In music, a canon is a contrapuntal (counterpoint-based) compositional technique that employs a melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration
(e.g., quarter rest, one measure, etc.). The initial melody is called
the leader (or dux), while the imitative melody, which is played in a
different voice, is called the follower (or comes). The follower must imitate the leader, either as an exact replication of its rhythms and intervals or some transformation thereof (see “Types of canon“, below). Repeating canons in which all voices are musically identical are called rounds—”Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and “Frère Jacques” are popular examples.

An accompanied canon is a canon accompanied by one or more additional independent parts that do not imitate the melody.

During the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and Baroque—that is, through the early 18th century—any kind of imitative musical counterpoints were called fugues, with the strict imitation now known as canon qualified as fuga ligata, meaning “fettered fugue” (Bridge 1881, 76; Mann, Wilson, and Urquhart n.d.; Walker 2000, 1). Only in the 16th century did the word “canon” begin to be used to describe the strict, imitative texture created by such a procedure (Mann, Wilson, and Urquhart n.d.). The word is derived from the Greek “κανών”, Latinised as canon, which means “law” or “norm”, and may be related to 8th century Byzantine hymns, or canons, like the Great Canon by St. Andrew of Crete.
In contrapuntal usage, the word refers to the “rule” explaining the
number of parts, places of entry, transposition, and so on, according to
which one or more additional parts may be derived from a single written
melodic line. This rule was usually given verbally, but could also be
supplemented by special signs in the score, sometimes themselves called
canoni (Bridge 1881, 76). The earliest known non-religious canons are English rounds, a form called rondellus, starting in the 14th century (Mann, Wilson, and Urquhart n.d.); the best known is Sumer Is Icumen In (composed around 1250), called a rota (”wheel”) in the manuscript source (Sanders 2001a; Sanders 2001b).

Canons featured in the music of the Italian Trecento and the 14th-century ars nova in France. An Italian example is Tosto che l’alba by Gherardello da Firenze.
In both France and Italy, canons were often used to illustrate hunting
songs. The Italian word for hunting is “caccia”, the Medieval French
word “chace” (modern spelling: “chasse”). A well-known French chace is
the anonymous Se je chant mains. Richard Taruskin (2010,
331) describes Se je chant mains as evoking the atmosphere of a falcon
hunt: “The middle section is truly a tour de force, but of a wholly new
and off-beat type: a riot of hockets set to ‘words’ mixing French,
bird-language, and hound-language in an onomatopoetical mélange.” Guillaume de Machaut
also used the 3-voice “chace” form in movements from his masterpiece Le
Lai de la Fontaine (1361). Referring to the setting of the fourth
stanza of this work, Taruskin (2010, 334–35) describes it as, “Harmony in the most literal, etymological sense. Like the Trinity
itself, a well-wrought chace can be far more than the sum of its parts;
and this particular chace is possible Machaut’s greatest feat of
subtilitas.”

An example of late 14th century canon which featured some of the rhythmic complexity of the late 14th century ars subtilior school of composers is La Harpe de melodie by Jacob de Senleches

In
many pieces in three contrapuntal parts, only two of the voices are in
canon, while the remaining voice is a free melodic line. In Dufay’s song “Resvelons nous, amoureux”, the lower two voices are in canon, but the upper part is what David Fallows (1982, 89) describes as a “florid top line”:

Both J.S. Bach and Handel featured canons in their works. The final variation of Handel’s keyboard Chaconne in G major (HWV
442) is a canon in which the player’s right hand is imitated at the
distance of one beat, creating rhythmic ambiguity within the prevailing
triple time:

An example of a classical strict canon is the Minuet of Haydn’s String Quartet in D Minor, Op. 76, No. 2 (White 1976, 66):

Beethoven’s works feature a number of passages in canon. The following comes from his Symphony No. 4:

Antony Hopkins (1981,
108) describes the above as “a delightfully naïve canon”. More
sophisticated and varied in its treatment of intervals and harmonic
implications is the canonic passage from the second movement of his
Piano Sonata 28 in A major, Op. 101:

An even subtler example comes from Beethoven’s Piano Sonata 29. Wilfrid Mellers (1982, 176) describes the trio section of the scherzo
movement as “mysterious”, with a metrical ambiguity that “makes the
melodic phrases irregular.” When the tune is repeated, it is “now in the
left hand, [with] the flowing triplets in the right… in canon with
the bass line.” Mellers concludes: “Here contrapuntal oneness serves to
control any airy floating in the tune’s asymmetry: it is not merely the
wide-spread texture that sounds hollow, almost forlorn.”

[1]:

In
the Romantic era, the use of devices such as canon was even more often
subtly hidden, as for example in Schumann’s piano piece “Vogel als
Prophete” (1851).

According to Nicholas Cook (1990,
164), “the canon is, as it were, absorbed into the texture of the
music—it is there, but one doesn’t easily hear it.” Even more elusive is
the following passage from Brahms’ Intermezzo in F minor, Op. 118 No. 4, where the left hand shadows the right at the time distance of one beat and at the pitch interval of an octave lower:

Michael Musgrave (1985,
262) writes that as a result of the strict canon at the octave, the
piece is “of an anxious, suppressed nature, […] in the central section
this tension is temporarily eased through a very contained passage
which employs the canon in chordal terms between the hands.”

Considering
the many types of canon “in the tonal repertoire”, it may be ironic
that “canon—the strictest type of imitation—has such a wide variety of
possibilities” (Davidian 2015,
136). The most rigid and ingenious forms of canon are not strictly
concerned with pattern but also with content. Canons are classified by
various traits including the number of voices, the interval at which
each successive voice is transposed in relation to the preceding voice,
whether voices are inverse, retrograde, or retrograde-inverse;
the temporal distance between each voice, whether the intervals of the
second voice are exactly those of the original or if they are adjusted
to fit the diatonic scale, and the tempo of successive voices. However, canons may use more than one of the above methods.

Although,
for clarity, this article uses leader and follower(s) to denote the
leading voice in a canon and those that imitate it, musicological
literature also uses the traditional Latin terms dux and comes for “leader” and “follower”, respectively.

A
canon of two voices may be called a canon in two, similarly a canon of x
voices would be called a canon in x. This terminology may be used in
combination with a similar terminology for the interval between each
voice, different from the terminology in the following paragraph.

Another
standard designation is “Canon: Two in One”, which means two voices in
one canon. “Canon: Four in Two” means four voices with two simultaneous
canons. While “Canon: Six in Three” means six voices with three
simultaneous canons, and so on.

A simple canon (also known as a round) imitates the leader perfectly at the octave or unison. Well-known canons of this type include the famous children’s songs Row, Row, Row Your Boat and Frère Jacques.

Beginning of psalm motet De profundis by Josquin des Prez, featuring a canon at the fourth between the two upper voices in the first six bars.  Play 

If
the follower imitates the precise interval quality of the leader, then
it is called a strict canon; if the follower imitates the interval
number (but not the quality—e.g., a major third may become a minor third), it is called a free canon (Kennedy 1994).

The follower is by definition a contrapuntal derivation of the leader.

An inversion canon (also called an al rovescio canon) has the follower moving in contrary motion to the leader. Where the leader would go down by a particular interval, the follower goes up by that same interval (Kennedy 1994).

In a retrograde canon, also known as a canon cancrizans (Latin for crab canon,
derived from the Latin cancer = crab), the follower accompanies the
leader backward (in retrograde). Alternative names for this type are
canon per recte et retro or canon per rectus et inversus (Kennedy 1994).

In a mensuration canon (also known as a prolation canon,
or a proportional canon), the follower imitates the leader by some
rhythmic proportion. The follower may double the rhythmic values of the
leader (augmentation or sloth canon) or it may cut the rhythmic
proportions in half (diminution canon). Phasing
involves the application of modulating rhythmic proportions according
to a sliding scale. The cancrizans, and often the mensuration canon,
take exception to the rule that the follower must start later than the
leader; that is, in a typical canon, a follower cannot come before the
leader (for then the labels ‘leader’ and ‘follower’ should be reversed)
or at the same time as the leader (for then two lines together would
constantly be in unison, or parallel thirds, etc., and there would be no
counterpoint), whereas in a crab canon or mensuration canon the two
lines can start at the same time and still respect good counterpoint.

Many such canons were composed during the Renaissance, particularly in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries; Johannes Ockeghem wrote an entire mass (the Missa prolationum) in which each section is a mensuration canon, and all at different speeds and entry intervals. In the 20th century, Conlon Nancarrow composed complex tempo or mensural canons, mostly for the player piano as they are extremely difficult to play. Larry Polansky has an album of mensuration canons, Four-Voice Canons. Arvo Pärt has written several mensuration canons, including Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten, Arbos and Festina Lente. Per Nørgård’s infinity series has a sloth canon structure (Mortensen n.d.). This self-similarity of sloth canons makes it “fractal like” and the same idea is explored in Fractal Tune Smithy’s Sloth Canons

The most familiar of the canons is the perpetual/infinite canon (in Latin: canon perpetuus) or round. As each voice of the canon arrives at its end it can begin again, in a perpetuum mobile fashion; e.g., “Three Blind Mice”. Such a canon is also called a round or, in medieval Latin terminology, a rota. Sumer is icumen in is one example of a piece designated rota.

Additional
types include the spiral canon, accompanied canon, and double or triple
canon. A double canon is a canon with two simultaneous themes, a triple canon has three.

In a mirror canon
(or canon by contrary motion), the subsequent voice imitates the
initial voice in inversion. They are not very common, though examples of
mirror canons can be found in the works of Bach, Mozart (e.g., the trio
from Serenade for Wind Octet in C, K. 388), Webern, and other
composers.

	J S Bach: Canon per augmentationem contrario motu (Midi)
Problems playing this file? See media help.

A Table canon is a retrograde and inverse
canon meant to be placed on a table in between two musicians, who both
read the same line of music in opposite directions. As both parts are
included in each single line, a second line is not needed. Bach wrote a few table canons (Benjamin 2003, 120).

Olivier Messiaen
employed a technique which he called “rhythmic canon”, a polyphony of
independent strands in which the pitch material differs. An example is
found in the piano part of the first of the Trois petites liturgies de la présence divine, where the left hand (doubled by strings and maracas), and the right hand (doubled by vibraphone)
play the same rhythmic sequence in a 3:2 ratio, but the right hand
adapts a sequence of 13 chords in the sixth mode (B-C-D-E-F-F-G-A-B)
onto the 18 duration values, while the left hand twice states nine
chords in the third mode (Griffiths 2001). Peter Maxwell Davies was another post-tonal composer who favoured rhythmic canons, where the pitch materials are not obliged to correspond (Scholes, Nagley, and Whittall n.d.).

Three voice canon by Ernst Friedrich Richter (1888, 29)  Play 

Same canon, presented by the composer as a puzzle, with multiple clefs provided as clues (Richter 1888, 38)

“Wann?”, canon for soprano and alto by Brahms  Play 

A
puzzle canon, riddle canon, or enigma canon is a canon in which only
one voice is notated and the rules for determining the remaining parts
and the time intervals of their entrances must be guessed (Merriam-Webster).
“The enigmatical character of a [puzzle] canon does not consist of any
special way of composing it, but only of the method of writing it down,
of which a solution is required” (Richter 1888, 38). Clues hinting at the solution may be provided by the composer, in which case the term “riddle canon” can be used (Scholes, Nagley, and Whittall n.d.). J S Bach presented many of his canons in this form, for example in The Musical Offering. Mozart, after solving Father Martini’s puzzles (Zaslaw and Cowdery 1990,
98), composed his own riddles using Latin epigrams such as “Sit trium
series una” and “Ter ternis canite vocibus” (”Let there be one series of
three parts” and “sing three times with three voices”) (Karhausen 2011, 151).

Other notable contributors to the genre include Ciconia, Ockeghem, Byrd, Beethoven, Brumel; Busnois, Haydn, Josquin des Prez, Mendelssohn, Pierre de la Rue, Brahms, Schoenberg, Nono and Maxwell Davies (Carvalho 1999, 38–39; Davidian 2015, 136; Davies 1971; Davies 1972; Hartmann 1989, passim; Hewett 1957, passim; Johnson 1994, 162–63; Jones 2009, 152; Leven 1948, 361 Litterick 2000, 388; Mann, Wilson, and Urquhart n.d.; Morley 1597, 173, 176; Perkins 2001; Tatlow 1991, 15, 126; Todd 2003, 165; van Rij 2006, 215; Watkins 1986, 239). According to Oliver B. Ellsworth, the earliest known enigma canon appears to be an anonymous ballade, En la maison Dedalus,
found at the end of a collection of five theory treatises from the
third quarter of the fourteenth century collected in the Berkeley
Manuscript (Ciconia 1993, 411n12).

Thomas Morley complained that sometimes a solution, “which being founde (it might bee) was scant worth the hearing” (Morley 1597, 104, cited, inter al., by Barrett 2014, 123). J. G. Albrechtsberger admits that, “when we have traced the secret, we have gained but little; as the proverb says, ‘Parturiunt montes, etc.‘” but adds that, “these speculative passages…serve to sharpen acumen” (Albrechtsberger 1855, 234).

• Josquin des Prez,
  Missa L’homme armé super voces musicales, Agnus Dei 2: One voice with
  the words ‘ex una voce tres’ (three voice parts out of one), a
  mensuration canon in three voices.
• Josquin
  des Prez, Missa L’homme armé sexti toni, Agnus Dei 2: two simultaneous
  canons in the four upper voices, and at the same time a crab canon in
  the two lower voices.
• Johann Sebastian Bach’s Goldberg Variations contains nine canons of increasing interval size, ranging from unison to ninth. Each canon additionally obeys the overall structure and harmonic sequence common to all variations in the composition.

In his early work, such as Piano Phase (1967) and Clapping Music (1972), Steve Reich used a process he calls phasing
which is a “continually adjusting” canon with variable distance between
the voices, in which melodic and harmonic elements are not important,
but rely simply on the time intervals of imitation (Mann, Wilson, and Urquhart n.d.).

• Pachelbel’s Canon
• Canon, a 1964 animated representation of a musical canon

• Albrechtsberger,
  Johann Georg. 1855. J.G. Albrechtsberger’s Collected Writings on
  Thorough-bass, Harmony, and Composition, for Self Instruction, edited by
  Sabilla Novello, translated by Ignaz von Seyfried, revised by Vincent Novello. London: Novello, Ewer, & Company. [ISBN unspecified].
• Barrett, Margaret S. (ed.). 2014. Collaborative Creative Thought and Practice in Music. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 9781472415868.
• Benjamin, Thomas. 2003. The Craft of Tonal Counterpoint New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-94391-4 (accessed 14 April 2011)
• Bridge, J. Frederick. [1881]. Double Counterpoint and Canon. London: Novello & Co., Ltd.; New York: The H. W. Gray Co., Inc.
• Carvalho,
  Mário Vieira de. 1999. “Towards Dialectic Listening: Quotation and
  Montage in the Work of Luigi Nono”. Contemporary Music Review 18, no 2:
  37–85.
• Ciconia,
  Johannes. 1993. Nova musica and De Proportionibus, edited and
  translated by Oliver B. Ellsworth. Greek and Latin Music Theory 9.
  Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 9780803214651.
• Cook, Nicolas. 1990. Music, Imagination and Culture. Oxford: Clarendon Press; New York: Oxford University Press.
• Cooper, Martin. 1970. Beethoven: The Last Decade. London and New York: Oxford University Press.
• Davidian,
  Teresa. 2015. Tonal Counterpoint for the 21st-Century Musician: An
  Introduction. Lanham and London: Rowman and Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-3458-1 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-4422-3459-8 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-4422-3460-4 (ebook).
• Davies,
  Peter Maxwell. 1971. “Canon: In Mem. IS”. Tempo 97 (June):
  [Supplement]: In Memoriam: Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky. Canons and
  Epitaphs, Set I: one unnumbered page.
• Davies,
  Peter Maxwell. 1972. [Supplement]: “Canons and Epitaphs in Memoriam
  Igor Stravinsky. A Solution by Peter Maxwell Davies of the Puzzle-Canon
  He Contributed to Set I, Published in Tempo 97″. Tempo, no. 100: three
  unnumbered pages.
• Griffiths,
  Paul. 2001. “Messiaen, Olivier (Eugène Prosper Charles)”. The New Grove
  Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
• Hartmann,
  Günter. 1989. “Ein Albumblatt für Eliza Wesley: Fragen zu Mendelssohns
  Englandauenthalt 1837 und eine spekulative Antwort”. Neue Zeitschrift
  für Musik 150, no. 1:10–14.
• Hewett,
  Helen. 1957. “The Two Puzzle Canons in Busnois’s Maintes femmes”.
  Journal of the American Musicological Society 10, no. 2 (Summer):
  104–10.
• Hopkins, Antony. 1981. The Nine Symphonies of Beethoven. London: Heinemann.
• Johnson, Stephen. 1994. Beethoven. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9780671887896.
• Jones, David Wyn. 2009. The Life of Haydn. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-89574-3 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-107-61081-1 (pbk).
• Karhausen, Lucien. 2011. The Bleeding of Mozart. Xlibris. ISBN 9781456850760.
• Kennedy,
  Michael (ed.). 1994. “Canon”. The Oxford Dictionary of Music, associate
  editor, Joyce Bourne. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-869162-9.
• Leven, Louise W. 1948. “An Unpublished Mendelssohn Manuscript”. The Musical Times 89, no. 1270 (December): 361–63.
• Litterick,
  Louise. 2000. “Chansons for Three and Four Voices”. In The Josquin
  Companion, edited by Richard Sherr, 335–92. Oxford and New York: Oxford
  University Press. ISBN 0-19-816335-5.
• Mann,
  Alfred, J. Kenneth Wilson, and Peter Urquhart. n.d. “Canon (i)”. Grove
  Music Online. Oxford Music Online (Accessed 2 January 2011) (subscription required).
• Mellers, Wilfred. 1983. Beethoven and the Voice of God. London: Faber and Faber.
• Merriam-Webster. n.d. “Puzzle Canon“”. Merriam-Webster Dictionary online edition (subscription required).
• Morley, Thomas. 1597. A Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke, Set Downe in Forme of a Dialogue. London: Peter Short. [ISBN unspecified]
• Mortensen, Jørgen. n.d. “The ‘Open Hierarchies’ of the Infinity Series“.
  In Per Nørgård: En introduktion til komponisten og hans musik (Danish
  and English), edited by Jørgen Mortensen. www.pernoergaard.dk (Accessed
  20 January 2013).
• Musgrave, Michael. 1985. The Music of Brahms. London: Routledge.
• Perkins,
  Leeman L. 2001. “Ockeghem [Okeghem, Hocquegam, Okegus etc.], Jean de
  [Johannes, Jehan]”. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians,
  second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London:
  Macmillan Publishers.
• Richter, Ernst Friedrich. 1888. A Treatise on Canon and Fugue: Including the Study of Imitation. Boston: Oliver Ditson. Translated from third German edition by Foote, Arthur W. [ISBN unspecified].
• Sanders,
  Ernest H. 2001a. “Rota”. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and
  Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell.
  London: Macmillan Publishers.
• Sanders,
  Ernest H. 2001b. “Sumer is icumen in”. The New Grove Dictionary of
  Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John
  Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
• Scholes,
  Percy, Judith Nagley, and Arnold Whittall. “Canon”. The Oxford
  Companion to Music, edited by Alison Latham. Oxford Music Online. Oxford
  University Press (accessed 13 December 2014) (subscription required).
• Taruskin,
  Richard. 2010. Music from the Earliest Notations to the Sixteenth
  Century: The Oxford History of Western Music, Volume 1. Oxford and New
  York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-538481-9.
• Tatlow, Ruth. 1991. Bach and the Riddle of the Number Alphabet. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-36191-0.
• Todd, R. Larry. 2003. Mendelssohn. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-511043-2.
• van Rij, Inge. 2006. Brahms’s Song Collections. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-83558-9.
• Walker,
  Paul Mark. 2000. Theories of Fugue from the Age of Josquin to the Age
  of Bach. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press. ISBN 9781580461504.
• Watkins,
  Glenn. 1986. “Canon and Stravinsky’s Late Style”. In Confronting
  Stravinsky: Man, Musician, and Modernist, edited by Jann Pasler, 217–46.
  Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-05403-2.
• White, John David. 1976. The Analysis of Music. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-13-033233-X.
• Zaslaw,
  Neal, and William Cowdery (eds.) 1990. The Compleat Mozart: A Guide to
  the Musical Works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. New York: W. W. Norton
  & Company. ISBN 9780393028867.

• Agon,
  Carlos, and Moreno Andreatta. 2011. “Modeling and Implementing Tiling
  Rhythmic Canons in the OpenMusic Visual Programming Language”.
  Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 66–91.
• Amiot,
  Emmanuel. “Structures, Algorithms, and Algebraic Tools for Rhythmic
  Canons”. Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 93–142.
• Andreatta,
  Moreno. 2011. “Constructing and Formalizing Tiling Rhythmic Canons: A
  Historical Survey of a ‘Mathematical’ Problem”. Perspectives of New
  Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 33–64.
• Blackburn,
  Bonnie J. 2012. “The Corruption of One Is the Generation of the Other:
  Interpreting Canonic Riddles”. Journal of the Alamire Foundation 4, no. 2
  (October):182–203.
• Davalan, Jean-Paul. 2011. “Perfect Rhythmic Tiling”. Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 144–97.
• Johnson, Tom. 2011. “Tiling in My Music”. Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 9–21.
• Lamla, Michael. 2003 Kanonkünste im barocken Italien, insbesondere in Rom. 3 vols. Berlin: Dissertation.de—Verlag im Internet. ISBN 3-89825-556-5.
• Lévy, Fabien. 2011. “Three Uses of Vuza Canons”. Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 2 (Summer): 23–31.
• Messiaen,
  Olivier. Traité de rythme, de couleur, et d’ornithologie (1949–1992).
  I-II, edited by Yvonne Loriod, preface by Pierre Boulez. Paris: Leduc,
  1994.
• Schiltz,
  Katelijne, and Bonnie J. Blackburne (eds.). 2007. Canons and Canonic
  Techniques, 14th–16th Centuries: Theory, Practice, and Reception
  History. Proceedings of the International Conference Leuven, 4–5 October
  2005. Analysis in Context: Leuven Studies in Musicology 1. Leuven and
  Dudley, Massachusetts: Peeters. ISBN 978-90-429-1681-4.
• Vuza,
  Dan Tudor. 1991–93. “Supplementary Sets and Regular Complementary
  Unending Canons”, in four parts. Perspectives of New Music 29, no. 2
  (Summer 1991): 22–49; 30, no. 1 (Winter): 184–207; 30, no. 2 (Summer,
  1992): 102–25; 31, no. 1 (Winter 1993): 270–305.
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• Anatomy of a Canon
• The Musical Offering –A Musical Pedagogical Workshop by J.S. Bach, or, The Musical Geometry of Bach’s Puzzle Canons
• Visualization of J. S. Bach’s crab canon
• Software SonneLematine to produce canons
• Electro-Acoustic Music Dartmouth.edu: Larry Polansky’s Four Voice Canons
• Watch Canon, a film by Norman McLaren at NFB.ca
• Video Canon (My Favorite Things)
• Animated graphical scores of canons by Pachelbel, Bach, et al.

59) Classical Lithuanian

59) klasikinis lietuvis

Abhidhamma Pitaka
    Pasirodžius
tekstui, vadovaujantis pagrindine doktrinære principene ir Sutta
Pitaka, rebarejdet ir reorganizuojant i sistemingai ramme, galiu
susipażinti su nepakankamumu ir nusiunćia jus nuo smalsumo.

60) Classical Luxembourgish
60) Klassesch Lëtzebuergesch

Abhidhamma Pitaka
    De
Sammelstil vun der Zeechnung, wéi d’ënnersträicht Doktrinære Prinzipien
a Sutta Pitaka erbaut a rekonstituéiert an en systematesche Rama, sou
datt et an engem Ënnersichel an d’Naturen vu Sons a Malerei anzesetzen.

61) Classical Macedonian

61) Класичен луксембуршки

Abhidhamma Pitaka
    Собирањето
на текстови во som основните принципи Доктрината презентирани во Сута
Pitaka се преработил и реорганизирана во систематско рамка som кан
Применета сусам en истрага за природата на умот и материјата.

http://secularbuddhism.org/2012/10/22/the-buddhas-manifesto-on-miracles-and-revelation/

The Buddha’s Manifesto on Miracles and Revelation

The Kevaddha Sutta* (Dīgha Nikāya
11) opens with Kevaddha, a householder, who tells the Buddha that there
are many potential converts to the Buddha dhamma living nearby in
Nāḷandā. He suggests that the Buddha get one of his monks to use
miracles to excite and amaze them. This would, he says, be sure to gain
many new adherents.

But the Buddha does not assent:

Kevaddha, this is not the way I teach Dhamma to the
monks, by saying: “Go, monks, and perform superhuman feats and miracles
for the white-clothed laypeople!” (1)

Pressed by Kevaddha, the Buddha clarifies himself. He says he
recognizes just three forms of miracle: certain psychic powers,
telepathic mind reading, and instruction in the dhamma. However, he is
only willing to countenance the “miracle of instruction” in the dhamma
when it comes to attracting new adherents.

Against Miracles

The Buddha gives an argument as to why he does not accept using the
two real kinds of miracle, psychic powers and telepathy. While he
recognizes them as real, he also recognizes that they will not convince
the skeptic. The Buddha says that there are certain charms (the Gandhāra
and Maṇika charms, in particular) that are reputed to give one
miraculous powers, and so any skeptic who sees such powers will
attribute them to the work of a charm rather than to the abilities of
the person performing the miracle. If so, of course, the skeptic will
not be convinced that the miracle worker is one with true wisdom.

For this reason, the Buddha says, using psychic powers and telepathy
are not good ways to bring new adherents. “And that is why, Kevaddha,
seeing the danger of such miracles, I dislike, reject and despise them.”
(5)

Now, there are several things one can say about the Buddha’s
argument. The translator, Maurice Walshe, claims that the skeptic’s
position is weak: he or she “does not have a really convincing way of
explaining things away. Modern parallels suggest themselves.” (p.
557n.235). In other words, there is little reason to accept the
existence of the Gandhāra and Maṇika charms, and so the Buddha’s skeptic
would only be dismissing these miracles in an ad hoc fashion. Walshe apparently believes modern skeptics follow the same pattern.

But I don’t think this is an adequate interpretation of the passage.
For one, Kevaddha also appears familiar with the existence of the
Gandhāra and Maṇika charms, and there is no independent reason for
supposing either he or the Buddha believed them ineffective. If so, then
the skeptic’s argument would have been convincing at the time, if not
to a modern ear.

But to go deeper, why should the Buddha care if some skeptic might
misconstrue the source of this miraculous power? Surely many in a large
audience would be convinced by such marvels as becoming invisible,
walking on water, or flying through the air, to take three of the
abilities that fall under the Buddha’s conception of “psychic power”.
Surely many would accept the Buddha as a powerful, knowledgeable
teacher, even if some skeptics were left to one side. So it is perhaps
more accurate to say that the Buddha doesn’t have a convincing way of
explaining why he should not use miraculous powers, if they are
available to him. Or at least he doesn’t present a very convincing
argument in the sutta.

So what is really going on here? Two possible explanations come to
mind. The first is what the Buddha may have wanted to get across to
Kevaddha, the second is a bit subtler.

Perhaps the Buddha is really saying that these miracles don’t bring
people to the dhamma for the right reasons. They are mere circus show;
the sorts of things that stun and delight the crowd but don’t really
instruct. Thus their contrast with the so-called “miracle of
instruction”. In effect, the miracles are but sense delights; the sorts
of things that lead to attachment and craving. The real miracle is not
supernatural at all. It is the ‘miracle’ of the dhamma: of teaching true
wisdom.

The second explanation is that the Buddha may have known that his
miraculous powers were largely or wholly internal and subjective:
thoughts and images in states of deep meditation, instead of actual
invisibility; subtle demonstrations open to interpretation, unlikely to
sway the unconvinced. If so, it’s not only a few crafty skeptics who
would have been unmoved, since powers such as becoming invisible,
walking on water, or flying through the air would not have been publicly
available, or at least not in a way likely to dazzle the householders.
And it is all too easy for a smart cross-examiner, such as those
“hair-splitting marksmen” mentioned in the Cūḷahatthipadopama Sutta, to unmask apparent examples of telepathy.

The dhamma, on the other hand, is publicly explicable, hard to find fault with, and more likely to convince.

If this is the correct reading, then the Buddha was right to abjure miraculous folderol and stick to true instruction.

Brahmā Behind the Curtain

The second part of the Kevaddha Sutta contains one of the
great satires of the ancient world. Here the Buddha speaks about “a
certain monk” of his order who wanted to know “where the four great
elements … cease without remainder.” He had meditative capacities that
gave him access to the devas, so rather than investigate the dhamma for
himself, he decided just to ask them to give him the right answer.

This monk went from deva to deva, asking each his question, however
each one pleaded ignorance and passed him to the next, until the monk
arrived at the Great Brahmā himself, claimed Creator of the Universe.
But instead of answering his question, Brahmā replied with a grand
oration, apparently intended to cow the monk into silence:

Monk, I am Brahmā, Great Brahmā, the Conqueror, the
Unconquered, the All-Seeing, All-Powerful, the Lord, the Maker and
Creator, the Ruler, Appointer and Orderer, Father of All That Have Been
and Shall Be. (81)

But the monk wasn’t intimidated. He asked Brahmā again, and again
Brahmā responded with the list of his great and fearsome qualities. Once
again the monk said, “Friend, I did not ask you that”. The Buddha
continues,

Then, Kevaddha, the Great Brahmā took that monk by the
arm, led him aside and said: “Monk, these devas believe there is nothing
Brahmā does not see, there is nothing he does not know, there is
nothing he is unaware of. That is why I did not speak in front of them.
But, monk, I don’t know where the four great elements cease without
remainder. … Now, monk, you just go to the Blessed Lord and put this
question to him, and whatever answer he gives, accept it.” (83)

As the Great Oz would say, “Pay no attention to that man behind the
curtain!” This is Buddhist humanism at its best: Brahmā, self-styled
Creator of the Universe, is revealed to be an ignorant blowhard, vainly
hiding his incompetence by pulling the poor monk offstage before
confiding in him the sad truth.

It’s all too easy to say that this story serves the Buddha well: it’s
a satire of the greatest of gods bowing down to his wisdom. And of
course, it is at least that. But it is more besides.

For it is also a rejection of revealed knowledge: the notion that in
order to become wise, all one need do is to ask the right divinity and
have the answer provided, packaged up in a revelation.

Buddhist Skeptical Humanism? 

At first glance it might look as though there is little in common
between the two parts of this sutta. First we have Kevaddha asking the
Buddha to use miracles to attract the people of Nāḷandā, and second we
have a monk asking Brahmā how to attain nibbāna.

But in fact both parts illustrate the same basic point. The parable
of Brahmā, like Kevaddha’s insistence on using miracles to convince, is
about the pitfalls of trying to find answers through miraculous means.
Both reject using the supernatural to make an end-run around the
understanding of reality for oneself, the hard way.

Both also provide implicit warnings against any who would claim to ground their practice on the supernatural.

The world has witnessed many religious and spiritual leaders over the
centuries. It’s unusual to find any who would eschew displays of
supposed miracles or supernormal abilities in order to gain new
followers. And yet it’s clear from the Kevaddha Sutta that the Buddha preferred to edify rather than astound.

Or not?

Finally, a word about the translations: the one available on the web
from Thanissaro Bhikkhu includes many paragraphs (indeed, an entire
middle section) that are apparently not original to the Kevaddha Sutta. They are passages identical to those from the Brahmajāla Sutta (DN 1), and the Sāmaññaphala Sutta (DN 2). It is only by leaving those passages to one side that we can see what is original and particular to the Kevaddha
itself; and it is only then that we see the point the Buddha may be
trying to make. Maurice Walshe’s translation for Wisdom excises all that
is not original, which clarifies things considerably.

That said, copied passages under “the miracle of instruction” include
such things as clairaudience, clairvoyance, mind reading, becoming
invisible, walking on water, flying through the air, indeed all the
various miracles which the Buddha says he “dislike, reject, and despise“.
So if we take the complete sutta literally, it would seem that the
Buddha rejects these miracles under their own guise, but accepts them
under the guise of “the miracle of instruction”. And that seems a
contradiction.

Perhaps the compilers inserted the passages from the Sāmaññaphala Sutta
in order to explicate the entirety of the Buddhist path, without
realizing that doing so would introduce such a contradiction in the
sutta. Or perhaps more likely they believed that the Buddha’s
supernormal abilities were not to be presented to laypeople as
introductory instruction, but rather as the sort of thing that would
only come up as a matter of course to those fully involved in
monasticism, where they would play no part in recruitment. In the latter
case, neither would the monastics be in the position of
the “hair-splitting marksmen” mentioned above.

Understanding the sutta in its fullness deprives it of a measure of
skeptical and rational force, at least for a modern audience: the Buddha
clearly did not reject the miraculous outright. He only did so as an
aid to winning over householders, which is no small thing. However this
understanding also provides a caution against misreading the Buddha. For
while his message was humanist, rationalist and empirical, it was also
one that accepted the supernatural categories of his time and culture.

Noting this, of course, need not deprive us of celebrating skepticism and humanism where we find it in the Buddha’s message.

62) Classical Malagasy

 2430  Sat 4 Nov 2017 LESSON 

Tipitaka

Tripiṭaka, also referred to as Tipiṭaka, is the traditional term for the Buddhist scriptures.^[1][2] The version canonical to Theravada Buddhism is often referred to as Pali Canon in English. Mahayana
Buddhism also reveres the Tripitaka as authoritative but, unlike
Theravadins, it also reveres various derivative literature and
commentaries that were composed much later.^[1][3]

The Tripitakas were composed between about 500 BCE to about
the start of the common era, likely written down for the first time in
the 1st century BCE.^[3] The Dipavamsa states that during the reign of Valagamba of Anuradhapura
(29–17 BCE) the monks who had previously remembered the Tipitaka and
its commentary orally now wrote them down in books, because of the
threat posed by famine and war. The Mahavamsa
also refers briefly to the writing down of the canon and the
commentaries at this time. Each Buddhist sub-tradition had its own
Tripitaka for its monasteries, written by its sangha, each set consisting of 32 books, in three parts or baskets of teachings: (1) the basket of expected discipline from monks (Vinaya Piṭaka), (2) basket of discourse (Sūtra Piṭaka, Nikayas), and (3) basket of special doctrine (Abhidharma Piṭaka).^[1][3][4]
The structure, the code of conduct and moral virtues in the Vinaya
basket particularly, have similarities to some of the surviving Dharmasutra texts of Hinduism.^[5] Much of the surviving Tripitaka literature is in Pali, with some in Sanskrit as well as other local Asian languages.^[4]

Etymology

Tripiṭaka, also called Tipiṭaka (Pali), means Three Baskets. and pitaka (पिटक) or pita (पिट) meaning “basket or box made from bamboo or wood” and “collection of writings”, according to Monier-Williams.^[6] These terms are also spelled without diacritics as Tripitaka and Tipitaka in scholarly literature.^[1]

Chronology

The dating of the Tripitakas is unclear. Max Muller
states that the texts were likely composed in the third century BCE,
but transmitted orally from generation to generation just like the Vedas
and the early Upanishads.^[7]
The first version, suggests Muller, was very likely reduced to writing
in the 1st century BCE (nearly 500 years after the time of Buddha).^[7]

According to the Tibetan historian Bu-ston, states Warder, around or
before 1st century CE, there were eighteen schools of Buddhism and their
Tripitakas were written down by then.^[8]
However, except for one version that has survived in full, and others
of which parts have survived, all of these texts are lost to history or
yet to be found.^[8]
The tripitaka was compiled into writing for the first time during the
reign of King Walagambahu of Sri Lanka (1st century BCE). It’s written
in the Sri Lankan history that more than 1000monks who were already
Arahath state (totally awakened)represented in writing. The place where
they carried out was in Aluvihare Matale Sri Lanka.^[8]
These texts were written down in four related Indo-European languages
of South Asia: Sanskrit, Pali, Paisaci and Prakrit, sometime between 1st
century BCE and 7th century CE.^[8]
Some of these were translated in East Asian languages such as Chinese,
Tibetan and Mongolian by ancient visiting scholars, which though vast
are incomplete.^[9]

Wu and Chia state that emerging evidence, though uncertain, suggests
that the earliest written Buddhist Tripitaka texts may have arrived in
China from India by the 1st century BCE.^[10]

The three categories

Tripitaka comprises the three main categories of texts that is the
Buddhist canon. The three parts of the Pāli canon are not as
contemporary as the traditional Buddhist account seems to suggest: the
Sūtra Piṭaka is older than the Vinaya Piṭaka, and the Abhidharma Piṭaka
represents scholastic developments originated at least two centuries
after the other two parts of the canon. The Vinaya Piṭaka appears to
have grown gradually as a commentary and justification of the monastic
code (Prātimokṣa), which presupposes a transition from a community of
wandering mendicants (the Sūtra Piṭaka period ) to a more sedentary
monastic community (the Vinaya Piṭaka period). Even within the Sūtra
Piṭaka it is possible to detect older and later texts.

Vinaya

Rules and regulations of monastic life that range from dress code and
dietary rules to prohibitions of certain personal conducts.

Sutta

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The Buddha delivered all his sermons in local language^{[clarification needed]}
of northern India. These sermons were collected during 1st assembly
just after the Parinibbana of the Buddha. Later these teachings were
translated into Sanskrit.

Abhidhamma

Philosophical and psychological discourse and interpretation of Buddhist doctrine.

In Indian Buddhist schools

Each of the Early Buddhist Schools
likely had their own recensions of the Tripiṭaka. According to some
sources, there were some Indian schools of Buddhism that had five or
seven piṭakas.^[11]

Mahāsāṃghika

The Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya was translated by Buddhabhadra and Faxian in 416 CE, and is preserved in Chinese translation (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1425).

The 6th century CE Indian monk Paramārtha wrote that 200 years after the parinirvāṇa of the Buddha, much of the Mahāsāṃghika school moved north of Rājagṛha, and were divided over whether the Mahāyāna sūtras
should be incorporated formally into their Tripiṭaka. According to this
account, they split into three groups based upon the relative manner
and degree to which they accepted the authority of these Mahāyāna texts.^[12] Paramārtha states that the Kukkuṭika sect did not accept the Mahāyāna sūtras as buddhavacana (”words of the Buddha”), while the Lokottaravāda sect and the Ekavyāvahārika sect did accept the Mahāyāna sūtras as buddhavacana.^[13]
Also in the 6th century CE, Avalokitavrata writes of the Mahāsāṃghikas
using a “Great Āgama Piṭaka,” which is then associated with Mahāyāna
sūtras such as the Prajñāparamitā and the Daśabhūmika Sūtra.^[14]

According to some sources, abhidharma was not accepted as canonical by the Mahāsāṃghika school.^[15] The Theravādin Dīpavaṃsa, for example, records that the Mahāsāṃghikas had no abhidharma.^[16] However, other sources indicate that there were such collections of abhidharma, and the Chinese pilgrims Faxian and Xuanzang both mention Mahāsāṃghika abhidharma. On the basis of textual evidence as well as inscriptions at Nāgārjunakoṇḍā,
Joseph Walser concludes that at least some Mahāsāṃghika sects probably
had an abhidharma collection, and that it likely contained five or six
books.^[17]

Caitika

The Caitikas
included a number of sub-sects including the Pūrvaśailas, Aparaśailas,
Siddhārthikas, and Rājagirikas. In the 6th century CE, Avalokitavrata
writes that Mahāyāna sūtras such as the Prajñāparamitā and others are chanted by the Aparaśailas and the Pūrvaśailas.^[14] Also in the 6th century CE, Bhāvaviveka speaks of the Siddhārthikas using a Vidyādhāra Piṭaka, and the Pūrvaśailas and Aparaśailas both using a Bodhisattva Piṭaka, implying collections of Mahāyāna texts within these Caitika schools.^[14]

Bahuśrutīya

The Bahuśrutīya school is said to have included a Bodhisattva Piṭaka in their canon. The Satyasiddhi Śāstra, also called the Tattvasiddhi Śāstra,
is an extant abhidharma from the Bahuśrutīya school. This abhidharma
was translated into Chinese in sixteen fascicles (Taishō Tripiṭaka
1646).^[18]
Its authorship is attributed to Harivarman, a third-century monk from
central India. Paramārtha cites this Bahuśrutīya abhidharma as
containing a combination of Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna doctrines, and Joseph Walser agrees that this assessment is correct.^[19]

Prajñaptivāda

The Prajñaptivādins held that the Buddha’s teachings in the various piṭakas were nominal (Skt. prajñapti), conventional (Skt. saṃvṛti), and causal (Skt. hetuphala).^[20]
Therefore, all teachings were viewed by the Prajñaptivādins as being of
provisional importance, since they cannot contain the ultimate truth.^[21]
It has been observed that this view of the Buddha’s teachings is very
close to the fully developed position of the Mahāyāna sūtras.^{[20] [21]}

Sārvāstivāda

Scholars at present have “a nearly complete collection of sūtras from the Sarvāstivāda school”^[22] thanks to a recent discovery in Afghanistan of roughly two-thirds of Dīrgha Āgama in Sanskrit. The Madhyama Āgama (Taishō Tripiṭaka
26) was translated by Gautama Saṃghadeva, and is available in Chinese.
The Saṃyukta Āgama (Taishō Tripiṭaka 99) was translated by Guṇabhadra,
also available in Chinese translation. The Sarvāstivāda is therefore
the only early school besides the Theravada for which we have a roughly
complete Sūtra Piṭaka. The Sārvāstivāda Vinaya Piṭaka is also extant in
Chinese translation, as are the seven books of the Sarvāstivāda
Abhidharma Piṭaka. There is also the encyclopedic Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣa Śāstra (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1545), which was held as canonical by the Vaibhāṣika Sarvāstivādins of northwest India.

Mūlasārvāstivāda

Portions of the Mūlasārvāstivāda Tripiṭaka survive in Tibetan translation and Nepalese manuscripts.^[23]
The relationship of the Mūlasārvāstivāda school to Sarvāstivāda school
is indeterminate; their vinayas certainly differed but it is not clear
that their Sūtra Piṭaka did. The Gilgit manuscripts may contain Āgamas
from the Mūlasārvāstivāda school in Sanskrit.^[24] The Mūlasārvāstivāda Vinaya Piṭaka survives in Tibetan
translation and also in Chinese translation (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1442).
The Gilgit manuscripts also contain vinaya texts from the
Mūlasārvāstivāda school in Sanskrit.^[24]

Dharmaguptaka

A complete version of the Dīrgha Āgama (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1) of the Dharmaguptaka school was translated into Chinese by Buddhayaśas and Zhu Fonian (竺佛念) in the Later Qin dynasty, dated to 413 CE. It contains 30 sūtras in contrast to the 34 suttas of the Theravadin Dīgha Nikāya. A. K. Warder also associates the extant Ekottara Āgama (Taishō Tripiṭaka 125) with the Dharmaguptaka school, due to the number of rules for monastics, which corresponds to the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya.^[25] The Dharmaguptaka Vinaya is also extant in Chinese translation (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1428), and Buddhist monastics in East Asia adhere to the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya.

The Dharmaguptaka Tripiṭaka is said to have contained a total of five piṭakas.^[19] These included a Bodhisattva Piṭaka and a Mantra Piṭaka (Ch. 咒藏), also sometimes called a Dhāraṇī Piṭaka.^[26]
According to the 5th century Dharmaguptaka monk Buddhayaśas, the
translator of the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya into Chinese, the Dharmaguptaka
school had assimilated the Mahāyāna Tripiṭaka (Ch. 大乘三藏).^[27]

Mahīśāsaka

The Mahīśāsaka Vinaya is preserved in Chinese translation (Taishō Tripiṭaka 1421), translated by Buddhajīva and Zhu Daosheng in 424 CE.

Kāśyapīya

Small portions of the Tipiṭaka of the Kāśyapīya
school survive in Chinese translation. An incomplete Chinese
translation of the Saṃyukta Āgama of the Kāśyapīya school by an unknown
translator circa the Three Qin (三秦) period (352-431 CE) survives.^[28]

In the Theravada school

The complete Tripiṭaka set of the Theravāda school is written and preserved in Pali in the Pali Canon. Buddhists of the Theravāda school use the Pali variant Tipitaka to refer what is commonly known in English as the Pali Canon.^{[citation needed]}

In Mahāyāna schools

The term Tripiṭaka
had tended to become synonymous with Buddhist scriptures, and thus
continued to be used for the Chinese and Tibetan collections, although
their general divisions do not match a strict division into three
piṭakas.^[29] In the Chinese tradition, the texts are classified in a variety of ways,^[30] most of which have in fact four or even more piṭakas or other divisions.^{[citation needed]}

As a title

The Chinese form of Tripiṭaka,
“sānzàng” (三藏), was sometimes used as an honorary title for a Buddhist
monk who has mastered the teachings of the Tripiṭaka. In Chinese culture
this is notable in the case of the Tang Dynasty monk Xuanzang, whose pilgrimage to India to study and bring Buddhist texts back to China was portrayed in the novel Journey to the West
as “Tang Sanzang” (Tang Dynasty Tripiṭaka Master). Due to the
popularity of the novel, the term “sānzàng” is often erroneously
understood as a name of the monk Xuanzang. One such screen version of this is the popular 1979 Monkey (TV series).^{[citation needed]}

The modern Indian scholar Rahul Sankrityayan is sometimes referred to as Tripitakacharya in reflection of his familiarity with the Tripiṭaka.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Āgama (Buddhism)
• Early Buddhist Texts
• Buddhist texts
• Pali canon
• Tripitaka Koreana
• Zhaocheng Jin Tripitaka

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Pali [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Pali (Pāli) is a Prakrit language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of much of the earliest extant literature of Buddhism as collected in the Pāli Canon or Tipiṭaka and is the sacred language of some religious texts of Hinduism and all texts of Theravāda Buddhism. — Origin and development — Etymology

1. The upper half shows a text in Sanskrit (praise of Vishnu) written in Devanagari while the lower half shows a text in Pali from a Buddhist ceremonial scripture called “Kammuwa” from Burma, probably in the Mon script.  

Sanskrit [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Sanskrit (IAST: Saṃskṛtam; IPA: [sə̃skr̩t̪əm]) is the primary liturgical language of Hinduism; a philosophical language of Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism; and a literary language and lingua franca of ancient and medieval India and Nepal. As a result of transmission of Hindu and Buddhist culture to Southeast Asia and parts of Central Asia

1. Sanskrit literature by Kālidāsa in various Indic scripts   2. Rigveda (padapatha) manuscript in Devanagari, early 19th century   3. Devi Mahatmya palm-leaf manuscript in an early Bhujimol script in Nepal, 11th century   4. Sanskrit festival at Pramati Hillview Academy, Mysore, India.  

Pinyin [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Pinyin, or Hànyǔ Pīnyīn, is the official romanization system for Standard Chinese in mainland China and Taiwan. It is often used to teach Standard Chinese, which is normally written using Chinese characters. The system includes four diacritics denoting tones. Pinyin without tone marks is used to spell Chinese names and words in languages written

1. A school slogan asking elementary students to speak Putonghua is annotated with pinyin, but without tonal marks.   2. In Yiling, Yichang, Hubei, text on road signs appears both in Chinese characters and in Hanyu Pinyin   4. This table may be a useful reference for IPA vowel symbols  

Theravada [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Theravāda (Pali, literally “school of the elder monks“) is a branch of Buddhism that uses the Buddha’s teaching preserved in the Pāli Canon as its doctrinal core. The Pali canon is the only complete Buddhist canon which survives in a classical Indic Language, Pali, which serves as the sacred language and lingua franca of Theravada Buddhism.

1. Map showing the three major Buddhist divisions.   2. Ashoka and Moggaliputta-Tissa at the Third Council, at the Nava Jetavana, Shravasti   3. Sanghamitta and the Bodhi Tree   4. Mihintale, the traditional location of Devanampiya Tissa’s conversion  

Pali Canon [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Pāli Canon (Pali: Tipitaka, Sanskrit: IAST: Tripiṭaka) is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravadan Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the first known and most-complete extant early Buddhist canon. — It was composed in North India and was preserved orally until it was committed to writing during the

1. Standard edition of the Thai Pali Canon   2. In pre-modern times the Pali Canon was not published in book form, but written on thin slices of wood (Palm-leaf manuscript or Bamboo). The leaves are kept on top of each other by thin sticks and the scripture is covered in cloth and kept in a box.   3. Burmese-Pali manuscript copy of the Buddhist text Mahaniddesa, showing three different types of Burmese script, (top) medium square, (centre) round and (bottom) outline round in red lacquer from the inside of one of the gilded covers  

Mahayana [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Mahāyāna (Sanskrit for “Great Vehicle”) is one of two (or three, under some classifications) main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies
and practice. This movement added a further set of discourses, and
although it was initially small in India, it had long-term historical
significance. The Buddhist

1. Ancient Buddhist stūpas in Borobodur, Indonesia.   2. Early statue of the Buddha from Gandhāra, 1st–2nd century CE.   3. A statue of Prajñāpāramitā personified, from Singhasari, East Java, Indonesia.   4. Mahāyāna Buddhist triad, including Bodhisattva Maitreya, the Buddha, and Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. 2nd–3rd century CE, Gandhāra.  

Valagamba of Anuradhapura [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Valagamba (Sinhala: වළගම්බා), also known as Vattagamani Abhaya and Valagambahu, was a king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom of Sri Lanka. Five months after becoming king, he was overthrown by a rebellion and an invasion from South India, but regained the throne by defeating the invaders after fourteen years. He is also known for the construction of the

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Sangha (Buddhism) [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Sangha (Pali: saṅgha; Sanskrit: saṃgha; Thai: พระสงฆ์; Chinese: 僧伽; pinyin: Sēngjiā; Wylie: dge ‘dun) is a word in Pali and Sanskrit meaning “association”, “assembly”, “company” or “community” and most commonly refers in Buddhism to the monastic community of bhikkhus (monks) and bhikkhunis (nuns). These communities are traditionally referred to

2. Sangha (Luang Prabang, Laos)   3. Gautama Buddha and his followers, holding begging bowls, receive offerings: from an 18th-century Burmese watercolour   4. Upāsakas and Upāsikās performing a short chanting ceremony at Three Ancestors Temple, Anhui, China  

Abhidharma [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Abhidharma (Sanskrit) or Abhidhamma (Pali) are ancient (3rd century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic reworkings of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist sutras,
according to schematic classifications. The Abhidhamma works do not
contain systematic philosophical treatises, but summaries or abstract
and

1. The Buddha preaching the Abhidharma in Trāyastriṃśa heaven.   2. The main entrance of the Aluvihare Rock Temple, where the Tipitaka was first written down   3. Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakosa is a major source in Tibetan and Chinese Buddhism.  

Dharmasutra [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Dharmaśāstra (Sanskrit: धर्मशास्त्र) is a genre of Sanskrit texts, and refers to the treatises (shastras) of Hinduism on dharma.
There are many Dharmashastras, variously estimated to be 18 to about
100, with different and conflicting points of view. Each of these texts
exist in many different versions, and each is rooted in Dharmasutras
texts

1. Copy of a royal land grant, recorded on copper plate, made by Chalukya King Tribhuvana Malla Deva in 1083   2. A facsimile of an inscription in Oriya script on a copper plate recording a land grant made by Rāja Purushottam Deb, king of Odisha,
in the fifth year of his reign (1483). Land grants made by royal
decree were protected by law, with deeds often being recorded on metal
plates  

Max Muller [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Friedrich Max Müller (6 December 1823 – 28 October 1900), generally known as Max Müller, was a German-born philologist and Orientalist, who lived and studied in Britain for most of his life. He was one of the founders of the western academic field of Indian studies and the discipline of comparative religion. Müller wrote both scholarly and

1. Max Müller as a young man   2. Portrait of the elderly Max Müller by George Frederic Watts, 1894–1895   3. 1875 ‘’Vanity Fair'’
caricature of Müller confirming that, at the age of fifty-one, with
numerous honours, he was one of the truly notable “Men of the Day”.  

Tripitaka Koreana [map/sat/sites/3D/street] [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Tripiṭaka Koreana (lit. Goryeo Tripiṭaka) or Palman Daejanggyeong (”Eighty-Thousand Tripiṭaka“) is a Korean collection of the Tripiṭaka (Buddhist scriptures,
and the Sanskrit word for “three baskets”), carved onto 81,258 wooden
printing blocks in the 13th century. It is the world’s most
comprehensive and oldest intact version of Buddhist

1. The Tripiṭaka Koreana in storage at Haeinsa.   2. Tripiṭaka Koreana sutra page in 1371.  

Haeinsa [map/sat/sites/3D/street] [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Haeinsa (해인사, 海印寺: Temple of the Ocean Mudra) is a head temple of the Jogye Order (대한불교조계종, 大韓佛敎 曹溪宗) of Korean Seon Buddhism in Gayasan National Park (가야산, 伽倻山), South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. Haeinsa is most notable for being the home of the Tripitaka Koreana, the whole of the Buddhist Scriptures carved onto 81,350 wooden printing

2. A Buddha statue inside the temple’s inner grounds   3. Rice terraces in farmland surrounding Haeinsa  

Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism ( or ) is a religion and dharma that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and spiritual practices largely based on original teachings attributed to the Buddha and resulting interpreted philosophies. Buddhism originated in ancient India sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE, from where it spread through much of Asia,

1. ”The Great Departure”, relic depicting Gautama leaving home, first or second century (Musée Guimet)   2. Dhamek Stupa in Sarnath, India, where the Buddha gave his first sermon. It was built by Ashoka.   3. Buddha statue depicting Parinirvana (Mahaparinirvana Temple, Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh, India)   4. The Buddha teaching the Four Noble Truths. Sanskrit manuscript. Nalanda, Bihar, India.  

Dharmachakra [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The dharmachakra (IAST: dharmacakra; Pali dhammacakka; “Wheel of the Dharma“) is one of the Ashtamangala of Indian religions such as Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. It has represented the Buddhist dharma, Gautama Buddha’s teaching of the path to Nirvana, since the time of early Buddhism. It is also connected to the Four Noble Truths and the

1. Ten Indus glyphs from the northern gate of Dholavira.   2. Vishnu holding Sudarshan Chakra   3. Worshipers under 24 spokes of the Buddhist Ashoka Chakra.  

History of Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The history of Buddhism spans from the 5th century BCE to the present; which arose in the eastern part of Ancient India, in and around the ancient Kingdom of Magadha (now in Bihar, India), and is based on the teachings of Siddhārtha Gautama. This makes it one of the oldest religions practiced today. The religion evolved as it spread from the

1. The Buddha giving sermon   2. The Maurya Empire under Emperor Aśoka was the world’s first major Buddhist state. It established free hospitals and free education and promoted human rights.   3. Fragment of the 6th Pillar Edict of Aśoka (238 BC), in Brāhmī, sandstone. British Museum.   4. Great Stupa (3rd century BC), Sanchi, India.  

Gautama Buddha [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Gautama
Buddha (c. 563 BCE/480 BCE – c. 483 BCE/400 BCE), also known as
Siddhārtha Gautama [sid̪ːʱɑːrt̪ʰə gəut̪əmə], Shakyamuni Buddha
[ɕɑːkjəmun̪i bud̪ːʱə], or simply the Buddha, after the title of Buddha, was an ascetic (śramaṇa) and sage, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. He is believed to have lived and taught mostly in the eastern

1. A statue of the Buddha from Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh, India, 4th century CE   2. Maya devi Temple   3. Buddha by Otgonbayar Ershuu   4. Māyā miraculously giving birth to Siddhārtha. Sanskrit, palm-leaf manuscript. Nālandā, Bihar, India. Pāla period  

Buddhist councils [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Lists
and numbering of Buddhist councils vary between and even within
schools. The numbering here is normal in Western writings. — First
Buddhist council (c. 400 BCE) — According to the scriptures of all
Buddhist schools, the first Buddhist Council was held soon after the
death of the Buddha, dated by the majority of recent scholars around 400 BCE,

1. The First Buddhist council   2. The Sixth Buddhist Council  

Dharma [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Dharma ([dʱəɾmə]; Sanskrit: धर्म dharma, listen ; Pali: धम्म dhamma) is a key concept with multiple meanings in the Indian religions — Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. There is no single word translation for dharma in Western languages. — In Hinduism, dharma signifies behaviours that are considered to be in accord with rta, the order that

2. Sikhism  

Four Noble Truths [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Four Noble Truths refer to and express the basic orientation of Buddhism in a short expression: we crave and cling to impermanent states and things, which are dukkha, “incapable of satisfying” and painful. This craving keeps us caught in samsara, the endless cycle of repeated rebirth and dying again, and the dukkha that comes with it. There

1. Tibetan Bhavacakra or “Wheel of Life.”  

Anatta [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

In Buddhism, the term anattā (Pali) or anātman (Sanskrit) refers to the doctrine of “non-self”, that there is no unchanging, permanent self, soul or essence in living beings. It is one of the seven beneficial perceptions in Buddhism, and along with Dukkha (suffering) and Anicca (impermanence), it is one of three Right Understandings about the

Pratītyasamutpāda [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Pratītyasamutpāda
(Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद; Pali: पटिच्चसमुप्पाद paṭiccasamuppāda),
commonly translated as dependent origination, or dependent arising,
states that all dharmas (”things”) arise in dependence upon other
dharmas: “if this exists, that exists; if this ceases to exist, that
also ceases to exist.” The principle is applied in the

Śūnyatā [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Śūnyatā
(Sanskrit; Pali: suññatā), translated into English as emptiness and
voidness, is a Buddhist concept which has multiple meanings depending on
its doctrinal context. It is either an ontological feature of reality, a
meditation state, or a phenomenological analysis of experience. — In Theravada Buddhism, suññatā often refers to the not-self

1. A simile from the Pali scriptures (SN 22.95) compares form and feelings with foam and bubbles.   2. The emptiness of phenomena is often compared to drops of dew  

Saṃsāra (Buddhism) [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Saṃsāra (Sanskrit, Pali; also samsara) in Buddhism is the beginning-less cycle of repeated birth, mundane existence and dying again. Samsara is considered to be dukkha, unsatisfactory and painful, perpetuated by desire and avidya (ignorance), and the resulting karma. — Rebirths occur in six realms of existence, namely three good realms (heavenly,

1. A thangka showing the bhavacakra
with the ancient five cyclic realms of saṃsāra in Buddhist cosmology.
Medieval and contemporary texts typically describe six realms of
reincarnation.   2. Hungry Ghosts realm of Buddhist samsara, a 12th-century painting from Kyoto Japan   3. In
some Buddhist traditions, rebirth is envisioned to occur in more than
six realms of existence. Above ten realms depiction in Vietnam.  

Buddhist texts [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhist texts were initially passed on orally by monks, but were later written down and composed as manuscripts
in various Indo-Aryan languages which were then translated into other
local languages as Buddhism spread. They can be categorized in a number
of ways. The Western terms “scripture” and “canonical” are applied to Buddhism in

1. Stone inscriptions of the World’s largest book at Kuthodaw, Myanmar   2. Burmese Pali manuscript   3. Frontispiece of the Chinese Diamond Sūtra, the oldest known dated printed book in the world   4. Sanskrit manuscript of the Heart Sūtra, written in the Siddhaṃ script. Bibliothèque nationale de France  

Mahayana Sutras [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Mahayana sutras are a broad genre of Buddhist scriptures that various traditions of Mahayana Buddhism accept as canonical. They are largely preserved in the Chinese Buddhist canon, the Tibetan Buddhist canon, and in extant Sanskrit manuscripts. Around one hundred Mahayana sutras survive in Sanskrit, or in Chinese and Tibetan translations.

1. Book open to the Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra   2. Page from the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra in Sanskrit  

Tibetan Buddhist canon [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a loosely defined list of sacred texts recognized by various sects of Tibetan Buddhism. In addition to sutrayana texts from Early Buddhist (mostly Sarvastivada) and Mahayana sources, the Tibetan canon includes tantric texts. The Tibetan Canon underwent a final compilation in the 14th century by Buton Rinchen Drub

1. Young monks printing scriptures. Sera Monastery, Tibet. 1993   2. Printing the scriptures, Sera Monastery  

Three Jewels [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhists take refuge in the Three Jewels or Triple Gem (also known as the “Three Refuges”). — The Three Jewels are:　 — the Buddha, the fully enlightened one — the Dharma, the teachings expounded by the Buddha — the Sangha,
the monastic order of Buddhism that practice the Dharma — Refuge is
common to all major schools of Buddhism. Pali texts employ the

Śīla [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what Buddhists view as the enlightened perspective of the Buddha, or other enlightened beings such as Bodhisattvas. The Indian term for ethics or morality used in Buddhism is Śīla (Sanskrit: शील) or sīla (Pāli). Śīla in Buddhism is one of three sections of the Noble Eightfold Path, and is a code of

1.  In the Zen Buddhist initiation ceremony of Jukai, initiates take up the Bodhisattva Precepts.   2. 
Giving (Dana) is an important Buddhist virtue. The community of
monastics is seen as the most meritorious field of karmic fruitfulness.   3. Japanese illustration of Iyo-no-Kami Minamoto Kuro Yoshitsune and Saito Musashi-bo Benkei, the Buddhist warrior monk.   4. Statue portrait of 5th Dalai Lama who waged wars against Bhutan and Ladak.  

Pāramitā [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Pāramitā (Sanskrit, Pali) or pāramī (Pāli) is “perfection” or “completeness”. While, technically, pāramī and pāramitā are both Pāli terms, Pali literature makes far greater reference to pāramī. — Etymology — Donald S. Lopez, Jr. describes the etymology of the term: — The term pāramitā, commonly translated as “perfection,” has two etymologies. The first

1. A bodhisattva benefitting sentient beings. Palm-leaf manuscript. Nalanda, Bihar, India  

Buddhist meditation [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhist meditation refers to the meditative practices of Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy. — Core meditation techniques have been preserved in ancient Buddhist texts and have proliferated and diversified through teacher-student transmissions. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of the path toward Enlightenment and Nirvana. The closest words for

1. Monk meditating beside Sirikit Dam in Thailand   2.  Lord Buddha meditating   3. Buddhaghosa with three copies of Visuddhimagga, Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara   4. Members of Kanzeon Zen Center during walking meditation  

Buddhist philosophy [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various Buddhist schools in India following the death of the Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. Buddhism’s main concern has always been freedom from dukkha (unease), and the path to that ultimate freedom consists in ethical action (karma

1. The Buddhist Nalanda university and monastery was a major center of learning in India from the 5th century AD to c. 1200   2. Nagarjuna, protected by the Nagas snake spirits who are said to be the guardians of the Prajnaparamita sutras.   3. Vasubandhu wrote in defense of Vijñapti-matra (appearance only) as well as writing a massive work on Abhidharma, the Abhidharmakosa.   4. Dignāga in formal debating stance  

Prajñā (Buddhism) [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Prajñā (Sanskrit) or paññā (Pāli) “wisdom” is insight in the true nature of reality, namely primarily anicca (impermanence), dukkha (dissatisfaction or suffering), anattā (non-self) and śūnyatā
(emptiness). — Etymology — Prajñā is often translated as “wisdom”,
but is closer in meaning to “insight”, “discriminating knowledge”, or
“intuitive

1. Mañjuśrī, the bodhisattva of wisdom. China, 9th–10th century  

Buddhist monasticism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhist monasticism is one of the earliest surviving forms of organized monasticism in the history of religion. It is also one of the most fundamental institutions of Buddhism.
Monks and nuns are considered to be responsible for the preservation
and dissemination of the Buddha’s teaching and the guidance of Buddhist
lay people.

1. Young Buddhist monks in Tibet practising formal debating   2. A Buddhist monk in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, wearing the robes of an abbot in a monastery   3. A mendicant monk in Kyoto, Japan   4. Young Buddhist monk in the streets of Luang Prabang, Laos  

Nirvana (Buddhism) [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Nirvana (Sanskrit, also nirvāṇa; Pali: nibbana, nibbāna ) is the earliest and most common term used to describe the goal of the Buddhist
path. The literal meaning is “blowing out” or “quenching.” It is the
ultimate spiritual goal in Buddhism and marks the soteriological release
from rebirths in saṃsāra. Nirvana is part of the Third Truth on

1. The Buddha’s quest for nirvana, a relief in Vietnam.  

Arhat [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Theravada Buddhism defines arhat (Sanskrit) or arahant (Pali) as “one who is worthy” or as a “perfected person” having attained nirvana. Other 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,

1. Gautama Buddha statue and 500 arhats at the courtyard of Shanyuan Temple (善缘寺), Liaoning Province, China.   2. Gohyaku rakan - five hundred statues depicting arhats, at the Chōkei temple in Toyama   3. Seated Luohan from Yixian, around 1000, one of a famous Group of glazed pottery luohans from Yixian  

Buddhahood [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

In Buddhism, buddhahood (Sanskrit: buddhatva, Pali: buddhatta or buddhabhāva) is the condition or rank of a buddha “awakened one”. — The goal of Mahayana’s bodhisattva path is Samyaksambuddhahood, so that one may benefit all sentient beings by teaching them the path of cessation of dukkha. Mahayana theory contrasts this with the goal of the Hinayana

1. Seated Buddha, from the Seokguram, Silla.   2. A statue of Gautama Buddha at Tawang Monastery, India.   3. Buddha statues at Shwedagon Pagoda  

Bodhisattva [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

In Buddhism, Bodhisattva is the Sanskrit term for anyone who, motivated by great compassion, has generated Bodhicitta, which is a spontaneous wish and a compassionate mind to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. Bodhisattvas are a popular subject in Buddhist art. — Origins and outlines — In early Indian Buddhism, the term

1. Twenty-five Bodhisattvas Descending from Heaven. Japanese painting, c. 1300.   2. Bronze statue of Avalokiteśvara. Sri Lanka, ca. 750 CE   3. The Bala Bodhisattva dedicated in “the year 3 of Kanishka” (circa 123 CE). Sarnath Museum.   4. Wood carving of Avalokiteśvara. Liao China, 907-1125  

Schools of Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Schools of Buddhism are the various institutional and doctrinal divisions of Buddhism that have existed from ancient times up to the present. The classification and nature of various doctrinal, philosophical or cultural facets or schools of Buddhism is vague and has been interpreted in many different ways, often due to the sheer number (perhaps

1. An image of Gautama Buddha with a swastika, a traditional Buddhist symbol of infinity, on his chest. Ananda, the Buddha’s disciple, appears in the background. This statue is from Hsi Lai Temple.   2. Thousand-armed Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva. Guanyin Nunnery, Anhui, China   3. Map of the major geographical centers of Sectarian Buddhist schools in India. Sarvāstivāda (red), Theravāda (orange), Mahāsāṃghika (yellow), Pudgalavāda (green), and Dharmaguptaka (gray).  

Vajrayana [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Vajrayāna, Mantrayāna, Esoteric Buddhism and Tantric Buddhism refer to the various Buddhist traditions of Tantra and “Secret Mantra“, which are systems of beliefs and practices that developed in medieval India and spread to Tibet and East Asia under varying names and forms. In Tibet, Buddhist Tantra is termed Vajrayāna, while in China it is

1. Mahasiddhas,
Palpung monastery. Note the figure of the great adept Putalipa at top
center, seated in a cave and gazing at an image of the meditational
deity Samvara and the figure at the bottom left holding a skull-staff (Khaṭvāṅga).   2. Diamond Realm Mandala, based on the tantric Vajrasekhara Sutra, and symbolizing the final realization of Vairocana Buddha in Shingon.   3. Vajrayana adopted Indian Tantric deities such as Bhairava, a fierce form of Shiva, known as Yamantaka in Tibetan Buddhism.   4. Tangut Auspicious Tantra of All-Reaching Union.  

Navayana [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Navayana (Devanagari: नवयान, IAST: Navayāna) means “new vehicle” and refers to the re-interpretation of Buddhism by B.R. Ambedkar. Ambedkar was born in a Dalit (untouchable) family during the colonial era of India, studied abroad, became a Dalit leader, and announced in 1935 his intent to convert from Hinduism to Buddhism. Thereafter Ambedkar

1. Buddhist flag of Navayana Buddhists   2. People paying tribute at the statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar.  

Newar Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Newar Buddhism is the form of Vajrayana Buddhism practiced by the Newar people of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. It has developed unique socio-religious elements, which include a non-monastic Buddhist society based on the Newar caste system and patrilineality. The ritual priests (guruju), vajracharya (who perform rituals for others) and shakya (who

1. Dīpankara Buddha (Bahi-dyah) on display during Gunla.   2. The bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, 16th century CE.   3. A Vajracharya priest  

History of Buddhism in India [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism is a world religion, which arose in and around the ancient Kingdom of Magadha (now in Bihar, India), and is based on the teachings of Siddhārtha Gautama who was deemed a “Buddha” (”Awakened One”). Buddhism spread outside Magadha starting in the Buddha’s lifetime. — With the reign of the Buddhist Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, the Buddhist

1. Deekshabhoomi, located in Nagpur, Maharashtra is a Buddhist shrine in India   2. Mahabodhi Temple before restoration, Bodh Gaya, 1780s’    3. Rock-cut Lord Buddha Statue at Bojjanakonda near Anakapalle of Visakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh.   4. Ancient Buddhist monasteries near Dhamekh Stupa Monument Site, Sarnath  

Chinese Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Chinese Buddhism has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, medicine, and material culture. —
The translation of a large body of Indian Buddhist scriptures into
Chinese and the inclusion of these translations together with works
composed in China into a printed canon had far-reaching

1. ① Buddhist monks at Jintai Temple in Zhuhai, Guangdong, mainland China.   2. ② Brahma Palace of the Buddhist Vatican (梵宫) in Wuxi, Jiangsu, mainland China, has become a focus of Chinese Buddhist and other East Asian Buddhist schools.   3. ③ A government-approved Buddhist house church (居士林 jūshìlín), part of a wider movement of lay Buddhist gatherings, in Beijing.   4. White Horse Temple, traditionally held to be at the origin of Chinese Buddhism.  

Buddhism in Thailand [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism in Thailand is largely of the Theravada school, which is followed by 93.6 percent of the population. Buddhism in Thailand has also become integrated with folk religion as well as Chinese religions from the large Thai Chinese population. Buddhist temples in Thailand are characterized by tall golden stupas, and the Buddhist architecture of

1. Thai depiction of Maitreya Bodhisattva. 8th century CE   2. Thai novice monks   3. A bhikkhu chants evening prayers inside a monastery located near the town of Kantharalak, Thailand   4. Budai, Wat Don Phra Chao, Yasothon, Thailand  

Buddhism in Japan [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism in Japan has been practiced since its official introduction in 552 CE according to the Nihon Shoki from Baekje, Korea,
by Buddhist monks. Buddhism has had a major influence on the
development of Japanese society and remains an influential aspect of the
culture to this day. — In modern times, Japan’s most popular schools of Buddhism are

1. Daibutsu, Kamakura.   2. Pagoda of Yakushi-ji in Nara (730)   3. Byōdō-in (Pure Land sect), located in Uji, Kyoto   4. Kinkaku-ji, the Temple of the Golden Pavilion, Shōkoku-ji sect of the Rinzai school, located in Kyoto. It was built in Muromachi period.  

Buddhism in Myanmar [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism in Myanmar is predominantly of the Theravada
tradition, practised by 89% of the country’s population It is the most
religious Buddhist country in terms of the proportion of monks in the
population and proportion of income spent on religion. Adherents are
most likely found among the dominant Bamar people, Shan, Rakhine, Mon, Karen, Zo, and

1. 18th-century depiction of Lokanātha   2. Mandalay’s
Kuthodaw Pagoda, which houses marble slabs containing all of the
Tipitaka scriptures, was constructed during the reign of King Mindon.   3. In February 2012, 1000 Buddhist monks and followers gathered for the 18th annual Shwegyin Nikaya Conference at the compound of Dhammaduta Zetawon Tawya Monastery in Hmawbi Township, Yangon Region.   4. Monks throughout Myanmar make alms rounds around the community in the early morning.  

Buddhism in Sri Lanka [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Theravada Buddhism is the religion of 70.2% of the population of Sri Lanka. The island has been a center of Buddhist scholarship and learning since the introduction of Buddhism in the third century BCE producing eminent scholars such as Buddhaghosa and preserving the vast Pāli Canon. Throughout most of its history, Sinhalese kings have played a

1. According to the Mahavamsa, the Great Stupa in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka (around 140 BCE.).   2. Avukana Buddha statue from 5th century   3. Gilded bronze statue of the Tara Bodhisattva, from the Anuradhapura period (8th century)   4. Dutch painting of the Buddhist religious festival in Ceylon, c. 1672  

Buddhism in Cambodia [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism in Cambodia is currently a form of Theravada Buddhism. Buddhism has existed in Cambodia since at least the 5th century, and in its earlier form was a type of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Theravada Buddhism has been the Cambodian state religion since the 13th century (except during the Khmer Rouge period), and is currently estimated to be the faith

1. Cambodian statue of Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva. Sandstone, 7th century CE.   2. Under Jayavarman VII, Buddhism was the state religion.   3. Buddhist nun. Bayon Temple, Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia (January 2005).   4. Adolescent monks in Cambodia  

Korean Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what it sees as inconsistencies in Mahayana
Buddhism. Early Korean monks believed that the traditions they received
from foreign countries were internally inconsistent. To address this,
they developed a new holistic approach to Buddhism. This approach is

1. An image of Gautama Buddha at Seokguram Grotto, Gyeongju, in South Korea   2. Reliquary   3. A stone image of a Buddha, near Gyeongju, South Korea. 7th century Silla.   4. Korean painting of Water-Moon Avalokiteshvara, 1310 CE, ink on silk, painted by Umun Kim  

Buddhism in Taiwan [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism is one of the major religions of Taiwan. Taiwanese people predominantly practice Mahayana Buddhism, Confucian principles, local practices and Taoist tradition. Roles for religious specialists from both Buddhist and Taoist traditions exist on special occasions such as for childbirth and funerals. Of these, a smaller number identify more

1. Taiwanese Buddhist monk with traditional robes and a bamboo hat.   2. Main sanctuary of Fo Guang Shan Monastery near Kaohsiung   3. Ven. Wei Chueh, a traditional Chán Buddhist master in Taiwan.  

Tibetan Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Tibetan Buddhism is the form of Buddhist Vajrayana doctrine and institutions named after the lands of Tibet, but also found in the regions surrounding the Himalayas and much of Central Asia. It derives from the latest stages of Indian Buddhism and preserves “the Tantric status quo of eighth-century India.” It has been spread outside of Tibet,

1. Buddhist monk Geshe Konchog Wangdu reads Mahayana sutras from an old woodblock copy of the Tibetan Kangyur   2. A sand mandala   3. The Vajrayāna deity, Vajrasattva   4. “Precious Pagoda of the Buddhist Relics of the Diamond Throne”,A Tibetan Buddhism Temple for Mongols  

Buddhism in Bhutan [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism is the major religion in Bhutan. Vajrayana Buddhism is the state religion of Bhutan, and Buddhists comprise two-thirds to three-quarters and Hinduism one-quarter of its population. Although the Buddhism practiced in Bhutan originated in Tibetan Buddhism, it differs significantly in its rituals, liturgy, and monastic organization. The

1. Bhutanese Buddhist monk looking out the window of a monastery.  

Buddhism in Mongolia [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddhism in Mongolia derives much of its recent characteristics from Tibetan Buddhism of the Gelug and Kagyu lineages, but is distinct and presents its own unique characteristics. — Buddhism in Mongolia began with the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) emperors conversion to Tibetan Buddhism. The Mongols returned to their old shamanist ways after the collapse

1. Buddha statue in the Erdene Zuu Monastery, Karakorum   2. Stupa in the Khitan city of Bars-Hot   3. Tsetserleg Monastery.   4. Temple at Erdene Zuu monastery established by Abtai Khan in the Khalkha heartland in the 16th century  

Buddhism in Russia [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Historically, Buddhism was incorporated into Russian lands in the early 17th century. Buddhism is considered as one of Russia’s traditional religions, legally a part of Russian historical heritage. Besides the historical monastic traditions of Buryatia, Kalmykia and Tuva, Buddhism is now widespread all over Russia, with many ethnic Russian

1. Ivolga monastery.   2. Golden Gate in Elista, Republic of Kalmykia   3. Areas in Russia with large Buddhist populations.  

Outline of Buddhism [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The following outline is provided as an overview of, and topical guide to, Buddhism: — Buddhism (Pali/Sanskrit:
बौद्ध धर्म Buddha Dharma) is a religion and philosophy encompassing a
variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings
attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha, “the awakened one”. — The Buddha

1. The vajra, a distinct symbol of Vajrayana   2. The bhavachakra, a symbolic depiction of the six realms.   3. Buddhists making offerings at Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep   4. A Buddhist monk meditating  

Buddha [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Gautama
Buddha (c. 563 BCE/480 BCE – c. 483 BCE/400 BCE), also known as
Siddhārtha Gautama [sid̪ːʱɑːrt̪ʰə gəut̪əmə], Shakyamuni Buddha
[ɕɑːkjəmun̪i bud̪ːʱə], or simply the Buddha, after the title of Buddha, was an ascetic (śramaṇa) and sage, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. He is believed to have lived and taught mostly in the eastern

1. Maya’s dream of the Birth of Gautama Siddharta   2. Departure of Prince Siddhartha   3. The Victory of Buddha   4. The “Great Departure” of Siddhartha Gautama, surrounded by a halo, he is accompanied by numerous guards, maithuna loving couples, and devata who have come to pay homage; Gandhara, Kushan period  

Mahāsāṃghika [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Mahāsāṃghika (Sanskrit “of the Great Sangha“, Chinese: 大眾部; pinyin: Dàzhòng Bù) was one of the early Buddhist schools. Interest in the origins of the Mahāsāṃghika school lies in the fact that their Vinaya recension appears in several ways to represent an older redaction overall. Many scholars also look to the Mahāsāṃghika branch for the

1. Lions from Sāñchī, where the Caitika Mahāsāṃghika sub-sect was preeminent   2. The Eight Auspicious Signs of Buddhism   3. The Buddha flanked by bodhisattvas. Cave 4, Ajaṇṭā Caves, Mahārāṣtra, India.   4. Elephant motif with buddhas above. Karla Caves, Mahārāṣtra, India.  

Faxian [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Faxian (traditional Chinese: 法顯; simplified Chinese: 法显; pinyin: Fǎxiǎn; 337 – c. 422) was a Chinese Buddhist monk who travelled by foot from China to India, visiting many sacred Buddhist sites in what are now Xinjiang, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka between 399-412 to acquire Buddhist texts. His journey is described in his

1. Faxian at the ruins of Ashoka’s palace   2. Faxian statue at Daishō-in Temple in Miyajima    3. Faxian´s route through India  

Paramartha [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Paramārtha (Sanskrit: परमार्थ Paramārtha; traditional Chinese: 真諦; simplified Chinese: 真谛; pinyin: Zhēndì) (499-569 CE) was an Indian monk from Ujjain in central India, who is best known for his prolific Chinese translations which include Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa. Paramārtha is considered one of the greatest translators of sutras in

1. Typical countryside of the Malwa region in India   2. Emperor Wu of Liang was Paramārtha’s patron in China  

Parinirvana [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

In Buddhism, the term parinirvana (Sanskrit: parinirvāṇa; Pali: parinibbāna) is commonly used to refer to nirvana-after-death, which occurs upon the death of the body of someone who has attained nirvana during his or her lifetime. It implies a release from the Saṃsāra, karma and rebirth as well as the dissolution of the skandhas. — In some Mahāyāna

1. The death of the Buddha, or Mahaparinirvana, Gandhara 2-3rd century.   2. Buddha attaining Parinirvana – Depicted in cave 26 of Ajanta Caves - India   3. Attendants to the Parinirvana, Gandhara, Victoria and Albert museum   4. Parinirvana Shrine, Miyajima, Japan   

Rajgir [map/sat/sites/3D/street] [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Rajgir (originally known as Girivraj) is a city and a notified area in Nalanda district in the Indian state of Bihar. The city of Rajgir (ancient Rājagṛha; Pali: Rājagaha; Hindi: राजगृह) was the first capital of the kingdom of Magadha, a state that would eventually evolve into the Mauryan Empire. Its date of origin is unknown, although ceramics

1. Vishwa Shanti Stupa at Rajgir, one of the 80 Peace Pagodas around the world.   2. Buddha’s cave, Griddhakuta Hill, Rajgir.   3. Son Bhandar Jain cave, Rajgir   4. View of Rajgir hills from Jarasandha’s Akhara  

Lokottaravāda [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Lokottaravāda (Sanskrit; traditional Chinese: 說出世部; ; pinyin: Shuō Chūshì Bù) was one of the early Buddhist schools according to Mahayana doxological sources compiled by Bhāviveka, Vinitadeva
and others, and was a subgroup which emerged from the Mahāsāṃghika. —
Etymology — The name Lokottaravāda means those who follow the
supramundane (Skt.

1. The Lokottaravāda held there were innumerable pure lands of buddhas and bodhisattvas.   2. Bodhisattva statue from a Buddhist monastery in Afghanistan, a region where the Lokottaravāda were known to be prominent   3. Tibetan painting of Amitābha in his pure land, Sukhāvatī  

Ekavyāvahārika [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Ekavyāvahārika (Sanskrit: एकव्यावहारिक; traditional Chinese: 一說部; ; pinyin: Yī Shuō Bù) was one of the early Buddhist schools, and is thought to have separated from the Mahāsāṃghika sect during the reign of Aśoka. — History — Relationship to Mahāsāṃghika — Tāranātha viewed the Ekavyāvahārikas, Lokottaravādins, and Gokulikas as being essentially

1. Cave temple associated with the Mahāsāṃghika sect. Ajaṇṭā Caves, Mahārāṣtra, India  

Prajnaparamita [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Prajñāpāramitā means “the Perfection of (Transcendent) Wisdom” in Mahāyāna Buddhism. Prajñāpāramitā refers to this perfected way of seeing the nature of reality, as well as to a particular body of sutras and to the personification of the concept in the Bodhisattva known as the “Great Mother” (Tibetan: Yum Chenmo). The word Prajñāpāramitā combines

2. A Tibetan illustration of Subhuti, a major character in the PP sutras.  

Nagarjunakonda [map/sat/sites/3D/street] [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Nagarjunakonda (meaning Nagarjuna Hill) is a historical Buddhist town, now an island located near Nagarjuna Sagar in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, India. It is 160 km west side of another important historic site Amaravathi. It is one of India’s richest Buddhist sites, known in the ancient times as Sri Parvata. It now lies almost entirely under

1. Ruins of the site   2. Holy relic sites map of Andhra Pradesh   3. Panoramic view of the Buddha statue and other monuments   4. Megalith Age Burial Area 2nd century A.D.  

Xuanzang [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Xuanzang (pronounced [ɕɥɛ̌ntsâŋ]; Chinese: 玄奘; Wade–Giles: Hsüan-tsang), fl. c. 602–664, was a Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveller, and translator who described the interaction between Chinese Buddhism and Indian Buddhism in the early Tang dynasty. Born in what is now Henan province around 602, from boyhood he took to reading religious

2. Xuanzang’s former residence in Chenhe Village near Luoyang, Henan.   3. An illustration of Xuanzang from Journey to the West, a fictional account of travels.   4. Xuanzang Memorial Hall in Nalanda, Bihar, India.  

Caitika [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Caitika was an early Buddhist school, a sub-sect of the Mahāsāṃghika. They were also known as the Caityaka sect. — The Caitikas proliferated throughout the mountains of South India, from which they derived their name. In Pali writings, members of this sect and its offshoots were generally referred to as the Andhakas, meaning “of Coastal Andhra“.

1. Statue of the Buddha at Bojjannakonda, Andhra Pradesh   2. Statue of the Buddha at Bojjannakonda, Andhra Pradesh   3. Ancient frieze depicting the stupa at Amaravathi village, Guntur district.  

Bhavaviveka [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Bhāviveka,
also called Bhavya or Bhāvaviveka (traditional Chinese: 清辯; ; pinyin:
Qīngbiàn; Wylie: slob dpon bha bya, skal ldan, legs ldan, c. 500 – c.
578) was a sixth century Madhyamaka Buddhist. In Tibetan Buddhism Bhāviveka is regarded as the founder of the Svātantrika tradition of the Mādhyamaka school of Buddhism, which is seen as

2. Bhavaviveka  

Mahāyāna [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Mahāyāna (Sanskrit for “Great Vehicle”) is one of two (or three, under some classifications) main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies
and practice. This movement added a further set of discourses, and
although it was initially small in India, it had long-term historical
significance. The Buddhist

1. Bodhisattva seated in dhyāna. Afghanistan, 2nd century  

Bahusrutiya [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Bahuśrutīya (Sanskrit) was one of the early Buddhist schools, according to early sources such as Vasumitra, the Śāriputraparipṛcchā, and other sources, and was a sub-group which emerged from the Mahāsāṃghika
sect. — Etymology — The name Bahuśrutīya means literally “those who
have heard much,” meaning “well-learned.” The Chinese translation for
the

1. Cave temple associated with the Mahāsāṃghika sect. Ajaṇṭā Caves, Mahārāṣtra, India  

Sarvastivada [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Sarvāstivāda (Sanskrit; Chinese: 說一切有部; pinyin: Shuō Yīqièyǒu Bù) were an early school of Buddhism that held to the existence of all dharmas in the past, present and future, the “three times”. —
The Sarvāstivādins were one of the most influential Buddhist monastic
groups, flourishing throughout Northwest India, Northern India, and Central Asia.

1. The traditions of Tibetan Buddhism traditionally follow the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya  

Mulasarvastivada [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Mūlasarvāstivāda (Sanskrit; traditional Chinese: 根本說一切有部; ; pinyin: Gēnběn Shuō Yīqièyǒu Bù) was one of the early Buddhist schools of India. The origins of the Mūlasarvāstivāda and their relationship to the Sarvāstivāda sect still remain largely unknown, although various theories exist. — The continuity of the Mūlasarvāstivāda monastic order

1. Tibetan Buddhist bhikṣus of the Mūlasarvāstivāda ordination lineage  

Gandhāran Buddhist texts [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Gandhāran Buddhist texts are the oldest Buddhist manuscripts yet discovered, dating from about the 1st century CE. They are written in Gāndhārī, and are possibly the oldest extant Indian
texts altogether. They were sold to European and Japanese institutions
and individuals, and are currently being recovered and studied by
several

1. Gandhara birchbark scroll fragments (c. 1st century) from British Library Collection  

Dharmaguptaka [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit; Chinese: 法藏部; pinyin: Fǎzàng bù) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools, depending on the source. They are said to have originated from another sect, the Mahīśāsakas. The Dharmaguptakas had a prominent role in early Central Asian and Chinese Buddhism, and their Prātimokṣa (monastic rules for bhikṣus

2. The region of Aparānta, where the Dharmaguptakas are believed to have originated   3. Full bhikṣuṇī ordination is common in the Dharmaguptaka lineage. Vesak festival, Taiwan   4. Bhikṣus performing a traditional Buddhist ceremony in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China  

Later Qin [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The Later Qin (simplified Chinese: 后秦; traditional Chinese: 後秦; pinyin: Hòuqín; 384-417), also known as Yao Qin (姚秦), was a state of Qiang ethnicity of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin dynasty (265-420) in China. The Later Qin is entirely distinct from the Qin dynasty, the Former Qin and the Western Qin. — Its second ruler, Yao Xing, supported

1. Later Qin in 402 AD  

A. K. Warder [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Anthony Kennedy Warder (September 8, 1924 - January 8, 2013) was a scholar of Indology, mostly in Buddhist studies and related fields, such as the Pāḷi and Sanskrit languages. He wrote 15 books and numerous articles. He held the title of Professor Emeritus of Sanskrit in the School of East Asian Studies in the University of Toronto. — Warder spent

2. Introduction to Pali cover  

East Asia [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

East Asia is the eastern subregion of the Asian continent, which can be defined in either geographical or pan-ethno-cultural terms. Geographically and geopolitically, it includes China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Mongolia, South Korea, North Korea, Japan and Taiwan; it covers about 12,000,000 km2 (4,600,000 sq mi), or about 28% of the Asian

Mantra [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

A “mantra” ((Sanskrit: मंत्र);) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit believed by practitioners to have psychological and spiritual powers. Mantra meditation helps to induce an altered state of consciousness. A mantra may or may not have a syntactic structure or literal meaning. — The

1. In Tibet, many Buddhists carve mantras into rocks as a form of meditation.   2. Mantras written on a rock near Namche Bazaar Nepal   3. Om mani padme hum on the Gangpori (photo 1938–1939 German expedition to Tibet.   4. Mantra of the Hare Krishna bhakti school of Hinduism  

Dhāraṇī [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

A dhāraṇī is a Sanskrit term for a type of ritual speech similar to a mantra. — Etymology and purpose — The word dhāraṇī derives from a Sanskrit root √dhṛ meaning “to hold or maintain”. — Ryuichi Abe and Jan Nattier suggest that a dhāraṇī is generally understood as a mnemonic which encapsulates the meaning of a section or chapter of a sutra. Dhāraṇīs

1. Chinese use of the Siddhaṃ script for a Sanskrit dhāraṇī. Later Tang, 927 CE  

Mahisasaka [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Mahīśāsaka (traditional Chinese: 化地部; ; pinyin: Huàdì Bù) is one of the early Buddhist schools according to some records. Its origins may go back to the dispute in the Second Buddhist council. The Dharmaguptaka
sect is thought to have branched out from Mahīśāsaka sect toward the
end of the 2nd or the beginning of the 1st century BCE. — History

1. Gandhāran Mahīśāsakas are associated with the Pure Land teachings of Amitābha Buddha  

Theravāda [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Theravāda (Pali, literally “school of the elder monks“) is a branch of Buddhism that uses the Buddha’s teaching preserved in the Pāli Canon as its doctrinal core. The Pali canon is the only complete Buddhist canon which survives in a classical Indic Language, Pali, which serves as the sacred language and lingua franca of Theravada Buddhism.

1. Parakramabahu I commissioned various religious projects such as Gal Vihara (’The Stone Shrine’) in Polonnaruwa features three statues of the Buddha in three different poses carved from the same large rock.   2. Bawbawgyi Pagoda at Sri Ksetra, prototype of Pagan-era pagodas   3. Stairway to Wat Phnom guarded by Nagas, the oldest Buddhist structure at the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.   4. Sukhothai Historical Park, Thailand.  

Journey to the West [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Journey to the West is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng’en. It is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. In English-speaking countries, Monkey, Arthur Waley’s popular abridged translation is most commonly read. — The novel is an extended account of the legendary

1. Earliest known edition of the book from the 16th century   2. The four protagonists, from left to right: Sun Wukong, Tang Sanzang (on the White Dragon Horse), Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing   3. Big Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an   4. Porcelain pillow showing characters  

Rahul Sankrityayan [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan (9 April 1893 – 14 April 1963), who is called the Father of Hindi Travelogue Travel literature
because he is the one who played a pivotal role to give travelogue a
‘literature form’, was one of the most widely travelled scholars of India, spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home. He

1. Rahul’s Tombstone at Darjeeling.This
tombstone is established at a place called “Murda Haati” which is a
cremation ground downtown in the lower altitudes of Darjeeling around 25
minutes drive from the ChowRasta.The same place also has the tombstone
of Sister Nivedita.   2. Rahul Nivas in September 2015  

Noble Eightfold Path [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

The
Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo, Sanskrit:
āryāṣṭāṅgamārga) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices
leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth. —
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: right view, right
resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort,
right

1. The eight spoke Dharma wheel symbolizes the Noble Eightfold Path  

Nirvana [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Nirvāṇa
(Sanskrit: निर्वाण nirvāṇa  [nirʋaːɳə]; Pali: निब्बान nibbāna ;
Prakrit: णिव्वाण ṇivvāṇa ) literally means “blown out”, as in an oil
lamp. The term “nirvana” is most commonly associated with Buddhism, and
represents its ultimate state of soteriological release and liberation from rebirths in saṃsāra. — In Indian religions, nirvana is

1. Kalpasutra folio on Mahavira Nirvana. Note the crescent shaped Siddhashila, a place where all siddhas reside after nirvana.  

Tathāgata [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Tathāgata (Sanskrit: [t̪əˈt̪ʰɑːɡət̪ə]) is a Pali and Sanskrit word; Gotama Buddha uses it when referring to himself in the Pāli Canon.
The term is often thought to mean either “one who has thus gone”
(tathā-gata) or “one who has thus come” (tathā-āgata). This is
interpreted as signifying that the Tathāgata is beyond all coming and
going – beyond

2.  Beyond all coming and going: the Tathāgata  

Buddha’s Birthday [videos] [show wikivisually / wikipedia page here]

Buddha’s Birthday is a holiday traditionally celebrated in Mahayana Buddhism to commemorate the birth of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later the Gautama Buddha and founder of Buddhism. According to the Theravada Tripitaka scriptures (from Pali, meaning “three baskets”), Gautama was born in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, around the year 563 BCE,

1. A statue of the child Gautama Buddha as depicted in his apocryphal story of birth   2. Hanamatsuri in Japan   3. Shaka at Birth at Tōdaiji (National Treasure)   4. Lotus Lantern Festival celebrating Buddha’s Birthday, in South Korea