonly listed as six: generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, concentration, and insight.

Located in 162 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­1-4
  • 1.­2-4
  • 1.­6-8
  • 1.­17-20
  • 1.­29
  • 1.­32
  • 1.­34-35
  • 1.­47
  • 1.­49-50
  • 1.­55
  • 1.­58
  • 1.­64
  • 1.­66-69
  • 1.­71-72
  • 1.­75
  • 1.­80
  • 1.­90
  • 1.­93
  • 1.­104
  • 1.­112-115
  • 1.­145
  • 1.­158
  • 1.­160
  • 1.­162-163
  • 1.­170
  • 1.­172
  • 2.­1-3
  • 2.­5
  • 2.­7-9
  • 2.­13-16
  • 2.­19-30
  • 2.­32-36
  • 2.­54
  • 2.­56-57
  • 2.­62
  • 2.­65-66
  • 2.­74
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­81
  • 2.­85-86
  • 2.­90
  • 2.­94-95
  • 2.­97-99
  • 2.­101-104
  • 2.­106-108
  • 2.­110
  • 2.­112
  • 2.­114
  • 2.­116-117
  • 2.­119
  • 3.­1-2
  • 3.­4
  • 3.­6-7
  • 3.­11
  • 3.­15-17
  • 3.­19-21
  • 3.­28
  • 3.­30
  • 4.­1-7
  • 4.­9
  • 4.­13
  • 4.­15-16
  • 4.­22
  • 4.­24
  • 5.­1
  • 5.­3
  • 5.­7
  • 5.­9
  • 5.­12
  • 5.­15
  • 5.­20-31
  • 5.­37
  • 5.­44
  • 5.­49-50
  • 5.­55-57
  • 5.­64-65
  • 5.­68
  • 5.­70-71
g.­61

piśāca

Wylie:
  • sha za
Tibetan:
  • ཤ་ཟ།
Sanskrit:
  • piśāca

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

A class of nonhuman beings that, like several other classes of nonhuman beings, take spontaneous birth. Ranking below rākṣasas, they are less powerful and more akin to pretas. They are said to dwell in impure and perilous places, where they feed on impure things, including flesh. This could account for the name piśāca, which possibly derives from √piś, to carve or chop meat, as reflected also in the Tibetan sha za, “meat eater.” They are often described as having an unpleasant appearance, and at times they appear with animal bodies. Some possess the ability to enter the dead bodies of humans, thereby becoming so-called vetāla, to touch whom is fatal.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­35
g.­62

Pūrṇa

Wylie:
  • gang po
Tibetan:
  • གང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • pūrṇa

Same as Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra.

Located in 235 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­12-13
  • 1.­15-20
  • 1.­22-28
  • 1.­30-43
  • 1.­48-53
  • 1.­55-56
  • 1.­58-63
  • 1.­66-70
  • 1.­72-75
  • 1.­78
  • 1.­82-90
  • 1.­92
  • 1.­147-151
  • 1.­153-157
  • 1.­161-168
  • 2.­5-15
  • 2.­17-31
  • 2.­33-63
  • 2.­74-80
  • 2.­83-94
  • 3.­1
  • 3.­3
  • 3.­5-6
  • 3.­8-15
  • 3.­17-28
  • 4.­2-3
  • 4.­11-13
  • 4.­17-18
  • 4.­20-22
  • 5.­14-15
  • 5.­17-36
  • 5.­39-50
  • 5.­52-56
  • 5.­59-62
  • 5.­64
g.­63

Pūrṇa Maitrāyaṇīputra

Wylie:
  • byams ma’i bu gang po
Tibetan:
  • བྱམས་མའི་བུ་གང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • pūrṇa maitrāyaṇīputra

One of the closest disciples of the Buddha, known as the foremost in his ability to teach.

Located in 53 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­2
  • 1.­9
  • 1.­11
  • 1.­14-15
  • 1.­21
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­57
  • 1.­65
  • 1.­71-72
  • 1.­77
  • 1.­81
  • 1.­92
  • 1.­146
  • 1.­159
  • 1.­169
  • 1.­171
  • 2.­4-5
  • 2.­33
  • 2.­44
  • 2.­73
  • 2.­82
  • 2.­118
  • 3.­1-5
  • 3.­8
  • 3.­28-29
  • 4.­1-2
  • 4.­11
  • 4.­14
  • 4.­19-20
  • 4.­22-23
  • 5.­13-14
  • 5.­16
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­45
  • 5.­51
  • 5.­58-59
  • 5.­63
  • 5.­69
  • g.­62
g.­64

Rājagṛha

Wylie:
  • rgyal po’i khab
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱལ་པོའི་ཁབ།
Sanskrit:
  • rājagṛha

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The ancient capital of Magadha prior to its relocation to Pāṭaliputra during the Mauryan dynasty, Rājagṛha is one of the most important locations in Buddhist history. The literature tells us that the Buddha and his saṅgha spent a considerable amount of time in residence in and around Rājagṛha‍—in nearby places, such as the Vulture Peak Mountain (Gṛdhrakūṭaparvata), a major site of the Mahāyāna sūtras, and the Bamboo Grove (Veṇuvana)‍—enjoying the patronage of King Bimbisāra and then of his son King Ajātaśatru. Rājagṛha is also remembered as the location where the first Buddhist monastic council was held after the Buddha Śākyamuni passed into parinirvāṇa. Now known as Rajgir and located in the modern Indian state of Bihar.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­1
g.­65

Realm of the Lord of Death

Wylie:
  • gshin rje’i ’jig rten
Tibetan:
  • གཤིན་རྗེའི་འཇིག་རྟེན།
Sanskrit:
  • yamaloka

The realm of the Lord of Death is another name for the realm of hungry ghosts or pretas. This term is also the name of the Vedic afterlife inhabited by the ancestors (pitṛ).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­32
g.­66

roots of virtue

Wylie:
  • dge ba’i rtsa ba
Tibetan:
  • དགེ་བའི་རྩ་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • kuśalamūla

Wholesome actions that are conducive to happiness.

Located in 18 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­16-17
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­27
  • 1.­32-33
  • 1.­38
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­51-53
  • 1.­101
  • 1.­113
  • 2.­9
  • 2.­19
  • 2.­107
  • 5.­23
  • 5.­49
g.­67

Śakra

Wylie:
  • brgya byin
Tibetan:
  • བརྒྱ་བྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • śakra

The lord of the gods. Alternatively known as Indra, the deity that is called “lord of the gods” dwells on the summit of Mount Sumeru and wields the thunderbolt. The Tibetan translation brgya byin (meaning “one hundred sacrifices”) is based on an etymology that śakra is an abbreviation of śata-kratu, one who has performed a hundred sacrifices. Each world with a central Sumeru has a Śakra.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­104
  • 1.­109
g.­68

Śākyamuni

Wylie:
  • shAkya thub pa
Tibetan:
  • ཤཱཀྱ་ཐུབ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • śākyamuni

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An epithet for the historical Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama: he was a muni (“sage”) from the Śākya clan. He is counted as the fourth of the first four buddhas of the present Good Eon, the other three being Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, and Kāśyapa. He will be followed by Maitreya, the next buddha in this eon.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­152
  • g.­6
  • g.­70
  • g.­80
g.­69

Śāradvatīputra

Wylie:
  • sha ra dwa ti’i bu
Tibetan:
  • ཤ་ར་དྭ་ཏིའི་བུ།
Sanskrit:
  • śāradvatīputra

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the principal śrāvaka disciples of the Buddha, he was renowned for his discipline and for having been praised by the Buddha as foremost of the wise (often paired with Maudgalyā­yana, who was praised as foremost in the capacity for miraculous powers). His father, Tiṣya, to honor Śāriputra’s mother, Śārikā, named him Śāradvatīputra, or, in its contracted form, Śāriputra, meaning “Śārikā’s Son.”

Located in 217 passages in the translation:

  • s.­1
  • i.­2
  • 1.­4-7
  • 1.­9-12
  • 1.­14-16
  • 1.­21-22
  • 1.­44-46
  • 1.­48
  • 1.­57-58
  • 1.­65-66
  • 1.­71-72
  • 1.­77-79
  • 1.­91-92
  • 1.­94-113
  • 1.­115-144
  • 1.­146-147
  • 1.­149-157
  • 1.­159-160
  • 1.­169-171
  • 2.­2-5
  • 2.­10-15
  • 2.­17-19
  • 2.­30-31
  • 2.­33-35
  • 2.­44-51
  • 2.­53-56
  • 2.­59-61
  • 2.­63-65
  • 2.­67-74
  • 2.­77-80
  • 2.­82-83
  • 2.­85
  • 2.­87-89
  • 2.­93-94
  • 2.­96-102
  • 2.­104-116
  • 2.­118
  • 3.­3-6
  • 3.­8-15
  • 3.­17-27
  • 3.­29
  • 4.­23
  • 5.­1-11
  • 5.­13-15
  • 5.­65-69
g.­70

seat of awakening

Wylie:
  • byang chub kyi snying po
Tibetan:
  • བྱང་ཆུབ་ཀྱི་སྙིང་པོ།
Sanskrit:
  • bodhimaṇḍa

The place where the Buddha Śākyamuni achieved awakening and where countless other buddhas are said to have achieved awakening. This is understood to be located under the bodhi tree in present-day Bodhgaya, India. It can also metaphorically refer to the state of awakening itself.

Located in 12 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­56
  • 1.­67
  • 1.­69
  • 1.­103-104
  • 1.­153-154
  • 1.­169
  • 2.­13
  • 5.­21
  • 5.­60
  • 5.­62
g.­71

sense field

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

One way of describing experience and the world in terms of twelve sense fields (eye and form, ear and sound, nose and odor, tongue and taste, body and touch, mind and mental objects).

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­36
g.­72

signlessness

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

One of the three gateways to liberation; the ultimate absence of marks and signs in perceived objects.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­41
g.­73

six superknowledges

Wylie:
  • mngon par shes pa drug
Tibetan:
  • མངོན་པར་ཤེས་པ་དྲུག
Sanskrit:
  • ṣaḍabhijñā

The same as the five superknowledges‍—divine sight, divine hearing, knowledge of the minds of others, remembrance of past lives, ability to perform miracles‍—plus the ability to destroy all mental defilements.

Located in 7 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­122
  • 1.­131-133
  • 1.­137
  • g.­22
  • g.­28
g.­74

solitary buddha

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 61 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­8
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­37-38
  • 1.­55
  • 1.­66-67
  • 1.­70-74
  • 1.­76
  • 1.­103
  • 1.­112-113
  • 1.­149-152
  • 1.­169
  • 2.­5
  • 2.­7
  • 2.­11
  • 2.­13-15
  • 2.­19
  • 2.­30
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­54
  • 2.­57-59
  • 2.­61-65
  • 2.­74-75
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­90-91
  • 2.­97
  • 2.­101
  • 2.­110
  • 3.­17-18
  • 4.­9
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­21
  • 5.­29
  • 5.­36
  • 5.­45-48
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­59
  • g.­44
g.­75

Śrāvastī

Wylie:
  • mnyan yod
Tibetan:
  • མཉན་ཡོད།
Sanskrit:
  • śrāvastī

The capital of the ancient Indian kingdom of Kośala, and the setting for many sūtras, as the Buddha spent most rainy seasons in a park outside the city called the Jeta Grove. The city has been identified with the present-day Sāhet Māhet in Uttar Pradesh on the banks of the river Rapti.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 2.­1
  • 3.­1
  • 4.­1
g.­76

stream enterer

Wylie:
  • rgyun du zhugs pa
Tibetan:
  • རྒྱུན་དུ་ཞུགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • srotaāpanna

One who has achieved the first level of attainment on the path of the hearers, and who has entered the “stream” of practice that leads to nirvāṇa.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­76
  • 1.­151
  • 1.­166
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­110
  • 3.­15
g.­77

ten powers

Wylie:
  • stobs bcu
Tibetan:
  • སྟོབས་བཅུ།
Sanskrit:
  • daśabala

One set among the different qualities of a thus-gone one. The ten powers can be listed as: (1) the knowledge of what is possible and not possible, (2) the knowledge of the ripening of karma, (3) the knowledge of the variety of aspirations, (4) the knowledge of the variety of natures, (5) the knowledge of the supreme and lesser faculties of sentient beings, (6) the knowledge of the destinations of all paths, (7) the knowledge of various states of meditation, (8) the knowledge of remembering previous lives, (9) the knowledge of deaths and rebirths, and (10) the knowledge of the cessation of defilements.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­55
g.­78

ten virtuous actions

Wylie:
  • dge ba bcu
Tibetan:
  • དགེ་བ་བཅུ།
Sanskrit:
  • daśakuśala

Abstaining from killing, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, lying, uttering divisive talk, speaking harsh words, gossiping, covetousness, ill will, and wrong views.

Located in 5 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­104
  • 1.­166
  • 2.­37
  • 2.­110
  • 5.­49
g.­79

three groups of beings

Wylie:
  • phung po gsum
Tibetan:
  • ཕུང་པོ་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • triskandha

A division of all beings into three groups: noble beings, evil beings, and those in between.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 1.­37
g.­80

thus-gone one

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 54 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­14
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­38-39
  • 1.­44
  • 1.­46
  • 1.­68
  • 1.­74
  • 1.­76
  • 1.­78
  • 1.­88-89
  • 1.­96
  • 1.­103
  • 1.­112-113
  • 1.­130
  • 1.­136
  • 1.­152
  • 1.­154
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­57
  • 2.­64-65
  • 2.­67
  • 2.­69
  • 2.­72
  • 2.­78
  • 2.­80
  • 2.­98
  • 2.­107
  • 2.­110-113
  • 3.­4
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­28
  • 4.­18
  • 4.­21
  • 5.­14-20
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­43
  • 5.­50
  • 5.­52
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­59
  • g.­77
g.­81

Torch

Wylie:
  • sgron ma
Tibetan:
  • སྒྲོན་མ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A distant world.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 2.­69
  • g.­35
g.­82

trichiliocosm

Wylie:
  • stong gsum
Tibetan:
  • སྟོང་གསུམ།
Sanskrit:
  • trisāhasralokadhātu

A universe containing one billion worlds.

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­109
  • 1.­138
  • 2.­24
  • 2.­61
  • 3.­19
  • 4.­4
g.­83

Unhindered

Wylie:
  • thogs pa med pa
Tibetan:
  • ཐོགས་པ་མེད་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

A bodhisattva from the world known as Illusory.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­96-97
g.­84

universal monarch

Wylie:
  • ’khor los sgyur ba
Tibetan:
  • འཁོར་ལོས་སྒྱུར་བ།
Sanskrit:
  • cakravartin

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

An ideal monarch or emperor who, as the result of the merit accumulated in previous lifetimes, rules over a vast realm in accordance with the Dharma. Such a monarch is called a cakravartin because he bears a wheel (cakra) that rolls (vartate) across the earth, bringing all lands and kingdoms under his power. The cakravartin conquers his territory without causing harm, and his activity causes beings to enter the path of wholesome actions. According to Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa, just as with the buddhas, only one cakravartin appears in a world system at any given time. They are likewise endowed with the thirty-two major marks of a great being (mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇa), but a cakravartin’s marks are outshined by those of a buddha. They possess seven precious objects: the wheel, the elephant, the horse, the wish-fulfilling gem, the queen, the general, and the minister. An illustrative passage about the cakravartin and his possessions can be found in The Play in Full (Toh 95), 3.3–3.13.

Vasubandhu lists four types of cakravartins: (1) the cakravartin with a golden wheel (suvarṇacakravartin) rules over four continents and is invited by lesser kings to be their ruler; (2) the cakravartin with a silver wheel (rūpyacakravartin) rules over three continents and his opponents submit to him as he approaches; (3) the cakravartin with a copper wheel (tāmracakravartin) rules over two continents and his opponents submit themselves after preparing for battle; and (4) the cakravartin with an iron wheel (ayaścakravartin) rules over one continent and his opponents submit themselves after brandishing weapons.

Located in 4 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­76
  • 1.­109
  • 2.­78
  • 5.­60
g.­85

Unpleasant Sound

Wylie:
  • sgra mi snyan
Tibetan:
  • སྒྲ་མི་སྙན།
Sanskrit:
  • uttara­kuru
  • kurava

The continent to the north of Mount Meru according to Buddhist cosmology. In the Abhidharmakośa, it is described as square in shape and its human inhabitants enjoy a fixed lifespan, namely a thousand years, and do not hold personal property or marry.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­7
g.­86

Vulture Peak Mountain

Wylie:
  • bya rgod kyi phung po’i ri
Tibetan:
  • བྱ་རྒོད་ཀྱི་ཕུང་པོའི་རི།
Sanskrit:
  • gṛdhra­kūṭa­parvata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

The Gṛdhra­kūṭa, literally Vulture Peak, was a hill located in the kingdom of Magadha, in the vicinity of the ancient city of Rājagṛha (modern-day Rajgir, in the state of Bihar, India), where the Buddha bestowed many sūtras, especially the Great Vehicle teachings, such as the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras. It continues to be a sacred pilgrimage site for Buddhists to this day.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 5.­1
g.­87

well-gone one

Wylie:
  • bde bar gshegs pa
Tibetan:
  • བདེ་བར་གཤེགས་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • sugata

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

One of the standard epithets of the buddhas. A recurrent explanation offers three different meanings for su- that are meant to show the special qualities of “accomplishment of one’s own purpose” (svārthasampad) for a complete buddha. Thus, the Sugata is “well” gone, as in the expression su-rūpa (“having a good form”); he is gone “in a way that he shall not come back,” as in the expression su-naṣṭa-jvara (“a fever that has utterly gone”); and he has gone “without any remainder” as in the expression su-pūrṇa-ghaṭa (“a pot that is completely full”). According to Buddhaghoṣa, the term means that the way the Buddha went (Skt. gata) is good (Skt. su) and where he went (Skt. gata) is good (Skt. su).

Located in 6 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­97
  • 1.­122
  • 1.­136
  • 2.­111
  • 2.­117
g.­88

wishlessness

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

One of the three gateways to liberation; the absence of conceptual modes of mind.

Located in 1 passage in the translation:

  • 2.­42
g.­89

worthy one

Wylie:
  • dgra bcom pa
Tibetan:
  • དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།
Sanskrit:
  • arhat

One who has achieved the fourth and final level of attainment on the path of the hearers, and who has attained liberation with the cessation of all mental afflictions. It is also used as an epithet of the buddhas. The Skt. means either “worthy one” or “one who has killed their foes” (i.e., afflictions).

Located in 46 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­2
  • 1.­11
  • 1.­13
  • 1.­22
  • 1.­74
  • 1.­76
  • 1.­96
  • 1.­103
  • 1.­112-113
  • 1.­118-123
  • 1.­130-133
  • 1.­137
  • 1.­150
  • 1.­152
  • 1.­155
  • 1.­166
  • 2.­1
  • 2.­52
  • 2.­101
  • 2.­105
  • 2.­110
  • 2.­112
  • 2.­114
  • 3.­15
  • 3.­22
  • 3.­25
  • 4.­21
  • 5.­5
  • 5.­14-15
  • 5.­19-20
  • 5.­38
  • 5.­43
  • 5.­55
  • 5.­59
  • g.­36
g.­90

yakṣa

Wylie:
  • gnod sbyin
Tibetan:
  • གནོད་སྦྱིན།
Sanskrit:
  • yakṣa

A class of semidivine beings said to dwell in the north, under the jurisdiction of the Great King Vaiśravaṇa. They are associated with water, trees, fertility, and treasures, and are said to haunt or protect natural places as well as towns. Yakṣas can be malevolent or benevolent, and are known for bestowing wealth and other boons.

Located in 3 passages in the translation:

  • 1.­3
  • 1.­35
  • 2.­1
g.­91

Yeshé Dé

Wylie:
  • ye shes sde
Tibetan:
  • ཡེ་ཤེས་སྡེ།
Sanskrit:
  • —

Definition from the 84000 Glossary of Terms:

Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.

Located in 2 passages in the translation:

  • i.­4
  • c.­1
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    84000. Teaching the Five Perfections (Pañcapāramitānirdeśa, pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa, Toh 181). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee. Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024. https://84000.co/translation/toh181/UT22084-061-001-glossary.Copy
    84000. Teaching the Five Perfections (Pañcapāramitānirdeśa, pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa, Toh 181). Translated by Dharmachakra Translation Committee, online publication, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2024, 84000.co/translation/toh181/UT22084-061-001-glossary.Copy
    84000. (2024) Teaching the Five Perfections (Pañcapāramitānirdeśa, pha rol tu phyin pa lnga bstan pa, Toh 181). (Dharmachakra Translation Committee, Trans.). Online publication. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha. https://84000.co/translation/toh181/UT22084-061-001-glossary.Copy

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