Anatman

Anatman (Sanskrit) (from an not, non + atman soul, self, variously derived from the verbal root at to move, the verbal root an to breathe, the verbal root va to blow)

Non-self, non-spirit; as an adjective, destitute of mind or spirit, corporeal. Used of the cosmos it signifies, in contrast to atman which is absolute spirit, its shadow or non-spirit, the corporeal or vehicular side of the universe, often mystically spoken of as the cosmic shadow.

See also ANATTA

(See also: Anatman, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Occultism, Occultism Dictionary)

The Buddhist term Anātman (Sanskrit) or Anatta (Pali) is an adjective that specifies the absence of a supposedly permanent and unchanging self or soul in any one of the psycho-physical (namo-rupa) constituents of empirical existence; eg. "none of these khandhas are my Soul, are anatta (non-Self)". What is normally thought of as the "Self" is in fact an agglomeration of constantly changing physical and mental constituents ("skandhas") which give rise to unhappiness if clung to as though this temporary assemblage formed some kin ...

Including:

• Anatta - Summary
• Anatta - Presecular position on anatta as presented in the Nikayas
• Anatta - Interpretive problems
• Anatta - Anatman anatta in the Tathagatagarbha Sutras

Read more here: » Anatta: Encyclopedia - Anatta

Dharma (Sanskrit, roughly law or way) is the way of the higher Truths. Dharma forms the basis for philosophies, beliefs and practices originating in India. The oldest of these, widely known as Hinduism, is Sanatana Dharma or Eternal Dharma. Buddhism, Ayyavazhi, Jainism and Sikhism also retain the centrality of Dharma. In these traditions, beings that live in harmony with Dharma proceed more quickly towards moksha, nirvana, or personal liberation. Dharma also refers to the teachings and doctrines of t ...

Including:

• Dharma - Meanings and origins of the word Dharma
• Dharma - Dharma in Hinduism
• Dharma - Proto-dharma: rta in the Vedas
• Dharma - Developing conceptions
• Dharma - Dharma as a Purushartha
• Dharma - Kane's view
• Dharma - In Jainism
• Dharma - The two Dharmas
• Dharma - In Buddhism
• Dharma - The teachings of the Buddha
• Dharma - Qualities of Buddha Dharma
• Dharma - Dharmas in Buddhist phenomenology
• Dharma - Dharma as righteousness

Read more here: » Dharma

The three marks of conditioned existence

According to the Buddhist tradition all phenomena (dharmas) are marked by three characteristics, sometimes referred to as the Dharma Seals: Anatta, Anicca and Dukkha

Read more here: » Buddhism Beliefs: The three marks of conditioned existence

Buddha-nature (originally in Sanskrit, "Buddha-dhatu" - "Buddha Element", "Buddha-Principle") is a doctrine important for many schools of Mahayana Buddhism. The Buddha-nature ("Buddha-dhatu") is taught to be a truly real eternal potential or principle, present in all sentient beings, for awakening and becoming Enlightened. The Buddha-nature doctrine relates to the possession by sentient beings of the innate buddha-mind or buddha-element ("Buddha-dhatu"), which is, prior to the full attainment of buddhahood, not fully actualized, or at ...

Including:

• Buddha-nature - Development of Buddha-nature
• Buddha-nature - Buddha-nature vs. atman

Read more here: » Buddha-nature

See also anatta (anatman) for Buddhist negation of "atman" idea. Other related archivesAtman (Buddhism), Atman (Hinduism), anatta

Read more here: » Atman: Encyclopedia - Atman

In psychology, egolessness is an emotional state where one feels no ego (or self); of having no distinct being apart from the world around oneself. From the view of Western psychoanalysis and therapy, the state of "oneness" can be either positive or negative depending on the patient, and in the context in which these feelings occur in each patient. The described feeling of oneness (of being inextricably woven to the fabric of one's surroundings or environment) is thought to be akin to egolessness. Lifestyles of communal ...

Including:

• Egolessness - Crowley on egolessness

Read more here: » Egolessness: Encyclopedia - Egolessness

The Five Skandhas (Sanskrit: pañca-skandha, Pāli: pañca-khandha; literally: pañca, five; skandha, heap or bundle) are the five aggregates necessary to create an individual according to Buddhist phenomenology. In other words, a person is made up of the Five Skandhas, without which, there is no "self." The Five Skandhas are: "form" (sa., pi. rūpa): the body and the six sense organs and their objects - 18 Dhatus. rūpa is created by four components (sa ...

Read more here: » Skandha: Encyclopedia - Skandha

Beginning with Vedantic Hindu philosophy, the Ātman — Sanskrit (masculine nominative singular: Ātmā) is regarded as an underlying metaphysical self. It is first seen in its current Hindu usage in the Upanishads, some of which date back to 1000 BC. The word “Atman” (pronounced in Sanskrit like “Atma”) is interpreted by some schools as the “Main Essence” of man, as his Highest Self. “A” in this word is a negative particle. One popular, albeit apocryphal, etymology has it that the 'tma' of "atma" “Tma” mea ...

Including:

• Atman Hinduism - Non-technical uses of ātman
• Atman Hinduism - Buddhism

Read more here: » Atman Hinduism: Encyclopedia - Atman Hinduism

Buddha-nature (originally in Sanskrit, "Buddha-dhatu" - "Buddha Element", "Buddha-Principle") is a doctrine important for many schools of Mahayana Buddhism. The Buddha-nature ("Buddha-dhatu") is taught to be a truly real eternal potential or principle, present in all sentient beings, for awakening and becoming Enlightened. The Buddha-nature doctrine relates to the possession by sentient beings of the innate buddha-mind or buddha-element ("Buddha-dhatu"), which is, prior to the full attainment of buddhahood, not fully actualized, or at ...

Including:

• Buddha-nature - Development of Buddha-nature
• Buddha-nature - Buddha-nature vs. atman

Read more here: » Buddha-nature: Encyclopedia - Buddha-nature

In Buddhism, consciousness-only (Sanskrit: vijñapti-mātratā, vijñapti-mātra, citta-mātra; Chinese: 唯識; Pinyin: wei shi; Japanese: yuishiki) is a theory according to which all existence is nothing but consciousness, and therefore there is nothing that lies outside of the mind. This means that conscious-experience is nothing but false discriminations or imaginations; a provisional antidote; thus, the notion of consciousness-only is an indictment of the problems engendered by the activities of ...

Including:

• Consciousness-only - Doctrine
• Consciousness-only - History

Read more here: » Consciousness-only: Encyclopedia - Consciousness-only

The Tathagatagarbha doctrine (tathāgatagarbha) teaches that each sentient being contains the effulgent Buddhic element or potential to become a Buddha. "Tathagata-garbha" means "Buddha Womb/ Buddha Matrix" or "Buddha Embryo", and this notion is explicated by the Buddha in the "Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra" as the "True Self" within all sentient beings - the unconditioned, boundless, nurturing, sustaining, deathless and diamond-like Self of Buddha, which is indiscernible to worldly, unawakened vision as a result of the masses of neg ...

Including:

• Tathagatagarbha doctrine - Tathagatagarbha in Zen
• Tathagatagarbha doctrine - Buddha-bots
• Tathagatagarbha doctrine - Texts

Read more here: » Tathagatagarbha doctrine: Encyclopedia - Tathagatagarbha doctrine

Dharma (Sanskrit, roughly law or way) is the way of the higher Truths. Beings that live in harmony with Dharma proceed more quickly towards moksha, nirvana, or personal liberation. Dharma forms the basis for philosophies, beliefs and practices originating in India. The oldest of these, widely known as Hinduism, is Sanatana Dharma or Eternal Dharma. Buddhism, Ayyavazhi, Jainism and Sikhism also retain the centrality of Dharma. For the followers of these traditions, Dharma also refers to the teachings ...

Including:

• Dharma - Meanings and origins of the word Dharma
• Dharma - Dharma in Hinduism
• Dharma - Origin and development in Hinduism
• Dharma - Proto-dharma: rta in the Vedas
• Dharma - Developing conceptions
• Dharma - Dharma as a Purushartha
• Dharma - Kane's view
• Dharma - In Jainism
• Dharma - The two Dharmas
• Dharma - In Buddhism
• Dharma - The teachings of the Buddha
• Dharma - Qualities of Buddha Dharma
• Dharma - Dharmas in Buddhist phenomenology
• Dharma - Dharma as righteousness

Read more here: » Dharma: Encyclopedia - Dharma

Atman is a Sanskrit word, normally translated as 'soul' or 'self' (also ego). In Buddhism, the concept of Atman is the prime consequence of ignorance, – itself the cause of all misery - the foundation of Samsara itself. In a number of sutras of Mahayana Buddhism, as well as in certain Buddhist Tantras, however, the term "Atman" is used in a dual sense, in some instances denoting the impermanent, mundane ego (attachment to which needs to be overcome), and on other occasions explicitly referring to the ultimately real, p ...

Including:

• Atman Buddhism - The need for Buddhists to understand Atman
• Atman Buddhism - The definition of Atman in Buddhism
• Atman Buddhism - The ontological status of Atman in Buddhism
• Atman Buddhism - Atman in Nikaya
• Atman Buddhism - The abandonment of Atman in later Buddhist metaphysics
• Atman Buddhism - Positive teachings on the Atman in Mahayana Buddhism

Read more here: » Atman Buddhism: Encyclopedia - Atman Buddhism

The Buddhist term Anatman (Sanskrit), or Anatta (Pali) is an adjective in sutra used to refer to the nature of phenomena as being devoid of the Soul, the ontological and subjective Self (atman) which is the “light (dipam), and only refuge” [DN 2.100]. Of the 662 occurrences of the term Anatta in the Nikayas, its usage is restricted to referring to 22 nouns (forms, feelings, perception, experiences, consciousness, the eye, eye-consciousness, desires, mentation, mental formations, ear, nose, tongue, body, lusts, things unreal, etc.), all p ...

See also:

Anatta, Anatta - Summary, Anatta - Presecular position on anatta as presented in the Nikayas, Anatta - Interpretive problems, Anatta - Anatman anatta in the Tathagatagarbha Sutras

Read more here: » Anatta: Encyclopedia II - Anatta - Presecular position on anatta as presented in the Nikayas

Buddhist teaching tells us that all in life is impermanent and in a constant state of flux, and that any entity that exists does so only in dependence on the conditions of its arising, which are non-eternal. Therefore, any sense one might have of an abiding self or a soul is regarded as a misapprehension. Buddhists hold that the notion of an abiding self is one of the main causes of human conflict, and that by realizing the nonexistence of our perceived self, 'we' may go beyond 'our' mundane desires. (Reference to 'oneself' or 'I' or 'me' for Buddhis ...

See also:

Anatta, Anatta - Summary, Anatta - Presecular position on anatta as presented in the Nikayas, Anatta - Interpretive problems, Anatta - Anatman anatta in the Tathagatagarbha Sutras

Read more here: » Anatta: Encyclopedia II - Anatta - Summary

Students of Buddhism often encounter an intellectual quandary with the teaching in that the concept of anatta and the doctrine of rebirth seem to be mutually exclusive. If there is no-self, no abiding essence of the person, it is unclear what it is that is reborn. The Buddha discussed this in a conversation with a Brahmin named Kutadanta. There have been a number of attempts by various schools of Buddhism to make explicit how it is that rebirth occurs. The more orthodox schools claim that certain of the dispositions or psychological c ...

See also:

Anatta, Anatta - Summary, Anatta - Presecular position on anatta as presented in the Nikayas, Anatta - Interpretive problems, Anatta - Anatman anatta in the Tathagatagarbha Sutras

Read more here: » Anatta: Encyclopedia II - Anatta - Interpretive problems

The writer Aleister Crowley distinguished between two main types of egolessness, for which he used the Buddhist terms Dhyana (which also means a method of attaining this state) and Samadhi. He wrote the following about the relative difficulties of attaining them: One feels "sure" that one can walk a mile along a level road. One knows the conditions, and it would have to be a very extraordinary set of circumstances that would stop one. But though it would be equally fair to say: "I have climbed the Matterhorn and I know I can cli ...

See also:

Egolessness, Egolessness - Crowley on egolessness

Read more here: » Egolessness: Encyclopedia II - Egolessness - Crowley on egolessness

According to the Vijñānavādins, embedded at the heart of Buddhism lies a seeming paradox. In contrast to the Brahmanic teachings of the Upanishads, the Buddha stated quite clearly that the self (atman) is an illusion and that man thus has no soul (anatman). However, there is transmigration (samsara) from one body to another. This poses a difficult question: "If there is no soul, what is it that reincarnates?" The theory of consciousness-only starts by explaining the regularity and coherence of sense impressions ...

See also:

Consciousness-only, Consciousness-only - Doctrine, Consciousness-only - History

Read more here: » Consciousness-only: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness-only - Doctrine

Atman is a Sanskrit word (Pali: Attan), normally translated as 'soul' or 'Self'. In Buddhist sutra, the Atman is the “light (dipam), the only refuge” [DN 2.100]. As contrasted to the 5-aggregates, which are anatman (Pali: anatta), are not the Soul, are “na me so atta” (are not my Soul). At no time or location in the Nikayas is the Atman rejected. What has Buddhism to say of the Self? "That's not my Self" (na me so atta); this, and the term "non Self-ishness" (anatta) predicated of the world and all "things" (sabbe dhamma anatt ...

See also:

Atman Buddhism, Atman Buddhism - The need for Buddhists to understand Atman, Atman Buddhism - The definition of Atman in Buddhism, Atman Buddhism - The ontological status of Atman in Buddhism, Atman Buddhism - Atman in Nikaya, Atman Buddhism - The abandonment of Atman in later Buddhist metaphysics, Atman Buddhism - Positive teachings on the Atman in Mahayana Buddhism

Read more here: » Atman Buddhism: Encyclopedia II - Atman Buddhism - Atman in Nikaya