Ficus religiosaFicus religiosa or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, pimple tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipala tree, ashvattha tree (in India and Nepal), or Asathu (ඇසතු) in Sinhala. The sacred fig is considered to have a religious significance in three major religions that originated on the Indian subcontinent, Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Hindu and Jain ascetics consider the species to be sacred and often meditate under it.
SangharajaSangharaja (Pāli: sangha religious community + raja ruler, king, or prince) is the title given in many Theravada Buddhist countries to a senior monk who is the titular head either of a monastic fraternity (nikaya), or of the Sangha throughout the country. This term is often rendered in English as 'Patriarch' or 'Supreme Patriarch'. The position of sangharaja has been assigned according to various methods in different countries and time periods.
ChaityaA chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, (Sanskrit:Caitya; Pāli: Cetiya) refers to a shrine, sanctuary, temple or prayer hall in Indian religions. The term is most common in Buddhism, where it refers to a space with a stupa and a rounded apse at the end opposite the entrance, and a high roof with a rounded profile. Strictly speaking, the chaitya is the stupa itself, and the Indian buildings are chaitya halls, but this distinction is often not observed.
BuddhadasaPhra Dharmakosācārya (Nguam Indapañño) (พระธรรมโกศาจารย์ (เงื่อม อินฺทปญฺโญ); ), also known as Buddhadāsa Bhikkhu (พุทธทาสภิกขุ; , 27 May 1906 – 25 May 1993) was a famous author and influential Thai ascetic-philosopher of the 20th century. Known as an innovative reinterpreter of Buddhist doctrine and Thai folk beliefs, Buddhadasa fostered a reformation in conventional religious perceptions in his home country, Thailand, as well as abroad.
BhavanaBhāvanā (Pali; Sanskrit: भावना, also bhāvanā) literally means "development" or "cultivating" or "producing" in the sense of "calling into existence". It is an important concept in Buddhist practice (Patipatti). The word bhavana normally appears in conjunction with another word forming a compound phrase such as citta-bhavana (the development or cultivation of the heart/mind) or metta-bhavana (the development/cultivation of lovingkindness). When used on its own, bhavana signifies contemplation and 'spiritual cultivation' generally.
VisuddhimaggaThe Visuddhimagga (Pali; English: The Path of Purification), is the 'great treatise' on Buddhist practice and Theravāda Abhidhamma written by Buddhaghosa approximately in the 5th century in Sri Lanka. It is a manual condensing and systematizing the 5th century understanding and interpretation of the Buddhist path as maintained by the elders of the Mahavihara Monastery in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. It is considered the most important Theravada text outside the Tipitaka canon of scriptures, and is described as "the hub of a complete and coherent method of exegesis of the Tipitaka.
UpekṣāUpekṣā (Sanskrit: उपेक्षा; Pali: Upekkhā) is the Buddhist concept of equanimity. As one of the Brahma-viharas, virtues of the "Brahma realm" (Pāli: Brahmaloka), it is one of the wholesome (kuśala) mental factors (cetasika) cultivated on the Buddhist path to nirvāna through the practice of jhāna. Many passages in the Pali Canon and post-canonical commentary identify upekkha as an important aspect of spiritual development. It is one of the Four Sublime States (brahmavihara), which are purifying mental states capable of counteracting the defilements of lust, aversion and ignorance.
DharmakirtiDharmakīrti (fl. 6th or 7th century; Tibetan: ཆོས་ཀྱི་གྲགས་པ་; Wylie: chos kyi grags pa), was an influential Indian Buddhist philosopher who worked at Nālandā. He was one of the key scholars of epistemology (pramāṇa) in Buddhist philosophy, and is associated with the Yogācāra and Sautrāntika schools. He was also one of the primary theorists of Buddhist atomism. His works influenced the scholars of Mīmāṃsā, Nyaya and Shaivism schools of Hindu philosophy as well as scholars of Jainism.
ĀyatanaĀyatana (Pāli; Sanskrit: आयतन) is a Buddhist term that has been translated as "sense base", "sense-media" or "sense sphere". In Buddhism, there are six internal sense bases (Pali: ajjhattikāni āyatanāni; also known as, "organs", "gates", "doors", "powers" or "roots") and six external sense bases (bāhirāni āyatanāni or "sense objects"; also known as vishaya or "domains"). There are six internal-external (organ-object) (Pāli; Skt.
Access to InsightAccess to Insight is a Theravada Buddhist website providing access to many translated texts from the Tipitaka, and contemporary materials published by the Buddhist Publication Society and many teachers from the Thai Forest Tradition. Access to Insight began in 1993 as a bulletin board system run by a volunteer with support from the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. Originally, Access to Insight was one of several publishers of the results of the Dharma Net Dharma Book Transcription Project.
