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| '''Upāsaka''' (masculine) or '''Upāsikā''' (feminine) are from the [[Sanskrit]] and Pāli words for "attendant".<ref>Nattier (2003), p. 25, states that the etymology of ''upāsikā'' suggests "those who serve" and that the word is best understood as "'lay auxiliary' of the monastic community."</ref> This is the title of followers of [[Buddhism]] (or, historically, of [[Gautama Buddha]]) who are not [[Bhikkhu|monk]]s, [[bhiksuni|nun]]s, or [[Samanera|novice]] monastics in a Buddhist order, and who undertake certain vows.<ref>Nattier (2003), p. 25, notes: "...[T]he term ''upāsaka'' (fem. ''upāsikā'') ... is now increasingly recognized to be not a generic term for supporters of the Buddhist community who happen not to be monks or nuns, but a very precise category designating those lay adherents who have taken on specific vows. ...[T]hese dedicated lay Buddhists did not constitute a free-standing community, but were rather adjunct members of particular monastic organizations."</ref> In modern times they have a connotation of dedicated piety that is best suggested by terms such as "[[Laity|lay]] devotee" or "devout lay follower."<ref>Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-25), p. 150, entry for "Upāsaka," available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.0:1:3992.pali; and, Encyclopædia Britannica (2007), entry for "upasaka," available at http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9074383/upasaka. Also, see Nattier (2003), p. 25, quoted at length above, for recent scholarship on the Pali term's historical usage.</ref>
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