Bhūmi (Buddhism)

In Mahayana Buddhism, bhūmi (Sanskrit; foundation, ground, level, stage, Chinese: 地) or bodhisattva-bhūmi refers to the progressive levels of spiritual development that a bodhisattva attains on the path to Buddhahood in Mahayana Buddhism. This idea is variously translated into English as "bodhisattva levels", "bodhisattva grounds", or "bodhisattva stages".

There are various schemas of bodhisattva bhūmis presented across the vast literature of Mahayana Buddhism. These bhūmi theories represent organized schemas for the bodhisattva path, each stage associated with specific virtues (like faith, merit, etc) and practices (like the pāramitās). Although the concept of bhūmi (as a stage of development) originates in earlier Buddhist traditions (for example, in the Śrāvakabhūmi it refers to the stages of Śrāvakas), Mahayana sutras like the Daśabhūmika Sūtra discuss it in the context of ten bodhisattva stages.

The ten bodhisattva stages are also called vihara ('dwelling') in some sources.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.