BUDDHISM
BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY
Buddhism originated from the teachings of Buddha [Gautama Buddha] who was a prince from the Nepalese who relinquished the comforts of palatial life for the life of meditation and spiritual growth. The emphasis was on dhamma or right conduct and he organized monks and nuns into monasteries called samghas in order to teach the masses his philosophy.
The philosophy of Buddhism is to take the Middle Path ~ to avoid the extremes of getting addicted to worldly pleasures or subjecting oneself to unnecessary rigours. It rejects the idea of a God and stresses on moral progress made independently of God or any Godlike figure. It promotes the image that we are alone and it is up to us to make changes on the middle path that allow a reasonable life. Buddhism also questions the idea of a permanent or immortal soul but accepts the idea of transmigration of souls.
The Four Noble Truths [Dukkha, its origin, its cessation, and the way to its cessation] contain within itself all the essential teachings of the Buddha and they are: [1] suffering exists, [2] suffering is caused by desire, [3] suffering can cease, and [4] there does not exist a path to nirvana or a cessation of suffering. It might be risky to say that any one truth is more important than the others since they all hang together in a very close integral unit. If one truth were to be singled out as the key to the whole Dhamma it would be the Four Noble Truths, the truth of the way, the way to the end of Dukkha.
The Noble Eightfold Path consists of: Right View, Right Intentions, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration. These eight factors can be divided into three larger groups:
WISDOM
1. right view
2. right intention
MORAL DISCIPLINE
3. right speech
4. right action
5. right livelihood
CONCENTRATION
6. right effort
7. right mindfulness
8. right concentration
A very important distinction to remember is that there are two kinds of Noble Eightfold Path:
1. The mundane path
2. The supramundane path
The mundane path is developed when humans try to purify their discipline, to develop their concentration and to arouse insight either in day-to-day practice or in intensive periods of practice on retreats. The use of the word 'mundane' means ordinary, commonplace, everyday, regular path that leads to enlightenment, and in fact we have to practice the mundane path to reach the supramundane path.
The supramundane path is the direct seeing of Nibbana ~ the unconditioned element.
It is said that the path is the most important element in the Buddha's teaching because the path is what makes the Dhamma available as a living experience. Without the path the Dhamma would just be a shell, a collection of principles without inner life. Without the path the full deliverance from suffering would become a mere dream.
Buddhism split into two sects: Mahayana and Hinayana [Theravada]. Mahayana focused on the concept of each person being destined to be Buddha-like and also considered eternal Buddhas who resemble gods or deities. Hinayana regarded the Buddha as a man and had a principles. Theraveda focused on the salvation of the individual regarded as a Buddha [human] who had a set of guidelines. Later, the interaction of Mahayana philosophy and Hinduism gave rise to Tantric Buddhism or Vajrayana.
Copyright © 1994, Victoria Nelson
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