Category: Buddhism

Bodhi (Pāli and Sanskrit. Lit. awakening) is a title given in Buddhism to the specific awakening experience attained by the Indian spiritual teacher Gautama Buddha and his disciples. It is sometimes described as complete and perfect sanity, or awareness of the true nature of the universe. After attainment, it is believed one is freed from the cycle of Samsāra: birth,...

Bodh Gaya or Bodhgaya is the place of Buddha’s attainment of Enlightenment. The complex, located about 96 kilometers from Patna (situated at latitude 24° 41′ 45″ N, longitude 85° 2′ 2″ E) in the state of Bihar in India, contains the Mahabodhi Temple with the diamond throne (called the Vajrasana) and the holy Bodhi tree and was built over 2500...

In the Bodhisattva vows (sometimes called the Bodhisattva Precepts) of Mahayana Buddhism, the bodhisattvas take vows stating that they will not realize or attain Nirvana until all sentient beings have done so. This four-part vow is made out of compassion and the bodhisattva devotes his/her powers to helping others attain Nirvana. Buddhist lay persons may take the bodhisattva vows in...

In Buddhist thought, a bodhisattva (Simplified Chinese: 菩萨; Traditional Chinese: 菩薩; Hanyu pinyin: púsà; Japanese: 菩薩 bosatsu; Korean: bosal) is a being who is dedicated to assisting all sentient beings achieve complete Buddhahood. Conventionally, the term is applied to hypothetical beings with a high degree of enlightenment. Bodhisattva literally means a “wisdom (‘bodhi’) being (‘sattva’)” in Sanskrit. Contents Bodhisattvas in...

The Black Crown is an important symbol of the Karmapa, the Lama that heads the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. The crown signifies his power to benefit all sentient beings. Legend tells that in a previous eon, in a former life as an accomplished (yogi), the Karmapa attained the eighth level or bhumi of the bodhisattvas. At this time, 100,000...

The Blue Cliff Record (Chinese: 《碧巖錄》 Bìyán Lù; Japanese: Hekiganroku) is a collection of Zen Buddhist koans originally compiled in China during the Song dynasty in 1125 (宋宣和七年) and then expanded into its present form by the Chan master Yuanwu Keqin (圜悟克勤 1063–1135). The book includes Yuanwu’s annotations and commentary on Xuedou Zhongxian’s (雪竇重顯 980–1052) collection 100 Verses on Old...

The Bimaran casket is a small gold reliquary for Buddhist relics that was found inside the stupa no.2 at Bimaran, near Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan. When it was found by the archaeologist Charles Masson during his work in Afghanistan between 1833 and 1838, the casket contained coins of the Indo-Scythian king Azes II, suggesting a date around 30 BCE to...

In Hinduism and Buddhism, the Sanskrit term bīja (Jp. 種子 shushi), literally seed, is used as a metaphor for the origin or cause of things. The metaphor is considerably extended in the Consciousness-only teachings of the Yogacara school of Buddhism. According to this theory, all experiences and actions produce bija as impressions, stored in the alaya (storehouse) consciousness. The external...

In Pāli, a bhikkhu (male) or bhikkhuni (female) is a fully ordained Buddhist monk. The respective Sanskrit versions are bhikṣu and bhikṣunī. The word literally translates as “beggar” or more broadly as “one who lives by alms”. It is philologically analysed in the Pali commentary of the Buddhaghosa as “the person who sees danger (in samsara or cycle of rebirth)”...

Bhikkhuni refers to the tradition of Buddhist holy women, or nuns. While the lineage of Buddhist nuns (Bhikkhuni) was originally provided for by the Buddha, it spread widely in the Mahayana tradition. Since the 11th century many believe that lineage has been broken. The official ordination of nuns has declined in the time that has passed since the order’s founding...

Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk from New York City. Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1944, he obtained a BA in philosophy from Brooklyn College (1966) and a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School (1972). Drawn to Buddhism in his early 20s, after completing his university studies he traveled to Sri Lanka, where he received novice ordination...

Bhavaviveka was the founder of the Svatantrika tradition of the Madhyamaka school of Buddhism. In this tradition reasoning is used to establish that phenomena (dharmas) have no self-nature, and further arguments to establish that the true nature of all phenomena is emptiness. This school differs from the predominant prasangika tradition in that the latter refrain from making any assertions whatsoever...

This article is about the Sanskrit term. For the film actress, see Bhavana (actress). Bhavana, translated from Sanskrit means “to become”, “becoming”, “cultivate”. Sometimes wrongly translated as “meditate” or “meditation”. It’s reference to meditation is more correctly stated as “the cultivation of meditation” or “the cultivation of the meditative state”. (Dhyana is the Sanskrit term for meditation). As with many...

Bhante Henepola Gunaratana is a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk. He is often affectionately known as Bhante G. Bhante is a title which literally means something like reverend sir in Pāli. In addition to being a polite form of address in Pāli conversation, it is commonly used as a term of respect for Theravada monks. Contents Early life Missionary work Arrival...