Sanskrit (Pali: viññāṇa) · Indian Buddhist philosophy
vijñāna
विज्ञान
Heard as vig-NYAH-na
- Period
- early Buddhist onward
- Semantic range
- Discernment, cognitive awareness, including the six (later eight) consciousnesses.
- What it can mean
- Momentary awareness arising in dependence on sense and object. One of the aggregates.
- What it should not be equated with
- Not an enduring self. Not proof that Buddhism had 'our' concept. Schools disagree about storehouse consciousness and reflexive awareness.
- Primary or early source
- Nikāyas; Vasubandhu; later Yogācāra and Madhyamaka disputes.
- Scholarly source
- SEP Mind in Indian Buddhist Philosophy.
- Relation to other terms
- Awareness without a permanent owner, in most Buddhist accounts.