Prajñā (Buddhism)

In the context of Buddhist meditation, it is the ability to understand the three characteristics of all things: anicca ("impermanence"), dukkha ("dissatisfaction" or "suffering"), and anattā ("non-self" or "egolessness").

Prajñā is often translated as "wisdom", but according to Buddhist bioethics scholar Damien Keown, it is closer in meaning to "insight", "non-discriminating knowledge", or "intuitive apprehension".

[1] The component parts of the word are: Pali scholars T. W. Rhys Davids and William Stede define paññā (prajñā) as "intelligence, comprising all the higher faculties of cognition" and "intellect as conversant with general truths".

[6] Paññā is the fourth virtue of ten pāramīs found in late canonic (Khuddaka Nikāya) and Theravādan commentary, and the sixth of the six Mahāyāna pāramitās.

[5] Theravada Buddhist commentator Acariya Dhammapala describes paññā as the comprehension of the characteristics of things or phenomena with skillful means.

[16] As one of the three primary trainings (triśikṣā), along with morality (śīla) and concentration (samādhi), prajñā transcends mere mental stability achieved through meditation.

One list of practices which is closely linked to the three types of wisdom are found in various sources, including the Mahāyānasūtrālaṅkāra, and consist of ten practices “associated with the Dharma”: "copying (lekhanā), worshipping (pūjanā), gifting (dānam), hearing (śravaṇam), speaking (vācanam), memorizing (udgrahaṇam), clarifying (prakāśanā), reciting (svādhyāyanam), reflecting (cintanā), and cultivating (bhāvanā).

This is a direct non-conceptual knowledge of the ultimate truth (Dharmadhatu, Thusness, Emptiness, etc), which is both an essential quality for bodhisattvas striving for enlightenment and a genre of texts detailing this profound wisdom.