Svasaṃvedana
From Tsadra Commons
| Key Term | svasaṃvedana |
|---|---|
| In Tibetan Script | རང་རིག་ |
| Wylie Tibetan Transliteration | rang rig |
| Devanagari Sanskrit Script | स्वसंवेदन |
| Tibetan Phonetic Rendering | rangrik |
| Chinese Script | 自證分 |
| Chinese Pinyin | zìzhèngfēn |
| Japanese Transliteration | jishō |
| Korean Transliteration | chajŭng |
| Richard Barron's English Term | self-knowing awareness [Dzogchen]; self-aware(ness) [Yogachara] |
| Jeffrey Hopkin's English Term | self-cognizing consciousness |
| Dan Martin's English Term | reflexive awareness |
| Alternate Spellings | svasaṃvitti |
| Term Type | Noun |
| Source Language | Sanskrit |
| Basic Meaning | An important term for the Yogācāra that refers to a consciousness of consciousness itself, or how one knows that they know something. It was a hotly debated topic that was disputed by followers of the Madhyamaka. In Tibet it would later become a common Dzogchen term, though with an entirely different meaning of one's own innate awareness (rig pa), a crucial concept in the Dzogchen teachings. |
| Has the Sense of | Mind seeing mind. The classic example is that of a lamp that illuminates the surrounding area as well as itself. |
| Definitions | |
| Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism | See page 882: In Sanskrit, lit.“self-knowledge” or “self-awareness,” also seen written as svasaṃveda, svasaṃvit, svasaṃvitti. In Buddhist epistemology, svasaṃvedana is that part of consciousness which, during a conscious act of seeing, hearing, thinking, and so on, apprehends not the external sensory object but the knowing consciousness itself. |
