The practices and resulting states of boundless loving kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity.

The absence of the conceptual identification of perceptions. Knowing that the true nature has no attributes, such as color, shape, etc. One of the three gateways to liberation.

The absence of any conceptual goal that one is focused upon achieving, knowing that all composite phenomena create suffering. One of the three gateways to liberation.

The sūtra tradition speaks of three levels of intellectual receptivity or acceptance of the Dharma. At the highest level is “the acceptance of the fact that things do not arise” (anutpattikadharmakṣānti), which is tantamount to an acceptance of the emptiness of all things, the fact that they do not arise or cease as substantial or essentially real phenomena. This level follows from a second level of acceptance, which brings one into conformity with the Dharma (ānulomika­dharmakṣānti). This second level is in turn preceded by a first stage of acceptance in which one follows the voice (ghoṣānugā kṣānti) of the teacher of the Dharma. This is a distinctive but related use of the term kṣānti, which is also translated in this sūtra as “patience,” when it refers to the perfection and virtue of “patience” (kṣānti) more generally.

A name for a universe, and seemingly another name for the same universe that had previously been called Virtue in this sūtra.

The five extremely negative actions that, once those who have committed them die, result in their going immediately to the hells without experiencing the intermediate state. They are killing an arhat, killing one’s mother, killing one’s father, creating a schism in the saṅgha, and maliciously drawing blood from a tathāgata’s body.

Sāṃkhya is one of the classical schools of Indian philosophy, connected to but also sometimes contrasted with the classical yoga system. A sāṃkhya can also be a follower or adherent to this school of philosophy.

The fivefold basic grouping of the components out of which the world and the personal self are formed: forms, feelings, perceptions, formative factors, and consciousness.

One of the four sections of teachings (chos kyi phung po, dharmaskandha).

One of the four sections of teachings (chos kyi phung po, dharmaskandha).

One of the four sections of teachings (chos kyi phung po, dharmaskandha).

One of the four sections of teachings (chos kyi phung po, dharmaskandha).

The god of fire in Brahmanic literature.

A follower of a non-Buddhist mendicant movement.

“Kauṇḍinya Who Understood.” Name of the first monk whom the Buddha Śākyamuni recognized as having understood his teachings.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a parivrājaka.

Name of a bodhisattva.

The Buddha’s cousin, and one of his ten principal pupils. Renowned for his clairvoyance.Lit. “Unobstructed.” One of the ten great śrāvaka disciples, famed for his meditative prowess and superknowledges. He was the Buddha's cousin‍—a son of Amṛtodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana‍—and is often mentioned along with his two brothers Bhadrika and Mahānāma. Some sources also include Ānanda among his brothers.

One of the four applications of mindfulness.

One of the four applications of mindfulness.

One of the four applications of mindfulness.

One of the four applications of mindfulness.

The name of a buddha field in the southern direction where the buddha King of the Glorious Heap of Supreme Acceptance (bzod pa’i mchog dpal gyi phung po’i rgyal po) resides.

The mental or perceptual act of cognizing or perceiving a mental object or impression that forms the basis for cognition.

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 type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).

A name of a world.

Name of a bodhisattva.

King of Magadha who lived at the time of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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).

A name of a world.

This term denotes the operational field of a specific buddha, spontaneously arising as a result of his altruistic aspirations. This sūtra mentions “empty buddha realms,” seemingly referring to world systems that do not have a buddha, as well as buddha realms that are inundated with the five impurities, which seems to be a term for world systems containing buddhas but where beings experience overt suffering.

A class of demonic beings.

An ascetic observance in which one adopts the behavior of deer, wandering and living among deer in the forest.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

A previous buddha who gave Śākyamuni the prophecy of his buddhahood.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

A set of circumstances that do not provide the freedom to practice the Buddhist path: being born in the realms of (1) the hells, (2) hungry ghosts (pretas), (3) animals, or (4) long-lived gods, or in the human realm among (5) barbarians or (6) extremists, (7) in places where the Buddhist teachings do not exist, or (8) without adequate faculties to understand the teachings where they do exist.

The path leading to the cessation of suffering, comprised of correct view, correct thought, correct speech, correct action, correct livelihood, correct effort, correct mindfulness, and correct absorption.

In the context of Buddhist philosophy, one way to describe experience in terms of eighteen elements (eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, smell, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; and mind, mental phenomena, and mind consciousness).This also refers to the elements of the world, which can be enumerated as four, five, or six. The four elements are earth, water, fire, and air. A fifth, space, is often added, and the sixth is consciousness.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.

Name of a god.

A name of a world.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

The fivefold basic grouping of the components out of which the world and the personal self are formed: forms, feelings, perceptions, formative factors, and consciousness.

An ascetic practice in which the practitioner remains in the middle of four fires (each in the four directions) with the sun overhead constituting the fifth fire.

Five particular aspects of life that indicate the degenerate nature of a given age. They are the impurities of views, of afflictions, of sentient beings, of life, and of time.

This refers to (1) the power of faith (dad pa’i stob, śraddhābala); (2) the power of effort (brtson ’grus kyi stobs, vīryabala); (3) the power of mindfulness (dran pa’i stobs, smṛtibala); (4) the power of absorption (ting nge ’dzin gyi stobs, samādhibala); and (5) the power of insight (shes rab kyi stobs, prajñābala).

A name given in this sūtra to a storied mansion.

Name of an ājīvika.

Name of a bodhisattva.

The four levels of absorption of the beings living in the form realms.

These are the equivalents of the four passions (zad pa, āsrava) that it is necessary to overcome to attain liberation.

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).

The meditations on love (maitrī), compassion (karuṇā), joy (muditā), and equanimity (upekṣā), as well as the states of mind and qualities of being that result from their cultivation. They are also called the four abodes of Brahmā (caturbrahmavihāra). In the Abhidharmakośa, Vasubandhu explains that they are called apramāṇa‍—meaning “infinite” or “limitless”‍—because they take limitless sentient beings as their object, and they generate limitless merit and results. Love is described as the wish that beings be happy, and it acts as an antidote to malice (vyāpāda). Compassion is described as the wish for beings to be free of suffering, and acts as an antidote to harmfulness (vihiṃsā). Joy refers to rejoicing in the happiness beings already have, and it acts as an antidote to dislike or aversion (arati) toward others’ success. Equanimity is considering all beings impartially, without distinctions, and it is the antidote to both attachment to pleasure and to malice (kāmarāgavyāpāda).

These are symbolic of the defects within a person that prevent enlightenment, which are sometimes given as four personifications of Māra: the divine māra (devaputramāra lha’i bu’i bdud), which is the distraction of pleasures; the māra of death (mṛtyumāra ’chi bdag gi bdud); the māra of the aggregates (skandhamāra phung po’i bdud), which is the body; and the māra of the afflictions (kleśamāra (nyon mongs pa’i bdud).

These are traditionally listed as four: generosity, kind talk, meaningful actions, and practicing what one preaches.

The four positions are going/walking, standing, sitting, and lying down.

This probably refers to birth, old age, illness, and death.

This refers to the four “special types of knowledge” of the teachings (dharma), their meaning (artha), their explanation (nirukti), and eloquence (pratibhāna) to explain them. In this case the term dharma refers to the words of the teachings or a particular text while the term artha refers to their meaning.

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.”

Name of a brahmin.

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.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.

A name of a world.

Name of a thus-gone one.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a thus-gone one.

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.

Name of a thus-gone one.

A name of a world.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a thus-gone one.

Name of a thus-gone one.

Name of a bodhisattva.

The highest paradise in the desire realm.

The fifth of the six paradises in the desire realm, counting from the lowest to highest.

One of the eight hot hells.

Name of a parivrājaka.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

The name of the mountain on which is located the hermitage that forms the setting of this sūtra.

A common epithet in the Brahmanic traditions designating the great god or lord. Can refer to Śiva, Viṣṇu, or to another deity considered to be preeminent.

A legendary river.

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.

Name of a nāga king.

Name of several different bodhisattvas mentioned in this text.

A subgroup of pūtanas, a class of disease-causing spirits associated with cemeteries and dead bodies. The name probably derives from the Skt. pūta, “foul-smelling,” as reflected also in the Tib. srul po. The smell of a pūtana is variously described in the texts as resembling that of a billy goat or a crow, and the smell of a kaṭapūtana, as its name suggests, could resemble a corpse, kaṭa being one of the names for “corpse.” The morbid condition caused by pūtanas comes in various forms, with symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea, skin eruptions, and festering wounds, the latter possibly explaining the association with bad smells.

Name of the first monk whom the Buddha Śākyamuni recognized as having understood his teachings. See also Ājñātakauṇḍinya .

Name of a thus-gone one.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.

A class of dwarf beings subordinate to Virūḍhaka, one of the Four Great Kings, associated with the southern direction. The name uses a play on the word aṇḍa, which means “egg” but is also a euphemism for a testicle. Thus, they are often depicted as having testicles as big as pots (from kumbha, or “pot”).

Name of a town in ancient India.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

A vast legendary lake on the other side of the Himalayas. Only those with miraculous powers can go there. It is said to be the source of the world’s four great rivers. (Provisional 84000 definition. New definition forthcoming.)

Name of a bodhisattva.

The name of the region or land that is the main setting for this sūtra.

Name of a king who was one of the Buddha’s previous incarnations.

Name of a bodhisattva.

A name given in this sūtra to a storied mansion.

Name of a thus-gone one.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Wrathful manifestation of the Hindu god Śiva.

A senior student of the Buddha Śākyamuni, famous for his austere lifestyle.

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 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).

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.

See “Mañjuśrī.”

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.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.”

Name of a bodhisattva.

An alternate name used for the bodhisattva Nature of Space (nam mkha’i dbyangs).

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a buddha realm.

An ascetic observance in which one’s food intake decreases and increases based on the waning and waxing phases of the moon.

Name of a bodhisattva.

According to Buddhist cosmology, a mountain said to be situated north of the Himalayas, with Lake Anavatapta, the source of this world’s great rivers, at its base. It is sometimes said to be south of Mount Kailash, though both mountains have been identified with Mount Tise in west Tibet.

According to ancient Buddhist cosmology, this is the great mountain forming the axis of the universe. At its summit is Sudarśana, home of Śakra and his thirty-two gods, and on its flanks live the asuras. The mount has four sides facing the cardinal directions, each of which is made of a different precious stone. Surrounding it are several mountain ranges and the great ocean where the four principal island continents lie: in the south, Jambudvīpa (our world); in the west, Godānīya; in the north, Uttarakuru; and in the east, Pūrvavideha. Above it are the abodes of the desire realm gods. It is variously referred to as Meru, Mount Meru, Sumeru, and Mount Sumeru.

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 main nāga kings, usually associated with the nāga king Upananda.

Name of a bodhisattva.

In Buddhist usage, a non-Buddhist religious mendicant, usually referring to Jains, who eschews clothing and possessions.

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).”

See “apprehension.”

A non-Buddhist religious mendicant who literally “roams around.” Historically, they wandered in India from ancient times, including the time of the Buddha, and held a variety of beliefs, engaging with one another in debate on a range of topics. Some of their metaphysical views are presented in the early Buddhist discourses of the Pali Canon. They included women in their number.

A name given in this sūtra to Brahmā’s mansion.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

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.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of the town in this sūtra where the Buddha teaches the Dharma.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a nāga king.

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.

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.

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.

One of the eight main bodhisattvas, the heart sons of the Buddha.

Name of a bodhisattva.

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.”

A sage or ascetic or wise man. For the Brahmanic tradition, the seers are the ones who saw the sacred Vedic hymns and conveyed them to human beings, while in Buddhist literature they can have a broader usage as ascetics who are hermits or live in community and can cultivate magical powers.

The name given in this sūtra to an apparent form of the Buddha Śākyamuni.

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.

A name of a world.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a future thus-gone one prophesied by the buddha Lord of the Brahmā Realm.

One of the basic forms of Buddhist meditation, aiming at developing insight into the nature of reality. Often presented as part of a pair of meditation techniques, with the other technique being “tranquility” (śamatha).

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

Name of a bodhisattva.

A person who has entered the “stream” of practice that leads to nirvāṇa. The first of the four attainments of the path of the hearers.One who has achieved the first level of attainment on the path of the śrāvakas, and who has entered the “stream” of practice that leads to nirvāṇa. (Provisional 84000 definition. New definition forthcoming.)

Name of a bodhisattva.

A foremost pupil of the Buddha, known for his wisdom.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

Divine sight, divine hearing, the ability to know past and future lives, the ability to know the minds of others, and the ability to produce miracles.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a thus-gone one.

A pupil of the Buddha, originally a destitute beggar, who, in particular, accidentally drank alcohol offered by villagers after he had tamed a nāga to end a drought. This resulted in the Buddha’s adding abstention from alcohol as part of the monastic rules.

Name of a nāga king.

The palmyra tree or fan-palm (Borassus flabeliformis).

Literally “servants of the gods,” this term can refer to those who work to support a non-Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery, as well as those who specialize in the performance of rituals at such temples.

Appears to refer here to Kṛṣṇa, whose name means the dark one, the god who figures prominently in the Bhagavad Gītā and the Mahābhārata, and is considered by the Purāṇas and other Brahmanic literature as an incarnated form of the god Viṣṇu.

Thirty-seven practices that lead the practitioner to the awakened state: the four applications of mindfulness, the four thorough relinquishments, the four bases of miraculous power, the five faculties, the five powers, the eightfold path, and the seven branches of awakening.

A set of three groups or types (rāśi) of things or their characteristics, to which the thus-gone ones are said to awaken. Following the definition in the Bodhisattva­bhūmi, cited in Edgerton’s entry on rāśi (454.2), these are (1) dharmas that are connected to an object (arthopasaṃhita), (2) dharmas that are connected to the absence of an object (anarthopa­saṃhita), and (3) dharmas that bear no relation to any object whatsoever (naivarthopa­saṃhita). Another use of this term refers to “three groups of beings” and classifies them as (1) dedicated to falsehood (mithyātvaniyata), (2) dedicated to truth (samyakniyata), and (3) undetermined (aniyata), but former seems intended here.

One of the basic forms of Buddhist meditation, which focuses on calming the mind. Often presented as part of a pair of meditation techniques, with the other technique being “insight.”

Name of a king who was one of the Buddha’s previous incarnations.

The largest universe described in Buddhist cosmology. This term, in Abhidharma cosmology, refers to 1,000³ 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.

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).

The final or ultimate endpoint, and a synonym for ultimate truth as well as the goal of the path. In this text, it seems to be used as a way of referring to the ultimate truth with respect to reality.

Name of a bodhisattva.

One of the main nāga kings, usually associated with the nāga king Nanda.

Name of a buddha realm.

In the Brahmanic social system of four castes or varṇas, the vaiśya caste refers in general to the mercantile group, alongside the other three groups of brahmins, kṣatriyas, and śudras.

Name of a nāga king.

Also known as Benares, one of the oldest cities of northeast India on the banks of the Ganges, in modern-day Uttar Pradesh. It was once the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kāśi, and in the Buddha’s time it had been absorbed into the kingdom of Kośala. It was an important religious center, as well as a major city, even during the time of the Buddha. The name may derive from being where the Varuna and Assi rivers flow into the Ganges. It was on the outskirts of Vārāṇasī that the Buddha first taught the Dharma, in the location known as Deer Park (Mṛgadāva). For numerous episodes set in Vārāṇasī, including its kings, see The Hundred Deeds , Toh 340.

Name of a goddess.

The view that identifies the existence of a self in relation to the aggregates.

The name of a particular ascetic observance.

Name of a sage.

The land of the dead ruled over by the Lord of Death. In Buddhism it refers to the preta realm, where beings generally suffer from hunger and thirst, which in traditional Brahmanism is the fate of those departed without descendants to make ancestral offerings.

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.