Buddhism
Just to clarify. We don't believe Buddha was a prophet from God. He was just a man who "woke up". In fact that's what the word Buddha means in Sanskrit. He even stated that quite clearly himself.
In the Buddha's words: 'Suffering I teach and the way out of suffering.'
Nothing more, nothing less.
Buddha's teachings, word for word, were remembered in their entirety by the ancient art of chanting in verse. Monks chanted and repeated these phrases several times a day, every day and have done so for thousands of years. These verses were written down in The Dhammapada and then translated into many languages.
Here's a good link to information about this. It is long but worth the read if you want to understand why to me and many Buddhists the issue of written versus oral tradition is inconsequential.
http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/dhamma/dham-hp.htm
The teachings of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path (which are the heart of Buddhism) have remained intact and are expressed exactly the same across all Buddhist schools and lineages.
Other teachings can vary widely across Buddhism and that is the beauty of it. We all follow the Dharma path but our paths are all very individual at the same time.
We embrace the differences. I know this can be a difficult concept for those raised in monotheistic religions to understand.
Within the Buddhist community as a whole there are wide differences in practice and focus of study. The most well documented schism is between the Theravada and Mahayana schools. Tibetan Buddhism has four different lineages just within it's own focus of study.
However, even though we may differ on certain things we still have profound respect for each other. We have discussions and discourses across schools. Monks from all lineages travel, stay and study with each other while maintaining their own individual practices.
These difference do not dilute the Buddha's teachings but create a beautiful tapestry of teaching that allow people from all different cultures and countries to find a Dharma path that resonates with them.
To reiterate an earlier quote:
"Because beings have different abilities, the Buddha Dharma has different ways. But ultimately, there is only one way. All of these ways are nothing but methods to become a buddha. The way to buddhahood is like a long river that has many streams, lakes, and rivers flowing into it; together they flow into the ocean."
The heart of Buddhism has never changed, however, our teachings and practices vary widely.
An apt analogy would be to compare this with monotheistic religions. All Muslims, Christians, Catholics and Jewish people believe in one God as The Creator.
The heart of all these teachings is the same but at different points in history your practices diverged widely because of a number of different factors.
In Buddhism we feel that diversity in teachings is important because of the fact that human beings have such individual ways of experiencing life. It is not a detriment but a benefit to Buddhism as a whole.
Hope this answers your question.Sorry, I'm not really sure I understand your reply. Can you elaborate?
Like others have said Buddhism is not a faith. There is no God or messiah to believe in, there is no sin, and no rules - it's an individual path (this is why it appeals to me). At a basic level Buddhism is about recognising, through meditation, certain truths. The main ones being that everyone suffers; everyone wants to be free from suffering and to be happy; the most important place to be is here, in the moment: and everything in life, as well as life itself, is impermanent.
Buddhism is practical. It gives tools to increase our most positive human attributes such as compassion, forgiveness, joy, love, non judgementalism and patience. By developing these qualities, other, less wholesome human attributes such as anger, hate, jealousy, bitterness and resentment, gradually fall away. It's all about practice.
I would recommend reading the Dalai Llama's "The Art of Happiness" for a very down to earth overview of Buddhism and "A Gradual Awakening" by Stephen Levine to learn practical ways of incorporating Buddhist practices into your everyday life.
Best wishes on your path!
So you are saying Buddhists have no proof for their beliefs?
Just like your belief eh?
Well at least there aren't reams of hate filled threats in Buddhism then, unlike in your religion.
Oh, NO! NOt again!!!
Still terrified of the truth Klara? I did not know you were a Muslim?
You see me covering my hair?
No, I do see you covering your backside though!
I'm not a muslim. I'm a spiritualist and a psychic... and I'll have to admit at times a little full of S&*^
Well if you are psychic you should already know there are no gods and religion is a gutless cop-out.
Watch your tongue, young man! You're talking to a teacher!
I love teachers! The salt of the earth.
What do you teach?I love music too.
I play 6 string acoustic guitar and sing, so do 2 of my children. One also plays percussion.
It all started with religion. Mom learnt piano as part of her convent education and passed it on.My mom.
Sorry, it's the artist in me... can't focus!
Wait for RFox to show up, she has the capacity to answer your question
haha...Thanks Misha! I will do my best.
I was downstairs at my neighbours birthday party. Met some really nice people. We have a good building here.
Hi lorlie6! Thanks for your questions.
Okay, so Buddhism....well it is 5am so I will do my best with the limited brain function I have at the moment.
I did write a very basic forum post under the Buddhism heading...here's the link:
http://hubpages.com/forum/topic/52117
So to begin at the beginning:
There is a great opening paragraph in one of my books. The book is called "The Way To Buddhahood":
"To study Buddhism means to learn from the Buddha. One takes the Buddha as one's ideal and one's mentor and learns from him incessantly. When one reaches the same level as the Buddha, then one has become a Buddha."
While I love this book and it contains some amazing pearls of wisdom it isn't a great book for people just learning about the Dharma (what Buddhists call our belief system). It is written by a Chinese master and contains a lot of extra philosophies that may simply confuse beginners. For any other Buddhists who want another very interesting book to read it is quite fascinating.
Every lineage of Buddhist teaching is very different and how you learn is treated very differently. If you start down the Dharma path and find Buddhist philosophy is resonating with you then you will need to explore what type of Buddhist teaching feels the best for you.
Another quote from the book: "Because beings have different abilities, the Buddha Dharma has different ways. But ultimately, there is only one way. All of these ways are nothing but methods to become a buddha. The way to buddhahood is like a long river that has many streams, lakes, and rivers flowing into it; together they flow into the ocean."
I have a lot of Tibetan Buddhist friends and explored that aspect but found I am definitely of the Zen Buddhist variety because I like a more streamlined, pared down, very non traditional style of teaching.
Zen is basically meditate, meditate some more....study life, every detail, every action, every thought, every breath. Listen, study, mediatate....rinse and repeat.
Other people gravitate towards the more formal, religious style aspect of Tibetan Buddhism. There are also many, many other styles, lineages and teachers, so explore what works for you. After all this is your path and no-one else's, it is individual and so you must individualize your study.
Question everything!! Always question!!
This is one major fundamental difference between Buddhism and many theistic based religions. Usually theistic religions require you to have faith, belief comes first. The faith aspect is very important.
In Buddhism there is a faith element involved, however, it's more of a 90% thought 10% faith kind of equation. I mean, if you are going to be a Buddhist then you must have some kind of faith that Buddha actually knew what he was talking about.
Of course once you read the Buddha's teachings it is imperative that you question the truthfulness of these teachings for yourself. Test them, question them....never just have faith that what you read, hear, learn is the truth (even if you hear it from someone deemed a master). Everything bears examination!
One thing all Buddhist philosophies have in common is the core teaching of the Four Noble Truths. This is the backbone of all Dharma practice:
1. Life contains suffering
2. The origin of suffering is attachment
3. The cessation of suffering is possible
4. The path to the cessation of suffering
So to address these truths:
1. Pretty self explanatory and I don't think anyone will disagree with number one. We are constantly suffering in our worldly life. In small ways, in big ways. Sometimes all the time, sometimes in waves.
We suffer because of external factors such as disease, being born into poverty, losing loved ones. We suffer because of change itself, maybe we want things to stay the same but the laws of physics make this impossible. Maybe we want things to change but it's not happening fast enough. Maybe we are simply dissatisfied with what we have and want more. The "keeping up with the Jones's type of suffering".
Each type of suffering has a root cause and that is desire, attachment, clinging.
(Many people the first time they hear Dharma teachings think we are pessimists or nihilists because of our views on suffering and meditating on impermanence and death but nothing could be farther from the truth. And as a side note: suicide is never a solution to the problem of suffering. Ending your life does not end suffering from a Buddhist perspective and in fact could very well make it worse.)
2. The Dalai Lama has a great summation of the cause of suffering. Here's the paragraph:
"Buddhists maintain that there is no external creator and that even though a buddha is the highest being, even a buddha does not have the power to create new life. So now, what is the cause of suffering?
Generally, the ultimate cause is the mind; the mind that is influenced by negative thoughts such as anger, attachment, jealousy and so forth is the main cause of birth and all such other problems. However, there is no possibility of ending the mind, of interrupting the stream of consciousness itself.
Furthermore, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with the deepest level of mind; it is simply influenced by the negative thoughts. Thus, the question is whether or not we can fight and control anger, attachment and the other disturbing negative minds. If we can eradicate these, we shall be left with a pure mind that is free from the causes of suffering. "
Here's the link to his whole discourse on the Four Noble Truths:
http://www.lamayeshe.com/index.php?sect … amp;id=380
3. To end suffering we must free ourselves of our attachments. This sounds so simple, yet is so difficult to actually accomplish. Hence, why we are not all buddha's...yet!
Another quote from the Dalai Lama: "The root of all disturbing negative minds is our grasping at things as truly existent."
We attach emotions to objects, we attach ourselves to others, we attach to our own false belief that we are superior, wise, better, less, unworthy, too worthy etc etc
So we must investigate our grasping mind. Investigate where these attachments come from and why they should so influence us.
For example: Our child/pet destroys our favourite shoes and we become angry, upset, frustrated, disappointed. But why? Why are these material objects worth so much to us that we would hurt another sentient being emotionally, sometimes physically because of an object. Why are we so attached that it even causes an emotional response to begin with? Where does this attachment come from?
When you start investigating this you will find so many different layers of attachment within yourself from the obvious (material possessions) to the deeper emotional levels (the attachment to being "right").
When are finally able to rid ourselves of our disturbed mind and free ourselves of our attachments we are then free of our suffering.
4. The path to liberation is found in the Eightfold Noble Path. A fantastic explanation of this can be found here:
http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html
However, please remember that this only a blueprint and there is much more to ending attachment within ourselves than this seemingly simple plan. Think of the Eightfold Path as a compass that helps point the direction but you yourself must build the path.
So this is a good starting point for contemplation of Buddha Dharma. I must now go to sleep as the sun is coming up. But I am always up for a discussion regarding Buddhist philosophy and love to answer any questions I can.
I'm sure the other Buddhists here will give their views too. In the beginning the best thing is to seek out as many honest Buddhist practitioners as you can because we all do things differently and have different ideas on how to help understand and practice the teachings in your everyday life.
Buddhism is an everyday, every moment kind of deal. There is no separation of philosophy and day to day living. Every minute is an opportunity to achieve greater understanding.
Thanks to anyone who read this far!!
Cheers,
Rachelle
- Is hokey still around? He seemed to know a fair bit about it.
- RFoxposted 13 years ago
0One more thing I forgot:
A great book (particularly if you like poetry style teachings, small bites, easy to read but profound to contemplate) is:
The Dhammapada translated by Gil Fronsdal (It is important to find this exact translation. It is hugely popular in the west and should be easy to find.)
The Dhammapada is THE core Buddhist text. These words have been chanted for thousands of years by the Buddha's students/monks so as to remember Buddha's words in their entirety. Eventually these chants were written down and have been translated many, many times into English and other languages. However, I feel for a western Buddhist Gil Fronsdal's version is the best. Just my personal opinion.
One of my fave phrases from the book:
"Many do not realize that
We here must die.
For those who realize this,
Quarrels end."Hi lorlie6!
Yes, humility is important but it's also more than that and hard to explain. I'd say compassion and cultivating compassion is also a fundamental goal for all Buddhists.
As you can see by my 5am ramblings there is a lot to Buddhism that requires much study and meditation to grasp fully. It literally takes years....life times even...but the journey is worth it for me.
After meditating on the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path the next step is contemplating Interdependent Origination which seems simple but is truly complex to fully understand.
In fact the saying goes that you can only 100% understand Interdependent Origination once you are a Buddha. lol.
Here's a link to that information:
http://www.thebuddhadharma.com/issues/2 … mmer03.htm
Thanks Rachelle, I enjoyed reading your summary quite a bit
I am not Buddhist but understand some of the teaching. I guess what I don't agree with is their emphasis on suffering as a way to enlightenment. suffering in itself can be defined differently for anyone. what I can endure someone else may consider suffering. I have nothing against it though. I think people find what they want to find.
you might also find some meaning with Taoism. the teaching is more reflected in living in alignment with nature and the universe. there is the Tao de Ching which you can read or Wayne Dyer also has a book about it.
best wishes on your journey. it's all within I think, taking ourselves away from so much thought.The Tao de Ching is SO AMAZING! I am currently practicing the teaching from the 13th verse - Effortless Action Without Attachment to Outcome. In other words, Do More by Trying Less.
Just to clarify. We don't believe that suffering is the way to enlightenment....just that suffering exists.
It is exists because of our attachments.
If we let go of our attachments, we let go of our suffering.
But I appreciate your thoughts! I also have a mini pocket version of the Tao de Ching I got while traveling. It's a very interesting book.
Hey lorlie6, I've been meaning to get back to you about this, but, got side track. Anyhow, hubber Robwrite published a new hub about Buddha and Jesus being spiritual brothers. If you liked my hub, I'm sure you would enjoy his. I know I did. Cheers!
Here are a couple of links you might be interested in:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Buddha-and-Jesu … l-Brothers
http://hubpages.com/hub/A-Buddhist-Look-at-Justice
Hope these help.The validity of oral teachings and history versus written teachings and history is an area where we will just have to agree to disagree paarsurrey.
For Buddha, oral teachings and personal meditation were of the utmost importance. Hence why he did not write anything down.
He wanted his students to *think* for themselves and determine a path to enlightenment with Dharma as the inspiration.
This is something I understand but from your cultural perspective will be difficult for you to understand.
C'est la vie.
And that is perfectly okay. As I said before, if we all agreed on everything what a boring place this would be!Well, we've wandered into conjecture now and it serves no purpose. I was very tired when I wrote the above statement and not in a clear frame of mind to answer your question.
I cannot know why Buddha did not write any teachings down. I only know that he taught by example and through oral discourses, beginning with his first in Sarnath, India. These teachings were then converted into poetic chants by his students, a common method utilized at the time to preserve the accuracy of teachings.
This we have already gone over.
Buddhism is a philosophy based on practice and individual meditation and thought. You don't even have to read the sutras to follow the Dharma and achieve enlightenment.
After all, the Buddha did not need these things. Enlightenment is possible without any of these teachings.
Dharma is like a compass for people who do not know the way intuitively. These teachings point people in a certain direction but it is up to us as individuals to navigate our own path.
I discern the truth of any teachings given as Buddha's words. Therefore it is unimportant to me whether there may be (and surely are) false teachings in the world because it is my duty as a Buddhist to question all teachings.
As pisean282311 wrote:
“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books.
Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders.
Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations.
But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”
We do not accept Buddha's teachings on faith. We question the validity of everything.
The following verses are taken from Gil Fronsdal's translation of "The Dhammapada".
"Oneself, indeed, is one's own protector.
What other protector could there be?
With self-control
One gains a protector hard to obtain."
"Evil is done by oneself alone;
By oneself is one defiled.
Evil is avoided by oneself;
By oneself alone is one purified.
Purity and impurity depend on oneself;
No one can purify another."
And another couple of verses I particularly like:
"All experience is preceded by mind,
Led by mind,
Made by mind.
Speak or act with a corrupted mind,
And suffering follows
As the wagon wheel follows the hoof of the ox.
All experience is preceded by mind,
Led by mind,
Made by mind.
Speak or act with a peaceful mind,
And happiness follows
Like a never-departing shadow."
These words *speak* to me probably because I am also a poet and the poetry of the teachings appeal to me. But it is not necessary for every Dharma student to know these words.
One can simply be compassionate, meditate, live in mindfulness and achieve enlightenment without ever having read one Buddhist text or heard one Buddhist teaching. In fact one does not even have to declare oneself a Buddhist or identify with the Dharma to achieve enlightenment.
If one learns how to let go of attachments and lives a life devoted to compassion and unconditional love for others then that's all that counts.Exactly. Well said.
hahaha....yes, I am a Zen Buddhist.
Study, contemplate, forget....rinse and repeat!
And grokking is a great way. After all Buddhism is more about action than inaction.
Particularly in Zen. You don't study texts as much in Zen as you study life. It is one of the least dogmatic lineages which is why it appeals to me.
- kimberlyslyricsposted 13 years ago0
Very good point.
I see Rfox & many others have already elaborated Buddhism quite correctly...however I havent read all of their posts & hope its not too late to answer your question.
Buddhism is probably the only Non-theistic religion that we are aware of today. Because of its nature, many people are reluctant to consider it as a religion & flags it as a branch of philosophy. Like all other religions, Buddhism too evolved over time & currently has many forms which makes it difficult for beginners to understand its true form. I often see that people emphasize on Zen Buddhism these days but point to be noted, Zen is a very late development in the history of Buddhism. Sometimes its hard to identify the oldest Buddhist teachings from the late developments but I will still try to list the basic premises of Buddhism along with popular misconceptions here...hope it will work for you!
1. Buddha never talked about a Creator God/Supreme Deity. Earliest forms of Buddhism talks about Devas (God like creatures which can be compared to Greek Gods) & their heavenly palaces. According to Buddhism, Devas lived in Universe just like us but for a much longer period of time with immense amount of power, pleasure & happiness. However, in most part Buddha made fun of those Gods just like the 18th century atheists & tried to prove that Humans are superior to those Devas since its easier to attain Nirvana in Human form than being a Deva because given so much pleasure & power, it is difficult to get free from Maya(Illusion).
2. Buddha taught about Nirvana. Nirvana is not connecting/ fusing with God/Power/Light/Source/Heaven. This is a common mistake that most people do. Nirvana is a state of non-existence. Buddha taught that ultimate goal of every living consciousness is to attain non-existence. However, non-existence should not be taken in a negative way. Buddha himself has tried to portray the positive sides of non-existence. There are steps of attaining Nirvana & a particular step is hence termed 'The Non Returner'
3. Buddha taught about Maya or Illusion. This world is an illusion like the movie Matrix . Nothing is real here. It is the suffering that we must stop as soon as possible. Heaven, money, sex, love, fame... everything is part of Maya that makes us love this illusion & makes us return in the form of Human or animals after death. Yes thats how he also taught abt Reincarnation!
4. Karma or the law of cause & effect. Buddha taught how our deeds will affect out future life or how our past life deeds affecting our present life. For instance, if your past life is full of virtue then you might born as a Deva or as a Sage in this life. However, Buddhists dont prefer to born as a Deva & consider it as a mistake in meditation in the past life. Buddha didnt talk much about the First Cause or the beginning of creation. According to him, this world is a cycle of time, there is no begining & there is no end. One who tries to find the First cause will only waste his time. Thus Buddha denied the importance of a Creator Deity.
In later times, many developments occurred in the teachings of Buddhism. Many interpreted his teachings in different manners & many new branches evolved. It should be noted that these later developments do sometimes contradict with the earliest teachings!
Hope it works. Thank you!Nice contribution Rishy Rich.
Yes, Zen is definitely a later development in Buddhism. I think it's emphasized more in western culture, along with Tibetan Buddhism. Those two seem to be the most popular lineages in the west.
Of course in South East Asia, Theravada is more prevalent and in India and China, Mahayana in all it's forms appears more established.
Of course in Japan, Zen is also the most popular form of teaching.
I just love the diversity and richness of teachings around the world.
Although my practice is rooted in the simplicity of Zen my two favourite texts are:
The Dhammapada (part of the original Pali Canon) &
The Lotus Sutra (part of the Mahayana tradition)
I enjoy the poetry and the parables, particularly from a writers perspective. They are works of art more than anything, just like the Bhagavad Gita in Hinduism.
Of course I also love The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer so I guess I have a thing for ancient prose poetry texts!Nope, no doctrine is perfect. Nothing is.
Trying to achieve perfection is like trying to touch the moon.
The Bhagavad Gita is a great literary work if you like prose poetry. It is considered the greatest work of art in Hindu culture.
Definitely recommend it.I think (humbly) that Nietsche missed the point. Buddhism is about self improvement, or self enlightenment, and so there is no finished end product. I also think that doctrine is the wrong word to apply to the buddhist teachings, they are a 'way' not a dictated road to a pre-determined point (that always looks very much like an origin).
But I have considerable admiration for Nietsche, anyone who can pronounce that god is dead and then go kill himself (maybe to prove the point) gets my vote for dedication
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