Five paths

Bodhisattva sangha from the Longchen Nyingtik Field of Merit

Five paths (Skt. pañcamārga; Tib. ལམ་ལྔ་, lam nga, Wyl. lam lnga) — a succession of five stages or paths describing the entire spiritual journey towards liberation. They appear with similar names in both the Basic yana (Sarvastivadin and Sautrantika schools) and Mahayana, but their interpretation is considerably different.

They are:

1. the path of accumulation (Skt. sambhāramārga)
2. the path of joining (also called 'engagement' or 'junction') (Skt. prayogamārga)
3. the path of seeing (or 'insight') (Skt. darśanamārga)
4. the path of meditation (or 'cultivation') (Skt. bhāvanāmārga)
5. the path of no-more-learning (Skt. aśaikṣamārga)

Progression on the Five Paths According to the Mahayana Tradition

In the Mahayana, the five paths describe the entire spiritual journey, from its very beginnings with the taking of the bodhisattva vow and the generation of relative bodhichitta, up until its culmination at the stage of complete enlightenment.

Along the first four of the five paths, the thirty-seven factors of enlightenment are undertaken and perfected, and present thereafter as qualities of enlightenment.

There is also a correspondence between the five paths and the ten bhumis.

The chart below summarizes the details of this progression and its various correspondences.

paths	progress	subdivisions	factors of enlightenment	bhumis
1. accumulation	taking the bodhisattva vow; generating relative bodhichitta in both aspiration and action; aspiring towards the absolute bodhichitta; special effort to gather the accumulation of merit	lesser	meditating mainly on the four applications of mindfulness	stage of aspiring conduct; bodhisattva who is still an ordinary being (Skt. pṛthagjana)
		intermediate	chiefly practising the four genuine restraints
		greater	practising the four bases of miraculous powers
2. joining	increase of wisdom (prajña)	warmth	cultivating the five powers
		summit
		acceptance	the five powers 'become' the five strengths
		supreme attribute
3. seeing	direct realisation of absolute bodhicitta		seven elements for enlightenment	first bhumi; becoming an arya bodhisattva
4. meditation	meditating on, and gaining familiarity with, the truth realized on the path of seeing; according to the tradition of Asanga, there are four hundred and fourteen discards to be relinquished on this path		noble eightfold path	second to tenth bhumis
5. no-more-learning	complete enlightenment is reached when the most subtle cognitive obscurations are overcome by means of what is called the “vajra-like samadhi”; omniscience of a samyaksam-buddha			complete Enlightenment, eleventh bhumi

It is said in the pith instructions that the path of accumulation is the stage of understanding, the path of joining is the stage of experience, and the path of seeing is the stage of realization.

Canonical Literature

Sutras

• Sutra of the Ten Bhumis

Shastras

• Yogacarabhumi
• The Ornament of the Mahayana Sutras
• Abhisamayalankara

Further Reading

• Patrul Rinpoche, A Brief Guide to the Stages and Paths of the Bodhisattvas