Tibetan Buddhist Monk in natural light reading sacred texts in 2006

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, an ''anāgāmin'' (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

;

Pāli Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a classical Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Therav� ...

: ''anāgāmī'', lit. "non-returning") is a partially enlightened person who has cut off the first five fetters that bind the ordinary mind. ''Anāgāmins'' are the third of the four aspirants. The ''anāgāmin'' is not reborn into the human world after death, but into the heaven of the Pure Abodes, where only ''anāgāmins'' reside. There they attain full enlightenment (

arahant In Buddhism, an ''Arhat'' () or ''Arahant'' (, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved '' Nirvana'' and has been liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth. The und ...

ship).

Requisites for becoming an ''anāgāmin''

An ''anāgāmin'' is free from the lowest five chains or fetters (Sanskrit: ; Pali: ''pañcorambhāgiyāni-saṃyojanāni''; 五下分結) which are as follows: # Belief in ātma or ego/self (Sanskrit: ' or ''svakāya-dṛṣṭi''; Pāli: ''sakkāya-diṭṭhi''; 有身見) # Attachment to rites and rituals (Sanskrit: '' śīlavrata-parāmarśa-dṛṣṭi''; Pāli: ''sīlabbata-parāmāsa-diṭṭhi''; 戒禁取見) # Skeptical doubt (Sanskrit: '' vicikitsā''; Pali: ''vicikicchā''; 疑) # Sensuous craving (''kāmarāga''; 欲貪) # Ill will or aversion (''vyāpāda'' or ''byāpāda''; 瞋恚) The remaining five higher fetters (Sanskrit: ''pañca-ūrdhvabhāgiya-saṃyojana''; Pali: ''pañcuddhambhāgiyāni-saṃyojanāni''; 五上分結) from which an anāgāmin is not yet free are: # Craving for fine-material existence (the first 4 jhanas) (''rūparāga''; 色貪) # Craving for immaterial existence (the last 4 jhanas) (''arūparāga''; 無色貪) # Conceit or pride (''

māna Māna (Sanskrit, Pali; Tibetan: ''nga rgyal'') is a Buddhist term that may be translated as "pride", "arrogance", or "conceit". It is defined as an inflated mind that makes whatever is suitable, such as wealth or learning, to be the foundation of ...

''; 慢) # Restlessness (Sanskrit: '' auddhatya''; Pali: ''uddhacca''; 掉挙) # Ignorance (Sanskrit: avidyā; Pali: ''avijjā''; 無明) ''Kāmarāga'' and ''vyāpāda'', which they are free from, can also be interpreted as craving for becoming and non-becoming, respectively. ''Anāgāmins'' are at an intermediate stage between the '' sakṛdāgāmin'' and the ''

arhat In Buddhism, an ''Arhat'' () or ''Arahant'' (, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana (Buddhism), Nirvana'' and has been liberated from the Rebirth (Buddhism ...

''. An arhat enjoys complete freedom from the ten fetters, while an ''anāgāmin's'' mind remains very pure.

Five types of ''anāgāmin''

The Pali '' Puggalapannatti'' and the Sanskrit texts '' Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra'' and the '' Sarvāstivādin-Vaibhaṣika Abhidharma'' both describe five classes of ''anāgāmin''. When an ''anāgāmin'' is reborn in the Pure Abodes, one of the five following scenarios will occur: # He will attain arhatship immediately after rebirth or within the first half of his life in the Pure Abodes. Such a being is called "one who reaches Nibbāna within the first half of the life" (Sanskrit: ''antarāparinirvāyin''; Pali: ''antarā-parinibbāyī''). # He will attain arhatship within the latter half of his life in the Pure Abodes or at the moment of death. Such a being is called "one who reaches Nibbāna after crossing half the life-time" (Sanskrit: ''upapadyaparinirvāyin''; Pali: ''upahacca-parinibbāyī''). # He exerts himself to the point of attaining arhatship. Such a being is called "one who reaches Nibbāna with exertion" (Sanskrit: ''sābhisaṃskāraparinirvāyin''; Pali: ''sasankhāra-parinibbāyī''). # He does not exert himself, yet attains arhatship. Such a being is called "one who reaches Nibbāna without exertion" (Sanskrit: ''anabhisaṃskāraparinirvāyin''; Pali: ''asankhāra-parinibbāyī''). # He traverses the five heavens of the Pure Abodes in order from lowest to highest before attaining arhatship. Such a being is called "one who passes up-stream to the highest gods" (Sanskrit: ''ūrdhvasrotas''; Pali: ''uddhamsota-akanittha-gāmī'')."

''Anāgāmins'' in literature

Several figures who appear in the literature achieve the state of an ''anāgāmin''. Some of these people include: * The Brahmin Bāvarī * The householder Uggata * The wandering ascetic Subhadda * The monk Pukkusāti * The nun Nandā * The laywoman Matikamata * The layman

Citta ''Citta'' (Pali and Sanskrit: चित्त, or in Prakrit script 𑀘𑀺𑀢𑁆𑀢, pronounced ''chitta'' ͡ɕit̚.tɐ́sup>( key)) is one of three overlapping terms used in the Nikaya to refer to the mind, the others being '' mana ...

* The layman Visākha * The householder Sandhāna * The Brahman Uṇṇābha * Ghatikara the Potter, a lay follower of the Kāśyapa Buddha

References

Sources

* Thomas Rhys Davids & William Stede (eds.) (1921-5). ''The Pali Text Society’s Pali–English Dictionary''. Chipstead:

Pali Text Society The Pāli Text Society is a text publication society founded in 1881 by Thomas William Rhys Davids "to foster and promote the study of Pāli texts." Pāli is the language in which the texts of the Theravada school of Buddhism are preserved. The ...

. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/. {{Buddhism topics Buddhist titles Buddhist stages of enlightenment

Requisites for becoming an ''anāgāmin''

Five types of ''anāgāmin''

''Anāgāmins'' in literature

See also

References

Sources