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 Please see our Content Disclaimer regarding English terms in LYWA publications that may be outdated and should be considered in context.
The ever-weeping bodhisattva (sada is “always” and prarudita is in “tears”); he is mentioned in the Perfection of Wisdom sutras (Prajnaparamita) and is used as an example of unwavering devotion to the guru. Sada Prarudita is often translated by Lama Zopa Rinpoche as the Bodhisattva Always Crying One.
Method of accomplishment; the step-by-step instructions for practicing the meditations related to a particular meditational deity.
A wandering Hindu yogi.
One of four great holy days of the Tibetan calendar, falling on the fifteenth of the fourth Tibetan month, Saka Dawa commemorates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and parinirvana. Engaging in virtuous activities at this time by making extensive offerings or doing beneficial pujas and practices creates vast merit.
One of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism, it was founded in the province of Tsang in 1073 by Khön Könchog Gyälpo (1034–1102), the main disciple of Drogmi Lotsawa (Drogmi Shakya Yeshe). See also Nyingma, Kagyü and Gelug.
The title of Kunga Gyaltsen, a master of the Sakya tradition, who spread Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia and China.
A bodhisattva renowned for his heroic aspiration and extensive offerings.
Sacred word of honor; the pledges and commitments made by a disciple at an initiation to keep tantric vows for life or to perform certain practices connected with the deity, such as daily sadhana recitation, or offering the Guru Puja on the tenth and the twenty-fifth of each Tibetan month.
One of 32 deities from the Guhyasamaja mandala, a Highest Yoga Tantra practice. This practice purifies broken samaya in relation to one’s spiritual guide.
The enjoyment body; the form in which the enlightened mind appears in order to benefit highly realized bodhisattvas. See also five certainties, dharmakaya, nirmanakaya, rupakaya, two kayas, three kayas and four kayas.
Early non-Buddhist philosophical school; the so-called "enumerators," because they advocate a definite enumeration of the causes that produce existents.
