Free Chinese & Japanese Online Dictionary

If you enter English words, search is Boolean mode:
Enter fall to get just entries with fall in them.
Enter fall* to get results including "falling" and "fallen".
Enter +fall -season -autumn to make sure fall is included, but not entries with autumn or season.

Key:

Mandarin Chinese information.
Old Wade-Giles romanization used only in Taiwan.
Japanese information.
Buddhist definition. Note: May not apply to all sects.
 Definition may be different outside of Buddhism.

There are 14 total results for your the three truths search.

Characters Pronunciation
Romanization
Simple Dictionary Definition

三乘

see styles
sān shèng
    san1 sheng4
san sheng
 minori
    みのり
(surname) Minori
Triyāna, the three vehicles, or conveyances which carry living beings across saṁsāra or mortality (births-and-deaths) to the shores of nirvāṇa. The three are styled 小,中, and 大. Sometimes the three vehicles are defined as 聲聞 Śrāvaka, that of the hearer or obedient disciple; 緣覺Pratyeka-buddha, that of the enlightened for self; these are described as 小乘 because the objective of both is personal salvation; the third is 菩薩Bodhisattva, or 大乘 Mahāyāna, because the objective is the salvation of all the living. The three are also depicted as 三車 three wains, drawn by a goat, a deer, an ox. The Lotus declares that the three are really the One Buddha-vehicle, which has been revealed in three expedient forms suited to his disciples' capacity, the Lotus Sūtra being the unifying, complete, and final exposition. The Three Vehicles are differently explained by different exponents, e.g. (1) Mahāyāna recognizes (a) Śrāvaka, called Hīnayāna, leading in longer or shorter periods to arhatship; (b) Pratyeka-buddha, called Madhyamayāna, leading after still longer or shorter periods to a Buddhahood ascetically attained and for self; (c) Bodhisattva, called Mahayana, leading after countless ages of self-sacrifce in saving others and progressive enlightenment to ultimate Buddhahood. (2) Hīnayāna is also described as possessing three vehicles 聲, 緣, 菩 or 小, 中, 大, the 小 and 中 conveying to personal salvation their devotees in ascetic dust and ashes and mental annihilation, the 大 leading to bodhi, or perfect enlightenment, and the Buddha's way. Further definitions of the Triyāna are: (3) True bodhisattva teaching for the 大; pratyeka-buddha without ignorant asceticism for the 中; and śrāvaka with ignorant asceticism for the 小. (4) (a) 一乘 The One-Vehicle which carries all to Buddhahood: of this the 華嚴 Hua-yen and 法華 Fa-hua are typical exponents; (b) 三乘法 the three-vehicle, containing practitioners of all three systems, as expounded in books of the 深密般若; (c) 小乘 the Hīnayāna pure and simple as seen in the 四阿合經 Four Āgamas. Śrāvakas are also described as hearers of the Four Truths and limited to that degree of development; they hear from the pratyeka-buddhas, who are enlightened in the Twelve Nidānas 因緣; the bodhisattvas make the 六度 or six forms of transmigration their field of sacrificial saving work, and of enlightenment. The Lotus Sūtra really treats the 三乘. Three Vehicles as 方便 or expedient ways, and offers a 佛乘 Buddha Vehicle as the inclusive and final vehicle.

五時


五时

see styles
wǔ shí
    wu3 shi2
wu shih
 goji
(五時教) The five periods or divisions of Śākyamuni's teaching. According to Tiantai they are (1) 華嚴時 the Avataṃsaka or first period in three divisions each of seven days, after his enlightenment, when he preached the content, of this sutra; (2) 鹿苑時 the twelve years of his preaching the Āgamas 阿含 in the Deer Park; (3) 方等時 the eight years of preaching Mahāyāna-cum-Hīnayāna doctrines, the vaipulya period; (4) 般若時 the twenty-two years of his preaching the prajñā or wisdom sutras; (5) 法華涅槃時 the eight years of his preaching the Lotus Sutra and, in a day and a night, the Nirvana Sutra. According to the Nirvana School (now part of the Tiantai) they are (1) 三乘別教 the period when the differentiated teaching began and the distinction of the three vehicles, as represented by the 四諦 Four Noble Truths for śrāvakas, the 十二因緣 Twelve Nidānas for pratyekabuddhas, and the 六度 Six Pāramitās for bodhisattvas; (2) 三乘通教 the teaching common to all three vehicles, as seen in the 般若經; (3) 抑揚教 the teaching of the 維摩經, the 思益梵天所問經, and other sutras olling the bodhisattva teaching at the expense of that for śrāvakas; (4) 同歸教 the common objective teaching calling all three vehicles, through the Lotus, to union in the one vehicle; (5) 常住教 the teaehmg of eternal life i. e. the revelation through the Nirvana sutra of the eternity of Buddhahood; these five are also called 有相; 無相; 抑揚; 曾三歸—; and 圓常. According to 劉虬 Liu Chiu of the 晉 Chin dynasty, the teaching is divided into 頓 immediate and 漸 gradual attainment, the latter having five divisions called 五時教 similar to those of the Tiantai group. According to 法寶 Fabao of the Tang dynasty the five are (1) 小乘; (2) 般着 or 大乘; (3) 深密 or 三乘; (4) 法華 or 一乘; (5) 涅槃 or 佛性教.

十地

see styles
shí dì
    shi2 di4
shih ti
 juuji / juji
    じゅうじ
{Buddh} dasabhumi (forty-first to fiftieth stages in the development of a bodhisattva); (place-name) Jūji
daśabhūmi; v. 十住. The "ten stages" in the fifty-two sections of the development of a bodhisattva into a Buddha. After completing the十四向 he proceeds to the 十地. There are several groups. I. The ten stages common to the Three Vehicles 三乘 are: (1) 乾慧地 dry wisdom stage, i. e. unfertilized by Buddha-truth, worldly wisdom; (2) 性地 the embryo-stage of the nature of Buddha-truth, the 四善根; (3) 八人地 (八忍地), the stage of the eight patient endurances; (4) 見地 of freedom from wrong views; (5) 薄地 of freedom from the first six of the nine delusions in practice; (6) 離欲地 of freedom from the remaining three; (7) 巳辨地 complete discrimination in regard to wrong views and thoughts, the stage of an arhat; (8) 辟支佛地 pratyeka-buddhahood, only the dead ashes of the past left to sift; (9) 菩薩地 bodhisattvahood; (10) 佛地 Buddhahood. v. 智度論 78. II. 大乘菩薩十地 The ten stages of Mahāyāna bodhisattva development are: (1) 歡喜地 Pramuditā, joy at having overcome the former difficulties and now entering on the path to Buddhahood; (2) 離垢地 Vimalā, freedom from all possible defilement, the stage of purity; (3) 發光地 Prabhākarī, stage of further enlightenment; (4) 焰慧地 Arciṣmatī, of glowing wisdom; (5) 極難勝地 Sudurjayā, mastery of utmost or final difficulties; (6) 現前地 Abhimukhī, the open way of wisdom above definitions of impurity and purity; (7) 遠行地 Dūraṁgamā, proceeding afar, getting above ideas of self in order to save others; (8) 不動地 Acalā, attainment of calm unperturbedness; (9) 善慧地 Sādhumatī, of the finest discriminatory wisdom, knowing where and how to save, and possessed of the 十力 ten powers; (10) 法雲地 Dharmamegha, attaining to the fertilizing powers of the law-cloud. Each of the ten stages is connected with each of the ten pāramitās, v. 波. Each of the 四乘 or four vehicles has a division of ten. III. The 聲聞乘十地 ten Śrāvaka stages are: (1) 受三歸地 initiation as a disciple by receiving the three refuges, in the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha; (2) 信地 belief, or the faith-root; (3) 信法地 belief in the four truths; (4) 内凡夫地 ordinary disciples who observe the 五停心觀, etc.; (5) 學信戒 those who pursue the 三學 three studies; (6) 八人忍地 the stage of 見道 seeing the true Way; (7) 須陀洹地 śrota-āpanna, now definitely in the stream and assured of nirvāṇa; (8) 斯陀含地 sakrdāgāmin, only one more rebirth; (9) 阿那含地 anāgāmin, no rebirth; and (10) 阿羅漢地 arhatship. IV. The ten stages of the pratyekabuddha 緣覺乘十地 are (1) perfect asceticism; (2) mastery of the twelve links of causation; (3) of the four noble truths; (4) of the deeper knowledge; (5) of the eightfold noble path; (6) of the three realms 三法界; (7) of the nirvāṇa state; (8) of the six supernatural powers; (9) arrival at the intuitive stage; (10) mastery of the remaining influence of former habits. V. 佛乘十地 The ten stages, or characteristics of a Buddha, are those of the sovereign or perfect attainment of wisdom, exposition, discrimination, māra-subjugation, suppression of evil, the six transcendent faculties, manifestation of all bodhisattva enlightenment, powers of prediction, of adaptability, of powers to reveal the bodhisattva Truth. VI. The Shingon has its own elaborate ten stages, and also a group 十地十心, see 十心; and there are other groups.

小乘

see styles
xiǎo shèng
    xiao3 sheng4
hsiao sheng
 shōjō
Hinayana, the Lesser Vehicle; Buddhism in India before the Mayahana sutras; also pr. [Xiao3 cheng2]
Hīnayāna 希那衍. The small, or inferior wain, or vehicle; the form of Buddhism which developed after Śākyamuni's death to about the beginning of the Christian era, when Mahāyāna doctrines were introduced. It is the orthodox school and more in direct line with the Buddhist succession than Mahāyānism which developed on lines fundamentally different. The Buddha was a spiritual doctor, less interested in philosophy than in the remedy for human misery and perpetual transmigration. He "turned aside from idle metaphysical speculations; if he held views on such topics, he deemed them valueless for the purposes of salvation, which was his goal" (Keith). Metaphysical speculations arose after his death, and naturally developed into a variety of Hīnayāna schools before and after the separation of a distinct school of Mahāyāna. Hīnayāna remains the form in Ceylon, Burma, and Siam, hence is known as Southern Buddhism in contrast with Northern Buddhism or Mahāyāna, the form chiefly prevalent from Nepal to Japan. Another rough division is that of Pali and Sanskrit, Pali being the general literary language of the surviving form of Hīnayāna, Sanskrit of Mahāyāna. The term Hīnayāna is of Mahāyānist origination to emphasize the universalism and altruism of Mahāyāna over the narrower personal salvation of its rival. According to Mahāyāna teaching its own aim is universal Buddhahood, which means the utmost development of wisdom and the perfect transformation of all the living in the future state; it declares that Hīnayāna, aiming at arhatship and pratyekabuddhahood, seeks the destruction of body and mind and extinction in nirvāṇa. For arhatship the 四諦Four Noble Truths are the foundation teaching, for pratyekabuddhahood the 十二因緣 twelve-nidānas, and these two are therefore sometimes styled the two vehicles 二乘. Tiantai sometimes calls them the (Hīnayāna) Tripiṭaka school. Three of the eighteen Hīnayāna schools were transported to China: 倶舍 (Abhidharma) Kośa; 成實 Satya-siddhi; and the school of Harivarman, the律 Vinaya school. These are described by Mahāyānists as the Buddha's adaptable way of meeting the questions and capacity of his hearers, though his own mind is spoken of as always being in the absolute Mahāyāna all-embracing realm. Such is the Mahāyāna view of Hīnayāna, and if the Vaipulya sūtras and special scriptures of their school, which are repudiated by Hīnayāna, are apocryphal, of which there seems no doubt, then Mahāyāna in condemning Hīnayāna must find other support for its claim to orthodoxy. The sūtras on which it chiefly relies, as regards the Buddha, have no authenticity; while those of Hīnayāna cannot be accepted as his veritable teaching in the absence of fundamental research. Hīnayāna is said to have first been divided into minority and majority sections immediately after the death of Śākyamuni, when the sthāvira, or older disciples, remained in what is spoken of as "the cave", some place at Rājagṛha, to settle the future of the order, and the general body of disciples remained outside; these two are the first 上坐部 and 大衆部 q. v. The first doctrinal division is reported to have taken place under the leadership of the monk 大天 Mahādeva (q.v.) a hundred years after the Buddha's nirvāṇa and during the reign of Aśoka; his reign, however, has been placed later than this by historians. Mahādeva's sect became the Mahāsāṅghikā, the other the Sthāvira. In time the two are said to have divided into eighteen, which with the two originals are the so-called "twenty sects" of Hīnayāna. Another division of four sects, referred to by Yijing, is that of the 大衆部 (Arya) Mahāsaṅghanikāya, 上座部 Āryasthavirāḥ, 根本說一切有部 Mūlasarvāstivādaḥ, and 正量部 Saṃmatīyāḥ. There is still another division of five sects, 五部律. For the eighteen Hīnayāna sects see 小乘十八部.

方便

see styles
fāng biàn
    fang1 bian4
fang pien
 houben / hoben
    ほうべん
convenient; suitable; to facilitate; to make things easy; having money to spare; (euphemism) to relieve oneself
(1) means; expedient; instrument; (2) {Buddh} upaya (skillful means, methods of teaching); (surname) Houben
upāya. Convenient to the place, or situation, suited to the condition, opportune, appropriate; but 方 is interpreted as 方法 method, mode, plan, and 便 as 便用 convenient for use, i. e. a convenient or expedient method; also 方 as 方正 and 便 as 巧妙, which implies strategically correct. It is also intp. as 權道智 partial, temporary, or relative (teaching of) knowledge of reality, in contrast with 般若智 prajñā, and 眞實 absolute truth, or reality instead of the seeming. The term is a translation of 傴和 upāya, a mode of approach, an expedient, stratagem, device. The meaning is— teaching according to the capacity of the hearer, by any suitable method, including that of device or stratagem, but expedience beneficial to the recipient is understood. Mahāyāna claims that the Buddha used this expedient or partial method in his teaching until near the end of his days, when he enlarged it to the revelation of reality, or the preaching of his final and complete truth; Hīnayāna with reason denies this, and it is evident that the Mahāyāna claim has no foundation, for the whole of its 方等 or 方廣 scriptures are of later invention. Tiantai speaks of the 三乘 q. v. or Three Vehicles as 方便 expedient or partial revelations, and of its 一乘 or One Vehicle as the complete revelation of universal Buddhahood. This is the teaching of the Lotus Sutra, which itself contains 方便 teaching to lead up to the full revelation; hence the terms 體内 (or 同體 ) 方便, i. e. expedient or partial truths within the full revelation, meaning the expedient part of the Lotus, and 體外方便 the expedient or partial truths of the teaching which preceded the Lotus; see the 方便品 of that work, also the second chapter of the 維摩經. 方便 is also the seventh of the ten pāramitās.

三輪教


三轮教

see styles
sān lún jiào
    san1 lun2 jiao4
san lun chiao
 sanrin kyō
The three periods of the Buddha's teaching as defined by Paramārtha: (a) 轉法輪 the first rolling onwards of the Law-wheel, the first seven years' teaching of Hīnayāna, i.e. the 四諦 four axioms and 空 unreality; (b) 照法輪 illuminating or explaining the law-wheel, the thirty years' teaching of the 般若 prajñā or wisdom sūtras, illuminating 空 and by 空 illuminating 有 reality; (c) 持法輪 maintaining the law-wheel, i.e. the remaining years of teaching of the deeper truths of 空有 both unreality and reality. Also the three-fold group of the Lotus School: (a) 根本法輪 radical, or fundamental, as found in the 華嚴經 sūtra; (b) 枝末法輪 branch and leaf, i.e. all other teaching; until (c) 攝末歸本法輪 branches and leaves are reunited with the root in the Lotus Sutra, 法華經.

初時教


初时教

see styles
chū shí jiào
    chu1 shi2 jiao4
ch`u shih chiao
    chu shih chiao
 shojikyō
A term of the 法相宗 Dharmalakṣana school, the first of the three periods of the Buddha's teaching, in which he overcame the ideas of heterodox teachers that the ego is real, and preached the four noble truths and the five skandhas, etc.

一境三諦


一境三谛

see styles
yī jìng sān dì
    yi1 jing4 san1 di4
i ching san ti
 ikkyō santai
The three axioms in the one category; the three are 空, 假, and 中, which exist in every universe; v. 三諦. It is a principle of the Tiantai 圓教.

三諦圓融


三谛圆融

see styles
sān dì yuán róng
    san1 di4 yuan2 rong2
san ti yüan jung
 sandai enyū
perfect interfusion of the three truths

三諦相卽


三谛相卽

see styles
sān dì xiāng jí
    san1 di4 xiang1 ji2
san ti hsiang chi
 sandai sōsoku
The unity of 空, 假, 中, three aspects of the same reality, taught by the 圓教as distinguished from the 別教which separates them.

二十二根

see styles
èr shí èr gēn
    er4 shi2 er4 gen1
erh shih erh ken
 nijūni kon
The twenty-two roots, organs, or powers, v. 根. They are: (1) 眼根 eye, cakṣurindriya; (2) 耳 根 ear, śrotrendriya; (3) 鼻根 nose, ghrāṇendriya; (4) 舌根 tongue, jihvendriya; (5) 身根 body, kāyendriya; (6) 意根 mind, manaīndriya (the above are the 六根); (7) 女根 female organ, strīndriya; (8) 男根 male organ, puruṣendriya; (9) 命根 life, jīvitendriya; (10) 苦根 suffering (or pain), duḥkhendriya; (11) 樂根 pleasure, sukhendriya; (12) 憂根 sorrow, daurmanasyendriya; (13) 喜根 joy, saumanas-yendriya; (14) 捨根 abandoning, upekṣendriya (from 10 to 14 they are the 五受); (15) 信根 faith, śraddhendriya; (16) 精進根 zeal, vīryendriya; (17) 念根 memory, smṛtīndriya; (18) 定根 meditation, or trance, samādhīndriya; (19) 慧根 wisdom, prajñendriya (these are the 信等之五根); (20) 未知當知根 the power for learning (the Four Noble Truths) anājñātamājñāsyāmīndriya; (21) 巳知根 the power of having learned (them), ājñendriya; (22) 具知根 the power of perfect knowledge (of them), ājñātādvīndriya (these three are called the 無漏根) .

五部合斷


五部合断

see styles
wǔ bù hé duàn
    wu3 bu4 he2 duan4
wu pu ho tuan
 gobu gōdan
To cut off the five classes of misleading things, i. e. four 見 and one 修, i. e. false theory in regard to the 四諦 four truths, and erroneous practice. Each of the two classes is extended into each of the three divisions of past, three of present, and three of future, making eighteen mental conditions.

圓融三諦


圆融三谛

see styles
yuán róng sān dì
    yuan2 rong2 san1 di4
yüan jung san ti
 enyū sandai
The three dogmas of 空假中 as combined, as one and the same, as a unity, according to the Tiantai inclusive or perfect school. The universal 空 apart from the particular 假 is an abstraction. The particular apart from the universal is unreal. The universal realizes its true nature in the particular, and the particular derives its meaning from the universal. The middle path 中 unites these two aspects of one reality.

三諦圓融觀


三谛圆融观

see styles
sān dì yuán róng guān
    san1 di4 yuan2 rong2 guan1
san ti yüan jung kuan
 sandai enyū kan
contemplation on the interfusion of the three truths

Entries with 2nd row of characters: The 2nd row is Simplified Chinese.

This page contains 14 results for "the three truths" in Chinese and/or Japanese.



Information about this dictionary:

Apparently, we were the first ones who were crazy enough to think that western people might want a combined Chinese, Japanese, and Buddhist dictionary.

A lot of westerners can't tell the difference between Chinese and Japanese - and there is a reason for that. Chinese characters and even whole words were borrowed by Japan from the Chinese language in the 5th century. Much of the time, if a word or character is used in both languages, it will have the same or a similar meaning. However, this is not always true. Language evolves, and meanings independently change in each language.

Example: The Chinese character 湯 for soup (hot water) has come to mean bath (hot water) in Japanese. They have the same root meaning of "hot water", but a 湯屋 sign on a bathhouse in Japan would lead a Chinese person to think it was a "soup house" or a place to get a bowl of soup. See this: Japanese Bath House

This dictionary uses the EDICT and CC-CEDICT dictionary files.
EDICT data is the property of the Electronic Dictionary Research and Development Group, and is used in conformance with the Group's license.

Chinese Buddhist terms come from Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms by William Edward Soothill and Lewis Hodous. This is commonly referred to as "Soothill's'". It was first published in 1937 (and is now off copyright so we can use it here). Some of these definitions may be misleading, incomplete, or dated, but 95% of it is good information. Every professor who teaches Buddhism or Eastern Religion has a copy of this on their bookshelf. We incorporated these 16,850 entries into our dictionary database ourselves (it was lot of work).



Combined, these cover 1,007,753 Japanese, Chinese, and Buddhist characters, words, idioms, names, placenames, and short phrases.

Just because a word appears here does not mean it is appropriate for a tattoo, your business name, etc. Please consult a professional before doing anything stupid with this data.

We do offer Chinese and Japanese Tattoo Services. We'll also be happy to help you translate something for other purposes.

No warranty as to the correctness, potential vulgarity, or clarity is expressed or implied. We did not write any of these definitions (though we occasionally act as a contributor/editor to the CC-CEDICT project). You are using this dictionary for free, and you get what you pay for.

The following titles are just to help people who are searching for an Asian dictionary to find this page.

Japanese Kanji Dictionary

Free Asian Dictionary

Chinese Kanji Dictionary

Chinese Words Dictionary

Chinese Language Dictionary

Japanese Chinese Dictionary