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Khemā
Khema (Pali: Khemā; Sanskrit: Kṣemā) was a Buddhist ''bhikkhuni'', or nun, who was one of the top female disciples of the Buddha. She is considered the first of the Buddha's two chief female disciples, along with Uppalavanna. Khema was born into a royal family in Sagala, modern day Sialkot in Punjab, Pakistan. She was the wife of King Bimbisara of the ancient Indian kingdom of Magadha. Khema was convinced to visit the Buddha by her husband, who hired poets to sing about the beauty of the monastery he was staying at to her. She attained enlightenment as a laywoman while listening to one of the Buddha's sermons, considered a rare feat in Buddhist texts. Following her attainment, Khema entered the monastic life under the Buddha as a ''bhikkhuni''. According to Buddhist tradition, the Buddha declared her his female disciple foremost in wisdom. Her male counterpart was Sariputta. Background In Buddhist belief, when a fully enlightened Buddha appears in the world, he always ...
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Śrāvaka
Śrāvaka (Sanskrit) or Sāvaka (Pali) means "hearer" or, more generally, "disciple". This term is used in Buddhism and Jainism. In Jainism, a śrāvaka is any lay Jain so the term śrāvaka has been used for the Jain community itself (for example see Sarak and Sarawagi). Śrāvakācāras are the lay conduct outlined within the treaties by Śvetāmbara or Digambara mendicants. "In parallel to the prescriptive texts, Jain religious teachers have written a number of stories to illustrate vows in practice and produced a rich répertoire of characters.". In Buddhism, the term is sometimes reserved for distinguished disciples of the Buddha. Buddhism Early Buddhism In early Buddhism, a śrāvaka or śrāvikā is a disciple who accepts: * the Buddha as their teacher * the Buddha's teaching (the Dhamma), including understanding the Four Noble Truths,_ridding_oneself_of_the_three_marks_of_existence.html" ;"title="Four Noble Truths: BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY Encycl ..., ridding oneself of th ...
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King Bimbisara
Bimbisāra (in Buddhist tradition) or Shrenika () and Seniya () in the Jain histories (c. 558 – c. 491 BCE or during the late 5th century BCE) was a King of Magadha (V. K. Agnihotri (ed.), ''Indian History''. Allied Publishers, New Delhi 262010p. 166f. or c. 400 BCE) and belonged to the Haryanka dynasty.Peter N. Stearns (2001), ''The Encyclopedia of World History''. Houghton Mifflin, p. 76 ff. . He was the son of Bhattiya. His expansion of the kingdom, especially his annexation of the kingdom of Anga to the east, is considered to have laid the foundations for the later expansion of the Mauryan Empire. According to Jain Tradition, he is said to be the first Tirthankara (''will be named as Padmanabha / Mahapadma'') out of 24th Tirthankara of the future cosmic age. He frequently visited Samavasarana of Lord Mahavira seeking answers to his queries. According to Buddhist Tradition, he is also known for his cultural achievements and was a great friend and protector of the Budd ...
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Bimbisara
Bimbisāra (in Buddhist tradition) or Shrenika () and Seniya () in the Jain histories (c. 558 – c. 491 BCE or during the late 5th century BCE) was a King of Magadha (V. K. Agnihotri (ed.), ''Indian History''. Allied Publishers, New Delhi 262010p. 166f. or c. 400 BCE) and belonged to the Haryanka dynasty.Peter N. Stearns (2001), ''The Encyclopedia of World History''. Houghton Mifflin, p. 76 ff. . He was the son of Bhattiya. His expansion of the kingdom, especially his annexation of the kingdom of Anga to the east, is considered to have laid the foundations for the later expansion of the Mauryan Empire. According to Jain Tradition, he is said to be the first Tirthankara (''will be named as Padmanabha / Mahapadma'') out of 24th Tirthankara of the future cosmic age. He frequently visited Samavasarana of Lord Mahavira seeking answers to his queries. According to Buddhist Tradition, he is also known for his cultural achievements and was a great friend and protector of the Budd ...
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Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia via the Silk Road. It is the world's fourth-largest religion, with over 520 million followers (Buddhists) who comprise seven percent of the global population. The Buddha taught the Middle Way, a path of spiritual development that avoids both extreme asceticism and hedonism. It aims at liberation from clinging and craving to things which are impermanent (), incapable of satisfying ('), and without a lasting essence (), ending the cycle of death and rebirth (). A summary of this path is expressed in the Noble Eightfold Path, a training of the mind with observance of Buddhist ethics and meditation. Other widely observed practices include: monasticism; " taking refuge" in the Buddha, the , and the ; ...
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Madra Kingdom
Madra Kingdom (; ) was a kingdom grouped among the western kingdoms in the epic Mahabharata. Its capital was Sagala in Madra region, modern Sialkot in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The Kuru king Pandu's (''Pāṇḍu'') second wife was from Madra kingdom and was called Madri (; ; IPA/Sanskrit: ). The Pandava twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, were her sons. Madri's brother Shalya was the king of Madra. Though affectionate to the Pandavas, he was tricked to give support to Duryodhana and fought against the Pandavas during the Kurukshetra War. He was killed by Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava. Other than the Madra kingdom (Eastern Madra or Purva Madra) with Sagala as its capital, it is believed that there was a Western Madra (Apara Madra) and a Northern Madra ( Uttara Madra). Origin According to the Vayu Purana, the Madra Kingdom was founded by King Ushinara Shibi of the Anu race. Anu was the son of Yayati. According to Bhagavata Purana, The kingdom of Madra was founded by Madra who ...
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Nirvana (Buddhism)
Nirvana (Sanskrit: निर्वाण, '; Pali: ') is "blowing out" or "quenching" of the activities of the worldly mind and its related suffering. Nirvana is the goal of the Hinayana and Theravada Buddhist paths, and marks the soteriological release from worldly suffering and rebirths in '' saṃsāra''. Nirvana is part of the Third Truth on "cessation of '' dukkha''" in the Four Noble Truths,_and_the_"''summum_bonum.html" ;"title="Four Noble Truths: BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY Encycl ..., and the "''summum bonum">Four Noble Truths: BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY Encycl ..., and the "''summum bonum'' of Buddhism and goal of the Noble Eightfold Path, Eightfold Path." In the Buddhist tradition, nirvana has commonly been interpreted as the extinction of the "three fires", or "three poisons", greed (''raga''), aversion (''dvesha'') and ignorance ('' moha''). When these ''fires'' are extinguished, release from the cycle of rebirth ('' saṃsāra'') is attained. Nirvana has also been claimed by so ...
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Abhijñā
Abhijñā ( sa, अभिज्ञा; Pali pronunciation: ''abhiññā''; bo, མངོན་ཤེས ''mngon shes''; ) is a Buddhist term generally translated as "direct knowledge", "higher knowledge"Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), pp. 64-65. or "supernormal knowledge." In Buddhism, such special knowledge is obtained through virtuous living and meditation. The attainment of the four jhanas, or meditative absorptions, are considered a prerequisite for their attainment. In terms of specifically enumerated knowledges, these include mundane extra-sensory abilities (such as seeing past lives and various supranormal powers like levitation) as well as the supramundane, meaning the extinction of all mental intoxicants ('' āsava''). Pali literature In Pali literature, ''abhiññā'' refers to both the direct apprehension of ''dhamma'' (translated below as "states" and "qualities") as well as to specialized super-normal capabilities. Direct knowing of ''dhamma'' In SN 45.159, the B ...
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Sotāpanna
In Buddhism, a sotāpanna (Pali), śrotāpanna (Sanskrit; , , Burmese: သောတာပန်, Tibetan: རྒྱུན་ཞུགས་, Wylie: ''rgyun zhugs''), "stream-enterer", "stream-winner", or "stream-entrant" is a person who has seen the Dharma and thereby has dropped the first three fetters (''Pāli: samyojana, Sanskrit: saṃyojana'') that bind a being to a possible rebirth in one of the three lower realms (animals, hungry ghosts and beings suffering in and from hellish states), namely self-view (''sakkāya-ditthi''), clinging to rites and rituals (''sīlabbata-parāmāsa''), and skeptical indecision ( Vicikitsa). The word ''sotāpanna'' literally means "one who entered (''āpanna'') the stream (''sota''), stream-enterer", after a metaphor which calls the noble eightfold path a stream which leads to a vast ocean, nibbāna. Entering the stream (''sotāpatti'') is the first of the four stages of enlightenment. Attainment The first moment of the attainment is termed ...
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Arahantship
In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अर्हत्) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहन्त्, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth. Mahayana Buddhist traditions have used the term for people far advanced along the path of Enlightenment, but who may not have reached full Buddhahood. The understanding of the concept has changed over the centuries, and varies between different schools of Buddhism and different regions. A range of views on the attainment of arhats existed in the early Buddhist schools. The Sarvāstivāda, Kāśyapīya, Mahāsāṃghika, Ekavyāvahārika, Lokottaravāda, Bahuśrutīya, Prajñaptivāda, and Caitika schools all regarded arhats as imperfect in their attainments compared to buddhas.Sree Padma. Barber, Anthony W. ''Buddhism in the Krishna River Valley of Andhra''. 2008. p. 44Warder, A.K. ''Indian Buddhism' ...
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Pasenadi
Pasenadi ( pi, पसेनदि ; sa, प्रसेनजित् ; c. 6th century BCE) was an ruler of Kosala. Sāvatthī was his capital. He succeeded after . He was a prominent (lay follower) of Gautama Buddha, and built many Buddhist monasteries for the Buddha. Life Pasenadi studied in Taxila in his early life. He was the king of Kosala (modern Oudh or Awadh). His first queen was a Magadhan princess, a sister of king Bimbisara. His second and chief queen was Vāsavakhattiyā, a girl, daughter of the chief of garland-makers for Mahānāma. From this marriage, he had a son, Viḍūḍabha and a daughter, Princess Vajira, who was later married to Ajatashatru ( pi, link=no , Ajātasattu). He married his sister Kosala Devi to Bimbisara. Reign By the time of Pasenadi, Kosala had become the suzerain of the Kālāma tribal republic, and Pasenadi's realm maintained friendly relations with the powerful Licchavi tribe which lived to the east of his kingdom. During Pas ...
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Adhiṭṭhāna
''Adhihāna'' (Pali; from ''adhi'' meaning "foundational" or "beginning" plus ''sthā'' meaning "standing"; Sanskrit, अधिष्ठान) has been translated as "decision," "resolution," "self-determination," "will", "strong determination" and "resolute determination." In the late canonical literature of Theravada Buddhism, ''adhihāna'' is one of the ten "perfections" (''dasa pāramiyo''), exemplified by the bodhisatta's resolve to become fully awakened. Pāli Canon texts While ''adhihāna'' appears sporadically in the early Pāli Canon, various late-canonical and post-canonical accounts of the Lord Buddha's past lives clearly contextualize ''adhihāna'' within the Theravadin tenfold perfections. Digha Nikaya analysis In the Pali Canon, in the Digha Nikaya discourse entitled, "Chanting Together" ( DN 33), Ven. Sariputta states that the Buddha has identified the following: :'Four kinds of resolve (''adhihānī''): o gain(a) wisdom, (b) truth (''sacca''), (c) relinquish ...
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The Unanswered Questions
In Buddhism, ''acinteyya'' (Pali), "imponderable" or "incomprehensible," ' (Sanskrit: अव्याकृत, Pali: , "unfathomable, unexpounded,"), and ''atakkāvacara'', "beyond the sphere of reason," are unanswerable questions or undeclared questions. They are sets of questions that should not be thought about, and which the Buddha refused to answer, since this distracts from practice, and hinders the attainment of liberation. Various sets can be found within the Pali and Sanskrit texts, with four, and ten (Pali texts) or fourteen (Sanskrit texts) unaswerable questions. Etymology The Sanskrit word '' acintya'' means "incomprehensible, surpassing thought, unthinkable, beyond thought." In Indian philosophy, ''acinteyya'' is It is also defined as The term is used to describe the ultimate reality that is beyond all conceptualization. Thoughts here-about should not be pursued, because they are not conducive to the attainment of liberation. Synonymous terms are ''avyāk ...
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