Mr. Altig’s Overview of the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Sutra

An arhat (in Sanskrit) or arahant (in Pali) is a term used in Buddhism to refer to a person who has attained the highest level of spiritual attainment, also known as Nirvana or enlightenment. The word “arhat” literally means “worthy one” or “one who is worthy of respect” in Sanskrit.

An arhat has achieved the ultimate goal of Buddhism, which is to completely eliminate the causes of suffering, which are the craving and clinging to existence, and to attain inner peace and freedom from suffering. They have also achieved the elimination of all defilements, such as greed, hatred, and ignorance, which are the root causes of suffering.

An arhat has achieved a deep understanding of the Four Noble Truths, which is the foundation of Buddhism, and has realized the true nature of reality, which is impermanence, suffering, and non-self. They have also achieved the elimination of all their negative karma and have no more chance of being reborn in lower realms of existence.

In Theravada Buddhism, Arhats are considered to be the highest level of spiritual attainment in Buddhism, they are considered to be the embodiment of the Buddha’s teachings, they are considered to be the embodiment of the Buddha’s teachings, they are the ones who have achieved the full realization of the Four Noble Truths and have eliminated all the defilements, thus, they have reached the state of Nirvana, the ultimate goal of Buddhism.

In Mahayana Buddhism, the term Arhat is used to describe the followers of the Theravada path, who have achieved the highest level of spiritual attainment, yet it is considered that a Buddha has a higher level of attainment than an Arhat, a Buddha is able to teach and guide all beings, including both heavenly beings and human beings, on the path to enlightenment, while an Arhat can only guide himself to reach enlightenment.

In summary, an arhat is a term used in Buddhism to refer to a person who has attained the highest level of spiritual attainment, also known as Nirvana or enlightenment. They have eliminated the causes of suffering, which are the craving and clinging to existence, and have attained inner peace and freedom from suffering. They have also achieved the elimination of all defilements, such as greed, hatred, and ignorance. An arhat has achieved a deep understanding of the Four Noble Truths and has realized the true nature of reality. They have also achieved the elimination of all their negative karma and have no more chance of being reborn in lower realms of existence. In Theravada Buddhism, arhats are considered to be the highest level of spiritual attainment, while in Mahayana Buddhism, they are considered to be a level below that of a Buddha. A Buddha is able to teach and guide all beings on the path to enlightenment, while an arhat can only guide himself to reach enlightenment.