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Anātman'' (P. ''anattā'' +, T. ''bdag med'') is a central Buddhist doctrine asserting the absence of a permanent, unchanging, independent self or soul (''ātman'') in persons and phenomena. It is one of the three marks of existence (''trilakṣaṇa''), along with impermanence (''anitya'') and suffering (''duḥkha''). The teaching is not primarily an ontological denial but a soteriological strategy: by recognizing the selfless nature of the ''pañcaskandha'' (five aggregates)—form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness—practitioners overcome attachment and attain liberation. In Mahāyāna, ''anātman'' is analyzed as twofold: the selflessness of persons (''pudgalanairātmya'') and the selflessness of phenomena (''dharmanairātmya''), with the latter extending the analysis to all ''dharmas''. +
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''Anumāna'' (T. ''rjes dpag'') is one of the two principal means of valid cognition (''pramāṇa'' +, T. ''gzhan don rjes dpag''), which involves a formal syllogistic statement. +, T. ''mngon sum''). It is a conceptual cognition that ascertains an unperceived or hidden object (e.g., fire on a mountain, impermanence of a sound) through the force of a logical reason or mark (''liṅga'' or ''hetu'' +, …
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P. ''ratanattaya''/''tiratana'' +, T. ''dkon mchog gsum''), or Three Jewels, constitute the core objects of Buddhist refuge: the Buddha (the enlightened teacher), the Dharma (the path and teachings), and the Saṅgha (the community of noble beings). They are termed "jewels" (Skt. ''ratna'') because, like wish-fulfilling gems, they are rare, precious, and possess the power to provide protection from the sufferings of ''saṃsāra''. The Tibetan translation ''dkon mchog'' ("rare-supreme") is a semantic rendering that emphasizes these qualities rather than a phonetic transcription of ''ratna''. The refuge formula in Sanskrit is: ''Buddhaṃ śaraṇaṃ gacchāmi. Dharmaṃ śaraṇaṃ gacchāmi. Saṃghaṃ śaraṇaṃ gacchāmi.'' ("I go to the Buddha for refuge. I go to the Dharma for refuge. I go to the Saṅgha for refuge.") The Tibetan equivalent is: སངས་རྒྱས་ལ་སྐྱབས་སུ་མཆིའོ། །ཆོས་ལ་སྐྱབས་སུ་མཆིའོ། །དགེ་འདུན་ལ་སྐྱབས་སུ་མཆིའོ། (''sangs rgyas la skyabs su mchi'o / chos la skyabs su mchi'o / dge 'dun la skyabs su mchi'o''). +, The ''ratnatraya'' (Skt. +, …
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''Saṃvṛtibodhicitta'' (T. ''kun rdzob byang chub kyi sems''), relative or conventiional bodhicitta, is one of the two primary aspects of the 'mind of awakening,' the other being ultimate bodhicitta (''paramārthabodhicitta''). ''Saṃvṛtibodhicitta'' is characterized by the altruistic intention to attain perfect enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is further divided into:
1. Aspirational Bodhicitta (''praṇidhicitta'' +, T. '''jug pa byang chub kyi sems''): The actual engagement in the bodhisattva's path, which involves taking the bodhisattva vows and diligently practicing the six perfections (''pāramitā''). This is the practical application of the initial aspiration. +, T. ''smon pa byang chub kyi sems''): The sincere wish and resolve to achieve Buddhahood to liberate all beings from ''saṃsāra''.
2. Engaging/Applicational Bodhicitta (''prasthānacitta'' +
