Arhat

//ˈɑːhæt// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    One who has attained enlightenment; a Buddhist saint.

    "1954: Over and against the arhat, retreating from appearances into an entirely transcendental Nirvana, stands the Bodhisattva, for whom Suchness and the world of contingencies are one — Aldous Huxley, The Doors of Perception (Chatto & Windus 1954, p. 32)"

  2. 2
    one who has achieved a state of perfect enlightenment wordnet
  3. 3
    One of the stages of the ascetic's spiritual evolution, when all passions (anger, ego, deception, greed, attachment, hatred and ignorance) are destroyed. Jainism

Synonyms

All synonyms
arhantarhantabuddhalohanlohan

Example

More examples

"1954: Over and against the arhat, retreating from appearances into an entirely transcendental Nirvana, stands the Bodhisattva, for whom Suchness and the world of contingencies are one — Aldous Huxley, The Doors of Perception (Chatto & Windus 1954, p. 32)"

Etymology

Transliteration of Sanskrit अर्हत् (arhat, “worthy of worship”), used as a title for sanctified Buddhists. Doublet of arahant and arihant.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.