Buddhist Beliefs: WHOLE TOPIC

“When one sees the Four Noble Truths as they really are, one is freed from suffering.” (Dhammapada 277)” RIGHT VIEW

1.Helps you understand the Four Noble Truths, reducing ignorance.

2.Guides wise decision-making in daily life.

3.Prevents attachment to harmful beliefs.

“Abandon wrong intention; cultivate right intention.” (Majjhima Nikaya 117) ROGHT INTENTION

1.Encourages compassion and non-harming.

2.Reduces anger and ill will.

3.Sets the foundation for ethical living.

“Speak only what is true and beneficial.”(Dhammapada 229) RIGHT SPEECH

1.Builds trust and harmony in relationships.

2.Prevents harm caused by lies or harsh words.

3.Promotes kindness and truthfulness.

“Do no evil; cultivate good.” (Dhammapada 183) RIGHT ACTION

1.Avoids harm to others (e.g., killing, stealing).

2.Creates peace and safety in society.

3.Supports spiritual progress.

“A noble disciple earns a living without causing harm.” (Anguttara Nikaya 5.177) RIGHT LIVELIHOOD

1.Ensures work does not harm others.

2.Promotes ethical responsibility.

3.Aligns your life with spiritual values.

Exert yourself to abandon unwholesome states and develop wholesome ones.” (Majjhima Nikaya 117) RIGHT EFFORT

1.Helps overcome negative habits.

2.Strengthens positive qualities.

3.Builds resilience and discipline.

Mindfulness is the path to the Deathless.”(Dhammapada 21 RIGHT MINDFULNESS

1.Improves awareness and focus.

2.Reduces stress and impulsivity.

3.Leads to insight into reality.

 

“Develop concentration; the mind concentrated knows things as they really are.”(Dhammapada 372) RIGHT CONCERNTRATION

1.Calms the mind for deep meditation.

2.Leads to inner peace and clarity.

3.Supports wisdom and liberation.

Ascetic Life

• simple and strict lifestyle

• few pleasures/possessions

• extreme self discipline and self denial leads to spiritual wisdom

• Siddhartha was impressed with the sense of peace from the holy man, inspired him to follow ascetic practices for 6 years

Ascetic Practises

• living in dangerous forests

• living in extreme heat and extreme cold

• sleeping on a bed of thorns

• eating too little

• learnt meditation - practice of calming and focusing the mind, reflecting deeply on teachings

Turning Away from Asceticism

• became thin and weak

• could not meditate effectively

• learnt discipline and willpower

• did not find the answer to suffering

• decided to reject asceticism

• accepted rice and milk from a cowgirl

• restored his health and strength

• returned to the life of collecting alms from villagers

• began to think in the terms of the middle way

Enlightenment

• determined to meditate until he found enlightenment (meditated under a peepul tree)

• enlightenment = understanding the true nature of reality

• took place during the 3 parts/watches (refers to the 3 realisations Buddha had)

• became known as the Buddha

• taught spiritual wisdom to the five ascetics

• asked his followers to choose a middle way between luxury and asceticism

Maras Distractions

• beautiful daughters to seduce (not swayed by their charm)

• armies to throw arrows and weapons (turned to lotus flowers)

• offering control of his kingdom

• questioning Siddharthas right to sit at the seat of enlightenment (touched/called earth to witness)

3 Parts/Watches

• gained knowledge of all his previous lives

• understood the cycle of samsara, understood how beings are reborn according to karma, understood nothing has an unchanging essence

• understood that beings suffer because of desire and attachment, understood suffering can be overcome through path to enlightenment

Four Sights: Context

• Siddhartha grew more curious about life outside the palace

• Travelled out to a nearby city

• Story = Jataka 75

Four Sights

• Old Age = frail old man - everyone will age

• Illness = someone lying in the road in agony - illness is the reality of life

• Death = funeral procession - everyone will die

• Holy man = walking peacefully - inspired Siddhartha that a spiritual answer to suffering was possible

Leaving the Palace

• wouldn’t find answers to suffering in his life of luxury

• abandoned his horse

• cut off his hair

• gave back his jewellery and clothes

• left his newborn son and wife to pursue spiritual enlightenment

• Siddharthas renunciation (letting go)

Buddhas Birth

• born 500BCE

• southern Nepal

• parents = King Suddhodana, Queen Maya

Story of Buddhas Birth

• QM dreamed of a white elephant from heaven, told her she would have a holy child

• Gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama in Lumbini Gardens

• Siddhartha could immediately walk/talk, walked 7 steps, lotus flowers sprung beneath his feet, declared he wouldn’t be reborn

• A prophecy was made that he would be a great king or a holy man

Life of Luxury

• QM died 7 days after birth

• KS wanted to protect Siddhartha from hardship (suffering)

• Grew up in a palace of luxury

• Preparing him to become king

Life of Luxury: Anguttara Nikaya

• Delicately nurtured

• Entertained by female dancers

• Lotus ponds of many colours

• Always protected by sunshade

• 3 mansions (winter, summer, rainy seasons)

Buddha and Dhamma

• Buddha thought his teachings should be practiced but not worshipped

• Buddhists should not become so attached that they cannot leave it behind

• Describes his insights as the truth, but encourages his followers to test and question his teachings

Dhamma Meanings

• truth about the nature of existence

• path of training recommended by Buddha for enlightenment

• universal law that governs how reality works

Importance of the Dhamma

• one of the three refuges/jewels (central values)

• Buddhists goes for refuge to the 3 jewels - they trust them as the sources of relief from suffering

• gives meaning to life

• creates satisfaction and happiness

• leads to becoming more aware, wise and compassionate

• improves relationships with others and the world

Dependent Arising

• everything depends on supporting conditions

• everything is constantly changing

Tibetan Wheel of Life

• illustrates dependent arising as applied to the cycle of samsara

• humans are subject to birth, death, rebirth

• cycle continues until the cycle is broken by following the Buddhist path

• when the cycle is broken, nibbana/nirvana becomes a possibility

Dukkha 3ME

• suffering, dissatisfaction

• suffering is an inevitable part of life

• Buddha left his life of luxury to try find an answer

• following Buddhas teachings - enlightenment - no suffering

Seven States of Suffering

PHYSICAL

• birth

• old age

• sickness

• death

MENTAL

• separation

• contact

• not being able to achieve desires

Types of Suffering

• ordinary suffering (physical/mental pain)

• suffering because of change (caused by losing something good)

• suffering because of attatchment (dissatisfaction with life as a result of craving and attatchment)

Anicca

• impermanence

• everything constantly changes

• people resist change because they are too attached to things

• awareness of anicca - letting go of attatchment - lessens suffering

• All conditioned things arise and pass away

Anicca affecting the World

• living things (tree sprouts, grows, dies)

• non-living things (nail rusts if in rain)

• peoples minds (thoughts and feelings always change)

Anicca and Dukkha

• people expect things to remain unchanged - attatchment

• when things do change, people experience suffering due to attachment

Kisa Gotami

• child died young - she lost her mind

• Buddha told her to visit all the houses and ask for mustard seed if no one had died

• she couldn’t find a house where no one had died

• death is inescapable and buried her child

Anatta

• no fixed self or soul

• people are made up of the 5 aggregates which shows there is no unchanging self

• no died part of a person

Nagasena and King Milinda

• N arrived to the court of KM

• KM asked his name

• N answered but there was no person behind the name

• K was confused and asked who was standing before him

• N answered using the analogy of the chariot

• chariot has lots of parts, name to refer to all these parts - like how a person exists but only because of their parts

5 Aggregates

• form (our bodies)

• sensation (our feelings)

• perception (our ways of interpreting and understanding)

• mental formations (our thoughts)

• consciousness (our general awareness)

Four Noble Truths

• four truths the Buddha taught about suffering

• why people suffer and how to overcome it

• part of Dhamma (first teaching after enlightenment)

• discovered by the Buddha whilst meditating under the peepul tree

• understanding through study, reflection, meditation

• understanding leads to enlightenment

Dukkha 4NT

• there is suffering

• suffering is universal, everyone needs to overcome it

• happiness and pleasures are only temporary, they cannot solve the problem of suffering

Samudaya

• suffering has a cause

• tanha (craving leads to suffering)

• people suffering because of attachment - the things they like are impermanent

• temporary pleasures cannot last or make them permanently happy

The Three Poisons

• greed/desire (cockerel)

• hatred/anger (snake)

• ignorance (pig)

• trap people in the cycle of samsara and prevent enlightenment

• craving → greed and hatred

• craving is rooted in ignorance

Nirodha

• suffering can come to an end

• overcoming craving and ignorance

• overcoming suffering → enlightenment and nibbana

• own efforts

• recognising that things you enjoy cannot last forever

Nibbana

• extinction of the three poisons

• state of complete liberation, peace and happiness

• Buddha = someone who was woken up to the truth of existence

Magga

• there is means to bring suffering to an end

• noble eightfold path/ threefold way

• middle path between the extremes of luxury and asceticism

Eightfold Path

• eight aspects that Buddhists practice and live by to achieve enlightenment

• understood as a range of practices that can be developed at the same time, interlinked

• sometimes grouped into 3 sections (3fold way)

3fold Way/ 8fold Path

ETHICS (sila)

• right speech

• right action

• right livelihood

MEDITATION (samadhi)

• right effort

• right mindfulness

• right concentration

WISDOM (panna)

• right understanding

• right intention

Three Types of Craving

• sensory craving (craving things that please the senses)

• craving for being (wanting to become something you aren’t)

• craving for non being (wanting to stop experiencing something)

Theravada Buddhism

• older, more conservative

• follow Buddhas teachings exactly

• monks or nuns

• teachings of the elders

• goal is to become arhats and escape the cycle of samsara

• all people are made up of the 5 aggregates

• follow the eightfold path

• practised in south east Asia

Mahayana Buddhism

• help others to achieve enlightenment, stay in the cycle of samsara

• goal is to become a bodhisattva, achieved by following the six perfections

• follow Buddhas teachings

• compassion is important

• number of different traditions with overlapping characteristics

• Pure land, Tibetan, Zen

• Practiced in china japan Korea

Theravada in General

• classical or orthodox

• high degree of uniformity

• Buddha is the main focus and 1 of the 3 refuges (a guide not a god)

Monastic Community

• achieve enlightenment

• don’t own anything

• no sexual relationships

• emphasise ordination

• reserved for men

• devote their whole lives

Beliefs about Good Merit

• focus on meditation

• share good fortune

• transfer their merit to the dead for favourable rebirth

Bodhisattva

• a being destined for enlightenment, who postpones their final escape from samsara in order to help living beings achieve enlightenment

Sunyata

• emptiness

• key concept of Mahayana Buddhism

• nothing has a separate soul

• everything depends on something else for existence

• nothing has a fixed nature

Human Destiny

• a path that Buddhists will take to achieve enlightenment and understand the Buddhas Dhamma

Arhat (T)

• perfect person

• overcame the main sources of suffering (greed, hatred, ignorance)

• achieved nirvana

• free from samsara (no longer reborn)

• followed the eightfold path, concentrated on wisdom, morality and Meditation

Bodhisattva (M)

• enlightened being

• remain in the cycle of samsara to help others

• Vow to show compassion for all of sentient

• follow Buddhas teachings

• follow the six perfections