Saṃghabhadra (5th century CE,

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

: संघभद्र, Ch. 僧伽跋陀羅・衆賢, Japanese: ''Sōgyabaddara'' or ''Shugen''): was an Indian scholar monk of the

Sarvāstivāda The ''Sarvāstivāda'' (Sanskrit and Pali: 𑀲𑀩𑁆𑀩𑀢𑁆𑀣𑀺𑀯𑀸𑀤, ) was one of the early Buddhist schools established around the reign of Ashoka (3rd century BCE).Westerhoff, The Golden Age of Indian Buddhist Philosophy ...

Vaibhāṣika Sarvāstivāda-Vaibhāṣika ( sa, सर्वास्तिवाद-वैभाषिक) or simply Vaibhāṣika (), refers to an ancient Buddhist tradition of Abhidharma (scholastic Buddhist philosophy), which was very influential in north I ...

and "undoubtedly one of the most brilliant

Abhidharma The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the ...

masters in India".KL Dhammajoti. ''The Contribution of Saṃghabhadra to Our Understanding of Abhidharma Doctrines,'' in Bart Dessein and Weijen Teng (ed) "Text, History, and Philosophy Abhidharma across Buddhist Scholastic Traditions." Born in Kashmir, he was a contemporary of the Buddhist philosopher

Vasubandhu Vasubandhu (; Tibetan: དབྱིག་གཉེན་ ; fl. 4th to 5th century CE) was an influential Buddhist monk and scholar from ''Puruṣapura'' in ancient India, modern day Peshawar, Pakistan. He was a philosopher who wrote commentary ...

. According to K.L. Dhammajoti, his work forms the most mature and refined form of Vaibhāṣika philosophy. His two main works, the ''*Nyāyānusāra'' (''Shun zhengli lun'' 順正理論, "In Accordance with the Truth") and the ''*Abhidharmasamayapradīpikā'' (''Apidamo xian zong lun'' 阿毘達磨顯宗論), are very important sources for late Vaibhāṣika thought. He is referenced by various important Buddhist figures, such as

Xuanzang Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...

, Kuiji,

Sthiramati Sthiramati (Sanskrit; Chinese:安慧; Tibetan: ''blo gros brtan pa'') or Sāramati was a 6th-century Indian Buddhist scholar-monk. Sthiramati was a contemporary of Dharmapala based primarily in Valābhi university (present-day Gujarat), althoug ...

, and

Śāntarakṣita (Sanskrit; , 725–788),stanford.eduŚāntarakṣita (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)/ref> whose name translates into English as "protected by the One who is at peace" was an important and influential Indian Buddhist philosopher, particu ...

who see him as the most authoritative of the

Abhidharmikas. Saṃghabhadra's philosophical work was primarily an attempt to defend the orthodox doctrines of the Vaibhāṣika school from the attacks of its main opponents, the Sautrantikas, especially Vasubandhu who had written the '' Abhidharmakośabhasya'' as an exposition as well as a critique of many Vaibhāṣika doctrine. Saṃghabhadra is said to have spent 12 years composing the ''Nyāyānusāra'' (a commentary to Vasubandhu's verses) to refute Vasubandhu and other Sautrāntikas such as the elder Śrīlāta and his pupil Rāma. According to Xuanzang's records, after composing his works, Saṃghabhadra sought out Vasubandhu in order to face him in public debate, but he died before he was able to do so.Beal, Samuel (1906). ''Buddhist Records of the Western World: Volume I,'' p. 193. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & co. ltd. London.

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{{Buddhism topics 5th-century Indian scholars 5th-century Indian monks Indian royal advisors Kashmiri people Kashmiri writers Brahmins