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Buddhism
A replica of an ancient statue of Gautama Buddha, found in Sarnath, near Varanasi. ...
Image File history File links Lotus-buddha. ...
| | History of Buddhism
Timeline of Buddhism
Buddhist councils
The history of Buddhism spans from the 6th century BCE to the present, starting with the birth of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama. ...
563 BCE: SiddhÄrtha Gautama, Buddha-to-be, is born in Lumbini, Ancient India. ...
// 1st Buddhist council (5th century BC) The first Buddhist council was held soon after the death of the Buddha under the patronage of king Ajatasatru, and presided by a monk named Mahakasyapa, at Rajagaha (todays Rajgir). ...
| | Foundations
Four Noble Truths
Noble Eightfold Path
The Five Precepts
Nirvāna · Three Jewels
Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. ...
The Four Noble Truths (Pali: Chattari Arya Sachchhani, Chinese: å››è–諦 Sìshèngdì), being among the most fundamental Buddhist teachings, appear many times throughout the most ancient Buddhist texts, the Pali Canon. ...
The Noble Eightfold Path (Sanskrit Ä€ryo á¹£á¹Äá¹…go mÄrgaḥ , PÄli Ariyo aá¹á¹haá¹…giko maggo) of Buddhism, as taught by the Buddha ÅšÄkyamuni, is the way to the cessation of suffering, the fourth part of the Four Noble Truths. ...
Pancasila or pañca-sila is the fundamental code of Buddhist ethics, willingly undertaken by lay followers of Gautama Buddha. ...
[ (Devanagari , Pali: NibbÄna निबà¥à¤¬à¤¾à¤¨ -- Chinese: 涅槃; Pinyin: niè pán), literally extinction and/or extinguishing (ie, of the passions) is a mode of being that is free from mind-contaminants (Kilesa) such as lust, anger or craving. ...
The Triratna or Three Jewels symbol, on a Buddha footprint. ...
| | Key Concepts
Three marks of existence
Skandha · Cosmology · Dharma
Samsara · Rebirth · Shunyata
Pratitya-samutpada · Karma
Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. ...
After much meditation, the Buddha concluded that everything in the physical world (plus everything in the phenomenology of psychology) is marked by three characteristics, known as the three characteristics of existence or Dharma Seals. ...
The skandhas (Sanskrit: PÄli: Khandha; literally: heap or bundle) are the five constituents or aggregates through which the functioning and experience of an individual is created according to Buddhist phenomenology. ...
Buddhist cosmology is the description of the shape and evolution of the universe according to the canonical Buddhist scriptures and commentaries. ...
In East Asia, the character for Dharma is 法, pronounced fǎ in Mandarin and hŠin Japanese. ...
SaṃsÄra, the Sanskrit and PÄli term for continous movement or continuous flowing refers in Buddhism to the concept of a cycle of birth (jÄti) and consequent decay and death (jarÄmaraṇa), in which all beings in the universe participate and which can only be escaped...
// Rebirth in the context of other religions and other Buddhist beliefs One of the features that distinguishes the Middle Eastern religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) from the Indian religions (most notably Hinduism and Buddhism) is the view of life and death. ...
ŚūnyatÄ, शूनà¥à¤¯à¤¤à¤¾ (Sanskrit, Pali: suññatÄ), or Emptiness, is a term for an aspect of the Buddhist metaphysical critique as well as Buddhist epistemology and phenomenology. ...
The doctrine of PratÄ«tyasamutpÄda (Sanskrit) or Paá¹iccasamuppÄda (PÄli; Tibetan: ) is Buddhisms primary contribution to metaphysics. ...
Karma (Sanskrit karman) or Kamma (PÄli) means action or doing; whatever one does, says, or thinks is a karma. ...
| | Major Figures
Gautama Buddha
Buddha's Disciples · Family
A number of noted individuals have been Buddhists. ...
Standing Buddha, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ...
| | Practices and Attainment
Buddhahood · Bodhisattva
Four Stages of Enlightenment
Paramis · Meditation · Laity
A large Buddha image in Yangon, Myanmar In Buddhism, a buddha (Sanskrit बà¥à¤¦à¥à¤§) is any being who has become fully awakened (enlightened), has permanently overcome greed, hate, and ignorance, and has achieved complete liberation from suffering. ...
In Buddhist thought, a bodhisattva (Pali: bodhisatta; Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: púsà ; Japanese: è©è–© bosatsu; Korean: ë³´ì‚´ bosal ; Tibetan changchub sempa (byang-chub sems-dpa); Vietnamese: Bồ Tát; Thai: พระโพธิสัตว์) is a being who is dedicated to assisting all sentient beings in achieving complete Buddhahood. ...
The Four stages of enlightenment in Buddhism are the four degrees of approach to full enlightenment as an arhat which a Buddhist can attain in this life. ...
Pāramitā (Sanskrit) or Parami (Pāli): Perfection or Transcendent (lit. ...
Buddhist meditation, meditation used in the practice of Buddhism, includes any method of meditation that has Enlightenment as its ultimate aim. The closest word for meditation in the classical languages of Buddhism is bhavana or mental development. // Methods of meditation The main methods of Buddhist meditation are divided into samatha...
In canonical Buddhism, householder refers to a particular strata of society whose individuals are typified by having a home life and family. ...
| | Buddhism by Region
Southeast Asia · East Asia
Tibet · India · Western
Buddhist beliefs and practices vary according to region. ...
Theravada (Pali; Sanskrit: Sthaviravada) is one of the eighteen (or twenty) Nikāya schools that formed early in the history of Buddhism. ...
The Aomori Daibutsu (Big Buddha), Aomori, Japan. ...
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of religious Buddhist doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet, the Himalayan region (including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and Sikkim), Mongolia, Buryatia, Tuva and Kalmykia (Russia), and northeastern China (Manchuria: Heilongjiang, Jilin). ...
The Indo-Greek king Menander (155-130 BCE) is the first Western historical figure documented to have converted to Buddhism. ...
| | Schools of Buddhism
Theravāda · Mahāyāna
Vajrayāna · Early schools
There are many divisions and subdivisions of the schools of Buddhism. ...
Theravada (Pali; Sanskrit: Sthaviravada) is one of the eighteen (or twenty) NikÄya schools that formed early in the history of Buddhism. ...
Relief image of the bodhisattva Kuan Yin from Mt. ...
Chinese : 金剛乘 jin gang cheng A mandala used in Vajrayana Buddhist practices. ...
Divisions among the early Buddhist schools came about due to doctrinal or practical differences in the views of the Buddhist Sangha following the death of the Buddha. ...
| | Texts
Pali Canon
Pali Suttas · Mahayana Sutras
Vinaya · Abhidhamma
There are a great variety of Buddhist texts. ...
Standard edition of the Thai Pali Canon The Pali Canon is the standard scripture collection of the Southern Buddhist (Theravada) tradition. ...
The Sutta Pitaka (or Sutra Pitaka) is the second of three divisions of the Tipitaka, the great Pali collection of Buddhist writings. ...
Mahayana sutras are a very broad genre of Buddhist scriptures that were originally put in writing starting in the first century BCE. They form the basis of the various Mahayana schools. ...
Pali or Sanskrit word meaning discipline. The Vinaya is the textual framework for the Buddhist monastic community, or sangha. ...
The abhidhamma is the name of one of the three pitakas, or baskets of tradition, into which the Tipitaka (Pali; Sanskrit: Tripitaka), the canon of early Buddhism, is divided. ...
| | Comparative Studies
Culture · List of Topics
Portal: Buddhism
 The cultural elements of Buddhism vary by region and include: Buddhist cuisine Buddhist art Buddharupa Art and architecture of Japan Greco-Buddhism Tibetan Buddhist sacred art Buddhist music Buddhist chant Shomyo Categories: Buddhism-related stubs ...
Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z The following is a List of Buddhist topics: A Abhidharma Ahimsa Ajahn Ajahn Chah Ajanta Aksobhya Alexandra David-Néel...
Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...
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The Contemplation Sutra is one of the three major Buddhist sutras found within the Pure Land branch of Buddhism. It is considered the shortest of the three. The sutra begins with a story of a prince named Ajatashatru, who, in order to ascend the throne, murdered his father (King Bimbisara) and imprisoned his mother (Queen Vaidehiin). Buddha appears to Vaidehi in a vision and tells her how to obtain rebirth in a better world, the Pure Land or Western Paradise, through devotion to another Buddha named Amitabha. (In the Pure Land branch of Buddhism, it is believed that rebirth in the Pure Land hastens one's attainment of Nirvana.) The Buddha goes on to describe a series of thirteen contemplative exercises that will help one achieve such rebirth, and then describes the nine levels of rebirth in the Pure Land that are attained based on one's behavior in this world, among other factors. The Buddha Amitabha, 13th century, Kamakura, Japan. ...
Standing Buddha, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ...
Amitabha Buddha and his two acolytes, Mahasthamaprapta and Avalokitesvara AmitÄbha is a celestial Buddha described in the scriptures of MahÄyÄna Buddhism. ...
[ (Devanagari , Pali: NibbÄna निबà¥à¤¬à¤¾à¤¨ -- Chinese: 涅槃; Pinyin: niè pán), literally extinction and/or extinguishing (ie, of the passions) is a mode of being that is free from mind-contaminants (Kilesa) such as lust, anger or craving. ...
Basic Outline of the Sutra
Preliminary matters After a brief preface, the sutra relates the story of the overthrow of King Bimbisara by his son Ajatashatru, followed by Queen Vaidehi's imprisonment. Shakyamuni's visit to Vaidehi is described, and Vaidehi says that she wishes to be born in Amida's Pure Land. Shakyamuni smiles, emitting light from his mouth, and goes on to tell Vaidehi how to be reborn in the Pure Land.
Attaining birth in the Pure Land Shakyamuni explains the importance of performing certain meritorious acts in order to be reborn in the Pure Land. He then goes on to teach Vaidehi how to visualize the Pure Land, to further her efforts in attaining rebirth there. Shakyamuni describes thirteen "contemplations," or mental visualization exercises, that are to be followed in order. By deeply contemplating various aspects of the Pure Land and attempting to visualize them in detail, the aspirant draws closer to the Pure Land.
The thirteen contemplations are described in order as follows:
1) Contemplation of the setting sun
2) Contemplation of an expanse of water
3) Contemplation of the ground in the Pure Land
4) Contemplation of trees in the Pure Land
5) Contemplation of ponds in the Pure Land
6) Contemplation of various objects in the Pure Land
7) Contemplation of the lotus-throne of the Buddha
8) Contemplation of the image of Amida Buddha
9) Contemplation of Amida Buddha himself
10) Contemplation of Avalokiteshvara
11) Contemplation of Mahasthamaprapta
12) Contemplation of the aspirants to the Pure Land
13) Contemplation of Amida and two Bodhisattvas
Nine levels of birth In the final part of the sutra, Shakyamuni discusses the nine levels into which those born into the Pure Land are categorized. The levels are ranked from highest to lowest as follows:
1) The highest level of the highest grade
2) The middle level of the highest grade
3) The lowest level of the highest grade
4) The highest level of the middle grade
5) The middle level of the middle grade
6) The lowest level of the middle grade
7) The highest level of the lowest grade
8) The middle level of the lowest grade
9) The lowest level of the lowest grade
Conclusion The sutra ends with a short section describing the benefits gained by those who listened to these words of the Buddha. Vaidehi experienced "great awakening with clarity of mind and reached the insight into the non-arising of all dharmas," while her five hundred female attendants and "innumerable devas" also awakened aspiration for the highest enlightenment. Shakyamuni names the sutra, mentions benefits connected with the name of Amida Buddha, and exhorts all to hold the words of the sutra in their minds. Shakyamuni then returns through the air to the Vulture Peak.
See also JÅdo shÅ« (浄土宗 The Pure Land School), also known as Jodo Buddhism, is a branch of Pure Land Buddhism derived from the teachings of the Japanese ex-Tendai monk Honen. ...
JÅdo ShinshÅ« (浄土真宗 True Pure Land School), also known as Shin Buddhism, is a branch of Pure Land Buddhism derived from the teachings of the Japanese ex-Tendai monk Shinran. ...
Sutra (सूतà¥à¤°) in Sanskrit is derived from the verb siv-, meaning to sew (these words, including English to sew and Latinate suture, all derive from PIE *syÅ«-). It literally means a rope or thread, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms...
Shakyamuni Buddha teaching. ...
External links - English translation of the Contemplation Sutra
- The Taima Mandala Image of the Pure Land from a medieval Japanese scroll, based on the descriptions found in the Contemplation Sutra. This site offers explanations in English of the various motifs of the scroll.
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