In Buddhist terminology rūpa refers to perceivable things, comprising materiality and forms. Rūpa originally indicates things with a shape, objects recognized by the organ of sight. Rūpa further forms a pair with ming (名 nāman), or name, listed among the twelve links of dependent origination in the combination mingse (名色 nāmarūpa), name-and-form, indicating the totality of mind and matter of a living individual in transmigration (samsara). In general the term rūpa can denote any material form which is perceivable, perishable matter composed of atoms. But under circumstances Buddhist terminology also uses the concept of "non-informative matter" (avijňapti-rūpa), so as to distinguish it from visible matter, referring to something with form and causal efficacies, but of ineffable condition.

Seng Zhao says: “Form is empty by itself. Emptiness does not come after the decomposition of a form. Therefore, if one insists that a form is different from emptiness, he (wrongly) sees the otherness of the two.”

(Annotations on The Teaching of Vimalakīrti)