Glossary

Almsgiving
see charity.

Amitabha
Sanskrit word, literally means boundless light and boundless life. He is the Buddha in the Land of Ultimate Bliss (Pure Land), in which all beings enjoy unbounded happiness. Amitabha has forty-eight great vows to establish and adorn his Pure Land. People also recite or call upon his name by the time of dying will be born in the Land of Ultimate Bliss with the reception by Amitabha. Amitabha is one of the most popular and well-known Buddha in China.

Avalokitesvara
Sanskrit word for the Bodhisattva who Hears the Sounds of the World. He rescues all beings by hearing their voices of suffering and cries for help. In Chinese, he is called Guan Shr Yin or Guan Yin Bodhisattva. As one of the Four Great Bodhisattva, he is the one with the greatest compassion and mercy.
Guan Yin is one of the triad of Amitabha Buddha, represented on his left, and being the future Buddha in the Land of Ultimate Bliss (Pure Land) after Amitabha Buddha.
Guan Yin can transform into many different forms in order to cross over to the beings. Guan Yin is one of the most popular Bodhisattva in China.

Bhaisajyaguru
Sanskrit word, the Buddha of Medicine, who quells all diseases and lengthens life. His is the Buddha in the Pure Land of the Paradise of the East.

Bodhisattva
a Future Buddha who is a being destined to Buddhahood. Bodhi means Enlightenment and Sattva means Sentient and Conscious. Therefore Bodhisattva refers to the sentient being of or for the great wisdom and enlightenment. Bodhisattva's vow/aim is the pursuit of Buddhahood and the salvation of others and of all. He seeks enlightenment to enlighten others. He will sacrifice himself to save the others. He is devoid of egoism and devoted to help the others. The way and discipline of Bodhisattva is to benefit the self and the others, leading to Buddhahood.

Brahmin
the highest of the four Indian Castes at the time of Shakyamuni. They served Brahma, his offering, the keepers of the Vedas, i.e. priestly.

Buddha
means "the Enlightened One" or "the Awakened One".

Chan
also called Zen; see Contemplation and Meditation.

Charity
or almsgiving, the first Paramitas. There are three kinds of charity in terms of goods, doctrines (Dharma) and courage (fearlessness). Out of the three, the merits and virtues of doctrines charity is the most surpassing. Charity done for no reward here and hereafter is called pure or unsullied, while the sullied charity is done for the purpose of personal benefits. In Buddhism, the merits and virtues of pure charity is the best.

Contemplation
abstract contemplation. There are four levels through which the mind frees itself from all subjects and objective hindrances and reaches a state of absolute indifference and annihilation of thought, perception, and will. See also Meditation.

Devine Eye
One of the Six Psychic Power and one of the Five Eyes. Unlimited vision, large and small, distant and near, the destiny of all beings in future rebirth. It may be obtained by human eyes through the practice of meditation/Samadhi.

Dharma
Sanskrit word, means law, truth, anything Buddhist. It is used in the sense of all things, visible or invisible.

Devotion
see Vigor.

Effort
see Vigor.

Eight Divisions of Gods and Dragons
Devas (gods), Nagas (Dragons) and others of eight divisions (classes): deva, nagas, yakas, ganharvas, asuras, gaudas, kinaras, mahoragas.

Eight Sufferings
(1) Suffering of Birth
(2) Suffering of Old Age
(3) Suffering of Sickness
(4) Suffering of Death
(5) Suffering of being apart from the loved ones
(6) Suffering being together with the despised ones
(7) Suffering of not getting what one wants
(8) Suffering of the flouishing of the Five Skandhas

Eight Winds
or the Winds of Eight Directions. Most people are usually moved by the winds of the eight directions:
(1) Praise
(2) Ridicule
(3) Suffering
(4) Happiness
(5) Benefit
(6) Destruction
(7) Gain
(8) Loss

Eightfold Path
the eight right ways for the Arhat leading to Nirvana. The eight are:
(1) Right View
(2) Right Thought
(3) Right Speech
(4) Right Action
(5) Right Livelihood
(6) Right Effort
(7) Right Remembrance
(8) Right Concentration

Endurance
see Patience.

Energy
see Vigor.

Five Bhikshus
The first five of Buddha's converts: Ajnata-Kaundinya, Asvajit, Bhadrika, Dasabala-Kasyapa, and Mahanama-Kulika. They were the first five disciples that Shakyamuni preached when he became Buddha.

Five Eyes
There are five classes of eyes:
1. human eye
2. devine eye
3. dharma eye
4. wisdom eye
5. Buddha eye

Five Offences
The five rebellious acts or deadly sins:
(1) parricide
(2) matricide
(3) killing an arhat
(4) shedding the blood of a Buddha
(5) destroying the harmony of the sangha, or fraternity.

Four Aspects (of Buddhist Dharma)
(1) the teaching
(2) the principle
(3) the practice
(4) the fruit/reward/result

Four Great Bodhisattva
They represent the four major characters of Bodhisattva:
  1. Manjusri - Universal Great Wisdom Bodhisattva
  2. Samantabhadra - Universal Worthy Great Conduct Bodhisattva
  3. Ksitigarbha - Earth TReasury King Great Vow Bodhisattva
  4. Avalokitesvara - Guan Shr Yin Great Compassion Bodhisattva

Four Great Elements
All matters are formed and are composed by four conditioned causes :
(1) earth, which is characterized by solidity and durability
(2) water, which is characterized by liquid/fluid and moisture
(3) fire, which is characterized by energy and warmth
(4) wind, which is characterized by gas/air movement

Four Noble Truths
It is the primary and fundamental doctrines of Shakyamuni
  1. Doctrine of Suffering - suffering is a necessary attribute of sentient existence (Effect of Suffering)
  2. Doctrine of Accumulation - accumulation of suffering is caused by passions (Cause of Suffering)
  3. Doctrine of Extinction - extinction of passion (Effect of Happiness)
  4. Doctrine of Path - Path leading to the extinction of passion (Cause of Happiness); i.e. Eightfold Path.
The first two are considered to be related to this life, and the last two to the life outside and beyond this world.
The Four Noble Truths were first preached to Shakyamuni's five former ascetic companions.

Four Reliance (to learning Buddhist Dharma)
The four standards of Right Dharma which buddhist should rely on or abide by:
(1) to abide by the Dharma, not the person
(2) to abide by the sutras of ultimate truth, not the sutras of incomplete truth
(3) to abide by the meaning, not the word
(4) to abide by the wisdom, not the consciousness

Four Unlimited Mind
The mind of Bodhisattva:
1. Kindness
2. Compassion
3. Delight
4. Renunciation

Four Virtues
The four Nirvana virtues:
(1) Eternity or permanence
(2) Joy
(3) Personality
(4) Purity

These four important virtues are affirmed by the sutra in the transcendental or nirvana-realm.

Four Ways (of learning Buddhist Dharma)
(1) Belief/faith
(2) Interpretation/discernment
(3) Practice/performance
(4) Verification/assurance

These are the cyclic process in learning a truth.

Fourfold Assembly
Or the Four Varga (groups) are bhiksu, bhiksuni, upasaka and upasika, i.e. monks, nuns, male and female devotees.

Giving
see charity.

Heavenly Eye
see Devine Eye.

Ksatriya
the second of the four Indian Castes at the time of Shakyamuni, they were the royal caste, the noble landlord, the warriors and the ruling castes.

Law of Dependent Organization
it states that all phenomenon arise depending upon a number of casual factors. In other word, it exists in condition that the other exist; it has in condition that others have; it extinguishes in condition that others extinguish; it has not in condition that others have not. For existence, there are twelve links in the chain:

Mahamaya
the mother of Shakaymuni. She was the Koliyan Princess and married to Suddhodana.

Maitreya
Sanskrit word, literally means friendly and benevolent. He will be the next Buddha in our world. He is now preaching in Tusita Heaven. He is usually represented as the fat laughing Buddha.

Meditation
the fifth Paramitas. There are numerous methods and subjects of meditation. See also Contemplation.

Morality
the second Paramitas, to take precepts and to keep the moral laws.

Nine Realms
The nine realms of error, or subjection to passions, i.e. all the realms of the living except the tenth and highest, the Buddha-realm. The nine realms are

Nine Stages of Lotus Flowers
Or Nine Grades, Classes of Lotus Flowers, i.e. upper superior, middle superior, lower superior, upper medium, middle medium, lower medium, upper inferior, middle inferior and lower inferior, which represent ninefold future life into Pure Land. The nine grades, or rewards, of the Pure Land, corresponding to the nine grades of development in the previous life, upon which depends, in the next life, one's distance from Amitabha, the consequent aeons that are required to approach Amitabha, and whether one's lotus will open early or late.

Nirvana
completely liberated from existence, absolute extinction or annihilation, complete extinction of individual existence. Nirvana is not death, but is rebirth.

Paramitas
It means to cross over from this shore of births and deaths to the other shore which is the Nirvana.

The Six Paramitas or means of so doings are
(1) dana - charity/giving
(2) sila - moral/conduct/taking precepts
(3) ksanti - patience
(4) virya - vigor/devotion/energy
(5) dhyana - contemplation/meditation
(6) prajna - wisdom.

The Ten Paramitas are the above plus
(7) upaya - use of expedient or proper means
(8) pranidhana - vow of bodhi and helpfulness
(9) bala - strength
(10) intelligence

Childers gives the list of ten as the perfect exercise of Each of the ten is divided into ordinary, superior and unlimited perfection, making up to thirty in total.

Patience
endurance, the third Paramitas. There are groups of two, three, four, five, six, ten and fourteen, indicating various forms of patience, equanimity, repression, forbearance, both in mundane and spiritual things. Patience refers to bearing insult and distress without resentment.

Prajna
There are three kinds of Prajna:
(1) Prajna of languages
(2) Prajna of contemplative illumination
(3) prajna of the characteristics of actuality

The last one is the ultimate wisdom, which is the wisdom of Buddha. Also see wisdom.

Pure Land
generally refers to the Paradise of the West, presided over by Amitabha. Also known as the Land of Ultimate Bliss. Other Buddhas have their own Pure Lands. The Pure-Land Sect whose chief tenet is salvation by faith in Amitabha; it is the popular cult in China and Japan.

Renunciation
One of the Four Unlimited Mind. As one of the chief Buddhist virtues, renunciation leads to a state of "undifferent without pleasure or pain". It is also an equality in mind with no distinction of self and others.

Right Action
the fourth of the Eightfold Path; respect for life (do not kill), property (do not steal) and personal relationship (no sexual misconduct) so as to purify one's mind and body.

Right Concentration
right abstraction, the eighth of the Eightfold Path; meditation, focusing the mind without distraction, preparing the mind to attain wisdom.

Right Effort
right zeal or progress, unintermitting perseverance, suppressing the rising of evil states and stimulating good states, and to perfect those which have come to beings.

Right Livelihood
the fifth of the Eightfold Path; right life, abstaining from any of the forbidden modes of living. Five kinds of livelihood are discouraged : trading in animals for slaughter, dealing in weapons, dealing in slaves, dealing in poison and dealing in intoxicants.

Right Remembrance
right memory, right mindfulness; the seventh of the Eightfold Path, avoiding distracted and clouded state of mind, awareness and self-possessed.

Right Speech
the third of Eightfold Path, abstaining from lying, slander/back biting, abuse/harsh words and idle talk.

Right Thought
right thought and intent; avoiding desire and ill-will; the second of the Eightfold Path.

Right Understanding
see Right View.

Right View
understanding the Four Noble Truths; the first of the Eightfold Path.

Samadhi
Sanskrit word for meditation. See Meditation and Contemplation.

Siddhartha Goutama
the Sanskrit word of Siddhartha, the name of Shakyamuni when he was born to the Prince Suddhodana. The name means "wish fulfilled".

Six Paramitas
see Paramitas.

Six Periods of Day and Night
Six periods in a day, three for day and three for night, i.e. morning, noon, evening, night, midnight, dawn.

Six Psychic Power
(1) the phychic power of the heavenly eye
(2) the psychic power of the heavenly ear
(3) phychic power with regard to post lives
(4) phychic power with regard to the minds
(5) the spiritually based psychic powers
(6) the psychic power of the extinction of outflows

Shakyamuni
the founder of Buddhism. He was born as the Prince of Sakyans, and was called Siddhartha Goutama. At the age of 35, he attained the supreme Enlightenment and became the Buddha and was the called Shakyamuni. The word means "capability and kindness".

Sphere of neither-perception-nor-non-perception
the highest heaven of the four "sphere of no-thing".

Sphere of no-thing
the heavens without form, immaterial, consisting only of the mind in contemplation, being four in number of which the "sphere of neither-perception-nor-nonperception" is the highest.

Suddhodana
Pure Rice Prince, the father of Shakyamuni, ruled over the Sakyans at Kapilaratthu on the Nepalese border.

Sudra
the lowest of the four Indian Castes at the time of Shakyamuni. They were peasants, slaves and serfs.

Sutra
It is a "path" necessarily passed through in the cultivation of the Way.

Taking Precepts
see Morality.

Ten Directions
the ten directions of space, i.e. the eight points of the compass and the nadir and zenith. There is a Buddha in each direction.

Ten Paramitas
see Paramitas.

Three Enlightenments
the three kinds of Enlightenment
1. Enlightenment for self
2. Enlightenment for others
3. Perfect enlightenment and accomplishment
The first is Arhat. The second is Bodhisattva. When all the three have been attained, the being becomes a Buddha.

Three Jewels
Or the Three Precious Ones, i.e. the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.

Three Roots
The three (evil) roots, i.e. desire, hate and stupidity. Another group is the three grades of good "roots" or abilities, i.e. superior, medium and inferior.

Three Sufferings
(1) Feeling of suffering
(2) Feeling of happiness - suffering of decay
(3) Feeling of neither suffering nor happiness - suffering of the activity of the Five Skandhas.

Vaisya
the third of the four Indian Castes at the time of Shakyamuni. They were merchant, entrepreneurs, traders, farmers, manufacturers, etc., but not well-educated.

Vast and Long Tongue
one of the thirty-two monks of Buddha, big enough to cover his face; it is also one of the "marvels" in the Lotus Sutra.

Vigor
the fourth Paramitas, pure and unadulterated progress, i.e. zealous and courageous progressing in the good, and eliminating the evil.

Wisdom
the highest of Paramitas; the virtue of wisdom as the principal means of attaining Nirvana. It connotes a knowledge of the illusory character of everything earthly, and destroys error, ignorance, prejudice and heresy.

Yasodhara
the wife of Siddhartha Goutama.

Zeal
see Vigor.

Zen
also called Chan; see Contemplation and Meditation.




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