Abhibhū¹

Chief disciple of Sikhī Buddha. DN.ii.9 In the Aruṇavatī Sutta it is said that he went with Sikhī to a Brahma-world and, at the Buddha’s request, preached a sermon to the accompa …

Acelakassapa¹AcelaKassapa

A naked ascetic. He visited the Buddha at Ujuññā in the Kaṇṇa-katthala deer-park and asked him if it were true that he disparaged all penance and reviled asceti …

A banyan tree in Uruvelā, on the banks of the Nerañjara, near the Bodhi tree. A week after the Enlightenment the Buddha went there and spent a week cross-legged at the foot of the tree. There he met …

AmbapālīAmbapālikā

A courtesan of Vesāli. She became a devout follower of the Buddha, and building a vihāra in her own garden, gave it to him and the Order. This was during the Buddha’s last visit …

AmbaṭṭhaAmbaṭṭhamāṇava

A brahmin youth of the Ambaṭṭha clan who lived with his teacher, Pokkharasādi, at Ukkaṭṭha. He was learned in the three Vedas and the correlated branches of knowledge, includin …

A village in the Māgadha country, three gāvuta from Rājagaha. Between it and Rājagaha is the river Sappinī, which rises in the Gijjhakūṭa. Vin.i.109 Once the Buddha went from Benares to Andhakavinda w …

A grove to the south of Sāvatthī, one gāvuta away from the city. It was well guarded and monks and nuns used to resort there in search of solitude. The Bhikkhunī Saṃyutta contains stories of nuns wh …

A headman (gāmani). He came to the Buddha in the Pārileyyaka Mango Grove in Nāḷandā and asked him various questions, recorded in the Saṃyutta Nikāya. SN.iv.312ff. One of these related to the custo …

A young brahmin, sixteen years old, of Sāvatthī, very learned in the Vedas and allied subjects. Five hundred brahmins staying in the city asked him to hold a discussion with the Buddha and refute his …

One of the four great monarchies in the time of the Buddha, the other three being Māgadha, Kosala and Vaṃsa (or Vatsa). Avanti is also mentioned among the sixteen Great Nations. AN.i.213 AN.iv.252 AN. …

One of the 16 Great Nations (Mahājanapadā), mentioned in the Pitakas. The countries mentioned are Aṅga, Māgadha, Kāsī, Kosala, Vajji, Mallā, Ceti, Vaṃsa, Kuru, Pañcāla, Macchā, Sūrasena, Assaka, Avant …

A country north of the river Mahī, evidently a part of Aṅga on the other side of that river .

It was here, in the village Āpaṇa, that the Buddha was staying when the Jaṭila Keṇiya came to see him; he …

BelaṭṭhakaccānaKaccānaBelaṭṭha

A sugar dealer. On his way from Andhakkavinda to Rājagaha he met the Buddha seated at the foot of a tree, and, with his permission, presented a pot of sugar to the monk …

An arahant, preceptor of Ānanda. He was once afflicted with scurvy and his robes clung to him. The monks thereupon applied water to the robes, but when the Buddha heard of it he made a rule allowing n …

BelaṭṭhānikaBelaṭṭhakāni

A monk whose Theragāthā verse speaks of how the spiritual life is wasted in gluttony. Thag.101

A group of thirty young men, converted by the Buddha.

They had gone picnicking with their wives in a forest glade between Bārāṇasi and Uruvelā. One of them had no wife, and for him they found a court …

A headman of Uruvelakappa and father of Ciravāsi. SN.iv.327

BhallikaBhalliyaBhalluka

Together with Tapussa they were the first lay disciples of the Buddha. They offered a meal shortly after the Buddha was Awakened, while still near Uruvelā. Vin.i.3f. AN.i.2 …

BuddhaBhagavāTathāgataSiddhatthaGotamaSugataSatthā

The Awakened one, the founder and teacher of the Buddha-dhamma. His personal name was Siddhattha Gotama, and he was a Khattiya of the Sakiyan clan. …

King of Avanti in the time of the Buddha. His name was Pajjota, the sobriquet being added on account of his violent temper.

Once, when ill with jaundice, he asked Bimbisāra to lend him the services o …

Citta¹

A householder of Macchikāsaṇḍa, where he was Treasurer. He was later declared by the Buddha to be pre-eminent among laymen who preached the Doctrine. AN.i.26

When Mahānāma visited …

A monk, a close relative of the Buddha, who split the Sangha, and attempted to overthrow the Buddha and have him murdered. In one passage in the Vinaya, Vin.ii.189 Devadatta is spoken of as Godhiputta …

Dhammika

A monk whose Theragāthā verses speak of the good state that awaits one who practices righteousness. Thag.303–306 According to the Aṅguttara. AN.iii.366ff. Dhammika had to leave seven lodgi …

A follower of Kassapa Buddha. Five hundred others were associated with him, and at first their spiritual life was poor. Gavesī, realising this, put forth effort and, step by step, attained greater pro …

One of the three Kassapa brothers. They all lived at Gayāsīsa. When Uruvelā-Kassapa was converted, Gayā-Kassapa, with his followers, joined the Order, and at the conclusion of the Ādittapariyāya Sut …

A hill near Gayā. Here the Buddha came from Uruvelā after converting the Tebhātika-Jaṭilā (the three Kassapa ascetics), and here he lived with one thousand monks. On this occasion of his coming he ta …

IsipatanaMigadayaDeer Park

An open space near Benares, the site of the famous Migadāya or Deer Park. It was eighteen leagues from Uruvelā, and when Gotama gave up his austere penances his friends, th …

KammāsadhammaKammāsadammaKammasadammaKammasadhamma

A township of the Kurūs. The Buddha, during the course of his wanderings, stayed there several times; the exact place of his residence is, however, …

A city near the Himalaya, capital of the Sākiyan republic. The administration and judicial business of the city and all other matters of importance were discussed and decided in the Santhāgārasālā. DN …

Kappāsika VanasaṇḍaKappāsiya Vanasaṇḍa

A grove near Uruvelā. There the a group of men came across the Buddha while seeking for a woman who had run away with certain of their belongings. The Buddha pr …

Kassapa¹

One of the seven Buddhas mentioned in the Canon. DN.ii.7

Among those who attained arahantship under Kassapa is mentioned Gavesī, who, with his five hundred followers, strove alwa …

A deer-park in Ujuññā. There the Buddha sometimes stayed; he was once visited there by Acela Kassapa, to whom he preached the Kassapasīhanāda Sutta, DN.i.161 and again by Pasenadi, king of Kosala; to …

Keṇiya

A brahmanical matted hair ascetic. He lived in Āpaṇa, and when the Buddha once stayed there with one thousand three hundred and fifty monks, Keṇiya visited the Buddha, bringing various kinds o …

KhattiyānīVelāmikā

Chief of the eighty-four thousand women who waited on the Bodhisatta when he was once a mighty king Mahāsudassana of Kusāvatī. SN.iii.146 DN.ii.188

Khemā

An arahant, chief of the Buddha’s women disciples for her great wisdom. AN.i.25 Her Therīgāthā verses depict her being described as beautiful, but rejecting the pleasures of the senses. Thig.13 …

The capital of the Vatsas or Vaṃsas. In the time of the Buddha its king was Parantapa, and after him reigned his son Udena. Kosambī was evidently a city of great importance at the time of the Buddha f …

One of the republican clans in the time of the Buddha. The Koḷiyā owned two chief settlements—one at Rāmagāma and the other at Devadaha.

Attached probably to the Koliyan central authorities, was a sp …

Slave of King Caṇḍapajjota. His father was non-human, and he himself could travel sixty leagues a day. When Pajjota discovered that Jīvaka had fled, after administering to him some medicine containin …

Kāḷī¹Kururagharikā

Described among laywomen as the best of those who believe even from hearsay. AN.i.26 A conversation between her and Mahā Kaccāna is related, where she asks him for a det …

Mentioned as having stayed with Mahā Moggallāna on Gijjhakūṭa. Once, when they were going down to Rājagaha for alms, Lakkhaṇa noticed that at a certain spot Moggallāna smiled; on asking him why, he wa …

LaṭṭhivanaLatthivanaLatthivanuyyāna

A grove to the southwest of Rājagaha. In it was the Supatiṭṭha cetiya, where the Buddha stayed during his first visit to Rājagaha from Gayāsīsa, after the Enlighte …

A powerful tribe of India in the time of the Buddha. They were certainly khattiyas, for on that ground they claimed a share of the Buddha’s relics. DN.ii.165

Their capital was Vesāli, and they form …

A township in Kāsī, the residence, among others, of Citta-Gahapati. SN.iv.281

It contained the Ambāṭakavana, which Citta presented as a monastery for the monks, at the head of whom was Mahānāma.

S …

MadhurāMathurā

The capital of Surasena, situated on the Yamunā. Its king, soon after the death of Bimbisāra, was Avantiputta, MN.ii.83 who, judging by his name, was probably related to the royal fami …

MahāmoggallānaMoggallānaKolita

The second of the Chief Disciples of the Buddha. He and Sāriputta went forth as disciples of Sañjaya. After some time, Sāriputta, wandering about in Rājagaha, met Assaj …

Mahāpajāpatī GotamīPajāpatī

An eminent bhikkhunī and the step-mother of the Buddha. She raised the Buddha as her own child after the death of his mother.

She is chiefly remembered as the first bhik …

The name given to a Great Being, destined to become either a Cakkavatti or a Buddha. He carries on his person the following thirty two marks. DN.ii.17f. DN.iii.142ff. MN.ii.136f. .

1. he has fe …

Mahāvana¹

A wood near Vesāli, in which the Kūṭāgārasālā was located.

Vesāli3parkMahāvana²

A wood near Kapilavatthu. In this wood was preached the Mahāsamaya Sutta and the Madh …

The name of a people and their country.

The country is included in the sixteen Great Nations of the Buddha’s time. The kingdom, at that time, was divided into two parts, having their respective capit …

The pupil of a “bamboo acrobat” of long ago. His master called to him one day and asked him to climb the bamboo and to stand on his shoulder. Then the master suggested that they should watch and look …

A monk whose Theragāthā verses speak of his great faith in the Buddha. Thag.131–132

A group of monks, followers of Mettiya and Bhummajaka forming part of the Chabbaggiyā (Group of Six Monks).

Twice they brought an unfounded charge of breach of morality against Dabba Mallaputta, who …

Mucalinda¹

A tree near the Ajapālanigrodha in Uruvelā. The Buddha spent there the third week after the Enlightenment. There was a great shower of rain, and the Nāga king, Mucalinda, of the …

One of the four chief kingdoms of India at the time of the Buddha, the others being Kosala, the kingdom of the Vaṃsas and Avanti. Māgadha formed one of the sixteen Mahājanapadas and had its capital at …

MāraNamuciKaṇhaAdhipatiAntakaPamattabandhuPāpimā

Generally regarded as the personification of Death, the Evil One, the Tempter. Sometimes known as the Dark One (Kaṇha). Snp.355 MN.i.377 DN.ii.262 T …

MāyāMahāmāyā

The mother of the Buddha, and wife of Suddhodana of the Sakyan clan. DN.ii.52 Thag.534 Thig.162 She died seven days after giving birth to the Buddha in Lumbinī. An elaborate account of t …

Brother of Uruvelā Kassapa. He received his name from living on the bank of the Nerañjara at the head of three hundred ascetics. His Thergāthā verses speak of how his former wrong views and practices …

Wife of Nakulapitā. They were householders of Suṃsumāragiri in the Bhagga-country. When the Buddha visited the village and stayed at Bhesakalāvana, they went to see him. They immediately fell at his …

Husband of Nakulamātā. They were householders of Suṃsumāragiri in the Bhagga-country. When the Buddha visited the village and stayed at Bhesakalāvana, they went to see him. They immediately fell at h …

NerañjarāyaNerañjara

A river. After the Enlightenment, the Buddha lived under the Ajapāla Nigrodha at Uruvelā, on the banks of this river. There Māra tempted him, and, later, Brahmā persuaded him to …

The boundaries of the Majjhimadesa are given, and the Paccantajanapadā lies beyond these boundaries. They are: in the east, Kajaṅgala and Mahāsālā; in the south east, the river Salalavatī; in the sout …

PajjanikaSajjanela

A Koliyan village, the residence of Suppavāsā Koḷiyādhītā, mother of Sīvali. The Buddha is said to have stayed there. AN.ii.62

Koliya3town

His Theragāthā verses speak of his helping his relatives to practice generosity, so they attained a favorable rebirth. Thag.240–242

The carpenter of Pasenadi, king of Kosala. He was a devoted follower of the Buddha and loved discussion.

The Bahuvedanīya Sutta MN.i.396ff. SN.iv.223f. is based on a discussion between him and Ma …

The name given to the five monks—Koṇḍañña (Aññā Koṇḍañña), Bhaddiya, Vappa, Mahānāma, and Assaji—to whom the Buddha preached his first sermon at Isipatana.

All five joined in the austerities of Gotam …

PilindavacchaPilindivacchaPilindiyavacchaPilindaPilindiPilindiya

A monk whose enigmatic Theragāthā verse speaks of what has come and not departed. Thag.9 Certain devas who had been born in the deva w …

The name of a tree, at the foot of which the Buddha received a gift of wheat and honey from the merchants Tapassu and Bhallika in the eighth week after the Enlightenment. Vin.i.3f.

Uruvelā3shrine

Sabbamitta

A monk whose Theragāthā verses speak of the suffering inherent in relationships. Thag.149–150

A Mahā Brahmā, whose name means “ever young”. In the Nikāyas DN.i.121 MN.i.358 SN.i.153 AN.v.327 he is mentioned as the author of a famous verse, which is eleswhere attribued to the Buddha. SN.ii.284 …

Sañjaya¹

A monk whose Theragāthā verse says that since going forth he has not had any hate. Thag.48

Sañjaya²

In the Kaṇṇakatthala Sutta Viḍūḍabha tells the Buddha that it was …

A brahmin of Aṅguttarāpa. He was a great friend of Keṇiya, the Jaṭila, and visited him when Keṇiya was making preparations to entertain the Buddha. Having heard the word “Buddha” from Keṇiya, Sela was …

A bhikkhunī who was enjoying her meditation in the Andhavana under a tree when Māra, in the guise of a stranger, approached her and tried to tempt her. But she refuted his statements regarding the att …

SenānigamaSenānīnigama

The village in which Senānī lived. It was near Uruvelā and on the banks of the Nerañjara. SN.i.106 Vin.i.21 MN.i.166 MN.i.240

near Uruvelā1town

Soṇa¹

A Thera, declared chief of those possessing clear utterance. AN.i.24 He lived in Avantī, where he met Mahākaccāna and was later ordained by him, after much difficulty assembling the …

Subhā¹

A group of Brahmās; the group includes the Parittasubhā, the Appamāṇasubhā and the Subhakiṇhā. MN.iii.102

Subhā²Kammāradhītā

The daughter of a rich goldsmith of Rājagah …

SudinnaKalandakaputta

A monk who, after being ordained, returned to his former wife and had relations with her, thus becoming guilty of the first Pārājika offence. When there was a famine in the Vajj …

SumāgadhāSumāgavā

A lotus pond near Rājagaha. The Saṃyutta Nikāya mentions the Buddha as relating the story of a man who went to Sumāgadhā with the thought, “I will speculate about the world.” He saw …

A Licchavi prince of Vesāli. He was, at one time, a member of the Order and the personal attendant of the Buddha, but was later converted to the views of Korakkhattiya and went about defaming the Budd …

SuppavāsāKoliyadhītā

A lay woman who lived in the Koliyan village of Sajjanela, where the Buddha visited her and preached to her on the efficacy of giving food. AN.ii.62f. She was described by the …

A Deva. Once, when the Asuras marched against the Devas, Sakka sent for Suvīra and asked him to fight the Asuras. Suvīra agreed to do this, but was very lazy about it. This happened three times. Sakka …

A town in Kosala. It was regarded in the Buddha’s time as one of the six great cities of India, the others being Campā, Rājagaha, Sāvatthī, Kosambī and Benares. DN.ii.146 In the Vinaya Vin.i.253 howev …

SāmaṇḍakaSāmaṇḍakāniSāmañcakāni

A Paribbājaka, mentioned SN.iv.261f. as having visited Sāriputta at Ukkacela and questioned him regarding Nibbāna, and again AN.v.121f. at Nālakagāma, where he que …

Tissa¹

One of the two chief disciples of Vipassī Buddha. DN.ii.4

Tissa²

A monk who was reborn as a Brahmā with great iddhi-powers. Moggallāna visited him soon after his bir …

UkkacelāUkkaceḷāUkkavelāUkkaveḷā

A village in the Vajji country, on the banks of the Ganges, on the road from Rājagaha to Vesāli and near the latter.

Once while Sāriputta was staying there, the Pari …

A district identified with modern Orissa. The merchants Tapussa and Bhalluka were on the way from Ukkalā, when they visited the Buddha shortly after his Awakening, near Uruvelā, and offered food to hi …

Upāli ¹

One of the most eminent of the Buddha’s immediate disciples. He belonged to a barber’s family in Kapilavatthu and entered the service of the Sākiyan princes. When Anuruddha and his …

A township of the Mallas in the Malla country. Once when the Buddha was staying there, Bhadragaka, the headman of the town, visited him, and the Buddha preached to him a sermon on the arising and the …

UruvelāSenānigamaUruvelapattana

A locality on the banks of the Nerañjara, in the neighbourhood of the Bodhi-tree at Buddhagayā. MN.i.166 The place chosen by the Bodhisatta for his penances was calle …

UruvelākassapaKassapa

One of three brothers, the Tebhātika-Jatilas, living at Uruvelā. After initial resistance, all became the Buddha’s followers. He lived on the banks of the Nerañjara with five h …

Vajirā²

The Saṃyutta Nikāya SN.i.134f. relates that one day, when she was meditating in Andhavana at Sāvatthī, Māra questioned her as to the origin of a “being”, its creator, its origin, …

The name of a country and of its people. It was one of the sixteen Great Nations. The inhabitants appear to have consisted of several confederate clans of whom the Licchavī and the Videhā were the chi …

Chief of the eighty four thousand women who waited on Mahāsudassana, king of Kusāvatī. She was also called Khattiyānī. SN.iii.146 But in the Dīgha DN.ii.187 the chief queen is called Subhaddā.

One of the nine aṅgas, into which the Dhamma was organized by way of literary style. It means “Answer” or “Explanation” and refers to discourses elaborated by way of question and answer.

Visākhā¹

. Thig.13

Visākhā²

The chief among the female lay disciples of the Buddha and declared by him to be foremost among those who ministered to the Order. AN.i.26 She is c …

A class of non human beings generally described as non-human. They are mentioned with Devas, Rakkhasas, Dānavas, Gandhabbas, Kinnaras, and Mahoragas (? Nāgas).

Elsewhere AN.ii.38 they rank, in progr …

YasojaYasojoti

The Udāna mentions Ud.iii.3 how Yasoja and five hundred of his companions went to see the Buddha at Jetavana. There they stood talking to the monks who lived there and made a great upr …

One of the principal disciples of the Buddha. He was a first cousin of the Buddha and was deeply attached to him. Ānanda entered the Order in the second year of the Buddha’s ministry, together with ot …

A city in the Aṅguttarāpa country, probably its capital. The Buddha once visited the city with 1,250 monks and the whole company was entertained by the Jaṭila Keṇiya. Vin.i.245ff. From Āpaṇa the Bud …

ĀḷavakāĀḷavikā

A name given to the monks of Āḷavī.

The Āḷavaka-bhikkhū are mentioned several times in the Vinaya Vin.ii.172ff. Vin.iii.85 Vin.iv.34–35 in connection with offences relating to repa …

Āḷavī¹

A town between Sāvatthī and Rājagaha. The Buddha goes from Sāvatthī to Kīṭāgiri, thence to Āḷavī, and finally, to Rājagaha. The Buddha, on several occasions, stayed at Āḷavī at the …