Sarvajñāna (Sanskrit: सर्वज्ञाना) translates to “all-knowing” or “omniscience” and refers to the complete and perfect knowledge possessed by a fully enlightened being, such as बुद्ध a Buddha. This omniscient wisdom includes the ability to perceive and understand all phenomena, both in their conventional and ultimate natures. It is a core attribute of बुद्धत्व Buddhahood in Mahāyāna Buddhism, representing the culmination of the बोधिसत्त्व Bodhisattva path.
Key Aspects:
Sarvajñāna signifies the Buddha’s ability to perceive both the conventional reality of the world—how things appear—and the ultimate reality—their emptiness (शून्यता Śūnyatā). A Buddha, through Sarvajñāna, knows all phenomena as they truly are, free from delusion, conceptual fabrication, and dualistic thinking.
Wisdom and Compassion: In Mahayana Buddhism, Sarvajñāna is not just about intellectual understanding but also involves deep compassion. The omniscience of a Buddha is used to skillfully guide all sentient beings on their path to enlightenment, understanding their needs and circumstances without error. Sarvajñāna is thus an inseparable combination of wisdom (प्रज्ञा Prajñā) and compassion (करुणा Karuṇā).
The Result of the बोधिसत्त्व Bodhisattva Path: Sarvajñāna is attained at the culmination of the Bodhisattva path, where a practitioner overcomes all defilements, ignorance, and delusion through the accumulation of merit and wisdom over many lifetimes. The gradual purification of the mind leads to the full realization of emptiness and the cessation of all obscurations, resulting in the attainment of omniscient wisdom.
Inseparability of Relative and Ultimate Truths: A Buddha’s Sarvajñāna is the Non-Dual awareness of both the conventional and ultimate truths. On the conventional level, the Buddha knows the vast array of phenomena as they appear in the world of संसार Saṃsāra, including the specific causes and conditions affecting each sentient being. On the ultimate level, the Buddha perceives the emptiness of all phenomena, understanding that they are inherently empty of independent existence. Sarvajñāna thus bridges these two truths in a seamless and non-dual way.
Sarvajñāna is often associated with the Dharmakaya (the Truth Body), one of the three bodies of a Buddha (त्रिकाय Trikāya). The Dharmakaya represents the formless, ultimate reality of a Buddha’s mind, which is beyond all dualistic concepts and exists as the omniscient wisdom that knows all things. Sarvajñāna, as the full expression of this wisdom, arises from the realization of the Dharmakaya, signifying the Buddha’s perfect awareness of the nature of reality.
In Mahayana Buddhism, Buddha Nature (དངོས་གཉིས་ Tathagatagarbha) is the inherent potential for enlightenment present within all sentient beings. This potential is the seed of Sarvajñāna, meaning that all beings, through the purification of their minds and the realization of their true nature, have the capacity to attain the same omniscient wisdom as a Buddha. Sarvajñāna is thus the actualization of the Buddha Nature, revealing the mind’s inherent clarity and boundless wisdom.
In the Vajrayana and Dzogchen traditions, Sarvajñāna is seen as the recognition of the mind’s primordial awareness. It corresponds to the realization of རིག་པ་ Rigpa (pure awareness) and ཀུན་རིག Kun rig (all-accomplishing awareness) in Dzogchen, where omniscient wisdom is understood to be the innate, ever-present awareness that does not need to be developed but simply recognized. While Sarvajñāna in Mahayana is often associated with the culmination of a gradual path, in Dzogchen, it is seen as an immediate, direct realization of the all-accomplishing awareness inherent in every being.
Conclusion:
Sarvajñāna represents the omniscient wisdom of a Buddha, the perfect and non-dual knowledge of both the conventional and ultimate nature of all phenomena. It is the culmination of the Bodhisattva path and the expression of a Buddha’s wisdom and compassion. Sarvajñāna arises from the realization of Dharmakaya and the actualization of Buddha Nature, showing that the capacity for omniscience is inherent in all sentient beings. This wisdom is the ultimate goal of the Mahayana and Vajrayana paths, where the practitioner transcends ignorance and achieves the all-knowing mind of enlightenment.
Alternate Entries