The historical founder of Buddhism is also known as
Gotama, Siddhartha Gautama, Sakyamuni (Sage of the Sakya Clan) or Bhagavan
Buddhadeva. The six Buddhas (enlightened ones) traditionally believed by the
Theravadins to have preceded him are: Vipassin, Sikhin, Vessabhu, Kaku-sandha,
Konagamana and Kassapa. The Buddha who is still to come to redeem mankind is
Metteyya (Maitreya).
“Do not seek to know Buddha by his form or attributes;
for neither the form nor the attributes are the real Buddha. The true Buddha is
enlightenment itself. The true way to know Buddha is to realize enlightenment,”
so goes the Avatamsaka Sutra. [1] Traditionally, Buddha’s body is said to have
three aspects: dharma-kāyā or aspect
of essence; sambhoga-kāyā, or aspect
of potentiality; and nirmana-kāyā, or
aspect of manifestation,—dharma-kāyā
forms the substratum of dharma,
virtue and truth and permeates the entire universe,—sambhoga-kāyā denotes the nature of Buddha characterized by wisdom
and compassion. It manifests through the ‘symbols of birth and death,—nirmana-kāyā signifies the physical
birth of Buddha for the redemption of humanity. [2]
Buddha’s Life
Indian society in the sixth century BCE was riddled
with rituals superstitions and caste distinctions. Religion had become
expensive and complicated, and the common man resented the dominance by the priestly
classes, the performance of sacrificial rites self-torture and expensive yajnas. Monotheism of the crudest
type-fetishism, from anthropomorphic deism to transcendental dualism, was
rampant. So was materialism, from sensualism to transcendental nihilism. [3] In
this milieu, Buddha appeared in order to free Indian society from the
metaphysical jargon of intellectuals the religious dogmas of priests and the
authority of the upper castes. The Mahaparinibbana Sutta says in this context:
The fact that Buddha appears and disappears can be explained by causality:
namely when causes and conditions are not propitious, Buddha seems to disappear
from the world.
Buddha was born as Siddattha Gotama to King Suddhodana,
chief of the Sakya clan, and Queen Mahamaya of the Koliya clan, on the
full-moon day of Visakha in the Lumbini grove (Kapilavatthu; modern
The child Buddha was brought up by Pajapati Gotami, the
second wife of Suddhodana, as his mother had died within a few days of his
birth. He was a prodigy and impressed everyone in the palace with his insightful
queries. Buddhist biographies (second century CE) like the Buddhacarita and Lalitavistara
mention that even though the prince grew up in an atmosphere of luxury he
remained impervious to worldly things. He was married to Yasodhara, a beautiful
Sakya princess at the young age of sixteen or seventeen (according to Pali
canonical texts) and had a son named Rahula. But nothing could tie him down to
mundane pursuits.
Buddhist chroniclers refer to the Four Great Signs,
which influenced him greatly. While accompanying his charioteer Canna, he came
across some heart-rending scenes of misery, agony, disease and death, and
realized that the world was full of sorrow and suffering, and that he would one
day meet the same fate as others. [4] In order to explore the misery of human
life and find a lasting solution to it, he decided to leave home at the age of
twenty-nine. One night, when his wife and son were fast asleep he slipped out
of the palace and reached Vesali where he became a disciple of Alara Kalama
(also known as Arada Kalama) a scholar of the Sankhya school of philosophy.
Alara introduced him to the philosophy of the Upanishads and also taught him
the techniques of meditation. But his quest for the ultimate Reality could not
be fulfilled, and he left him with five Brahmin ascetics. Thereafter he
proceeded towards Rajagaha (Rajgir) and studied more scriptures under the
guidance of Uddaka Ramaputta. For about six years he practised the severest
austerity and penance in the Uruvela forest (near modern Bodh Gaya, Bihar, on
the banks of the
In order to share his divine Knowledge with people,
Buddha went to Migadaya or Jetavana (
Buddha passed away on a Visakha Punnama (full moon) day
after a brief illness around 483 BCE. He was cremated by the Mallas and his
mortal remains came to be divided among eight claimants, namely the Mallas of
Kusinara and Pava, Sakyas of Kapilavatthu, Koliyas of Ramagama, Licchavis of Vesali,
Bulis of Allakappa two Brahmins of Vethadipaka, Ajatasattu of Magadha and
Moriyas of Pipphilivana. Reliquary monuments called stupas were raised over
them to denote his eternal presence.
His Teachings
Buddha’s discourse shows that he possessed penetrating
intelligence, which often manifested in the Socratic form of questions,
parables and sutras. He taught in accordance with the capacity of his listeners
(upayakausalya). Once he was rebuked
by a house holder when he approached him for alms. Without getting angry he
asked: Friend if a householder gives food to a beggar but the beggar refuses to
accept it, to whom does the food belong? To the householder, of course, came
the reply. Buddha then remarked: “If I refuse to accept your abuse and ill
will, it returns to you does it not?”
Buddha taught his disciples to be free from the bondage
of desire, the lusts of the flesh the shackles of selfishness and the urges of
the lower self. He decried the shallowness of intellectuals and admonished his
disciples to stay away from the pedagogy of theorists, which did not lead one
anywhere.
The Four
Noble Truths
His teachings were based on the Fourfold Noble Truths.
First, the Truth of suffering (duhkkha),
which manifests through events of birth and death, sickness and separation and
vain struggles to find peace in worldly objects. Old age is suffering, illness
is suffering being in contact with that which one dislikes is suffering being
separated from that which one likes is suffering, failure to realize one’s desires
is suffering. [5] Second, the Truth of the Cause of Suffering (duhkkha samudaya), which lies in the
urges of the human body and the delusions of human passions. It is the thirst
for being that leads from birth to birth… the thirst for pleasure, the thirst
for power…(1.6.20) Third, the Truth of the Cessation of Suffering (duhkkha nirodha), which is possible if
one can annihilate desire. The extinction of this thirst (should be made) by
complete annihilation of desire, letting it go, expelling it, separating
oneself from it, giving it no room. (1.6.21) And finally, the Truth of the
Eightfold Noble Path (atthanga magga)
to the cessation of the Cause of Suffering (duhkkha-nirodha-gamini-patipada).
This consists of samma ditthi (right
view), samma sankappa (right
intention), samma vāca (right
speech), samma kāmmanto (right
action), samma ajivo (right
livelihood), samma vayamo (right
effort), samma sati (right
mindfulness) and samma samādhi (right
concentration. There is no suffering for him who has finished his journey and
abandoned grief, who has freed himself on all sides and thrown off all fetters.
[6]
Dependent
Origination (Paticca Samuppada)
Ignorance about the Four Noble Truths leads to avijja, which is the cause of one’s
entanglement in worldly activities. Buddha explained it thus: Avijja gives rise
to predispositions (sankhara), which
result in consciousness (vinnana).
From vinnana spring separate being as
name and form (nāma-rupa), which give
rise to the six seats of the senses (salayātana).
This is followed by contact (phassa),
which generates sensation (vedanā).
From vedanā springs craving (tānha) giving rise to grasping (upādana). From upādana emerges becoming (bhāva).
From bhāva rises birth (jāti), which leads to disease,
depression old age and death (jarā-marana).
The Dhammapada says in this context: Laziness is the ruin of homes; idleness is
the ruin of beauty; negligence is the ruin of the watchful; unchastity is a stain
on a woman; miserliness is a stain on the donor; to do evil is a stain in this
and other worlds. But greater than all these stains, ignorance is the worst of
all. (241.3)
Karma
The doctrine of karma is an essential part of the gospel of Buddha. The present
is determined by past actions and the future by the present. Each individual
can make or mar his destiny depending on his actions. All karmas are rooted in
will and can be destroyed only through will. Karmas are of two types, sasava and anasava; the former associated with passion, produce effects both
good and bad and the later undefiled by passions are implied in the Four Noble
Truths. Karmas relate to body (kāyā kamma),
speech (vāci kamma) and mind (mano kamma). The quality of the karmas
determines their disposition. A popular verse often ascribed to Buddhas says: na pranasyanti karmāni kalpa-koti-satairapi;
samagrim prāpya kalam ca phalanti khalu
dehinām. Karmas do not perish even after the lapse of a million years. They
fructify without fail when time and environment are suitable.
Buddha likened the world to a bubble of water, to the
gossamer web of a spider, to the defilement in a dirty jar, and so on. The
Vajrachhedika Sutra says: “Stars darkness a lamp, a phantom, dew, a bubble, a
dream, a flash of lightning and a cloud-thus should we look upon the world.
Given the conditions, the human mind should be disciplined in a manner that it
can be tuned to spiritual development. But the mind, like an ape, is forever
jumping about, not ceasing even for a moment. To contain it and gain
enlightenment, one needs to open the sluice gates of one’s being to the
fragrant incense of faith.”
The Middle
Path (Majjhima Patipada)
Buddha asked people to shun the two extremes of
self-indulgence and self-torture and follow the Middle Path. He laid emphasis
on such human virtues as dāna (charity or benevolence), sila (oral goodness), khanti
(patience or forbearance), viriya
(fortitude) and panna (knowledge). He
regarded ahimsā (non-violence), metta (loving friendship), karunā (compassion), mudita (cheerfulness) and upekha (non-attachment) as the means to
righteous living. Hated must be conquered by love, evil by goodness and greed
by liberality. The real treasure of man is laid up through piety, temperance
and self-control. The ten ethical precepts of Buddha are: be merciful do not kill;
do not steal; do not commit adultery; do not tell lies; do not slander; do not
speak harshly to anyone; do not engage in idle talk; do not keep an eye on
others’ wealth; do not hate; and think righteously.
Nibbana
Buddha preached nibbana (perfect
tranquility) as the summum bonum of the life of man. Salvation was not a matter
of a shaven crown or ritualistic acts. One could attain it not by propitiating
deities but by righteous deeds marked by restraint. Restraint in the eye is
good, good is restraint in the ear; in the nose restraint is good, good is
restraint in the tongue. In the body restraint is good, good is restraint in
speech; in though restraint is good, good is restraint in all things. (360-1)
Nibbana is the perfect state in which all-human defilements; passions and
cravings are completely extinguished. By strictly following the various
Buddhistic disciplines one can move from the ephemeral world to the world of
permanence, of enlightenment. This is called paramita, or crossing over to the
other shore’. None can otherwise accomplish the five following things: to cease
growing old, to cease being sick, to cease dying to deny extinction and to deny
exhaustion. The four eternal truths, an understanding of which prepares the
stage for nibbana, are: All living beings rise from ignorance; all objects of
desire are impermanent; all phenomena are transitory; nothing in the world is
‘mine’.
Rational
Religion
Buddha denounced the religious basis of caste,
ridiculed the claims of members of the priestly class as mediators between God
and man, and maintained silence over the existence of God. But he believed in
rebirth. In his philosophy there was no place for heaven or hell, worship or
ritual, dry theology and metaphysics. He exhorted his disciples to attain the
supreme state through self-purification. ‘Better than sovereignty over the
earth, better than going to heaven, better than lordship over all worlds is the
reward of the first step in holiness. (178) Besides he wanted people to keep an
unprejudiced mind and weigh everything on the scales of reason. Do not believe
in what you have heard, do not believe in doctrines because they have been
handed down to you through generations; do not believe in anything because it
is followed blindly by many… Have deliberation and analyse, and when the result
agrees with reason and conduces to the good of one and all, accept it and live
up to it, he said. [7]
The Sangha
Buddha founded the Sangha (religious order) of his
disciples to propagate his faith. Initially he was not inclined to admit women
but gradually changed his mind due to the insistence of his chief disciple
Ananda and his foster-mother. The Sangha comprised of monks (bhikkhus), nuns (bhikkhunis), male householders (upāsakas)
and female householders (upāsikas).
Run on democratic lines, the sangha had a strict code of conduct for monks and
nuns. The criterion for joining the sangha was a threefold declaration: “Buddham
saranam gacchāmi; sangham saranam gacchāmi; Dhammam saranam gacchāmi. I take
refuge in Buddha; I take refuge in the sangha; I take refuge in the dhamma.”
Among the first to join the order of bhikkhunis
was his wife Yasodhara.
In his last words to his disciples, Buddha advised them
to have faith in themselves (attasarano),
to be their own lamps (attadipo), and
to work out their own salvation. The true Buddha is not a human body—it is
Enlightenment. A human body must vanish, but the Wisdom of Enlightenment will
exist forever in the truth of the Dharma, and in the practice of the Dharma. He
who sees merely my body does not truly see me. Only he who accepts my teaching
truly sees me. After my death, the Dharma shall be your teacher. Follow the
Dharma and you will be true to me. [8]
Buddhism spread at a rapid speed because of the
simplicity of its teachings and the magnetic personality of its founder. The
gospel was preached in Pali the language of the common people, rather than in
Sanskrit. Efforts of the Buddhist Sangha coupled with royal patronage under
Ashoka, Kanishka and Harsha contributed to its phenomenal growth.
Buddhism penetrated into the Greek world long before
the advent of Jesus Christ. Ashoka’s edicts and inscriptions show that the
message of Sakyamuni was carried to Burma, Nepal, Ceylon, Egypt, Syria
Macedonia and many other countries. Some scholars have even argued that
Christianity is an offshoot of Buddhism.
Buddhism exercised a reformatory influence on Hindusim.
By breaking down social barriers and clearing the spiritual atmosphere of
superstition and obscurantism, it did useful service to humanity as a whole.
Its contribution to Hinduism includes image worship, the monastic system,
vegetarianism and the theory of ahimsā.
Buddhist writing on logic epistemology, psychology and metaphysics have come to
form an invaluable treasure of Indian literature. Buddhism has sometimes been
described as a child of Hinduism, a daughter in many respects more beautiful
than the mother. Buddha is regarded as the ninth incarnation of Lord Vishnu and
worshipped in temples.
The decline of the Buddhist Sangha, the revival of Brahminical
Hinduism, the division of the Buddhist church into Hinayana and Mahayana, the
loss of royal patronage, and the invasion of the Huns and Muslims struck a
deadly blow to the religion of Buddha in the land of its birth. The legacy
however, continues to live and a Buddhist renaissance seems to be in the
offing.
References:
1. Avatamsaka Sutra, 5
2. Suvarnaprabhasottamaraja Sutra
3. H Dharmapala’s address at the Chicago Parliament of
Religions, 1893.
4. Anguttara Nikaya, 1.145
5. Vinaya Mahavagga, 1.6.19
6. Dhammapada, 90
7. The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, (
8. The Teaching of Buddha (Tokyo: Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai,
1966), 13-4
May 2005 Copyright Prabuddha Bharata
Also read: ‘Why did Buddhism vanish from India’
http://www.esamskriti.com/essay-chapters/Introduction-to-Buddhism-1.aspx