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BUDDHISM

BUDDHISM
Historical Overview
Life of Siddhartha Gautama
 563 BC : Siddhārtha Gautama, Buddha-to-be, is born in
Lumbini into a leading royal family in the republic of the
Shakyas, which is now part of Nepal.
 534 BC: Prince Siddhartha goes outside the palace for
the first time and sees The Four Sights: an old man, an
ill man, a dead man, and a holy man. He is shocked by
the first three—he did not know what age, disease, and
death were—but is inspired by the holy man to give up
his wealth. He leaves his house and lives with three
ascetics. However, he wants more than to starve
himself, so he becomes a religious teacher.
Life of Siddhartha Gautama
 Under a fig tree, now known as the Bodhi tree, he
vowed never to leave the position until he found
Truth. At the age of 30, he attained Enlightenment.
He was then known as Gautama Buddha, or simply
"The Buddha“ or which means "the enlightened one“.
 For the remaining 45 years of his life, he traveled the
Gangetic Plain of central India, teaching his doctrine
and discipline to an diverse range of people.
 483 BC: Gautama Buddha dies at Kusinara India.
Three months following his death, the First Buddhist
Council is convened.
1st Buddhist council
(483 BC)
 The first Buddhist council was held soon just
after Buddha died, and presided by Venerable
Mahakasyapa, one of the most senior disciples,
at Rajagriha. The objective of the council was
to record the Buddha's doctrinal teachings
(sutra) and to codify the monastic rules
(vinaya): Ananda, one of the Buddha's main
disciples and his cousin, was called upon to
recite the discourses of the Buddha, and Upali,
another disciple, recited the rules of the vinaya
2nd Buddhist council
(383 BC)
 The second Buddhist council was held at Vaisali
following a dispute that had arisen in the
Sangha over the relaxation by some monks of
various points of discipline. Eventually it was
decided to hold a second Council at which the
original Vinaya texts that had been preserved
at the first Council were cited to show that
these relaxations went against the recorded
teachings of the Buddha.
Ashokan proselytism
(261 BC)
 The Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great converted to
Buddhism after his bloody conquest of the territory in
eastern India. Regreting the horrors of war, the king
decided to renounce violence, and propagate the faith
by building stupas and pillars urging amongst other
things respect of all animal life, and enjoining people to
follow the Dharma. He treated his subjects as equals
regardless of their religion, politics or caste.
 250 BC: Emperor Ashoka the Great sends various
Buddhist missionaries to faraway countries, as far as
China and the Mon & Malay kingdoms in the east and
the Hellenistic kingdoms in the west, in order to make
Buddhism known to them.
3rd Buddhist council
250 BC
 King Ashoka convened the third Buddhist
council around 250 BCE at Pataliputra. It was
held by the monk Moggaliputtatissa. The
objective of the council was to purify the
Sangha, particularly from non-Buddhist
ascetics who had been attracted by the royal
patronage. Following the council, Buddhist
missionaries were dispatched throughout the
known world.
Expansion to Greece
(3rd century BC)
 Some of the Edicts of Ashoka inscriptions
describe the efforts made by Ashoka to
propagate the Buddhist faith throughout
Greece and the Mediterranean, which at
that time formed an uninterrupted
continuum from the borders of India to
Greece.
Expansion to Sri Lanka
(220 BC)
 Theravada Buddhism is officially introduced to Sri Lanka
by the Venerable Mahinda, son of the emperor Ashoka
of India during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa.
 Although Mahayana Buddhism gained some influence in
Sri Lanka at that time, Theravada ultimately prevailed,
and Sri Lanka turned out to be the last stronghold of
Theravada Buddhism, from where it would expand again
to South-East Asia from the 11th century.
 In the areas east of the Indian subcontinent (Myanmar
and Thailand), Indian culture strongly influenced the
Mons. The Mons are said to have been converted to
Buddhism under the proselytizing of the Indian Emperor
Ashoka the Great.
Rise of the Sunga
(2nd-1st century BC)
 The Sunga dynasty (185–73 BCE) was established in 185
BCE, about 50 years after Ashoka's death. After
assassinating King Brhadrata (last of the Mauryan rulers),
military commander-in-chief Pusyamitra Sunga took the
throne. Buddhists wrote that he "destroyed monasteries
and killed Monks": 84,000 Buddhist stupas which had
been built by Ashoka were "destroyed", and 100 gold
coins were offered for the head of each Buddhist monk. In
addition, Buddhist sources allege that a large number of
Buddhist monasteries were converted to Hindu temples.
 During the period, Buddhist monks deserted the Ganges
valley, following either the Northern road (Uttarapatha) or
the Southern road (Daksinapatha).
Greco-Buddhist interaction
(2nd century BC-1st century CE)
 In the areas west of the Indian subcontinent, neighboring Greek
kingdoms had been in place in Bactria (today's northern Afghanistan)
since the time of the conquests of Alexander the Great around 326
BCE: first the Seleucids from around 323 BCE, then the Greco-Bactrian
kingdom from around 250 BCE.
 180 BC: Greco-Bactrian King Demetrius invades India as far as
Pataliputra and establishes the Indo-Greek kingdom (180–10 BCE),
under which Buddhism flourishes.
 150 BC: Indo-Greek king Menander I converts to Buddhism under the
sage Nāgasena, according to the account of the Milinda Panha.
 The interaction between Greek and Buddhist cultures may have had
some influence on the evolution of Mahayana, as the faith developed
its sophisticated philosophical approach and a man-god treatment of
the Buddha somewhat reminiscent of Hellenic gods. It is also around
that time that the first anthropomorphic representations of the
Buddha are found, often in realistic Greco-Buddhist style.
Central Asian expansion
 120 BC: The Chinese Emperor Han Wudi receives two
golden statues of the Buddha.
 2 BC: Yuezhi envoys to the Chinese capital, who give
oral teachings on Buddhist sutras.
 65: Liu Ying's sponsorship of Buddhism is the first
documented case of Buddhist practices in China.
 67: Buddhism comes to China with the two monks
Moton and Chufarlan.
 68: Buddhism is officially established in China with the
founding of the White Horse Temple.
 78: Ban Chao, a Chinese General, subdues the
Buddhist Kingdom of Khotan.
Rise of Mahayana
(1st century BC-2nd century CE)
 The rise of Mahayana Buddhism from the 1st century BCE was
accompanied by complex political changes in northwestern India.
The Indo-Greek kingdoms were gradually overwhelmed, and their
culture assimilated by the Indo-Scythians, and then the Yuezhi, who
founded the Kushan Empire from around 12 BCE.
 The Kushans were supportive of Buddhism, and a fourth Buddhist
council was convened by the Kushan emperor Kanishka, around 100
CE at Jalandhar or in Kashmir, and is usually associated with the
formal rise of Mahayana Buddhism and its secession from
Theravada Buddhism. Theravada Buddhism does not recognize the
authenticity of this council.
 The new form of Buddhism was characterized by an almost God-like
treatment of the Buddha, by the idea that all beings have a Buddha-
nature and should aspire to Buddhahood, and by a syncretism due
to the various cultural influences within northwestern India and the
Kushan Empire.
The Two Fourth Councils
 The Fourth Council is said to have been convened in the reign of the
Kushan emperor Kanishka, around 100 CE at Jalandhar or in Kashmir.
Theravada Buddhism had its own Fourth Council in Sri Lanka about
200 years earlier in which the Pali Canon was written down in toto for
the first time. Therefore there are two Fourth Councils: one in Sri
Lanka (Theravada), and one in Kashmir (Sarvastivadin)..
 It is said that for the Fourth Council of Kashmir, Kanishka gathered
500 monks headed by Vasumitra, partly, it seems, to compile
extensive commentaries on the Abhidharma, although it is possible
that some editorial work was carried out upon the existing canon
itself. Allegedly, during the council there were all together three
hundred thousand verses and over nine million statements compiled,
and it took twelve years to complete. The main fruit of this Council
was the compilation of the vast commentary known as the Mahā-
Vibhāshā ("Great Exegesis"), an extensive compendium and reference
work on a portion of the Sarvāstivādin Abhidharma.
Mahayana expansion
(1st century CE-10th century CE)
 Mahayana was to flourish and spread in the East from India to South-East
Asia, and towards the north to Central Asia, China, Korea, and finally to
Japan in 538 CE.
 148: An Shigao, a Parthian prince and Buddhist monk, arrives in China and
proceeds to make the first translations of Theravada texts into Chinese.
 178: The Kushan monk Lokaksema travels to the Chinese capital of Loyang
and becomes the first known translator of Mahayana texts into Chinese.
 100s/200s: Indian and Central Asian Buddhists travel to Vietnam.
 200s & 300s: Kharoṣṭhī script is used in the southern Silk Road cities of
Khotan and Niya.
 296: The earliest surviving Chinese Buddhist scripture dates from this year.
 300s: Two Chinese monks take scriptures to the Korean kingdom of
Goguryeo and establish papermaking in Korea.
 399-414: Fa Xian travels from China to India, then returns to translate
Buddhist works into Chinese.
 400s: The kingdom of Funan (centered in modern
Cambodia) begins to advocate Buddhism in a departure
from Hinduism.
 402: At the request of Yao Xing, Kumarajiva travels to
Changan and translates many Buddhist texts into Chinese.
 425: Buddhism reaches Sumatra.
 464: Buddhabhadra reaches China to preach Buddhism.
 495: The Shaolin temple is built in the name of
Buddhabhadra, by edict of emperor Wei Xiao Wen.
 485: Five monks from Gandhara travel to the country of
Fusang (Japan) where they introduce Buddhism.
 500s: Zen adherents enter Vietnam from China. Jataka
stories are translated into Persian by order of the
Zoroastrian king, Khosrau I of Persia.
 527: Bodhidharma settles into the Shaolin monastery in
Henan province of China.
 552: Buddhism is introduced to Japan via Baekje (Korea).
India
 After the end of the Kushans, Buddhism
flourished in India during the dynasty of the
Guptas (4th-6th century). Mahayana centers of
learning were established, especially at Nalanda
in north-eastern India, which was to become the
largest and most influential Buddhist university
for many centuries, with famous teachers such
as Nagarjuna. The Gupta style of Buddhist art
became very influential from South-East Asia to
China as the faith was spreading there.
Central Asia
 Central Asia had been influenced by Buddhism probably almost
since the time of the Buddha. According to a legend preserved in
Pali, the language of the Theravada canon, two merchant brothers
from Bactria, named Tapassu and Bhallika, visited the Buddha and
became his disciples. They then returned to Bactria and built
temples to the Buddha.
 Central Asia long played the role of a meeting place between China,
India and Persia. During the 2nd century BC, the expansion of the
Former Han to the west brought them into contact with the
Hellenistic civilizations of Asia, especially the Greco-Bactrian
Kingdoms. Thereafter, the expansion of Buddhism to the north led
to the formation of Buddhist communities and even Buddhist
kingdoms in the oases of Central Asia. Some Silk Road cities
consisted almost entirely of Buddhist stupas and monasteries, and it
seems that one of their main objectives was to welcome and service
travelers between east and west.
China
 Buddhism probably arrived in China around the 1st century CE from Central
Asia and through to the 8th century it became an extremely active center of
Buddhism.
 The year 67 CE saw Buddhism's official introduction to China with the coming
of the two monks Moton and Chufarlan.
 In 68 CE, under imperial patronage, they established the White Horse Temple,
which still exists today, close to the imperial capital at Luoyang. By the end of
the second century, a prosperous community had been settled at Pengcheng
(modern Xuzhou, Jiangsu).
 The first known Mahayana scriptural texts are translations made into Chinese
by the Kushan monk Lokaksema in Luoyang, between 178 and 189 CE. Some
of the earliest known Buddhist artifacts found in China are small statues on
"money trees", dated circa 200 CE, in typical Gandharan style : "That the
imported images accompanying the newly arrived doctrine came from
Gandhara is strongly suggested by such early Gandhara characteristics on this
"money tree" Buddha as the high ushnisha, vertical arrangement of the hair,
moustache, symmetrically looped robe and parallel incisions for the folds of
the arms.”
Korea
 Buddhism was introduced around 372 CE, when
Chinese ambassadors visited the Korean
kingdom of Goguryeo, bringing scriptures and
images. Buddhism prospered in Korea, and in
particular Seon (Zen) Buddhism from the 7th
century onward. However, with the beginning of
the Confucean Yi Dynasty of the Joseon period in
1392, Buddhism was strongly discriminated
against until it was almost completely eradicated,
except for a remaining Seon movement.
Japan
 The Buddhism of Japan was introduced from Three Kingdoms of Korea in
the sixth century . The Chinese priest Ganjin offered the system of Vinaya
to the Buddhism of Japan in 754. As a result, the Buddhism of Japan has
developed rapidly. Saichō and Kūkai succeeded to a legitimate Buddhism
from China in nine century.
 Being geographically at the end of the Silk Road, Japan was able to
preserve many aspects of Buddhism at the very time it was disappearing in
India, and being suppressed in Central Asia and China.
 From 710 CE numerous temples and monasteries were built in the capital
city of Nara. Countless paintings and sculptures were made, often under
governmental sponsorship. The creation of Japanese Buddhist art was
especially rich between the 8th and 13th century during the periods of
Nara, Heian, and Kamakura.
 From the 12th and 13th, a further development was Zen art. Zen art is
mainly characterized by original paintings and poetry (especially haikus)
and other important derivative arts such as the Chanoyu tea ceremony,
the Ikebana art of flower arrangement and martial arts).
South East Asia
 During the 1st century CE, the trade on the overland Silk
Road tended to be restricted by the rise in the Middle-East
of the Parthian empire, an unvanquished enemy of Rome,
just as Romans were becoming extremely wealthy and
their demand for Asian luxury was rising. This demand
revived the sea connections between the Mediterranean
and China, with India as the intermediary of choice. From
that time, through trade connection, commercial
settlements, and even political interventions, India started
to strongly influence Southeast Asian countries. Trade
routes linked India with southern Burma, central and
southern Siam, lower Cambodia and southern Vietnam,
and numerous urbanized coastal settlements were
established there.
BUDDHISM
Key Beliefs and Practices
Three Refuges or Three Jewels

 Buddha
 His teachings (dharma)
 The religious community he founded
(sangha)
Dharma
 Existence is a continuing cycle of birth,
death, and rebirth (samsara)
 Humans bound to the cycle by the cause-
effect of karma (Present circumstances
and experiences are the result of past
thoughts and actions; present thoughts
and actions will affect the future)
 As long as an individual is within the cycle
s/he can never be completely free from
pain and suffering
How to break out of the cycle

 Eliminate any attachment to


worldly things
 Do that, and one can achieve

nirvana (perfect peace and


happiness)
How does one conquer worldly
attachment and achieve nirvana?
 Middle Way
 A way of life that avoids both uncontrolled
satisfaction of human desires and extreme
forms of denial and self-torture
 Seeking a balance by rejecting the extremes
of wanting everything and giving up
everything
Four Noble Truths

1. Suffering
- Existence is suffering – from birth
to growing old, becoming sick, and
dying – all life is suffering
Four Noble Truths

2. The source of suffering


- Desire
- Wanting selfish pleasure, continued
life, power, and/or material
possessions can lead to suffering
Four Noble Truths

3. Stopping suffering
- Completely stop wanting things;
eliminate attachment
- Only when no desire remains is
enlightenment possible
Four Noble Truths

4. The way to stop suffering


- Follow the Eightfold Path
Noble Eightfold Path
1. Right understanding
• Only by understanding the Four Noble
Truths and following the Eightfold Path
can one find true happiness.
2. Right aims
• Love and help others. Don’t cheat or
want things other people have.
3. Right speech
• Tell the truth. Listen and communicate
to understand others.
Noble Eightfold Path
4. Right action
• Respect life, morality, and property.
Perform good acts for the sake of
benefiting others.
5. Right means of livelihood
• Do a job that doesn’t injure others.
6. Right effort
• Strive to free the mind of evil. Focus on
the positive to overcome difficulties.
Noble Eightfold Path
7. Right concentration
• Never let your body control your mind.
Control your feelings and thoughts.
8. Right meditation
• Practice proper forms of concentration. Be
inwardly attentive and find inner peace to
be able to learn and do many things.
Sangha
 Ideal Buddhist
community consisting
of those who have
reached the higher
stages of spiritual
development
 Monks - play important
part in preserving and
spreading Buddhism
Sangha
 Laity or members expected to:
 Honor Buddha
 Follow basic moral rules
 Support the monks
 Honor images of Buddha and objects
associated with him
Buddhist Schools
 Theravada
 Mahayana
 Vajrayana
Theravada
 “Pali” for School of Elders
 Taught mainly in “Pali”
 Rituals are not heavily emphasized
 “Bardo” – is not teached
 Simple places of worship
Theravada
 Only the historical Gautama Buddha and
past Buddhas are accepted
 Main emphasis is self liberation. There is a
total reliance on oneself to eradicate all
defilements
 Limited emphasis on the three bodies of a
Buddha
Mahayana
 Teachings are taught in local language but
is transmitted in Sanskrit
 Rituals are emphasized influenced by local
cultures
 Teaches the “Bardo”
 Elaborate temples
Mahayana
 There are many other Buddhas aside from
the primary Buddhas
 Besides self liberation, it is important for
followers to help other sentient are beings
 The Trikaya are well mentioned.
Buddhist Countries
 Theravada  Mahayana
 Sri Lanka  Nepal
 Myanmar  Korea
 Thailand  China
 Cambodia  Japan
Practices
 Pilgrimages to holy
temples and stupas
and walking around
(circumambulating)
 Bodh Gaya: important
pilgrimage center
(place where Buddha
gained enlightenment)
Practices
 Veneration of the Buddha (praying,
making offerings)
 Commemorations of the Buddha’s birth,
Enlightenment, and final nirvana
 Vassa, the three-month rainy season
retreat from July to October – celebrated
by Theravada Buddhists
BUDDHISM
Contemporary Relevance and Issues
Contemporary Relevance

 The individual
 Personal philosophy
 Materialistic world view leads to widespread
moral degeneration
 Karma
 Meditation
Contemporary Relevance
 The community
 Guidelines for conduct needed for the establishment of laws,
order, social harmony, and social justice
 Five Precepts

1. Abstain from taking life: implies the virtue of treating all


beings with kindness and compassion.
2. Abstain from stealing: implies honesty, respect for the
possessions of others, and concern for the natural
environment.
3. Abstain from sexual misconduct: implies responsibility and
commitment in one's marital and other interpersonal
relationships.
4. Abstain from lying: implies a commitment to truth in dealing
with others.
5. Abstain from alcoholic drinks, drugs and intoxicants: implies
the virtues of sobriety and heedfulness.
Contemporary Relevance
• Development of social harmony
• Sigalovada Sutra
• Responsibilities and duties
• Interdependence
• UNESCO, WHO, FAO
• International peace
BUDDHIST PRINCIPLES CAN BE INCORPORATED BY
PRACTITIONERS OF OTHER RELIGIONS AND BELIEFS TO THE
EXTENT THAT SOMETHING THAT HELPS ONE GROW CAN BE
CONSIDERED “DHARMA”.
Issues
 Cloning
 Organ transplant
 Globalization

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