Bodhichitta. The mind of enlightenment. This is a key word in the Mahāyāna. On the relative level, it is the wish to attain Buddhahood for the sake of all beings and the practice necessary to do this. On the absolute level, it is the direct insight into the ultimate nature of self and phenomena.
Bodhisattva. A practitioner on the path to Buddhahood, training in the practice of compassion and the six pāramitās (q.v.), who has vowed to attain enlightenment for the sake of all beings. The Tibetan translation of this term means “hero of the enlightened mind.”
Bodhisattvayāna. The vehicle of the Bodhisattvas within the Sūtrayāna (q.v.) or the Sūtrayāna part of the Mahāyāna.
Buddha. One who has removed the two veils (the veil of afflictive emotions, which is the cause of suffering, and the veil of ignorance, which is the obstacle to omniscience) and who has brought to perfection the two sorts of knowledge (of the ultimate and relative nature of phenomena).
Buddhadharma. The teaching of the Buddha. See also Dharma.
Circumambulation. A highly meritorious devotional practice, consisting in walking clockwise, concentratedly and with awareness, around a sacred object, such as a temple, stupa, holy mountain, or the house—and even the person—of a spiritual master.
Clear, or penetrating, insight (Skt., vipashyanā). Meditation that reveals the absence of inherent existence in both the mind and phenomena.
Dharma. The body of teaching expounded by Shākyamuni Buddha and other enlightened beings that shows the way to enlightenment. It comprises two aspects: the Dharma of transmission, namely, the teachings that are actually given, and the Dharma of realization, or the states that are attained through the application of the teachings.
Dharmakāya. The absolute, or truth, body; an aspect of emptiness.
Doctrine. See Dharma.
Eight worldly preoccupations. Gain or loss, pleasure or pain, praise or criticism, and fame or infamy. Most people who are not following a spiritual path seek gain and try to avoid loss, and so on for each of these pairs of opposites.
Eighteen characteristics of a precious human existence. These eighteen characteristics comprise eight freedoms and ten endowments. The eight freedoms consist in not being born (1) in the realms of hell; (2) as a hungry ghost; (3) as an animal; (4) in the realms of the gods; (5) among barbarians who are ignorant of the teachings and practices of the Buddhadharma; (6) as one with wrong views, such as those of nihilism, of the substantiality of the ego and phenomena, etc.; (7) in a time or place where a Buddha has not appeared; and (8) as mentally handicapped. The ten endowments are subdivided into five that are considered intrinsic and five considered extrinsic. The five intrinsic endowments are (1) to be born as a human being; (2) to inhabit a central land, that is, one where the Buddhadharma is proclaimed; (3) to be in possession of normal faculties; (4) to be one who has not abandoned oneself to great karmic negativity; and (5) to have faith in the Dharma. The five extrinsic endowments are the facts (1) that a Buddha has appeared in the world; (2) that he has expounded the Dharma; (3) that his Teaching still persists; (4) that it is practiced; and (5) that one is accepted as a disciple by a spiritual master.
Five aggregates (Skt., skandhas). The five psychophysical constituents that characterize sentient beings: form, feeling, appraisal, impulse, and consciousness.
Five paths. The paths of accumulation, preparation, seeing, meditation, and no more learning. These represent successive stages in spiritual progress rather than distinct and different pathways to enlightenment. A Bodhisattva on the path of no more learning has attained Buddhahood. See also Ten levels.
Five poisons. The five principal negative emotions: ignorance, attachment, hatred, pride, and jealousy.
Four Noble Truths. (1) Suffering: the nature of existence in saṃsāra is suffering. (2) Cause: the cause of suffering is negative or obscuring emotions. (3) Cessation: the cessation of suffering is Buddhahood. (4) Path: the path is the means to attain liberation.
Fundamental Vehicle. See Shrāvakayāna.
Gelug. One of the four main traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, founded by Tsongkhapa (1357–1419).
Higher realms. See Six realms.
Hīnayāna. See Shrāvakayāna.
Kadam. Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism deriving from the teachings of Atīsha (982–1054). Its teaching emphasizes monastic discipline, study, and the practice of compassion. The influence of the Kadam tradition is pervasive in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism, although it is especially associated with the Gelug teaching, which is indeed sometimes referred to as the New Kadam.
Kagyu. One of the four main traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, founded by Marpa the Translator (1012–1095).
Kalpa. An immense period of time as conceived in the traditional cosmology of India. A great kalpa, which corresponds to the period of formation, duration, disappearance, and absence of a universal system, comprises eighty small kalpas. An intermediary kalpa consists of two small kalpas taken together, in the first of which the duration of life increases, while in the second it decreases.
Karma. Sanskrit word meaning “action,” understood as the law of causality. According to the Buddha’s teaching, all actions, whether of thought, word, or deed, are like seeds that will eventually bear fruit in experience, whether in this or future lives. A positive or virtuous act will result in happiness, and the definition of sin or negative action is that which is the cause of suffering later on.
Lower realms. See Six realms.
Mahāyāna. The Great Vehicle, including the teachings of both Sūtrayāna and Mantrāyana (q.v.). See under Shrāvakayāna.
Mantra. A group of words or syllables associated with specific meditational deities, the recitation of which forms an essential part of tantric meditation.
Mantrayāna. The vehicle of the secret mantras, sometimes called the Diamond Vehicle, or Vajrayāna. This collection of teachings and practices is based on the tantras, and though it is, in fact, an aspect of the Mahāyāna, it is sometimes considered a separate vehicle. See Shrāvakayāna.
Mental calm (Skt., shamatha). A state in meditation in which the mind concentrates one-pointedly and effortlessly on the object of meditation.
Negative emotions or afflictions (Skt., klesha). Mental factors whose influence on thoughts and actions ultimately produces suffering. The five principal negative emotions are the five poisons (q.v.).
Nirmānakāya. The manifestation body, the aspect of compassion and means, whereby a Buddha may be perceived by unenlightened beings. This is, therefore, the means by which he can communicate with and help them.
Nirvāṇa. The Tibetan translation of this Sanskrit word means “gone beyond suffering” and indicates the various levels of enlightenment gained according to the practice of the Shrāvakayāna or the Mahāyāna.
Nyingma. The earliest of the four main traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, founded in the eighth century by Guru Padmasambhava.
Pratyekabuddha. One who attains enlightenment alone, without the aid of a master, and who does not transmit teachings to others.
Refuge. A Buddhist seeks the protection and guidance of the Three Jewels (q.v.) in order to find freedom from the suffering of saṃsāra. The Three Jewels therefore constitute the Buddhist refuge, and a Buddhist can be defined as someone who takes refuge in them.
Sambhogakāya. The body of enjoyment, or the transhuman forms in which Buddhas may manifest themselves. The sambhogakāya is directly perceptible only to highly realized beings.
Saṃsāra. The wheel, or round, of existence. The state of being unenlightened, in which the mind, enslaved by the three poisons of attachment, hatred, and ignorance, passes uncontrolled from one state to another through an endless stream of psychophysical experiences that are all characterized by suffering. See also Six realms; Three worlds.
Sakya. One of the four main traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, founded by Khon Konchok Gyalpo. (1034–1102).
Shrāvakayāna or Hīnayāna. The practitioners of Dharma are identified as belonging to two different sets of teaching, or vehicles, according to the nature of their aspirations. These are known as the Hīnayāna, or Fundamental Vehicle, and the Mahāyāna, or Great Vehicle. The Fundamental Vehicle is subdivided into the way of the Hearers (or Shrāvakas), who are disciples of the Buddha, and the way of those who seek enlightenment relying only on themselves, or Pratyekabuddhas. The goal of the Shrāvaka and Pratyekabuddha paths is nirvāṇa, conceived of as definitive liberation from the sufferings of saṃsāra. The Great Vehicle is that of the Bodhisattvas, or those who, while accepting the validity and efficacy of the other vehicle, aspire to the full enlightenment of Buddhahood for the sake of all beings. The term Hīnayāna means “Lesser Vehicle,” but this should not be understood in a pejorative sense, since its teachings are fundamental to the practice of the Great Vehicle as well. The Dalai Lama has suggested the term Shrāvakayāna be used instead of Hīnayāna. In this case the term should be understood as including the Pratyekabuddhayāna as well.
Six pāramitās, or transcendent practices. The six activities of generosity, moral discipline, patience, endeavor, meditative concentration, and wisdom, which form the practice of the Bodhisattva path. They are termed transcendent because, unlike ordinary generosity, etc., they are untainted by attachment and other negative emotions.
Six realms. The experience of beings in saṃsāra is traditionally schematized into six general categories, referred to as realms or worlds, in which the mind abides as the result of previous actions, or karma. None of these states is satisfactory, though the degree of suffering in them differs from one to another. The three higher, or fortunate, realms, where suffering is alleviated by temporary pleasures, are the heavens of the celestial beings, or devas; the realms of the Āsuras, or demigods; and the world of human beings. The three lower realms, in which suffering predominates over every other experience, are those of the animals, the hungry ghosts, and the hells.
Sūtras. The teachings given by Shākyamuni Buddha, memorized by his disciples, and subsequently written down.
Sūtrayāna. The Mahāyāna has two subsections: the Sūtrayāna, that is, the teachings based on the sūtras and propounding the practice of the six pāramitās, and the Mantrayāna, the teachings and practices based on the tantra texts.
Tathāgata. An epithet for a Buddha.
Tathāgatagarbha. The Buddha nature, the potential for Buddhahood, present in the mind of every sentient being.
Ten levels. Stages on the path to enlightenment. The first Bodhisattva level marks the beginning of the path of seeing. The second to tenth levels are progressive stages within the path of meditation.
Three Jewels or Triple Jewel. The Buddha, the Dharma (Doctrine), and the Sangha (Assembly of disciples and practitioners). These are the three objects of refuge.
Three trainings. Discipline, concentration, and wisdom.
Three worlds, or realms. In some contexts saṃsāra is spoken of as being divided into three worlds, or realms—those of desire, of form, and of formlessness. The world of desire includes all the six realms (q.v.). The worlds of form and formlessness exist only for certain types of celestial beings, who have attained these states through the four meditative concentrations of form and the four formless absorptions, respectively.
Triple Gem. See Three Jewels.
Twelve links of interdependence. Ignorance, habitual tendencies, consciousness, name and form, the six sense fields, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, coming into being (existence), birth, and old age and death.
Vajrayāna. See Mantrayāna.