Buddhism as One of the Ancient Religions of the World - Essay Example

? Buddhism Introduction Buddhism is one of the ancient religions of the world. Unlike many of its counterparts, Buddhism survived all essential challenges of the world for centuries. The founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha Gautama was a prince of the Sakya tribe in present Nepal. At the age of 29 he left home and royal comfort in search of the meaning of suffering that he witnessed around him. For, the worldly pleasure and the comfort at home gave him no satisfaction. He travelled across the plains and walleyes of Northeastern India and taught people the path of Dharma and Karma that he had realized during his great enlightenment. People were attracted by his teachings and hence there developed a community of monks and nuns. All those who believed in him and in his teachings began to be called as the Buddhists. This paper tends to explore the major principles and teachings of Buddhism and its influence on other religions. Teachings of Buddhism One of the major aims of Buddhism was to give people insights on the true nature of reality regarding death and sufferings. For the spiritual development as foreseen by Buddha, a complete change, both mental and physical, was essential. Since life involves a process of constant changes, man has to change for a better state than the present. It is one’s mind that plays the crucial role in changing oneself. So, Buddhism developed many a number of methods for working on the mind. The major tool used by Buddhists to change people in order to develop the qualities such as awareness, kindness and wisdom was meditation (“What does Buddhism teach..”). Meditation is the concentration of thoughts on single subject and completely being aware of oneself. The practice of meditation brought them a more positive state of mind backed by calmness, concentration, awareness, and emotions like friendliness. According to the doctrine, the Buddhist teachings and paths would finally bring enlightenment where one can witness the nature of reality clearly and live naturally in accordance with that vision. With the awareness attained from meditation, they could get a fuller understanding of themselves, their fellow beings, and in due course the life itself. During his public life, Buddha propagated the answers he found out for his questions. Enlightenment gave him answers for all the unanswered questions that bothered him during the term of his family life. The first idea that he spread was that ‘nothing is lost in the universe’. Whatever that loses its current state turns into another form. The dead man turns into soil and so he is never being lost from this world. The second truth was ‘everything changes’. There is nothing in this world that can with stand change. The third universal truth of Buddha was the ‘law of cause and effect’ (Following the Buddha’s Footsteps..”). This law of cause and effect in other words is known as ‘Karma’. According to this principle, we eat the fruits of our own deeds. Nothing happens to us unless and until we deserve it. We receive exactly the result of what we do irrespective of the goodness or badness in it. The state of our present being is attributed to our accomplishments in the past. The relationship between our thoughts and actions decide the kind of life that we are to live. We can change our Karma by paying attention to what we do, what we think, and what we say. Once we clearly understand our actions and thoughts we no longer need to fear Karma; instead, Karma will be our best friend who will lead us to create a better future (Following the Buddha’s Footsteps..”). Another major teaching of Buddha was on dharma. Dharma is a Sanskrit word having a number of meanings. In Buddhism dharma means proper conduct or good behavior that is necessary to keep the natural order of things. As the main aim of dharma contemplated on keeping a natural order, it covered ideas like duty, profession, religion and other occupations which are considered to be correct and proper. Thus, Buddhist dharma was all about one’s living by not harming anyone and doing one’s karma properly for self realization. Buddhists view life as a perpetual wandering, and believe in rebirth. The soul of a dead man is born again but it is not reincarnation as such but a change as mentioned in the beginning. However, the most misunderstood term in Buddhism is Nirvana. The people in Europe regarded this term as heaven. Buddha explained Nirvana as the ultimate goal that he reached during his great enlightenment. Nirvana literally means complete freedom from whatever binds man such as burning passion of desire, resentment and ignorance. If anyone could overcome these, he would reach the zenith of spiritual happiness where all his karmic debts are reconciled. The Holy book of Buddhists Thripitaka is the sacred text of the Buddhists. It is a collection of a number of books. The meaning of the term Thripitaka is three baskets and that refers to the way these books were first recorded and compiled. In the beginning, the monks used palm leaves instead of paper and sewed them all in one side to constitute this. It was comparatively a large collection and is upto 45 volumes in the modern edition. The three baskets mentioned are three sections of the book. The first section is known as the Vinaya Pitaka which specifies the rules and regulations for the monks and nuns in the monastery. The second section is the Sutra Pitaka which includes complete records of the teachings and principles of Buddha. The final part of the text is known as Abhidharma Pitaka. It is the compilation of the short writings, songs, poetry and stories of Buddha and his previous life. Divisions in Buddhism After the death of the leader Buddha, his followers spread his teachings with utmost honor and care to many countries in Asia. However, later on the integrity among Buddhist disciples began to deteriorate and some basic divisions took place. The main reason for the sectarianism that occurred in Buddhism is attributed to Buddha’s failure to find an efficient successor to lead the congregation. The two major divisions are Mahayana Buddhism and Hinayana Buddhism. The Mahayana Buddhists were prone to follow the examples of their teacher that is going into the people and doing them good. Mahayana Buddhism follows the Bodhisattva Path. Bodhisattva is one who enlightens himself and others. According this category, there are a number of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The teachings of the Mahayanas Buddhists aim at the enlightenment of both self and others. The major areas of their activity were China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. However, the Hinayanas emphasize personal salvation through one’s own efforts; and they stick to Pali scripture and non theistic ideal of self purification to attain self actualization. Unlike Mahayana Buddhists the teachings of Hinayana Buddhists are self serving teachings which are known as ‘lesser vehicles’ aimed at the enlightenment and benefit of the one who follows it. This division spread to countries like Sri Lanka, Burma, Cambodia and Thailand and so on (“Divisions of Buddihism”). Buddhist community Renouncing the worldly pleasures and family life is considered to be an honor for the Buddhists. Those who leave their homes join Buddhist community and eventually become monks and nuns dedicating their lives in serving millions. They neither seek material benefits nor power in the community hierarchy. As a result of all these renouncement, they will attain spiritual freedom they believe. Though the monks leave their homes and kin, there is no restrictions on visiting and waiting on them when they fall sick. For the monks and nuns, their life in the monastery begins early in the morning with reciting prayers for common good and wellbeing of the world. They spend their day teaching the Buddhist principles and thoughts, translating the Buddhist books and taking care of shrines and giving advice to laymen. In monasteries where the monks and nuns live together, they lead a life of high respect. This is the pure and simple life that gives them insights into the phenomenon of nature. Though the life in the monastery is difficult to follow and practice, it makes them healthy and energetic. The Buddhist monks and nuns possess nothing other than their ceremonial dress and offering bowl. They are not bothered about their external beauty but focus on developing their spiritual lives. Their shaven heads are the indication that they have renounced their family and are a part of the Sangha. It is usual in Asia monks go to villages with their offering bowl to receive food. They do not beg food instead accept whatever is offered. The robes of the monks are simple and made up of cotton the color of which varies from country to country. In a monastery, there are laypeople apart from the monks and nuns. They voluntarily build temples, monasteries and gardens and pay alms to the monks and nuns. In addition to this, the laymen engage themselves in studying Buddhist books and scriptures. As specified earlier, Buddhism had its origin in the ancient India. This religion has made remarkable impacts on Indian culture and the cultures of other countries where it was spread. Major religions of the present world have absorbed Buddhist principles to constitute their own. It was the first religion to begin the monastic system. Many a religions both in India and in Europe have got inspiration from Buddhism to start and experience monastic system. It was the Buddhists who showed the world the peculiar features of a monk like chastity, humility, self restraint, and renunciation. Evidently, they understood that only in the peaceful atmosphere of the monastery these could be developed. Another remarkable contribution of Buddhism was to the world heritage and tourism. There still exists a lot of Buddhist sculptures and pagodas which are of historical importance. Though some Buddhist sculptures in Afghanistan were destroyed by the Taliban extremists, they are fondly cherished in millions’ minds. The Buddhists were the first to begin universities in the world. There were two important universities in the ancient period namely Nalanda and Thakshasila which were run by the Buddhists. Aspirants from the western world used to visit these for acquiring knowledge and wisdom. The remnants of these universities are important tourist destinations for millions today. In total, among various religions that emerged in the ancient period, Buddhism was the only one that got worldwide acceptance and popularity. Modern religions embody the principles and teachings of Buddhism in an altered form. The modern missionaries received inspiration from the Buddhist monks and nuns who travelled to far off places daring all dangers for the purpose of spreading the peace giving message of their great teacher Buddha. Works Cited What does Buddhism teach? The Buddhist Center. Web 25 March 2012 Following the Buddha's Footsteps. Web 25 March 2012 Divisions of Buddhism. Indiantzone Religion. Web 25 March 2012 Read More