Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra

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.”

See Mvyut 1500 and 1988.

cf. Sanskrit text in Matsuda 2013, p. 940 ad Lamotte VIII.40.

The bodhisattvas’ realization that all phenomena are unproduced and empty. It sustains them on the difficult path of benefiting all beings so that they do not succumb to the goal of personal liberation. Different sources link this realization to the first or eighth bodhisattva level (bhūmi).

See n.125.

Mahāvyutpatti 1290.

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.”

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

See Har Dayal 2004, p. 260ff.

The term so sor rtog pa has two meanings in our text: (1) analysis (pratyavekṣa) and (2) comprehension, realization, awakening (pratibodha).

Technical term in Buddhist logic.

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

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

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.

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

In the general Mahāyāna teachings the mind of awakening (bodhicitta) is the intention to attain the complete awakening of a perfect buddha for the sake of all beings. On the level of absolute truth, the mind of awakening is the realization of the awakened state itself.

Type of Sanskrit compound.

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.

Equal to a thousand universes of a thousand worlds (i.e., a universe of a million worlds).

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”).

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.

Also translated as “buddha realm.”

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Mahāvyutpatti 2918.

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

Mahāvyutpatti 5683.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Mahāvyutpatti 6405.

A state of deep concentration in which the mind is absorbed in its object to such a degree that conceptual thought is suspended. It is sometimes interpreted as settling (āhita) the mind in equanimity (sama).

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.

Also translated here as “decide.”

Mahāvyutpatti 7587.

Also translated here as “conditioning mental factors.”

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.

See “four correct self-restraints.”

Lit. “outer.”

The forest, located outside of Varanasi, where the Buddha first taught the Dharma.

The essentially pure nature of mind is obscured and afflicted by various psychological defilements, which destroy the mind’s peace and composure and lead to unwholesome deeds of body, speech, and mind, acting as causes for continued existence in saṃsāra. Included among them are the primary afflictions of desire (rāga), anger (dveṣa), and ignorance (avidyā). It is said that there are eighty-four thousand of these negative mental qualities, for which the eighty-four thousand categories of the Buddha’s teachings serve as the antidote.

Kleśa is also commonly translated as “negative emotions,” “disturbing emotions,” and so on. The Pāli kilesa, Middle Indic kileśa, and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit kleśa all primarily mean “stain” or “defilement.” The translation “affliction” is a secondary development that derives from the more general (non-Buddhist) classical understanding of √kliś (“to harm,“ “to afflict”). Both meanings are noted by Buddhist commentators.

One of the three poisons (dug gsum) along with aversion, or hatred, and attachment, or desire, which perpetuate the sufferings of cyclic existence. It is the obfuscating mental state which obstructs an individual from generating knowledge or insight, and it is said to be the dominant characteristic of the animal world in general. Commonly rendered as confusion, delusion, and ignorance, or bewilderment.

Also translated here as “obscuration.”

Also rendered here as “keeping it in mind,” “formula.”

Mahāvyutpatti 353.

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Also translated here as “vigor.”

Mahāvyutpatti 7450.

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.”

Also rendered here as “distinguishing.”

See Buswell & Lopez 2014, p. 2.

This term corresponds to the kasiṇa of the Pāli tradition, a visualization object is used as a support for the totality of the meditator’s attention.

Type of Sanskrit compound.

See n.365.

Also translated here as “pathway.”

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.

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.

The three kinds of essencelessness are essencelessness regarding defining characteristics, essencelessness regarding arising, and essencelessness regarding the ultimate.

Mahāvyutpatti 1115.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

In the sūtra, paryāya is used to denote (1) an expedient or a trick in the context of illusions produced by a magician; (2) a method, an approach through which one can practice in accordance with a teaching; or (3) a scripture, a teaching regarding a specific aspect.

The twelve factors or links of conditioned existence are: ignorance (avidyā), mental formations (saṃskāra), consciousness (vijñāna), mind and matter (nāmarūpa), the six sense organs (ṣaḍāyatana), contact (sparśa), sensation (vedanā), craving (tṛṣṇā), clinging (upādāna), becoming (bhava), birth (jāti), aging and dying (jarāmaraṇa).

See “five faculties.”

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

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.

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).

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).

The five sciences are grammar, logic, philosophy, medicine, and crafts.

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.

See “five forces.”

In this text, the six foundations of training are listed as generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, meditative absorption, and wisdom.

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

The four kinds of assurance of a tathāgata are (1) assurance concerning complete awakening (abhisambodhivaiśāradya, thams cad mkhyen pa la mi ’jigs pa ); (2) assurance concerning the destruction of the impurities (āsravakṣayavaiśāradya, zag pa zad pa mkhyen pa la mi ’jigs pa); (3) assurance concerning harmful things (antarāyikadharmavaiśāradya, bar du gcod pa’i chos la mi ’jigs pa); and (4) assurance concerning the path that leads to emancipation (nairyāṇikapratipadvaiśāradya, thob par ’gyur bar nges par ’byung ba’i lam la mi ’jigs pa). See Rahula 2001, p. 230, in which they are called “perfect self-confidence.”

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

Mahāvyutpatti 924. The four methods of conversion are: (1) generosity (dāna), (2) kind words (priyavādita), (3) being supportive of others (arthacaryā), and (4) being consistent with one’s own teachings (samānārthatā). (see Mvyut 924).

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.

The impermanence of all conditioned phenomena, the suffering inherent to all conditioned phenomena, the selflessness of all phenomena, and nirvāṇa as the state of peace.

In the sense of “disinterested,” “not expecting a reward.”

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

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.”

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.

Emptiness, appearancelessness, and wishlessness.

A gāthā is a verse or stanza.

The emptiness of the space containing all domains, objects, and locations.

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Mahāvyutpatti 369.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

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.”

Type of being in Buddhist cosmogony.

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

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Also translated as “reflection.”

The imaginary defining characteristic corresponds to the attribution of an essence, an inherent entity, to that which is by nature dependent on an other (paratantra) to exist or appear as what it is perceived to be.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

Lit “heart” or “marrow.”

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”.

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.

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.

Type of Sanskrit compound.

(cf. Sanskrit text in Matsuda 2013, p. 940 ad Lamotte VIII.41). Dhāraya is a causative imperative of dhṛ-.

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.

World of the tathāgata Viśālakīrti.

Mahāvyutpatti 6558.

Also translated here as “predisposition.”

See Hayal 1978: 229.

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.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

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.

An early name for the Abhidharmapiṭaka and also a germinal list or index of topics.

See Hayal 1978, p. 221.

Schmithausen translates this term with “all-seed mind,” which can mean both “mind containing all the seeds” or “mind consisting of all the seeds.” See Schmithausen 2014, p. 65, n. 221.

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).

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.

Schmithausen understands this term as meaning “normal”: “should we [indeed] say that even the normal (rang bzhin du gnas pa, *prakṛtisthita?) images…” (Schmithausen 2014, p. 392, n. 1733). I understand the use of rang bzhin du gnas pa as implying a context where the object of the cognition is not an object of concentration corresponding to visualization practices as in the case of the kasiṇa. In the Pāli tradition, kasiṇa designates a visualization object used as a support for the totality of the meditator’s attention. In this paragraph, sems can has the connotation of beings who do not practice the yoga taught in this chapter, that is, ordinary beings.

The real nature, true quality, or condition of things. Throughout Buddhist discourse this term is used in two distinct ways. In one, it designates the relative nature that is either the essential characteristic of a specific phenomenon, such as the heat of fire and the moisture of water, or the defining feature of a specific term or category. The other very important and widespread way it is used is to designate the ultimate nature of all phenomena, which cannot be conveyed in conceptual, dualistic terms and is often synonymous with emptiness or the absence of intrinsic existence.

Lit. “the world beyond [death].”

Introductory part of a sūtra .

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.

The Sanskrit ārya has the general meaning of a noble person, one of a higher class or caste. In Buddhist literature, depending on the context, it often means specifically one who has gained the realization of the path and is superior for that reason. In particular, it applies to stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and worthy ones (arhats) and is also used as an epithet of bodhisattvas. In the five-path system, it refers to someone who has achieved at least the path of seeing (darśanamārga).

See “four noble truths.”

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).”

Mahāvyutpatti 1717.

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

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

The obscurations to liberation and omniscience. They are generally categorized as two types: affective obscurations (kleśāvaraṇa), the arising of afflictive emotions; and cognitive obscurations (jñeyāvaraṇa), those caused by misapprehension and incorrect understanding about the nature of reality.

The term is used also as a reference to a set five hindrances on the path: longing for sense pleasures (Skt. kāmacchanda), malice (Skt. vyāpāda), sloth and torpor (Skt. styānamiddha), excitement and remorse (Skt. auddhatyakaukṛtya), and doubt (Skt. vicikitsā).

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

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.”

The sixth of the six perfections, it refers to the profound understanding of the emptiness of all phenomena, the realization of ultimate reality. It is often personified as a female deity, worshiped as the “Mother of All Buddhas” (sarva­jina­mātā).

Mahāvyutpatti 351.

Mahāvyutpatti 360.

Mahāvyutpatti 366.

“Prātimokṣa” is the name given to the code of conduct binding on monks and nuns. The term can be used to refer both to the disciplinary rules themselves and to the texts from the Vinaya that contain them. There are multiple recensions of the Prātimokṣa, each transmitted by a different monastic fraternity in ancient and medieval India. Three remain living traditions, one of them the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya of Tibetan Buddhism. Though the numbers of rules vary across the different recensions, they are all organized according to the same principles and with the same disciplinary categories. It is customary for monastics to recite the Prātimokṣa Sūtra fortnightly. According to some Mahāyana sūtras, a separate set of prātimokṣa rules exists for bodhisattvas, which are based on bodhisattva conduct as taught in that vehicle.

Technical term in Buddhist logic.

The four principles of reason (yukti) are : (1) the principle of reason based on dependence (apekṣāyukti), (2) the principle of reason based on cause and effect (kārya­kāraṇayukti), (3) the principle of reason based on logical proof (upa­pattisādhana­yukti), and (4) the principle of reason based on the nature of phenomena itself (dharmatāyukti).

On “principle of reason” as a translation for yukti, see Kapstein 1988, p. 152ff. See also Lin 2010 for an overview of yukti in Saṃdh.

Mahāvyutpatti 1113.

The polysemous word chos (usually a translation of dharma) is used here in the sense of “qualities,” as when someone or something is said to possess particularly efficacious, good, or beneficial qualities. It also can mean “virtue” in the nonreligious and nonmoral sense.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

A general term applied to spiritual practitioners who live as ascetic mendicants. In Buddhist texts, the term usually refers to Buddhist monastics, but it can also designate a practitioner from other ascetic/monastic spiritual traditions. In this context śramaṇa is often contrasted with the term brāhmaṇa (bram ze), which refers broadly to followers of the Vedic tradition. Any renunciate, not just a Buddhist, could be referred to as a śramaṇa if they were not within the Vedic fold. The epithet Great Śramaṇa is often applied to the Buddha.

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.

A sacred area located outside of Vārāṇasī where many sages are said to have practiced in the past.

Technical term in Buddhist logic.

Mahāvyutpatti 7470.

The subsidiary afflictive emotions that arise in dependence upon the six root afflictive emotions (attachment, hatred, pride, ignorance, doubt, and wrong view); they are (1) anger (krodha, khro ba), (2) enmity/malice (upanāha, ’khon ’dzin), (3) concealment (mrakśa, ’chab pa), (4) outrage (pradāsa, ’tshig pa), (5) jealousy (īrśya, phrag dog), (6) miserliness (matsarya, ser sna), (7) deceit (māyā, sgyu), (8) dishonesty (śāṭhya, g.yo), (9) haughtiness (mada, rgyags pa), (10) harmfulness (vihiṃsa, rnam par ’tshe ba), (11) shamelessness (āhrīkya, ngo tsha med pa), (12) non-consideration (anapatrāpya, khril med pa), (13) lack of faith (aśraddhya, ma dad pa), (14) laziness (kausīdya, le lo), (15) non-conscientiousness (pramāda, bag med pa), (16) forgetfulness (muśitasmṛtitā, brjed nges), (17) non-introspection (asaṃprajanya, shes bzhin ma yin pa), (18) dullness (nigmagṇa, bying ba), (19) agitation (auddhatya, rgod pa), and (20) distraction (vikṣepa, rnam g.yeng) (Rigzin 329, 129).

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.

Often rendered simply as “being.”

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.

See n.191.

The six destinies correspond to the six realms of Buddhist cosmogony (i.e., gods, demigods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings).

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.

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).”

Mahāvyutpatti 897.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

The name of a hearer.

See “subliminal cognition.”

See Schmithausen’s groundbreaking work on the topic (1987 and 2014). Schmithausen considers the ālayavijñāna to be “a continuous subliminal form of mind” (Schmithausen 2014, p. 27).

Lit. “like the skin.”

See “four kinds of sustenance.”

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

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.

Type of Sanskrit compound.

The ten powers (daśabala, stobs bcu) of the Tathāgata are (1) the power of knowledge of what is possible and what is not possible (sthānāsthāna­jñāna­bala, gnas dang gnas ma yin pa mkhyen pa’i stobs); (2) the power of knowledge of the individual results of actions (karmasvaka­jñāna­bala, las kyi rnam smin mkhyen pa’i stobs); (3) the power of knowledge of different practices leading to various destinies (sarvatra­gāminī­prati­pajjñāna­bala, thams cad du ’gro ba’i lam mkhyen pa’i stobs); (4) the power of knowledge of the different dispositions and tendencies of different beings (aneka­dhātu­nānā­dhātu­jñāna­bala, khams sna tshogs mkhyen pa’i stobs); (5) the power of knowledge of the different aspirations of beings (nānādhi­mukti­jñāna­bala, mos pa sna tshogs mkhyen pa’i stobs); (6) the power of knowledge of the different degrees of development of the faculties and inclinations of beings (indriya­parāparya­jñānabala, dbang po mchog dang mchog ma yin pa mkhyen pa’i stobs); (7) the power of knowledge of the absorptions, deliverances, concentrations, and attainments (dhyāna­vimokṣa­samādhi­samāpatti­jñāna­bala, bsam gtan dang rnam thar dang ting nge ’dzin dang snyoms par ’jug pa thams cad mkhyen pa’i stobs); (8) the power of knowledge of previous lives (pūrva­nivāsa­jñāna­bala, sngon gyi gnas rjes su dran pa mkhyen pa’i stobs); (9) the power of knowledge of the deaths and births of beings according to their actions (cyutyu­papāda­jñāna­bala, ’chi ’pho bo dang skye ba mkhyen pa’i stobs); and (10) the power of knowledge of the destruction of the impurities (āsravakṣaya­jñāna­bala, zag pa zad pa mkhyen pa’i stobs). (Rahula 2001: 229–230, n118).

Mahāvyutpatti 368.

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

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.

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.

The timira disease includes a variety of eye disorders including myopia, cataract, etc. In the context of Buddhist texts, this term is used to refer to eye floaters (i.e., spots, specks, or strings appearing in one’s visual field). This eye disorder is called myodesopsia or muscae volitantes (Latin for “flying flies”).

The largest universe described in Buddhist cosmology. This term, in Abhidharma cosmology, refers to 1,000^³ world systems, i.e., 1,000 “dichiliocosms” or “two thousand great thousand world realms” (dvi­sāhasra­mahā­sāhasra­lokadhātu), which are in turn made up of 1,000 first-order world systems, each with its own Mount Sumeru, continents, sun and moon, etc.

The true state or nature of things. See also n.97.

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

The ultimate and relative, or conventional, truth.

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).

This term has three meanings: (1) the ultimate nature, (2) the experience of the ultimate nature, and (3) the quiescent state of a worthy one (arhat) to be avoided by bodhisattvas.

Mahāvyutpatti 6429.

Mahāvyutpatti 363.

The term has a double connotation: (1) “without effort” and (2) “unproduced (or brought about) by causes and conditions.” See Edgerton 1953, p. 21.

lack of [any] actuality, no actuality, deprived of any actuality, devoid of any actuality

See Edgerton 1953, p. 448,1–2; Tillemans 1997, p. 157ff. Lamotte translates this term with ‘…de sécurité suprême’; see Lamotte 1935, p. 175.

See Edgerton 1953, p. 398.

The name of a bodhisattva stage.

The name of the northern continent of Jambudvīpa where people live in perfect harmony. See Bhattacharya 2000.

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

Technical term in Buddhist logic.

The name of a tathāgata

A bodhisattva mahāsattva.

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

See Edgerton 1953, p. 102.

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.