Questions tagged [arahant]

In Theravada Buddhism, an arhat (Sanskrit; Pali: arahant-; "one who is worthy") is a "perfected person" who has attained nirvana. In other Buddhist traditions the term has also been used for people far advanced along the path of Enlightenment, but who may not have reached full Buddhahood.

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If hypothetically we lived in a time when a Buddha were to arise, how could we acknowledge him as being perfectly enlightened?

Assuming that in a hypothetical multitude of so-called "enlightened masters", a future Buddha would actually arise and we were alive at that time, how would we be able to recognize him? The ...
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Does an Arahant or Buddha still like music they liked as a lay person?

Do Arahants or Buddhas still enjoy music they liked as lay people? Can anyone share their thoughts on why enlightened beings would or would not enjoy the music they used to listen to when they were ...
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💚The Buddha went straight to Buddhahood without becoming a non-returner?

💚If you're a non-returner and you go to the Brahma realms, then that is the only way to attain Nibbana in the Brahma realms? Is it possible to attain Buddhahood in the Bramha realms? Did the Buddha ...
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Should an Arahant become an unwanted burden to his caretaker?

The following sutta quote suggests that under the stated conditions, an Arahant should forcibly remain an unwanted burden or guest to a specific individual caretaker, even if sent away (or dismissed - ...
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Does an enlightened person have access to whatever information he wants?

I am following a guy online who claims to be enlightened. Everything about him is fine and he seems genuine and all but for one reason that he says he has no recollection of his past lives. Is this ...
The White Cloud's user avatar
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Tathagata vs disciple: taking the Buddha as Father, Dhamma as Mother

Disciples of the noble ones are supposed to take the Buddha as the role of the Father, and Dhamma as Mother. When a disciple attains full liberation, completes the path to self-enlightenment, becomes ...
Erik Kaplun's user avatar
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The rootless, mirth-producing, mind-consciousness element [duplicate]

What is hasituppāda, the so-called rootless, mirth-producing, mind-consciousness element of an Arahant? What is its basis? What is its purpose, if any? Could someone provide me the details of the same ...
Sushil Fotedar's user avatar
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How does one effectively understand & navigate through the suicide cases found in the canon?

There's a question regarding the Dhamma that I really wish to rectify and clear up with you and that's regarding the suicide cases of Channa, Vakkali and Godhika - When I first came across these cases,...
metta's user avatar
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Does depicting Jesus as an Arahant show that Buddhism is inclusive and compassionate?

I came across a book about the 500 Arahants, and it briefly mentioned that Jesus is depicted as an Arahant in a particular temple in China. After spending some time Googling, I found out that it's ...
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Why emphasise the EBT when anyone who has achieved Arhathood can teach from direct experience?

This question concerns some Theravada-based practices, with which I am not familiar. It is not a dig but a genuine query that puzzles me. Yet I'm not sure that I have asked this question well. I have ...
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What are your thoughts on Ajahn Maha Bua?

Shedding Tears in Amazement of the Dhamma I am posting this because I've yet to post a question. I should note that I respect Ajahn Maha Bua a lot. In fact, both of my teachers were students of his. ...
Sāvaka Kovida's user avatar
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Minimum common grounds for all sotapanna and all arahant

I'd like to know what will all sotapanna have in common with each other. And the same for arahants (both for separate, please, not comparing a sotapanna with an arahant). What are the common grounds ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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Relationship between the 5 higher fetters and the Three Characteristics or the Three Doors

I use the definition of Three Doors posted here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/6rrbl8/any_commentaries_on_the_three_doors_of_liberation/dl7h0e1/ To me, it looks like there is a ...
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What is kriyacitta according to various Buddhist schools?

And to whom does it arise? Also know as the Smile of the Arahant (hard to look On google) Asking for a friend. Pass this on wont you?
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Arahants and exersise

Q: Would an arahant get physically exausted if he/she was to exersise, like if they were to run 5 miles? Would this in anyway shake their mind?
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Enlightend beings don't make more good or neutral karma?

Does a Buddha or Arahant not make good or neutral karma? If somehow an enlightened one does make karma does it immediately come to a result? Are all the actions enlightened beings do the result(...
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Do Arahants experience non-neutral mental vedana?

In terms of the effects of the attainment of arahantship over the arising of feelings (vedana): Do Arahants experience the arising of non-neutral (pleasure or displeasure) mental feelings? ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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It is said that arahants never dream. What are the textual sources for this claim?

On various web pages relating to the Dhamma I have read the claim that arahants never dream. A few examples: Buddhist scholar Lily de Silva writes: We may also note the tradition maintaining that ...
gooiditnietweg's user avatar
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7 answers
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Sakkāya-Ditthi and Self-View

It's mentioned in many references that when someone becomes Sotāpanna (= stream-entrant = Person-who-has-seen-Dharma) then the first three fetters (saŋyojana) are dropped. My question is, if the ...
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Does an Arahant yawn? Or: What are the characteristics of the Noble Ones: Sotāpanna, Sakadāgāmi, Anāgāmi and Arahant?

The Abhidhamma seems to talk only in terms of eradications. According to the Abhidhamma the following defilements are eradicated (different list than the fetters): by Sotāpanna: wrong view, avarice, ...
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No awakening without a Buddha?

Worth keeping in mind is that an arahant needs to learn from a Buddha to become enlightened, so if the story in question means the prince became an Arahant (epic for one awakened) before meeting the ...
Samana Johann's user avatar
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Is there really a story in the Pali Canon about a layman running away from home AFTER having attained arahantship?

Today I stumbled upon a thread on Reddit. Deep down in the comments, I saw someone make the following claim: My personal opinion is probably they [lay arahants] will run away from society and die ...
gooiditnietweg's user avatar
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Happiness, rebirth, and the death of an arahant

I am new to Buddhism and have a question I am hoping someone can answer. My understanding is that realizing enlightenment is universally desirable. In other words, it is considered “better” to ...
Don's user avatar
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Difference between abiding nirvana and non-abiding nirvana?

In Mahayana Buddhism, what is the difference between abiding nirvana and non-abiding nirvana? Are there official Sanskrit terms for "abiding nirvana" and "non-abiding nirvana"? What are they? When a ...
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How does rebirth work for arahant and non-arahants?

I read in a sutta a few days ago (I can't remember the exactly where) that the question of rebirth after parinibbana is not a valid one, because there was no one to be reborn. But if anatta is valid ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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Four Analytical Knowledges

Is it still possible to attain the four analytical knowledge? Bare insight seems to be the lowest attainment among arahants.
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Bodhisattva wisdom vs. Arhat Wisdom

This answer says that: in terms of wisdom, a Hinayana arhat is more powerful than a bodhisattva before the 8th bhumi, because he abandoned afflictive obscurations while the bodhisattva abandons ...
Miguel Ping's user avatar
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Is it true that arahants don't have sati?

A couple of months ago someone tried to convince me that arahants no longer have sati. He said that sati is like a raft in the sense that it should be given up as soon as the goal, arahantship, has ...
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Vinaya Rule of a Monk saying he's an arahant

Is there a rule where if a monk is an arahant and if he is to tell he is an arahant, he can only say it to a Upasampada monk and not even a samanera monk? If so, please provide the source of the rule
Akila Hettiarachchi's user avatar
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Sudden enlightenment described in the suttas

A lot of suttas mention the case of sudden enlightenment, during the time of the Buddha. Do these cases speak only of stream-enterers, or can they even be full arahants? For me it's unbelievable, ...
Val's user avatar
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What would be the motivation for an arahant to perform generous deeds?

In the early stages of the gradual training, the instructions point out to perform generous deeds out of compassion. Knowing that a arahant has no more any trace of desire or self-identification and ...
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What would an Arahant experience, as a slave in a labor camp?

I like to put things in perspective by using extremes to create high contrast. Let's imagine a person who has become an enlightened being, let's use the word "arahant". But imagine that they're put ...
Mike de Klerk's user avatar
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Must Lay Arahants become Buddhist Monks?

A lay person who becomes an Arahant must become a monk or they will die? Can anyone explain what this teaching means? Do they have to become a Buddhist Monk? Can they just leave the world and ...
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How to identify a sotapanna (stream enterer)

I just wan to know whether there are any measurements advised by the Buddha to identify a stream enterer (sotapanna). I know for a fact that from the stream enterer and above, all four types have ...
Akila Hettiarachchi's user avatar
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Will earth become a planet without Humans?

lets imagine that in all the human in earth become Arhant, so after their death they will not born again (i mean all of the humans). after this will new humans born or Not, will earth become a planet ...
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What is the meditation position in which Ananda thero became an arahant?

We all know that Ananda Thero was Buddha's personal attendant -- Wikipedia says, In the long list of the disciples given in the Anguttara Nikaya (i. xiv.), where each of them is declared to be ...
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Lay arahants mentioned in the Pali Canon

Following are the instances of Lay Arahants that I'm aware of; Uggasena the acrobat Santati the King Pasenadi's Minister King Suddodhana [Looking for reference] What are the other instances of lay ...
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First Lay Teachers

I'm hearing of lay people becoming enlightened by the Buddha but did any of them become Lay Dhamma Teachers? When where the first lay teacher(s) of the eightfold path?
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Is raping a male arahant or a non-arahant less immoral/less serious than raping a female arahant?

I've read the following passage and I wonder if it really implies what it seems to imply. The gravity of the offence is determined by the degree of lust motivating the action and the ...
michau's user avatar
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Can a arahant recognize the spiritual attainment of others?

Can a arahant recognize other arahants? Can a arahant recognize stream winners, once-returners and never-returners? Can a arahant recognize the spiritual attainment (and conversely, the defilement) ...
ruben2020's user avatar
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Arahants and suicide

I'm aware of a story in the Pali Canon where a monk commited suicide by slitting his throat and achieved arahantship at the moment of death. Where in the texts can i find this story? Thank you for ...
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Differences in attainments among Arahants

In the Anguttara Nikaya it is said that by possessing seven qualities one can attain direct knowledge of the Four Analytical Knowledges: Mastery. "Bhikkhus, possessing seven qualities, ...
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Does an arahant ever reveal that he is an arahant?

An arahant is one who has eradicated all defilements and broken all 10 fetters, namely sensual desire and conceit. Why would an arahant mention that he is one and does the texts say anything about ...
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6 votes
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Did Buddha go through the stages of sotapanna/sakadagami/anagami before his enlightenment?

Did Buddha go through the stages of sotapanna/sakadagami/anagami before his enlightenment? Or did he go straight from a normal person to an arahant and a Buddha during the night of his enlightenment?
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