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三阿僧祇劫

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: three incalculable eons

Senses:

  • A notion about the incredibly long period of time it takes for an unenlightened sentient being to attain Buddhahood. The concept can be found expressed in early Indian Buddhism in the Āgamas/Nikāyas, as well as in Abhidharmic texts. It is taken up in Yogâcāra teaching as a way of framing the fifty-two stage practice of the bodhisattva and other distinctions and milestones in the course of practice. For instance, in the fifty-two stage path, the ten faiths 十信, ten abodes 十住, ten practices 十行 and ten dedications of merit 十廻向 are considered to be pursued during the first eon. The time from the first bhūmi to the seventh is the second eon, and from the eighth to the tenth bhūmi is during the third eon. The three eons are also analyzed in various texts from other perspectives. For example, the practices of the five stages of Yogâcāra 唯識修道五位 which are defined in terms of the removal of the two hindrances 二障, are also articulated in the context of the three eons. In some texts correlations are also drawn between the bodhisattva path and the Abhidharmic path of the arhat. Versions of this model can be found in other Mahāyāna traditions, such as Huayan, and Tathāgatagarbha texts such as the Awakening of Mahāyāna Faith (Skt. tri-kalpâsaṃkhyeya). See also 阿僧祇. 〔大乘起信論義記 T 1846.44.280c5〕 [Charles Muller; source(s): Ui, Nakamura, Yokoi, Hirakawa]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Bukkyō jiten (Ui) 343

    Bulgyo sajeon 413a

    Zengaku daijiten (Komazawa U.) 387c

    Japanese-English Zen Buddhist Dictionary (Yokoi) 575

    Zen Dust (Sasaki) 248

    Bukkyōgo daijiten (Nakamura) 454c

    Fo Guang Dictionary 577

    Ding Fubao

    Buddhist Chinese-Sanskrit Dictionary (Hirakawa) 0023

    Bukkyō daijiten (Mochizuki) (v.1-6)1452a

    Bukkyō daijiten (Oda) 603-3

    Copyright provisions

    The rights to textual segments (nodes) of the DDB are owned by the author indicated in the brackets next to each segment. For rights regarding the compilation as a whole, please contact Charles Muller. Please do not reproduce without permission. And please do not copy into Wikipedia without proper citation!

    Entry created: 1993-09-01

    Updated: 2015-01-13