The four stages of enlightenment in Theravada Buddhism are the four degrees of attainment of full enlightenment, the state of arhat, which a Buddhist can achieve during his lifetime.
These stages are called srotaapanna, sakadagamin, anagamin, and arhat.

Before the four stages

An ordinary person, or pathajana (pṛthagjana, puthujjana) is immersed in the endless cycle of samsara and is unable to free himself. By performing good or evil deeds in accordance with his desires, he is reborn in higher or lower worlds and abodes. Until he controls his consciousness, his goals are spontaneous, which leads to great suffering.

Noble people

Those who have entered the noble Eightfold Path become a "noble one" (āryapudgala, Pāli: ariyapuggala), who is already guaranteed to become an arhat, but not necessarily in this rebirth. This goal will be achieved depending on the achievements.

Those who entered the stream

The first stage is called Srotaāpanna (Pāli: Sotāpanna), literally meaning “one who has entered the stream” (enter: āpadyate, stream: srotas), according to the traditional metaphor that compares achieving enlightenment to crossing a stormy river. One who enters the stream opens his eyes to dharma (dharmacakṣus, Pāli dhammacakkhu).

Those who enter the stream are guaranteed enlightenment through no more than seven rebirths, and maybe sooner. At the same time, they will no longer be reborn in the unfortunate worlds of hellish beings, pretas or animals.

One can enter the stream by becoming a righteous person, learning about the Dharma, achieving the right state of mind, and practicing the Dharma in accordance with the Dharma.

One who has entered the stream receives his intellect strengthened by the teachings of the Buddha (samyagdṛṣṭi or sammādiṭṭhi, “right view”), he follows Buddhist morality (sila) and reveres the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha).

Once Upon a Time - Returning

Sakadagamins (sakṛdāgāmin, Pāli: sakadāgāmī) are those who will return one more time. Such people will be born exactly one more time in the human world, and then they will become arhats.

Non-returners

The third stage is the anagamins (anāgāmin, Pāli: anāgāmī), that is, those who will not come. Non-returners will not return to the human world or any world below it after death. They will be born in the Sphere of Forms in the worlds of Shudhavas (that is, in pure abodes), from where they will achieve nirvana. Some of them may be reborn in the higher worlds of Sudhavasa, but they will not be reborn in the lower worlds.

The Anagamins have already dropped the five obstacles that bind his consciousness to samsara. They are already partially enlightened, and all that remains for them is to achieve perfection and come to full enlightenment.

Arhats

The fourth stage is arhat, completely enlightened, who is completely freed from bondage and who after his departure (Sanskrit: parinirvāṇa?, Pāli: parinibbāna) will not be born in any world of samsara (saṃsāra?).

From a darkened being to a being enlightened. Hence the interest Buddhism to psychology and problems of consciousness. To problems that do not directly lead to liberation or are neutral regarding this goal, Buddhism was very cool. In response to... about cosmology are clearly permeated with archaic mythology, passed, however, through the prism of general ideological premises and doctrines Buddhism. Buddhists, in essence, did not create a new cosmology, but borrowed it from the pan-Indian cultural...

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There was an exchange of ideas between Indian seekers of truth, rather for the sake of cooperation to achieve a common goal ( enlightenment), than for the sake of defending claims to originality or to the primacy of individual teachers"; "According to Hindus, truth ... a high appreciation of correct knowledge, a critical attitude towards ritual, the absence of caste prejudices. As most researchers believe, Buddhism, in any case, arose later than such Upanishads as Brihadaranyaka, Chandogya, Kena, Katha, and...

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They found opponents to the orthodox Confucians, dedicated and faithful scholars, in the Buddhists and Taoists. In the 4th and 5th centuries Buddhism spread throughout Northern China. These lands, thanks to the Central Asian trade route, along which communication with India was carried out... 516 and 534 years. The Chan school placed primary emphasis on contemplation as the only and necessary path to enlightenment. Man had to discover, through contemplation, the germ of Buddha nature hidden in everyone. School...

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Mantrayana (Vehicle of secret words, Chariot of mantras), guhya mantrayana (Secret path of mantras), esoteric Buddhism, theoretical Buddhism, Buddhist tantrism, tantra. Name Tantrism right hand(dakshinachara, dakshinamarga) connected..., single-point consciousness. A vajra in the hands of great beings, buddhas, bodhisattvas or a bundle of vajras is considered a symbol of lightning, instant enlightenment, a weapon that conquers ignorance. Other names for vajra: dorje, dorje (Tibetan), ochir (Mongolian), dzingansi (whale), ...

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Which you visibly represent as the true embodiment of the truth, wisdom and compassion of all the Buddhas, saints, masters and enlightened creatures Don't worry if you can't visualize them very clearly, just fill your heart with their presence... and sink into the water, deeper and deeper. Imagine that by blessing your mind is transformed into the mind of the wisdom of this enlightened creatures. Practice Three The most important thing in this practice is to simply merge your mind with the mind of the wisdom of this pure...

Hello, dear readers – seekers of knowledge and truth!

Enlightenment is a key concept in various cultural, religious, and philosophical traditions; it is what thousands of people strive for. For many, it means searching for meaning in life. Trying to understand who they are and why they live in the world, many try to take the path to enlightenment.

Today we will learn what enlightenment is in Buddhism, what are its various interpretations how it is achieved in different schools of Buddhism. We invite you to follow us!

What it is

Bodhi, or Enlightenment, is a state of complete harmony and happiness, the main objective Buddhist spiritual path. According to Buddhist descriptions, in comparison with this feeling, any, even the most joyful, earthly experience becomes suffering.

It is believed that due to emotional perception, bodhi cannot be expressed in words. One can only write parables about him, speak metaphorically and allegorically.

Sanskrit "bodhi", which became important word in Buddhist philosophy, literally translated into Russian means “awakening.” The question immediately arises: “Awakening from what?” “From the sleep of ignorance,” answers the Buddhist tradition.

Ignorance is the main cause of suffering, confusion in the world and in people’s thoughts; in other words, it is the cause of samsara. It gives rise to stupidity, narrow-mindedness, darkness, and the inability to see the essence, the good side, in objects and events.

Confusion arises in the recognition of good and evil, making a person narrow-minded and concentrated on things that only seem useful to him, while he is blind to the rest.

In turn, this attitude and worldview fuels indifference and hatred. In the pursuit of things, a person begins to think that this is the meaning of life, and if he fails to achieve what he wants, then anger arises.

Destructive emotions destroy the mind. Their name is ignorance, dependence, anger. They cause a chain reaction of jealousy, stinginess, envy, malice.

All this puts a person into a state of deep negative trance, which is similar to a restless sleep. The person who awakens from this dream is called Buddha. Negative feelings, like thunderclouds, dissipate, and light appears to his world.

On the contrary, qualities are timeless, absolute, pure, and carry purity. It is believed that they are already embedded in everyone; you just need to “reach out” to them, reveal them. These feelings, called "Buddha Nature", contribute to the achievement of enlightenment:

• joy;
• wisdom;
• sympathy;
• courage.

Thanks to them, you can learn to see objects and phenomena as they are. The world opens up to a person, trust increases, and life meaning is found.

The state of enlightenment was “discovered” by the founder of an entire doctrine, a centuries-old philosophy that found millions of followers and became a world religion. His name is familiar to everyone - . He was the first to be able to abstract himself from the familiar world and free himself from the feelings that interfered with him.

He shared with his students how to achieve this state. He needed three important components of his own spiritual powers:

• meditation;
• knowledge;
• behavior.

Vision of different schools

By his example, Buddha Shakyamuni showed his followers that with persistent practice the capabilities of the human spirit expand. The pose in which the Buddha sat while meditating on the path to awakening was depicted in many canons and was used as practical guide to find it .

Later, the Buddha's tradition was divided into major movements: Mahayana, Theravada and Vajrayana. Each of them interprets enlightenment and its signs in a slightly different way.

This vision is held mainly by southern Buddhists: Sri Lankan, Burmese, Thai, Cambodian and Laotian.

The school teaches with each transformation to develop good qualities, wisdom, compassion, and give a mindset for awakening. She sees signs of enlightenment not only in the ability to be happy herself, but also to feel the happiness of others.

The achievement of knowledge lies through the Eightfold Path revered here. The soul needs to go beyond the intellect, which is always dual - it separates the subjective and objective sides. Collections of sayings that can help the mind are contained in the sutras.

This understanding was formulated by the great guru from India Nagarjuna, who lived in the 2nd-3rd centuries AD. The interpretation is supported by people from countries to the north: Buddhists of the Chinese, Tibetan, Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean, and Vietnamese persuasion.

Representatives of the movement form the postulates of other teachings of Buddhist philosophy, which are based on tantric traditions.

This also includes the directions that are called Great:

• Seal - it is also called Mahamudra, and it goes back to the Kagyu movement.
• Perfection – Also known as Dzogchen, and later used in the Tibetan Nyingma movement.
• The Middle Path ascends in its entirety to the Jonang River.

These directions were sacredly preserved by the Tibetan lamas, and perhaps that is the only reason they have survived to this day.

In the Vajrayana school, meditations to achieve enlightenment are tantric in nature and become identical to the awakened images of the Buddhas. This practice is used in the Tibetan, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Mongolian and Russian incarnations of Buddhist teachings.

The direction is separate. This, in turn, is one of the directions of Mahayana Buddhism originally from China. In the general understanding, Zen is the teaching of enlightenment. It is often called the school of mystical contemplation.

Bodhidharma, the second “father” of Zen Buddhism after the Buddha, spoke of the uselessness of sacred sutras, traditions and the transition to direct awakening through contemplation within oneself.

Enlightenment in this teaching is everything, and it is called “satori”. There are two types of satori: small - when a flash of insight occurs only for a short period of time - and large - this is enlightenment in the sense familiar to other adherents of Buddhism.

As you can see, the concept of enlightenment in different directions of Buddhism carries with it a little different meaning. We will definitely talk about each direction in more detail in subsequent articles, but for today it’s time to end our conversation.

Conclusion

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Different religious movements and philosophical schools have different understandings of this difficult issue. They contain people’s attempts to understand what a person is and why he exists on this planet.

What is enlightenment?

In everyday life, enlightenment is understood as revelations that a person has received, a different view or a new understanding of familiar things. In philosophical schools and spiritual practices this phenomenon has a different meaning. In them, enlightenment is directly linked to the meaning of life, so it receives a primary role in the life of every person. From this point of view, enlightenment is going beyond the ordinary, realizing oneself as part of the universe, higher wisdom, higher existence.

Enlightenment in Christianity

The concept of enlightenment in Christianity differs significantly from the interpretation of this concept in Eastern practices. Enlightenment in Orthodoxy is an attempt to understand the Divine essence, to get as close to God as possible and to fulfill His will. Enlightened men of faith include the following saints: John Chrysostom, Simeon the New Theologian, Sergius of Radonezh, etc. Thanks to a deep understanding of the will of God and humility, these saints were able to achieve enlightenment, which manifested itself in the form of healing the sick, resurrecting the dead and other miracles.

Enlightenment in Christianity is inseparable from baptism and is associated with the cleansing of a person from all sinful things and the filling of his essence with Divine love. According to Orthodox spiritual fathers, only the Almighty knows when a person is ready to become enlightened. In this matter, one must completely rely on God and not try to achieve this on one’s own. The fact that a person has become enlightened can be recognized by his actions: they will be humble and aimed at benefiting people.

Enlightenment in Buddhism

Unlike the understanding of enlightenment in Christianity, enlightenment in Buddhism is associated with the individual. According to the Buddhist tradition, this state is accompanied by a feeling of unimaginable happiness, next to which ordinary earthly happiness is felt as suffering. The state of enlightenment is difficult to describe in human language, so it is spoken of only through parables or metaphors.

Buddha Shakyamuni's enlightenment was the first in the history of Buddhism. Shakyamuni was able to achieve liberation and go beyond the usual world. The Buddha's main strength on the path of enlightenment was meditation. It helps to translate spiritual thoughts from logical understanding into personal experience. In addition to meditation, Shakyamuni pointed out the importance of such methods as knowledge and behavior for enlightenment.

Enlightenment in Islam

As in other religions, at the center of Islam is enlightenment - fana. Allah himself chooses the person on whom he will bring enlightenment. The criterion for readiness for fana is a person’s desire to reach a new stage of his development and readiness for this. A person’s heart that is open to the influence of Allah allows him to new world. An enlightened person with whom he is ready to serve people, and super-love for all living things.

Enlightenment myth or reality?

Enlightenment from a scientific point of view is the discovery of something new or a different perspective on familiar things. From this position, enlightenment has nothing supernatural in itself and is a normal work of our mind. In spiritual practices, enlightenment has a different meaning and content. It is associated with higher powers and helps people find and realize their purpose on this planet.

Enlightenment is a reality for many religious people who devote themselves to serving God and people. Using the example of enlightened spiritual teachers, you can learn to expand the scope of your consciousness and open your heart to the influence of higher powers. For people who are not interested in the spiritual side of life, enlightenment may seem like a myth. This view may be due to conservative thinking and lack of knowledge regarding this issue.

Psychology of Enlightenment

The path to enlightenment often begins with dissatisfaction with life and one's place in it. Reading smart books, psychological lectures and seminars on self-development, conversations with wise people can help a person get closer to answering questions of interest, but all this is just the beginning of the journey. A personal constant search for one’s life vector one day leads a person’s brain to a new understanding. The road to enlightenment often takes long time, and sometimes for the rest of your life. The reward of this path is a renewed mind and harmony with the world.

Enlightenment or schizophrenia?

No matter how strange it may seem, spiritual enlightenment and schizophrenia have three similar features:

1. Depersonalization- getting rid of one's own self.
2. Derealization– perception of the surrounding world as unreal, blurry.
3. Mental anesthesia– reduction in the strength of emotional experiences.

To differentiate between these two phenomena, the following components should be analyzed:

1. Cause. The cause of schizophrenia is often negative. The reason for enlightenment is the desire to make the world a better place, to become a more spiritual person.
2. Vote. With schizophrenia, a person hears voices calling for aggressive or inappropriate actions. An enlightened person hears a voice from above calling for good or improvement.
3. Mission. In schizophrenia, a person's interests revolve around his own self, even if the patient sees himself as someone else. An enlightened person strives to help others.

Signs of enlightenment

Buddhists say that it is impossible to describe in words what happens at the moment of enlightenment. This is due to the fact that the emotions and feelings experienced during the process of enlightenment are incomparable to the emotions we are used to. Among the signs of enlightenment are the following:

• spiritual priorities begin to dominate over material ones;
• periodically altered consciousnesses appear, in which new truths or their depth are revealed to a person;
• appear unusual abilities to creation, creation, healing;
• character changes, bad habits appear, go away;
• an enlightened person sees divine wisdom in everything.

How to achieve enlightenment?

A person who wants to achieve enlightenment must go through the following steps:

1. Wishing for enlightenment with all my heart. To do this, enlightenment of consciousness should be made a top priority.
2. Trust in the matter of enlightenment to higher powers. Only God knows when a person is close to enlightenment.
3. Try to give your life under the control of divine forces. Draw closer to God through humility and deepening contact through prayer or meditation.
4. Engage in self-development, work on your character. A pure heart helps one to be more receptive to the influence of the Spirit.

Paths to human enlightenment

Spiritual teachers of various religious movements believe that enlightenment techniques are only a tool that does not provide any guarantee of success. Enlightenment is individual, it comes unexpectedly and has no exact reason. The following techniques can help you find a direct path to enlightenment:

• prayer;
• fast;
• relaxation;
• meditation;
• self-knowledge techniques;
• purification of consciousness;
• yoga nidra technique;
• getting rid of the negativity of the past;
• repetition of the names of God.

How to live after enlightenment?

Enlightened people are not transferred from this sinful planet to another. They have to continue to live among the same environment in the same area. Only a few spiritual teachers who have achieved enlightenment go to desert areas, but often this is done only for a while. The mission of enlightened people is to bring new knowledge and a new understanding of life to the world. After enlightenment, new abilities may open up that need to be used to help other people.

Enlightened people note that after their spiritual experience, it becomes much easier for them to live in this world. Their Ego and desires cease to control all actions. All necessary things are done without laziness and apathy. Life becomes more harmonious and understandable. A person stops worrying and being nervous, as he begins to realize the essence of his life and his mission.

Books about enlightenment

Many books have been written about enlightenment and how to achieve it. They all help you find yours personal journey in this matter and rise to a new stage of their development. The top 5 best books about enlightenment include:

1. Hawkins D. “From despair to enlightenment. Evolution of Consciousness". The book describes practical methods on how to come to an awareness of the meaning of your existence.
2. Eckhart Tolle "The Power of Now". In this book, a man past the path enlightenment, simple and interesting language talks about the path to enlightenment he followed and what awareness of life includes.
3. Jed McKenna "Spiritual Enlightenment: A Nasty Thing". The book debunks many of the myths that have grown up around enlightenment. The author tries to help people seeking awareness find the right path and start moving along it.
4. Nisargadatta Maharaj "I Am That". The author pushes a person to think about his true purpose. It makes you look deep into yourself and realize the need to study your inner world.
5. Valery Prosvet “Enlightenment in half an hour”. The author invites readers to pay attention inward and engage in self-development. To do this, the book describes various techniques, methods of self-knowledge and work on oneself.

Originally, a stupa (Pali thupa, Tib. chorten) was a mound containing the remains of a holy person or objects associated with his life. Over the centuries, the stupa was transformed into tall monuments with spiers, reminiscent of temples in Thailand, Sri Lanka, Korea, and Japan. In Buddhism, it became a symbol of the universe, schematically expressed by the stepped structure of the stupa. The stupa symbolizes the universal Mount Sumeru. The architecture of a stupa may vary from country to country, but its five components always remain: the base, the staircase (steps), the dome (hemisphere), the spire and the finial. In Buddhism, these parts of the stupa are assigned different meanings. For example, correspondence with the five primary elements: the base corresponds to the element Earth; staircase - with Water; dome - with Fire; spire – with the element Wind (Air); the top is with Space. Or another relationship: the basis is the obscurations of the mind; the staircase and dome are the beginning of the path to an enlightened state of mind; the spire is the state of a bodhisattva, the pommel is the state of a Buddha.

Thus, the stupa is also a symbol of the Enlightened Mind of the Buddha. Buddhist texts mention that after the cremation of the Buddha's body, his remains were divided into eight parts, each of which was placed in a special stupa. These relics became objects of worship for Buddhists.

The relics placed in the Stupas of Enlightenment represent objects of faith: the relics of Buddhist saints, objects they used, sacred texts.

During the spread of Buddhism, stupas with relics were a symbol of adherence to the Dharma and contributed to the acquisition of good motivation and merit. It is mentioned that the Indian king Ashoka, after meeting Guru Rinpoche, acquired a deep commitment to the Teachings of the Buddha and built a million stupas during his lifetime. Now stupas can be found wherever Buddhism is widespread, and they also appeared in Europe. The construction of stupas is accompanied by special religious rituals.

For example, Borobudur- Buddhist temple of the Mahayana school tradition. Borobudur is located on the island of Java in Indonesia in the Central Java province. Borobudur was built as a huge stupa, which is made in the shape of a giant mandala. To this day, Borobudur is a place of pilgrimage and prayer.

1. Three Realms in Buddhist Cosmology

The concept of deva (gods) is not associated with natural beings, but from the point of view of people they are compared in power and happiness with people. Devas are divided into many different worlds and classes, a complex hierarchy has been developed. Devas of the lower rank are closer in nature to people. In some works, asuras are also considered gods.

People previously also possessed many of the powers and capabilities of devas - they did not require food, emitted light, could fly - but all this was lost, from eating dense food their bodies became coarser, and their magical powers dried up. Devas are divided into three spheres according to their place of birth and habitat.

1) Sphere of the sensual

The devas of the Sphere of the sensual (Kamadhatu) have bodies like people, but they are larger than people. Their life is also similar to the life of people, but much more meaningful, including many pleasures. In this area, the “demon” Mara plays an important role.

The lowest worlds of the gods, the Spheres of the Sensible, are located around Mount Sumeru in the very center of the Earth. The gods of Mount Sumeru are very cheerful and emotional, they enjoy themselves, they can compete and fight. In a narrower sense, only the gods of the Sphere of the sensual are called devas; the gods of the higher worlds are called brahmans.

The inhabitants are subject to severe torment due to their karmic deeds (i.e. past life). It is generally believed that the hellish dungeons in this world are located under the continent of Jambudvipa. There are eight hot and eight cold hells, as well as additional hells of varying degrees of severity and varying lengths of punishment.

Earthly abiding places (pretas - hungry ghosts, people, animals)

Locations around Mount Sumeru

The world of the asuras lies at the foot of Mount Sumeru and partly in the depths of the ocean. These are low-ranking deities, demons, titans. Asuras, jealous of the gods, show anger, pride, belligerence and boasting; they are interested in power and self-exaltation. They fight all the time to return to their former place of residence, but they are unable to pass through the guards of the world of the Four Heavenly Kings.

Four Heavenly Kings

The world of the four kings is located on the slopes of Mount Sumeru, but its inhabitants live in the air around the mountain. This world is ruled by Four Kings, whose names are Virudhaka, Dhritarashtra, Virupaksha and their leader Vaishravana. In this world there also live the gods accompanying the Sun and the Moon, and the creatures subordinate to the kings - kumbhandas, gandharvas, nagas (serpent dragons) and yakshas. The sky bird Garuda also belongs to this world. Four kings guard the four continents and do not allow the asuras to enter higher worlds gods.

Thirty-three gods

The World of the Thirty-Three Devas is a wide, flat area on top of Mount Sumeru, filled with palaces and gardens. The ruler of this world is Sakra, the lord of the gods. In addition to the thirty-three gods themselves, who own the corresponding sectors of the sky, many other gods and fantastic creatures live in this world, including their assistants and nymphs (apsaras). They are compared to the Greek Olympian gods.

Heaven (devas)

The heavens (devas) include the four worlds that float through the air above Mount Sumeru.

Heaven of the Pit

The world of Yama is also called the “heaven without battles” because it is the first level physically separated from the problems of the earthly world. The world of Yama is ruled by the deva Suyama; his wife is a reincarnation of Sirima, a courtesan from Rajagriha who was very generous to the monks in the time of the Buddha.

Heaven Tushita

Gods of the state of bliss - The world of cheerful devas. The Bodhisattva was born in this world before descending into the human world. Several thousand years ago, the Bodhisattva of this world was Shvetaketu, who was reborn as Siddhartha and became Shakyamuni Buddha.

Heaven Nirmanarati

The Gods live here, enjoying magical creations. These gods can do anything for their own pleasure. The ruler of this world is called Sunirmita.

Heaven Parinimithra-vashavartin

The Gods live here, controlling the pleasures magically created by others. These gods do not create new magical forms to please themselves, but their desires are satisfied by the actions of other devas for their sake. The ruler of this world is called Vashvartin, he lives the longest, who is the most powerful and happy and joyful and enthusiastic compared to all the devas. And in this world there is also a home for a being belonging to the race of devas, named Mara, who strives to keep all beings in the Sphere of the senses, tying them to sensual pleasures.

2) Sphere of Forms

The sphere of forms (Rupadhatu) is above the sphere of the sensory; the devas beyond the sensory are called brahmas. The gods of the sphere of forms have bodies, but are genderless; they lack passions, desires, and feelings. They live in their 16 or 17 heavens, divided into four levels of dhyana - meditative concentration.

The devas of the higher heavens are divided into groups (dhyanas), within this group they actively communicate with each other, but they do not see the higher worlds and may not even know about their existence. For this reason, Brahmins are sometimes filled with pride, imagining themselves to be the creators of the Universe and all the worlds below them, because they appear before the lower worlds come into existence. Especially the inhabitants of the higher worlds of each dhyana are filled with such pride, which is why the higher worlds of dhyanas are sometimes considered unfavorable for meditation.

First Dhyana: Three Worlds Brahma, in the highest of which lives the Great Brahma, the “creator” of the world, the devas of this world are more busy with the affairs of the lower worlds and the process of creation. In polemics with other non-Buddhist schools, the Great Brahma is identified with the Creator.

Second Dhyana: Three Worlds Abhasvara, characterized by admiration and joy. These creatures have bodies and emit light in flashes like lightning.

Third Dhyana: Three Worlds Shubhakritsna characterized by calm joy. These creatures have bodies and emit constant light.

Fourth Dhyana: Three Worlds Brihatphala characterized by equanimity. These places of residence are no longer subject to destruction by the wind at the end of the great kalpa, and the beings present here are saved from destruction.

The five highest places are called Suddhavasa(“Pure Abodes”). Their inhabitants are the non-returners (anagamins), who have already taken the path of the arhat, those who will receive enlightenment directly from Shuddhavas and will not be reborn in the lower worlds. Since Shuddhavasa deva is never born outside the world of Shuddhavasa, he cannot be born as a human being, so the Bodhisattva will never be born in this world - the Bodhisattva must appear in the human world. The defenders of Buddhism live in these worlds.

3 ) Sphere of Formlessness

This sphere is not located anywhere in the physical world, and none of the creatures has a specific place, so they only talk about levels spheres of the absence of forms, emphasizing that in this sphere no residence. These four meditational absorptions of devas (gods) top level into immaterial reality can arise in the form of a reward for very good karma. Although these states are the height of achievement in meditation, and are sometimes confused with nirvana, it is still not nirvana and sooner or later a loss of stability and rebirth in the lower levels of samsara will follow. Therefore, the Mahayana attitude towards these four states of consciousness is rather negative, because staying in these states is very long and meaningless from the point of view of saving all living beings from samsara. Beings of the immaterial sphere do not have support in any material object and do not have support in the body, and their states are self-sufficient - they receive pleasure from their states as such and strive to prolong them as much as possible, therefore the periods of stay in these states are enormous. Ordinary living beings cannot Only yogis who engage in special meditation in a marginal form can be reborn in this sphere. There are four types of gods (devas) of the sphere of the absence of forms, corresponding to the four dhyanas: Sphere of Infinite Space, Sphere of Infinite Consciousness, A sphere where there is nothing And The realm where there is neither perception nor non-perception. The highest two states were achieved by the teacher Buddha, taking them for Nirvana.