The buddha who presides over the buddhafield Sukhāvatī; also known as Amitābha.

The Buddha Śākyamuni’s attendant who is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the Buddha’s teachings after his parinirvāṇa.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

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).

Yeshé Dé (late eighth to early ninth century) was the most prolific translator of sūtras into Tibetan. Altogether he is credited with the translation of more than one hundred sixty sūtra translations and more than one hundred additional translations, mostly on tantric topics. In spite of Yeshé Dé’s great importance for the propagation of Buddhism in Tibet during the imperial era, only a few biographical details about this figure are known. Later sources describe him as a student of the Indian teacher Padmasambhava, and he is also credited with teaching both sūtra and tantra widely to students of his own. He was also known as Nanam Yeshé Dé, from the Nanam (sna nam) clan.

A short form of the name of Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha, the Medicine Buddha.

The Medicine Buddha, the thus-gone one residing in the buddhafield Vaiḍūrya­nirbhāsa. Also called Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja.

The Medicine Buddha, the thus-gone one residing in the buddhafield Vaiḍūrya­nirbhāsa. Also called Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha.

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.

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”).

Although vaiḍūrya‍—particularly in the context of Bhaiṣajya­guru‍—has often been translated as lapis lazuli, blue beryl is overall a better match for the descriptions and references in the Sanskrit and Tibetan literature. The equivalent Pāli form of vaiḍūrya is veḷuriya. The Prākrit form verulia is the source for the English word “beryl.” There are white, yellow, and green beryls (green beryl is generally called “emerald”), but in this case blue beryl needs to be specified to match traditional descriptions. Vaiḍūrya may nevertheless have been taken to designate different gems at different times and places, and no single equivalent in English is entirely satisfactory.

One of the two primary bodhisattvas who accompany the Thus-Gone One Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja in the buddhafield Vaiḍūrya­nirbhāsa.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

An Indian preceptor and translator who lived in the ninth century.

One of the three root afflictions that bind beings to cyclic existence.

To refrain from (1) killing, (2) stealing, (3) sexual activity, (4) false speech, (5) intoxication, (6) singing, dancing, music, and beautifying oneself with adornments or cosmetics, (7) using a high or large bed, and (8) eating at improper times. Typically, this observance is maintained by lay people for twenty-four hours on new moon and full moon days, as well as other special days in the lunar calendar.

A set of eighty bodily characteristics and insignia borne by both buddhas and universal emperors. They are considered “minor” in terms of being secondary to the thirty-two marks of a great person.

Five fundamental precepts of abstaining from (1) killing, (2) stealing, (3) sexual misconduct, (4) lying, and (5) intoxication.

A class of spirit being.

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).

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.

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.

The deity who is born alongside and accompanies a being and is responsible for recording good and bad deeds to present before the Lord of Death Yama when that being dies.

The term for aspirations such as helping all beings, generating a buddhafield, bringing all beings to perfect awakening, and so forth that a bodhisattva makes while practicing bodhisattva conduct.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

An Indian preceptor and translator who lived in the ninth century.

A class of spirit beings typically associated with violent sorcery rites.

The emotional and cognitive veils that create impediments in one’s life and prevent one from seeing the nature of reality.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

A class of shapeshifting beings.

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

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

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.

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.Also known here as Mañjuśrīkumārabhūta.

See “Mañjuśrī.”

The being who orchestrates and perpetuates the illusion of cyclic existence.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

A class of spirit being.

A tree in Vaiśālī at whose base the Buddha Śākyamuni taught The Detailed Account of the Previous Aspirations of the Blessed Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

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.

Brahman is a Sanskrit term referring to what is highest (parama) and most important (pradhāna); the Nibandhana commentary explains brahman as meaning here nirvāṇa, and thus the brahman conduct is the “conduct toward brahman,” the conduct that leads to the highest liberation, i.e., nirvāṇa. This is explained as “the path without outflows,” which is the “truth of the path” among the four truths of the noble ones. Other explanations (found in the Pāli tradition) take “brahman conduct” to mean the “best conduct,” and also the “conduct of the best,” i.e., the buddhas. In some contexts, “brahman conduct” refers more specifically to celibacy, but the specific referents of this expression are many.

These basic precepts are five in number for the laity: (1) not killing, (2) not stealing, (3) chastity, (4) not lying, and (5) avoiding intoxicants. For monks, there are three or five more; avoidance of such things as perfumes, makeup, ointments, garlands, high beds, and afternoon meals. (Provisional 84000 definition. New definition forthcoming.)

A term describing the quality of a being’s intellect.

An alternate title for The Detailed Account of the Previous Aspirations of the Thus-Gone Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha.

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.

Tibetan short form of Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha, also known as the Medicine Buddha.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

Indian commentator from the eighth century (685–783 ᴄᴇ) renowned for his work The Way of the Bodhisattva (Bodhi­caryāvatāra).

The set of seven precious materials or substances includes a range of precious metals and gems, but their exact list varies. The set often consists of gold, silver, beryl, crystal, red pearls, emeralds, and white coral, but may also contain lapis lazuli, ruby, sapphire, chrysoberyl, diamonds, etc. The term is frequently used in the sūtras to exemplify preciousness, wealth, and beauty, and can describe treasures, offering materials, or the features of architectural structures such as stūpas, palaces, thrones, etc. The set is also used to describe the beauty and prosperity of buddha realms and the realms of the gods.In other contexts, the term saptaratna can also refer to the seven precious possessions of a cakravartin or to a set of seven precious moral qualities.

The special methods that enlightened beings use to lead other beings to awakening.

The places between adjacent world systems, outside their defining ring of mountains, that are said to be miserable and in utter darkness as the suns and moons of the world systems can shed no light there. They are nevertheless said to be inhabited by numerous beings and are sometimes counted among the hell realms.

Śrīmitra (d. 343), a prince from Kucha (龜茲, Qiuci, in the Tarim Basin on the Silk Road, present-day Kuqa in Xinjiang), who lived one generation before the other famous Kuchean translator, Kumārajīva. Kucha at the time was a culturally Indic, Tocharian-speaking kingdom. Śrīmitra abdicated the throne in favor of his younger brother and became a monk and translator, traveling to China. He spent 307–312 in Luoyang (洛陽) where he translated Taishō 1331 mentioned here, later moving to Jiankang (建康). He was responsible for introducing a number of other Buddhist texts and dhāraṇīs to China.

The buddhafield of the Thus-Gone Amitābha.

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.

One of the two primary bodhisattvas who accompany the Thus-Gone One Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja in the buddhafield Vaiḍūrya­nirbhāsa.

In addition to the five precepts of abstaining from (1) killing, (2) stealing, (3) sexual misconduct, (4) lying, and (5) intoxication, the ten precepts often include (the list varies) abstaining from (6) eating after the midday meal, (7) dancing, singing, or engaging in other forms of entertainments, (8) wearing jewelry or adorning oneself with cosmetics, (9) using high or luxurious beds or seats, and (10) handling money.

Abstaining from killing, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, lying, uttering divisive talk, speaking harsh words, gossiping, covetousness, ill will, and wrong views.

An alternate title for The Detailed Account of the Previous Aspirations of the Thus-Gone Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha.

An alternate title for The Detailed Account of the Previous Aspirations of the Thus-Gone Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha.

Thirty-two of the 112 identifying physical characteristics of both buddhas and universal emperors, in addition to the eighty minor marks.

There are two common sets of “the three vows.” The first set refers to the pratimokṣa, bodhicitta, and mantra vows, and this schema was perhaps most famously promoted in Tibet by the thirteenth-century Tibetan polymath Sakya Paṇḍita. The second set, which is likely the set of three vows referred to here, consists of (1) the pratimokṣa vows (Tib. so thar gyi sdom pa) of the desire realm, (2) the dhyāna vows (Tib. sam gtan gyi sdom pa) of the form realm, and (3) the uncontaminated vows (Tib. zag med kyi sdom pa) maintained by those who have transcended the three realms and are at the level of a noble being.

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.

A bodhisattva.

A class of spirit being.

An ideal monarch or emperor who, as the result of the merit accumulated in previous lifetimes, rules over a vast realm in accordance with the Dharma. Such a monarch is called a cakravartin because he bears a wheel (cakra) that rolls (vartate) across the earth, bringing all lands and kingdoms under his power. The cakravartin conquers his territory without causing harm, and his activity causes beings to enter the path of wholesome actions. According to Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa, just as with the buddhas, only one cakravartin appears in a world system at any given time. They are likewise endowed with the thirty-two major marks of a great being (mahāpuruṣalakṣaṇa), but a cakravartin’s marks are outshined by those of a buddha. They possess seven precious objects: the wheel, the elephant, the horse, the wish-fulfilling gem, the queen, the general, and the minister. An illustrative passage about the cakravartin and his possessions can be found in The Play in Full (Toh 95), 3.3–3.13. Vasubandhu lists four types of cakravartins: (1) the cakravartin with a golden wheel (suvarṇacakravartin) rules over four continents and is invited by lesser kings to be their ruler; (2) the cakravartin with a silver wheel (rūpyacakravartin) rules over three continents and his opponents submit to him as he approaches; (3) the cakravartin with a copper wheel (tāmracakravartin) rules over two continents and his opponents submit themselves after preparing for battle; and (4) the cakravartin with an iron wheel (ayaścakravartin) rules over one continent and his opponents submit themselves after brandishing weapons.

The buddhafield of the Thus-Gone Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja.

One of a number of towns where the Buddha Śākyamuni is said to have taught.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

Vajrapāṇi means “Wielder of the Vajra.” In the Pali canon, he appears as a yakṣa guardian in the retinue of the Buddha. In the Mahāyāna scriptures he is a bodhisattva and one of the “eight close sons of the Buddha.” In the tantras, he is also regarded as an important Buddhist deity and instrumental in the transmission of tantric scriptures.

A class of spirit beings typically associated with violent sorcery rites, the vetāla is most often described as a reanimated corpse or zombie.

One of the twelve great yakṣa generals who protect and serve those who bear, read, recite, copy, or commission a copy of the Bhaiṣajya­guru­vaiḍūrya­prabha­rāja­sūtra.

The principle of vital warmth and action throughout the body.

The world of the Lord of Death.

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 Lord of Death.