China: Arhats Laundering, a painting of five Buddhist arhats and their attendant, by Lin Tinggui, 1178 CE, Song Dynasty

Arhat in Buddhism signifies a spiritual practitioner who has realized certain high stages of attainment. The implications of the term vary based on the respective schools and traditions. In Theravada Buddhism, it means anyone who has reached the total Awakening and attained Nirvana, including the Buddha. An ‘arahant’ is a person who has destroyed greed, hatred, and delusion - the unwholesome roots which underlie all fetters - who upon decease will not be reborn in any world, having wholly cut off all fetters that bind a person to the samsara—the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Credit:

Pictures From History

Theme:

Silk Road,