Dharma

Ten Meanings of Dharma

Kyabjé Dudjom Rinpoche gives ten meanings for the term Dharma, quoting from Vasubandhu’s The Principles of Elucidation (Vyakhyayukti [Skt.], Namshé Rigpa [Tib.]):

• an object of knowledge,
  
• the path,
  
• nirvana,
  
• a mental object,
  
• merit,
  
• life,
  
• teachings of the Buddha,
  
• what is subject to age or change,
  
• religious vows, and
  
• spiritual tradition.
  

They all relate to the sense of ‘holding’, which is the meaning of dhr, the root of the word Dharma.