Pancabhijna, Pañcābhijñā, Pañcābhijña, Panca-abhijna: 4 definitions
Introduction:
Pancabhijna means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
Alternative spellings of this word include Panchabhijna.
In Buddhism
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Pañcābhijña (पञ्चाभिज्ञ) refers to “five superknowledges”, and represents one of the qualities possessed by the Bodhisattvas that accompanied the Buddha according to the 2nd century Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra chapter X part 7.—The five abhijñās are:
- magical power (ṛddhi),
- the divine eye (divyacakṣus),
- the divine ear (divyaśrotra),
- knowledge of others’ minds (paracittajñāna);
- memory of former lifetimes (pūrvanivāsānusmṛti).
Pañcābhijñā (पञ्चाभिज्ञा) refers to the “five supernormal knowledges”, according to the Gaganagañjaparipṛcchā: the eighth chapter of the Mahāsaṃnipāta (a collection of Mahāyāna Buddhist Sūtras).—Accordingly: “[...] Then the monk Siṃha and Siṃhavikrāntagāmin vigorously applied themselves to the dharma that is the wings of awakening, austerity, and practice in solitude, thereby they soon produced the five supernormal knowledges (pañcābhijñā). Having attained supernatural knowledges (abhijñā), the two explained the dharma by their own magical power and the power of vows in all world-spheres, brought immeasurable and incalculable living beings to maturity, and established them in the incomparable complete awakening”.
Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.
General definition (in Buddhism)
Pañcābhijñā (पञ्चाभिज्ञा) refers to the “five deep knowledges” as defined in the Dharma-saṃgraha (section 20):
- divyacakṣus (the divine eye),
- divyaśrotra (the divine ear),
- paracittajñāna (knowledge of others’ minds),
- pūrvanivāsānusmṛti (recollection of previous lives),
- ṛddhi (spiritual power).
The Dharma-samgraha (Dharmasangraha) is an extensive glossary of Buddhist technical terms in Sanskrit (e.g., pañca-abhijñāu). The work is attributed to Nagarjuna who lived around the 2nd century A.D.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Pañcabhijñā (in Sanskrit) can be associated with the following Chinese terms:
1) 五旬 [wǔ xún]: “five supernatural powers”.
Note: pañcabhijñā can be alternatively written as: pañca-bhijñā.
2) Pañcābhijña (in Sanskrit) can be associated with the following Chinese terms:
1) 五通 [wǔ tōng]: “five supernatural powers”.
2) Pañcābhijñā (in Sanskrit) can be associated with the following Chinese terms:
1) 五神通 [wǔ shén tōng]: “five supernatural cognitive abilities”.
2) 五種神通 [wǔ zhǒng shén tōng]: “five kinds of supernormal cognition”.
3) 五通 [wǔ tōng]: “five supernatural powers”.
4) 般遮旬 [bān zhē xún]: “five powers”.
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches (+0): Abhijna, Panca.
Starts with (+0): Pancabhijnana.
Full-text (+0): Wu xun, Riddhi, Wu shen tong, Ban zhe xun, Five superknowledges, Divyashrotra, Wu tong, Purvanivasanusmriti, Paracittajnana, Divyacakshus, Riddhyabhijna, Wu zhong shen tong, Wu shen bian.
Relevant text
Search found 3 books and stories containing Pancabhijna, Pañcābhijñā, Pañcābhijña, Panca-abhijna, Pañca-abhijña, Pañca-abhijñā, Pañcabhijñā, Pañca-bhijñā, Panca-bhijna; (plurals include: Pancabhijnas, Pañcābhijñās, Pañcābhijñas, abhijnas, abhijñas, abhijñās, Pañcabhijñās, bhijñās, bhijnas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Maha Prajnaparamita Sastra (by Gelongma Karma Migme Chödrön)
Bodhisattva quality 5: the five superknowledges (pañcābhijña) < [Chapter X - The Qualities of the Bodhisattvas]
I. Qualities of the sixth superknowledge (āsravakṣaya-jñāna) < [Part 1 - Becoming established in the six superknowledges]
A Dictionary Of Chinese Buddhist Terms (by William Edward Soothill)