This thesis is a contribution to the study of the interpretation of the concept of bodhicitta. This concept is a technical term of frequent occurrence in Buddhist Sanskrit literature. Within the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, bodhicitta is closely related to the spiritual practices of the Buddhist aspirant to enlightenment. Specifically researched is Santideva's use of this concept in his Bodhicaryavatara, a text known to have been composed around the 8th century. The form of this study is as follows: first, a survey of the various interpretations of the concept of bodhicitta suggested so far; secondly, an analysis of its possible functions in the context of the spiritual path of the aspirant to enlightenment; thirdly, a discussion of what I believe to be an appropriate understanding of bodhicitta. An argument will be made that the path to realization consists in cultivating an awareness of the reality described by the concept of bodhicitta. Such cultivation should bring one to the realization that what is described by it is indeed the only possible reality. This means that bodhicitta is the means to as well as the description of the goal to attain.

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