Template:Parami/doc

Template:Parami lists the "Perfections" (Pali: pāramī; Skt.: pāramitā), exemplified in the various lives of Gautama Buddha (see, for instance, the Pāli Canon, the Buddhavamsa and Jataka tales), which traditionally include ten practices in Theravada Buddhism and six practices in Mahayana Buddhism.

Usage

This template can be invoked as follows:

{{Parami}} — transcludes the template as a right-hand sidebar as shown here.

{{Parami|float=left}} — transcludes the template as a left-hand sidebar.

WP source

The main Wikipedia article and set of related citations for this template's content is pāramitā. Questions about the reliability or accuracy of this template's concepts should be addressed on that article's talk page.

Questions about this template's organization, fonts or color scheme should be addressed on this template's talk page.

Word spellings

The lefthand column's list is based on traditional Theravada sources and thus is in the traditional Theravada canonical language of Pali. The righthand column's list is related to Mahayana practices and thus is in one of its traditional languages, Sanskrit. Thus, two differently spelt words can represent the same practice.

For instance, both paññā (Pali) and prajñā (Sanskrit) represent the Buddhist concept that has been translated into English as "wisdom," "understanding" or "discernment."

It is worth keeping in mind though that, while words such as paññā and prajñā are clearly etymologically related, they may at times have significantly different connotations in different Buddhist traditions. Similarly, even the same word can have different implications in different traditions.

Color scheme

The five perfections that are common to both the lists (dāna, sīla, paññā/prajñā, viriya/vīrya and khanti/kṣānti) are each assigned a different color (Red, Orange, Yellow, LightGreen and Violet, respectively). Each colored perfection is given the same individual color in both lists. The remaining unrepeated perfections are given a neutral color (Whitesmoke). This color scheme is meant to provide the reader with a quick, intuitive basis for discerning the similarities and dissimilarities between these two lists, both in terms of the number of perfections, the perfections themselves and the sequence of perfections. Additionally, the dissimilar perfections can be analyzed to assess to what degree, if any, they overlap with other perfections. (For instance, is the traditional Mahayana perfection of dhyāna similar to the traditional Theravada perfection of upekkhā and, if so, might one have evolved from the other?)

Request to future editors

Wikipedia's policy on verifiability states:

"The burden of evidence lies with the editor who adds or restores material. Material that is challenged or likely to be challenged needs a reliable source, which should be cited in the article."

In addition to providing a reliable source for any change, it would be sincerely appreciated if, before changes are made to this template, an editor would first discuss the planned change on this template's talk page.