Buddhism I
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“I go for refuge in the Buddha,
I go for refuge in the dharma,
I go for refuge in the sangha.”
Introduction to World Religions Fall 2007 Dr. Hannah Schell
Agenda for class meeting
1. The life of the Buddha
2. The teachings of the Buddha:
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The Four Noble Truths
The three marks of human existence
The Eightfold Path
The Middle Way
3. Nirvana: the goal of annihilation
4. Discussion point: Is Nirvana God?
Basic orienting facts
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Buddhism: 6 % of the world’s population
Began in Nepal in the 6th century BCE.
Spread south into India and then into Sri Lanka
Spread west into Tibet and China as well as into southeast Asia (Burma Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia); from China it moved into
Korea and Japan.
Countries with highest percentages
of the population identifying
themselves as Buddhist: Thailand
(95%); Cambodia (90%); Myanmar
(once known as Burma) (88%)
“Branches” of Buddhism
• Theravada Buddhism
• Mahayana Buddhism – including Zen
Buddhism
• Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism
… but we aren’t going to talk about these tonight; these
are the subjects for next week!
1. The life of the Buddha
• The man – Siddhartha Gautama – whom Buddhists revere
as “The Buddha” (the awakened one) lived sometime
during the middle of the 7th century BCE into the mid-6th
century BCE . (566-486 BCE?)
•Born to the Sakya clan on the India-Nepal border; sometimes
called Sakyamuni
• Also sometimes called Tathagata (The “thus-come” or
“perfectly enlightened” one).
•The earliest Buddhist sources date from the 4th – 3rd
century BCE.
The story of the Buddha:
History? Legend? Myth? Miracle?
“The story of the life of the Buddha is not history nor meant
to be. The whole story takes on a mythic and legendary
character. A wealth of detail is brought in capable of being
read metaphorically, allegorically, typologically, and
symbolically. Much of this detail is to modern sensibilities
of a decidedly ‘miraculous’ and ‘supernatural kind. The
story of the Buddha’s life becomes not an account of the
particular and individual circumstances of a man who,
some 2,500 years ago , left home to become a wandering
ascetic, but something universal, an archetype; it is the
story of… all who follow the Buddhist path… If we persist
in distinguishing and holding apart myth and history, we
are in danger of missing the story’s own sense of truth.”
- Rupert Bethin, The Foundations of Buddhism (Oxford UP, 1998) 16.
From Asvaghosa’s poem Buddhacarita
(“Acts of the Buddha”), 2nd century CE.
Once upon a time…
“There was a king of the unconquerable Shakya race…
Endowed with wealth and virtue, he was loved and
esteemed by his people, as the moon in autumn.
This king, as powerful as Indra, had a queen comparable
to… Indra’s spouse. As steadfast as the earth and as
pure in heart as a lotus flower, she was called Maya…”
Maya’s dream
“In her sleep,
Maya saw a
white elephant
entering her
womb and
thereby
conceived; yet
she was free
from anxiety
and illusion.”
The birth of the Buddha
“She longed however for the peace of a secluded wood, and as
the Lumbini grove, with its fountains, flowers, and fruit trees,
was quiet and suitable for contemplation, she asked the king to
let her go there.”
Born for well-being of the world
“Then… from the side of
the queen, who was
purified by her vows, a
son was born for the
well-being of the world
without causing her any
pain or illness…”
“ He shone in splendor
and steadfastness, as
the morning sun
coming down upon the
earth; he was
exceedingly radiant and
drew others’ eyes
toward him like the
moon…”
Gazing at the four quarters with
the bearing of a lion, he uttered a
speech prophesying his auspicious
attainment in the future
[“the Lion’s Roar”]:
“I am born to be
enlightened for the
well-being of the world;
this is my last birth.”
The King named his son Siddhartha
(“achieving success of prosperity”).
Therefore, the Buddha is sometimes
referred to by his human name
“Siddhartha Gautama.”
Learned Brahmins read the auspicious signs:
“Auspicious signs found on his
body, such as its golden color and
the exquisite radiance of its luster,
indicate that he is certain to be the
perfectly Enlightened One, or a
universal monarch if he takes
pleasure in worldly affairs.
Should he be a great, earthly
sovereign, he will rule the entire
world with courage and
righteousness, leading all kings, as
the light of the sun leads the lights
of the world.
If he seeks deliverance by living in a
forest, he will acquire true wisdom
and illumine the entire world…”
The Father Rebels
“But the king of the Shakya, having heard.. that the goal of the prince
was to attain supreme bliss, sought to engage the prince in sensual
pleasures, lest he should wish to go off to the forest.
Thereupon, the king summoned for his son a famous maiden… who
was endowed with beauty, modesty, and decorum… from a family of
longstanding and good character…”
The good life
“And so, in palaces like celestial mansions brought to
earth, as white as the clouds of autumn and comfortable
in all seasons, the prince spent his time listening to
refined music performed by lovely maidens…
In time… [ his wife] bearing her own fame, gave in
birth… son named Rahula, whose face resembled the
moon.”
The Four Sights
1. An old (suffering)
man
2. A sick man (disease)
3. A dead man (a corpse)
4. A monk
First excursion: Seeing the Old
Man
“The prince saw a man overcome with
old age, different in form from
other people, and his curiosity was
aroused…. He asked… ‘Who is this
man with gray hair, supported by a
staff in his hand, his eyes sunken
under his eyebrows, his limbs feeble
and bent? Is this transformation a
natural state or an accident?”
http://home.arcor.de/j.matern/India.html
Siddhartha to the charioteer upon seeing the sick
man:
“This is the calamity of disease in all men; yet,
people in the world are unconcerned as they
watch it. Indeed, vast is the ignorance of people
who laugh when they themselves have not been
released from the danger of sickness….
Learning the danger of disease, my mind has
been shocked and deflected from pleasures.”
The charioteer to Siddhartha upon seeing the corpse:
[Siddhartha asked: “Is this state of being peculiar to this
man, or is such the end of all men?”]
The charioteer: “This is the last
state of all men. Death is certain
for all, whether they be of low,
middle, or high degree…. This is
the inescapable end for all men;
yet, people in the world harbor
no fear and seem unconcerned.
Men must be harden ed to be so
at ease as they walk down the
road leading to the next life’ ”
http://students.ou.edu/E/Jennifer.J.Elsner-1/Siddhartha%20Death.jpg
HIS FIRST MEDITATION. “Longing for solitude, the
prince… approached a lonely spot at the foot of a Jambutree, covered all over with beautiful fluttering leaves….
Contemplating the birth and death of beings, he undertook
to steady his mind in meditation…
Having acquired the concentration of mind which springs
from solitude, the prince was filled with extreme joy and
bliss; then meditating on the course of the world, he
thought that this state was indeed supreme… As he thus
perceived clearly the evils of disease, old age, and death in
the world, the false pride in self, arising from belief in
one’s strength, youth and life, left him instantly. He
became neither excited nor distressed; free from doubt,
sloth, and drowsiness, he was unaffected by sensual
pleasures; and untouched by hatred or contempt of
others”
THE FOURTH SIGHT: A mendicant
approached him without being seen by
others. In response to the prince’s question,
“who are you?” the monk replied, “I am a
mendicant who, in fear of birth and death,
has renounced the world for the sake of
deliverance. In this world which is
characterized by destruction, I eagerly search
for the blessed and indestructible state. I
regard both kinsmen and strangers as equals,
and I am free from the evils of passion
arising from objects of sense…”
“ ‘Living wherever I happen to be - at the foot
of a tree, in a deserted house, in the
mountains, or in the woods - I wander about,
living on the alms I receive, without ties to
person or place and with no expectation save
for the attainment of this ultimate goal.’
Saying this, the mendicant flew to the sky as
the prince watched…. The latter now knew
what he should do, and began thinking of a
way to leave his home…” (DeBary 65).
The Great Departure
“He [Siddhartha] went out from his
father’s city with firm determination,
leaving behind his father who had
been so attached to him, his young
son, his joyful people, and his most
beautiful princess, suppressing his
concerns for all of them.
The prince, whose eyes were long like
spotless lotuses, looked back at the
city and uttered a lion’s roar: ‘I will
not [re-enter the city] until I have seen
the other shore of birth and
death’…”
Identifying the Limits of
Asceticism
“Engaged in much difficult fasting, over six years his
body became steadily emaciated… But tormenting his
body through such austerities availed nothing.
‘This is not the way to achieve passionlessness,
enlightenment, liberation. Better and surer the way I
found before beneath the Jambu-tree.
Nor can it be attained by one who is weak… How can
it be reached by a man who is not calm and at ease, who
is so exhausted by hunger and thirst that his mind is
unbalanced?’”
THE GREAT AWAKENING
The Rightly-Illumined one
perceived all of these things
and thus was decisively
awakened: when birth is
destroyed, old age and death
ceases; when “becoming” is
destroyed, then birth ceases;
When attachment is
destroyed, “becoming”
ceases; when craving is
destroyed, attachment
ceases; when sensations are
destroyed, craving ceases…
Reflecting his right understanding, the
great hermit arose before the world as
the Buddha, The Enlightened One.
2. The teachings of the Buddha
Laid out during his first sermon in
Sarnath, in a park outside Varanasi
(Banaras): Set into motion the
“Wheel of the Law”:
 The Four Noble Truths
The Eightfold Path
The Middle Way
The Four Noble Truths
1.
2.
3.
4.
Life is pervaded by suffering
(dukkha – off-center, out of
joint).
The cause of suffering is desire
(tanha – also thirst or craving;
desire for private fulfillment).
Therefore, the remedy for
suffering is the cessation of
desire.
This is possible through “the
path” – specifically the eightfold
path; the path will lead to nirvana.
The three marks of human existence
What is true of everything in the natural order?
1. Suffering – suffering (dukkha) is pervasive
2. No soul - there is no such thing as a permanent soul (the
doctrine of anatta or anatman)
3. Impermanence - All is impermanent, transitory (anicca).
“Anicca.” From: http://www.idiom.com/~kalin/cu_anicca.html
The Eightfold Path
NOTE: Preliminary step of “right association.”
(WISDOM)
1.
Right understanding [knowledge] – comprehending the first 3 Noble Truths
2.
Right thought [intent or aspiration] – Fostering thoughts of non-violence and love.
To reform our behavior, we must first reform our thoughts.
(ETHICAL CONDUCT)
3. Right speech – speech which causes no harm.
4. Right conduct [behavior] – behavior which causes no harm.
5. Right Livelihood – earn a living in such a way that it causes no harm.
(MEDITATION/MENTAL DISCIPLINE)
6. Right effort – cultivate good and wholesome states of mind
7. Right mindfulness – becoming aware of one’s self; become mindful
8. Right concentration [absorption] – the practice of deep meditation; eventually this
brings joy and happiness, a state of perfect equanimity. Goal is to reach a state of
mind in which all distinction between the mind and objects disappears.
- Adopted from T. Patrick Burke, The Major Religions (Blackwells, 1996) 65.
The Five Precepts
The Five Precepts:
do not kill
do not steal
do not lie
do not be unchaste
do not take drugs or drink intoxicants
The Middle Way:
The Eightfold path is the “middle way” between extreme asceticism and self-indulgence:
“Ignorant people practice austerities; those
who seek pleasure gratify their senses. As
neither method leads people to liberation,
these two extremes are utterly wrong; they are
not the right ways.
“Devoting oneself to ascetic practices with an
exhausted body only makes one’s mind more
confused. It produces not even a worldly
knowledge, not to speak of transcending the
senses. It is like trying to light a lamp with
water; there is no chance of dispelling the
darkness.”
…
“Just as one cannot start a fire by
[rubbing] rotten pieces of wood, so
one cannot destroy one’s ignorance by
trying to light the lamp of wisdom with
an emaciated body. It is a vain waste of
energy…
To indulge in pleasures also is not right;
this merely increases one’s foolishness,
which obstructs the light of wisdom.
I stand above these two extremes,
though my heart is kept in the middle.
Sufferings in me have come to an end;
having been freed of all errors and
defilements, I have now attained
peace.” (DeBary 71)
3. What is nirvana?
Nirvana – etymologically means “to blow out”
or “to extinguish”; “total annihilation” as a
fire ceases to draw… like the wind (Smith,
77).
The Buddha himself did not describe Nirvana
in detail….
“Nirvana is permanent, stable, imperishable,
immovable, ageless, deathless, unborn, and
unbecome; it is power, bliss and happiness,
the secure refuge, the shelter, and the place
of unassailable safety; it is the real Truth and
the supreme Reality; it is the Good, the
supreme goal and the one and only
consummation of our lives; the eternal,
hidden and incomprehensible peace” (Smith,
77).
Is Nirvana God?
Buddhist texts re: Nirvana
Nirvana is “the complete cessation of craving
(thirst), letting it go, renouncing it, being free
from it, detachment from it.”
“Whatever… is the cessation of greed, hatred
and delusion, this is called Nirvana.”
“If a monk is freed by turning away, by
detachment in regard to tings.. It is fitting to
call him a monk who has attained Nirvana
here and now.”
- Texts cited by Donald Mitchell, Buddhism: Introducing the Buddhist Experience (Oxford UP, 2002) 60.
Summary of nirvana
“Therefore, with inner freedom,
detachment from things, care for all
beings, the perfection of virtues, and
wisdom realizing the Truth, one is
finally free from dukkha (suffering)
and attains the peaceful status of
Nirvana… [this is] more than just a
moral attainment or an insight into
the Truth. It is said to be a ‘supreme
status’ that is ‘holy.’… Nirvana is
ultimately a sublime religious status.”
- Texts cited by Donald Mitchell, Buddhism: Introducing the Buddhist Experience (Oxford UP,
2002) 61.
Discussion point
“Is nirvana God?... Some conclude that since
Buddhism professes no God, it cannot be a
religion; others, that since Buddhism
obviously is a religion, religion doesn’t require
God” (Smith, The World’s Wisdom, 114).
What do YOU think?
The Buddha’s last words
“And now, O priests, I
take my leave of you;
all the constituents of
the world are
transitory; work out
your salvation with
diligence.”