# Arhat

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{{Short description|Enlightened being in Buddhism}}
{{Redirect|Luohan}}
{{About|the term in Buddhism|the term in Jainism|Arihant (Jainism)}}
{{Italic title}}
{{EngvarB|date=January 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2014}}
[[File:Lightmatter Hsi Lai Temple Arhat Garden.jpg|thumb|Arhat Garden at [Hsi Lai Temple](/source/Hsi_Lai_Temple) in the [San Gabriel Valley](/source/San_Gabriel_Valley) of Southern California]]
{{Buddhist term
|title=Arhat
|pi=अरहंत्
|pi-Latn=Arahant or Arhant
|sa=अर्हत्
|sa-Latn=Arhat
|bn=অর্হৎ
|bn-Latn=ôrhôt
|my=ရဟန္တာ
|my-Latn=ra.ha.nta
|zh=阿罗汉, 罗汉
|zh-Hant=阿羅漢, 羅漢
|zh-Latn=āluóhàn, luóhàn
|ja=あらかん
|ja-Kana=アルハット
|ja-Hani=阿羅漢, 羅漢
|ja-Latn=arakan, rakan
|km=អរហន្ត<br />(Arahon)
|ko=아라한, 나한
|ko-Hani=阿羅漢, 羅漢
|ko-Latn=arahan, nahan
|vi=A-la-hán,  La hán
|vi-Hani=阿羅漢, 羅漢
|tl=Alhat
|tl-tglg=ᜀᜎ᜕ᜑᜆ᜕
|th=อรหันต์
|th-Latn=arahan
|bo=དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།
|bo-Latn=[Wylie](/source/Wylie_transliteration): dgra bcom pa
|si=අරහත්, [රහත්](/source/%3Asi%3A%E0%B6%BB%E0%B7%84%E0%B6%AD%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A_%E0%B7%80%E0%B7%84%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B7%83%E0%B7%9A)
|si-Latn=Arahat, Rahat
|ta=அருகன்
|ta-Latn=Aruhan
}}
{{Buddhism}}

In [Buddhism](/source/Buddhism), an '''''Arhat''''' ({{Langx|sa|अर्हत्}}) or '''''Arahant''''' ({{Langx|pi|अरहंत्}}, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the nature of existence, has achieved ''[nirvana](/source/Nirvana_(Buddhism))'',<ref name="EB">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/arhat|title=arhat &#124; Buddhism &#124; Britannica|website=www.britannica.com}}</ref>{{sfn|Warder|2000|p=67}} and has been liberated from the [endless cycle of rebirth](/source/Rebirth_(Buddhism)). 

The understanding of the concept has changed over the centuries, and varies between different schools of Buddhism and different regions. A range of views on the attainment of arhats existed in the [early Buddhist schools](/source/early_Buddhist_schools). Schools derived from the [Mahāsāṃghika](/source/Mah%C4%81s%C4%81%E1%B9%83ghika) (such as the [Ekavyāvahārika](/source/Ekavy%C4%81vah%C4%81rika), [Lokottaravāda](/source/Lokottarav%C4%81da), [Bahuśrutīya](/source/Bahu%C5%9Brut%C4%ABya), [Prajñaptivāda](/source/Praj%C3%B1aptiv%C4%81da), and [Caitika](/source/Caitika)), the [Kāśyapīya](/source/K%C4%81%C5%9Byap%C4%ABya), and the [Sarvāstivāda](/source/Sarvastivada) accepted the fallibility and imperfection of arhats.<ref name="Baruah, Bibhuti 2008. p. 446">Baruah, Bibhuti. ''Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism''. 2008. p. 446</ref><ref name="Sree Padma 2008. p. 44">Sree Padma. Barber, Anthony W. ''Buddhism in the Krishna River Valley of Andhra''. 2008. p. 44</ref><ref name="Warder, A.K. 2000. p. 277">Warder, A.K. ''Indian Buddhism''. 2000. p. 277</ref> The [Dharmaguptaka](/source/Dharmaguptaka) sect believed that "the Buddha and those of the [Two Vehicles](/source/Yana_(Buddhism)), although they have one and the same liberation, have followed different noble paths." The [Mahīśāsaka](/source/Mah%C4%AB%C5%9B%C4%81saka) and the [Theravāda](/source/Theravada) regarded arhats and [buddha](/source/Buddhahood)s as having attained the same liberation, though differing in the path taken and the qualities developed along the way.

[Mahayana](/source/Mahayana) Buddhist teachings urge followers to take up the path of a [bodhisattva](/source/bodhisattva), and to not fall back to the level of arhats and [śrāvaka](/source/%C5%9Br%C4%81vaka)s.<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 119"/> The arhats, or at least the senior arhats, came to be widely regarded by Theravada buddhists as "moving beyond the state of personal freedom to join the Bodhisattva enterprise in their own way".{{sfn|Rhie|Thurman|1991|p=102}}

Mahayana Buddhism regarded a group of [Eighteen Arhats](/source/Eighteen_Arhats) (with names and personalities) as awaiting the return of the Buddha as [Maitreya](/source/Maitreya), while other groupings of 6, 8, [16](/source/Sixteen_Arhats), 100, and 500 also appear in tradition and [Buddhist art](/source/Buddhist_art), especially in [East Asia](/source/East_Asia) called ''luohan'' or ''lohan''.{{sfn|Rhie|Thurman|1991|p=102-119}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://curiosity.lib.harvard.edu/chinese-rubbings-collection/catalog/6-W280137_urn-3:FHCL:478861|title=Sixteen Arhats at Shengyin Temple-- the 15th: Ajita Arhat: Shi liu zun zhe xiang: 16 Lohans: A shi duo zun zhe xiang bing zan: Sheng yin si shi liu zun zhe xiang di shi wu|website=Chinese Rubbings Collection - CURIOSity Digital Collections|language=en|access-date=2019-08-11}}</ref> They may be seen as the Buddhist equivalents of the Christian saint, [apostles](/source/Apostles_in_the_New_Testament) or early disciples and [leader](/source/leader)s of the faith.{{sfn|Rhie|Thurman|1991|p=102-119}}{{relevant|date=January 2024}}

==Etymology==
[[File:500 Rakan statues, view from above, Daisho-in, Miyajima, Hatsukaichi, 2016.jpg |thumb|{{Transliteration|ja|Gohyaku rakan}}: five hundred statues depicting arhats, at the [Daishō-in](/source/Daish%C5%8D-in) temple in [Miyajima](/source/Miyajima%2C_Hiroshima)]]

The Sanskrit word {{Transliteration|sa|arhat}} (Pāḷi {{Transliteration|pi|arahant}}) is a present participle coming from the verbal root √arh "to deserve",<ref>Whitney, D. W. ''Roots, Verb-forms and Primary Derivatives of the Sanskrit Language''</ref> cf. ''arha'' "meriting, deserving"; ''arhaṇa'' "having a claim, being entitled"; ''arhita'' (past participle) "honoured, worshipped".<ref>''Monier-Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary''</ref> The word is used in the ''Ṛgveda'' with this sense of "deserving".<ref>RV 1.4.47, 2.5.51</ref><ref>Richard Gombrich, 2009, ''What the Buddha Thought'', Equinox: London, pp. 57–58.</ref>

==Meaning==
{{Anchor|In the early Buddhist schools}}
===In early Buddhist schools===
In pre-Buddhist India, the term ''arhat'' (denoting a saintly person in general) was closely associated with miraculous power and asceticism. Buddhists made a sharp distinction between their ''arhats'' and Indian holy men, and miraculous powers were no longer central to ''arhat'' identity or mission.<ref>Richard Kieckhefer, George D. Bond. "Sainthood: Its Manifestations in World Religions" 1988. pp. 159-160.</ref>

A range of views on the relative perfection of ''arhats'' existed in the early Buddhist schools. [Mahāsāṃghika](/source/Mah%C4%81s%C4%81%E1%B9%83ghika)s, such as the [Ekavyāvahārika](/source/Ekavy%C4%81vah%C4%81rika), [Lokottaravāda](/source/Lokottarav%C4%81da),<ref name="Baruah, Bibhuti 2008. p. 446"/> [Bahuśrutīya](/source/Bahu%C5%9Brut%C4%ABya),<ref>Walser, Joseph. ''Nāgārjuna in Context: Mahāyāna Buddhism and Early Indian Culture''. 2005. p. 218.</ref> [Prajñaptivāda](/source/Praj%C3%B1aptiv%C4%81da) and [Caitika](/source/Caitika)<ref name="Sree Padma 2008. p. 44"/> schools, advocated the transcendental nature of the [buddhas](/source/Buddhahood) and [bodhisattva](/source/bodhisattva)s and the fallibility of ''arhats'';<ref>Baruah, Bibhuti. ''Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism''. 2008. p. 48.</ref> the Caitikas advocated the ideal of the bodhisattva (''bodhisattvayāna'') over that of the arhat (''[śrāvakayāna](/source/%C5%9Br%C4%81vakay%C4%81na)''), and viewed ''arhats'' as fallible and still subject to ignorance.<ref name="Sree Padma 2008. p. 44"/>

According to [A. K. Warder](/source/A._K._Warder), the Sarvāstivādins held the same position as the Mahāsāṃghika branch about ''arhats'', considering them imperfect and fallible.<ref name="Warder, A.K. 2000. p. 277"/> In the Sarvāstivādin ''Nāgadatta Sūtra'', the demon [Māra](/source/Mara_(demon)) takes the form of Nāgadatta's father and tries to convince Nāgadatta (who was a [bhikṣuṇī](/source/Bhikkhun%C4%AB)) to work toward the lower stage of arhatship rather than strive to become a fully enlightened buddha (samyaksaṃbuddha):
{{quote|Māra therefore took the disguise of Nāgadatta's father and said thus to Nāgadatta: "Your thought is too serious. [Buddhahood](/source/Buddhahood) is too difficult to attain. It takes a hundred thousand nayutas of [koṭi](/source/crore)s of [kalpa](/source/Kalpa_(aeon))s to become a Buddha. Since few people attain Buddhahood in this world, why don't you attain Arhatship? For the experience of Arhatship is the same as that of [nirvāṇa](/source/nirvana); moreover, it is easy to attain Arhatship.<ref name="Kalupahana, David 2001. p. 109">Kalupahana, David. ''Buddhist Thought and Ritual''. 2001. p. 109</ref>}}
In her reply, Nāgadatta rejects arhatship as a lower path: "A Buddha's wisdom is like empty space of the ten-quarters, which can enlighten innumerable people. But an Arhat's wisdom is inferior."<ref name="Kalupahana, David 2001. p. 109"/> The Kāśyapīya school also believed that ''arhats'' were fallible and imperfect, similar to the view of the Sarvāstivādins and the  Mahāsāṃghika sects.<ref name="Warder, A.K. 2000. p. 277"/> The Kāśyapīyins believed that ''arhats'' have not eliminated desire, their "perfection" is incomplete, and it is possible for them to relapse.<ref name="Warder, A.K. 2000. p. 277"/>

The [Dharmaguptaka](/source/Dharmaguptaka) sect believed that "the Buddha and those of the [Two Vehicles](/source/Yana_(Buddhism)), although they have one and the same liberation, have followed different noble paths."<ref>《異部宗輪論述記》：謂佛雖在僧中所攝，然別施佛果大，非僧（果大）。於窣堵波興供養業獲廣大果。佛與二乘解脫雖一，而聖道異。無諸外道能得五通。阿羅漢身皆是無漏。餘義多同大眾部執。</ref>

The [Mahīśāsaka](/source/Mah%C4%AB%C5%9B%C4%81saka) and the [Theravada](/source/Theravada) regarded arhats and buddhas as being similar to one another. The 5th century Theravadin commentator [Buddhaghosa](/source/Buddhaghosa) regarded arhats as having completed the path to enlightenment.{{refn|group=note|Routledge Encyclopedia of Buddhism: "When the great ''Theravada'' commentator, [Buddhaghosa](/source/Buddhaghosa), wrote the ''[Visuddhimagga](/source/Visuddhimagga)'' delineating the nature of the gradual path to enlightenment, he placed the ''arahant'' at the completion of that path. The ''arahant'' stands as a transcendent figure in ''Theravada'', one who has followed to its end the way of ''Dharma'' set out by the Buddha."<ref>Charles Prebish and [Damien Keown](/source/Damien_Keown) (2007), ''Routledge Encyclopedia of Buddhism'', pp 36</ref>}} According to [Bhikkhu Bodhi](/source/Bhikkhu_Bodhi), the [Pāli Canon](/source/P%C4%81li_Canon) portrays the Buddha declaring himself to be an arahant.<ref name="BB">Bhikkhu Bodhi, ''Arahants, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas''</ref>{{refn|group=note|Bhikkhu Bodhi: "The Buddha is the first of the arahants, while those who reach the goal by following his path also become arahants. In the verse of homage to the Buddha, it is said: "Iti pi so Bhagavā Arahaṃ... — The Blessed One is an arahant..." Shortly after his enlightenment, while walking to Benares to meet the five monks, a wanderer stopped the Buddha and asked who he was. The Buddha replied: "I am the arahant in the world, I am the supreme teacher" (MN 26/I 171). So the Buddha first of all declares himself to be an arahant."<ref name="BB" />}} Bhikkhu Bodhi states that ''nirvāṇa'' is "the ultimate goal", and one who has attained nirvana has attained arhatship;{{refn|group=note|"From the perspective of the Nikāyas, the ultimate goal – the goal in strict doctrinal terms – is nirvāṇa, and the goal in human terms is arahantship, the state of a person who has attained nirvāṇa in this present life."<ref name="BB" />}} He writes, "The defining mark of an arahant is the attainment of nirvāṇa in this present life."<ref name="BB" />

===In Theravāda Buddhism===
In [Theravada](/source/Theravada) Buddhism, an ''arahant'' is a person who has eliminated all the unwholesome roots which underlie [the fetters](/source/Samyojana) – who upon their death will not be reborn in any world, since the bonds (fetters) that bind a person to [samsara](/source/samsara) have been finally dissolved. In the [Pali Canon](/source/Pali_Canon), the word ''[tathāgata](/source/tath%C4%81gata)'' is sometimes used as a synonym for arhat, though the former usually refers to the Buddha alone.{{refn|group=note|Peter Harvey, ''The Selfless Mind''. Curzon Press 1995, p. 227: {{quote|Before focusing on key passages on the tathāgata, it is first necessary to clarify which persons the word refers to. The Buddha often used it when talking of himself as an enlightened being, rather than as the individual Gotama. In general, "tathāgata" is used specifically of the Buddha, the one who discovers and proclaims the path to nirvana (A.II.8–9, S.III.65-6), with the "Tathāgata, Arahat, perfectly and completely Enlightened One" being contrasted with a "disciple of the Tathāgata" (D.II.142). Nevertheless, "tathāgata" is sometimes used of any Arahat. S.V.327, for example, discusses the "dwelling of a learner" and that of a tathāgata, and explains the second by describing the qualities of an Arahat. At M.I.139–140 and 486-7, moreover, there is a switching between talk of a "tathāgata" and of "a monk whose mind is freed thus", as if they were simple equivalents. Tathāgata literally means "thus-gone" or "thus-come", probably meaning one who is "attained-to-truth" or "whose-nature-is-from-truth".}}}}

After attainment of nirvana, the [five aggregates](/source/five_aggregates) (physical forms, feelings/sensations, perception, mental formations and consciousness) will continue to function, sustained by physical bodily vitality. This attainment is termed ''the nirvana element with a residue remaining'' ([Pali](/source/Pali): ''saupadisesa nibbāna''). But once the arhat passes away and with the disintegration of the physical body, the five aggregates will cease to function, hence ending all traces of existence in the phenomenal world and thus total release from the misery of samsara. It would then be termed ''the nirvana element without residue remaining''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/wheel277.html|title=Transcendental Dependent Arising|access-date=16 March 2009|publisher=Access to Insight|last=Bhikkhu Bodhi| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090330082958/http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/wheel277.html| archive-date= 30 March 2009 | url-status= live}}</ref> [Parinirvana](/source/Parinirvana) occurs at the death of an arhat.

In Theravada Buddhism, the Buddha himself is first identified as an arhat, as are his enlightened followers, because they are free from all defilements, existing without greed, [hatred](/source/hatred), [delusion](/source/Avidya_(Buddhism)), [ignorance](/source/Avidya_(Buddhism)) and [craving](/source/Ta%E1%B9%87h%C4%81). Lacking "assets" which will lead to future birth, the arhat knows and sees the real here and now. This virtue shows stainless purity, true worth, and the accomplishment of the end, [nirvana](/source/nirvana).{{Source needed|date=May 2026}}

In the Pali canon, [Ānanda](/source/Ananda) states that he knows [monastics](/source/bhikkhu) to achieve nirvana in one of four ways:{{Original research inline|date=August 2010}}<ref>Ānanda's teaching on achieving arhantship can be found in [AN](/source/Anguttara_Nikaya) 4.170.  Translations for this sutta can be found in Bodhi (2005) pp. 268–9, 439, and Thanissaro (1998).</ref>{{refn|group=note|Bodhi (2005), p. 268, translates this fourth way as: "a monk's mind is seized by agitation about the teaching."  Thanissaro (1998) gives a seemingly contrary interpretation of: "a monk's mind has its restlessness concerning the Dhamma [Comm: the corruptions of insight] well under control."  Thus, it appears possible to interpret the excitation (Pali: ''uddhacca'', see [https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.0:1:3582.pali Rhys Davids & Stede, 1921–25]) as either something that the future arahant uses to ''impel'' their pursuit of the path or something that the future arahant ''controls'' in order to pursue the path.}}

* one develops [insight](/source/Vipassana) preceded by [serenity](/source/Samatha) (Pali: ''{{IAST|samatha-pubbaṇgamaṃ vipassanaṃ}}''),
* one develops serenity preceded by insight (''{{IAST|vipassanā-pubbaṇgamaṃ samathaṃ}}''),
* one develops serenity and insight in a stepwise fashion (''{{IAST|samatha-vipassanaṃ yuganaddhaṃ}}''),
* one's mind becomes seized by excitation about the [dhamma](/source/dhamma) and, as a consequence, develops serenity and abandons the [fetter](/source/Fetter_(Buddhism))s (''{{IAST|dhamma-uddhacca-viggahitaṃ mānasaṃ hoti}}'').

For those that have destroyed greed and hatred (in the sensory context) with some residue of delusion, are called ''[anagami](/source/anagami)'' (non-returner). Anagamis will not be reborn into the human world after death, but into the heaven of the [Pure Abodes](/source/Pure_Abodes), where only anagamis live. There, they will attain full enlightenment.

The Theravadin commentator [Buddhaghosa](/source/Buddhaghosa) placed the ''arhat'' at the completion of the path to liberation.{{refn|group=note|Keown and Prebish (2007), ''Routledge Encyclopedia of Buddhism'', p. 36: "When the great ''Theravada'' commentator, [Buddhaghosa](/source/Buddhaghosa), wrote the ''[Visuddhimagga](/source/Visuddhimagga)'' delineating the nature of the gradual path to enlightenment, he placed the ''arahant'' at the completion of that path. The ''arahant'' stands as a transcendent figure in ''Theravada'', one who has followed to its end the way of ''Dharma'' set out by the Buddha."}}

===In Mahāyāna Buddhism===
[[File:Luóhàn at British Museum.jpg|thumb|[Seated Luohan from Yixian](/source/Seated_Luohan_from_Yixian), around 1000, one of a famous [group of glazed pottery luohans from Yixian](/source/Yixian_glazed_pottery_luohans); [British Museum](/source/British_Museum)]]

Mahayana Buddhists see Gautama Buddha himself as the ideal towards which one should aim in one's spiritual aspirations. A hierarchy of general attainments is envisioned with the attainments of arhats and pratyekabuddhas being clearly separate from and below those of samyaksambuddha or [tathāgata](/source/tath%C4%81gata)s such as Gautama Buddha.<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 119">Williams, Paul. ''Buddhism. Vol. 3: The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism''. Routledge. 2004. p. 119</ref>

In contrast to the goal of becoming a fully enlightened buddha, the path of a śrāvaka in being motivated by seeking personal liberation from saṃsāra is often portrayed as selfish and undesirable.<ref>Baruah, Bibhuti. ''Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism''. Sarup & Son. 2008. p. 192</ref> There are even some Mahāyāna texts that regard the aspiration to arhatship and personal liberation as an outside path.<ref>Sheng Yen. ''Orthodox Chinese Buddhism''. North Atlantic Books. 2007. p. 149.</ref> Instead of aspiring for arhatship, Mahayanins are urged to instead take up the path of the bodhisattva and to not fall back to the level of arhats and śrāvakas.<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 119"/> Therefore, it is taught that an arhat must go on to become a bodhisattva eventually. If they fail to do so in the lifetime in which they reach the attainment, they will fall into a deep [samādhi](/source/samadhi) of emptiness, thence to be roused and taught the bodhisattva path, presumably when ready. According to the ''[Lotus Sutra](/source/Lotus_Sutra)'', any true arhat will eventually accept the Mahāyāna path.<ref>Sheng Yen. ''Orthodox Chinese Buddhism''. North Atlantic Books. 2007. p. 163.</ref>

Mahāyāna teachings often consider the śrāvaka path to be motivated by fear of saṃsāra, which renders them incapable of aspiring to buddhahood, and that they therefore lack the courage and wisdom of a bodhisattva.<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 120">Williams, Paul. ''Buddhism. Vol. 3: The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism''. Routledge. 2004. p. 120</ref> Novice bodhisattvas are compared to śrāvakas and arhats at times. In the ''{{IAST|Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra}}'', there is an account of sixty novice bodhisattvas who attain arhatship despite themselves and their efforts at the bodhisattva path because they lacked the abilities of [prajnaparamita](/source/prajnaparamita) and [skillful means](/source/skillful_means) to progress as bodhisattvas toward complete enlightenment (Skt. ''{{IAST|Anuttarā Samyaksaṃbodhi}}''). This is because they are still viewed as having innate attachment and fear of saṃsāra. The ''[{{IAST|Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra}}](/source/Prajnaparamita)'' compares these people to a giant bird without wings that cannot help but plummet to the earth from the top of [Sumeru](/source/Sumeru).<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 120"/>

Mahayan Buddhism has viewed the śrāvaka path culminating in arhatship as a lesser accomplishment than complete enlightenment, but still accords due respect to arhats for their respective achievements. Therefore, buddha-realms are depicted as populated by both śrāvakas and bodhisattvas.<ref name="Williams, Paul 2004. p. 120"/> Far from being completely disregarded, the accomplishments of arhats are viewed as impressive, essentially because they have transcended the mundane world.<ref>Powers, John. ''A Concise Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism''. Snow Lion Publications. 2008. p. 36.</ref> [Chinese Buddhism](/source/Chinese_Buddhism) and other East Asian traditions have historically accepted this perspective, and specific groups of arhats are venerated as well, such as the [Sixteen Arhats](/source/Sixteen_Arhats), the [Eighteen Arhats](/source/Eighteen_Arhats), and the Five Hundred Arhats.<ref>Leidy, Denise. ''The Art of Buddhism: An Introduction to Its History and Meaning''. Shambhala. 2009. p. 196</ref> The first famous portraits of these arhats were painted by the Chinese monk [Guanxiu](/source/Guanxiu) ({{zh|c=貫休|p=''Guànxiū''}}) in 891&nbsp;CE. He donated these portraits to Shengyin Temple in Qiantang (modern [Hangzhou](/source/Hangzhou)), where they are preserved with great care and ceremonious respect.<ref name="Early Text Painting">{{cite book|title=Early Chinese Texts on Painting|author=Susan Bush and Ilsio-yen Shih|publisher=Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London|year=1985|page=314}}</ref>

In some respects, the path to arhatship and the path to complete enlightenment are seen as having common grounds. However, a distinctive difference is seen in the Mahāyāna doctrine pushing emotional and cognitive non-attachment to their logical consequences. Of this, Paul Williams writes that in Mahāyāna Buddhism, "Nirvāṇa must be sought without being sought (for oneself), and practice must be done without being practiced. The discursive mode of thinking cannot serve the basic purpose of attainment without attainment."<ref>Williams, Paul. ''Buddhism. Vol. 3: The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism''. Routledge. 2004. p. 50</ref>

The Mahayana discerned a hierarchy of attainments, with ''samyaksambuddha''s at the top, [mahāsattva](/source/mah%C4%81sattva)s below that, [pratyekabuddha](/source/pratyekabuddha)s below that and arhats further below.<ref>Williams, Paul. ''Buddhism. Vol. 3: The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism''. Routledge. 2004. pp. 119-120</ref> "But what was it that distinguished the ''bodhisattva'' from the ''sravaka'', and ultimately the ''buddha'' from the ''arhat''? The difference lay, more than anywhere else, in the altruistic orientation of the ''bodhisattva''."{{sfn|Prebish|Keown|2004|page=88}}

==Translations==
{{Further|Zhenren#Buddhist texts}}

The term ''arhat'' is often rendered in English as ''arahat''. The term ''arhat'' was transliterated into some East Asian languages phonetically, for example, the Chinese ''āluóhàn'' (Ch. {{Lang|zh|阿羅漢}}), often shortened to simply ''luóhàn'' (Ch. {{Lang|zh|羅漢}}). This may appear in English as ''luohan'' or ''lohan''. In [Japanese](/source/kanji) the [pronunciation](/source/on'yomi) of the same Chinese characters is {{Transliteration|ja|rakan}} (Ja. {{Lang|ja|羅漢}}) or {{Transliteration|ja|arakan}} (Ja. {{Lang|ja|阿羅漢}}).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.linguee.com/japanese-english/translation/%E7%BE%85%E6%BC%A2.html|title=羅漢 - English translation – Linguee|website=Linguee.com|language=en|access-date=2019-08-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=krBZAAAAMAAJ&q=arhat+lohan+rakan+translation&pg=PA6|title=The Arhats in China and Japan|last=Visser|first=Marinus Willem de|date=1923|publisher=Oesterheld & Company|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/37478205|title=Sixteen Arhats at Shengyin Temple-- the 15th: Ajita Arhat {{!}} Guanxiu|website=ResearchGate|language=en|access-date=2019-08-12}}</ref>

The [Tibetan](/source/Tibetic_languages) term for ''arhat'' was translated by meaning from Sanskrit. This translation, ''dgra bcom pa'' (Ti. དགྲ་བཅོམ་པ།), means "one who has destroyed the foes of afflictions".<ref>Cozort, Daniel. ''Unique Tenets of the Middle Way Consequence School''. Snow Lion Publications. 1998. p. 259.</ref> Thus the Tibetan translators also understood the meaning of ''arhat'' to be ''ari-hanta''.

==See also==
* [Buddhist paths to liberation](/source/Buddhist_paths_to_liberation)
* [Enlightenment in Buddhism](/source/Enlightenment_in_Buddhism)
* [Four stages of enlightenment](/source/Four_stages_of_enlightenment)
* [Paccekabuddha](/source/Paccekabuddha)
* [Ten Principal Disciples](/source/Ten_Principal_Disciples)
* [Yixian glazed pottery luohans](/source/Yixian_glazed_pottery_luohans)
* Killing an arhat is a [anantarika-karma](/source/anantarika-karma) crime.

== Explanatory notes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}

== Citations ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== General sources ==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book|editor2-last=Keown|editor2-first=Damien|editor1-last=Prebish|editor1-first=Charles|editor2-link=Damien Keown|title=Encyclopedia of Buddhism|date=2004|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0415314145}}
* {{Cite book | last1 =Rhie | first1 =Marylin | last2 =Thurman | first2 =Robert | year =1991 | title =Wisdom And Compassion: The Sacred Art of Tibet | place =new York | publisher =Harry N. Abrams (with 3 institutions) | isbn =0810925265}}
* {{cite book | last =Warder | first =A.K. | year =2000 | title=Indian Buddhism | place=Delhi | publisher =Motilal Banarsidass Publishers}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* Addiss, Stephen. The Art of Zen: Paintings and Calligraphy by Japanese Monks, 1600–1925. New York: H.N. Abrams. 1989.
* [Bodhi, Bhikkhu](/source/Bhikkhu_Bodhi) (ed.) (2005). ''In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pāli Canon''. Boston: Wisdom Pubs. {{ISBN|0-86171-491-1}}.
* Bush, Susan, and [Hsio-yen Shih](/source/Hsio-yen_Shih). Early Chinese Texts on Painting. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Published for the Harvard-Yenching Institute by Harvard University Press. 1985.
* Joo, Bong Seok, "The Arhat Cult in China from the Seventh through Thirteenth Centuries:Narrative, Art, Space and Ritual" (PhD diss., Princeton University, 2007).
* Kai-man. 1986. The Illustrated 500 Lo Han. Hong Kong: Precious Art Publications.
* Katz, Nathan. Buddhist Images of Human Perfection: The Arahant of the Sutta Piṭaka Compared with the Bodhisattva and the Mahāsiddha. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 1982.
* Kent, Richard K. "Depictions of the Guardians of the Law: Lohan Painting in China". In Latter Days of the Law: Images of Chinese Buddhism, Marsha Weidner, 183–213. N.p.:University of Hawaii Press, 1994.
* Khantipalo, Bhikkhu (1979). ''[https://www.bps.lk/library-search-select.php?id=bp406s Banner of the Arahant]''Kandy, Sri Lanka: [Buddhist Publication Society](/source/Buddhist_Publication_Society). {{ISBN|978-955-24-0311-8}}.
* Khantipalo, Bhikkhu (1989). ''[https://www.bps.lk/library-search-select.php?id=bp409s Buddha, My Refuge: Contemplation of the Buddha based on the Pali Suttas]''. Kandy, Sri Lanka: [Buddhist Publication Society](/source/Buddhist_Publication_Society). {{ISBN|955-24-0037-6}}.
* Laufer, Berthold. "Inspirational Dreams in Eastern Asia". ''The Journal of American Folklore'' 44, no. 172 (1931): 208–216.
* Levine, Gregory P. A., and Yukio Lippit. Awakenings: Zen Figure Painting in Medieval Japan. New York: Japan Society. 2007.
* Little, Stephen. "The Arhats in China and Tibet". Artibus Asiae 52 (1992): 255–281.
* [Rhys Davids, T.W.](/source/Thomas_William_Rhys_Davids) & William Stede (eds.) (1921–5). ''The Pali Text Society's Pali–English dictionary''. Chipstead: [Pali Text Society](/source/Pali_Text_Society).  A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.
* Seckel, Dietrich. "The Rise of Portraiture in Chinese Art". Artibus Asiae 53, no. 1/2 (1993): 7–26.
* Tanaka, Ichimatsu. Japanese Ink Painting: Shubun to Sesshu. New York: Weatherhill. 1972.
* Tredwell, Winifred Reed. Chinese Art Motives Interpreted. New York [etc.]: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1915.
* Visser, Marinus Willem de. The Arhats in China and Japan. Berlin: Oesterheld & Co. 1923.
* Watanabe, Masako. "Guanxiu and Exotic Imagery in Raken Paintings". Orientations 31, no. 4 (2000): 34–42.
* Watters, Thomas. The Eighteen Lohan of Chinese Buddhist Temples. Shanghai: Kelly and Walsh. 1925.

==External links==
{{commons category|Arhat}}
* [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/arahantsbodhisattvas.html ''Arahants, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas''], an article by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi
* [Thanissaro Bhikkhu](/source/Thanissaro_Bhikkhu) (trans.) (1998). [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an04/an04.170.than.html ''Yuganaddha Sutta: In Tandem''].

{{Buddhism topics}}
{{Authority control}}

Category:Arhats
Category:Buddhist stages of enlightenment
Category:Buddhist titles
Category:Epithets of Gautama Buddha

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Arhat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arhat) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arhat?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.