Paṇḍita (Sanskrit; Tibetan: ''khepa'';
Wyl:'' mkhas pa'') was a title in
Indian Buddhism
Buddhism is an ancient Indian religion, which arose in and around the ancient Kingdom of Magadha (now in Bihar, India), and is based on the teachings of Gautama Buddha who was deemed a "Buddha" ("Awakened One"), although Buddhist doctri ...
awarded to scholars who have mastered the
five sciences (Sanskrit: ''pañcavidyāsthāna''; Tib. ''rigné chenpo nga''; Wyl. ''rig gnas chen po lnga'') in which a learned person was traditionally supposed to be well-versed.
The five sciences are: science of language (''śabdavidyā''), science of logic (''hetuvidyā''), science of medicine (''cikitsāvidyā''), science of fine arts and crafts (''śilakarmasthānavidyā''), and science of spirituality (''adhyātmavidyā''). The stipulation can be traced to (but may well predate) the ''
Mahāyāna-sūtrālamkāra-kārikā
''Mahāyāna-sūtrālamkāra-kārikā'' (Verses on the Ornament of the Mahāyāna Sūtras) is a major work of Buddhist philosophy attributed to Maitreya-nātha which is said to have transmitted it to Asanga (ca. 320 to ca. 390 CE).Payne, Richard ...
'', which states: "Without becoming a scholar in the five sciences, not even the supreme sage can become omniscient. For the sake of refuting and supporting others, and for the sake of knowing everything himself, he makes an effort in these
ive sciences/nowiki>."[''The Dharma's Gatekeepers: Sakya Paṇḍita on Buddhist scholarship in Tibet'' by Jonathan C. Gold. SUNY Press. pg ]
/ref>
The first (and one of the only) Tibetans afforded the title was Sakya Pandita
Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyeltsen (Tibetan: ས་སྐྱ་པཎ་ཌི་ཏ་ཀུན་དགའ་རྒྱལ་མཚན, ) (1182 – 28 November 1251) was a Tibetan spiritual leader and Buddhist scholar and the fourth of the Five S ...
. For other notable Buddhists afforded the title, see Pandita.
References
Tibetan Buddhist titles
Tibetan Buddhism in India
Sanskrit words and phrases
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