Authority in Buddhism
Buddha:
The Buddha was born in the Terai lowlands near the foothills of the Himalayas just inside the borders of modern day Nepal. His people were known as the Sakyas, and this is why the Buddha is sometimes referred to as Sakyamuni or 'the sage of the Sakyas.' The Buddha is not a personal name but an honorific title which means 'awakened one', an enlightened being who has been the truth of dharma.
The Buddha was born in the Terai lowlands near the foothills of the Himalayas just inside the borders of modern day Nepal. His people were known as the Sakyas, and this is why the Buddha is sometimes referred to as Sakyamuni or 'the sage of the Sakyas.' The Buddha is not a personal name but an honorific title which means 'awakened one', an enlightened being who has been the truth of dharma.
The conventional dates for the Buddhas life are 566-486BC. A certain amount of information is preserved in the Pali Canon about the Buddhas life, but it was until about 500 years after his death a continuous narrative was produced. Earlier, within a couple of centuries of his death, partial accounts of his life began to appear.
The life of the Buddha:
The story of the Buddha is that of a man’s spiritual journey to enlightenment; it includes the teachings of Buddhism. The Buddha’s real name is Siddhartha Gautama. Siddhartha Gautama was born in Lumbini (present day Nepal), and he was a prince of his kingdom. His father, the King, was told he would either be a great leader or a great teach. The King creates a perfect world for him, protecting him from any kind of suffering in the world. One day after getting married and having a child, Siddhartha Gautama realised he had never seen the world outside the palace walls, so decided to take a trip with one of his charioteers. As they went around the city, Siddhartha saw many things that shocked him, as he had never seen them in his sheltered life before. His charioteer explained the various things they saw. Whilst outside the walls, Siddhartha came across ‘four sights’, things he had never seen before. He saw an old person, a sick person, a dead person and a Holy man. This disturbed Gautama, and he learned that sickness, age and death were inevitable and unchangeable fate of human beings. Gautama when coming across the Holy man, saw it as a sign that he should leave his protected royal life, and instead live as a homeless holy man. He decided to leave the palace, his family and all his belongings to search for the truth about life. He spent time with masters of meditation, training his mind and disciplining himself. He was searching for a way to escape suffering. For some time he stopped eating to rid himself of his bodily wants, thinking it would allow him to focus on the mind. After some time, when close to death, he decided this was not the right way to reach enlightenment. Gautama abandoned this strict lifestyle, and instead pursued the middle way, which is neither luxury nor poverty, but in between. After searching for the truth, Siddhartha finally took his place under a Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya and vowed not to leave until he found the truth. He became deeply absorbed in meditation. No one knows how long he was there, but after some time… he reached enlightenment.
Bodhisattva: The term bodhisattva literally means 'one who has enlightenment of their essence, from bodhi (awakening or enlightenment) and sattva (essence). It is not another term for a Buddha, although a bodhisattva is destined for enlightenment. A bodhisattva is also thought of as consciously working towards enlightenment. The earliest use of 'bodhisattva' is to Siddhartha Gautama before he gained enlightenment, and also in his previous lives. Mahayana Buddhism is based upon the path of a bodhisattva. Mahayana Buddhism encourages everyone to become bodhisattvas and to take the bodhisattva vow. The bodhisattva vow is solemnly made before ones master in a spiritual ritual and involved four pledges.
1. To save all beings from difficulties. 2. To destroy all evil passions. 3. To learn the truth and teach others. 4. To lead all beings to Buddhahood.
The bodhisattva path will save them from samsara and lead them to Buddhahood. A person who has taken the vow becomes a Bodhisattva of the Path. This person will have a genuine aspiration to bring all beings to enlightenment, but may still have a long way to go themselves. A bodhisattva needs to be able to give up absolutely anything for the sake of other beings, including his own life. If the bodhisattva is not yet generous enough to do this, they still have a way to go. The bodhisattva also needs infinite amounts of patience, because it will take a countless lifetimes to reach their goal.
The celestial bodhisattvas (those who dwell in the heavens) are those who are advanced enough to attain enlightenment at any time, but who have renounced final Enlightenment in order to help other beings. Bodhisattvas are characterised by compassion and can be relied on to help those on the Buddhist path. One of the most important bodhisattvas is the goddess Tara, who is the principal deity of Tibet.
The Tripitaka: In Buddhism, the Tripitaka is the earliest collection of Buddhist teachings and the only text recognised as canon by Theravada Buddhists. The Tripitaka is also called the Pali canon, after the language it was originally written in. The Tripitaka was handed down orally, and eventually written down in the 3rd century. According to Buddhist tradition, the contents of the Tripitaka were determined by the first Buddhist Council shortly after the death of the Buddha. Around 500 of the Buddha's disciples assembled, and at the direction of Mahakashya, the Buddhas successor the teachings of the Buddha were recited in full. The teachings were often verified by others who had also been present and the Tripitaka was organised, but not written. The texts of the Tripitaka are also called 'the three baskets'. 1. Vinayapitaka; deals with rules of conduct for the congregations (sangha). 2. Suttapitaka brings Buddha's sermon and dialogues. 3. Abhidhammapitaka is a collection of writings such as songs and poetry about the Buddha.
The Dhammapada: The Dhammapada is one of the smallest works in the first section of the Tripitaka. The name can be translated as 'the way of truth' or 'verses of truth'. It consists of 423 verses, some profound, all spoken by the Buddha. The Dhammapada is the most popular piece of Buddhist literature.
The Sutras: Mahayana Buddhism reveres the Tripitaka as a sacred text, but they add to it the Sutras. There are over two thousand Mahayana Sutras, which were written between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the period in which Mahayana Buddhism was developed. Different branches of Mahayana Buddhism emphasise different sutras, but some texts like the Lotus Sutra and Heart Sutra are important to Mahayana Buddhism. The lotus Sutra is the most significant of the sutras, it describes a sermon being delivered by the Buddha to an assembly of buddhas, bodhisattvas, and other celestial beings. The sermon emphasises the importance of becoming a bodhisattva, realising ones buddha-nature, and other Mahayana concepts. The heart Sutra is another important Mahayana text, it is only a few pages long and it provides a concise summary of key Mahayana concepts. Presented as the teachings the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, the Heart sutra describes the five skandhas (elements of human nature). as well as the Mahayana views of emptiness, nirvana, and ultimate reality.
The life of the Buddha:
The story of the Buddha is that of a man’s spiritual journey to enlightenment; it includes the teachings of Buddhism. The Buddha’s real name is Siddhartha Gautama. Siddhartha Gautama was born in Lumbini (present day Nepal), and he was a prince of his kingdom. His father, the King, was told he would either be a great leader or a great teach. The King creates a perfect world for him, protecting him from any kind of suffering in the world. One day after getting married and having a child, Siddhartha Gautama realised he had never seen the world outside the palace walls, so decided to take a trip with one of his charioteers. As they went around the city, Siddhartha saw many things that shocked him, as he had never seen them in his sheltered life before. His charioteer explained the various things they saw. Whilst outside the walls, Siddhartha came across ‘four sights’, things he had never seen before. He saw an old person, a sick person, a dead person and a Holy man. This disturbed Gautama, and he learned that sickness, age and death were inevitable and unchangeable fate of human beings. Gautama when coming across the Holy man, saw it as a sign that he should leave his protected royal life, and instead live as a homeless holy man. He decided to leave the palace, his family and all his belongings to search for the truth about life. He spent time with masters of meditation, training his mind and disciplining himself. He was searching for a way to escape suffering. For some time he stopped eating to rid himself of his bodily wants, thinking it would allow him to focus on the mind. After some time, when close to death, he decided this was not the right way to reach enlightenment. Gautama abandoned this strict lifestyle, and instead pursued the middle way, which is neither luxury nor poverty, but in between. After searching for the truth, Siddhartha finally took his place under a Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya and vowed not to leave until he found the truth. He became deeply absorbed in meditation. No one knows how long he was there, but after some time… he reached enlightenment.
Bodhisattva: The term bodhisattva literally means 'one who has enlightenment of their essence, from bodhi (awakening or enlightenment) and sattva (essence). It is not another term for a Buddha, although a bodhisattva is destined for enlightenment. A bodhisattva is also thought of as consciously working towards enlightenment. The earliest use of 'bodhisattva' is to Siddhartha Gautama before he gained enlightenment, and also in his previous lives. Mahayana Buddhism is based upon the path of a bodhisattva. Mahayana Buddhism encourages everyone to become bodhisattvas and to take the bodhisattva vow. The bodhisattva vow is solemnly made before ones master in a spiritual ritual and involved four pledges.
1. To save all beings from difficulties. 2. To destroy all evil passions. 3. To learn the truth and teach others. 4. To lead all beings to Buddhahood.
The bodhisattva path will save them from samsara and lead them to Buddhahood. A person who has taken the vow becomes a Bodhisattva of the Path. This person will have a genuine aspiration to bring all beings to enlightenment, but may still have a long way to go themselves. A bodhisattva needs to be able to give up absolutely anything for the sake of other beings, including his own life. If the bodhisattva is not yet generous enough to do this, they still have a way to go. The bodhisattva also needs infinite amounts of patience, because it will take a countless lifetimes to reach their goal.
The celestial bodhisattvas (those who dwell in the heavens) are those who are advanced enough to attain enlightenment at any time, but who have renounced final Enlightenment in order to help other beings. Bodhisattvas are characterised by compassion and can be relied on to help those on the Buddhist path. One of the most important bodhisattvas is the goddess Tara, who is the principal deity of Tibet.
The Tripitaka: In Buddhism, the Tripitaka is the earliest collection of Buddhist teachings and the only text recognised as canon by Theravada Buddhists. The Tripitaka is also called the Pali canon, after the language it was originally written in. The Tripitaka was handed down orally, and eventually written down in the 3rd century. According to Buddhist tradition, the contents of the Tripitaka were determined by the first Buddhist Council shortly after the death of the Buddha. Around 500 of the Buddha's disciples assembled, and at the direction of Mahakashya, the Buddhas successor the teachings of the Buddha were recited in full. The teachings were often verified by others who had also been present and the Tripitaka was organised, but not written. The texts of the Tripitaka are also called 'the three baskets'. 1. Vinayapitaka; deals with rules of conduct for the congregations (sangha). 2. Suttapitaka brings Buddha's sermon and dialogues. 3. Abhidhammapitaka is a collection of writings such as songs and poetry about the Buddha.
The Dhammapada: The Dhammapada is one of the smallest works in the first section of the Tripitaka. The name can be translated as 'the way of truth' or 'verses of truth'. It consists of 423 verses, some profound, all spoken by the Buddha. The Dhammapada is the most popular piece of Buddhist literature.
The Sutras: Mahayana Buddhism reveres the Tripitaka as a sacred text, but they add to it the Sutras. There are over two thousand Mahayana Sutras, which were written between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the period in which Mahayana Buddhism was developed. Different branches of Mahayana Buddhism emphasise different sutras, but some texts like the Lotus Sutra and Heart Sutra are important to Mahayana Buddhism. The lotus Sutra is the most significant of the sutras, it describes a sermon being delivered by the Buddha to an assembly of buddhas, bodhisattvas, and other celestial beings. The sermon emphasises the importance of becoming a bodhisattva, realising ones buddha-nature, and other Mahayana concepts. The heart Sutra is another important Mahayana text, it is only a few pages long and it provides a concise summary of key Mahayana concepts. Presented as the teachings the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, the Heart sutra describes the five skandhas (elements of human nature). as well as the Mahayana views of emptiness, nirvana, and ultimate reality.