Q.Define the concept of Bodhisatta.

The term "Bodhisatta" appears across Buddhist traditions but carries different emphases depending on the school. At its heart lies a profound ethical and spiritual commitment: the aspiration to achieve complete enlightenment not merely for oneself but to gain the capacity to guide countless others to liberation.

Etymology and Core Meaning

The word breaks down as bodhi (awakening, enlightenment) + satta (being). A Bodhisatta is thus literally "an enlightenment-being" or "one bound for awakening." This is not someone who has already achieved Buddhahood, but rather someone on the path toward it, distinguished by a specific motivation and set of practices.

The Bodhisatta Ideal Across Traditions

1. Theravāda Perspective

In Theravāda Buddhism, the Bodhisatta concept primarily refers to Gotama Buddha in his previous lives before his final birth as Siddhattha Gotama. The Jātaka tales recount 547 past lives in which the future Buddha cultivated the ten perfections (pāramī):

The Bodhisatta path in this tradition is extraordinarily long—spanning countless lifetimes—and is undertaken by rare individuals who receive a prediction (vyākaraṇa) from a previous Buddha. Most practitioners in Theravāda aim for Arahantship (personal liberation) rather than the Bodhisatta path.

2. Mahāyāna Perspective

Mahāyāna Buddhism universalizes the Bodhisatta ideal, making it the recommended path for all practitioners. Here, the defining feature is the bodhicitta—the "mind of awakening"—which has two aspects:

• Aspiration bodhicitta: The heartfelt wish to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all beings
• Engaged bodhicitta: The active practice of the six perfections (pāramitā): generosity, ethics, patience, diligence, meditation, and wisdom

The Mahāyāna Bodhisattva takes formal vows and progresses through ten stages (bhūmi), deliberately postponing entry into nirvāṇa to remain in saṃsāra and assist others. Figures like Avalokiteśvara and Mañjuśrī exemplify advanced Bodhisattvas who embody compassion and wisdom respectively.

The Bodhisatta Vow and Compassion

Central to the Bodhisatta concept is karuṇā (compassion) and upāya (skillful means). The Bodhisatta does not seek a private escape from suffering but instead cultivates the qualities needed to become a teacher of the Dhamma, capable of adapting the teaching to the needs of diverse beings. This requires not just wisdom but also the perfection of compassion—the willingness to work for aeons if necessary to bring all beings to liberation.

The vow often takes a form similar to: "However innumerable sentient beings are, I vow to save them all." This is not mere sentiment but a commitment that shapes every action, thought, and rebirth.

Historical and Contemporary Relevance

The Bodhisatta concept has shaped Buddhist ethics, art, and practice for over two millennia. In Theravāda countries, the Jātaka stories serve as moral education. In Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna traditions, practitioners formally take Bodhisattva vows and structure their entire spiritual life around the aspiration to benefit others.

The ideal also addresses a fundamental question in Buddhist soteriology: if liberation is possible, why not pursue it immediately? The Bodhisatta answers: because the capacity to liberate others requires the full omniscience and skillful means of a Buddha, and that is worth the extended journey.

Part (a)

In early Buddhism (the Theravada tradition) the goal was individual enlightenment — becoming an arhat, one who has extinguished all desire and escaped rebirth. Mahayana Buddhism, which developed around the first century CE, introduced a different ideal: the Bodhisatta (Sanskrit Bodhisattva), literally an "enlightenment-being". A Bodhisatta is one who has become worthy of nirvana but takes a vow to stay within the cycle of birth and death (samsara) until every other being is also liberated, an act of infinite compassion (karuna). Such beings were worshipped as accessible, saviour-like figures, and famous examples include Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri and Maitreya, the future Buddha.

Part (b)

Walter Elliot (1803–1887) was a British official of the Madras civil service who took a keen interest in South Indian antiquities, coins and inscriptions. He is best remembered for his work at the great Buddhist stupa of Amaravati on the river Krishna in the Andhra region. He collected many of its carved limestone panels and railings; because these sculptures were later shipped away, they became known as the "Elliot Marbles". His activity is a good illustration of how nineteenth-century colonial officials, acting as antiquarians, brought early Indian Buddhist art to notice — though the removal of sculptures from Amaravati also scattered and damaged one of India's most important stupa sites.