Lit. “Not Disturbed” or “Immovable One.” The buddha in the eastern realm of Abhirati. A well-known buddha in Mahāyāna, regarded in the higher tantras as the head of one of the five buddha families, the vajra family in the east.

Name of a buddha.

A major śrāvaka disciple and personal attendant of the Buddha Śākyamuni during the last twenty-five years of his life. He was a cousin of the Buddha (according to the Mahāvastu, he was a son of Śuklodana, one of the brothers of King Śuddhodana, which means he was a brother of Devadatta; other sources say he was a son of Amṛtodana, another brother of King Śuddhodana, which means he would have been a brother of Aniruddha).

Ānanda, having always been in the Buddha’s presence, is said to have memorized all the teachings he heard and is celebrated for having recited all the Buddha’s teachings by memory at the first council of the Buddhist saṅgha, thus preserving the teachings after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa. The phrase “Thus did I hear at one time,” found at the beginning of the sūtras, usually stands for his recitation of the teachings. He became a patriarch after the passing of Mahākāśyapa.

Name of a bodhisattva.

Name of a bodhisattva, the main recipient and interlocutor of the Ananta­mukhapariśo­dhana­nirdeśa Sūtra.

A nāga king whose domain is Lake Anavatapta. According to Buddhist cosmology, this lake is located near Mount Sumeru and is the source of the four great rivers of Jambudvīpa. It is often identified with Lake Manasarovar at the foot of Mount Kailash in Tibet.

A type of nonhuman being whose precise status is subject to different views, but is included as one of the six classes of beings in the sixfold classification of realms of rebirth. In the Buddhist context, asuras are powerful beings said to be dominated by envy, ambition, and hostility. They are also known in the pre-Buddhist and pre-Vedic mythologies of India and Iran, and feature prominently in Vedic and post-Vedic Brahmanical mythology, as well as in the Buddhist tradition. In these traditions, asuras are often described as being engaged in interminable conflict with the devas (gods).

The famous bamboo grove near Rājagṛha where the Buddha regularly stayed and gave teachings. It was situated on land donated by King Bimbisāra of Magadha and was the first of several landholdings donated to the Buddhist community during the time of the Buddha.

In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

Lord of the Sahā world, regarded by Buddhists as occupying a high position in cyclic existence, with a very long life and a great deal of power

The first three heavens of the form realm, ruled over by the god Brahmā, who believes himself to be the creator of the universe.

In this text, this set of factors is said to include discipline, insight, absorption, liberation, the vision of liberated wisdom, the perfection of generosity, the perfection of discipline, the perfection of patience, the perfection of diligence, the perfection of concentration, and the perfection of insight. However, usually they are listed as seven, namely remembrance, discrimination between teachings, diligence, joy, pliancy or serenity, absorption, and equanimity; these form a part of the thirty-seven factors of awakening.

A leading merchant or leader of a merchant caravan; this epithet is often used for the Buddha in his capacity as an eminent leader, guide, and protector. It evokes the traditionally close ties between Buddhist and mercantile communities in South and Central Asia.

The modes of knowledge attained on the ninth bodhisattva level. There are four such modes: the comprehensive knowledge of phenomena (dharma; chos), of meaning (artha; don), of language or etymology (nirukti; nges pa’i tshig), and eloquence (pratibhāna; spobs pa).

Used adverbially, this term indicates that a given teaching has been skillfully adapted by the Buddha for the audience and therefore is not to be taken literally or definitively.

One of the physical marks of a buddha that takes the form of a protuberance on the crown of his head.

Five actions considered so heinous that they result in immediate rebirth in the hell realms. They include killing one’s mother, killing one’s father, killing an arhat, harming a buddha, and creating a schism in the saṅgha.

The aspect of Māra associated with the power of the afflictive emotions to obstruct awakening.

The aspect of Māra associated with the power of the five aggregates to obstruct awakening.

The form of Māra who assaulted the Buddha prior to his awakening.

The aspect of Māra that is death itself.

One of the three realms of saṃsāra, it is comprised of the traditional six realms of saṃsāra, from the hell realm to the realm of the gods, including the human realm. Rebirth in this realm is characterized by intense cravings via the five senses and their objects.

A statement or spell meant to protect or bring about a particular result. See also i.3.

As a magical formula, a dhāraṇī constitutes a gateway to the infinite qualities of awakening, the awakened state itself, and the various forms of buddha activity. See also i.2.

One of the four great kings, the protectors of the world; guardian of the east.

Name of a rākṣasī and Dharma protector; in this text a guardian of the eastern direction.

Usually refers to a discourse by the Buddha, sometimes to just a few sentences by the Buddha, or sometimes, when not referring to the words of the Buddha, any concise doctrinal statement.

The list of eighteen unshared qualities in the Ananta­mukhapariśo­dhana­nirdeśa varies slightly from other canonical lists. Elsewhere, the first quality is that the buddhas are “consistent in their actions.” The list in the Ananta­mukhapariśo­dhana­nirdeśa also includes an additional member at position thirteen: “their liberated wisdom vision never wanes.” The eighteen are generally given as: (1) their actions are consistent; (2) their speech is not jarring; (3) they are not forgetful; (4) their state of cessation is not a state of indifference; (5) their perception is not discursive; (6) their minds are always composed; (7) their diligence never wanes; (8) their recollection never wanes; (9) their effort never wanes; (10) their meditative absorption never wanes; (11) their insight never wanes; (12) their liberation never wanes; (13) their physical actions are guided by wisdom and are in alignment with wisdom; (14) their verbal actions are guided by wisdom and are in alignment with wisdom; (15) their mental actions are guided by wisdom and are in alignment with wisdom; (16) their wisdom vision is unobstructed and unaffected by the past; (17) their wisdom vision is unobstructed and unaffected by the future; and (18) their wisdom vision is unobstructed and unaffected by the present.

Inspiration and courage that particularly manifest in endowing one with brilliant abilities in oration.

Varyingly, “the sphere of phenomena,” “the base of phenomena,” “the ore of phenomena”‍—a synonym for the nature of things.

Thirty-seven practices that lead the practitioner to the awakened state: the four applications of mindfulness, the four correct exertions, the four bases of supernatural power, the five masteries, the five powers, the eightfold path, and the seven branches of awakening.

Name of a rākṣasī and Dharma protector.

One of four unique types of confidence a buddha possesses, which are enumerated in a variety of ways.

A polyvalent term, it generally refers to the characteristic features of an object or image. Nimitta can refer to features of an object that attract the mind’s attention, engage with it more deeply, and develop emotional responses to it. Such marks or features are often considered to be ultimately false and deceptive. In a more positive sense nimitta can refer to the focus of meditation practice. The term applies to both external objects and visualized images that are used to deepen meditative concentration and absorption. Also translated here as “mark” and “feature.”

A set of ten concepts and emotional reactions that perpetuate one’s continued rebirth in saṃsāra: false attribution of a self based in relation to the aggregates (satkāyadṛṣṭi; ’jig tshogs la lta ba), doubt (vicikitsā; the tshom), privileging rituals and observances (śīla­vrata­parāmarśa; tshul khrims dang brtul zhugs mchog tu ’dzin pa), craving sense pleasures (kāmarāga; ’dod pa la ’dod chags), malice (vyāpāda; gnod sems), craving rebirth in the realm of subtle form (rūparāga; gzugs la chags pa), craving rebirth in the realm of the immaterial (arūpyarāga; gzugs med pa’i ’dod chags), pride (māna; nga rgyal), mental agitation (auddhatya; rgod pa), and ignorance (avidyā; ma rig pa).

One of the three realms of saṃsāra, this is a realm of subtle materiality presided over by Brahmā. Beings reborn in this realm are free from the coarse attachments of the desire realm but retain a subtle level of materiality.

The highest of the three realms within saṃsāra, beings in the formless realm are no longer bound to even the most subtle materiality.

Four types of absorption related respectively to intention, diligence, attention, and analysis.

Four gods who live on the lower slopes (fourth level) of Mount Meru in the eponymous Heaven of the Four Great Kings (Cāturmahā­rājika, rgyal chen bzhi’i ris) and guard the four cardinal directions. Each is the leader of a nonhuman class of beings living in his realm. They are Dhṛtarāṣṭra, ruling the gandharvas in the east; Virūḍhaka, ruling over the kumbhāṇḍas in the south; Virūpākṣa, ruling the nāgas in the west; and Vaiśravaṇa (also known as Kubera) ruling the yakṣas in the north. Also referred to as Guardians of the World or World Protectors (lokapāla, ’jig rten skyong ba).

In Indian mythology, the garuḍa is an eagle-like bird that is regarded as the king of all birds, normally depicted with a sharp, owl-like beak, often holding a snake, and with large and powerful wings. They are traditionally enemies of the nāgas. In the Vedas, they are said to have brought nectar from the heavens to earth. Garuḍa can also be used as a proper name for a king of such creatures.

In Buddhist cosmology, the gods are one of the five or six classes of beings, and are said to populate realms higher than the human realm within the realm of desire (kāma­dhātu), and to exist in the realm of form (rūpa­dhātu) and the formless realm (ārūpyadhātu) as well.

The ninth of the twelve links of dependent origination, “grasping” more broadly refers to the exceptionally strong form of craving through which we remain attached to and fixated on cyclic existence.

A ring of mountains marking the circumference of the world in ancient Buddhist cosmology.

The third of the six heavens of the desire realm.

The penultimate heaven in the desire realm.

The highest heaven in the desire realm.

The second heaven of the desire realm, located above Mount Meru and reigned over by Indra and thirty-two other gods.