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 Please see our Content Disclaimer regarding English terms in LYWA publications that may be outdated and should be considered in context.
Cyclic existence; the six realms of conditioned existence, three lower—hell, hungry ghost (Skt: preta), and animal—and three upper—human, demigod (Skt: asura), and god (Skt: sura). The beginningless, recurring cycle of death and rebirth under the control of delusion and karma, fraught with suffering. Also refers to the contaminated aggregates of a sentient being.
See buddha.
Spiritual community; the third of the Three Jewels of Refuge. In Tibetan gen dun literally means intending (dun) to virtue (ge). Absolute Sangha are those who have directly realized emptiness; relative Sangha refers to a group of at least four fully ordained monks or nuns.
A great eighth century Indian yogi; one of the 84 mahasiddhas and founders of the Vajrayana, particularly the Mahamudra tradition. He composed many famous tantric songs.
A female buddha embodying creativity and wisdom, (the Tibetan means "Melodious Lady"). Her wrathful aspect is Palden Lhamo, the chief protector of the Tibetan people.
A small town near Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India; the site of Deer Park, where the Buddha first turned the wheel of Dharma, giving his famous discourse on the four noble truths.
The Sutra school, one of the two main Hinayana (Lesser Vehicle) philosophical schools. The Sutra school accepts both self-knowers and external objects. See also the four Buddhist philosophical schools.
The Sutra Middle Way Autonomy school, a division of the Svatantrika (Autonomy school) of Buddhist philosophy. The proponent asserts a presentation of conventionalities through mostly conforming with the Sautrantika (Sutra school). Examples of Sutra Middle Way Autonomists are Bhavaviveka and Jnanagarbha. See also Yogacara-Svatantrika-Madhyamaka and the four Buddhist philosophical schools.
One who liberates us from both the lower and the upper realms and leads us to enlightenment, the guru. Lama Zopa Rinpoche advises to avoid "protector" in this context.
The mind wanders from the object of meditation to an unintended object. Scattering to another object is induced through either (1) the force of attachment; (2) the force of anger; or (3) virtuous thoughts. Scattering through attachment is most common, the other two less so, but all are obstacles to single-pointed concentration. See also attachment-scattering thought, sinking thought and lethargy.
One of the six groups of mental factors, these are the afflicted or nonvirtuous minds that arise in dependence on the root delusions such as attachment, anger and so forth. There are twenty: belligerence, resentment, concealment, spite, jealousy, miserliness, deceit, dissimulation, haughtiness, harmfulness, non-shame (shamelessness), non-embarrassment (inconsideration), lethargy, excitement, non-faith (faithlessness), laziness, non-conscientiousness, forgetfulness, non-introspection (non-alertness) and distraction.
Another name for Vajrayana, so called because it should not be revealed to those not ready.
