Buddhist:

Buddhist. Follower of Buddhism.

(See also: Buddhist, Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Sanskrit Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul)

Agadas adj.: healthy; n.: antidote, panacea, universal remedy.

 (See also: Agadas, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Agamas

Generic term applied to a collection of traditional doctrines and precepts; also means the home or collecting-place of the law or truth; the peerless law; the ultimate absolute truth.

The Four Agamas are as follows:

(1)  Dirghagama, "law treatises on cosmogony;

(2)  Madhyamagama, "middle" treatises on metaphysics;

(3)  Samyuktagama, "miscellaneous" treatises on abstract contemplation;

(4)  Edottaragama, "numerical" treatises on subjects treated numerically.

The sutras of Theravada are referred to at times as the Agamas.

 (See also: Agamas, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Buddha Skt., Pali, lit., Òawakened one.Ó

 1. A person who has achieved the enlightenment that leads to release from the cycle of existence (samsara) and has thereby attained complete liberation (nirvana). The content of his teaching, which is based on the experience of enlightenment, is the four noble truths. A buddha has overcome every kind of craving (trishna); although even he also has pleasant and unpleasant sensations, he is not ruled by them and remains innerly untouched by them. After his death he is not reborn again.

 Two kinds of buddhas are distinguished: the pratyeka-buddha, who is completely enlight ened but does not expound the teaching; and the samyak-sambuddha, who expounds for the wel fare of all beings the teaching that he has discov ered anew. A samyak-sambuddha is omniscient (sarvajnata) and possesses the ten powers of a buddha (dashabala) and the four certainties. The buddha of our age is Shakyamuni. (See also Buddha 2.)

 Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical Buddha, is not the first and only buddha. Already in the early Hinayana texts, six buddhas who preceded him in earlier epochs are mentioned: Vipashyin (Pali, Vipassi), Shikin (Sikhi), Vishvabhu (Vessabhu), Krakuchchanda (Kakusandha), Konagamana, and Kashyapa (Kassapa). The buddha who will follow Sh?kyamuni in a future age and renew the dharma is Maitreya. Be yond these, one finds indications in the litera ture of thirteen further buddhas, of which the most important is Dipamkara, whose disci ple Shakyamuni was in his previous existence as the ascetic Sumedha. The stories of these leg endary buddhas are contained in the Buddhavamsa, a work from the Khuddaka nikaya.

 2. The historical Buddha. He was born in 563 BCE, the son of a prince of the Shakyas, whose small kingdom in the foothills of the Himalayas lies in present-day Nepal. His first name was Siddhartha, his family name Gauta ma. Hence he is also called Gautama Buddha. (For the story of his life, see Siddhartha Gauta ma.) During his life as a wandering ascetic, he was known as Shakyamuni, the ÒSilent Sage of the Shakyas.Ó In order to distinguish the historical Buddha from the transcendent buddhas (see buddha 3), he is generally called Shakyamuni Buddha or Buddha Shakyamuni.

 3. The Òbuddha principle,Ó which manifests itself in the most various forms. Whereas in Hinayana only the existence of one buddha in every age is accepted (in which case the Buddha is considered an earthly being who teaches hu mans), for the Mahayana there are countless transcendent buddhas. According to the Mahayana teaching of the trikaya, the buddha principle manifests itself in three principal forms, the so-called three bodies (trikaya). In this sense the transcendent buddhas represent embodiments of various aspects of the buddha principle.

 4. A synonym for the absolute, ultimate reality devoid of form, color, and all other propertiesÑbuddha-nature.

From The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen,

By Michael S. Diener, Franz-Karl Erhard, Ingrid Fischer-Schreiber

Translated by Michael H. Kohn

 (See also: Buddha, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Buddha Skt., Pali, lit., “awakened one.”

 1. A person who has achieved the enlightenment that leads to release from the cycle of existence (samsara) and has thereby attained complete liberation (nirvana). The content of his teaching, which is based on the experience of enlightenment, is the four noble truths. A buddha has overcome every kind of craving (trishna); although even he also has pleasant and unpleasant sensations, he is not ruled by them and remains innerly untouched by them. After his death he is not reborn again.

 Two kinds of buddhas are distinguished: the pratyeka-buddha, who is completely enlight ened but does not expound the teaching; and the samyak-sambuddha, who expounds for the wel fare of all beings the teaching that he has discov ered anew. A samyak-sambuddha is omniscient (sarvajnata) and possesses the ten powers of a buddha (dashabala) and the four certainties. The buddha of our age is Shakyamuni. (See also Buddha 2.)

 Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical Buddha, is not the first and only buddha. Already in the early Hinayana texts, six buddhas who preceded him in earlier epochs are mentioned: Vipashyin (Pali, Vipassi), Shikin (Sikhi), Vishvabhu (Vessabhu), Krakuchchanda (Kakusandha), Konagamana, and Kashyapa (Kassapa). The buddha who will follow Sh?kyamuni in a future age and renew the dharma is Maitreya. Be yond these, one finds indications in the litera ture of thirteen further buddhas, of which the most important is Dipamkara, whose disci ple Shakyamuni was in his previous existence as the ascetic Sumedha. The stories of these leg endary buddhas are contained in the Buddhavamsa, a work from the Khuddaka nikaya.

 2. The historical Buddha. He was born in 563 BCE, the son of a prince of the Shakyas, whose small kingdom in the foothills of the Himalayas lies in present-day Nepal. His first name was Siddhartha, his family name Gauta ma. Hence he is also called Gautama Buddha. (For the story of his life, see Siddhartha Gauta ma.) During his life as a wandering ascetic, he was known as Shakyamuni, the “Silent Sage of the Shakyas.” In order to distinguish the historical Buddha from the transcendent buddhas (see buddha 3), he is generally called Shakyamuni Buddha or Buddha Shakyamuni.

 3. The “buddha principle,” which manifests itself in the most various forms. Whereas in Hinayana only the existence of one buddha in every age is accepted (in which case the Buddha is considered an earthly being who teaches hu mans), for the Mahayana there are countless transcendent buddhas. According to the Mahayana teaching of the trikaya, the buddha principle manifests itself in three principal forms, the so-called three bodies (trikaya). In this sense the transcendent buddhas represent embodiments of various aspects of the buddha principle.

 4. A synonym for the absolute, ultimate reality devoid of form, color, and all other properties—buddha-nature.

From The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen,

By Michael S. Diener, Franz-Karl Erhard, Ingrid Fischer-Schreiber

Translated by Michael H. Kohn

 (See also: Buddha, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bardo

The intermediate existence between death and reincarnation -- a stage varying from seven to forty-nine days, after which the Karmic body from previous lives will certainly be reborn.

 (See also: Bardo, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Kasaya

The monkπs robe, or cassock.

 (See also: Kasaya, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bhiksu

Religious mendicant; Buddhist fully ordained monk. Bhiksuni is the equivalent term designating a woman.

 (See also: Bhiksu, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bhadanta "Most virtuous"; honorific title apllied to a Buddha.

 (See also: Bhadanta, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bhaisajyaguru

Sanskrit word, the Buddha of Medicine, who quells all diseases and lengthens life. His is the Buddha in the Pure Land of the Paradise of the East.

 (See also: Bhaisajyaguru, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bhutatathata

The true character of reality. The real as thus, always or eternally so. True Suchness.

 (See also: Bhutatathata, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Bodhi

Sanskrit for Enlightenment. Also Perfect knowledge or wisdom by which a person becomes a Buddha.

 (See also: Bodhi, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Arhat

Arhatship is the highest rank attained by Sravakas.

An Arhat is a Buddhist saint who has attained liberation from the cycle of Birth and Death, generally through living a monastic life in accordance with the Buddhas' teachings. This is the goal of Theravadin practice, as contrasted with Bodhisattvahood in Mahayana practice.

The stage is preceded by three others:

1. Stream Winner,
2. Once-Returner,
3. Non-Returner.

See also "Sravakas."

 (See also: Arhat, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Arthakrtya

One of the Four All-Embracing Virtues: performance of conduct profitable to others in order to lead them toward the truth.

 (See also: Arthakrtya, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Arya

Any individual ennobled by his/her own continuing effort on the path to enlightenment.

 (See also: Arya, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Asrava (sanskrit)

Pain causing impurity, defilement.

 (See also: Asrava, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Asura

Titanic demons, enemies of the gods, with whom-especially Indra-they wage war.

 (See also: Asura, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Attachment

In the Four Noble truths, Buddha Shakyamuni taught that attachment to self is the root cause of suffering:

• From craving (attachment) springs grief,
• from craving springs fear;
• For him who is wholly free from craving, there is no grief, much less fear. (Dhammapada Sutra. In Narada Maha Thera, The Buddha and His Teachings.)

If you don't have attachments, naturally you're liberated ... In ancient times, there was an old cultivator who asked for instructions from a monk,

"Great Monk, let me ask you, how can I attain liberation?" The Great monk said, "Who tied you up?" This old cultivator answered, "Nobody tied me up." The monk said, "Then why do you seek liberation?"

 (Hsuan Hua, tr., Flower Adornment Sutra, "Pure Conduct," chap. 11.)

For the seasoned practitioner, even the Dharma must not become an attachment. As an analogy, to clean one's shirt, it is necessary to use soap. However, if the soap is not then rinsed out, the garment will not be truly clean. Similarly, the practitioner's mind will not be fully liberated until he severs attachment to everything, including the Dharma itself.

 (See also: Attachment, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Avalokitesvara

The name is a compound of Ishwara, meaning Lord, and avalokita, looked upon or seen, and is usually translated as the Lord Who Observes (the cries of the world); the Buddhist embodiment of compassion as formulated in the Mahayana Dharma. Also called Kuan Yin, the Bodhisattva of Compassion.

Guan Yin is one of the triad of Amitabha Buddha, represented on his left, Usually recognizable by the small Buddha adorning Her crown. Guan Yin can transform into many different forms in order to cross over to the beings.

Guan Yin is one of the most popular Bodhisattva in China.

 (See also: Avalokitesvara, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Agara House, dwelling, receptacle; also, used in the sense of a Bodily organ, e.g., the ear for sound, etc.

 (See also: Agara, Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)