svabhāva
Basic Meaning
The nature or essence of a thing, which originates only from itself and is not dependent on any external entities, causes, or conditions.
| Term Variations | |
|---|---|
| Key Term | svabhāva |
| Topic Variation | svabhāva |
| Tibetan | རང་བཞིན་ ( rangzhin) |
| Wylie Tibetan Transliteration | rang bzhin ( rangzhin) |
| Devanagari Sanskrit | स्वभाव |
| Romanized Sanskrit | svabhāva |
| Chinese | 自性 |
| Chinese Pinyin | zìxìng |
| Buddha-nature Site Standard English | intrinsic nature |
| Karl Brunnhölzl's English Term | nature |
| Richard Barron's English Term | nature of being, inherent nature, natural state, naturalness |
| Jeffrey Hopkin's English Term | inherent nature |
| Dan Martin's English Term | own-ness |
| Gyurme Dorje's English Term | essential nature, natural expression, nature |
| Ives Waldo's English Term | intrinsic nature |
| Term Information | |
| Source Language | Sanskrit |
| Basic Meaning | The nature or essence of a thing, which originates only from itself and is not dependent on any external entities, causes, or conditions. |
| Term Type | Noun |
| Definitions | |
| Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism | See page 879: In Sanskrit, “self-nature,” “intrinsic existence,” or “inherent existence,” the term has a general sense of “essence” or “nature,” but is used in philosophical literature. |