Key Terms/Anuttarā-pūjā
From Bodhicitta
अनुत्तरापूजा anuttarā-pūjā
supreme worship
བླ་ན་མེད་པའི་མཆོད་པ་
bla na med pa'i mchod pa
無上供養
wúshàng gòngyǎng
Sanskrit - Noun
Basic Meaning
A foundational Mahāyāna Buddhist ritual known as 'Supreme Worship' or the 'Seven-Branch Service.' It commonly consists of seven parts although there are several variations. The practices include prostrating, making offerings, and confessing mistakes, and are designed to clear away negative energy and build the positive mental conditions needed for spiritual progress.
Has the Sense of
- Abhidharma (Indo-Tibetan): While primarily a Mahāyāna liturgical practice, the elements within the supreme worship, such as confession (deśanā) and rejoicing (anumodanā), are analyzed as specific mental factors and activities that counteract afflictions (kleśa). Rejoicing, for instance, serves as a direct antidote to jealousy and resentment, while confession addresses the traces of non-virtuous actions stored in the mental continuum.
- Mahāyāna (Indo-Tibetan): In the Mahāyāna tradition, anuttarā-pūjā is the standard preliminary practice for engaging in the bodhisattva path. It is most famously detailed in the Bhadracarīpraṇidhāna (The Prayer of Good Conduct). The seven branches (yan lag bdun) are:
- Prostration (vandanā
,T. phyag 'tshal ba): Overcoming pride by honoring the enlightened ones.
- Offering (pūjanā,T. mchod pa): Cultivating generosity and counteracting attachment.
- Confession (pāpadeśanā,T. sdig pa bshags pa): Purifying past negative karmic imprints.
- Rejoicing (anumodanā,T. rjes su yi rang ba): Cultivating a positive mind by delighting in the virtue of others.
- Requesting the Turning of the Wheel of Dharma (adhyeṣaṇā,T. chos kyi 'khor lo bskor bar bskul ba): Creating the causes to always encounter the teachings.
- Beseeching the Buddhas to remain (yācanā,T. gsol ba 'debs pa): Counteracting the view of permanence and requesting teachers to stay in the world.
- Dedication (pariṇāmanā,T. bsngo ba): Ensuring that the merit accumulated is not lost but directed toward the enlightenment of all beings.
- Vajrayāna (Indo-Tibetan): In the context of Tantra, these seven branches are an essential preliminary for the generation stage (utpattikrama) and are often expanded or localized within a specific deity's sādhana. The supreme worship is seen as the necessary "soil" in which the "seed" of the deity yoga can grow. It is also linked to the "accumulation of merit" that must precede the "accumulation of wisdom."
| Term Variations | |
| Key Term | Anuttarā-pūjā |
|---|---|
| Topic Variation | anuttarā-pūjā |
| Tibetan | བླ་ན་མེད་པའི་མཆོད་པ་ ( lana mepay chöpa) |
| Wylie Transliteration | bla na med pa'i mchod pa ( lana mepay chöpa) |
| Devanagari Sanskrit | अनुत्तरापूजा |
| Romanized Sanskrit | anuttarā-pūjā |
| Chinese | 無上供養 |
| Chinese Pinyin | wúshàng gòngyǎng |
| Japanese Transliteration | mujyō kuyo |
| Korean | musang gongyang |
| Buddha-nature Site Standard English | supreme worship |
| Term Information | |
| Source Language | Sanskrit |
| Term Type | Noun |
| Definitions | |
