Bojjhaṅga
Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia is now 14 years old
Our Encyclopedia recently received a wonderful opportunity for a major renewal on its 14th birthday . After many years of growing our Encyclopedia had become bit slow and sometimes even decided not to answer when people knocked on the door.
A very big thank you and blessings to Dmytro Rudiy (rudiy.nl) for his great work in upgrading the server, website and all of the infrastructure and helping make TBE fast and reliable again for everyone!
We kindly ask our readers to help us cover the cost of this important upgrade and also help with the ongoing costs of keeping the Encyclopedia alive and freely available.
or card
Every little donation helps and every one is deeply appreciated. 🙏🙏🙏
OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM 🙏🙏🙏
May blessings shower down on all of yous 🙏🙏🙏
bojjhaṅga: 'the 7 Factors of Enlightenment', are: Mindfulness (sati-sambojjhaṅga; s. sati), investigation of the law (dhamma-vicaya-sambojjhaṅga), energy (viriya-sambojjhaṅga; s. viriya, padhāna), rapture (pīti-sambojjhaṅga, q.v.) tranquillity (passaddhi-sambojjhaṅga, q.v.), concentration (samādhi-sambojjhaṅga, q.v.), equanimity (upekkhā, q.v.).
"Because they lead to enlightenment, therefore they are called factors of enlightenment" (S. XLVI, 5). Though in the 2nd factor, dhamma-vicaya, the word Dhamma is taken by most translators to stand for the Buddhist doctrine, it probably refers to the bodily and mental phenomena (nāma-rūpa-dhammā) as presented to the investigating mind by mindfulness, the 1st
factor. With that interpretation, the term may be rendered by 'investigation of phenomena'.In A.X. 102, the 7 factors are said to be the means of attaining the threefold wisdom (s. tevijjā). They may be attained by means of the 4 foundations of mindfulness (Satipaṭṭhāna, q.v.), as it is said in S. XLVI, 1 and explained in M. 118:
- (1) "Whenever, o monks, the monk dwells contemplating the body (kāya), feeling (vedanā), mind (citta) and mind-objects (dhammā), strenuous, clearly-conscious, mindful, after subduing worldly greed and grief, at
such a time his mindfulness is present and undisturbed; and whenever his mindfulness is present and undisturbed, at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'mindfulness' (sati-sambojjhaṅga), and thus this factor of enlightenment reaches fullest perfection.
- (2) "Whenever, while dwelling with mindfulness, he wisely investigates, examines and thinks over the law ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'investigation of the law' (dhamma-vicaya°) ....
- (3) "Whenever, while wisely investigating his energy is firm and unshaken ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'energy' (viriya°) ....
- (4) "Whenever in him, while firm in energy, arises supersensuous rapture ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'rapture' (pīti°) ..
- (5) "Whenever, while enraptured in mind, his body and his mind become composed ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'tranquillity' (passaddhi°).
- (6) "Whenever, while being composed in his body and happy, his mind becomes concentrated ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'concentration' (samādhi°)
- (7) "Whenever he looks with complete indifference on his mind thus concentrated ... at such a time he has gained and is developing the factor of enlightenment 'equanimity' (upekkhā).
Literature: Bojjhaṅga Saṃyutta (S. XLVI); Bojjhaṅga Vibh. - For the conditions leading to the arising of each of the factors, see the Com. to Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Way of Mindfulness, by Soma Thera; 3rd ed., 1967, BPS). Further, The 'Seven Factors of Enlightenment, by Piyadassi Thera (WHEEL 1.).