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{{short description|Epithet for god, lord, blessed one in Hinduism and Buddhism}}
{{other uses|Bhagavan (disambiguation)}}
{{Original research|date=June 2025}}
{{EngvarB|date=April 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2015}}
[[File:Vishnu Kumartuli Park Sarbojanin Arnab Dutta 2010.JPG|thumb|Statue of Vishnu, Bhagavan in Vaishnavism]]
The word '''Bhagavan''' ({{langx|sa|भगवान्|Bhagavān}}; {{langx|pi|Bhagavā|italics=yes}}), also spelt as '''Bhagwan''' (sometimes translated in English as "[[Lord]]", "[[God]]"), is an epithet within [[Indian religions]] used to denote figures of religious worship. In Hinduism it is used to signify a [[deity]] or an ''[[avatar]]'', particularly for [[Krishna]] and [[Vishnu]] in [[Vaishnavism]], [[Shiva]] in [[Shaivism]] and [[Durga]] or [[Adi Shakti]] in [[Shaktism]].<ref name="james">James Lochtefeld (2000), "Bhagavan", The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing. {{ISBN|978-0823931798}}, page 94</ref><ref name="friha">Friedhelm Hardy (1990), The World's Religions: The Religions of Asia, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0415058155}}, pages 79-83</ref> In [[Jainism]] the term refers to the [[Tirthankara]]s, and in [[Buddhism]] to the [[Buddha]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Buswell|first1=Robert E.|last2=Lopez|first2=Donald S.|title=The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism|date=2014|publisher=Princeton University Press|location=Princeton|page=108}}</ref>

In many parts of India and [[South Asia]], Bhagavan represents the concept of a universal God or Divine to [[Hindus]] who are spiritual and religious but do not worship a specific deity.<ref name=james/>

<!-- Bhagavān itself is an acronym of the combination of the 5 elements of nature: 
* ''Bha'' means ''[[Bhūmi|Bhoomi]]'' (Earth); 
* ''Ga'' means gaggan (Space/Sky); 
* ''Va'' means ''[[Vayu]]'' (Air); 
* ''A'' means ''[[Agni]]'' (Fire); and 
* ''N' means ''Neer'' (Water).
-->
In ''[[bhakti]]'' school literature, the term is typically used for any deity to whom [[prayer]]s are offered. A particular deity is often the devotee's one and only Bhagavan.<ref name="friha" /> The female equivalent of Bhagavān is [[Bhagavati]].<ref>Friedhelm Hardy (1990), The World's Religions: The Religions of Asia, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0415058155}}, page 84</ref><ref>Sarah Caldwell (1998), Bhagavati, in Devi: Goddesses of India (Editors: John Stratton Hawley, Donna Marie Wulff), Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814912}}, pages 195-198</ref> To some Hindus, the word Bhagavan is an abstract, genderless concept of God.

In Buddhism's Pali and Sanskrit [[Buddhist texts|scriptures]], the term is used to denote [[Gautama Buddha|The Buddha]], referring him as ''Bhagavā'' or ''Bhagavān'' (translated with the phrase "Lord" or "The Blessed One").<ref>The latter term preferred by Bhikkhu Bodhi in his English translations of the Pali Canon</ref><ref>Ju-Hyung Rhi (1994), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/3250056 From Bodhisattva to Buddha: The Beginning of Iconic Representation in Buddhist Art], Artibus Asiae, Vol. 54, No. 3/4, pages 207-225</ref> The term Bhagavan is also found in [[Theravada]], [[Mahayana]] and [[Vajrayana|Tantra]] Buddhist texts.<ref name=johncampbell/><ref name=peterharvey/>

==Etymology and meaning==
''Bhagavān'', nominative singular of the adjective ''Bhagavat'', literally means "fortunate", "blessed" (from the noun ''{{IAST|[[bhaga]]}}'', meaning "fortune", "wealth"), and hence "illustrious", "divine", "venerable", "holy", etc.<ref name="MD">[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/app/macdonell_query.py?qs=%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%97%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D&searchhws=yes Macdonell Sanskrit-English dictionary]</ref> ''Bhagavān'' is related to the root ''Bhaj'' (भज्, "to revere", "adore"), and implies someone "glorious", "illustrious", "revered", "venerable", "divine", "holy" (an epithet applied to gods, holy or respectable personages).<ref name="apte">{{cite book |author=V.S.Apte |url=http://dsalsrv02.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/search3advanced?dbname=apte&query=%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%97%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%8D&matchtype=exact&display=utf8 |title=The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary |publisher=Digital Dictionaries of South Asia |year=1957 |page=118 |access-date=10 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616052225/http://dsalsrv02.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/search3advanced?dbname=apte&query=%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%97%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%8D&matchtype=exact&display=utf8 |archive-date=16 June 2022 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The root ''Bhaj'' also means "share with", "partake of", "aportion".<ref>[http://spokensanskrit.de/index.php?tinput=bhaj&direction=SE&script=HK&link=yes&beginning=0 bhaj], Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Cologne</ref><ref name="francixc">Francis  Clooney and Tony Stewart, in S Mittal and GR Thursby (Editors): The Hindu World, Routledge, {{ISBN|0-415215277}}, pages 163-178</ref> Clooney and Stewart state that this root, in Vaishnava traditions, implies ''Bhagavān'' as one perfect creator that a devotee seeks to partake from, share his place with, by living in god, in the way of god, the loving participation between the two being its own reward.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Clooney |first1=Francis |title=The Hindu world |last2=Stewart |first2=Tony |date=2007 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-77227-3 |editor-last=Mittal |editor-first=Sushil |edition= |series=Routledge worlds |location=New York |pages=163 |chapter=Chapter Eight: Vaisnava}}</ref>

The ''[[Vishnu Purana]]'' defines ''Bhagavān'' as follows,
{{blockquote|
<nowiki>
उत्पत्तिं प्रलयं चैव भूतानामागतिं गतिम् |</nowiki><br /><nowiki>
वेत्तिं विद्यामविद्यां च स वाच्यो भगवानिति ||</nowiki>
<br />
He who understands the creation and dissolution, the appearance and disappearance of beings, the wisdom and ignorance, should be called ''Bhagavān''.
|Vishnu Purana, VI.5.78 <ref>[[Alain Daniélou]], The Myths and Gods of India, Princeton/Bollingen Paperbacks, {{ISBN|978-0892813544}}, page 36</ref>}}

The same text defines [[Bhaga]] and provides the etymological roots as follows as translated by Wilson,<ref name=hhwilson/>

{{blockquote|
Knowledge is of two kinds, that which is derived from [[Religious text|scripture]], and that which is derived from reflection. Brahma that is the word is composed of scripture; Brahma that is supreme is produced of reflection. Ignorance is utter darkness, in which knowledge, obtained through any sense (as that of hearing), shines like a lamp; but the knowledge that is derived from reflection breaks upon the obscurity like the sun. (...) That which is imperceptible, undecaying, inconceivable, unborn, inexhaustible, indescribable; which has neither form, nor hands, nor feet; which is almighty, omnipresent, eternal; the cause of all things, and without cause; permeating all, itself unpenetrated, and from which all things proceed; that is the object which the wise behold, that is Brahma, that is the supreme state, that is the subject of contemplation to those who desire liberation, that is the thing spoken of by the Vedas, the infinitely subtle, supreme condition of '''Vishnu'''.

That essence of the supreme is defined by the term Bhagavat. The word Bhagavat is the denomination of that primeval and eternal God: and he who fully understands the meaning of that expression is possessed of holy wisdom, the sum, and substance of the Vedas. The word Bhagavat is a convenient form to be used in the adoration of that supreme being, to whom no term is applicable; and therefore Bhagavat expresses that supreme spirit, which is individual, almighty, and the cause of causes of all things. The letter '''Bh''' implies the cherisher and supporter of the universe. By '''ga''' is understood the leader, impeller, or creator. The disyllable '''Bhaga''' indicates the six properties, dominion, might, glory, splendor, wisdom, and dispassion. The purport of the letter '''va''' is that elemental spirit in which all beings exist, and which exists in all beings. And thus this great word '''Bhagavan''' is the name of Vásudeva, who is one with the supreme Brahma, and of no one else. This word, therefore, which is the general denomination of an adorable object, is not used in reference to the supreme in a general, but a special signification. When applied to any other (thing or person) it is used in its customary or general import. In the latter case, it may purport one who knows the origin and end and revolutions of beings, and what is wisdom, what ignorance. In the former, it denotes wisdom, energy, power, dominion, might, glory, without end, and without defect.
|Vishnu Purana, VI.5 <ref name=hhwilson>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp160.htm The Vishnu Purana] HH Wilson (Translator)</ref>}}

{{Excessive quote|date=June 2019}}

[[Buddha]] is referred to as Bhagavan in ancient and medieval [[Theravada]], [[Mahayana]] and Tantra Buddhist texts, where it connotes, "Lord", "Blessed One", "Fortunate One".<ref name=peterharvey>Peter Harvey, Buddhism, Bloomsbury Academic, {{ISBN|978-0826453501}}, page 4</ref><ref>D Keown (2008), A Dictionary of Buddhism, Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0192800626}}, page 31</ref><ref name=alexwayman/>

==Hinduism==

===Literature===
The Vedic texts neither mention nor provide a basis to explain the origin of the Bhagavān concept.<ref>{{cite book|title=World's Religions|publisher=Routledge|page=611|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=HAg3AgAAQBAJ&q=bhagavan+vedas&pg=PA612 |isbn=9781136851858|date=2004-01-14}}</ref>

; Upanishads

The root of "Bhagavan", "Bhaga" is mentioned in the ''[[Mundaka Upanishad]]'', but it does not mean or imply "Bhagavan"':

{{Blockquote|text=शौनको ह वै महाशालोऽङ्गिरसं विधिवदुपसन्नः पप्रच्छ ।
कस्मिन्नु '''भगवो''' विज्ञाते सर्वमिदं विज्ञातं भवतीति ॥ ३ ॥

[[Shaunaka]] asked: Can knowledge of the world's reality be so complete that all the many things we see are understood in it?
Can something so complete, excellent be found that knowing it, one knows everything? |title=Mundaka Upanishad|source=I.1.3 <ref>{{cite book|title=A Constructive Survey of Upanishadic Philosophy|author=R.D.Ranade|publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan|page=45|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fk8pAAAAYAAJ |year=1926}}</ref><ref>Ananda Wood (1996), Interpreting the Upanishads, pages 31-32</ref>}}

The ''Mundaka Upanishad'' then answers this question in two parts over verses 1.1.4 through 3.2.11.<ref>[[Max Muller]], The Upanishads, Part 2, [https://archive.org/stream/upanishads02ml#page/26/mode/2up Mundaka Upanishad], Oxford University Press</ref> These verses split knowledge into two sections: lower knowledge and higher knowledge. Lower knowledge includes Vedas, phonetics, grammar, etymology, meter, astronomy and ceremony rituals.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Vedic|first=Heritage|title=Upanishad history|url=http://vedicheritage.gov.in/upanishads/|url-status=live|access-date=26 April 2021|website=Upanishad heritage|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620175904/http://vedicheritage.gov.in:80/upanishads/ |archive-date=20 June 2018 }}</ref> The higher knowledge indicates, the Upanishad asserts, is Self-knowledge and realizing its oneness with Brahman—the one which cannot be seen, nor seized, which has no origin, no qualities, no hips, nor ears, no hands, nor feet, one that is the eternal, all-pervading, infinitesimal, imperishable.{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}} The word Bhagavan does not appear in the ''Mundaka Upanishad'' and other early or middle Upanishads.<ref name=friha/>

The term Bhagavān appears in Shvetashvatara Upanishad verse 5.4:

{{Blockquote|text=सर्वा दिश ऊर्ध्वमधश्च तिर्यक्प्रकाशयन्भ्राजते यद्वनड्वान् ।
एवं स देवो भगवान्वरेण्यो योनिस्वभावानधितिष्ठत्येक: ॥

As the draft-ox shines, lighting up all the quarters, above, below, and across, so this God, blessed and adorable, alone rules over wombs and inherent natures.|title=Shvetashvatara Upanishad|source=5.4 <ref>{{Cite book |title=The early Upanisads: annotated text and translation |date=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-512435-4 |editor-last=Olivelle |editor-first=Patrick |series=South Asia research |location=New York |pages=426–427 |language=en, sa}}</ref>}}

Later and medieval era Upanishads mention Bhagavān. For example, the very first verse of the ''Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa Upaniṣhad'' uses the term, as follows,<ref name="knaiyar" />

{{blockquote|
द्वापरान्ते नारदो ब्रह्माणं जगाम कथं '''भगवन्''' गां पर्यटन् कलिं सन्तरेयमिति

At the start of the Dvapara [Yuga] [[Narada]] went to Brahma and asked, "O Lord, how shall I, roaming over the earth, be able to overcome the effects of Kali [Yuga]?"
|''[[Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa Upaniṣad]]'', 1.1 <ref name=knaiyar>Sanskrit: [http://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/कलि-सण्टारण_उपनिषद् कलि-सण्टारण उपनिषद्] Wikisource;<br />English Translation: KN Aiyar, Thirty Minor Upanishads, Madras (1914), Reprinted in 1980 as {{ISBN|978-0935548006}}</ref>}}

Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa, a minor Upanishad, then proceeds to disclose, among other things, two Bhagavan names in the [[Hare Krishna mantra]] in verse 2.<ref>Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare<br />Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare</ref> This verse is sung by [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness|International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)]] devotees.<ref name=knaiyar/>

; Purana

In ''Bhagavata Dharma'', it denotes Narayana Vasudeva's four [[vyuha]] formations. [[Ishvara]] or God is called Bhagavan and the person dedicated to Bhagavan is called a [[Bhagavata]]. The [[Bhagavata Purana]] (I.iii.28) identifies [[Krishna]] as [[Narayana]], [[Vāsudeva]], [[Vishnu]] and [[Hari]]—Bhagavan present in human form.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Body of God|author=Dennis Hudson|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=578, 33, 34|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=IMCxbOezDi4C&q=Bhagavan&pg=PA578 |isbn=9780199709021|date=2008-09-25}}</ref> Bhagavan is the complete revelation of the Divine; [[Brahman]], the impersonal Absolute, is unqualified and therefore, never expressed. [[Paramatman]] is Bhagavan in relation to [[Prakṛti]] and the [[Jiva]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Sword and the Flute-Kali and Krsna|author=David R.Kinsley|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|page=69|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=qKE93CHnRwgC&q=Bhagavan&pg=PA69 |isbn=9788120813151|year=1995}}</ref> The Yoga of Devotion implies that if a Bhagavata, the devotee of Bhagavan, seeks and longs for Bhagavan, then Bhagavan too seeks his devotee in equal measure.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Synthesis of Yoga|author=Sri Aurobindo|publisher=Lotus Press|page=32|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=9Ex6cSqqBSwC&q=Bhagavan&pg=PA32 |isbn=9780941524667|year=1992}}</ref>

; Bhagavad Gita

The term Bhagavan appears extensively in the ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]'', as Krishna counsels Arjuna.<ref name=friha/> For example,

{{blockquote|
श्री'''भगवानु'''वाच<nowiki>। कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम्। अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन॥ २-२॥</nowiki>

Shri Bhagavan said, "from where had this weakness arisen, at this inconvenient time?<br />It is not noble, neither will it lead you to heaven, nor will it earn you valor, O Arjuna.
|[[Bhagavad Gita]], 2.2 <ref>GK Marballi (2013), Journey Through The Bhagavad Gita, {{ISBN|978-1304558480}}, page 26</ref>}}

===Vaishnavism===
{{Vaishnavism}}
The [[Bhagavata]] tradition of [[Hinduism]] invoke Bhagavan in the ''Bhagavad Gita'' and the [[Bhishma Parva]] of the ''[[Mahabharata]]''. The devotion to Vishnu (identified as [[Krishna|Vasudeva]] in the Mahabharata) is elaborated to mean the [[Dashavatara|ten incarnations]] of the deity. This tradition introduced the ''[[Caturvyūha|chaturvyuha]]'' concept and laid emphasis on the worship of the five [[Vrishni heroes|Vrishni]] warriors, which reached the peak of its popularity during the Gupta Period.<ref>{{cite book|title=Optional Indian History – Ancient India|publisher=Upkar Prakashan|page=65|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_SbiUXtBzAsC&q=bhagavat+as+religion&pg=PA65 }}</ref>

===Significance===
In Hinduism, the word, Bhagavān, indicates the Supreme Being or Absolute Truth conceived as a [[Personal God]].<ref>[http://www.krishna.com/node/118 Who is Krishna?] "God the person, or Bhagavan"</ref> This personal feature indicated by the word Bhagavān differentiates its usage from other similar terms<ref>[http://srimadbhagavatam.com/1/2/11/en1 Bhag-P 1.2.11] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926235140/http://srimadbhagavatam.com/1/2/11/en1 |date=26 September 2007 }} "Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this the non-dual "Brahman", "Paramatmān " or "Bhagavān"</ref> such as Brahman, the "Supreme Spirit" or "spirit", and thus, in this usage, Bhagavan is analogous to the [[Christianity|Christian]] concept of [[God the Father]]. In Vaisnavism, a devotee of Bhagvān Krishna is called a Bhāgavata.

The ''[[Bhagavata Purana]]'' (1.2.11) states the definition of Bhagavān to mean the supreme being: <blockquote>The Learned Know the Absolute Truth call this non-dual substance ''Brahman'', ''[[Paramatma]]'' or ''Bhagavan''.<ref group=lower-alpha>{{IAST|vadanti tat tattva-vidas}}/ {{IAST|tattvam yaj jnanam advayam}}/ {{IAST|brahmeti paramatmeti}}/ {{IAST|bhagavan iti sabdyate}}</ref></blockquote> Bhagavān used as a title of [[veneration]] is often directly used as Lord, as in Bhagavān [[Rama]], Bhagavān Krishna, Bhagavān [[Shiva]], etc. In [[Buddhism]] and [[Jainism]], [[Gautama Buddha]], [[Mahavira]] and other [[Tirthankara]]s, [[Buddhahood|Buddhas]] and [[bodhisattva]]s are also venerated with this title. The feminine of Bhagavat is Bhagawatī and is an epithet of [[Durga]] and other [[Goddesses#Hinduism|goddesses]]. This title is also used by a number of contemporary spiritual teachers in India who claim to be Bhagavan or have realized impersonal Brahman.{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}}

[[Bhakti]] (devotion to God) consists of actions performed in dedication to the ''Paramatman'', the individuated existence with free-will, and who is the final cause of the world; the [[Vedic]] [[Rishi]]s describe the goals originating from God as Bhagavān, and the [[Ananda]] aspect of God where God has manifested His personality is called Bhagavān when consciousness (pure self-awareness) aligns with those goals to cause the unified existence and commencement of works follow.<ref>{{cite book|title=Vedic Creationism|author=Ashish Dalela|publisher=iUniverse|page=337|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=qLe-aZfl7YEC&q=bhagavan+vedas&pg=PA333 |isbn=9780595525737|date=December 2008}}</ref>

==Buddhism==
{{Buddhism}}

=== Literature ===

'''Bhagavān in Buddhist texts'''

==== In Pali Literature ====
Bhagava is the Pali word used for Bhagavan. Some Buddhist texts, such as the Pali ''suttas'', use the word Bhagavā for the Buddha, meaning "the fortunate one".<ref>{{cite book|title=A History of Buddhist Philosophy|author=David J. Kalupahana|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|page=111|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=SlDArya3YvcC&q=bhagava++buddhism&pg=PA111 |isbn=9780824814021|year=1992}}</ref> The term Bhagavā has been used in Pali [[Anussati]]{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}} or recollections{{Clarify|reason=What is meant by the term recollections in this context?|date=June 2019}} as one of the terms that describes the "[[Tathāgata]]" as one full of good qualities, as ''arahant'', ''sammā-sambuddho'' and ''sugato'' (Dīgha Nikāya II.93).<ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Buddhism|publisher=Routledge|page=94|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=NFpcAgAAQBAJ&q=bhagava++buddhism&pg=PA94 |isbn=9781136985881|date=2013-12-16}}</ref>

Bhagavan is one of the nine qualities of the Buddha. In the Buddha Anussati, Bhagavan is defined the following way:

:''{{IAST|Iti pi so '''Bhagavā''' Arahaṃ Sammā-sambuddho Vijjā-caraṇa sampanno Sugato Lokavidū Anuttaro purisa-damma-sārathi Satthā deva-manusānaṃ Buddho '''Bhagavā'''ti}}''

:Thus is the Buddha, deserving homage, perfectly awakened, perfect in true knowledge and conduct, well gone to [[Nirvana|Nibbana]], knower of the worlds, incomparable leader (lit. charioteer) of persons to be tamed, teacher of gods and humans, awakened one and Blessed One.{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}}{{Primary source inline|date=June 2019}}

==== In Sanskrit Literature ====
Several Tibetan Buddhist tantra texts use the word Bhagavān. For example, the Pradipoddyotana manuscript of [[Guhyasamāja tantra]]-Samdhivyakarana uses the word Bhagavān, which Alex Wayman translates as "Lord".<ref name=alexwayman>Alex Wayman (1974), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1397800 Two Traditions of India: Truth and Silence] Philosophy East and West, Vol. 24, No. 4 (Oct., 1974), pages 389-403, for the original verse see footnote 13 on page 402, for Wayman's translation, see page 391</ref> The text, elsewhere refers to "Bhagavan Sarvatathagatakayavakcittadipatih", which John Campbell translates as "Lord, Master of the Vajras of Body, Speech, and Mind of all Buddhas."<ref>John Campbell (2009), [http://gradworks.umi.com/33/74/3374090.html Vajra hermeneutics: A study of Vajrayana scholasticism in the "Pradipoddyotana"], PhD Thesis accepted by Columbia University (Advisor: Robert Thurman), page 210</ref> Elsewhere, it states,<ref name=johncampbell>John Campbell (2009), [http://gradworks.umi.com/33/74/3374090.html Vajra hermeneutics: A study of Vajrayana scholasticism in the "Pradipoddyotana"], PhD Thesis accepted by Columbia University (Advisor: Robert Thurman), page 355<br />Christian K. Wedemeyer, Aryadeva's Lamp that Integrates the Practices (Caryamelapakapradlpa): The Gradual Path of Vajraydna Buddhism According to the Esoteric Community Noble Tradition, ed. Robert A. F. Thurman, Treasury of the Buddhist Sciences series (New York: The American Institute of Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, 2007), {{ISBN|978-0975373453}}</ref>

{{blockquote|
<poem>
Thereupon, having made offerings and bowing down to the '''Bhagavan''',
The Lord of Body Speech and Mind of all Tathagatas,
All the '''Bhagavan''' Tathagatas spoke thus:
: Glorious One, pray to explain the essence,
: The unexcelled [[Bodhicitta]],
: The secret of all Tathagatas,
: The supreme of Body Speech and Mind.</poem>
| Pradipoddyotana, II. 1 <ref name=johncampbell/>}}

[[Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra]], a sutra of Mahāyāna Buddhism, for example, uses the word Bhagavān over three hundred times{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}}, which is either left untranslated by scholars{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}}, or translated as "Lord or Blessed One".<ref>'''English Translation''': Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, [http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/resources/downloads/sutras/08technicalMayayana/Lankavatara%20Sutra.doc.pdf Mahayana Lankavatara Sutra] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150214005518/http://huntingtonarchive.osu.edu/resources/downloads/sutras/08technicalMayayana/Lankavatara%20Sutra.doc.pdf |date=14 February 2015 }} Ohio State University;<br />'''Sanskrit''': [http://lirs.ru/do/lanka_skt/Lankavatara-Sanskrit-Vaidya_edition.pdf Lankavatara Sutra] Archived original at a Buddhist Library in Russia</ref> The devotional meditational text ''Sukhavati Vyuhopadesa'' by [[Vasubandhu]] uses the term Bhagavān in its invocations.<ref>Minoru Kiyota (2009), Mahāyāna Buddhist Meditation: Theory and Practice, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120807600}}, pages 274-275</ref>

==== Variants ====
Other variants of the term Bhagavan, such as ''Bhagavant'' and ''Bhagavata'' can also be found throughout Buddhist texts. For instance, it is used in the initial chant, which is recited before almost every Sutta chanting,
{{Blockquote|text=NamoTassa Bhagavato Arahato Samma-sambuddhassa {{break}} 
I honour to that Bhagavan, who is Arhat and a fully-enlightened Buddha}}

=== Significance ===
The term Bhagavān is found in liturgical practices of Theravada Buddhism, where it is used as an epithet that means the "Blessed One". Examples of such usage is found in Sri Lanka's ''Bodhi Puja'' (or ''Atavisi Buddha Puja'', Worship of the Twenty Eight Buddhas).<ref>Frank Reynolds and Jason A. Carbine (2000), The Life of Buddhism, University of California Press, {{ISBN|978-0520223370}}, pages 179-187</ref>

The word Bhagavan is the most common word for the Buddhist texts to refer to the Buddha. For example, almost every sutra in Buddhist canonical and commentarial texts starts with the line like<blockquote>''Evaṃ me suttaṃ – ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme.'' (Pali)

''evaṃ mayā śrutam | ekasmin samaye bhagavān śrāvastyāṃ viharati sma jetavane'nāthapiṇḍadasyārāme.'' (Sanskrit)

Thus have I heard - Once the Bhagavan was dwelling in Savatthi, at the Anathpindaka's monastery in Jetavana. (English Translation)</blockquote>

==Inscriptions==
[[File:Heliodorus-Pillar2.jpg|thumb|260px|Heliodorus ''Khamba'' (pillar) in the Indian state of [[Madhya Pradesh]]. Installed about 100 BCE, the pillar's Brahmi-script inscription states that Heliodorus is a ''Bhagvatena'' (devotee) of Vishnu.<ref>PP Behera, [http://www.orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/jun2004/englishpdf/pillar.pdf The Pillars of Homage to Lord Jagannatha] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609215607/http://www.orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/jun2004/englishpdf/pillar.pdf |date=9 June 2015 }} Orissa Review, June 2004, page 65</ref>]]

===Greek===
A word derived from Bhagavan is documented epigraphically from around 100 BCE, such as in the inscriptions of the [[Heliodorus pillar]]; in which Heliodorus, an [[Indo-Greek]] ambassador from [[Taxila]] to the court of a [[Shunga Empire|Shunga]] king, addresses himself as a ''Bhagvatena'' (devotee) of [[Vishnu]]. ("Heliodorena Bhagavata", Archaeological Survey of India, Annual Report (1908-1909)):<ref>John Irvin (1973-1975), Aśokan Pillars: A Reassessment of the Evidence, The Burlington Magazine. v. 115, pages 706-720; [https://www.jstor.org/stable/877843 v. 116, pages 712-727]; v. 117, pages 631-643; v. 118, pages 734-753; {{oclc|83369960}}</ref>

<blockquote>This [[Garuda]]-standard of Vasudeva (Vishnu), the God of Gods was erected here by the Bhagavatena (devotee) Heliodoros, the son of Dion, a man of [[Taxila]], sent by the Great Greek ([[Yona]]) King [[Antialcidas]], as ambassador to King Kasiputra Bhagabhadra, the Savior son of the princess from [[Benares]], in the fourteenth year of his reign."<ref group=lower-alpha>Original inscription:<br />Devadevasa Va [sude]vasa Garudadhvajo ayam<br />karito i[a] Heliodorena bhaga-<br />vatena Diyasa putrena Takhasilakena<br />Yonadatena agatena maharajasa<br />Amtalikitasa upa[m]ta samkasam-rano<br />Kasiput[r]asa [Bh]agabhadrasa tratarasa<br />vasena [chatu]dasena rajena vadhamanasa"</ref></blockquote>

===Buddhist vase===
''Sākamunisa bhagavato'' is recorded in the [[kharoshthi]] dedication of a vase placed in a Buddhist [[stupa]] by the Greek [[meridarch]] (civil governor of a province) named [[Theodorus (meridarch)|Theodorus]]:<ref>''The Greeks in Bactria and India'', [[W.W. Tarn]], Cambridge University Press, page 391</ref>

:''"Theudorena meridarkhena pratithavida time sarira sakamunisa bhagavato bahu-Jana-stitiye"'':
: "The meridarch Theodorus has enshrined relics of Lord [[Shakyamuni]], for the welfare of the mass of the people"
:– (Swāt relic vase inscription of the Meridarkh Theodoros<ref>[http://depts.washington.edu/ebmp/etext.php?cki=CKI0032 The Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212225518/http://depts.washington.edu/ebmp/etext.php?cki=CKI0032 |date=12 February 2009 }} University of Washington</ref>)

===Brass pillars and stupas===
[[James Prinsep]] identified several engravings and inscriptions on ancient Buddhist artifacts that include the word Bhagavan and related words. For example,<ref name=jamesp/>

:'' Bhagawana-sarirahi Sri Tabachitrasa Khamaspada putrasa dana.''
:"(Casket) containing relics of Bhagwan, the gift of Sri Tabachitra, the son of Khamaspada
:– The Tope of Manikyala<ref name=jamesp>James Prinsep and Henry Thoby Prinsep, {{Google books|CEYOAAAAQAAJ|Essays on Indian Antiquities|page=107}}, Volume 1, page 107</ref>

==See also==
{{div col}}
* [[Brahma]]
* [[Vishnu]]
* [[Shiva]]
* [[Purusha]]
* [[Brahman]]
* [[Acintya]]
* [[Bhagavad Gita]]
* [[Bhakti]]
* [[Ishvara]]
* [[Jnana]]
* [[Lord]]
* [[Narayana]]
* [[Om Tat Sat]]
* [[Para Brahman]]
* [[Svayam Bhagavan]]
* [[Turiya]]
* [[Yoga]]
{{div-col-end}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book| author = Thomas Mcevilley| title = The Shape of Ancient Thought: Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies| year = 2002| publisher = Skyhorse Publishing Inc.| isbn = 978-1-58115-203-6 }}
* {{cite book| author = Baij Nath Puri| title = Buddhism In Central Asia| year = 1987| publisher = Motilal Banarsidass Pub| isbn = 978-81-208-0372-5 }}

==Further reading==
* Richard Gombrich, "{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20211107210051/https://sangharajamcbs.com/sites/archive/richard016.pdf A New Theravadin Liturgy]}}," Journal of the Pali Text Society, 9 (1981), pages 47–73.

{{Buddhism topics}}
{{Hindudharma}}
{{VishnuAvatars}}

[[Category:Epithets of Gautama Buddha]]
[[Category:Hindu given names]]
[[Category:Hindu philosophical concepts]]
[[Category:Names of God in Hinduism]]
[[Category:Vedanta]]