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This glossary contains an alphabetical list of Buddhist terms that you may find on this website. Many of the terms now include phoneticized Sanskrit (Skt) as well as two forms of Tibetan—the phonetic version (Tib), which is a guide to pronunciation, and transliteration using the Wylie method (Wyl). Search for the term you want by entering it in the search box or browse through the listing by clicking on the letters below. Please see our Content Disclaimer regarding English terms in LYWA publications that may be outdated and should be considered in context.

five buddha types

[gyel pa] rig nga (Tib); [rgyal ba] rigs lnga (Wyl)

They are Vairochana, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, Amoghasiddhi and Akshobhya. Each of the five types, representing a different aspect of enlightenment, is linked to the fully purified aggregates of form, feeling, discriminative awareness, compositional factors and consciousness. Lama Zopa Rinpoche advises that type is the correct translation of the Tibetan term rig, rather than family, lineage or Dhyani Buddhas. Read Rinpoche’s explanation here.