The Religious Ideas of Buddhism - Assignment Example

1. Compare and contrast the religious ideas of Buddhism that led to monasteries in Asia with the monastic ideal of Christianity in the middle Ages. Buddhism is a traditional and religious practice based on the tenets of spiritual development that leads an individual on the path of realistic enlightenment of nature. The roots of Buddhism are traced back to its founder, Siddhartha Gautama, around 566 BC (Hawkins 28). The royal prince and son of a king, embarked on a journey around the world in the pursuit of understanding. His conclusion from the quest was that suffering was at the core of existence after coming across a corpse, an elderly man, an acetic and a sickly man(Hawkins 28). Consequently, Gautama renounced his royalty status and resorted into being a monk for the sole aim of understanding the essence of truth from the world. As a means to gain enlightenment Gautama practiced meditation under a ‘bodhi’ tree where he finally realized the true path of freedom from suffering towards salvation. He was henceforth known as “Buddha” or the “Enlightened one” ( Hawkins 35).The basic ideals of Buddhism are centred on four noble truths that are the tenets of Buddha’s doctrines. The First noble ideal is the truth of suffering that recognizes that suffering exists. The second ideal emphasizes on the cause of suffering in which ignorance and desire are identified as the major causes. The third noble ideal teaches on the end of suffering in the world or in the spiritual sense by achieving Nirvana. Consequently, the fourth noble ideal creates the path towards the end of suffering (Hawkins 29). The monastic ideal of Christianity referred to the practice of seclusion from the world for the purpose of spiritual communion with God and the universe (Markus 19). The origin and spread of the practice is attributed to Saint Anthony of Alexandria in Egypt (Markus 19). At the age of fifteen, he decided to start off a life of seclusion in the desert for the next ninety years. During this period he became famous as more and more young men joined him in the desert. The ancient Eastern customs sought divine intervention. Furthermore, such people were referred to as hermits or “desert dwellers” (Hawkins 68)They were considered as holy men by the villagers who offered wise advice to the local villagers. During the spiritual enlightenment process, the hermits would subject their bodies to self punishment such as extreme fasting for the purpose of driving out desires of the flesh and strengthen the spirit. The villagers that sought advice from the hermits would carry offerings of food for them. The basic tenets of Christian monasticism were foremost driven by the belief of eternal life after death by avoiding all evil. Furthermore, the ideal was based on perfection in all actions physical, mental and emotional. Consequently, perfection was based on the religious doctrines of the commandments outlined by the church. Furthermore, the Christian monasticism was based on obedience to the teachings of Jesus Christ, chastity of the body and a lifestyle of poverty. Consequently the staunch adherents became known as monks for males and nuns for females. The basic similarities between the two belief systems were rooted on the lifestyle of seclusion characterized by the denial of worldly pleasures. On the contrary, Buddhism worship pattern was based on spiritual development aimed at achieving nature’s enlightenment. Consequently, there has been global debate on its authenticity as a religion. However, the Christianity monastic belief ideals were rooted on the spiritual connection with God through totally avoiding evil actions and thoughts. 2. For what reasons might someone decide to enter the monastic life? What might be the rewards of poverty and spiritual devotion to a person who has grown up in contemporary society? What might be the disadvantages The monastic mode of life is characterized by a life of seclusion, adherence to a defined set of rules and religious vows. The range of reasons that led an individual to monasticism was foremost, the desire to achieve spiritual purity (Al-Antoni 9). The lifestyle is believed to shield the individual from the evil distractions and material desires from the world. Second, was the need by an individual to offer a lifetime devotion of service to a higher spiritual power such as God(Al-Antoni 9). In the case of Buddhist religion an individual maybe be driven by the desire to develop personal virtues such as harmlessness, simplicity, purity and restraint. The rewards for poverty and spiritual devotion include a better state of health (Al-Antoni 10). This is because one of the rules of monasticism is based on sustenance rather than attachment to food that inspires gluttony. Furthermore, the seclusion offers a barrier against the worldly and temptations of the flesh. Moreover, the individual develops strong personal virtues such as patience and obedience. On the flip side, some of the disadvantages included the total disassociation from personal possession that sheds of the state of independence to that of independence. Furthermore, the spiritual devotion emphasized on fasting as a means of strengthening the spirit. Consequently the individual had to endure hunger for long periods that leads to low physical strength. Moreover, the vow of chastity deprives the individual the opportunity for companionship and family. 3. Define “needy and unfortunate,” then write a set of directions for giving to those who are needy and unfortunate. Include rules that you would follow and a rationale that explains the religious or philosophical motivation for sharing prosperity and good fortune. Finalize with an argument on whether giving the need should be an individual, church or government decision and why. According to the Meridian Webster dictionary, needy refers to the situation of being in want of for attention, affection and emotional support. It is a situation synonymous with poverty stricken people. On the other hand unfortunate refers to a regrettable, deplorable and unlucky state that affects different members of the society such as the widowed, and orphaned. In assisting the needy and unfortunate in society, part of the measures that could be undertaken include, organizing food drives for those afflicted by hunger. Moreover, free medical missions and health clinics for the sick and helpless in society are of fundamental concern. Furthermore, financial education support programs for the orphans are essential in guaranteeing that they stay in school. The driving rule for providing assistance should be driven by policy targeting the orphans, widows, homeless, sick and poor in society. In the pursuit of assistance, the rational will be driven by the Christian teachings of Jesus Christ that emphasized support for the widows, orphans and less fortunate. Furthermore, it will be bound by the Christian Biblical tenets that states that it is more blessed to give than to receive. In conclusion, service to the needy should be a church decision rather than solely individual or government. This is because, the teachings drawn from the Holy Bible, encourage the church to help the needy and less fortunate in society such as the orphans and widows. Moreover, the church is at a better level to identify the needy and less fortunate in society and start a collaborative effort for assistance. In addition, the church is at a better position to address the personal issues facing the less fortunate and needy in society as opposed to the government that only addresses general issues. Finally, the church should be at the forefront as they are obligated by the Biblical teachings that state that it is more blessed to give than to receive. References Hawkins, Bradley K. Buddhism. London: Routledge, 1999. Print. Markus, R. A. The end of ancient Christianity. Cambridge [England: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Print. Al-Antoni, Daniel. Monasticism. New York: Orthodox EBooks, 2012. Print. Read More