BUDDHISM

3. BUDDHISM

4. BUDDHISM BUDDHISM

5. …. Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa: Homage to Him, the Exalted, the Worthy, the Fully Enlightened One. To do no evil; To cultivate good; To purify one's mind: This is the teaching of the Buddhas. -The Dhammapada

6. Life of Buddha

7. … The Birth of the Bodhisatta.On a full-moon day in the month of May (Visakha) 2600 years ago was born a Prince named Siddhattha. His birth took place at Lumbini (modern Rumindei in Nepal), where his mother Mahamaya, the chief queen consort of King Suddhodana of Kapilavatthu, rested with her royal retinue, on her way to her parental home in Devadaha. In the picture Queen Mahamaya stands under a flowering sala tree holding on to one of its branches.

8. … Life as a Prince.Manifold was the variety of all the sensuous delights within the palace, the music and song that filled the palace halls by night and day; the beauty and grace of its dancing girls; the fragrance of subtle perfumes; the finest silks and priceless gems for jewelry and adornment; and rare delicacies and foods for the royal table. And yet, day after day, seated amidst all this luxury the Prince remains unmoved. Ever in thoughtful mood, with a far-away look in his beautiful eyes he muses on the fleeting nature of life's so called pleasures and its doubtful delights.

9. … The realities of life.All King Suddhodana's efforts to protect his son from the four sights of old-age, disease, death, and a recluse are of no avail. On a certain occasion, on his way to the royal pleasure gardens the Prince is confronted by each one of these very sights, and is filled with doubts and deep misgiving. Soon after this he meets a wandering ascetic, impressed by the somber garb and quiet demeanor of the homeless recluse the Prince looks long and hard at him, and then, makes up his mind to leave the palace for a life of homelessness.

10. The Legend of the Four Passing Sights Siddhartha experienced a radical transformation while on a journey. Along the road, he witnessed: an elderly man, thereby learning thereality of age; a person ravaged by disease, thereby learning the reality of sickness; a corpse, thereby learning thereality of death; a community of monks with their begging bowls, thereby learning thereality of want. Age, sickness, death and want; is there any realm, asked the shaken Siddhartha, in which human beings are freed from these facts of human existence?

11. … The Great going forth.On the day of the Esala full-moon (July) the Crown Prince receives the news brought from the palace, of the birth of a son to his wife, the beautiful Princess Yasodhara. Alarmed at this fresh development, this new fetter to bind him closer to the world, the Prince decides to leave the palace that very night. For the sake of his father, his queen, his son, for the sake of all mankind, he would leave the world to seek a way to save the world from all suffering. This is the Great Renunciation.

12. … Experiment with Asceticism.For six long years the ascetic Gotama, as Prince Siddhattha was now known, wanders along the highways and byways of India. He goes to Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta two of its greatest religious teachers, who teach him everything from their store of knowledge and wisdom. But the ascetic Gotama is not satisfied, for their teachings do not lead to the cessation of suffering. With unrelenting energy he undergoes rigorous ascetic discipline, both bodily and mental, seeking a way to the cessation of suffering through further suffering. After 6 years with the ascetics, sometimes living on only 6 grains of a rice a day, he becomes lean and emaciated and a mere skeleton.

13. … Enlightenment.Discarding both extremes of luxurious living and self mortification, the Bodhisatta(= awakened one) Prince chooses the Middle Path of moderation based on the practice of virtue (sila), concentration of the mind (samadhi), and the intensive analysis of all psycho-physical phenomena that finally leads to full understanding of things as they really are (panna). Siddhartha sat under the Bodhi-tree(bodhi = budh = “woke up”) at Buddhagaya to meditate, determined not to arise until he had achieved enlightment; he does and attains Samma Smabodhi, thereby becoming the Supreme Buddha(= awaken or enlightened one).

14. … The Deer Park Sermon The First Discourse.Having realized the Four Noble Truths (the Noble Truth ofSuffering; the Cause of Suffering; the Cessation of Suffering; and the Path leading to the Cessation of Suffering) by himself, the Buddha now decides to teach them to the five ascetics who had earlier served him at Uruvela, in Buddhagaya. At the end of this First Discourse (or Sermon), which is known as the "Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta" and given to the five ascetics who were now living at Isipatana in Benares, the oldest of them, Kondanna realizes the first path and fruition of the Stream-winner (Sotapanna), or one who goes against the stream of Samsara (the recurring cycle of life and death).

15. .. Go now and wander for the welfare of the many.The Buddha stays on at Isipatana for the rainy season. However, before that, within the first week of His giving of the Dhammacakkappavattna Sutta, all five ascetics reach the highest fruition of Sainthood and thus become the first five Arahant disciples of the Buddha. Before the rainy season is over fifty five others have followed suit. The Buddha now exports His sixty disciples: -'Go forth, ye bhikkhus, for the welfare of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world, for the good, welfare and happiness of gods and men.' Accordingly the disciples set forth to spread the new teaching.

16. .. The law of Causation or Dependent Arising.After His Enlightenment under the Bodhi-tree at Buddhagaya, the Buddha reflects on the Law of Dependent Origination (Paticca Samuppada). He ponders as to how things come into being due to past and present conditions to cause suffering. Next He muses on the cessation of these very things when their cause has been removed. Then he reflects on both the arising and the cessation of all things conditioned and inter dependent, in the present, the past and the future.

18. … The Philosophy of change.The Buddha teaches that all conditioned things are in a state of flux or change, and thus impermanent. The ever changing nature of both mind and matter proves the insubstantiality of life, and the instability of existence. Knowing this, Khema the consort of King Bimbisara avoided going to see the Buddha: for being very beautiful, she was afraid the Buddha would disparage her self-conscious awareness of her loveliness. As she went into his presence one day, the Buddha creates the illusion of a beautiful young woman before her, who gradually grows old before her very eyes and collapses at the feet of the Master. Alarmed and ashamed she realizes the impermanence of the human body.

19. … Unsatisfactoriness of Life.According to the Buddha, whatever is impermanent is subject to suffering, and the world rests on this basic factor of suffering (Dukkha). However, having accepted this fact, He goes on to teach man how to gain his release from all suffering. The tragic story of Patacara who loss her whole family within a matter of a single day and night, points out only too well how suffering besets the unsuspecting worlding. After listening to the Buddha she gains peace and sanctity.

20. … Buddha teaches that all Phenomena is soulless.When a thing is impermanent, as all conditioned things are, and thus susceptible to change, there can be no overlord or Self. Helpless in arranging things according to its wishes there can be no soul as master over mind and body. The Buddha explains the soullessness of beings to the five bhikkhus at Isipatana in Benares, in the discourse on soullessness (Anattalakkana Sutta).

21. … Freedom of thought.At times referred to as the Buddha's Charter of Free Inquiry, this discourse was given by the Buddha to the Brahmin Kalamas at Kesaputta. 2500 years ago, preaching against blind belief in Buddha gave prominence to and encouraged the spirit of free inquiry and independence of thought and action, subject to sound judgment. He trained his disciples in the art of questioning as well as in the finer points of debate and discussion. Pointing out the dangers of haphazard thinking the Buddha teaches the Kalamas (the art of reasoning) for the sole purpose of arriving at true understanding of the Buddha's teaching of the Four Noble Truths.

22. .. Towards human dignity.Sunita was a scavenger born into a so called outcaste community. On meeting the Buddha on his almsround one day, the humble youth prostrated himself before the Master in adoration. Asking for ordination he is taken to the temple where he soon becomes worthy of the highest obeisance of both deva and brahma gods. Thus the Buddha teaches that a man becomes neither a Brahman nor a low-caste by birth, but by deeds alone.[Note: Since Buddhists believe that a Brahman or supreme god cannot exist, how can a man become one?]

23. … Human freedom.In the time of the Buddha it was common for both men and women to enter into services in rich households due to their extreme poverty. In fact this traffic in human slaves was very common at the time, even though it was contra indicated for a follower of the Buddha. The state of slavery that existed at the time is well illustrated by the story of the slave girl Rajjumala who worked for a very wicked mistress who treated her without any mercy even for the slightest fault. Here the Buddha admonished both servant and mistress and teaching them the Doctrine, bestows permanent peace on both of them.

24. … Ministering to the sick.In spite of the fact that the study and practice of medicine and surgical science has advanced to a great extent by the Buddha's time, hardly any attention was paid to nursing or caring for the sick. Putigatta Tissa Thera was a monk who was stricken by a skin disease which spread covering his whole body with a mass of ulcerating matter. Lying unattended by the fellow monks his condition worsens. The Buddha going to the stricken monk who now lies dangerously ill, bathes him in warm water with the help of Ananda Thera, and cleans his robes.

25. … Having made him comfortable the Buddha expounds the Teaching (Dharma) to him, explaining the true nature of the human body. Enlightened by the discourse the Thera becomes an Arahant. The Buddha then addresses the other monks on the ennobling task of caring for the sick. Accepting the compassionate exhortation of the Master and following His noble example, the laity started to build wards for sick monks in all large monasteries. Later king Dhammasoka was to build hospitals not only for the public but also for sick animals. Hence the honor for the establishment of the first hospitals should be given to the Buddhists.

26. … Psychic Therapy.The Buddha speaking on the mind, has also spoken on mental disorders and on the treatment of psychic ailments. The Buddha has traced sorrow as one of the chief causes leading to the arising of mental disturbances. On the death of her only son, Kisa Gotami loses control of her senses and in her madness goes in search of medicine for her dead child. Failing all else she appeals to the Buddha, who realizing that nothing would convince her until her mental equilibrium has been restored, sends her on an errand to get him a few mustard seeds from a house where there has been no death. Unable to accomplish the Master's request, she comes to the conclusion that death is inevitable and that her only son too had succumbed to it.(See “Mustard Seeds.”)

27. … Compassion to Animals.In the Buddha's time there were various animal sacrifices taking place in India. Innocent animals were killed as offerings on sacrificial altars to appease the gods, for man's happiness both here and hereafter.

28. … The Buddha, however, showed man that it was impossible to obtain happiness for oneself by causing suffering to others, and that the followers of the Buddha if they were so, should avoid making animal sacrifices. At that time the King of Kosala had seen sixteen terrifying dreams in a single night, and was in great fear. To avert the evil influence of these dreams a great animal sacrifice with the killing of thousands of animals was arranged in accordance with the advice given by the Brahmins. Hearing of this, the Buddha advises the King against such a sacrifice, thus saving the lives of all those doomed creatures. From that day to this, no taking of life however small is involved in any ceremony of the Buddha's followers.

29. … Buddhist Economic System.Many who are not familiar with the Buddha's Teaching classify it as a religion for the next world, or for a future life. They are completely mistaken in this, because eighty percent of the objectives included in the Buddha's Teaching are for the world of today.

30. … According to the Buddha all except one of the five blessings that accrue to the virtuous are available in this life itself; ten of the eleven benefits obtainable through the development of Metta (loving-kindness) are immediate. One who leads a good life in this world is certain to be happy in the next. The Buddha emphasizes this in His Teachings. Thus the Buddha who taught the way to the cessation of suffering also pointed out the path to a highly satisfactory way of life on earth. One aspect of this mundane progress refers to an economic system based on Buddhist principles with the objective of economic development together with the elimination of poverty. The Buddha defines righteous employment as engagement in agriculture, trade, dairy farming, defense services, government services and professional services. He prohibited trade in weapons, in slaves, in rearing animals for slaughter, in liquor, and in poisons, drugs and narcotics.

31. … Buddhist Education.It is a method of teaching that is based on the mental development of the individual: The primary object of Buddhist Education is to produce a cultured disciplined and educated society. With that object in view the first university to be established in the world was at Nalanda in India. It is reported that over ten thousand well disciplined, cultured and law abiding students had their education there in addition to the numerous lecture halls found there classes were also held in the open air under the cooling shade of trees.

32. … Administration of Justice.Certain statutes regarding the administration of justice, were set up by the Buddha for the benefit of bhikkhus, in order to facilitate the dispensation of moral justice according to sound judgment, whenever the occasion arose. By this act the Buddha ensured that the spirit of moral justice which enables us to interpret laws correctly, unlike the imperfect expression of certain aspects of our present day legal administration. At the time of the Buddha and even later, there were kings who took advantage of, and made use of these laws to supplement their own.

33. … The judicial procedure adopted by the Buddha is clearly illustrated in the case of the Arahant Theri Kumara-Kassapa's mother, who unaware of her pregnant condition, with her husband's consent left her home and entered the Bhikkuni order. Later, finding her in an advanced state of pregnancy, the bhikkuni was charged with a serious allegation of misconduct and summoned before a religious court of appeal. The Buddha ordered Upali Thera, foremost among His Arahant disciples in knowledge of Vinaya matters, (and thus equal to that of the Chief Justice of to-day), to preside, try the innocent victim and to deliver judgment on her. The audience consisted of bhikkhus, bhikkunis and laymen, including the lay-woman Visakha. She screened the victim from the presence of the Buddha and the rest, after careful examination and intimate questioning declared that she was quite innocent. The Arahant Upali on hearing the evidence absolved the bhikkuni of any transgression.

34. … World Peace.In the Buddha's Teaching the highest emphasis is laid on the law of cause and effect, or the conditionality of all mundane phenomena. Greed, hatred and delusion are the chief causes that lead to a dissatisfaction with the world. If one seeks to escape from this state of dissatisfaction one should try to get rid of the underlying craving and anger or hatred due to ignorance of the true nature of things. War is diametrically opposed to peace. Conflict is due to the various malignant motives stagnating in the minds of men. The control of such thoughts as greed, jealousy, hate and so on will certainly lead to peace.

35. … Permanent peace will only come when one has completely eradicated these mental defilements. Wars will cease and peaceful dialogue between individuals will lead to a world of peaceful and harmonious living. Petty squabbles arose between the farmers on both sides of the river Rohini which served as the boundary between the Sakyan and the Koliyan Kingdoms, as each side tried to divert as much water as possible to their fields. Finally these led to a major confrontation of the two armies. The Buddha arriving on the scene exhorts them on the calamitous results of war and the advantage of arriving at a peaceful settlement. Thus war is averted and peace restored. It should be mentioned that the Buddha has been the only religious teacher to have visited a battlefront in person and acted as a true mediator in averting war.

36. … The Maha Parinibbana.The Buddha was born as a prince under a tree, gained Supreme Enlightenment under a tree and wandered about India for 45 years giving His Teaching to the world, and finally passed away at the age of eighty at Kusinara under a tree as a human being. No wonder Buddhists love trees!!!

37. Basic Buddhism

38. Buddhist Scriptures Buddhist scriptures are a vast and wide terrain, so we cannot discuss all of them. The starting point, however, for any initial foray into this wealth of  Buddhist scripture is the Pali Canon, the first scriptures to be committed to writing after the Buddha's parinibbana (i.e., death, ascention, or whatever).

39. … Believe nothing because a wise man said it...Believe nothing because it is generally held as true...Believe nothing because it is written...Believe nothing because it is said to be divine...Believe nothing because someone else believes it...Believe only what you yourself judge to be true. - the Buddha

40. The Three Baskets (Theravada) The Pali Canon consists of three divisions, the Tipitaka(or Tripitaka in Sanskrit) which literally means the 'three baskets.' Each of these baskets has different concerns. 1. First, there is the Vinaya Pitaka, the Book of Discipline, which includes the rules of monastic discipline given by the Buddha during his lifetime. 2. The second division is the Sutta Pitaka, a collection of the Buddha's discourses. This has particular significance as it contains the essential teachings of the Buddha, accounts of his own enlightenment experience, and instructions on morality and meditation. 3. The third division is the Abhidhamma Pitaka or Higher Teachingswhich offers an intricate analysis of the nature of mental and physical existence.

41. Lotus Sutra (Mahayana) The Saddharma-pundarika, or 'Lotus of the True Dharma' is written in Sanskrit and has become one of the most influential of Mahayana scriptures. Analysis suggests that it was written between 100BCE and 200C. In the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha in the form of Sakyamuni speaks to a vast audience of assembled saints, monks, nuns and bodhisattvas. One of the key Mahayana concepts to be found in the Lotus Sutra is that of skill-in-means (upaya). This is the idea that the Buddha has adapted his teachings to suit the level of his audience. Thus, Theravada and Mahayana are parts of a single path (Ekayana).

42. Heart Sutra (Mahayana) The Heart Sutrais believed to have been written about the first century BCE. Although this is a very short text - about a page in length -  it has been enormously influential. Essentially it expounds the concept of 'emptiness' (sunyata), a key term in Mahayana philosophy. In short, sunyata refers to the absence of self or essence in all conditioned phenomena: 'form is emptiness and emptiness is form.' The world is seen as a complex of ever-changing, fluctuating elements (dharmas): 'Here, O Sariputra, all dharmas are marked with emptiness'. The texts culminates with the mantra: 'Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone altogether beyond, O what an awakening, all-hail!'

43. Diamond Sutra (Mahayana) The Diamond Sutra takes the from of a dialogue between Sakyamuni Buddha and the disciple Subhuti. In it the Buddha expounds the notion that that the self and the world around us are ultimately illusory: 'The appearance of self is actually no appearance. The appearance of others, the appearance of living beings and the appearance of a life are actually not appearances.' The world that we think is real is no more than 'a dream, an illusion, a bubble or a shadow.'

44. Lotus of the True Law (Mahayana)and explanation of Bodhisattvas This treatise is concerned with the nature of Buddhas and secondarily with Bodhisattvas. Abodhisattvais first an embodiment in human form of the Buddha principle or truth. Although he appears on earth, he is not subject to the same conditioned existence as are unenlightened human beings who are still held by karma and ignorance in the chain of interdependent origination. Next, a bodhisattva’s function or task (what he does in distinction to who he is) is that of a Buddha-to-be – someone who exists in the world but who is entitled or qualified to be in Nirvana now. He voluntarily defers his entrance into Nirvana in order to help others toward their enlightenment and Nirvana. It is their pure compassion and love for others that keeps them in this world.

45. … By entering the Bodhisattva way, the mind must become enlightened. And so the training begins by generating theSix Perfections:generosity, ethics, patience, effort, concentration, and wisdom. To become a Bodhisattva is to be fearless. There is no aversion for those who are hostile, and there is no obsessive clinging to those who are closest to us. There is no possessiveness, only love, compassion, and discernment into the nature of reality. A Buddhist poem written by a bodhisattva expresses the idea: For as long as space endures And for as long as living beings remain, Until then may I too abide To dispel the misery of the world. The concepts of the bodhisattva in theTheravadaandMahayanasects of Buddhism are distinct; however, the ultimate role of the bodhisattva in both is to lead humankind to enlightenment.

46. . Both sects endorse many of the same attributes that characterize the bodhisattva. The difference lies in role the bodhisattva serves in the journey to enlightenment or Nirvana. For the Theravadas the bodhisattva is a teacher or inspirer while Mahayanas develop the bodhisattva's role into that of a savior. Despite doctrinal differences, the bodhisattva is a primary step towards enlightenment for both. • The Theravedabodhisattva instructs the Buddhist but does not serve as the vehicle to enlightenment. The Theravadan sect focuses on self- improvement, wisdom, and discipline to doctrine. • To theTheravadas,the bodhisattva is the future Buddha (Maitreya) who will come to teach the way to Nirvana; there has been and will be only ONE Buddha. The Mahayana's bodhisattva is a this world savior who will enable the faithful to reach enlightenment. For both sects, however, the bodhisattva is the way to the ultimate goal of Nirvana.

47. … TheMahayanabodhisattva is a teacher who can "transfer merits" to those who need karma. With this ability to transfer merits the bodhisattva becomes a savior figure and the goal of enlightenment becomes attainable to all who desire it. This new perception of the bodhisattva engenders the notion of bhakti: "the passionate, emotional, and devotional attachment to a loving and compassionate deity" (Ch'en, 62). The Mahayanas see the bodhisattva as well as the Buddha as eternal beings capable of bestowing grace on those who ask for it. Enlightenment is therefore reached through a life of devotion and faith as opposed to strict discipline to doctrine.

48. … For the Mahayana, a bodhisattva is a lord “who sees the world with pity.” No wonder then that he (or she) is often represented with a thousand eyes symbolizing his all encompassing ability to view with compassion the suffering of others, thus sharing in their sorrows, a first step towards their ultimate alleviation. Not only that, he also often is depicted as having a thousand hands too which help in the mammoth task of delivering innumerable beings to their ultimate spiritual fulfillment.

49. Sutra Satipatthana& The Four Foundations of Mindfulness The Buddha's teaching on The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, which is outlined in Sutta Satipatthana, is of great significance. According to the text, it is 'the direct path to the attainment of purity, for the overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, for the end of pain and grief...for the realization of nibbana’ (nirvana). Mindfulness is also the seventh factor of the Noble Eightfold Path. The word 'mindfulness' can be explained as a combination of 'bare attention' and 'clear comprehension.' The purpose of practicing mindfulness it is to see things as they really are, unswayed by aversion or attraction. The four categories from within which mindfulness can be approached are: • contemplation of the body • contemplation of feelings  • contemplation of the mind • contemplation of mental objects.

50. … The first 3 are easy to see, so we will skip to #4 – the Contemplation of Mental Objects This category covers the meditator's ability to become aware of the five hindrances within him. These are obstacles - namely sensual desire, ill-will, sloth and torpor, restlessness, and doubt - which are obstructive to the attainment of blissful states known as jhanas. He will alsonote that what we normally designate 'the self' is made up of five 'aggregates' or khandhas - corporeality, perception, feelings, mental formations, and consciousness. He will  come to an understanding of the senses, factors which are conducive to enlightenment (such as energy and rapture) and thefour noble truths. four noble truths.