Bodhisattva

== In Theravāda ==
[[File:Avalokiteshvara%2C_Dambulla_0413.jpg|thumb|Sinhalese statue of Avalokiteśvara (also known as Natha, Lokeshvara Natha, Natha Deviyo) in [[Dambulla cave temple]]]]
[[File:British_Museum_Asia_45_(cropped).jpg|thumb|Gilded bronze statue of [[Tara (Buddhism)|Tara]], Sri Lanka, 8th century CE]]
[[File:Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara-BMA.jpg|thumb|Bronze statue of the bodhisattva [[Avalokiteśvara]]. [[Sri Lanka]], c. 750 CE ]]
The bodhisattva ideal is also found in [[Southern, Eastern and Northern Buddhism|southern Buddhist]] sources, like the Theravāda school's ''[[Buddhavamsa|Buddhavaṃsa]]'' (1st-2nd century BCE), which explains how Gautama, after making a resolution (''abhinīhāra'') and receiving his prediction (''vyākaraṇa'') of future Buddhahood from past Buddha Dīpaṃkara, he became certain (''dhuva'') to attain Buddhahood. Gautama then took four incalculable aeons and a hundred thousand, shorter [[Kalpa (aeon)|''kalpas'']] (aeons) to reach Buddhahood.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":8">Drewes, David. ''The Problem of Becoming a Bodhisattva and the Emergence of Mahayana.'' History of Religions, volume 61, number 2, November 2021. The University of Chicago. {{doi|10.1086/716425}}</ref> Several sources in the [[Pali Canon]] depict the idea that there are multiple Buddhas and that there will be many future Buddhas, all of which must train as bodhisattas.<ref name=":25">''Shanta Ratnayaka'', “[https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/jiabs/article/download/8663/2570 ''The Bodhisattva Ideal'' of the ''Theravåda''”], Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, 1985, 85-110.</ref> Non-canonical Theravada [[Jataka tales|Jataka]] literature also teaches about bodhisattvas and the bodhisattva path.<ref name=":25" /> The worship of bodhisattvas like [[Maitreya|Metteya]], [[Saman (deity)|Saman]] and Natha ([[Avalokiteśvara]]) can also be found in Theravada Buddhism.<ref name=":25" />

By the time of the great scholar [[Buddhaghosa]] (5th-century CE), orthodox Theravāda held the standard Indian Buddhist view that there were three main spiritual paths within Buddhism: the way of the Buddhas (''buddhayāna'') i.e. the bodhisatta path; the way of the individual Buddhas (''paccekabuddhayāna''); and the way of the disciples (''sāvakayāna'').<ref>Crosby, Kate (2013), ''Theravada Buddhism: Continuity, Diversity, and Identity,'' pp. 34-35. Wiley-Blackwell.</ref>
[[File:Mount Popa 003.jpg|thumb|An altar depicting Burmese Buddhist weizzas. In this esoteric tradition, weizzas consider themselves to be bodhisattvas]]
The [[Sri Lankan Buddhism|Sri Lankan]] commentator [[Dhammapāla]] (6th century CE) wrote a commentary on the ''[[Cariyapitaka|Cariyāpiṭaka]]'', a text which focuses on the bodhisattva path and on the ten perfections of a bodhisatta.<ref name=":25" /> [[Dhammapāla]]'s commentary notes that to become a bodhisattva one must make a valid resolution in front of a living Buddha.<ref name=":0" /> The Buddha then must provide a prediction (''vyākaraṇa'') which confirms that one is irreversible (''anivattana'') from the attainment of Buddhahood. The [[Jataka tales|''Nidānakathā'']], as well as the ''[[Buddhavamsa|Buddhavaṃsa]]'' and ''[[Cariyapitaka|Cariyāpiṭaka]]'' commentaries makes this explicit by stating that one cannot use a substitute (such as a [[Bodhi Tree|Bodhi tree]], [[Buddharupa|Buddha statue]] or [[Stupa]]) for the presence of a living Buddha, since only a Buddha has the knowledge for making a reliable prediction. This is the generally accepted view maintained in orthodox [[Theravada]] today.<ref name=":0" />

According to Theravāda commentators like Dhammapāla as well as the [[Sutta Nipata|''Suttanipāta'']] commentary, there are three types of bodhisattvas:<ref name=":8" />

* Bodhisattvas "preponderant in wisdom" (''paññādhika''), like Gautama, reach Buddhahood in four incalculable aeons (asaṃkheyyas) and a hundred thousand kalpas.
* Bodhisattvas "preponderant in faith" (''saddhādhika'') take twice as long as ''paññādhika'' bodhisattvas
* Bodhisattvas "preponderant in vigor" (''vīriyādhika'') take four times as long as ''paññādhika'' bodhisattvas

According to modern Theravada authors, meeting a Buddha is needed to truly make someone a bodhisattva because any other resolution to attain Buddhahood may easily be forgotten or abandoned during the aeons ahead. The Burmese monk [[Ledi Sayadaw]] (1846–1923) explains that though it is easy to make vows for future Buddhahood by oneself, it is very difficult to maintain the necessary conduct and views during periods when the Dharma has disappeared from the world. One will easily fall back during such periods and this is why one is not truly a full bodhisattva until one receives recognition from a living Buddha.<ref name=":0" />

Because of this, it was and remains a common practice in Theravada to attempt to establish the necessary conditions to meet the future Buddha [[Maitreya]] and thus receive a prediction from him. Medieval Theravada literature and inscriptions report the aspirations of monks, kings and ministers to meet Maitreya for this purpose. Modern figures such as [[Anagarika Dharmapala]] (1864–1933), and [[U Nu]] (1907–1995) both sought to receive a prediction from a Buddha in the future and believed meritorious actions done for the good of Buddhism would help in their endeavor to become bodhisattvas in the future.<ref name=":0" />

Over time the term came to be applied to other figures besides Gautama Buddha in Theravada lands, possibly due to the influence of [[Mahayana]]. The Theravada [[Abhayagiri vihāra|Abhayagiri]] tradition of Sri Lanka practiced Mahayana Buddhism and was very influential until the 12th century.<ref>Hoiberg, Dale H., ed. (2010). "Abhayagiri". ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. I: A–ak Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. p. 30. {{ISBN|978-1-59339-837-8}}.</ref> Kings of [[Sri Lanka]] were often described as bodhisattvas, starting at least as early as [[Siri Sangha Bodhi I of Anuradhapura|Sirisanghabodhi]] (r. 247–249), who was renowned for his compassion, took vows for the welfare of the citizens, and was regarded as a [[Mahāsattva|mahāsatta]] (Sanskrit: ''mahāsattva''), an epithet used almost exclusively in [[Mahayana|Mahayana Buddhism]].<ref>Holt, John. ''Buddha in the Crown : Avalokitesvara in the Buddhist Traditions of Sri Lanka.'' 1991. p. 59</ref> Many other Sri Lankan kings from the 3rd until the 15th century were also described as bodhisattas and their royal duties were sometimes clearly associated with the practice of the [[Pāramitā|ten pāramitās]].<ref>Holt, John. ''Buddha in the Crown : Avalokitesvara in the Buddhist Traditions of Sri Lanka.'' 1991. pp. 59–60</ref> In some cases, they explicitly claimed to have received predictions of Buddhahood in past lives.<ref name=":0" />

Popular Buddhist figures have also been seen as bodhisattvas in Theravada Buddhist lands. Shanta Ratnayaka notes that [[Anagarika Dharmapala]], Asarapasarana Saranarikara Sangharaja, and [[Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Thera|Hikkaduwe Sri Sumamgala]] "are often called bodhisattvas".<ref name=":25" /> [[Buddhaghosa]] was also traditionally considered to be a reincarnation of Maitreya.<ref name=":25" /> Paul Williams writes that some modern Theravada meditation masters in [[Thailand]] are popularly regarded as bodhisattvas.<ref>Williams, Paul. ''Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations.'' Taylor & Francis, 1989, p. 328.</ref> Various modern figures of [[Southern Esoteric Buddhism|esoteric Theravada]] traditions (such as the [[Weizza|weizzās]] of Burma) have also claimed to be bodhisattvas.<ref name=":8" />

Theravada [[bhikkhu]] and scholar [[Walpola Rahula]] writes that the bodhisattva ideal has traditionally been held to be higher than the state of a ''[[śrāvaka]]'' not only in Mahayana but also in Theravada. Rahula writes "the fact is that both the Theravada and the Mahayana unanimously accept the Bodhisattva ideal as the highest...Although the Theravada holds that anybody can be a Bodhisattva, it does not stipulate or insist that all must be Bodhisattva which is considered not practical."<ref>{{Cite web |author=Rahula, Walpola |title=Bodhisattva Ideal in Buddhism (from ''Gems of Buddhist Wisdom'') |url=http://www.budsas.org/ebud/ebdha126.htm |publisher=Buddhist Missionary Society, 1996}}</ref> He also quotes the 10th century king of Sri Lanka, [[List of Sri Lankan monarchs#House of Lambakanna II .28691.E2.80.931017.29|Mahinda IV]] (956–972 CE), who had the words inscribed "none but the bodhisattvas will become kings of a prosperous Lanka," among other examples.<ref>Holt, John. ''Buddha in the Crown : Avalokitesvara in the Buddhist Traditions of Sri Lanka.'' 1991. p.  60</ref>

Jeffrey Samuels echoes this perspective, noting that while in Mahayana Buddhism the bodhisattva path is held to be universal and for everyone, in Theravada it is "reserved for and appropriated by certain exceptional people."<ref>Samuels, J. ''[https://info-buddhism.com/Bodhisattva-Ideal-Theravada_JeffreySamuels.html The Bodhisattva Ideal in Theravāda Theory and Practice.]'' This is a slightly revised version of the essay earlier published in ''Philosophy East and West,'' Volume 47, Number 3, July 1997, pp. 399–415. Reprinted with permission of the author.</ref>