2/TB1: Religious Figures & Sacred Texts

why did the Buddha renounce his birthright and family? what did he do immediately after this?

he wanted to find freedom and his newborn son was a fetter to him, causing him craving.

became an ascetic, seeking teaching from other practitioners

what did Buddha's first two ascetic teachers reveal to him?

why did he leave them?

they both taught him to master yoga to a level where he could reach a plane on nothingness, no perception

but the Buddha felt this was a false sense of enlightenment and only ignored the root cause of suffering.

after being an ascetic for many years, the Buddha was close to death over physical exhaustion, how did he recover and what did this lead him to do?

a villagewoman gave him a bowl of rice and he regained some strength.

realising the extremes he had been living in (luxury/asceticism) he sought to find the Middle Way

what 4 conclusions does the Buddha's renunciation lead followers to conclude?

- sammasambuddha identity?

- Middle Way?

- Sheldon Kopp

- Ajan Chah

- it was unprecedented that a young man would become a renouncer, so his pursuit of truth confirms his sammasambuddha identity.

- reflects the ideal of Buddhism as the 'Middle Way'

- Sheldon Kopp's 'if you meet the Buddha in the road, kill him' - the Buddha tested for himself the extremes of life to find what worked for him

- Ajan Chah: the renunciation at an early age serve to remind us that answers to life are worth pursuing in the present moment whilst we have the chance, before old age or circumstances overthrow our abilities.

briefly describe the events of the Buddha's enlightenment under the tree

what state was he in

goal of Mara

2 means of Mara

earth touching mudra?

Sitting beneath a Bodhi tree in a deep meditative state.

The demon Mara tries to tempt him away from reaching enlightenment.

Mara sent an army to attack him, the Buddha quelled each force with his ten perfections.

Mara sent his daughters to seduce him. Buddha ignored the temptation.

The earth touching mudra - Buddha shows the earth as witness to his virtue and teachings by placing one hand on the earth and Mara vanishes.

how could the story of Mara's defeat be interpreted as?

pscyhological?

physical?

hindrances?

psychological: Mara is seen as a mind wrestling with ego and self-doubt

physical: Mara is seen as representing the senses that tether us to the world

hindrances: Mara is seen as representing the obstacles in life that hinder spiritual progress and create worldly attachments.

what is the path to the cessation of Dukkha that the Buddha followed? what are the 4 stages?

the 4 jhanas (meditative absorptions)

1st stage/jhana: total state of calm, focused on object of meditation alone.

2nd stage: 'a state free from thought-conception... which is born of concentration' (Mahathera Nyanatiloka)

3rd stage: still onscious but completely equinanimous

4th stage: a state beyond all thought construction, pleasure, pain

what are the jataka tales?

what is the main message found throughout these?

A collection of stories about the Buddha's previous lives.

the narrative of the consistent and determined effort to perfect the qualities that led Gautama to attain Enlightenment.

how did the Buddha come to understand the concept of karma through his path to enlightenment? quote?

thus how did he realise change can occur?

he became aware that our intentions and actions (karma) determined the nature of our existence

'all that we are is the result of what we have thought'

to transform from ignorance to Enlightenment, the origins of karma in mental formations must be challenged.

how did the Buddha realise his Enlightenment, in regards to the cessation of suffering?

he realised the relentless cycle of death, life, rebirth involved suffering and ignorance.

to achieve freedom one must realise the reality of the three marks of existence and work to remove ignorance through blowing out the three fires that cause the ignorance and pain: the Three Poisons.