& Buddha’s Teachings Invitation to World Religions 3rd Edition - p. 145-156 Reading Notes

Life of the Buddha

• Buddha = “Awakened One” • “Wheel of the ” – body of teachings of the Buddha about the cause and end of suffering • Siddhartha Gautama (~500 BCE) - Legendary accounts rather than historical o Grew up in sheltered, luxurious, comfortable life; one day went outside and saw suffering in the world o “The ” 1. Old Age – saw a frail, old man 2. Sickness and Disease – saw a man afflicted with disease 3. Death – saw a corpse being carried 4. Holy Man - Saw a wandering ascetic o Left his life and family to join ascetic sages, learned meditation, but wasn’t satisfied. • Enlightenment o Practiced extreme asceticism, no clothes, no bathing, eating very little, sleeping on thorns o - Learned that sensual indulgence nor self-denial was adequate to escaping suffering, need a balance of both “An instrument string wound too tight will break, and one too loose makes no sounds at all.” o Sat under a fig tree, practiced moderation, meditated for 49 days until he found Enlightenment o Attained – the extinguishing of desire and suffering • Beginnings of the Buddhist Community o “Sermon in the Deer Park” – Buddha’s first teaching after enlightenment to group of ascetics still practicing extreme asceticism. o Told them about the Middle Way and the and the o Ascetics followed him; first Buddhist monks known as the ( “community) • Death of the Buddha o Died from sickness, meditated, died, reached o Parinirvana – the complete and final entry into nirvana

Teachings of the Buddha

• Taught the cause of human suffering and the means to end it o Dharma – body of teachings of the Buddha • Interdependent Origination o Reality is a complex of interrelated and interdependent phenomena; nothing exists apart from everything else o Everything is interconnected in some way; nothing exists in itself • Three Marks of o 1. – all things are always changing, in a state of becoming o 2. Suffering – central to Dharma; suffering is caused by desire and attachment to hold onto things when reality is nothing can be held; desire caused by ignorance of impermanence “” – greed, hatred, delusion; qualities of attachment o 3. No-Self (anatman) – greatest attachment to the notion of ourselves – basic existing components of every “self” that are always changing – body, perception, feelings, innate tendencies, thought Rejection of Hindu belief that the soul (atman) is unchanging • The Four Noble Truths – identifying symptoms, cause, treatment, and cure to suffering o 1. Suffering (dukkha) is guaranteed in life goes beyond physical suffering, dissatisfaction, frustration, etc. o 2. The Cause of Suffering is desire and attachment rooted in ignorance When we want something we cant have (tanha), refusal to accept reality o 3. Suffering Can End by ending all desires, reaching nirvana o 4. The Eightfold Path is the path to reaching nirvana Learning to control desires, path of discipline • The Noble Eightfold Path o (Prajna “wisdom”) - 1. Right , 2. Right Intention Used to understand teachings of Impermanence, Suffering, and No-Self All about intention and thought, seeing things clearly, fixing ignorance o (Morality/Ethics) 3. Right Speech, 4. Right Action, 5. Right Livelihood, 6. Right Effort All about actions, acting in a way that is in light with right view Avoiding immoral behavior or that causes harm No lying, speaking with ignorance, reinforcing bad habits of clinging, etc. o (Wisdom) 7. Right , 8. Right Concentration Promotes concentration, eliminate unwholesome thought Even higher form of thought and self-discipline, reflection on actions • Karma and o Five skandhas are temporary, separate at death, therefore sense of self ceases to exist o Nothing substantial passes from one incarnation to another; opposes Hinduism belief of atman o Still believe in rebirth – karmatic and character related elements pass on from previous lives into new ones, nothing substantial passes Karma and one’s actions determine conditions for coming into existence of new set of skandhas o Karma and rebirth don’t apply to people who find enlightenment Freed entirely from karma, have no rebirth, are liberated Those with continuing desires are reborn in samsara, the continuous cycle of death and rebirth. • Nirvana o Liberation from suffering and the cycle of samsara, “extinguishing” of desires o ultimate goal of Buddhism • in Buddhism o Some Buddhists are atheists, some believe in variety of divine beings Celestial Buddhas – supernatural beings, objects of devotion that bestow benefits to those who ask o Buddha was transtheistic – acknowledged gods, but didn’t believe they aided in ending suffering and reaching enlightenment

Theravada & Buddhism p. 156-168

Period of the

• Councils began after Buddha’s death • First Buddhist Council o 500 of Buddha’s disciples o Established oral canon of teachings based on Dharma, became primary authority of sangha (Buddhist community) o Writing Pali Canon as authoritative text • Second Buddhist Council o Developments within order of monks (bhikkus) o Buddha & monks were wanders, only stayed in one place during rainy season o Permanent monastic communities built after his death o Lack of unifying authority created more dispute and differences • Third Buddhist Council o – became the first Buddhist ruler Ex-conqueror, had conversion experience, started social reform with , converted India o Edicts of moral purification, self-awareness, nonviolence, and respect for all religions o Determined Buddhism was authentic orthodox viewpoint of Buddha

Theravada Buddhism

• “Way of the elders” • Claim original and authentic teachings of Buddha • Predominant in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Burma • Emphasize pursuit of nirvana through individual effort