The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (23 page)

 
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Abhisamay
lank
ra
(The Treatise on the Exposition of the Perfection of Wisdom)
.

An important commentary work of the Buddhist Mah
y
na tradition attributed to
Maitreya
and probably composed in the 4th cent. CE.

 
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(Skt.,
abhi
+
ich
, ‘sprinkle water’). In Hinduism, a general word for anointing or sprinkling, especially in order to consecrate: Abhi
eka in later Hinduism is transferred to a religious context and is sometimes a synonym for
d
k
a
or sometimes follows from d
k
a.
In Buddhism, abhi
eka is the means by which the guru transmits the power and authority to a pupil to engage in specific forms of meditation. It is important especially in Tibet
(Tib.,
dbang.bskur
, ‘empowerment’), where it is an
initiation
ritual in Tibetan Buddhism preceding
Tantric
practice.