What is a bodhisattva?

A bodhisattva (in Pali, bodhisatta) is a being who is on the way to becoming a fully awakened buddha. The word combines bodhi, “awakening”, and sattva, “being”.

In the early texts

In the Pali suttas, the word is used mainly for the Buddha himself before his awakening. He often recalls the time before his awakening, when he was still a bodhisatta, still seeking the way. The Jātaka tales describe his many earlier lives, in which he developed qualities such as generosity, patience and wisdom over a very long time.

In the Theravada tradition, these qualities are called the ten perfections, or pāramī. Theravada recognises that some people take up the long path to buddhahood, but most practitioners aim to become arahants, awakened disciples who follow the teaching of the Buddha Gotama.

The Mahayana ideal

In Mahayana Buddhism, the bodhisattva becomes the central ideal for everyone. A bodhisattva is moved by compassion to seek awakening not only for their own sake but for the sake of all beings. This motivation is called bodhicitta, the mind of awakening.

Mahayana texts describe a bodhisattva developing six perfections: generosity, ethical conduct, patience, energy, meditation and wisdom. Many practitioners take formal bodhisattva vows. A widely chanted version expresses the wish to save all beings, however countless they are.

Celestial bodhisattvas

Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions also honour great bodhisattvas who are seen as having developed these qualities to an extraordinary degree. Avalokiteshvara, known as Guanyin in China and Kannon in Japan, embodies compassion. Mañjuśrī embodies wisdom. Maitreya is expected to be the next buddha in this world. Devotees turn to them for inspiration and help, and many people find in them a picture of what a compassionate, wise mind looks like.

The ideal in everyday life

You do not have to take a vow to be moved by the bodhisattva ideal. At its heart is a simple question: how can my practice benefit others as well as myself? Patience with a difficult colleague, generosity to a stranger and steady effort in meditation can all be seen as part of this path. Traditions describe the ideal in different ways, but all share the aim of ending suffering.