 Buddhism is a religion and a philosophy. It is also known as Buddha Dharma or Dhamma, which means roughly the "teachings of the Awakened One" in Sanskrit and Pali, languages of ancient Buddhist texts. Buddhism was founded around the 6th century BCE by Siddhartha Gautama, hereafter referred to as "the Buddha."
Origin
Siddhartha Gautama is believed by Buddhists to have been born in Lumbini, Nepal and raised in Kapilavastu near the present-day Indian-Nepalese border. Born a prince, his father, King Suddhodana, attempted to shield him from the sufferings of his people in the hopes of making Gautama a better ruler. Despite his father's efforts, at the age of 29, he discovered the suffering of his people, first through an encounter with an elderly man. On subsequent trips outside the palace, he encountered various sufferings such as a diseased man, a decaying corpse, and an ascetic. Gautama, deeply depressed by these sights, sought to overcome old age, illness, and death by living the life of an ascetic. Gautama escaped his palace, leaving behind this royal life to become a mendicant. After asceticism and concentrating on meditation and Anapana-sati (awareness of breathing in and out), Gautama is said to have discovered what Buddhists call the Middle Way—a path of moderation away from the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification. He accepted a little milk and rice pudding from a village girl and then, sitting under a pipal tree, now known as the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, he vowed never to arise until he had found the Truth. His five companions, believing that he had abandoned his search and become undisciplined, left. After 49 days meditating, at the age of 35, he attained bodhi, also known as "Awakening" or "Enlightenment" in the West. After his attainment of bodhi he was known as Buddha or Gautama Buddha and spent the rest of his life teaching his insights (Dharma). According to scholars, he lived around the fifth century BCE, but his more exact birthdate is open to debate. He died around the age of 80 in Kushinagara (Pali Kusinara)(India).
Divisions
The original teachings and monastic organization established by Buddha can be referred to as pre-sectarian Buddhism, but all the current divisions within Buddhism are too much influenced by later history to warrant inclusion under this name: therefore the name is likely to be considered derogatory by all actual Buddhists as it implies they are sectarian. The most frequently used classification of present-day Buddhism among scholars divides present-day adherents into the following three traditions or geographical or cultural areas: Theravada, East Asian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism.
An alternative scheme used by some scholars has two divisions, Theravada and Mahayana. In this classification, Mahayana includes both East Asian and Tibetan Buddhism. This scheme is the one ordinarily used in the English language. Some scholars use other schemes. Buddhists themselves have a variety of other schemes.
Buddhism Today
Indian Buddhism had become virtually extinct, but is now again gaining strength. Buddhism continues to attract followers around the world and is considered a major world religion. While estimates of the number of Buddhist followers range from 230 to 500 million worldwide, most estimates are around 350 million, or 310 million. However, estimates are uncertain for several countries. According to one analysis, Buddhism is the fifth-largest religion in the world behind Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and traditional Chinese religion. The monks' order (Sangha), which began during the lifetime of the Buddha in India, is among the oldest organizations on earth.
Indian Buddhism
Early Buddhism
The original teaching of the Buddha remains a matter of disagreement among scholars. Some, particularly in Japan, have maintained a theory based mainly on the Sutta Nipata, which they consider the earliest scripture. The late Professor Nakamura summarized its main differences from the phase below in the following eight points.- standard technical terms seldom used
- "dogmas" seldom taught
- many prose sentences in the Pali Canon date from after Asoka
- monks mainly solitary, monasteries scarcely mentioned
- ascetic lifestyle fairly different from later monastic
- no nuns
- the Patimokkha did not exist
- no special glorification of Buddha; all arahants equal
Other scholars take a sceptical attitude:
"The original teachings of the historical Buddha are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to recover or reconstruct."
The earliest phase recognized by nearly all scholars (the main exception is Dr Gregory Schopen, Professor of Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Buddhist Studies at the University of Texas at Austin ) is based on a comparison of the Pali Canon with surviving portions of, and other information about, other early canons. Its main scriptures are the Vinaya Pitaka and the four principal nikayas or agamas. A third body of scholars believe these scriptures and their teachings to be in substance the original teachings of the Buddha. The central teachings can be classified under the following three headings.- rebirth
- karma
- the Four Noble Truths
Rebirth has no discernible beginning, and takes place in a variety of types of life, later formally classified as the Five or Six Realms.
The karma of good and bad deeds produces "rewards" and "punishments" either in this life or in a subsequent one. These may be either rebirths themselves or events therein. The content of bad deeds and the lower types of good deeds belongs to the subject of Sila or conduct. Higher rebirths can be attained by the practice of forms of meditation later classified as samatha or samadhi.
Main traditions
The most common way scholars categorize Buddhist schools follows the major languages of the extant Buddhist canons, which exist in PAli, Tibetan (also found in Mongolian translation) and Chinese collections, along with some texts that still exist in Sanskrit and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit. This is a useful division for practical purposes, but does not necessarily correspond to philosophical or doctrinal divisions since, despite the differences, there are common threads to almost all Buddhist branches:- All accept the Buddha as their teacher.
- All accept the Middle Way, Dependent origination, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path.
- All accept that both the members of the laity and of the Sangha can pursue the path toward enlightenment (bodhi).
- All consider Buddhahood to be the highest attainment.
Southern (TheravAda) Buddhism
In addition to the Edicts of Asoka, Buddhist annals compiled at a later date offer a history of the Asokan and post-Asokan period. Among these annals are the Dīpavalsa, the MahAvalsa, and the SamantapAsAdika of the south Indian VibhajjavAda (Sanskrit: VibhajyavAda) sangha. According to the accounts of the VibhajjavAda, Asoka convened a third Buddhist council (c. 250 BCE), whose purpose was to produce a definitive text of the Buddha's words. According to the Theravada account, given in the Dipavamsa and elsewhere, Asoka called this council to sort out doctrinal disputes within the sangha, which these sources say were caused by the infiltration of the sangha by non-buddhists, apparently not actually ordained. The account goes on to say that the council approved the Kathavatthu, compiled by its president Moggaliputta Tissa, as part of the scriptures. As this text consists of doctrinal debates, apparently with other schools, the account seems to imply the other schools were not proper Buddhists or proper monks. VibhajjavAdins claim that the first step to insight has to be achieved by the aspirant's experience, critical investigation, and reasoning instead of by blind faith. This school gradually declined on the Indian subcontinent, but its branch in Sri Lanka and South East Asia continues to survive; this branch of the school is now known as Theravada. The TheravAda school claims that the SarvAstivada and the Dharmaguptaka schools were rejected by the council, although according to other sources the Dharmaguptaka school is classified as one of the VibhajyavAdin schools. However, these schools became influential in northwestern India and Central Asia and, since their teaching is found among the scriptures preserved by the MahAyAna schools, they may have had some formative influence on the MahAyAna. The SarvAstivadins have not preserved an independent tradition about the Third Council. it has been argued by some scholars that the council was part of a series of debates and/or disputes resulting in the formation of three main doctrinal schools, Vibhajjavada, Sarvastivada, and Puggalavada, which later were subject to further subdivisions. One such subdivision of the Vibhajjavada was established in Ceylon, and in course of time came to adopt the name Theravada (given above in its Sanskrit form Sthaviravada). Its scriptures, the Pali Canon, were written down there in the last century BCE, at what the Theravada usually reckons as the fourth council.
It was long believed in TheravAda tradition that the PAli language is equivalent to MAgadhī, the eastern dialect of the kingdom of Magadha spoken by the Buddha. However, linguistic comparisons of the Edicts of Asoka and the language of the PAli canon show strong differences between the MAgadhī of the Edicts (characterized by such changes as r → l, masculine nominative singular of a-stems in -e, etc.) and PAli. The greatest similarity to PAli is found in a dialectal variant of the Edicts written on a rock near Girnar in Gujarat.
TheravAda is PAli for "the Doctrine of the Elders" or "the Ancient Doctrine". TheravAda teaches one to encourage wholesome states of mind, avoid unwholesome states of mind, and to train the mind in meditation. The aim of practice, according to TheravAda Buddhism, is the attainment of freedom from suffering, which is linked with Nirvana, the highest spiritual goal. TheravAda teaches that the experience of suffering is caused by mental defilements like greed, aversion and delusion, while freedom can be attained though putting into practice teachings like the Four Noble Truths and especially the fourth one, the Noble Eightfold Path.
The TheravAda school bases its practice and doctrine exclusively on the PAli Canon and its commentaries. The Sutta collections and Vinaya texts of the PAli Canon (and the corresponding texts in other versions of the Tripitaka), are generally considered by modern scholars to be the earliest Buddhist literature, and they are accepted as authentic in every branch of Buddhism.
TheravAda is the only surviving representative of the historical early Buddhist schools. TheravAda is primarily practiced today in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia as well as small portions of China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bangladesh. It has a growing presence in Europe and America.
Eastern (East Asian) Buddhism
Mahayana ("Great Vehicle") is an inclusive, cosmically-dimensioned faith characterized by the adoption of additional texts, seen as ultimately transcending the Pali suttas, and a shift in the understanding of Buddhism. It goes beyond the traditional Theravada ideal of the release from suffering (dukkha) and personal enlightenment of the arhats, to elevate the Buddha to the God-like status of an eternal, omnipresent, all-knowing being, and to create a pantheon of quasi-divine Bodhisattvas devoting themselves to personal excellence, ultimate knowledge and the salvation of humanity (and indeed of all living beings, including animals, ghosts and gods). In Mahayana, the Buddha became an idealized man-god and the Bodhisattva was the universal ideal of excellence.
The Mahayana branch emphasizes infinite, universal compassion (maha-karuna) or the selfless, ultra-altruistic quest of the Bodhisattva to attain the "Awakened Mind" (bodhicitta) of Buddhahood so as to have the fullest possible knowledge of how most effectively to lead all sentient beings into Nirvana. Emphasis is also often placed on the notions of Emptiness (shunyata), perfected spiritual insight (prajnaparamita) and Buddha-nature (the deathless tathagatagarbha, or Buddhic Essence, inherent in all beings and creatures). The teaching of the tathagatagarbha is said by the Buddha in the tathagatagarbha sutras to constitute the "absolutely final culmination" of his Dharma — the highest presentation of Truth. The Mahayana can also on occasion communicate a vision of the Buddha or Dharma which amounts to mysticism and gives expression to a form of mentalist panentheism (God in Buddhism).
In addition to the Tripitaka scriptures, which (within Mahayana) are viewed as valid but only provisional or basic, Mahayana schools recognize all or part of a genre of Mahayana scriptures. Some of these sutras became for Mahayanists a manifestation of the Buddha himself. Mahayana Buddhism shows a great deal of doctrinal variation and development over time, and even more variation in terms of practice. While there is much agreement on general principles, there is disagreement over which texts are more authoritative.
Native Eastern Buddhism is practiced today in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, parts of Russia and most of Vietnam. The Buddhism practiced in Tibet, the Himalayan regions, and Mongolia is also Mahayana in origin, but will be discussed below under the heading of Northern Buddhism. There are a variety of strands in Eastern Buddhism, which in most of this area are fused into a single unified form of Buddhism. However, in Japan they form separate denominations. The five major ones are the following.- Chan/Zen
- Pure Land
- Nichiren, peculiar to Japan
- Shingon, a form of Vajrayana
- Tendai
Northern (Tibetan) Buddhism
Though thoroughly based upon MahAyAna, Tibeto-Mongolian Buddhism is sometimes characterized as VajrayAna or "Diamond Vehicle" (also referred to as MantrayAna, TantrayAna, Tantric Buddhism, or esoteric Buddhism). It therefore accepts all the basic concepts of MahAyAna, but also includes a vast array of spiritual techniques designed to enhance Buddhist practice. One component of the VajrayAna is harnessing psycho-physical energy as a means of developing profoundly powerful states of concentration and awareness. These profound states are in turn to be used as an efficient path to Buddhahood. Using these techniques, it is claimed that a practitioner can achieve Buddhahood in one lifetime, or even as little as three years. In addition to the TheravAda and MahAyAna scriptures, VajrayAna Buddhists recognise a large body of Buddhist Tantras, some of which are also included in Chinese and Japanese collections of Buddhist literature.
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