Theology Buddhism Grew Out of the Hindu

Theology

Buddhism grew out of the Hindu religion alongside Jainism. These two religions (Buddhism and Jainism) are extremely similar in that they both accept all people and reject authority and the caste system, but Buddhism differs greatly from Jainism in that Buddists are taught to follow a path through the middle of "worldliness and extreme asceticism." (Hopfe, and Woodward 127) The creator of the Buddhist religion is attributed to a man named Siddhartha, who live between the years 560-480 B.C.E. (Hopfe, and Woodward 127) Siddhartha was a rich prince who was prophesized to become a Buddha (or Enlightened One), if certain events came to be during his lifetime (Hopfe, and Woodward 128). By the time his thirtieth birthday had arrived, Siddhartha had witnessed the events needed to convince him to leave his earthly and princely life behind and pursue a life dedicated to solving human suffering (Hopfe, and Woodward 129). After going through a long period of searching and asceticism Siddhartha found no answers and was no closer to his goal than when he left, he decided to give up asceticism as a path to enlightenment and meditated for a long while, where he eventually found enlightenment and peace (Hopfe, and Woodward 131).

Encouraged by his success Siddhartha began to teach the ways of Buddhism to anyone who wished to join his order, a stark contrast to other religions that still adhere to the caste system and refuse membership to women or the poor (Hopfe, and Woodward 130). The five basic rules of moral conduct for monks in the Buddhist order are: "abstain from killing, stealing, lying, engaging in improper sexual conduct, and partaking of intoxicants." (Hopfe, and Woodward 131). The basic belief for a Buddhist is that one's soul, which is comprised of five parts: the body, feelings, understanding, will, and consciousness; will be forever in a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth unless one can follow the Eightfold Path and accept the Four Noble Truths (Hopfe, and Woodward 132).

The Eightfold Path comprises of eight teachings that help the Buddhist to move beyond earthly obstructions for a path toward Enlightenment. The first tenant is Perfect Vision, which means the right view or understanding of nature's realities and the "path of transformation." (Allen). The second tenant is Perfect Emotion, which means right thought and attitude, and the ability to let go when needed (Allen). The third tenant is Perfect Speech, which means clear communication (Allen). The fourth tenant is Integral action, or "the non-exploitation of oneself or others." (Allen) The fifth tenant is Proper Livelihood, which means living a life following Integral Action (Allen). The sixth tenant is Full Effort, which means fostering one's life energy into a state of completeness (Allen). The seventh tenant is Right Mindfulness, which means being aware of others, nature, oneself, feelings, and reality (Allen). The last tenant is Meditation, which moves one forward toward Enlightenment (Allen).

The Four Noble Truths are fairly simple, and consist of: the noble truth (insight or higher knowledge of) pain, the noble truth for the cause of pain (i.e. cravings, passions, etc.), the noble truth the cessation of pain, and the noble truth of the path that leads to the cessation of pain, which is the Eightfold Path to Enlightenment (Hopfe, and Woodward 132).