Buddhism

BUDDHISM

Buddhism is a religion that was founded by Siddhartha Gautama (“The Buddha”) more than 2,500 years ago in India. With about 470 million followers, scholars consider Buddhism one of the major world religions. The religion has historically been most prominent in East and Southeast Asia, but its influence is growing in the West. Many Buddhist ideas and philosophies overlap with those of other faiths.

WHAT IS BUDDHISM?

Some key facts about Buddhism include: • Followers of Buddhism don’t acknowledge a supreme god or deity. They instead focus on achieving enlightenment—a state of inner peace and wisdom. When followers reach this spiritual echelon, they’re said to have experienced nirvana. • The religion’s founder, Buddha, is considered an extraordinary man, but not a god. The word Buddha means “enlightened.”

• The path to enlightenment is attained by utilizing morality, meditation and wisdom. Buddhists often meditate because they believe it helps awaken truth. • There are many philosophies and interpretations within Buddhism, making it a tolerant and evolving religion. • Some scholars don’t recognize Buddhism as an organized religion, but rather, a “way of life” or a “spiritual tradition.” • Buddhism encourages its people to avoid selfindulgence but also self-denial.

• Buddha’s most important teachings, known as The Four Noble Truths, are essential to understanding the religion. • Buddhists embrace the concepts of karma (the law of cause and effect) and reincarnation (the continuous cycle of rebirth). • Followers of Buddhism can worship in temples or in their own homes. • Buddhist monks, or bhikkhus, follow a strict code of conduct, which includes celibacy.

The Buddha

Siddhartha Gautama, who later became known as “The Buddha,” lived during the 5th century B.C. Gautama was born into a wealthy family as a prince in present-day Nepal. Although he had an easy life, Gautama was moved by suffering in the world. He decided to give up his lavish lifestyle and endure poverty.

When this didn’t fulfill him, he promoted the idea of the “Middle Way,” which means existing between two extremes. Thus, he sought a life without social indulgences but also without deprivation. After six years of searching, Buddhists believe Gautama found enlightenment while meditating under a Bodhi tree. He spent the rest of his life teaching others about how to achieve this spiritual state.

The Beginnings of Buddhism When Gautama passed away around 483 B.C., his followers began to organize a religious movement. Buddha’s teachings became the foundation for what would develop into Buddhism. In the 3rd century B.C., Ashoka the Great, the Mauryan Indian emperor, made Buddhism the state religion of India. Buddhist monasteries were built, and missionary work was encouraged.

Over the next few centuries, Buddhism began to spread beyond India. The thoughts and philosophies of Buddhists became diverse, with some followers interpreting ideas differently than others. In the sixth century, the Huns invaded India and destroyed hundreds of Buddhist monasteries, but the intruders were eventually driven out of the country.

Islam began to spread quickly in the region during the Middle Ages, forcing Buddhism into the background.

Types of Buddhism

Today, many forms of Buddhism exist around the world. The three main types that represent specific geographical areas include:

Theravada Buddhism: Prevalent in Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos and Burma

Mahayana Buddhism: Prevalent in China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore and Vietnam

Tibetan Buddhism: Prevalent in Tibet, Nepal, Mongolia, Bhutan, and parts of Russia and northern India

Each of these types reveres certain texts and has slightly different interpretations of Buddha’s teachings. There are also several subsects of Buddhism, including Zen Buddhism and Nirvana Buddhism.

Some forms of Buddhism incorporate ideas of other religions and philosophies, such as Taoism and Bon.

Buddha Quotes and Teachings Buddha’s teachings are known as “dharma.” He taught that wisdom, kindness, patience, generosity and compassion were important virtues.

Specifically, all Buddhists live by five moral precepts, which prohibit:

• Killing living things • Taking what is not given • Sexual misconduct • Lying • Using drugs or alcohol

Gautama traveled extensively, giving sermons on how to live and achieve enlightenment. Some popular quotes commonly attributed to Buddha include:

“Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance.” “If anything is worth doing, do it with all your heart.” “A jug fills drop by drop.” “Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.”

“Hatred does not cease through hatred at any time. Hatred ceases through love. This is an unalterable law.”

“If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way.” “The root of suffering is attachment.”

“People with opinions just go around bothering each other.”

Four Noble Truths The Four Noble Truths, which Buddha taught, are: • The truth of suffering (dukkha) • The truth of the cause of suffering (samudaya) • The truth of the end of suffering (nirhodha) • The truth of the path that frees us from suffering (magga) Collectively, these principles explain why humans hurt and how to overcome suffering

Buddhist Holy Book Buddhists revere many sacred texts and scriptures. Some of the most important are: • Tipitaka: These texts, known as the “three baskets,” are thought to be the earliest collection of Buddhist writings. • Sutras: There are more than 2,000 sutras, which are sacred teachings embraced mainly by Mahayana Buddhists. • The Book of the Dead: This Tibetan text describes the stages of death in detail.

Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama is the leading monk in Tibetan Buddhism. Followers of the religion believe the Dalai Lama is a reincarnation of a past lama that has agreed to be born again to help humanity. There have been 14 Dalai Lamas throughout history. The Dalai Lama also governed Tibet until the Chinese took control in 1959. The current Dalai Lama, Lhamo Thondup, was born in 1935.

Buddhist Holidays Every year, Buddhists celebrate Vesak, a festival that commemorates Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death. During each quarter of the moon, followers of Buddhism participate in a ceremony called Uposatha. This observance allows Buddhists to renew their commitment to their teachings. They also celebrate the Buddhist New Year and participate in several other yearly festivals.

Buddhism and Hinduism both have their origins in India and Lord Buddha, the prophet of Buddhism, hailed from a Hindu family. In fact, Hindus even consider Lord Buddha to be a part of ‘dasavatar’ or ‘ten reincarnations of Lord Vishnu’. However, there are quite a few fundamental differences between both the religions.

Hinduism strongly believes in ‘Atman’, the soul and ‘Brahman’, the eternity of self. As per Buddhism, there is no concept of the self or I and salvation involved in realizing this concept. Hindus worship several gods and goddesses. While Buddha did not deny the existence of any god, he preached that it is futile to search or seek something which an individual is not even aware of.

After his first experience of the world, Buddha became disillusioned and went on to preach that life is full of sorrows and the only solution to end these sufferings was to seek nirvana. While Hinduism also recognizes that there is suffering in human life, the sorrows are attributed to previous karma or actions of the human being. However, one can attain divine bliss by discovering the Atman and Brahman. In Hinduism, the followers pray all natural sources of the earth like stones, water, sun etc. However in Buddhism, this is not so. They only pray Buddha.

As per Hinduism, there are different ways to seek union with God – Raja Yoga or meditation, Karma Yoga – righteously doing all the duties as demanded in this human world, Bhakti – prayer and devotion and Jnana Yoga or the path of knowledge. Buddha preached the four noble truths and the eightfold path to achieve Nirvana. The four noble truths involve acknowledging the universal existence of sufferings, that these sufferings are due to the misleading desires of the ever changing world and that the search for eternity only worsens human suffering and in order to overcome sufferings and attain nirvana, one must suppress those false desires and follow the eight-fold path.

Concept of Buddhism Similar to Hinduism 1.Hinduism is based on the concept of atman and Brahman whereas Buddhism denies the existence of an eternal soul 2.Buddhism emphasizes on sufferings in the existing world whereas Hindus believe that one can enjoy divine bliss through moksha or reunion with God 3.Buddhism believes in attaining nirvana through the four noble truths and eightfold path whereas Hinduism believes there are several ways one can reach to God. 4.Hinduism believes in the existence of several gods whereas Buddhism reasons as to why one should seek a God which nobody is aware of.

What Beliefs Do Hindus & Buddhists Have in Common? Hindus and Buddhists share many core beliefs. Gautama Buddha was a Hindu until the day he died, and his efforts to share his personal enlightenment involved making the Hindu concepts prevalent in his time more accessible -not changing them. One reason why modern Buddhists and Hindus use different words for some of the most important ideas is that the Buddhist teachings were recorded in Pali, a variant of Sanskrit -- the language of Hinduism.

The Natural Law The Sanskrit word "dharma" denotes the natural law, often connoting a sense of duty and righteousness, and both Hindus and Buddhists believe it is of central importance for correct living. The original name of Hinduism is Santana Dharma, which refers to the eternal Law that all people should follow; the word "Hindu" comes from Muslim invaders and British colonists. Buddhists also use the words dharma and dhamma -- the Pali equivalent -- to refer to natural order and proper way of living. Because Buddha taught a simplification of the Hindu Dharma, however, Buddhists are often referring to his teachings when they use either word.

Death and Rebirth Both Buddhists and Hindus believe in reincarnation, but the two religions take different approaches. Hindus believe there is a soul, which they call Atman. According to a passage in the Bhagavad Gita, a central Hindu text, the soul changes bodies in the same way that a person changes clothes. Buddhists don't believe in the existence of an individual soul, and liken rebirth to the rekindling of a flame -- there is a connection in essence only. Nevertheless, Buddhists share the belief in samsara -- the eternal wheel of death and rebirth -- with Hindus.

The Value of Meditation Compared to what most Hindus believe, the Buddhist teaching of impermanence is radical. Buddha asserted that decay was inherent in everything, while Hindus maintain the existence of a permanent state of unity with God. Both Hinduism and Buddhism agree, however, in the transitoriness of the material world and its ultimate worthlessness, and both traditions stress the value of meditation. The reality the meditator encounters is beyond form and comprehension, and in that state of formlessness, the accomplished meditator encounters a paradoxical state in which awareness exists without an object. In that state, questions regarding the permanence of the soul disappear.

The Way Out Buddhists call the ultimate freedom from samsara "nirvana," which is a word that connotes cessation, while Hindus call it "moksha" -- liberation -- and "samadhi" --absorption in the Infinite. The concepts are not really different, because they all require annihilation of the ego that creates the suffering of separation in the first place. Both traditions believe in an inherent system of cause and effect called karma -- kamma in Pali -- that conditions an individual's ability to achieve freedom. Karma is the result of moral actions, and positive karma, together concerted practice, is the recipe for liberation in both traditions.

Buddhism: Basic Beliefs and Practices

The basic doctrines of early Buddhism, which remain common to all Buddhism, include the four noble truths : existence is suffering ( dukhka ); suffering has a cause, namely craving and attachment ( trishna ); there is a cessation of suffering, which is nirvana ; and there is a path to the cessation of suffering, the eightfold path of right views, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. Buddhism characteristically describes reality in terms of process and relation rather than entity or substance.

Experience is analyzed into five aggregates ( skandhas ). The first, form ( rupa ), refers to material existence; the following four, sensations ( vedana ), perceptions ( samjna ), psychic constructs ( samskara ), and consciousness ( vijnana ), refer to psychological processes. The central Buddhist teaching of non-self ( anatman ) asserts that in the five aggregates no independently existent, immutable self, or soul, can be found. All phenomena arise in interrelation and in dependence on causes and conditions, and thus are subject to inevitable decay and cessation. The casual conditions are defined in a 12-membered chain called dependent origination ( pratityasamutpada ) whose links are: ignorance, predisposition, consciousness, name-form, the senses, contact, craving, grasping, becoming, birth, old age, and death, whence again ignorance.

With this distinctive view of cause and effect, Buddhism accepts the pan-Indian presupposition of samsara, in which living beings are trapped in a continual cycle of birth-and-death, with the momentum to rebirth provided by one's previous physical and mental actions (see karma ). The release from this cycle of rebirth and suffering is the total transcendence called nirvana.

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