The celestial realm of the tathāgata Akṣobhya in the east.

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.

Intellectual and spiritual readiness to accept certain tenets, such as the nonarising of phenomena or the law of karma. Also translated here as “patience.”

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

The means of winning over beings; traditionally there are four of them‍—generosity, kind talk, meaningful action, and impartiality.

Mental and emotional traits that bind one to saṃsāra; the fundamental three are ignorance, desire, and anger. When the term refers to the fundamental three, it tends to be translated as “the afflictions.”

One of the māras.

See “five aggregates.”

The elephant of Indra.

One of the gods’ realms.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

At the time of the Buddha, the countries of Aṅga and Magadha were referred to as a single entity.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Delta Scorpii in the occidental tradition.

See “correct applications of mindfulness.”

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Alpha Orionis in the occidental tradition.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Alpha Hydrae in the occidental tradition.

A class of titans or demigods.

One of the five ascetics, the companions of the Buddha during his early practice of austerities.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Beta Arietis in the occidental tradition.

One of the five yakṣa generals.

I.e., awakening to the reality of phenomena (inner and outer) as they actually are.

A mythical horse.

See “four bases of supernatural power.”

One of the twelve links of dependent origination.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as 35 Arietis in the occidental tradition.

One of the five yakṣa generals.

One of the great brahmās.

The army, divisions, or factions of Māra, the deity who personifies spiritual death; from Māra’s point of view, this is the “white faction.” Also refers to the dark fortnight of the lunar month.

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”).

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Saffron Color attains buddhahood as Precious Light.

One of the māras.

A being who is dedicated to the cultivation and fulfilment of the altruistic intention to attain perfect buddhahood, traversing the ten bodhisattva levels (daśabhūmi, sa bcu). Bodhisattvas purposely opt to remain within cyclic existence in order to liberate all sentient beings, instead of simply seeking personal freedom from suffering. In terms of the view, they realize both the selflessness of persons and the selflessness of phenomena.

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).

One of the trinity of Hindu gods, a protagonist and ally of the Buddha; when spelled with the lower case, it denotes any god from the multiple worlds of Brahmā.

Traditionally, there are eighteen branches of knowledge; they include the great philosophical systems of India (Sāṅkhya, Yoga, etc.) as well as ordinary sciences and arts, such as arithmetic, medicine, astrology, music, archery, etc.

A fully awakened being; when spelled with a capital letter it refers to the Buddha Śākyamuni, one of the Three Jewels.

The Tibetan translates both stūpa and caitya with the same word, mchod rten, meaning “basis” or “recipient” of “offerings” or “veneration.” Pali: cetiya.A caitya, although often synonymous with stūpa, can also refer to any site, sanctuary or shrine that is made for veneration, and may or may not contain relics.A stūpa, literally “heap” or “mound,” is a mounded or circular structure usually containing relics of the Buddha or the masters of the past. It is considered to be a sacred object representing the awakened mind of a buddha, but the symbolism of the stūpa is complex, and its design varies throughout the Buddhist world. Stūpas continue to be erected today as objects of veneration and merit making.

The name of a mountain range.

The moon personified as a god.

A nobleman in the retinue of the Buddha. Also the name of a prophesied buddha.

An advanced state of meditation corresponding to the ninth anupūrva­vihāra­samāpatti (the attainment of (nine) successive stages); the state of the eighth vimokṣa (liberation).

One of the five yakṣa generals.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Spica (alpha Virginis) in the occidental tradition.

Dhyāna is defined as one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind, free from afflicted mental states. Four states of dhyāna are identified as being conducive to birth within the form realm. In the context of the Mahāyāna, it is the fifth of the six perfections. It is commonly translated as “concentration,” “meditative concentration,” and so on.

Fifth of the five aggregates.

In the Buddhist context, the ritual of consecration usually involves an initiation or empowerment.

This refers to the four types of mindfulness: the mindfulness of the body, sensations, thought, and phenomena.

The most degenerate in the cosmic cycle of five ages.

One of the gods’ realms.

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

The arising of beings explained as a chain of causation involving twelve interdependent links or stages.

One of the three realms of saṃsāra (the other two being the form and formless realms).

Cousin, student, and competitor with the Buddha. He is one of the main characters in the stories from the Buddha’s life.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Beta Delphini in the occidental tradition.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

Magical spell, usually a longer one with a specific purpose. Being also the name of a literary genre, this term may refer also to the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī or a section of text dealing with a particular dhāraṇī.

This is another term used for dhāraṇī that is meant to convey, among other meanings, the idea that a dhāraṇī seals or stamps upon the reciter or the targeted phenomenon the nature that it embodies.

The term dharma conveys ten different meanings, according to Vasubandhu’s Vyākhyā­yukti. The primary meanings are as follows: the doctrine taught by the Buddha (Dharma); the ultimate reality underlying and expressed through the Buddha’s teaching (Dharma); the trainings that the Buddha’s teaching stipulates (dharmas); the various awakened qualities or attainments acquired through practicing and realizing the Buddha’s teaching (dharmas); qualities or aspects more generally, i.e., phenomena or phenomenal attributes (dharmas); and mental objects (dharmas).

This may refer to the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī or to a section dealing with a particular dhāraṇī.

The Skt. term, which means “way,” “method,” or “system,” could be interpreted as that which is “conducive” to the Dharma, which “leads” to the Dharma or which “guides” in accordance with the principles of the Dharma. In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, it variously refers to individual dhāraṇīs, the sections that deal with these dhāraṇīs, or the entire text of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī.

One of the Four Great Kings.

The fourth of the six perfections.

The second of the six perfections.

One of the bodhisattvas who received from the Buddha a prophecy of his future awakening.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Supreme Wisdom attains buddhahood as the tathāgata Supreme Sun of Bliss.

An earth deity.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

One of the bodhisattvas in the Buddha’s retinue; also one of the māras.

The guardian deity of the Buddha’s monastery in Veṇuvana.

A tree deity.

Earth (Tib. sa, Skt. bhūmi) is the Indian goddess representing Mother Earth. She goes by various other names including Vasundharā (“holder of the riches”).

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

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.

Right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right absorption.

Sphere; primary element (such as earth, water, etc.; see “six elements”); sensory “elements” that comprise six types of sense objects, six types of sense faculties, and six sense consciousnesses.

A clear analysis or detailed presentation. Also translated here as “prophecy.”

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Jyotīrasa attains buddhahood as the tathāgata Immaculate Fragrant Star of Bright Splendor.

Traditionally there are thirty-seven factors conducive to awakening.

Fetters binding one to saṃsāra; they come in groups of three (ignorance, hatred, and desire) or ten.

Acts for which one will be reborn in hell immediately after death, without any intervening stages; they are (1) killing one’s master or father, (2) killing one’s mother, (3) killing an arhat, (4) maliciously drawing blood from a buddha, and (5) causing a schism in the saṅgha.

The five constituents of a living entity: form , sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness.

Five signs that the later era of an eon has arrived: degenerate views, afflictions, beings, lifespan, and time.

A māra.

First of the five aggregates.

Predispositions; conditioning (as in “conditioned existence”) in general; also the fourth aggregate, that of volition.

The name of our current eon.

These are (1) single-pointed intention, (2) single-pointed thoughts, (3) single-pointed diligence, and (4) single-pointed investigation.

The four levels of meditative concentration.

The four errors are (1) the mistaken belief in permanence, (2) in the self (ātman), (3) in the purity of that which is impure, and (4) that the suffering is pleasurable.

Four gods who live on the lower slopes (fourth level) of Mount Meru in the eponymous Heaven of the Four Great Kings (Cāturmahā­rājika, rgyal chen bzhi’i ris) and guard the four cardinal directions. Each is the leader of a nonhuman class of beings living in his realm. They are Dhṛtarāṣṭra, ruling the gandharvas in the east; Virūḍhaka, ruling over the kumbhāṇḍas in the south; Virūpākṣa, ruling the nāgas in the west; and Vaiśravaṇa (also known as Kubera) ruling the yakṣas in the north. Also referred to as Guardians of the World or World Protectors (lokapāla, ’jig rten skyong ba).

Personification of the four factors that keep beings in saṃsāra‍—afflictions, death, aggregates, and pride arising through meditative states.

The attributes of a practitioner; the first three are garments, food, and bedding, and the fourth is the dedication to the path of liberation.

The same as the four āsrava (“outflows” or “contaminants”), namely (1) sensual desire, (2) conditioned existence, (3) wrong views, and (4) ignorance; also refers to birth, old age, sickness, and death.

The truth of suffering, the cause of suffering, the path, and the cessation of suffering.

The fourfold assembly comprises monks, nuns, and female and male lay practitioners.

One of the gods’ realms.

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.”

The Gaṅgā, or Ganges in English, is considered to be the most sacred river of India, particularly within the Hindu tradition. It starts in the Himalayas, flows through the northern plains of India, bathing the holy city of Vārāṇasī, and meets the sea at the Bay of Bengal, in Bangladesh. In the sūtras, however, this river is mostly mentioned not for its sacredness but for its abundant sands‍—noticeable still today on its many sandy banks and at its delta‍—which serve as a common metaphor for infinitely large numbers.According to Buddhist cosmology, as explained in the Abhidharmakośa, it is one of the four rivers that flow from Lake Anavatapta and cross the southern continent of Jambudvīpa‍—the known human world or more specifically the Indian subcontinent.

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.

One of the names of the Buddha, especially during his earlier life as an ascetic.

The first of the six perfections.

One of the māras.

One of the tathāgatas.

The name of an eon in the past.

One of the tathāgatas.

In the most general sense the devas‍—the term is cognate with the English divine‍—are a class of celestial beings who frequently appear in Buddhist texts, often at the head of the assemblies of nonhuman beings who attend and celebrate the teachings of the Buddha Śākyamuni and other buddhas and bodhisattvas. In Buddhist cosmology the devas occupy the highest of the five or six “destinies” (gati) of saṃsāra among which beings take rebirth. The devas reside in the devalokas, “heavens” that traditionally number between twenty-six and twenty-eight and are divided between the desire realm (kāmadhātu), form realm (rūpadhātu), and formless realm (ārūpyadhātu). A being attains rebirth among the devas either through meritorious deeds (in the desire realm) or the attainment of subtle meditative states (in the form and formless realms). While rebirth among the devas is considered favorable, it is ultimately a transitory state from which beings will fall when the conditions that lead to rebirth there are exhausted. Thus, rebirth in the god realms is regarded as a diversion from the spiritual path.

One of the female bodhisattvas.

Leaving the life of a householder and embracing the life of a wandering, renunciant follower of the Buddha.

A god from the higher subdivision of the world of Brahmā .

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Delta Corvi in the occidental tradition.

A disciple of the Buddha; in the Mahāyāna sūtras this term refers to the followers of the Hīnayāna, or the Lesser Vehicle.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Discriminating Intellect attains buddhahood.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Demonstrator of Consequences attains buddhahood as the tathāgata Lamp of Fire.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

The name of the buddha that the sage Jyotīrasa will become, according to a prophecy by the Buddha.

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

Direct gnosis without conceptuality or mental elaboration.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

The river flowing down Mount Meru.

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.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue; also one of Māra’s sons.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

A buddha who comes to Śākyamuni’s buddha field.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

One of the five yakṣa generals.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Antares in the occidental tradition.

A sage, originally a devotee of Maheśvara.

One of the māras.

The guardian deity of the gate at the Buddha’s monastery near Rājagṛha.

One of the tathāgatas.

A place where the Buddha often resided, within the Bamboo Park (Veṇuvana) outside Rajagṛha that had been donated to him. The name is said to have arisen when, one day, King Bimbisāra fell asleep after a romantic liaison in the Bamboo Park. While the king rested, his consort wandered off. A snake (the reincarnation of the park’s previous owner, who still resented the king’s acquisition of the park) approached with malign intentions. Through the king’s tremendous merit, a gathering of kalandaka‍—crows or other birds according to Tibetan renderings, but some Sanskrit and Pali sources suggest flying squirrels‍—miraculously appeared and began squawking. Their clamor alerted the king’s consort to the danger, who rushed back and hacked the snake to pieces, thereby saving the king’s life. King Bimbisāra then named the spot Kalandakanivāpa (“Kalandakas’ Feeding Ground”), sometimes (though not in the Vinayavastu) given as Kalandakanivāsa (“Kalandakas’ Abode”) in their honor. The story is told in the Saṃghabhedavastu (Toh 1, ch.17, Degé Kangyur vol.4, folio 77.b et seq.). For more details and other origin stories, see the 84000 Knowledge Base article Veṇuvana and Kalandakanivāpa.

The second buddha of the Fortunate Eon.

Meaning “action” in its most basic sense, karma is an important concept in Buddhist philosophy as the cumulative force of previous physical, verbal, and mental acts, which determines present experience and will determine future existences.

One of the Buddha’s closest hearer disciples; the name of the third buddha of the Fortunate Eon.

A class of demons; a subdivision of the pretas.

Another name of Maudgalyāyana.

The father of Maudgalyāyana.

One of the tathāgatas.

“One who belongs to the Kuśika lineage.” An epithet of the god Śakra, also known as Indra, the king of the gods in the Trāyastriṃśa heaven. In the Ṛgveda, Indra is addressed by the epithet Kauśika, with the implication that he is associated with the descendants of the Kuśika lineage (gotra) as their aiding deity. In later epic and Purāṇic texts, we find the story that Indra took birth as Gādhi Kauśika, the son of Kuśika and one of the Vedic poet-seers, after the Puru king Kuśika had performed austerities for one thousand years to obtain a son equal to Indra who could not be killed by others. In the Pāli Kusajātaka (Jāt V 141–45), the Buddha, in one of his former bodhisattva lives as a Trāyastriṃśa god, takes birth as the future king Kusa upon the request of Indra, who wishes to help the childless king of the Mallas, Okkaka, and his chief queen Sīlavatī. This story is also referred to by Nāgasena in the Milindapañha.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

One of the māras.

A nobleman in the retinue of the Buddha.

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.

The first buddha of the Fortunate Eon.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Pleiades in the occidental tradition.

The ruling caste in the traditional four-caste hierarchy of India, associated with warriors, the aristocracy, and kings.

One of the māras.

A god of wealth, sometimes (as in the Ratnaketudhāraṇī) identified with Vaiśravaṇa, one of the Four Great Kings.

Another name of Karttikeya, the god of war.

One of the previous incarnations of Māra.

A class of nonhuman beings.

One of the tathāgatas.

The bodhisattva Demonstrator of Consequences when he becomes a buddha.

One of the future buddhas.

Traditionally there are seven limbs of awakening (saptabodhyaṅga) of an awakened one‍—mindfulness, discrimination, diligence, joy, pliability, absorption, and equanimity.

The bodhisattva Earth Holder when he becomes a buddha.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Siddhimati attains buddhahood as the tathāgata Vairocana .

An ancient Indian kingdom that lay to the south of the Ganges River in what today is the state of Bihar. Magadha was the largest of the sixteen “great states” (mahājanapada) that flourished between the sixth and third centuries ʙᴄᴇ in northern India. During the life of the Buddha Śākyamuni, it was ruled by King Bimbisāra and later by Bimbisāra's son, Ajātaśatru. Its capital was initially Rājagṛha (modern-day Rajgir) but was later moved to Pāṭaliputra (modern-day Patna). Over the centuries, with the expansion of the Magadha’s might, it became the capital of the vast Mauryan empire and seat of the great King Aśoka.This region is home to many of the most important Buddhist sites, including Bodh Gayā, where the Buddha attained awakening; Vulture Peak (Gṛdhra­kūṭa), where the Buddha bestowed many well-known Mahāyāna sūtras; and the Buddhist university of Nālandā that flourished between the fifth and twelfth centuries ᴄᴇ, among many others.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Regulus in the occidental tradition.

The chief god in the realm of Brahmā .

One of the tathāgatas.

One of the forms of the god Śiva.

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 mother of Pūrṇa, one of the four great hearers.

The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).

One of the gods’ realms.

Apart from the well-known meaning of a magical diagram and several other conventional meanings, this term seems to denote any magically charged area or sphere of a specific type, such as, e.g., the maṇḍala of wind, the maṇḍala of sound, etc.

One of the tathāgatas.

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.One of the bodhisattvas in the retinue of the Buddha.

Māra, literally “death” or “maker of death,” is the name of the deva who tried to prevent the Buddha from achieving awakening, the name given to the class of beings he leads, and also an impersonal term for the destructive forces that keep beings imprisoned in saṃsāra: (1) As a deva, Māra is said to be the principal deity in the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations (paranirmitavaśavartin), the highest paradise in the desire realm. He famously attempted to prevent the Buddha’s awakening under the Bodhi tree‍—see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 21.1‍—and later sought many times to thwart the Buddha’s activity. In the sūtras, he often also creates obstacles to the progress of śrāvakas and bodhisattvas. (2) The devas ruled over by Māra are collectively called mārakāyika or mārakāyikadevatā, the “deities of Māra’s family or class.” In general, these māras too do not wish any being to escape from saṃsāra, but can also change their ways and even end up developing faith in the Buddha, as exemplified by Sārthavāha; see The Play in Full (Toh 95), 21.14 and 21.43. (3) The term māra can also be understood as personifying four defects that prevent awakening, called (i) the divine māra (devaputra­māra), which is the distraction of pleasures; (ii) the māra of Death (mṛtyumāra), which is having one’s life interrupted; (iii) the māra of the aggregates (skandhamāra), which is identifying with the five aggregates; and (iv) the māra of the afflictions (kleśamāra), which is being under the sway of the negative emotions of desire, hatred, and ignorance.

One of the principal śrāvaka disciples of the Buddha, paired with Śāriputra. He was renowned for his miraculous powers. His family clan was descended from Mudgala, hence his name Maudgalyā­yana, “the son of Mudgala’s descendants.” Respectfully referred to as Mahā­maudgalyā­yana, “Great Maudgalyāyana.”

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.

The central mountain of the universe, by the reckoning of Buddhist cosmology, identified with Mount Kailas in western Tibet.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Lambda Orionis in the occidental tradition.

The mother of Maudgalyāyana.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Lambda Scorpii in the occidental tradition.

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.

One of the epithets of Viṣṇu.

One of the māras.

The state attained when the afflictions have been extinguished.

This term in particular applies to stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, and worthy ones.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

“Complete nirvāṇa”; the term used when referring to the passing away of a fully realized being.

Third of the six perfections. Also translated here as “acceptance.”

One of the bodhisattvas.

The third of the five aggregates.

Most of the time this term refers to any of the six perfections‍—generosity, discipline , patience, diligence, concentration, and insight.

Quality or phenomenon in a general sense. See entry “Dharma.”

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.

The guardian deity of Veṇuvana.

Religious master.

The bodhisattva Saffron Color when he becomes a buddha.

One of the five or six classes of sentient beings, into which beings are born as the karmic fruition of past miserliness. As the term in Sanskrit means “the departed,” they are analogous to the ancestral spirits of Vedic tradition, the pitṛs, who starve without the offerings of descendants. It is also commonly translated as “hungry ghost” or “starving spirit,” as in the Chinese 餓鬼 e gui.They are sometimes said to reside in the realm of Yama, but are also frequently described as roaming charnel grounds and other inhospitable or frightening places along with piśācas and other such beings. They are particularly known to suffer from great hunger and thirst and the inability to acquire sustenance. Detailed descriptions of their realm and experience, including a list of the thirty-six classes of pretas, can be found in The Application of Mindfulness of the Sacred Dharma, Toh 287, 2.­1281– 2.1482.

A prophecy usually made by the Buddha or another tathāgata concerning the perfect awakening of one of their followers; a literary genre or category of works that contain such prophecies. Also translated here as “exposition.”

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Beta Geminorum in the occidental tradition.

The generic name of the five pure realms inhabited by the higher orders of the gods.

The future buddha Samantadarśin’s buddha field.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Immaculately Moved by Beings attains buddhahood as Candraprabha.

One of the four great hearers.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Alpha Pegasi in the occidental tradition.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Delta Leonis in the occidental tradition.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Delta Sagittarii in the occidental tradition.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Delta Cancri in the occidental tradition.

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.

A class of nonhuman beings that are often, but certainly not always, considered demonic in the Buddhist tradition. They are often depicted as flesh-eating monsters who haunt frightening places and are ugly and evil-natured with a yearning for human flesh, and who additionally have miraculous powers, such as being able to change their appearance.

One of the tathāgatas.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas.

It occurs as the main title of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī and also as the name of the main dhāraṇī of the Ratnaketudhāraṇī. It is also used in Buddhist texts to designate a special meditative absorption, a tathāgata, and a bodhisattva. Generally, the term refers to something precious and illuminating, i.e., a guiding light.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

One of the gods’ realms.

One of the gods’ realms.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Zeta Pisicum in the occidental tradition.

These are four: preventing the arising of evil that has not arisen, eliminating the evil that has arisen, generating good qualities that have not arisen, and maintaining good qualities that have arisen.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Aldebaran in the occidental tradition.

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

A person, usually endowed with some superhuman powers; also a class of superhuman beings (in the latter meaning this term is used in its Sanskrit form).

The name for our world system, the universe of a thousand million worlds, or trichiliocosm, in which the four-continent world is located. Each trichiliocosm is ruled by a god Brahmā; thus, in this context, he bears the title of Sahāṃpati, Lord of Sahā. The world system of Sahā, or Sahālokadhātu, is also described as the buddhafield of the Buddha Śākyamuni where he teaches the Dharma to beings. The name Sahā possibly derives from the Sanskrit √sah, “to bear, endure, or withstand.” It is often interpreted as alluding to the inhabitants of this world being able to endure the suffering they encounter. The Tibetan translation, mi mjed, follows along the same lines. It literally means “not painful,” in the sense that beings here are able to bear the suffering they experience.

Usually (when spelled with the capital letter) this is one of the names of Indra; in this case is denotes any of the ruling gods in the Realm of the Thirty-Three Gods.The lord of the gods in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (trāyastriṃśa). 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. Also known by other names such as Kauśika, Devendra, and Śacipati.

The lord of the gods in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (trāyastriṃśa). 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. Also known by other names such as Kauśika, Devendra, and Śacipati.

Name of the ancient tribe in which the Buddha was born as a prince; their kingdom was based to the east of Kośala, in the foothills near the present-day border of India and Nepal, with Kapilavastu as its capital.

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.

A future buddha.

One of the five yakṣa generals.

Conditioned existence fraught with suffering.

Though often specifically reserved for the monastic community, this term can be applied to any of the four Buddhist communities‍—monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen‍—as well as to identify the different groups of practitioners, like the community of bodhisattvas or the community of śrāvakas. It is also the third of the Three Jewels (triratna) of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Teaching, and the Community.

One of the māras.

The mother of Śāriputra.

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.”

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Lambda Aquarii in the occidental tradition.

There are three types of sensation‍—pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral; they constitute the second of the five aggregates.

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.

The contact of the sense organs with the sense objects. Also translated here as “touch.”

Seven qualities of a spiritual practitioner: faith, discipline , shame, modesty, obedience, renunciation, and insight.

“One who accomplished his aim,” the name given to the Buddha Śākyamuni when he was a child.

A medicine deity; a bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

One of the tathāgatas. The second of the seven buddhas, with Śākyamuni as the seventh. Identified in other texts as the penultimate buddha to appear in the eon that preceded the present one.

One of the śakra s.

The usual four‍—earth, water, fire, and air‍—plus space and consciousness.

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.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Supreme Scent-Perfused Preacher attains buddhahood as Totally Fragrant.

This term in its broadest sense can refer to any being, whether human, animal, or nonhuman. However, it is often used to refer to a specific class of nonhuman beings, especially when bhūtas are mentioned alongside rākṣasas, piśācas, or pretas. In common with these other kinds of nonhumans, bhūtas are usually depicted with unattractive and misshapen bodies. Like several other classes of nonhuman beings, bhūtas take spontaneous birth. As their leader is traditionally regarded to be Rudra-Śiva (also known by the name Bhūta), with whom they haunt dangerous and wild places, bhūtas are especially prominent in Śaivism, where large sections of certain tantras concentrate on them.

One of the buddhas prophesied by Buddha Śākyamuni.

The name of a tathāgata.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Alpha Aquilae in the occidental tradition.

A stage in practice that will inevitably result in nirvāṇa. The first of the four attainments of the path of the hearers.

One of the four great hearers.

The subtlemost form of deluded consciousness, which serves as the substratum for karmic seeds to be stored; likewise the substratum from which appearances manifest.

“Subtle wisdom” is the opposite of “coarse wisdom” (sthūlajñāna). The latter is the conventional wisdom or knowledge, and the former is the wisdom or gnosis that does not accept or reject.

The laborer caste in the fourfold division of the society.

The buddha field in which the Buddha Amitābha lives.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

Most of the time this term refers to any of the five, sometimes six, superknowledges‍—the “divine eye,” “divine ear,” knowing the thoughts of others, knowing former lives, and the ability to produce miracles.

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

The bodhisattva Supreme Wisdom when he becomes a buddha.

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

The bodhisattva Unobscured Lamp when he becomes a buddha.

The chief queen of the king Utpalavaktra.

The sun personified as a god.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Arcturus in the occidental tradition.

The guardian deity of Rājagṛha.

The name of various mythical beings.

The ten strengths of a buddha or a bodhisattva; they are ten types of clairvoyant knowledge. They should not be confused with the “ten powers” (daśavaśitā), which are powers to control various aspects of existence. The ten strengths are (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 different levels of capabilities, (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.

The opposite of the standard nonvirtuous actions (three of the body, four of the speech, and three of the mind).

The three fetters are the belief in self or independent existence, doubt, and clinging to rites and rituals.

These are the formations of the body, the speech, and the mind.

The Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha‍—the three objects of Buddhist refuge.

The animal, preta, and hell realms.

The formless realm, the form realm, and the desire realm, comprised of thirty-one planes of existence in Buddhist cosmology.

The three types of sensation are the pleasant, the unpleasant, and neutral.

The subject, the object, and the act of perception, which together constitute the pattern of duality.

The suffering experienced as actual pain, the suffering of change, and potential suffering.

The three kinds of knowledge obtained by the Buddha on the night of his awakening. These comprise the knowledge of the death and rebirth of sentient beings, the knowledge of remembering previous lives, and the knowledge of the cessation of defilements.

In the context of the sūtras, the three vehicles are the Hearer, Solitary Buddha, and Bodhisattva Vehicles.

Existence in any of the three realms.

The restraint of the body, speech, and mind.

The threefold universe is comprised of the realms of desire, form, and formlessness.

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.

The father of Śāriputra.

The bodhisattva Supreme Scent-Perfused Preacher when he becomes a buddha.

The contact of the sense organs with the sense objects. Also translated here as “sensory contact.”

One of the māras; also one of the five yakṣa generals.

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).

One of the gods’ realms.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Unobscured Lamp attains buddhahood as Supreme Wisdom .

A bodhisattva who seeks a prophecy from Śākyamuni.

Another name of Śāriputra.

“With a Face Like a Water Lily,” the name of a legendary king.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Gamma Pegasi in the occidental tradition.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Beta Leonis in the occidental tradition.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Sigma Sagittarii in the occidental tradition.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

In the Ratnaketudhāraṇī, he is one of the six “directional” tathāgatas; also, one of the future buddhas.

One of the Four Great Kings; a god of wealth.

The merchant caste in the fourfold division of the society.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

The king of gods in the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations.

“Bamboo Grove,” a garden in Rājagṛha and a favorite residence of the Buddha and his disciples. It was situated on land donated by King Bimbisāra of Magadha and was the first of several landholdings donated to the Buddhist community during the time of the Buddha.

A buddha field in the future where the bodhisattva Earth Holder attains buddhahood as the tathāgata Lord of Wisdom.

One of the epithets applied to a buddha or a tathāgata.

One of Māra’s daughters.

A bodhisattva in the retinue of the Buddha.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

One of the tathāgatas.

One of the tathāgatas.

One of the Four Great Kings.

One of the Four Great Kings.

The name of a lunar asterism. Its chief star is known as Alpha Librae in the occidental tradition.

One of the tathāgatas.The third of the seven buddhas, with Śākyamuni as the seventh. Identified in other texts as the last buddha to appear in the eon that preceded the present one.

A bodhisattva in the Buddha’s retinue.

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).

All good beings together (as opposed to the black faction of Māra); from Māra’s point of view, this is the “black faction.” The bright fortnight of the lunar month.

See “Four Great Kings.”

According to Buddhist tradition, one who is worthy of worship (pūjām arhati), or one who has conquered the enemies, the mental afflictions (kleśa-ari-hata-vat), and reached liberation from the cycle of rebirth and suffering. It is the fourth and highest of the four fruits attainable by śrāvakas. Also used as an epithet of the Buddha.

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.

The god of death and the overlord of the hell realms.

The chief god in the gods’ realm called Free from Strife (Yāma).