This Buddhist Reference Sheet by the Numbers comes from an article I posted on a previous blog some ten years back, in May of 2016. I know some folks found it helpful back then so I’m bringing it back in hopes that it might be of benefit.
I have found the sheer number of lists and numbers that exist in the Buddhist teachings to be one of the things that attracted me to them early on. There’s something about the logical way that things are laid out that speaks to my technical, logical mind. It is through experience and feeling that we gain a true understanding of the Dharma, however without this logical framework of study and discussion it would be difficult to deliver or receive a lot of what leads to an understanding of these experiences. This took me some time to make sense of but eventually I found a balance between the experiential practice of sitting with my own mind and the rigor of study.
I’ve been working on this single-page reference sheet for some key elements of Buddhist practice and study. I was inspired by Art’s Buddhist Cheat Sheet by Arthur Rosengarten which was a great look-up for me several years ago. I have been using a variety of resources in this effort, starting with Mr. Rosengarten’s original infographic as a jumping off point and including the wonderful rigpawiki.org as well as “The Heart of the Buddha” by Chögyam Trungpa and of course my own experience of practice and study in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
Please feel free to download, share, and distribute as you see fit but note that this is just one student’s view on a sliver of what has been my path of practice and study and not meant to be any sort of exhaustive resource or doctrinal document.
Addendum
I’ve labeled this reference sheet with a version number (v1.2 as of this post) — I plan to continue updating and potentially expanding to two sides of a single page. It just feels incomplete without things like the 12 Nidanas, the 5 Buddha Families, and so many others.
To celebrate the fact that I’ve been digging up and reinvigorating some of my old resources, below is a printable card/reminder of the Six Paramitas, or Six Perfections. These are the sankrit and english translations as I have learned them in the traditions I’ve studied, primarily through Tibetan Buddhist lamas and their students. I am forever grateful to their diligence and great effort in bringing these teachings to the West .
