Pali Vocabulary

慈

Loving-kindness / Goodwill / Benevolence

feminine noun (ā-stem): from mitta (friend)

The first of the four brahmavihārās (divine abidings) — the unconditional wish for all beings to be happy and well. Mettā is not romantic love or attachment (pema), which is based on conditions. It is the friend's goodwill that wishes happiness without expecting anything in return. Systematic mettā meditation (mettā bhāvanā) begins with oneself, extends to loved ones, neutral persons, difficult persons, and ultimately all beings. A mind suffused with mettā is also one of the ten pāramitās.

悲

Compassion / Empathic sorrow

feminine noun (ā-stem)

The second brahmavihārā — the wish for beings to be free from suffering and pain. Karuṇā is 'the heart that trembles' at the sight of suffering. Its near enemy is grief (soka) — becoming lost in sorrow; its far enemy is cruelty. True karuṇā is clear-eyed: it does not add its own suffering to that of others but remains present with equanimity and the desire to help. In Mahāyāna Buddhism karuṇā becomes mahā-karuṇā (great compassion) — the bodhisattva ideal — but in Theravāda it is also a fundamental quality for all practitioners.

喜

Sympathetic joy / Appreciative joy

feminine noun (ā-stem): from modati (to be glad)

The third brahmavihārā — delight in the happiness and good fortune of others, without envy or jealousy. Muditā is the quality that celebrates rather than resents others' success and joy. Its near enemy is mirth (pahāsa) — frivolous joy; its far enemy is envy (issā). Muditā is more difficult to cultivate than mettā or karuṇā because the ego-tendency to compare and compete runs deep. A mind rich in muditā experiences no envy and naturally rejoices in the welfare of all beings.

捨

Equanimity / Balanced non-reactivity

feminine noun (ā-stem): from upa + ikkhati (to look upon evenly)

The fourth brahmavihārā — perfect mental balance and equanimity toward all beings and all experiences. Upekkhā is not indifference or aloofness but the peak of wisdom-in-feeling: seeing all beings with complete impartiality, neither clinging nor rejecting. Its near enemy is equanimity born of indifference (aññāṇupekkhā — the dullness that does not care); its far enemy is greed and aversion. Upekkhā is also the dominant quality of the fourth jhāna and the seventh factor of awakening (bojjhaṅga).

四梵住

Divine Abidings / Four Immeasurables

masculine noun compound: brahma (divine/supreme) + vihāra (abiding/dwelling)

The four 'divine abidings' or 'immeasurables' (appamāṇa) — qualities of heart whose cultivation transforms the mind: mettā (loving-kindness), karuṇā (compassion), muditā (sympathetic joy), and upekkhā (equanimity). When suffused throughout all four directions without limit they become 'immeasurable' and constitute the highest forms of the formless heart. They are both meditation objects (leading to jhāna when used as primary meditation subjects) and ethical qualities to be expressed in all relationships. The Buddha called them the path to union with Brahmā.

佈施

Generosity / Giving

neuter noun (a-stem): from deti (to give)

The first of the ten pāramitās (perfections) — the quality and practice of giving without attachment to the gift, the recipient, or the result. Dāna is also foundational to lay Buddhist ethics: supporting the monastic Sangha, giving to the poor, and offering to the Dhamma. The Buddha began his gradual training (anupubbikathā) with dāna because generosity loosens the grip of lobha (greed) and creates the mental spaciousness for sīla and samādhi to develop. Dāna generates meritorious kamma (puñña) and purifies the mind.

出離

Renunciation / Giving up sensual pleasures

neuter noun (a-stem): nir + kāma (without sensual desire)

The third pāramitā — the quality of renouncing or relinquishing sensual pleasures and worldly attachments. Nekkhamma is not repression or hatred of the world but the wise recognition that sensual pleasures are impermanent, bring suffering, and bind the mind. It is also the content of the first right intention (nekkhamma-saṅkappa) in Sammā Saṅkappa. The highest expression of nekkhamma is the monastic life; for laypeople it includes periods of celibacy, fasting, and Dhamma retreat.

波羅蜜

Perfection / Spiritual excellence

feminine noun (ī-stem): from pāra (the far shore) + ī (going to) — 'going to the far shore'

A spiritual perfection — a quality of heart and character cultivated to the highest degree on the path to liberation. The Theravāda tradition lists ten pāramitās: dāna (generosity), sīla (virtue), nekkhamma (renunciation), paññā (wisdom), viriya (energy), khanti (patience), sacca (truthfulness), adhiṭṭhāna (determination), mettā (loving-kindness), upekkhā (equanimity). The path to arahantship requires the development of all ten, though they can be cultivated in varying degrees and sequences.

忍

Patience / Forbearance / Endurance

feminine noun (i-stem): from khamati (to endure, to be patient)

The sixth pāramitā and one of the most praised qualities in the Pali Canon — the capacity to endure hardship, insult, and difficulty without losing mental balance or acting from anger. The Dhammapada calls khanti 'the highest austerity' (khantī paramaṃ tapo titikkhā). Khanti differs from mere suppression: it is patient, clear-eyed endurance grounded in understanding that phenomena are impermanent and that reactive anger causes more suffering than it resolves. The Khandhaka Jātaka illustrates it through the story of the patient Khandhaka sage.

精進

Energy / Effort / Persistence

neuter noun (a-stem): from vīra (hero) — 'heroic quality'

The fifth pāramitā and one of the five spiritual faculties (indriya) and powers (bala). Viriya is the courageous, persistent effort that sustains the practice — not straining or forcing but the steady, joyful engagement with meditation and Dhamma. The Buddha outlined four right efforts (sammappadhāna): (1) preventing unwholesome states from arising; (2) abandoning those already arisen; (3) cultivating wholesome states not yet arisen; (4) maintaining wholesome states already arisen. Too much viriya leads to restlessness (uddhacca); too little leads to sloth (thīna-middha). The middle is balanced effort.