The ten perfections

The ten perfections, in Pali pāramī or pāramitā, are qualities of character developed over a long time on the way to awakening. In the Theravada tradition they are the qualities the Buddha is said to have perfected over many lifetimes as a bodhisattva, a being on the way to buddhahood. They are also a practical guide for anyone wishing to grow in goodness.

The ten

1. Generosity (dāna): giving material things, time, care and teaching.
2. Virtue (sīla): ethical conduct, keeping the precepts.
3. Renunciation (nekkhamma): letting go of sense pleasures and simplifying life.
4. Wisdom (paññā): understanding things as they are.
5. Energy (viriya): persistent, wholehearted effort.
6. Patience (khanti): forbearance with people, difficulties and oneself.
7. Truthfulness (sacca): honesty in speech and in life.
8. Resolve (adhiṭṭhāna): firm determination to keep to the path.
9. Loving-kindness (mettā): goodwill towards all beings.
10. Equanimity (upekkhā): a balanced mind in good times and bad.

Where the list comes from

The list of ten is found in later texts of the Pali Canon and in the commentaries, rather than in the earliest suttas, although each quality is taught throughout the early texts. The Jātaka tales, stories of the Buddha’s past lives, are traditionally read as illustrations of the perfections. The last ten of these stories are each associated with one perfection. The best known, the story of Prince Vessantara, shows generosity taken to its furthest point.

The six perfections in the Mahayana

Mahayana Buddhism usually teaches six perfections: generosity, ethical conduct, patience, energy, meditative concentration and wisdom. Some Mahayana texts add four more to make ten, matching the ten stages of the bodhisattva path. In the Mahayana, the perfection of wisdom (prajñāpāramitā) is seen as what makes the others truly “perfect”: giving, for example, becomes a perfection when done without clinging to the idea of a giver, a gift and a receiver.

Practising the perfections

The perfections are not only for saints or future Buddhas. They describe a good life in very ordinary terms. Some practitioners choose one perfection to focus on for a week or a month, noticing opportunities to practise it. Others reflect on the list at the end of the day. Many people find that the perfections support one another: generosity loosens clinging, patience protects virtue, and loving-kindness makes all of them warmer.