Prajñā (Sanskrit) or paññā (Pali) has been translated as "wisdom," "understanding," "discernment," "cognitive acuity," or "know-how." In Buddhism, it especially refers to the wisdom that is based on the direct realization of the Four Noble Truths, impermanence, dependent origination, non-self, emptiness, etc. Prajñā is the wisdom that is able to extinguish afflictions and bring about enlightenment.

In the Pali Canon

In the Pali Canon, paññā is defined in a variety of overlapping ways, frequently centering on concentrated insight into the three characteristics (impermanence, suffering, no-self) of all things and the Four Noble Truths.

For instance, when elaborating upon the Five Spiritual Faculties (faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom), the Buddha describes paññā (here translated as "discernment") as follows:

"And what is the faculty of discernment? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is discerning, endowed with discernment of arising & passing away — noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. He discerns, as it is actually present, [the Four Noble Truths]: 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress... This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.' This is called the faculty of discernment."

Similarly, in discussing the Threefold Training of higher-virtue (adhi-sīla), higher-mind (adhi-citta) and higher-wisdom (or "heightened discernment," adhi-paññā), the Buddha describes paññā thusly:

"And what is the training in heightened discernment? There is the case where a monk discerns as it actually is that 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress... This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.' This is called the training in heightened discernment."

In a subsequent discourse regarding the Threefold Training, the Buddha indicates that higher wisdom entails the application of concentration and insight to end "fermentations" (or "mental intoxicants"; Pali: āsava), effectively achieving arahantship:

"And what is the training in heightened discernment? There is the case where a monk, through the ending of the mental fermentations, enters & remains in the fermentation-free awareness-release & discernment-release, having known & made them manifest for himself right in the here & now. This is called the training in heightened discernment."

In mapping the Threefold Training to the Noble Eightfold Path, paññā is traditionally associated with "right view" () and "right resolve" () which the Buddha defined as:

"And what, monks, is right view? Knowledge with regard to stress, knowledge with regard to the origination of stress, knowledge with regard to the stopping of stress, knowledge with regard to the way of practice leading to the stopping of stress: This, monks, is called right view.

"And what is right resolve? Being resolved on renunciation, on freedom from ill will, on harmlessness: This is called right resolve."

From the Visuddhimagga

In to the fifth-century CE exegetic Visuddhimagga, Buddhaghosa states that the function of paññā is "to abolish the darkness of delusion" and that it is "manifested as non-delusion." Its proximate cause is concentration.

Buddhaghosa provides the analogy of a tree to discuss the development of paññā:

• The soil of the tree are the:

• five aggregates
• twelve sense bases and 18 elements
• 22 faculties
• Four Noble Truths
• Dependent Origination.

• The roots are:

• purification of virtue
• purification of consciousness.

• The trunk is made up of:

• purification of view
• purification by overcoming doubt
• purification by knowledge and vision of what is and is not the path
• purification by knowledge and vision of the way
• purification by knowledge and vision.

Buddhaghosa instructs that, to achieve paññā, one should first learn about the soil, then the roots and then the trunk.

From the Prajñā-pāramitā Sutras

The Prajñā-pāramitā Sutras, such as the Heart Sutra, describe prajñā as supreme, highest, incomparable, unequalled, and unsurpassed. It is spoken of as the principal means, by its enlightenment, of attaining nirvana, through its revelation of the true nature of all things.

The beginning of the Heart Sutra includes the phrase "...doing Prajñā..." indicating that prajñā is also an activity as well as an outcome, quality or state. As activity, prajñā can be described as "choiceless engagement" where "choiceless" means selflessly accepting outcomes as they develop while understanding interdependent co-existence and sunyata, followed by further engagement.

Hui-neng

In the history of Zen Buddhism, the Sixth Patriarch Hui-neng (d. 713) emphasized the practice of prajñā in counterpoint to the quietistic and self-absorbed style of meditation that was then current. In so doing, he emphasized dynamic action and human involvement as essential to Zen practice.

As a Perfection

Praññā is also listed as the fourth virtue of ten Theravada paramitas and prajñā is the sixth of the six Mahayana paramitas.

Notes

Bibliography

• Buddhaghosa, Bhadantācariya and Bhikkhu (trans.) (1999). The Path of Purification: Visuddhimagga. Seattle, WA: BPS Pariyatti Editions. ISBN 1-928706-00-2.
• Nyanaponika Thera and Bhikkhu Bodhi (trans. and ed.) (1999). Numerical Discourses of the Buddha: An Anthology of Suttas from the Anguttara Nikaya. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press. ISBN 0-7425-0405-0.
• Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921-5). The Pali Text Society’s Pali–English Dictionary. Chipstead: Pali Text Society. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1996). Magga-vibhanga Sutta: An Analysis of the Path (SN 45.8). Retrieved 2007-06-22 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn45/sn45.008.than.html.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997). Indriya-vibhanga Sutta: Analysis of the Mental Faculties (SN 48.10). Retrieved 2007-06-22 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn48/sn48.010.than.html.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998a). Culavedalla Sutta: The Shorter Set of Questions-and-Answers (MN 44). Retrieved 2007-06-22 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.044.than.html.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998b). Sikkha Sutta: Trainings (1) (AN 3:38). Retrieved 2007-06-22 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an03/an03.088.than.html.
• Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998c). Sikkha Sutta: Trainings (2) (AN 3:39). Retrieved 2007-06-22 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an03/an03.089.than.html.