The four qualities that are said to result in rebirth in the heaven of Brahmā: limitless love, compassion, rejoicing, and equanimity. They were practices already prevalent in India before Śākyamuni’s teaching.

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.

In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.

“The Dedicated One.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

A wealthy merchant in the town of Śrāvastī, famous for his generosity to the poor, who became a patron of the Buddha Śākyamuni. He bought Prince Jeta’s Grove (Skt. Jetavana), to be the Buddha’s first monastery, a place where the monks could stay during the monsoon.

Usually this term refers to a set of thirteen ascetic practices that can be taken up optionally by monks to further their moral discipline. Here, it refers to the practice of ascetic purification in general.

“Kind Protector.” Head of the “sixteen excellent men” in this sūtra. He is a bodhisattva who appears prominently in a number of sūtras, where he is depicted as a lay practitioner.

The term bhikṣu, often translated as “monk,” refers to the highest among the eight types of prātimokṣa vows that make one part of the Buddhist assembly. The Sanskrit term literally means “beggar” or “mendicant,” referring to the fact that Buddhist monks and nuns‍—like other ascetics of the time‍—subsisted on alms (bhikṣā) begged from the laity.

In the Tibetan tradition, which follows the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, a monk follows 253 rules as part of his moral discipline. A nun (bhikṣuṇī; dge slong ma) follows 364 rules. A novice monk (śrāmaṇera; dge tshul) or nun (śrāmaṇerikā; dge tshul ma) follows thirty-six rules of moral discipline (although in other vinaya traditions novices typically follow only ten).

A general term of respect given to persons of spiritual attainment; in a Buddhist context, it is an epithet for the Buddha.

A bodhisattva mahāsattva is a bodhisattva who has completed the seventh bhūmi and is on the eighth, ninth, or tenth bhūmi prior to becoming a buddha. These bodhisattvas have several special qualities that bodhisattvas on the lower bhūmis do not have.

A high-ranking deity presiding over a divine world; he is also considered to be the lord of the Sahā world (our universe). Though not considered a creator god in Buddhism, Brahmā occupies an important place as one of two gods (the other being Indra/Śakra) said to have first exhorted the Buddha Śākyamuni to teach the Dharma. The particular heavens found in the form realm over which Brahmā rules are often some of the most sought-after realms of higher rebirth in Buddhist literature. Since there are many universes or world systems, there are also multiple Brahmās presiding over them. His most frequent epithets are “Lord of the Sahā World” (sahāṃpati) and Great Brahmā (mahābrahman).

A member of the highest caste in Indian society, which is mostly closely associated with religious vocations.

A pure realm manifested by a buddha or advanced bodhisattva through the power of their great merit and aspirations.

Dhyāna is defined as one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind, free from afflicted mental states. Four states of dhyāna are identified as being conducive to birth within the form realm. In the context of the Mahāyāna, it is the fifth of the six perfections. It is commonly translated as “concentration,” “meditative concentration,” and so on.

The final meaning of the truth; the real intent of the Buddha’s teachings.

“Earth Bearer.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

An explication of the Dharma.

“Steadfast Mind.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

The Tibetan rlung brgyad (“eight winds”) translates literally the Chinese 八風 (bafeng), which is a Chinese Buddhist term for the eight “winds” or influences that stimulate affliction. These are commonly known as the eight worldly concerns or dharmas (’jig rten gyi chos brgyad, aṣṭa­loka­dharma) consisting of: hoping for happiness, fame, praise and gain; and fearing suffering, insignificance, blame and loss.

The fundamental space that is the characteristic of all phenomena.

An epithet of the Buddha.

When the Buddhist teachings are classified according to their power to lead beings to an awakened state, a distinction is made between the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle (Hīnayāna), which emphasizes the individual’s own freedom from cyclic existence as the primary motivation and goal, and those of the Great Vehicle (Mahāyāna), which emphasizes altruism and has the liberation of all sentient beings as the principal objective. As the term “Great Vehicle” implies, the path followed by bodhisattvas is analogous to a large carriage that can transport a vast number of people to liberation, as compared to a smaller vehicle for the individual practitioner.

The Sanskrit term śrāvaka, and the Tibetan nyan thos, both derived from the verb “to hear,” are usually defined as “those who hear the teaching from the Buddha and make it heard to others.” Primarily this refers to those disciples of the Buddha who aspire to attain the state of an arhat seeking their own liberation and nirvāṇa. They are the practitioners of the first turning of the wheel of the Dharma on the four noble truths, who realize the suffering inherent in saṃsāra and focus on understanding that there is no independent self. By conquering afflicted mental states (kleśa), they liberate themselves, attaining first the stage of stream enterers at the path of seeing, followed by the stage of once-returners who will be reborn only one more time, and then the stage of non-returners who will no longer be reborn into the desire realm. The final goal is to become an arhat. These four stages are also known as the “four results of spiritual practice.”

The four meditations on love (maitrī), compassion (karuṇā), joy (muditā), and equanimity (upekṣā), as well as the states of mind and qualities of being that result from their cultivation. They are also called the four abodes of Brahmā (caturbrahmavihāra).

In the Abhidharmakośa, Vasubandhu explains that they are called apramāṇa‍—meaning “infinite” or “limitless”‍—because they take limitless sentient beings as their object, and they generate limitless merit and results. Love is described as the wish that beings be happy, and it acts as an antidote to malice (vyāpāda). Compassion is described as the wish for beings to be free of suffering, and acts as an antidote to harmfulness (vihiṃsā). Joy refers to rejoicing in the happiness beings already have, and it acts as an antidote to dislike or aversion (arati) toward others’ success. Equanimity is considering all beings impartially, without distinctions, and it is the antidote to attachment to both pleasure and malice (kāmarāgavyāpāda).

“Prince Jeta’s Grove.” See “Jetavana, Anātha­piṇḍada’s Park.”

One of the first Buddhist monasteries, located in a park outside Śrāvastī, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kośala in northern India. This park was originally owned by Prince Jeta, hence the name Jetavana, meaning Jeta’s grove. The wealthy merchant Anāthapiṇḍada, wishing to offer it to the Buddha, sought to buy it from him, but the prince, not wishing to sell, said he would only do so if Anāthapiṇḍada covered the entire property with gold coins. Anāthapiṇḍada agreed, and managed to cover all of the park except the entrance, hence the name Anāthapiṇḍadasyārāmaḥ, meaning Anāthapiṇḍada’s park. The place is usually referred to in the sūtras as “Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada’s park,” and according to the Saṃghabhedavastu the Buddha used Prince Jeta’s name in first place because that was Prince Jeta’s own unspoken wish while Anāthapiṇḍada was offering the park. Inspired by the occasion and the Buddha’s use of his name, Prince Jeta then offered the rest of the property and had an entrance gate built. The Buddha specifically instructed those who recite the sūtras to use Prince Jeta’s name in first place to commemorate the mutual effort of both benefactors.

Anāthapiṇḍada built residences for the monks, to house them during the monsoon season, thus creating the first Buddhist monastery. It was one of the Buddha’s main residences, where he spent around nineteen rainy season retreats, and it was therefore the setting for many of the Buddha’s discourses and events. According to the travel accounts of Chinese monks, it was still in use as a Buddhist monastery in the early fifth century ᴄᴇ, but by the sixth century it had been reduced to ruins.

“World Bearer.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Great Earth Bearer.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

The bodhisattva Maitreya is an important figure in many Buddhist traditions, where he is unanimously regarded as the buddha of the future era. He is said to currently reside in the heaven of Tuṣita, as Śākyamuni’s regent, where he awaits the proper time to take his final rebirth and become the fifth buddha in the Fortunate Eon, reestablishing the Dharma in this world after the teachings of the current buddha have disappeared. Within the Mahāyāna sūtras, Maitreya is elevated to the same status as other central bodhisattvas such as Mañjuśrī and Avalokiteśvara, and his name appears frequently in sūtras, either as the Buddha’s interlocutor or as a teacher of the Dharma. Maitreya literally means “Loving One.” He is also known as Ajita, meaning “Invincible.”

For more information on Maitreya, see, for example, the introduction to Maitreya’s Setting Out (Toh 198).

Mañjuśrī is one of the “eight close sons of the Buddha” and a bodhisattva who embodies wisdom. He is a major figure in the Mahāyāna sūtras, appearing often as an interlocutor of the Buddha. In his most well-known iconographic form, he is portrayed bearing the sword of wisdom in his right hand and a volume of the Prajñā­pāramitā­sūtra in his left. To his name, Mañjuśrī, meaning “Gentle and Glorious One,” is often added the epithet Kumārabhūta, “having a youthful form.” He is also called Mañjughoṣa, Mañjusvara, and Pañcaśikha.

The term is used to refer to negativity as a force. In ancient India, it was personified by the entity called “Māra,” whose sole intention is to harm beings or divert them from good.

“Path Bearer.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

The skillful acts of a bodhisattva for the benefit of others.

In the general Mahāyāna teachings the mind of awakening (bodhicitta) is the intention to attain the complete awakening of a perfect buddha for the sake of all beings. On the level of absolute truth, the mind of awakening is the realization of the awakened state itself.

The sacred mountain considered to be at the center of the physical, metaphysical, and spiritual universe.

“Permanent Luster.” The name of the future eon in which the girl Vimalaśraddhā will become a buddha.

The term is used to define the actions of a bodhisattva. Because these actions, when brought to perfection, lead one to transcend saṃsāra and reach full awakening, they receive the Sanskrit name pāramitā, meaning “gone across to the other side.”

The king of the Kośala kingdom (located in Northern India, in present day Uttar Pradesh) and Vimalaśraddhā’s father.

An asura king. He is said to cause eclipses by seizing or blocking the sun and moon.

“Array of Light Rays.” Name by which Vimalaśraddhā will be known upon her attainment of buddhahood.

“Mind of Jewels.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Jeweled Victory Banner.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Precious Qualities.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Source of Jewels.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Jeweled Pinnacle.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Precious Intelligence.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

“Precious Light.” One of the bodhisattvas in the entourage of the Buddha Śākyamuni when he taught the girl Vimalaśraddhā.

A synonym for ultimate truth, and a way of describing the attainment of perfection as the culmination of the spiritual path.

The term dhāraṇī has the sense of something that “holds” or “retains,” and so it can refer to the special capacity of practitioners to memorize and recall detailed teachings. It can also refer to a verbal expression of the teachings‍—an incantation, spell, or mnemonic formula‍—that distills and “holds” essential points of the Dharma and is used by practitioners to attain mundane and supramundane goals. The same term is also used to denote texts that contain such formulas.

The lord of the gods in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (trāyastriṃśa). Alternatively known as Indra, the deity that is called “lord of the gods” dwells on the summit of Mount Sumeru and wields the thunderbolt. The Tibetan translation brgya byin (meaning “one hundred sacrifices”) is based on an etymology that śakra is an abbreviation of śata-kratu, one who has performed a hundred sacrifices. Each world with a central Sumeru has a Śakra. Also known by other names such as Kauśika, Devendra, and Śacipati.