Curated category
Buddhist philosophical concepts
- MahayanaAn inscription in Mathura, dated to the year 180 CE, bears a reference to the Buddha Amitābha and marks one of the earliest stone records of Mahāyāna…
- SassatavadaThe word sassatavada appears in the Pali texts of early Buddhism. It translates to eternalism in English. This concept describes a specific type of thinking…
- BodhipakkhiyādhammāThe Pali term Bodhipakkhiyādhammā appears in ancient texts to describe qualities conducive to awakening. This compound word combines bodhi, meaning…
- Impermanence (Buddhism)The Pali Canon contains the phrase sabbe sankhara anicca, which translates to all conditioned things are impermanent. This statement appears alongside two…
- Arya (Buddhism)The Sanskrit word ārya and the Pali term ariya appear in ancient Buddhist texts to describe spiritual warriors or heroes.
- Saṃsāra (Buddhism)A thangka painting from Tibet shows the bhavacakra, a wheel depicting the ancient five cyclic realms of sañsāra in Buddhist cosmology.
- ReincarnationThe word reincarnation derives from a Latin term that literally means entering the flesh again. This phrase entered English usage through modern philosophers…
- AnattāThe Pali word anattā combines the prefix an meaning not with attā, which translates to self-existent essence. This composite term defines a central Buddhist…
- DuḥkhaA cart wheel turns unevenly when its axle hole sits off-center. This physical flaw creates a bumpy, uncomfortable ride for anyone traveling inside the…
- Nirvana (Buddhism)The word nirvana comes from the Sanskrit root vā, meaning to blow. Early Buddhist texts describe it as blowing out a flame or quenching an activity of the…
- Three marks of existenceIn the Pali tradition of the Theravada school, three specific characteristics define all existence. These marks appear as sabbe sañkhārā aniccā, meaning all…
- Four Noble TruthsIn the ancient Sanskrit manuscript from Nalanda, Bihar, India dated between 700 and 1100 CE, a scene depicts the Buddha teaching four specific truths.
- VajrayanaIn the 5th century, a new spiritual current began to flow through medieval India. This movement emerged from pre-existing Tantric traditions within Hinduism…
- BodhisattvaThe Sanskrit word bodhisattva combines two roots: bodhi, meaning awakening or enlightenment, and sattva, a term with contested definitions.
- Five hindrancesIn the Buddhist tradition, mental factors known as hindrances block progress in meditation and daily life. Theravada teachers identify these five specific…
- SatipatthanaThe word satipatthana appears in the Pali Canon as a compound term that scholars have parsed in two distinct ways. One parsing reads it as presence of…
- Sentient beings (Buddhism)A Buddhist monk in Ladakh, India, gently cradles an injured sparrow at Likir Monastery. This image captures the core of a term used to designate the totality…
- BuddhahoodIn the Pali Canon, a Buddha is described as one who has reached awakening or enlightenment through their own efforts and insight.
- Samatha-vipassanāThe Sanskrit word śamatha translates to tranquility, calm, or quietude of the heart. In Pali, samatha carries the same meaning of serenity and mental…
- Kleshas (Buddhism)In Buddhism, mental states that cloud the mind manifest in unwholesome actions. Kleshas include states of mind such as anxiety, fear, anger, jealousy, and…
- ParinirvanaThe state of parinirvana marks the end of all karmic cycles for a being who has already achieved nirvana during their lifetime.
- SatyaThe Sanskrit word satya appears in the Rigveda, a text dated to the second millennium BCE. This ancient manuscript contains the earliest known discussion of…
- NirvanaThe Sanskrit verbal root meaning blow appears in ancient Indian texts to describe spiritual liberation. Collins notes that Buddhists seem to have been the…
- DharaniThe Sanskrit root dhru means to hold or maintain. This linguistic anchor defines the function of dharanis as mnemonic devices within Buddhist tradition.
- Merit (Buddhism)The Pāli word puñña translates literally as merit, meritorious action, or virtue. Theravāda commentator Dhammapāla defined it as that which cleanses the…
- DharmaThe Sanskrit root dhr- means to hold or to support. This linguistic foundation shaped the word dharma into a concept of law that sustains life, society, and…
- Middle WayThe Buddha delivered his first teaching, the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, to five ascetics after achieving awakening. This event marked the beginning of a…
- Noble Eightfold PathThe Pali term Ariya-magga translates to 'Noble Eightfold Path' in English, a convention established by early translators of Buddhist texts.
- PrajnaparamitaThe Sanskrit term Prajñāpāramitā combines two words: prajñā meaning wisdom or knowledge, and pāramitā meaning excellence, perfection, or that which has gone…
- Rebirth (Buddhism)The Buddha claimed to recall ninety-one eons of past lives on the night he attained awakening. This memory, recorded in the Majjhima Nikaya, anchors rebirth…
- Refuge in BuddhismIn the second century AD, a schist sculpture in Gandhara depicts devotees venerating the Three Jewels. This visual record anchors a practice that emerged in…
- AsavaThe Pali word āsava appears in ancient Buddhist scriptures to describe mental defilements. Sanskrit texts render the same concept as āsrava.
- BhavacakraThe word bhavachakra combines two Sanskrit terms: bhava meaning being or worldly existence, and chakra meaning wheel. Monier Monier-Williams published his…