BUDDHISM

BUDDHISMSiddhartha Gautama

born in Nepal @ 560 BCE born a Hindu prince

• member of the Kshatriya caste gave up his wealth set out on a journey of self-discovery

• why does suffering exist?

The Middle Way Four Noble Truths Noble Eight-Fold Path

NIRVANASUTRAS

The FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS

1. Suffering exists

2. Suffering exists from attachment to desires

3. Suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases.

4. Freedom from desire/suffering is possible by practicing the Noble Eightfold Path

Noble Eight-Fold Path

Wisdom: Meditation:

1. Right View 6. Right Effort

2. Right Thought 7. Right Mindfulness

Morality 8. Right Contemplation

3. Right Speech

4. Right Action

5. Right Livelihood

NIRVANATotal, complete contentmentEscapes the hindrances of lifeFree from suffering from

one’s own desiresWhat happens when the soul

escapes from the wheel of life?

TATHAGADA (thus gone)• like the flame of match that is

extinguished

FIVE HINDRANCES

1. Lust

2. Ill will

3. Sloth and laziness

4. Restlessness and worry

5. Skeptical doubt

Daily Dharma: Mind Hindrances

Seven Factors of ENLIGHTNMENT

1. Attentiveness

2. Investigation of the Law

3. Energy

4. Rapture

5. Tranquility

6. Concentration

7. Equanimity

three bodily states: standing, sitting, andlying down

TEN Perfections

1. Generosity 8. Resolution

2. Morality 9. All-embracing

3. Renunciation kindness

4. Wisdom 10. Equanimity

5. Energy

6. Forbearance

7. Truthfulness

Four Boundless States

1. Loving Kindness

2. Compassion

3. Sympathetic Joy

4. Equanimity

THERAVADA BUDDHISM

“Doctrine o/t Elders”conservative branchThe Little Wheel

less followers

Buddha is a teacherSpread to Sri Lanka,

Myanmar, Thailand

THERAVADA BUDDHISM ideal is arhat

become an enlightened saint wisdom

few possessions begging bowl three colored robes a belt a mending needle fan to cover face razor to shave head water strainer

MAHAYANA BUDDHISM“Great Vehicle” or “Big Wheel”

majority of followers

non-monastic lifeBuddha is a godSpread to China, Tibet, Korea &

Japan ideal is compassion

can attain nirvana through assisting others

Bodhisattva: holds back on attaining nirvana to help others

BUDDHISM

"Buddhism has the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: it transcends a personal God, avoids dogmas and theology; it covers both the natural & spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity." Albert Einstein