Mārga

mārga (P. magga; T. lam; C. dao; J. dō; K. to 道). Literally "path." The metaphorical route from one state to another, typically from suffering to liberation, from samsara to nirvana.

The Princeton Dictionary states:

The term derives in part from the view that the means of achieving liberation from suffering have been identified by the Buddha, and he himself has successfully followed the route to that goal, leaving behind tracks or footprints that others can follow. Indeed, it is the Buddhist view that each of the buddhas of the past has followed the same path to enlightenment. However, in the interval between buddhas, that path becomes forgotten, and the purpose of the next buddha’s advent in the world is to rediscover and reopen that same path.

In his first teaching on the four noble truths, the Buddha stated that the fourth noble truth as the "path (mārga) to the cessation of suffering", which is the "noble eightfold path":

What is the path that leads to the cessation of suffering? It is exclusively the eightfold path of the noble ones. This is the path that starts with correct view and ends with correct concentration. It is called the path that leads to the cessation of suffering—a noble truth.

—Lalitavistara Sutra

In other teachings, the path is described as consisting of five stages, known as the five paths, although they are in fact not separate paths but rather five stages on the same path.

On a deeper level, the path refers to the wisdom, which is required to realize cessation.

Alternate translations

• Alexander Berzin translates lam as 'pathway mind' or 'pathway of mind' and gives the following definition for lam: "A level or state of mind that acts or functions as a pathway toward liberation or enlightenment. Some translators render this term as 'path,' but it refers to mental states, not to a series of spiritual practices."

Sources

• Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Donald S. (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University