AHI 10D - Exam 1 Vocabulary

Amitabha

A Sanskrit term that means “Infinite Light” Buddha. Amitabha is the principal Buddha of Pure Land Buddhism.

Aniconic

(“Without image”) Term referring to the absence of a direct graphic representation of a deity, as in early Buddhist art.

Ashoka

The last major emperor of the Mauryan dynasty of India. He was a big patron of Buddhism and furthered the expansion of it throughout India. His name means “without sorrow”.

Avalokiteshvara

He was a Bodhisattva known for being the embodiment of the virtue of compassion. His name means “Lord who looks down with compassion”.

Avatar(a)

A Sanskrit term meaning “a descent". It refers to the descent of divinity from heaven to earth, and is typically used to describe an incarnation of God.

Bodhisattva

A being who is on the path of enlightenment.

Buddhism

A religion commonly practiced in Asia where they follow the teachings of Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama). The practices aim for the individual to reach enlightenment.

Buddha

Meaning “enlightened one, a knower” or “the awakened”. He is a representation of Siddhartha Gautama, who became known as the Buddha.

Chaitya Hall

A type of Buddhist temple in the form of a hall with a rounded end, housing a sacred shrine or stupa.

Dharma

A term meaning “right way of living” and “path of rightness”. It is a cosmic order or law.

Eight Fold Path

Specific instructions the Buddha gave as part four of the Four Noble Truths. These are the steps to awakening/reaching enlightenment.

Four Encounters

The four events that Gautama came across in his life that swayed him to the path of enlightenment. He saw an old man, a sick person, a corpse, and a monk meditating under a tree.

Four Noble Truths

They are the truths that define the existence of suffering. The truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering.

Gandhara(n) Style

A unique style of Buddhist sculpture. It was developed in the Gandhara region of the Indian subcontinent. The style is strongly influenced by Greco-Roman art.

Iconoclast

A person who attacks cherished beliefs or institutions. In other words, a critic or skeptic of religious beliefs.

Jataka

In Buddhism, stories associated with the previous lives of Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha.

Jahangir

The fourth Mughal Emperor, his actual name was as Nur-ud Din Muhammad Salim. The name is Persian meaning “conqueror of the world”.

Kanishka

An Indian emperor and patron of Buddhism. He is noted for having convened the fourth great Buddhist council in Kashmir, marking the beginnings of Mahayana Buddhism.

Karma

In Hinduism and Buddhism, the sum of a person’s actions in this and previous states of existence, and which determines one’s destiny in the next life.

Krishna

One of Vishnu’s principal avatars, and a popular and prominent figure in Hindu belief portrayed variously as a mischievous infant, a model lover, and a divine hero.

Mahayana

A broad spectrum of Buddhist teachings and practices. According to Mahayana’s teachings, there is no real self, the awakening of one being is the awakening of all beings.

Maitreya

A Bodhisattva known as the Buddha of the future. (A specific person who is a Bodhisattva on the path to enlightenment.

Mara

The Buddhist “Lord of Senses” was the Buddha’s temptor. Also known as a Buddhist demon taunting with temptations to stray the Buddha from reaching enlightenment.

Mathura(n) Style

A style of Buddhist visual art that flourished in the trading and pilgrimage centre of Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India from the 2nd century BC to the 12th century AD.

Mithuna

An amorous male and female couple in Indian sculpture, usually found at the entrance to a sacred building. The mithuna symbolizes the harmony and fertility of life.

Mudra

A symbolic hand gesture in Buddhist art that denotes certain behaviors, actions, or feelings.

Nagaraja

The Serpent King. Both Buddhism and Hinduism adopted them as protective divinities and depicted them like human beings.

Nirvana

The state achieve, in both Buddhism and Hinduism, once one has attained full enlightenment and extinguished all ignorance and desire.

Parinirvana

In Buddhism, it is the nirvana after death which occurs upon the death of someone who attained nirvana during their lifetime. It is the “ultimate nirvana”.

Prana

The life force that sustains all living beings, influencing our physical, mental, and spiritual health. It is the energy in the body.

Queen Maya

She is the mother of Gautama, she had the dream of meeting a six-tusked elephant that descended fro the heavens to enter her womb.

Relic

Venerated object or body part associated with a holy figure, such as the Buddha.

Reliquary

A container for relics, it is also referred to as a shrine.

Samsara

Term in Buddhism and Hinduism for the eternal cycle of birth, suffering, death, and rebirth that can only be broken by extinction of all desire and ignorance.

Shakyamuni

The other name for the Buddha, he was born to the rulers of the Shakya clan, hence his appellation Shakyamuni. It mans “sage of the Shakya clan.” This is the same person as Siddartha Gautama.

Shiva

One of the principal gods of Hinduism; he is the father of Ganesh, the consort of Parvati; he is both creator of life and destroyer of evil.

Siddartha Gautama

The prince who is better known as Buddha. Also known for being the founder of Buddhism in India.

Stupa

In Buddhist architecture, a dome-shaped structure erected as a shrine and containing sacred relics.

Sutra(s)

Sacred scriptures of Buddhism.

Terracotta

Unglazed pottery.

Theravada

One of the two major Buddhist traditions. It is older of the two and most prevalent in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos.

Torana

An Indian gateway usually made of stone, marking the entrance to a Buddhist shrine, stupa, or to a Hindu temple.

Urna

The curl of hair on the forehead that is a characteristic mark of the Buddha. The urna is a symbol of divine wisdom.

Ushnisha

A rounded shape at the top of the head that is a characteristic mark of the Buddha. The ushnisha is a symbol of enlightenment.

Vihara

A Sanskrit term meaning literally “for wanderers.” A vihara is, in general, a Buddhist monastery. It also signifies monks’ cells and gathering places in such a monastery.

Yaksha

The attendants/spirits that inhabited tress, mountains, rock mounds, rivers, and oceans. They are found in early Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu art. They are found in pairs. The Yaksha is the male figure/counterpart.

Yakshi

The female counterpart of the Yaksha, they embody fertility and prosperity.