Glossary
This is a glossary of the Buddhist Sanskrit terms found throughout the website. Because the main pages do not display diacritical marks, the following entries include full transcriptions of the Sanskrit with diacritical marks in brackets after the main entry, where necessary.
The third of the "Three baskets" (tripitaka) of Buddhist scripture, these are Sharavakayana texts concerned with the philosophical elaboration of the teachings in the sutras.
The first of the "Three baskets" (tripitaka) of Buddhist scripture, the sutras. The word agama is generally used only for the Chinese translations of the Shravakayana canon.
"Impermanence." The concept that everything undergoes change. In meditation the concept is applied to one's own physical and mental constituents.
The name used in the Shravakayana for a monk who has achieved the ultimate stage in spiritual development.
The name of one of the most popular of the bodhisattvas, who is the embodiment of compassion.
In the Shravakayana, the name for a person on the path to enlightenment; often used for the previous lives of the Buddha. In the Mahayana, a being who through compassion for others remains in samsara although fully enlightened. Some bodhisattvas such as Avalokiteshvara are the object of prayers and devotional rituals.
The ancient script from which most Indic scripts and the Tibetan script developed. In Central Asia a late form of Brahmi is found in many manuscripts in the Sanskrit, Khotanese and Kuchean languages.
"The Awakened One". The name used in all Buddhist schools for the founder of the religion, the prince who renounced the world, attained enlightenment and taught the Dharma.
"Mind only". A school within the Mahayana which developed the doctrine that all phenomena are the mind, and developed a complex psychological model of the mind.
The whole of the Buddha's teachings and the commentaries upon them.
One of the schools of Shravakayana Buddhism. The Dharmagupta school was present in Central Asia in the earlier stages of the transmission of Buddhism into the region.
A collection of teachings attributed to the Buddha, popular in the Shravakayana schools. Often better known by its Pali name, Dhammapada.
A state of absorption in meditation. In the Shravakayana there are four levels of dhyana. The names "Chan", a Chinese school, and "Zen" a Japanese school, are both derived from dhyana.
The condition of suffering, which is, according to the Buddha, experienced by all beings in samsara.
A region in what is now Northwest Pakistan which was once the centre of the Kushana empire. The language in use in the Kushana empire, and derived from Sanskrit, is known as Gandhari. Manuscripts in Gandhari, written in the Kharosthi script, have been found in modern Afghanistan and Central Asia. The style of Buddhist art which developed in this region, influenced by Hellenistic models, is known as Gandharan. (Click here to see a map showing the location of Gandhara.)
A collection of stories, especially popular in Shravakayana Buddhism, illustrating Buddhist principles. Many of the stories concern events in the previous lives of the Buddha.
The Kushana king who reigned during the first half of the 2nd century CE and became a patron of Buddhism, assisting its transmission into Central Asia.
The results of actions. Buddhists believe that every action produces a result for the one who performed it, which may come in this life or after death, determining the nature of future rebirths.
Compassion. A quality particularly stressed in the Mahayana, where the bodhisattva must develop compassion for all sentient beings.
A script used in the writing of documents in the Gandhari language in the Kushana empire. Unlike Brahmi, it did not survive or develop into other scripts.
Literally, "Middle Way". A philosophical school within Mahayana Buddhism, which is concerned with the nature of emptiness (shunyata).
One of the schools of Shravakayana Buddhism. The Sarvastivada school was well-represented in Central Asia before the Mahayana became dominant.
A symmetrical design, usually with a deity at its centre, used in Vajrayana Buddhism. Pictorial depictions of mandalas are very common in areas where Vajrayana Buddhism has been prevalent.
A group of syllables recited in meditation in Vajrayana Buddhism.
"The Great Vehicle". A movement in Buddhism dating from the beginning of the first millenium CE. (Click here for an explanation of the doctrines of the Mahayana.)
A style of Indian Buddhist art which, along with the Gandharan style, was in use in the Kushana empire.
Hand-gestures used in many of the rituals of the Vajrayana.
The largest and most important of the monastic universities in India. Nalanda was active from the 5th century CE until the end of the twelfth century, when it was destroyed by Muslim invaders.
The ultimate goal of a Buddhist, the state of enlightenment achieved by a buddha. Although it usual held to be beyond description, it is contrasted with the state of suffering experienced by sentient beings in samsara.
"Merit". In Buddhism, it is necessary to accrue merit in order to obtain enlightenment. There are many meritorious activities; examples are the circumambulation of stupas, the lighting of butter-lamps on shrines, and the giving of alms to Buddhist monks.
The state of suffering (duhkha) which, according to the Buddha is experienced by sentient beings in an endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth.
In the Shravakayana, the Sangha is the community of Buddhist monks. In the Mahayana the Sangha may also refer to the lay Buddhist community.
One of the schools of Shravakayana Buddhism. The Sarvastivada school was well-represented in Central Asia, including the Khotan area.
"Emptiness". The doctrine that nothings exists in itself but only in dependence on causes and conditions. The concept is devloped in the Prajnaparamita sutras and the treatises of the Madhyamaka school.
The name for the type of Buddhism found in the earlier schools, such as the Sarvastivada. (Click here for an explanation of the doctrines of the Shravakayana.)
The sutras comprise the first of the "three baskets" (tripitaka) of the Buddhist scriptures. In the Shravakayana they generally recount the words of the Buddha, while in the Mahayana the main speaker is often a bodhisattva. The following are some of the sutras found in the library cave at Dunhuang:
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A structure built as an object of worship, often said to contain a relic of the Buddha or another important Buddhist figure. The design of stupas varies through the different cultures in which Buddhism has been present. The circumambulation of stupas is a popular way of accumulating merit merit.
The name for the scriptures of the Vajrayana. The largest collections of tantras are in the Tibetan canonical collections.
"Buddha nature". The essence of enlightenment, which, according to some Mahayana traditions, exists in every sentient being.
One of the Shravakayana schools, and the only surviving school. Its largest presence is in Southeast Asia.
"Three baskets." The scriptures of the Shravakayana, which are categorised into (i) sutra (or agama), (ii) vinaya, and (iii) abhidharma.
A method of Buddhist practice based on the tantras, usually considered to be a form of the Mahayana.
The second of the "Three Baskets" (tripitaka) of Buddhist scripture, these are Sharavakayana texts concerned with the rules of monastic discipline. Since the Mahayana did not develop a distinctive monastic code, the vinaya is also used by Mahayana monasteries.
A name used primarily for meditation in the Vajrayana based on the tantras.