辟支佛

(辟支迦) (辟支佛陀) (辟支迦佛陀) (sa) pratyekabuddha, one who seeks enlightenment for himself, defined in the <Lotus Sūtra> as a believer who is diligent and zealous in seeking wisdom, loves loneliness and seclusion, and understands deeply the (sa) nidānas. Also called 緣覺; 獨覺; 倶存. It is a stage above the (sa) śrāvaka 聲聞 and is known as the 中乘 middle vehicle. Tiantai distinguishes 獨覺 as an ascetic in a period without a Buddha, 緣覺 as a (sa) pratyekabuddha. He attains his enlightenment alone, independently of a teacher, and with the object of attaining (sa) nirvāṇa and his own salvation rather than that of others, as is the object of a (sa) bodhisattva. Cf. 畢.