The term bhikṣu, often translated as “monk,” refers to the highest among the eight types of prātimokṣa vows that make one part of the Buddhist assembly. The Sanskrit term literally means “beggar” or “mendicant,” referring to the fact that Buddhist monks and nuns‍—like other ascetics of the time‍—subsisted on alms (bhikṣā) begged from the laity. In the Tibetan tradition, which follows the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, a monk follows 253 rules as part of his moral discipline. A nun (bhikṣuṇī; dge slong ma) follows 364 rules. A novice monk (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or nun (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma) follows thirty-six rules of moral discipline (although in other vinaya traditions novices typically follow only ten).

The phenomena of saṃsāra. Contaminated phenomena are those influenced by the defilements (kleśa, nyon mongs) and karma. Thus, e.g., even virtues that are under the influence of defilements, like ignorance, are categorized as contaminated in this way.

The main topic of this sūtra; known also in Tibetan by the synonym bka’ rtags kyi phyag rgya bzhi (“the four seals of the [Buddha’s] teaching”), in Sanskrit caturmudrā (“the four seals”) or dṛṣṭi­nimitta­mudrā (“the seals that are the marks of the [Buddhist] view”).

A synonym for the “four aphorisms of the Dharma,” q.v. Often seen in Tibetan in the expanded form bka’ rtags kyi phyag rgya bzhi (“the four seals of the [Buddha’s] teaching”), the nearest Sanskrit equivalent being dṛṣṭi­nimitta­mudrā (“the seals that are the marks of the [Buddhist] view”).

Name of a king of a race of supernatural serpents who protect the doctrine.

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 first of the four truths of the noble ones. The term “suffering” includes all essentially unsatisfactory experiences of life in cyclic existence, whether physical or mental. These comprise (1) the suffering of suffering, i.e., the physical sensations and mental experiences that are self-evident as suffering and toward which spontaneous feelings of aversion arise; (2) the suffering of change, i.e., all experiences that are normally recognized as pleasant and desirable, but which are nonetheless suffering in that persistent indulgence in these always results in changing attitudes of dissatisfaction and boredom; and (3) the suffering of the pervasive conditioning underlying the round of birth, aging, and death.