Sakyamuni, Śākyamuni, Śākyamuṉi, Shakya-muni, Shakyamuni: 21 definitions
Introduction:
Sakyamuni means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, Tamil. 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.
The Sanskrit terms Śākyamuni and Śākyamuṉi can be transliterated into English as Sakyamuni or Shakyamuni, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
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In Buddhism
Theravada (major branch of Buddhism)
"Sage of the Sakyans"; an epithet for the Buddha.An epithet of the Buddha. See Bu.xxvi.9; Mil. 115.
Theravāda is a major branch of Buddhism having the the Pali canon (tipitaka) as their canonical literature, which includes the vinaya-pitaka (monastic rules), the sutta-pitaka (Buddhist sermons) and the abhidhamma-pitaka (philosophy and psychology).
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) is the name of both the first as well as the present Buddha, according to the Vibhāṣā and the Kośa mentioned in the 2nd century Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra (chapter VI). Accordingly, “In one of his earlier lives, the present Buddha Śākyamuni was a potter (kumbhakāra) called Prabhāsa. At that time, there was a Buddha called Śākyamuni; his disciples were called Śāriputra, Maudalyāyana and Ānanda”.
Note: According to the Vibhāṣā and the Kośa, the ancient Śākyamuni was the first Buddha whom the present Śākyamuni venerated. At that time, the latter was a potter named Prabhāsa (cf. Kośavyākhyā). The Mahāvastu I, also is aware of a Buddha Śākyamuni who lived an infinite number of numberless kalpas ago, also from Kapilavastu, and who received the generosity of the present Śākyamuni, then a merchant (śreṣṭhin).
According to the Mahāvadānasūtra, Buddha Śākyamuni had an “assistant” (upasthāyaka) named Ānanda.—Each Buddha had his assistant (upasthāyaka), a monk specially attached to his person, entrusted with fanning him, carrying his robe and bowl for alms-round, introducing visitors. The Sanskrit Mahāvadānasūtra has drawn up a list of the assistants who served the last seven Buddhas: [...] Ānanda for Śākyamuni [...]
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.
Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayana or tantric Buddhism)
1) Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) refers to one of the “Thirty-Five Confession Buddhas” (Tibetan: ltung bshags kyi sangs rgyas so lnga) according to various sources in Mahayana and Tibetan Buddhism such as the Triskandhadharma-Sutra and the Ratnakuta-Sutra.—These texts describe the practice of purification by confession and making prostrations to these Buddhas [e.g., Śākyamuni] while incorporating visualization techniques using a variety of iconographic depictions. The purpose of such practice is to purify negative karma.
Śākyamuni is also known in Tibetan as: shakya tup-pa [shAkya thub pa]
2) Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) also refers to one of the “Forty-two Peaceful Deities” (Tibetan: zhi ba'i lha zhe gnyis) according to various sources such as the Guhyagarbha Tantra and the Tibetan Book of the Dead.—They feature in Tantric teachings and practices which focus on purifying elements of the body and mind. These deities [e.g., Śākyamuni] form part part of the the Hundred Peaceful and Wrathful Deities who manifest to a deceased person following the dissolution of the body and consciousness whilst they are in the intermediate state (bardo) between death and rebirth.
Śākyamuni is known in Tibetan as: shAkya thub pa. He is part of the “Six Munis” (i.e., the supreme nirmāṇakāya-buddhas for each of the six classes of beings).
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) is another name for shākya'i tog—one of the Twenty-five Revered Figures who transmitted the teachings of the Mahāyāna blo sbyong (mind training) according to “Lineage of Mahāyāna Blo sbyong Masters” written in the Dergé edition of the gSung 'bum (lit. “collected works”)—a text written by thogs med bzang po (1295–1369)—a renowned master of Mind-training practices (in Tibetan: blo sbyong).—
Tibetan Buddhism includes schools such as Nyingma, Kadampa, Kagyu and Gelug. Their primary canon of literature is divided in two broad categories: The Kangyur, which consists of Buddha’s words, and the Tengyur, which includes commentaries from various sources. Esotericism and tantra techniques (vajrayāna) are collected indepently.
General definition (in Buddhism)
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि):—One of the Thirty-five buddhas of confession, according to the Trīskhandhadharmasūtra (‘Sutra of the Three Heaps’), which is a Mahāyāna sūtra. The sūtra describes the practice of purifying the transgressions of vows (especially the Bodhisattva-vows), by making prostrations to these Buddhas. In the Tibetan language (Wyl.), he is known as: sangs rgyas shAkya thub pa. His name means “the perfect buddha”.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) refers to the last of the “seven Buddhas” (saptatathāgata) as defined in the Dharma-saṃgraha (section 6). The Dharma-samgraha (Dharmasangraha) is an extensive glossary of Buddhist technical terms in Sanskrit (e.g., saptatathāgata and Śākyamuni). The work is attributed to Nagarguna who lived around the 2nd century A.D.
Shākyamuni Buddha, the historical Buddha, is not the first and only buddha. Already in the early Hīnayāna texts, six buddhas who preceded him in earlier epochs are mentioned: Vipashyin (Pali, Vipassi), Shikin (Sikhī), Vishvabhū (Vessabhū), Krakuchchanda (Kakusandha), Konagamana, and Kashyapa (Kassapa). The buddha who will follow Shākyamuni in a future age and renew the dharma is Maitreya. Beyond these, one finds indications in the literature of thirteen further buddhas, of which the most important is Dīpamkara, whose disciple Shākyamuni was in his previous existence as the ascetic Sumedha. The stories of these legendary buddhas are contained in the Buddhavamsa, a work from the Khuddakanikāya.
Languages of India and abroad
Pali-English dictionary
sakyamuni : (m.) the noble sage of the Sakyans.
Pali is the language of the Tipiṭaka, which is the sacred canon of Theravāda Buddhism and contains much of the Buddha’s speech. Closeley related to Sanskrit, both languages are used interchangeably between religions.
Sanskrit dictionary
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि).—epithets of Buddha.
Derivable forms: śākyamuniḥ (शाक्यमुनिः).
Śākyamuni is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms śākya and muni (मुनि). See also (synonyms): śākyasiṃha.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि).—(= Pali Sak°; see also Śākyasiṃha), (1) epithet of the historic Buddha, passim; as 7th of the ‘seven Buddhas’, beginning with Vipaśyin, Dharmasaṃgraha 6; in Saddharmapuṇḍarīka 185.3 he is one of two Buddhas in the northeast, yet is located asyāṃ sahāyāṃ lokadhātau; Gaṇḍavyūha 419.20, see also Vairocana, who is identified with Ś. especially in Gaṇḍavyūha; (2) name of a former Buddha under whom ‘this’ (historic) Ś. made a praṇidhāna and received a prediction of Buddha- hood: Mahāvastu i.1.6; 47.13 ff.; in 57.8 thirty crores of Buddhas of this name were worshipped by, and predicted the Buddhahood of, (the historic) Ś. while he was cakravartin; in Lalitavistara 172.5 also a former B. of this name, to whom the historic Ś. made a gift; (3) name of (presumably) another past Buddha: Mahāvastu iii.238.10 ff.; (4) name of still another past Buddha, in the same list as (3), next in line to a Buddha named Yaśottara: Mahāvastu iii.240.4; 243.9, 10; 245.11; 247.7; 248.14; (in the same list, 240.10, the historic Ś. also names himself;) (5) name of a future Buddha, rebirth of a girl who made a praṇidhāna under the historic Ś. and for whom he predicted Buddhahood: Divyāvadāna 90.5, 28; (6) name of a future Buddha, rebirth of Vaḍika, similarly predicted by the historic Ś.: Avadāna-śataka i.35.3.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि).—m.
(-niḥ) A name of Budd'Ha, the real or supposed founder of the Baudd'ha religion. E. śakya said to be the name of a family or tribe, originating with one of the race of Ikswaku, condemned to take up his abode in a forest of Saka trees, and muni a saint.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि).—[masculine] the saint of the Śākyas, i.e. Buddha.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि) as mentioned in Aufrecht’s Catalogus Catalogorum:—is degraded into a common grammarian by Sāyaṇa in the Mādhavīyadhātuvṛtti.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि):—[=śākya-muni] [from śākya] m. ‘Śākya sage’, Name of Gautama Buddha, [ib.; Kādambarī; Harṣacarita]; etc. (also -buddha).
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि):—[śākya-muni] (niḥ) 2. m. Idem.
Śākyamuni (शाक्यमुनि):—m. der Muni der Śākya, Bez. des Gründers der Buddha-Lehre [Amarakoṣa 1, 1, 1, 9.] [Rgva tch’er rol pa ed. Calc. 202, 4.] [BURNOUF,] [?Intr. 43 u.s.w. Hiouen-Thsang 1, 358.] buddha Vie de [Hiouen-Thsang 276.]
Śākyamuni (in Sanskrit) can be associated with the following Chinese terms:
1) 釋迦如來 [shì jiā rú lái]: “Śākya-muni”; “Śākya-munis tathāgataḥ”; “Sarva-duṣṭa-vinaya-śākyamunis tathāgataḥ”; “Svabhāva-śuddhas tathāgataḥ” [name of a Buddha].
2) 釋迦牟尼 [shì jiā móu ní]: “Śākyamuni” [name of a Buddha].
3) 能仁 [néng rén]: “Śākyamuni” [Sanskrit personal name]; Alternatively: “able to care for others”.
4) 釋迦文 [shì jiā wén]: “Śākyamuni” [Sanskrit personal name].
5) 釋迦文尼 [shì jiā wén ní]: “Śākyamuni” [Sanskrit personal name].
Note: śākyamuni can be alternatively written as: śākya-muni.
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.
Tamil dictionary
Śākyamuṉi (ஶாக்யமுனி) [śākya-muṉi] noun < Śākya-muni. The Buddha. See சாக்கியமுனி. [sakkiyamuni.]
Tamil is an ancient language of India from the Dravidian family spoken by roughly 250 million people mainly in southern India and Sri Lanka.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Shakya, Muni.
Full-text (+3706): Gotamanvaya, Gautama, Gopesha, Shi jia ru lai, Rahula, Thich da nhu lai, Upasena, Gayakashyapa, Kulishasana, Dashabalakashyapa, Chandaka, Uccadhvaja, Kapilavastu, Dvivarnaratha, Cunda, Mahakashyapa, Lokaikabandhu, Maudgalyayana, Nadikashyapa, Shakyasimha.
Relevant text
Search found 105 books and stories containing Sakyamuni, Śākya-muni, Sakya-muni, Śākya-muṉi, Śākyamuni, Śākyamuṉi, Shaagyamuni, Shagyamuni, Shakya-muni, Shakyamuni; (plurals include: Sakyamunis, munis, muṉis, Śākyamunis, Śākyamuṉis, Shaagyamunis, Shagyamunis, Shakyamunis). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Narrative Integration < [Volume 15, Issue 3 (2024)]
The Spread of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia from the 16th to the 17th Century < [Volume 15, Issue 7 (2024)]
The Posture of Lalitāsana < [Volume 13, Issue 8 (2022)]
Maha Prajnaparamita Sastra (by Gelongma Karma Migme Chödrön)
Act 8: The Buddha smiles a fourth time: beings become aware of one another < [Chapter XIV - Emission of rays]
Appendix 5 - Appearance of the Buddha Prabhūtaratna < [Chapter XIII - The Buddha-fields]
Act 10.2: Samantaraśmi greets the Buddha Śākyamuni < [Chapter XV - The Arrival of the Bodhisattvas of the Ten Directions]
A Blessed Pilgrimage (by Dr. Yutang Lin)
Part 8 - The Site Of Shakyamunis Austerities
Part 7 - The Site Of Buddha's Enlightenment
The gods of northern Buddhism (by Alice Getty)
Part I - Buddha < [Introduction]
Part IV - The Religious Community (sangha) < [Introduction]
Lotus Sutra (by Tsugunari Kubo)
Chapter XXIV - Bodhisattva Gadgadasvara
Chapter XXIII - Ancient Accounts of Bodhisattva Bhaiṣajyarāja
Kailash: Journal of Himalayan Studies
Part 23 - Guide to the Golden temple of Patan < [A Buddhist Guide to the Power Places of the Kathmandu Valley]
The Nyingma Icons: Line drawings of 94 dieties and divinities of Tibet < [Volume 3, Number 4 (1975)]
Part 6 - Guide to Nagarjuna hill < [A Buddhist Guide to the Power Places of the Kathmandu Valley]
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