Property:Gloss-def
From Buddha-Nature
This is a property of type Text.
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Literally "action," karma is the action and reaction of causes and conditions, both physical and psychological, in creating new situations. Karma is said to be meritorious (beneficial) or negative (detrimental). +
(617?-650) The first of the great dharma kings of Tibet, ruling in the seventh century c.e. He made Buddhism the official religion of Tibet and encouraged the development of the written form of the Tibetan language. +
One of the foremost students of the historical Buddha, embodying wisdom. +
The four different types or levels of tantra, the kriyātantra, ubhayatantra or caryātantra, yogatantra, and unsurpassed yogatantra. ''See also'' Tantras. +
The ideal of the Mahāyāna Buddhist practitioner, beings who, having given rise to bodhicitta, dedicate themselves to developing wisdom and compassion for the benefit of others in this and all future lives through taking the bodhisattva's vow. +
A yidam deity traditionally associated with practices of longevity and good health. +
A powerful being in Indo-Tibetan mythology, the nāga is commonly represented as a being with a human torso and head and with a serpent's body. Nāgas are commonly associated with water and with wealth and dwell in subterranean areas. +
Beneficent or neutral spirits that protect the practitioner on the path. They may also be bad spirits arising as or appearing to be gods, as in the case of ''lha dön''. +
Meditational deity or "chosen" deity. The second of the Three Roots, yidams are the central figures in the elaborate visualization practices of Vajrayāna Buddhism. These practices are done only with the blessing and guidance of a qualified lama. The yidam is called the root of accomplishment, as it is through doing these practices that realization is accomplished. +
A naturally occurring spirit abiding in mountains, cliffs, and patches of earth, often a kind of earth goddess. +
Sacred sounds, or formulations of seed syllables that protect the mind of the practitioner. They are regarded as the speech aspect of yidam practice. +
Five different "families" or categories of buddhas and their respective energies, or styles of manifestation: padma (lotus), vajra (diamond), karma (action), ratna (jewel), and buddha. +
Literally, "wheel," a central point in the body where psychophysical energy tends to concentrate and from which it is dispersed to the rest of the body. +
Literal referents of vajra are "thunderbolt" and "diamond." The sense is of something invincible or indestructible. Sometimes also used as a generic superlative. Also refers to a common Tibetan ritual implement. +
Machik's four spiritual daughters, who each have the word ''gyen'', or "ornament," as part of their name. They are present throughout the text, asking questions and participating in the action. Four immeasurables - Four subjects of meditation and important virtues that one cultivates for others on the bodhisattva path. The four are love, compassion, joy, and equanimity. +
A spirit that dwells in a town, either temporarily or as the permanent spirit of that area. +
Sometimes called the land of the ḍākinīs, historically it was a kingdom in the northwest of India from which Padmasaṁbhava and other great masters came. Figuratively, it is the location of a pure land. +
A central concept of all schools of Buddhism, the teaching that all things arise on the basis of causes and conditions. The twelve links of interdependent origination, also known as the twelve ''nidānas'' (Skt.), are a particular pedagogical tool for seeing the forces of karma in action in creating future rebirth. +
A particularly dreadful female demon, among the most feared of the spirits in Tibetan Buddhism. Mamos are associated with warfare and disease. +
or the Triple Refuge, are the most basic sources of spiritual inspiration in Buddhism. They are the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Saṅgha. +
