Buddhism: origins, teachings, and major traditions

World Religions Report

Introduction to Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion which originated in Northeast India and follows the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama. He became famous as "the Buddha," a term which means "the enlightened one." Buddhism has two major divisions -- the Theravada and the Mahayana. Theravada gained popularity over Southeastern Asia and Sri Lanka. Buddhists in India, Nepal, Mongolia, Vietnam Japan, Tibet and China follow Mahayana. The central belief system of Buddhism teaches how one's life is a temporary phase comprised of the body, emotions and behaviors. Buddhists deny the idea of a permanent soul and dedicate their lives towards breaking free from the cycles of birth and death ("Basics of"). They believe in reincarnation where one goes through different forms of life, each instance of existence dependent on the laws of cause and effect. There are 5-6 realms of existence, depending on the school of thought -- Human beings, Animals, Naraka beings, Pretas, Devas and Asuras (not accepted by Theravada). Attaining freedom from this cycle or the achievement of nirvana is the aim of Buddhism. This is a state in which one is free from feelings of hatred, greed and ignorance. (Fisher, 2005)

The Buddha was born on the 5th century BC at a place called Lumbini and brought up in Kapilavastu, both of which are located in the present day Nepal. He was the son of the king of the Sakya clan and was originally named Siddhartha Gautama. He got married early and led a luxurious life. He got bored of his lifestyle and set out to explore whether there was more to life that what he knew. He had several experiences as he came across a sick man, an old man and a dead body. He realized how suffering was omnipresent in all of mankind. His encounter with a monk changed how he looked at life as he decided to make a fresh start, giving up all his worldly belongings. This choice came to be known as the Great Renunciation as started on a quest for enlightenment. He started meditating under a fig tree (now known as the sacred Bodhi Tree), located in Bodh Gaya, India. He was successful after several days of intense meditation as he liberated himself from all suffering and became "the awakened one." He dedicated the rest of his life towards spreading his method of achieving enlightenment before dying at the age of 80. (Grow,1996)

The teachings of the Buddha are consolidated in the "Tripitaka." These scriptures have three sections known as the Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutta Pitaka and the Abhidhamma Pitaka. The rules followed by the monks in their path as Buddhists have been mentioned in the Vinaya Pitaka. Sutta Pitaka describes the different events experienced by the Buddha in his life along with the myths and legends associated with him. The Abhidhamma Pitaka, meant for advanced buddhists is said to contain the doctrines of Buddhism as interpreted by his disciples and other scholars. Buddhism is based on the four Noble truths -- All forms of life lead to suffering, suffering is the result of desires, the end of craving implies the end of suffering, the state of liberating oneself from suffering can be achieved by following the path of the Buddha. The path mentioned in the last Noble truth is divided into eight parts and is known as the Noble eight fold path. (Fisher, 2005)

Buddhist Place of worship

The place of worship selected was "The New York Buddhist Church" in New York. It is located on the 331-332 riverside drive which can be found between the West 105th and West 106th street which is on the upper west side of Manhattan. It is easy to reach by car or any other form of public transportation. The directions are provided on its website.

The New York Buddhist Church (NYBC) is a branch of the Jodoshinshu True Pure Land School of Buddhism. Nishi-Hongwanji Temple, which is its main centre, is located in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded between 1173 and 1262 by Shinran Shounin. It was established in New York by Rev. Hozen Seki and has been around since 1938. He was helped out by his wife Satomi and a few others. New York at that time did not have any branch of Jodoshinshu Buddhism and it was their wish to introduce Buddhism there. The worship environment inside the temple is welcoming and encourages all kinds of people to attend. There are no restrictions based on ethnicity, gender or previous experience in Buddhism.

There were no clothing requirements enforced. Most temple representatives and monks wore formal Buddhist attire during their service held on Sunday. Loose comfortable clothes are recommended for their meditation sessions. They have service sessions to allow new people to have an opportunity to interact with the members of the temple. They are willing to help out with any questions regarding Buddhism and how to get started. A few customary practices were observed in and around the temple. For instance, all devotees are expected to bow as they enter or leave the main temple area where the worship and meditation sessions were organized. There are a number of events organized by the temple at different parts of the month. Most of these are conducted in English except a few which are in Japanese. A calendar of events is provided on their website. My overall experience of a few days of attendance was pretty enriching. ("The New York")

A comparison between Buddhism and Christianity

Buddhism is a pantheistic religion and shows a number of contrasts when compared to Christianity which is monotheistic. Buddhists deny the existence of any specific god or creation unlike Christianity. Christians believe in a beginning of life which would ultimately end, rather than being reincarnated. They follow one god who has created each of us. According to them every individual will die and face god's judgment. Buddhist teachings state how death will result in that individual to be reborn again in a different form of existence ("Buddhism-Compared"). The aim of Buddhism is the achievement of enlightenment or Nirvana as opposed to the Christianity which aims at an eternal relationship with god in heaven. Buddhists proceed towards their aim by their own efforts of following their doctrines. Everyone is supposed to work towards creating one's own fate and cannot hold anyone else responsible. The Christian aim is supposed to be achieved though the grace of Jesus Christ. Everyone can receive salvation which is awarded to anyone who accepts Jesus Christ in their lives. ("The Lotus," 2005) There are a lot of Christian beliefs which are not followed by Buddhism. Some of them are the Garden of Eden, the destructive flood at the time of Noah, the original sin which originated from Adam and Eve, the existence of a savior who died for the salvation of all humankind and the possibility of such a savior returning back to earth. Christians believe at increasing the followers of their faith such that everyone in the world would have one religion. Buddhists on the other hand follow the rule of impermanence which would lead to Buddhism fading out like every other worldly object. They are however anticipating the reappearance of an individual who can achieve enlightenment similar to the Buddha and reignite a religion with the same belief system. ("Comparison of")

Christianity and Buddhism share some basic similarities in the way they treat others, their general rules of behavior and in the themes of justice. Both religions explore beyond the mortal life. They teach its followers how to demonstrate selfless love which is not limited to the friends or family but spreads to the enemies as well, regardless of what they might have done. The state of being selfless is supposed to have the power to change the mind and can even overcome the fear of death. ("Difference between")

Conclusion

Buddhism has had a lot of impact in the religious sector of Southeast Asia. It is spreading steadily over the rest of the world as Europe and North America are becoming aware of what the followers of the Buddha believe in. All true Buddhists agree with the fact that what they follow is a way of life rather than just a religion. They are making the world aware of an alternative lifestyle which is free from all material desires. Meditation is its basic form can help anyone regardless of whether he or she is a Buddhist or not. My experience during the interview has taken me a step closer to understanding the dedication which Buddhists have towards achieving their goal. Their approach is significantly different from Christianity as observed from their comparative study.