FACTOID # 77: Moldova has one of the smallest artillery forces in Europe, and the highest rate in the world of death by powered lawnmower. Coincidence? Surely not.
 
 Home   Encyclopedia   Statistics   Countries A-Z   Flags   Maps   Education   Forum   FAQ   About 
 
WHAT'S NEW
RECENT ARTICLES
More Recent Articles »
 

SEARCH ALL

FACTS & STATISTICS    Advanced view

Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:

 

 

(* = Graphable)

 

 


Encyclopedia > Visuddhimagga

Part of a series on
Buddhism
Buddhism is a dharmic, non-theistic religion and a philosophy. ...



Image File history File links Lotus75. ...

History
The History of Buddhism spans from the 6th century BCE to the present, starting with the birth of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama. ...

Dharmic religions
Timeline of Buddhism
Buddhist councils
map showing the prevalence of Dharmic (yellow) and Abrahamic (purple) religions in each country. ... 563 BCE: Siddhārtha 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
Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. ...

Four Noble Truths
Noble Eightfold Path
The Five Precepts
Nirvāṇa · Three Jewels
The Four Noble Truths (Pali: Cattāri ariyasaccāni, Sanskrit: Catvāri āryasatyāni, Chinese: Sìshèngdì) are one of the most fundamental Buddhist teachings. ... The Dharma wheel, often used to represent the Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path (Pāli: Ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo; Sanskrit: Ārya ṣṭāṅga mārgaḥ; Chinese: 八正道, Bāzhèngdào; Japanese: 八正道, Hasshōdō) is, in the teachings of the Buddha, declared to be the way that leads to... The five precepts (Pali: Pañcasīla, Sanskrit: Pañcaśīla Ch: 五戒 wǔ jiè, Sinhala: පන්සිල්) constitute the basic Buddhist code of ethics, undertaken by lay followers of the Buddha Gautama. ... This article is about the Buddhist concept. ... The Three Jewels, also rendered as Three Treasures, Three Refuges or Triple Gem are the three things that Buddhists give themselves to, and in return look toward for guidance, in the process known as taking refuge. ...

Key Concepts
Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. ...

Three marks of existence
Skandha · Cosmology · Dharma
Saṃsāra · Rebirth · Shunyata
Pratitya-samutpada · Karma
According to the Buddhist tradition, all phenomena (dharmas) are marked by three characteristics, sometimes referred to as the Dharma seals, that is dukkha (suffering), anicca (impermanence), and anatta (non-Self). ... The skandhas (Sanskrit: Pāli: 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. ... Dharma (Sanskrit) or Dhamma (Pāli) in Buddhism has two primary meanings: the teachings of the Buddha which lead to enlightenment the constituent factors of the experienced world In East Asia, the character for Dharma is 法, pronounced fǎ in Mandarin and hō in Japanese. ... Saṃsāra, the Sanskrit and Pāli term for continous movement or continuous flowing refers in Buddhism to the concept of a cycle of birth (jāti) and consequent decay and death (jarāmaraṇa), in which all beings in the universe participate and which can only be escaped... Rebirth in Buddhism is the doctrine that the consciousness of a person (as conventionally regarded), upon the death or dissolution of the aggregates (skandhas) which make up that person, becomes one of the contributing causes for the arising of a new group of skandhas which may again be conventionally considered... Śūnyatā, शून्यता (Sanskrit), Suññatā (Pāli) or stong pa nyid (Tibetan), generally translated into English as Emptiness or Voidness, is a concept of central importance in the teaching of the Buddha, intimately related to the doctrine of the three marks of existence (ti-lakkhana). ... The doctrine of Pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit: प्रतित्यसमुत्पादा) or Paticcasamuppāda (Pāli: पतिचसमुपादा; Tibetan: ; Chinese:縁起) Dependent Arising is an important part of Buddhist metaphysics. ... Karma (Sanskrit: कर्मन karman, Pāli: कमा Kamma) means action or doing; whatever one does, says, or thinks is a karma. ...

Major Figures
A number of noted individuals have been Buddhists. ...

Gautama Buddha
Disciples · Later Buddhists Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... A number of noted individuals have been Buddhists. ...

Practices and Attainment

Buddhahood · Bodhisattva
Four Stages of Enlightenment
Paramis · Meditation · Laity
Media:Example. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The four stages of enlightenment in Buddhism are the four degrees of approach to full enlightenment as an Arahant which a person can attain in this life. ... Pāramitā (Sanskrit) or Parami (Pāli): Perfection or Transcendent (lit. ... Buddhist meditation encompasses a variety of meditation techniques that develop mindfulness, concentration, tranquility and insight. ... In canonical Buddhism, householder refers to a particular strata of society whose individuals are typified by having a home life and family. ...

Regions
Buddhist beliefs and practices vary according to region. ...

Southeast Asia · East Asia
India · Sri Lanka · Tibet
Western Countries
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 (Simplified Chinese: 藏传佛教) is the body of religious Buddhist doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet, the Himalayan region (including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and Sikkim and Ladakh), 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
There are many divisions and subdivisions of the schools of Buddhism. ...

Theravāda · Mahāyāna
Vajrayāna · Early schools
Theravada (Pāli: थेरवाद theravāda; Sanskrit: स्थविरवाद sthaviravāda; literally, the Way of the Elders) is the oldest surviving Buddhist school, and for many centuries has been the predominant religion of Sri Lanka (about 70% of the population[1]) and continental Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and parts of southwest... Relief image of the bodhisattva Kuan Yin from Mt. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... 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
There are a great variety of Buddhist texts. ...

Pali Canon · Mahayana Sutras
Tibetan Canon Standard edition of the Thai Pali Canon The Pali Canon is the standard scripture collection of the Theravada Buddhist tradition. ... Mahayana sutras are a very broad genre of Buddhist scriptures that began to be compiled from the first century BCE. They form the basis of the various Mahayana schools, and survive predominantly in primary translations in Chinese and Tibetan from original texts in Sanskrit or Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit. ... The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a loosely defined list of sacred texts recognized by various sects of Tibetan Buddhism. ...

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...

Image:Dharma_wheel_1.png Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

This box: view • talk • edit

The Visuddhimagga ("The path to purity") is a Theravada Buddhist commentary written by Buddhaghosa approximately in 430 CE in Sri Lanka. It is considered the most important Theravada text outside of the Tipitaka canon of scriptures.[1] The Visuddhimagga's structure is based on the Ratha-vinita Sutta ("Relay Chariots Discourse," MN 24), which describes the progression from the purity of discipline to the nibbana, considering seven steps.[2] ... Bhadantācariya Buddhaghosa was a 5th century Indian Theravadin Buddhist commentator and scholar. ... Events Saint Patrick reaches Ireland on his missionary expedition. ... The Tripitaka (Sanskrit, lit. ... The Majjhima Nikaya, or Middle-length Discourses of the Buddha, is the second of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka of the Tipitaka. ... This article is about the Buddhist concept. ...

Contents

Summary

It is composed of four parts, which discuss: 1) Sila (discipline); 2) Samadhi (meditative concentration); 3) The land of wisdom; and 4) Prajna (wisdom). In Sanskrit, śīla is a term in Indian-derived systems such as Hinduism and Buddhism which is usually rendered into English as behavioral discipline, morality, or ethics (Tibetan tshul khrims). ... Samadhi (Sanskrit, lit. ... Prajñā (Sanskrit; Pali: paññā; Tibetan: shes rab, Chinese: 般若, banruo) meaning wisdom, cognitive acuity; or know-how -- but especially the Buddhist wisdom that is based on a realization of dependent origination, not-self, emptiness, etc. ...

  • The first part explains the rules of discipline, and the method for finding a correct temple to practice, or how to meet a good master.
  • The second part describes samatha's practice, object by object (see Kammatthana for the list of the forty traditional objects). It mentions different stages of concentration.
  • The third part is a precious description of the five skandhas (aggregates), ayatanas, the Four Noble Truths and the dependent origination (see: Pratitya-samutpada). This part shows a great analytical effort specific to Buddhist philosophy.
  • The fourth part describes the practice of vipassana through the development of wisdom. It emphasizes different forms of knowledge emerging because of the practice.

Samatha (Pāli; Sanskrit: śamatha), Tranquility or concentration meditation. ... In Buddhism, kammatthana is a Pali word (Sanskrit: karmasthana) which literally means the place of work, figuratively it means the place within the mind where one goes in order to work on spiritual development. ... The skandhas (Sanskrit: Pāli: 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. ... Āyatana (Pāli; Sanskrit) is the Buddhist term for a sense base or sense sphere. ... The Four Noble Truths (Pali: Cattāri ariyasaccāni, Sanskrit: Catvāri āryasatyāni, Chinese: Sìshèngdì) are one of the most fundamental Buddhist teachings. ... The doctrine of Pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit: प्रतित्यसमुत्पादा) or Paticcasamuppāda (Pāli: पतिचसमुपादा; Tibetan: ; Chinese:縁起) Dependent Arising is an important part of Buddhist metaphysics. ... Vipassanā (Pāli) or vipaśyanā (Sanskrit) means insight. While it is often referred to as Buddhist meditation, the practice taught by the Buddha was non-sectarian, and has universal application. ...

Seven steps

This comparison between practice and "seven relay chariots" points at the goal. Each purity is needed to attain the next.

  • Purity in terms of virtue
  • Purity in terms of mind (that is, concentration)
  • Purity in terms of view
  • Purity in terms of the overcoming of perplexity
  • Purity in terms of knowledge and vision of what is and what is not the path
  • Purity in terms of knowledge and vision of the way
  • Purity in terms of knowledge and vision
  • Unbinding through lack of clinging

See also

Bhadantācariya Buddhaghosa was a 5th century Indian Theravadin Buddhist commentator and scholar. ... In Sanskrit, śīla is a term in Indian-derived systems such as Hinduism and Buddhism which is usually rendered into English as behavioral discipline, morality, or ethics (Tibetan tshul khrims). ... Samatha (Pāli; Sanskrit: śamatha), Tranquility or concentration meditation. ... Vipassanā (Pāli) or vipaśyanā (Sanskrit) means insight. While it is often referred to as Buddhist meditation, the practice taught by the Buddha was non-sectarian, and has universal application. ...

Notes

  1. ^ See, for instance, Upatissa et al. (1995), p. xliii: "The Visuddhimagga is a household word in all Theravāda lands. No scholar of Buddhism whether of Theravāda or of Mahāyāna is unacquainted with it."
  2. ^ See Thanissaro (1999) for a translation of the Ratha-vinita Sutta. See the various Visuddhimagga printings listed below to see the manner in which this sutta is explicitly integrated into the work.

References

Printed Pali editions

  • Hewavitarne Bequest edition, Colombo, Sri Lanka (Sinhalese script)
  • Hanthawaddy Press edition, Rangoon, Myanmar (Burmese script)
  • Royal Siamese edition, Bangkok, Thailand (Thai script)
  • Pali Text Society edition, London, England (Roman script)
  • Harvard University Press edition, Harvard Oriental Studies, Vol. 41, Cambridge, Mass., 1950 (Roman script)

This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Pali Text Society was founded in 1881 by T.W. Rhys Davids to foster and promote the study of Pali texts. Pali is the language in which the texts of the Theravada school of Buddhism is preserved. ... The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world. ...

English translations

  • The Path of Purity, Pe Maung (trans.), Pali Text Society, London, 3 vols., 1922-31
  • Bhadantacariya Buddhaghosa, Bhikkhu Nanamoli (trans.), The Path of Purification, BPS-Pariyatti Editions, Onalaska, WA (Buddhist Publication Society), 1999. ISBN 1-928706-01-0.
  • Buddhist Meditation, Edward Conze (trans.), NB: Partial translation, 2002, ISBN 81-215-0781-2

Other translations

  • der Weg zur Reinheit, Nyanatiloka & Verlag Christiani (trans.), Konstanz, 1952 (German)
  • Sinhala Visuddhimargaya, Pandita Matara Sri Dharmavamsa Sthavira, Matara, Sri Lanka, 1953 (Sinhalese)
  • Le chemin de la pureté, Christian Maës, Fayard 2002 (Français)

Other references

  • Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1999). Ratha-vinita Sutta: Relay Chariots (MN 24). Available at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/majjhima/mn024-tb0.html.
  • Upatissa, Arahant and N.R.M. Ehara (trans.), Soma Thera (trans.) and Kheminda Thera (trans.) (1995). The Path of Freedom (Vimuttimagga). Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society. ISBN 955-24-0054-6.

Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff) (1949 - ) is an American Buddhist monk of the Thai forest kammathana tradition. ... The Majjhima Nikaya, or Middle-length Discourses of the Buddha, is the second of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka of the Tipitaka. ...

External links


  Results from FactBites:
 
The Mystery of the Breath Nimitta (3466 words)
Since the Visuddhimagga is so influential and so widely quoted by modern teachers, it would seem critical that it is reliable and, if in certain aspects it is not, then, with supporting evidence, to show clearly why it is not.
Traditionally, the Visuddhimagga, the latest work of the three, has been used and considered perhaps the most authoritative standard to be followed as a manual of meditation.
Whereas the Visuddhimagga similes are given in terms of what one may find as the sign to be dwelled upon, in the Vimuttimagga one finds words of caution so as to abstain from attending to such perceptions (instead of attending to the tactile respiration sign).
Dh Issues kopie (17804 words)
The Commentary to the Visuddhimagga, the Paramattha Mañjuså, the Mahå-tíka, the explanation “by rúpakkhandha”.
The “Visuddhimagga”; explains in the “Description of the Aggregates” (XIV, 62): “Verbal intimation is the mode (conformation) and the alteration (deformation) in the consciousness-originated earth-element that causes that occurrence of speech utterance which mode and alteration are a condition for the knocking together of clung-to-matter
We read in the “Visuddhimagga”; I, 125, that there are for the monk four kinds of use of the requisites: use as a theft, use as a debt, use as an inheritance and use as a master.
  More results at FactBites »


 

COMMENTARY     


Share your thoughts, questions and commentary here
Your name
Your comments
Please enter the 5-letter protection code

Want to know more?
Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:
 


Lesson Plans | Student Area | Student FAQ | Reviews | Press Releases |  Feeds | Contact
The Wikipedia article included on this page is licensed under the GFDL.
Images may be subject to relevant owners' copyright.
All other elements are (c) copyright NationMaster.com 2003-5. All Rights Reserved.
Usage implies agreement with terms.