upaya
Sign in to saveAlso known as expedient means, upāya, skilful means, skillful means, skill in means
In Buddhism, upaya (Sanskrit: उपाय, , expedient means, pedagogy) is an aspect of guidance along the Buddhist paths to liberation where a conscious, voluntary action "is driven by an incomplete reasoning" about its direction. Upaya is often used with kaushalya (कौशल्य, "cleverness"), upaya-kaushalya meaning "skill in means".
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Big 方便品第二 Accordion Book of Hokekyou or Lotus Sutra printed in Edo Era 28cm 法華経 折り本 江戸期 刊本 01.jpg
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- native label
- 𑀉𑀧𑀸𑀬
- facet of
- Buddhism
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~15 min read
Encyclopedic overview
9 sectionsContents
- Role and function of Upaya
- Images and examples
- Parable of the burning house
- The empty fist
- In the Pali Canon
- Contemporary mindfulness-based interventions and upaya
- See also
- Notes
- References
In Buddhism, upaya (Sanskrit: उपाय, , expedient means, pedagogy) is an aspect of guidance along the Buddhist paths to liberation where a conscious, voluntary action "is driven by an incomplete reasoning" about its direction. Upaya is often used with kaushalya (कौशल्य, "cleverness"), upaya-kaushalya meaning "skill in means".
Upaya-kaushalya is a concept emphasizing that practitioners may use their own specific methods or techniques that fit the situation in order to gain enlightenment. The implication is that even if a technique, view, etc., is not ultimately "true" in the highest sense, it may still be an expedient practice to perform or view to hold; i.e., it may bring the practitioner closer to the true realization in a similar way. The exercise of skill to which it refers, the ability to adapt one's message to the audience, is of enormous importance in the Pali Canon.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “upaya” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.