The word Bhagavan (; ), also spelt as Bhagwan (sometimes translated in English as "Lord", "God"), is an epithet within Indian religions used to denote figures of religious worship. In Hinduism it is used to signify a deity or an avatar, particularly for Krishna and Vishnu in Vaishnavism, Shiva in Shaivism and Durga or Adi Shakti in Shaktism.James Lochtefeld (2000), "Bhagavan", The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing. , page 94Friedhelm Hardy (1990), The World's Religions: The Religions of Asia, Routledge, , pages 79-83 In Jainism the term refers to the Tirthankaras, and in Buddhism to the Buddha.
In many parts of India and South Asia, Bhagavan represents the concept of a universal God or Divine to Hindus who are spiritual and religious but do not worship a specific deity.
In bhakti school literature, the term is typically used for any deity to whom prayers are offered. A particular deity is often the devotee's one and only Bhagavan. The female equivalent of Bhagavān is Bhagavatī.Friedhelm Hardy (1990), The World's Religions: The Religions of Asia, Routledge, , page 84Sarah Caldwell (1998), Bhagavati, in Devi: Goddesses of India (Editors: John Stratton Hawley, Donna Marie Wulff), Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 195-198 To some Hindus, the word Bhagavan is an abstract, genderless concept of God.
In Buddhism's Pali and Sanskrit scriptures, the term is used to denote The Buddha, referring him as Bhagavā or Bhagavān (translated with the phrase "Lord" or "The Blessed One").The latter term preferred by Bhikkhu Bodhi in his English translations of the Pali CanonJu-Hyung Rhi (1994), From Bodhisattva to Buddha: The Beginning of Iconic Representation in Buddhist Art, Artibus Asiae, Vol. 54, No. 3/4, pages 207-225 The term Bhagavan is also found in Theravada, Mahayana and Tantra Buddhist texts.
Etymology and meaning Bhagavān, nominative singular of the adjective Bhagavat, literally means "fortunate", "blessed" (from the noun , meaning "fortune", "wealth"), and hence "illustrious", "divine", "venerable", "holy", etc.Macdonell Sanskrit-English dictionary Bhagavān is related to the root Bhaj (भज्, "to revere", "adore"), and implies someone "glorious", "illustrious", "revered", "venerable", "divine", "holy" (an epithet applied to gods, holy or respectable personages). The root Bhaj also means "share with", "partake of", "aportion".bhaj, Sanskrit-English Dictionary, CologneFrancis Clooney and Tony Stewart, in S Mittal and GR Thursby (Editors): The Hindu World, Routledge, , pages 163-178 Clooney and Stewart state that this root, in Vaishnava traditions, implies Bhagavān as one perfect creator that a devotee seeks to partake from, share his place with, by living in god, in the way of god, the loving participation between the two being its own reward.
The Vishnu Purana defines Bhagavān as follows,
The same text defines Bhaga and provides the etymological roots as follows as translated by Wilson,
Buddha is referred to as Bhagavan in ancient and medieval Theravada, Mahayana and Tantra Buddhist texts, where it connotes, "Lord", "Blessed One", "Fortunate One".Peter Harvey, Buddhism, Bloomsbury Academic, , page 4D Keown (2008), A Dictionary of Buddhism, Oxford University Press, , page 31
Hinduism
Literature The Vedic texts neither mention nor provide a basis to explain the origin of the Bhagavān concept.
Upanishads
The root of "Bhagavan", "Bhaga" is mentioned in the Mundaka Upanishad, but it does not mean or imply "Bhagavan"':
The Mundaka Upanishad then answers this question in two parts over verses 1.1.4 through 3.2.11.Max Muller, The Upanishads, Part 2, Mundaka Upanishad, Oxford University Press These verses split knowledge into two sections: lower knowledge and higher knowledge. Lower knowledge includes Vedas, phonetics, grammar, etymology, meter, astronomy and ceremony rituals. The higher knowledge indicates, the Upanishad asserts, is Self-knowledge and realizing its oneness with Brahman—the one which cannot be seen, nor seized, which has no origin, no qualities, no hips, nor ears, no hands, nor feet, one that is the eternal, all-pervading, infinitesimal, imperishable.
The term Bhagavān appears in Shvetashvatara Upanishad verse 5.4:
Later and medieval era Upanishads mention Bhagavān. For example, the very first verse of the Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa Upaniṣhad uses the term, as follows,
Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa, a minor Upanishad, then proceeds to disclose, among other things, two Bhagavan names in the Hare Krishna mantra in verse 2.Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare HareHare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare This verse is sung by International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) devotees.
Purana
In Bhagavata Dharma, it denotes Narayana Vasudeva's four vyuha formations. Ishvara or God is called Bhagavan and the person dedicated to Bhagavan is called a Bhagavata. The Bhagavata Purana (I.iii.28) identifies Krishna as Narayana, Vāsudeva, Vishnu and Hari—Bhagavan present in human form. Bhagavan is the complete revelation of the Divine; Brahman, the impersonal Absolute, is unqualified and therefore, never expressed. Paramatman is Bhagavan in relation to Prakṛti and the Jiva. The Yoga of Devotion implies that if a Bhagavata, the devotee of Bhagavan, seeks and longs for Bhagavan, then Bhagavan too seeks his devotee in equal measure.
Bhagavad Gita
The term Bhagavan appears extensively in the Bhagavad Gita, as Krishna counsels Arjuna. For example,
Vaishnavism
The Bhagavata tradition of Hinduism invoke Bhagavan in the Bhagavad Gita and the Bhishma Parva of the Mahabharata. The devotion to Vishnu (identified as Vasudeva in the Mahabharata) is elaborated to mean the ten incarnations of the deity. This tradition introduced the chaturvyuha concept and laid emphasis on the worship of the five Vrishni warriors, which reached the peak of its popularity during the Gupta Period.
Significance In Hinduism, the word, Bhagavān, indicates the Supreme Being or Absolute Truth conceived as a Personal God.Who is Krishna? "God the person, or Bhagavan" This personal feature indicated by the word Bhagavān differentiates its usage from other similar termsBhag-P 1.2.11 "Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this the non-dual "Brahman", "Paramatmān " or "Bhagavān" such as Brahman, the "Supreme Spirit" or "spirit", and thus, in this usage, Bhagavan is analogous to the Christian concept of God the Father. In Vaisnavism, a devotee of Bhagvān Krishna is called a Bhāgavata.
The Bhagavata Purana (1.2.11) states the definition of Bhagavān to mean the supreme being: The Learned Know the Absolute Truth call this non-dual substance Brahman, Paramatma or Bhagavan./ / / Bhagavān used as a title of veneration is often directly used as Lord, as in Bhagavān Rama, Bhagavān Krishna, Bhagavān Shiva, etc. In Buddhism and Jainism, Gautama Buddha, Mahavira and other Tirthankaras, Buddhas and bodhisattvas are also venerated with this title. The feminine of Bhagavat is Bhagawatī and is an epithet of Durga and other goddesses. This title is also used by a number of contemporary spiritual teachers in India who claim to be Bhagavan or have realized impersonal Brahman. The use of term bhagavān also permeates into certain worldly titles such as Seri Begawan () historically granted to living kings abdicating to their princes in Malay kingdoms; the most recent and famous use is by Omar Ali Saifuddien III of Brunei namesake of its capital Bandar Seri Begawan.
Bhakti (devotion to God) consists of actions performed in dedication to the Paramatman, the individuated existence with free-will, and who is the final cause of the world; the Vedic Rishis describe the goals originating from God as Bhagavān, and the Ananda aspect of God where God has manifested His personality is called Bhagavān when consciousness (pure self-awareness) aligns with those goals to cause the unified existence and commencement of works follow.
Buddhism
Literature
Bhagavān in Buddhist texts
In Pali Literature Bhagava is the Pali word used for Bhagavan. Some Buddhist texts, such as the Pali suttas, use the word Bhagavā for the Buddha, meaning "the fortunate one". The term Bhagavā has been used in Pali Anussati or recollections as one of the terms that describes the "Tathāgata" as one full of good qualities, as arahant, sammā-sambuddho and sugato (Dīgha Nikāya II.93).
Bhagavan is one of the nine qualities of the Buddha. In the Buddha Anussati, Bhagavan is defined the following way:
Thus is the Buddha, deserving homage, perfectly awakened, perfect in true knowledge and conduct, well gone to Nibbana, knower of the worlds, incomparable leader (lit. charioteer) of persons to be tamed, teacher of gods and humans, awakened one and Blessed One.
In Sanskrit Literature Several Tibetan Buddhist tantra texts use the word Bhagavān. For example, the Pradipoddyotana manuscript of Guhyasamāja tantra-Samdhivyakarana uses the word Bhagavān, which Alex Wayman translates as "Lord".Alex Wayman (1974), Two Traditions of India: Truth and Silence Philosophy East and West, Vol. 24, No. 4 (Oct., 1974), pages 389-403, for the original verse see footnote 13 on page 402, for Wayman's translation, see page 391 The text, elsewhere refers to "Bhagavan Sarvatathagatakayavakcittadipatih", which John Campbell translates as "Lord, Master of the Vajras of Body, Speech, and Mind of all Buddhas."John Campbell (2009), Vajra hermeneutics: A study of Vajrayana scholasticism in the "Pradipoddyotana", PhD Thesis accepted by Columbia University (Advisor: Robert Thurman), page 210 Elsewhere, it states,John Campbell (2009), Vajra hermeneutics: A study of Vajrayana scholasticism in the "Pradipoddyotana", PhD Thesis accepted by Columbia University (Advisor: Robert Thurman), page 355Christian K. Wedemeyer, Aryadeva's Lamp that Integrates the Practices (Caryamelapakapradlpa): The Gradual Path of Vajraydna Buddhism According to the Esoteric Community Noble Tradition, ed. Robert A. F. Thurman, Treasury of the Buddhist Sciences series (New York: The American Institute of Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, 2007),
The Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, a sutra of Mahāyāna Buddhism, uses the word Bhagavān over three hundred times. Scholars either leave the term untranslated or render it as "Lord" or "Blessed One."English Translation: Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Mahayana Lankavatara Sutra Ohio State University;Sanskrit: Lankavatara Sutra Archived original at a Buddhist Library in Russia The devotional text Sukhavati Vyuhopadesa by Vasubandhu uses the term Bhagavān in its invocations.Minoru Kiyota (2009), Mahāyāna Buddhist Meditation: Theory and Practice, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 274-275
Variants Other variants of the term Bhagavan, such as Bhagavant and Bhagavata can also be found throughout Buddhist texts. For instance, it is used in the initial chant, which is recited before almost every Sutta chanting,
Significance The term Bhagavān is found in liturgical practices of Theravada Buddhism, where it is used as an epithet that means the "Blessed One". Examples of such usage is found in Sri Lanka's Bodhi Puja (or Atavisi Buddha Puja, Worship of the Twenty Eight Buddhas).Frank Reynolds and Jason A. Carbine (2000), The Life of Buddhism, University of California Press, , pages 179-187
The word Bhagavan is the most common word for the Buddhist texts to refer to the Buddha. For example, almost every sutra in Buddhist canonical and commentarial texts starts with the line likeEvaṃ me suttaṃ – ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. (Pali)
evaṃ mayā śrutam | ekasmin samaye bhagavān śrāvastyāṃ viharati sma jetavane'nāthapiṇḍadasyārāme. (Sanskrit)
Thus have I heard - Once the Bhagavan was dwelling in Savatthi, at the Anathpindaka's monastery in Jetavana. (English Translation)
Inscriptions
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