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Jaron Anderson http://jande643.wordpress.com/ Philosophy 1000 Siddhartha Gautama ‘The Buddha’ Bibliography: ‘What the Buddha Taught’ Author: Walpola Rahula 1974 ‘Gautama: The Buddha’ Author: Richard Henry Drummond 1974 ‘A History of Buddhist Philosophy’ Author: David J. Kalupahana 1992 ‘Buddhist Philosophy: A Historical Analysis Author: David J. Kalupahana 1976 ‘The Four Noble Truths’ BSTAN-­‐ADZIN-­‐RGYA-­‐MTSHO, His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama 1997 ‘Eightfold Path’ Author: Donald S. Lopez, Jr. 2012 ‘The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality’ Dalai Lama XIV 2006 Siddhartha Gautama ‘The Buddha’ For my paper I chose to write about ‘The Buddha,’ not because he is my favorite philosopher (It is hard to pick a favorite with so many great philosophers that I have learned about in this class), but because he, his philosophy, the culture, and the religion have always been of some interest to me. So with that being said, I will continue. Siddhartha Gautama, whom lived from roughly 560-­‐480 BCE, some scholars debates the actual dates of his birth and death, but only by a few years, give or take. Said to be born under a Sal tree in Lumbini near Kapilavastu, the capital of a small aristocratic republic of the Sakyas, which was between Nepal and the Rapti River. His place of birth was/is also controversial, ranging from Kapileswara, Orissa, present-­‐day India, and Piprahwa, Uttar Pradesh, present-­‐day India. He was born into a royal Hindu family his father Suddhodana was King of the Shakya clan that lived in Kapilavastu. His mother, Queen Maha Maya was a Koliyan princess. After giving birth to him she died several days later. He was given the name Siddhartha, which roughly translated means “He who has achieved his goal,” which really is kind of eerie given the fact that he later became a great holy man. In fact, a man by the name of Asita traveled to make this prediction after his birth, stating he would either be a great king or holy man. His father wanted him to be a great king and shielded him from religious teachings and human suffering, almost not wanting his sons mind to be corrupted he tried to keep him in a blanket of “purity” you could say. His father arranged for him to be married at the young age of 16-­‐17 years old, to whom some say, was his cousin, Yasodhara. Although, some say he had three wives and others state he had several concubines, which are pretty much defined as girlfriends that couldn’t marry due to a difference in social status or economic condition (funny how that works in even todays society). Going off the subject, I want to clarify some of this “guessing” of his birth, birthplace, and overall life. None of this was written down till nearly 400 years later, most of his teachings and Biography was passed down orally, which is the reason for the all the controversy or arguments that may appear. Anyway, he and his wife had a son named Rahula. It was said that he spent 29 years as a prince in Kapilavastu where his father offered him anything and everything he could have ever wanted. But, Siddhartha felt that material wealth was not life’s ultimate goal. It was at the age of 29 when Siddhartha decided to leave the palace and all that came with it to trade it in for the “homeless life.” He literally went from a prince to a beggar, which, Is pretty astonishing. This is where and when his quest for ‘enlightenment’ started. He started his path by first practicing under two teachers, Alara Kalama and Udaka Ramaputta. He mastered the teachings of both these teachers, and although he achieved high levels of meditative consciousness, he still felt unsatisfied and did not take the offers made from both teachers to succeed them. That being said, he moved on to find other ways to reach ‘enlightenment.’ He tried to find enlightenment through deprivation of food and self-­‐mortification, which means to inflict pain or privation on oneself. He nearly starved himself to death through these practices. During this starvation incident it is said that he accepted some milk and rice pudding from a village girl named Sujata. This led him to reconsider his choices on reaching enlightenment. He then started to put his focus towards the ‘jhana,’ a form of meditation in which the observer detaches from several qualities of the mind. He believed this was the right path to achieve enlightenment. It was after this starvation incident that he decided to sit under a Bodhi tree and not leave until he had found the truth. After 49 days of meditation under the Bodhi tree he claimed to have attained enlightenment. It was at this time he was given the nickname, The Buddha, which roughly translated means, “The Enlightened One” or the “Awakened One.” After achieving enlightenment he found the causes of suffering and the ways to avoid it, these came to be “The Four Noble Truths,” which became the foundation of Buddhist teachings. The First Noble Truth: Dukkha Dukkha has been roughly translated as ‘Suffering’ and through the perceptions of Buddhism life is nothing but pain and suffering, but Dukkha can also mean imperfection, impermanence, emptiness and insubstantiality. And for that, most do not like translating it simply as suffering. In fact, it is not intended to be viewed as pessimistic or optimistic, but rather more realistic, and I think that’s what makes it a little more interesting for me, being a realist or even a skeptical realist. The Buddha said that there is both happiness and suffering in the world, and that happiness is only temporary and that sorrow will soon follow. So until we can understand that, ‘real’ happiness is not possible. And that even when we get the things we really want that bring us joy, they end up bringing us dissatisfaction in the end, whether it be money, jewelry, or clothing and etc. The Second Noble Truth: The Origin of Dukkha This truth is commonly described as craving conditioned by ignorance and can be summed up by three main points. (1) Craving for sense pleasures: This means to crave an object that gives a good feeling or pleasure. (2) Craving to be: Understood as to crave to be something or to prevail and dominate others. (3) Craving not to be: Or to be nothing and to not experience anything the world has to offer. These can also be referred to as the three poisons of emotions: Ignorance, Attachment, and Aversion. To put it simply means a misunderstanding of yourself and reality. The Third Noble Truth: Cessation of Dukkha The definition of Cessation is a temporary or final ceasing of action or to put it in plain text: to stop. This third truth is the step of putting suffering and/or the causes of suffering to a stop. This is a goal in spiritual practice for a Buddhist. Buddha said that if you can understand what causes your sufferings, like those of cravings and ignorance, you could successfully ‘cease’ your suffering and obtain liberation or a temporary state of Nirvana. But, after reading about this third truth the question comes to mind: “Is it actually possible to attain liberation? And if so, how is it to be understood?” It seems to me that it would require a pure and whole state of Nirvana and not just a temporary state of Nirvana. To stop all afflictions, obtain true peace, become totally satisfied, and to become emerged from unenlightened existence seems impossible. The question of how it is to be understood is a very good question indeed. The Fourth Noble Truth: The Path to the Cessation of Dukkha This path is also referred to as ‘The Eightfold Noble Path” and is said to be the essence of the Buddhist practice. This path is the final step or steps in achieving a true cessation from Dukkha (suffering). Upon completing all eight of these behaviors it is said to achieve pure Nirvana. These are considered a way of living and a completed path to bliss. These Eightfolds are as follows: (1) Correct view: an accurate understanding of the nature of things. (2) Correct intention: avoiding thoughts of attachment, hatred, and harmful intent. (3) Correct speech: refraining from verbal misdeeds such as lying, divisive speech, harsh speech, and senseless speech. (4) Correct action: refraining from physical misdeeds such as killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct. (5) Correct livelihood: avoiding trades that directly or indirectly harm others, such as selling slaves, weapons, animals for slaughter, intoxicants, or poisons. (6) Correct effort: abandoning negative states of mind that have already arisen, preventing negative states that have yet to arise, and sustaining positive states that have already arisen, (7) correct mindfulness: awareness of body, feelings, and thought. (8) Correct concentration: single-­‐mindedness. These Eightfold paths can be divided among the three types of training or baskets, they are as follows: correct action, correct speech, and correct livelihood are part of the training in ethics; correct effort, correct mindfulness, and correct concentration are included in the training in concentration; and correct view and correct intention are associated with the training in wisdom. I’d like to make note that the eighth path is considered to be practically impossible to reach. A State of Nirvana: The literal definition of Nirvana is to be “blown out.” It also means a state of ultimate peace or pure spiritual bliss. Buddhists perceive this as the ultimate goal. It can only be achieved successfully by strictly following the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Paths. Its obtainment depends on effort and is not pre-­‐determined. Reaching a state of Nirvana is considered to be a blessing to not be reincarnated. It is said that the Buddha had reached a state of Nirvana just before passing away. After doing the reading and research for this paper it’s opened my mind a little more in regards the Buddhist religion. It proves that you don’t have to force anything on anyone, no matter the occasion. To just be the best ‘YOU,’ and to not only help yourself along this path called life, but to help others as well. And by doing so maybe your can reach your own version of Nirvana, one that best sums up your own faults and imperfections that can be overcome with effort and will. Like the Buddha said, “You must be your own master.” That really is a powerful quote on how you control you and your actions and how only you can better yourself. I think this is one of the most unselfish and centered religions. They are willing to adjust where need be if proved wrong and I don’t think a lot of religions would do so. In fact a quote from the Dalai Lama XIV sums up that last sentence. “If scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims.”