Suparna
sk सुपर्ण suparṇa, "well-winged"
Suparna in Sanskrit refers to a supernatural bird, another name for Garuda, the mount of Vishnu. The term is often used in Tantric Buddhism.
sk सुपर्ण suparṇa, "well-winged"
Suparna in Sanskrit refers to a supernatural bird, another name for Garuda, the mount of Vishnu. The term is often used in Tantric Buddhism.
sk सुवर्णभूमि , pl Suvaṇṇabhūmi, kh នសុវណ្ណភូមិ sovanaphum th สุวรรณภูมิ swrnphumi
Suvarṇabhūmi is an Eastern "golden kingdom" often mentioned in ancient Indian literary sources such as the Ramayana and Milinda Panha, as well in Buddhist sacred texts, Mahavamsa and Jataka tales.
While modern scholars such as Ian Glover insisted that it was an "idealised place", a mythical region akin to the Atlantis or the "Land of Milk and Honey" in Western traditions, the place was an actual destination for Indian traders sailing to the East. Several places in modern Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia, and also Sri Lanka, Sumatra and Borneo, have been speculated to be the genuine location of Suvarnabhumi.
In 2017, Dr. Vong Sotheara from the Royal University of Phnom Penh discovered in Kompong Speu province, Baset district, a stone inscription dating back from 633 CE, written in Sanskrit and Nagari characters, which he translated as: “The great King Isanavarman is full of glory and bravery. He is the King of Kings, who rules over Suvarnabhumi until the sea, which is the border, while the kings in the neighbouring states honour his order to their heads.” The stela is now at the National Museum of Cambodia.
Earlier, researcher George Coedès had suggested that Suvarnabhumi could have been, in its Chinese pronunciation, the root of the word 'Funan', the ancient kingdom in Southern Cambodia.
bm တလိုင်း talaing | kh តាឡាងិ talangi | ch 得楞 To-leng | [?] sk तैलङ्ग Tailaṅga "the Tailanga country"
Talaing is one of the Burmese names referring to the Mon people, and used during the British colonial era along with Peguan, from Pegu, the ancient capital of Lower Myanmar.
While the word has been found in local inscriptions dating back to the reign of King Anawrata (1044-1077 CE), its etymology remains unclear, one hypothesis being it was linked to the Telinga-Kalinga-Karnatak region of southeast India - cf. Sanskrit तैलङ्गः tailaṅgaḥ "inhabitants of Tailanga [Telinga]".
British colonial historians commonly used the words 'Talaing' or 'Peguan' to refer to the Mon people of Burma. For instance, Deputy Commissionner of Burma C.J.F.S. Forbes wrote in 1882: "Burmans are of the Mongolian race, of which the Talaings, Shans, Siamese, and Chinese form also a part. Both their bodily characteristics and their language when compared prove the utter want of connection between the Burman and Rajput races." However, Mon communities have rejected the term for a long time, and it is now considered as pejorative.
Studying Chinese sources from the beginning of the 17th century, Paul Pelliot has proposed that the the To-leng (Tailang) formed a tribe from the 大古喇 "Grand Kou-la [polity], also called 擺古 Pai-kou (Pegu)", were also called 'kola", and joined forces with the Siamese against the Burmese in 1610. According to him, they were dwelling "in the Irawaddy estuary, or perhaps near Martaban" [ancient name of Mottama bm မုတ္တမမြို့, mon Muttama မုဟ်တၟံ, a town in the Thaton District of Mon State, on the west bank of the Thanlwin River (Salween), an important trading center and the capital city of the Martaban Kingdom (later Hanthawaddy Kingdom) from 1287 to 1364.
pg talapão, from mon tala pōi "our lord".
Talapoin is a 16th-century French word for a Buddhist monk. The Portuguese word of origin, "talapão", refers to a "Buddhist monk of Burma and Thailand", allegedly coming from Mon-Burmese "tala poi", a term of respect.
In English, talapoins are two species of monkeys of central Africa classified in genus Miopithecus, the smallest of all monkeys weighing between 1 and 2,3 kg, with round, short-snouted head and a hairless face.
sk तीर्थ tirtha 'ford', 'shallow body of water', 'holy place', 'pilgrimage spot'.
Tīrtha refers to a holy place in India from ancien times, including the ones mentioned countless times in the Purāṇas or the ones known only by local villagers and worshippers.
It also refers to the pilgrimages held to these holy places located all around Bharata [India] and usually located near a body of water (source of life). To reach the seven cardinal-point main places of worship, modern Indian people can travel hundreds of miles by train, plane, or car, always walking the last leg on foot.
ch 東京 dông kinh, 'Eastern Capital'.
Tonkin: Western rendition of 東京 Đông Kinh, 'Eastern Capital', the name of the capital city of the Lê dynasty (present-day Hanoi). In modern Vienam, Tonkin is known as miền Bắc, or Bắc Bộ (北部), 'Northern Region'.
sk तोरण toraṇa, “arches”, "entrance canopy", "festoons", "doorway".
Torana refers to stylized decorative framework surrounding sculptural and painted figures in Indian art specifically and Asian art in general.
A torana can be described as a gate, gateway, arch, throne-back, backrest, or decorative niche surrounding a deity, god, buddha, bodhisattva or religious hierarch, teacher or saint.
Toranas are often employed to decorate temple doorways or windows as found in Nepal. In Pali language, Torana refers to an arched portal.
sk तुष्ट tuṣṭa, “(becoming) pleased”, "contented" | pl tusit, "satisfaction", "felicity"; tusitā, "those who are satisfied" | kh តុសិត chu'sit, "realm of the fourth level" | th ดุสิต dusit "fourth heaven" | ch 兜率天 dou leu tien "Tusita Heaven"
Tusit in Pali is the name of the fourth level of heavenly realm. Tusita refers to a a class of deva [Buddhist heavenly beings] who are 'satisfied' in the sensuous plane.
In Cambodian Theravada Buddhism, the name of the fourth level of the Kamavacarya Heaven, with King Sandosit as the presiding deity. Bodhisattvas, the Buddha Father, the Buddha Mother, and all other highly meritorious beings are often reborn and reside in this realm.
All the Supreme Bodhisattvas, and even the Metteya Buddha (future successor of Gautama Buddha) reside in the Tusit realm, which is itself a non-permanent level of pure felicity.
th อุโบสถ, "chapel"
In Thailand, an edifice surrounded by eight sacred boundary stones inside a Buddhist monastery and within which a Buddhist ordination and ritual can be performed.
sk उष्णीष ushnisha "worn round the head". | ch 佛頂 fú dǐng “buddha-peak” | kh ឧណ្ហីស unheis "ushnisha".
Uṣṇīṣa or ushnisha in Ancient India referred to any head ornament worn round the head such as turban, diadem, crown.
By derivation, it is the Buddhist term for the topknot of curly hair crowning the head of the Buddha, a bun or any kind of protuberance at the top of the head seen as a mark of wisdom and sanctity. This attribute has undergone various adaptations in Southeast Asian visual arts, as the symbol of royal status (crown) was combined with those of sanctity. This is particularly obvious in Angkorian sculptures at the time of Jayavarman VII.
In modern Khmer, it is often called ឧណ្ហីស [transliteration of ushnisha]. The National Museum of Cambodia (NMC) Glossary defines it as the "protuberance from the skull crowning the head of Buddha".
sk उत्सव utsava 'festive occasion', 'removal of sorrows' + murti, 'form', 'idol', 'manifestation of deity'
Utsavamurti is an idol of a deity, a replica of the main one installed in the temple, taken out in procession. The utsavar portable statue, generally made of metal instead for portability, is carried around along many others in joyful processions, substituting for a while the central idol, the mulavar, still enshrined in its cella.
As the utsavamurti is cleansed and worshipped by everyone, its procession is accompanied with dances, songs and music bands expressing collective merriment and joy.
In ancient Cambodia as in ancient and modern India, utsava celebrations were held each time a deity image was installed in its temple, and at given periods of the year. Along the main deity were also carried along icons representing members of its retinue, and portraits of deified members of the royal court. For instance, Shiva would be preceded by Ganesha and followed by his principal servant Chandesha.
The 11th century Preah Khan inscription K. 908 required that "at least 122 gods and their entourage were to be brought back to the temple in the month of Phalguna, corresponding to the months of February/March in our calendar (st. CLVIII-CLX)" (cf. Goodall-Chollet-Chhunteng, op. cit.). Until recent times, processions carrying images, often made of metal, were held for the transfer of neak ta of a particular temple.
sk वैजयन्त vaijayanta, vi before ji to conquer, jhañ aff.| pali vejayant
In the puranas, Vaijayanta may refer to 1) the capital city of an asura named Timidhvaja, otherwise called Śambara; 2) The name of the flag of Indra (Mahābhārata Vana Parva, Chapter 42, Stanza 8); 3) A mountain standing in the middle of the sea of Milk mentioned in Mahābhārata, Śānti Parva, Chapter 35, Stanza 9, as a place where Brahmā comes daily for devotion and meditation.
It has come to mean the 1. The palace of Indra. 2. The banner or emblem of Indra. 3. A flag, a banner, an ensign. 4. A small tree, (Sesbana Ægyptiaca.) 3. Another tree, (Premna spinosa, &c.) 5. A kind of garland. 6. A necklace. 7. The necklace of Vishnu.
In Vastushastra (Indian theory of architecture), Vaijayanta (वैजयन्त) refers to a variety of prāsāda (‘superstructure’, or, upper storey of any building), part of the Ekatala (one-storey) group of prāsādas.
Etienne Aymonier (1880) suggested that the name "Bayon" came from pali Vejayant, an etymology accepted by modern linguists such as Pou Saveros.
sk & pl विनय vinaya, “humble behaviour”, "virtue", "modest woman". | kh វិន័យ vi-năy, "discipline".
Vinaya refers to numerous monastic rules and ethical precepts for the Sangha communities, and by extension to a category of Buddhist text discussing the application of these precepts.
In Theravada Buddhism, the Vinaya Piṭaka (lit. Basket of Discipline) is one of the three divisions of the Pali canon, Tripitaka, along with the Sutta Piṭaka and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka, dealing with the monastic codes of conduct for monks (bhikṣu) and nuns (bhikṣuṇī) of the Sangha (community of faithful). It covers rules of individual discipline (prātimokṣa), guidelines for communal harmony, and recommendations for handling transgressions.
Upāli (kh ឧបាលី), a barber by trade and one of the ten chief disciples of the Buddha, was the first in charge of reciting and reviewing the vinaya.
sk विश्वकर्मा Viśvakarmā, 'all maker'
Vishvakarma or Vishvakarman is a craftsman deity, "The Architect", "The Divine Engineer of the Universe", earlier known as Tvastar. He is credited to have crafted all of the chariots of the devas, and weapons including the Vajra of god Indra, and was related to the sun god Surya.
King Norodom of Cambodia believed that the Khmer Royal Sacred Sword ( ព្រះខ័នរាជ្យ, Preah Khan Reach), the double-edge straight sword with a chiseled steel blade sheathed in a jeweled gold scabbard tjhat disappeared from the Royal Palace in 1970, had been made by Vishvakarma.
Vishwakarma or Visvhvakarma was an important deity in 12-13th c Lopburi Kingdom. In modern South India, the Vishwakarma or Vishwabrahmin community comprises five subgroups—carpenters, blacksmiths, bronze smiths, goldsmiths and stonemasons— claiming to be descendants of Vishvakarma, the builder and architect of heavenly realm.
okh: vnaṃ ~ vnaṃm ~ vnam ~ bnaṃ ~ branomya, mkh: ភ្នំ bhnaṃ /pʰnʊm/ ``n. mountain, hill''
1 n. Height, high place, hill, eminence, mount, mountain. 2 n. Temple-mountain, sanctuary.
sk वास्तु vāstu 'residence', 'reality', 'site', 'essence' | pl vatthu, 'physical base', 'land', 'plot for school-temple' | kh វត្ត vat 'monastery' | th วัด wat 'monastery'.
Wat (or Vat) : temple, pagoda, Khmer Theravada monastery consisting of the religious buildings and the monks' cells.
Vatthu, the Pali origin of the term, both in Khmer and Thai, has a complex Sanskrit etymology, possibly sk वाट vāṭa, 'debate', 'exposition of the truth', 'enclosure', while sk वास्तु vāstu refers to "dwelling", "place fit for the dwelling of gods and humans." In Tantric texts, vastu refers to the “subtle reality”, or "reality conceived by the mind alone."
Angkor Wat, originally dedicated to Vishnu, has since become known as 'the city which is a (Buddhist) monastery'.
th เวียง weiyng 'fortified city' | lo ວຽງ viang 'rampart'
Wiang: fortified temple. In Lao language, a city, like in Wiang Chan (ວຽງຈັນ), Vientiane, the capital city of modern Laos.
sk यक्ष yakṣa 'semi-god' | th ยักษ์ yok 'ogre, ogress' | kh យក្ស yoksa, yeak 'giant'
Yakṣa or Yaksha:
1) semi-godly inhabitants of Brahmanic Heaven, a type of Upadevas, the third class after Devas and Gaṇadevas. Among Upadevas, there are Vidyādharas, Apsaras, Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, Gandharvas, Kinnaras, Piśācas, Guhyakas, Siddhas and Bhūtas.
2) a class of demons, followers of Rudra (Śiva), their overlord, led by Kubera, a group of 'supernatural beings that cause illness' in Saivism; sometimes similar to Asuras.
3) in Buddhism, originally malevolent spirits or ghosts who came to protect the righteous, the attendants of Vaiśravaṇa, the guardian of the northern quarter.
4) In Cambodia and Thailand, as male or female supranatural beings with bulging eyes, they are often represented as guardians of pagodas. In Cambodian village festivities, the yeak are scarecrow-like figures or disguised people designed to ward off evil spirits. As they are meant to be 'big and ugly', they were often represented with European traits in the past.
sk यम yama 'The Binder', 'self-restraint', 'patience' | kh យមរាជ yomreach 'Lord Yom', 'Lord of Death'
Yama (यम)
In Cambodia, Yama (kh យមរាជ) is the king of the Dead, son of Surya reigning over the subterranean world. According to ethnologist Ang Choulean, Vraḥ Yamarāj or ‘King Yama’ is "the God closest to the Khmers", the one to these days invoked in "annual Pchum Ben (Fortnight of the Dead) and mortuary rituals. Yama astride his buffalo looms large in Angkorian lintels across the centuries as the god of death and justice and as the subject in imprecations aimed at transgressors and temple vandals." Prof. Ang Choulean remarked that in Cambodia, Yama's representations and altars, originally facing south like in Indian traditions, started to be oriented in the northeast direction from the 13th-14th centuries, emphasizing the promise of reincarnation over physical death.
sk यन्त्र yantra "sign", "diagram", "design", "device". | pa yant | kh យ័ន្ដ yan't "protective bareer"; សាក់យ័ន្ដ sakyant, "tattooed symbol".