A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its second week.

A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.

A wealthy merchant in the town of Śrāvastī, famous for his generosity to the poor, who became a patron of the Buddha Śākyamuni. He bought Prince Jeta’s Grove (Skt. Jetavana), to be the Buddha’s first monastery, a place where the monks could stay during the monsoon.

A being in the interval between death in one life and birth in the next.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its eleventh week.

The embryo in the second week of gestation.

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.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its tenth week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its thirty-eighth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

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 type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

One of the pleasure groves in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

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.

A city in ancient India, located on the Campā River. It was the capital of the Aṅga state, which was located east of Magadha.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its fifth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of the twenty thousand channels on the front of the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-fourth week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-second week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-sixth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-seventh week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twelfth week.

A type of “possessor,” or demon.

A cosmic period of time, sometimes equivalent to the time when a world system appears, exists, and disappears. According to the traditional Abhidharma understanding of cyclical time, a great eon (mahākalpa) is divided into eighty lesser eons. In the course of one great eon, the universe takes form and later disappears. During the first twenty of the lesser eons, the universe is in the process of creation and expansion; during the next twenty it remains; during the third twenty, it is in the process of destruction; and during the last quarter of the cycle, it remains in a state of empty stasis. A fortunate, or good, eon (bhadrakalpa) refers to any eon in which more than one buddha appears.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

One of the abodes of hell beings.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its thirty-eighth week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twelfth and thirteenth week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-ninth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

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.

A place in the city of Campā.

The embryo in the fourth week of gestation.

The Sanskrit pravrajyā literally means “going forth,” with the sense of leaving the life of a householder and embracing the life of a renunciant. When the term is applied more technically, it refers to the act of becoming a male novice (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or female novice (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma), this being a first stage leading to full ordination.

The name of our current eon, so-called because one thousand buddhas are prophesied to appear in succession during this time, Śākyamuni being the fourth and Maitreya the fifth.

The term graha refers to a class of supernatural beings that “seize,” possess, or otherwise adversely influence other beings by causing a range of physical and mental afflictions, as well as various kinds of misfortune. The term can also be applied generically to other classes of supernatural beings that have the capacity to adversely affect health and well-being.

The four primary elements of earth, water, fire, and wind.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-third week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-fifth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its fourth week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its thirtieth week.

A park in Śrāvastī, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kośala in northern India. It was owned by Prince Jeta, and the wealthy merchant Anāthapiṇḍada, wishing to offer it to the Buddha, bought it from him by covering the entire property with gold coins. It was to become the place where the monks could be housed during the monsoon season, thus creating the first Buddhist monastery. It is therefore the setting for many of the Buddha's discourses.

The embryo in the first week of gestation.

The Śākya capital, where Siddhārtha Gautama was raised.

A coin that varied in value according as to whether it was made of gold, silver, or copper.

One of the six buddhas who preceded Śākyamuni.

A type of “possessor,” or demon.

King of Vārāṇasī during the time of the Buddha Kāśyapa.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

Another name for King Yama (Skt. yamarāja; Tib. gshin rje rgyal po), the deity who judges the dead and rules over the hell realms of the underworld.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its fifteenth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its tenth week.

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.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

One of the pleasure groves in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya (MSV), which was compiled and eventually written down in Sanskrit circa the second through the sixth centuries ᴄᴇ, is the longest of all known vinayas. (See also entry on Mūlasarvāstivāda). Its length is due mainly to its “settings” or “narrative introductions” (Tib. gleng gzhi; Skt. nidāna). These “settings” introduce and illustrate the reason for new monastic rules. Many of the protagonists in these settings are anonymous, but others appear repeatedly, like the monk Upananda and the nun Sthūlananda, as personifications of “good” or “bad” monks and nuns. Most distinctively for the MSV, some of these protagonists even feature in lengthy frame stories that culminate in the Buddha explaining the protagonist’s karmic history in what is called an avadāna (Tib. rtogs brjod).The MSV consists of a “root āgama” (the Prātimokṣā Sūtras for monks and nuns) and four “explanatory āgamas”: (1) The Chapters on Monastic Discipline (Tib. ’dul ba gzhi; Skt. Vinayavastu); (2) The Analysis of the Monks’ and Nuns’ Disciplines (Tib. ’dul ba rnam ’byed; Skt. Vinayavibhaṅga); (3) The Chapter on Minor Matters of Monastic Discipline (Tib. ’dul ba pran tshegs kya gzhi; Skt. Vinayakṣudrakavastu); and (4) The Supplementary Books (Tib. ’dul ba gzhung dam pa and ’dul ba gzhung bla ma; Skt. Uttaragrantha). Large portions of the Sanskrit MSV are still extant. A partial eighth-century Chinese translation by Yijing and a complete ninth-century Tibetan translation are also extant. See Shayne Clarke, “Vinayas,” in Brill’s Encyclopedia of Buddhism, vol. 1, Literature and Languages, ed. Jonathan Silk et al. (Leiden: Brill, 2015), 73–80.

A type of “possessor,” or demon.

Literally “name,” this refers to the four mental skandhas of vedanā, saṃjñā, saṃskāra, and vijñāna, in contrast to rūpa .

The younger half-brother and disciple of the Buddha, who is the interlocutor in this discourse.

One of the pleasure groves in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its sixteenth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

Literally, “to flow” or “to ooze.” Mental defilements or contaminations that “flow out” toward the objects of cyclic existence, binding us to them. Vasubandhu offers two alternative explanations of this term: “They cause beings to remain (āsayanti) within saṃsāra” and “They flow from the Summit of Existence down to the Avīci hell, out of the six wounds that are the sense fields” (Abhidharma­kośa­bhāṣya 5.40; Pradhan 1967, p. 308). The Summit of Existence (bhavāgra, srid pa’i rtse mo) is the highest point within saṃsāra, while the hell called Avīci (mnar med) is the lowest; the six sense fields (āyatana, skye mched) here refer to the five sense faculties plus the mind, i.e., the six internal sense fields.

One of the pleasure groves in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

One of the pleasure groves in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The embryo in the third week of gestation.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

One of the abodes of hell beings.

The name of the twenty thousand channels on the right side of the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The embryo in the fifth week of gestation.

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.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twenty-first week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its eighth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

Literally “landing place of sages,” the name of the deer park near Vārāṇasī where the Buddha first taught the Dharma following his awakening.

The first of the five skandhas, defined in Abhidharma literature as anything composed of the four “great elements” of earth, water, fire, and wind. Often rendered as “matter,” “material form,” or “form.”

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.

Perception, the third of the five skandhas.

The fourth of the five skandhas, often rendered as “formations,” “karmic formations,” or “volitional formations.” These are the very subtle karmic tendencies that shape an individual’s saṃsāric experience.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its ninth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The five “aggregates,” collections of similar phenomena in which all conditioned phenomena may be included: rūpa , vedanā , saṃjñā , saṃskāra , and vijñāna .

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a city at the time of the Buddha Vipaśyin. Also the name of the king of the city.

The name of a grove in the city of Soft at the time of the Buddha Vipaśyin.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

“In this text the Buddha also uses this term with reference to himself.”A general term applied to spiritual practitioners who live as ascetic mendicants. In Buddhist texts, the term usually refers to Buddhist monastics, but it can also designate a practitioner from other ascetic/monastic spiritual traditions. In this context śramaṇa is often contrasted with the term brāhmaṇa (bram ze), which refers broadly to followers of the Vedic tradition. Any renunciate, not just a Buddhist, could be referred to as a śramaṇa if they were not within the Vedic fold. The epithet Great Śramaṇa is often applied to the Buddha.

The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”

During the life of the Buddha, Śrāvastī was the capital city of the powerful kingdom of Kośala, ruled by King Prasenajit, who became a follower and patron of the Buddha. It was also the hometown of Anāthapiṇḍada, the wealthy patron who first invited the Buddha there, and then offered him a park known as Jetavana, Prince Jeta’s Grove, which became one of the first Buddhist monasteries. The Buddha is said to have spent about twenty-five rainy seasons with his disciples in Śrāvastī, thus it is named as the setting of numerous events and teachings. It is located in present-day Uttar Pradesh in northern India.

The name of the twenty thousand channels on the left side of the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of the twenty thousand channels on the back of the body.

City in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods.

The assembly hall in the center of Sudarśana, the city in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (Trāyastriṃśa). It has a central throne for Indra (Śakra) and thirty-two thrones arranged to its right and left for the other thirty-two devas that make up the eponymous thirty-three devas of Indra’s paradise. Indra’s own palace is to the north of this assembly hall.

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).

Nanda’s wife.

The name of the Buddha Śākyamuni in a previous life as a brahmin boy at the time of the Buddha Kāśyapa.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

One of the abodes of hell beings.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The gods of the Heaven of the Thirty-three (trayastriṃśa), the second of the six heavens of the desire realm. The thirty-three are Indra (also known as Śakra) and thirty-two other deities.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its fourteenth week.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A mark between the eyebrows, usually made with vermillion.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its third week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its seventh week.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its eighteenth week.

The “skandhas of appropriation,” this refers to the five skandhas as the bases upon which a nonexistent self is mistakenly projected. That is, they are the basis of “appropriation” (Skt. upādāna) insofar as all grasping arises on the basis of the skandhas.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A river in the abodes of hell beings.

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.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its sixth week.

Feeling, the second of the five skandhas, generally classified into three types: pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its twentieth week.

Consciousness, the fifth of the five skandhas, generally classified into the five sensory consciousnesses and mental consciousness.

The first of six buddhas who preceded Śākyamuni.

The main female disciple of the Buddha. She was the daughter-in-law of the chief minister of Śrāvastī named Mṛgāra and also his teacher, which led him to call her “mother”.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

A type of worm (srin bu) that lives in and feeds on the body.

The name of a karmic wind involved in the formation of an embryo in its seventeenth week.

A measure of distance sometimes translated as “league,” but with varying definitions. The Sanskrit term denotes the distance yoked oxen can travel in a day or before needing to be unyoked. From different canonical sources the distance represented varies between four and ten miles.