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Buddhism is the fourth largest religion in the world, in terms of numbers of followers. It does not concentrate on paying homage to gods. Instead, Buddhists meditate and act in ways to gain enlightenment. Most adherents believe people are reincarnated and that what people do in this life creates karma, or fate, which will affect their next life. The aim is to attain nirvana, a state of mind that is free from desire and therefore free from suffering caused by desire. The founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha Gautama, was a Nepalese prince who became known as the Buddha, after spending years on a spiritual quest. Enlightened One Buddha means the enlightened or awakened one. Although the name Buddha specifically refers to Gautama, who achieved enlightenment about 2500 years ago, it also refers to anybody who attains such enlightenment. The historical Buddha is usually written with a capital B or he is called “Shakyamuni Buddha’’, meaning the enlightened man of the Shakya clan. According to Buddhism, we are all capable of becoming a buddha. Buddhism Life of the Buddha: The early days According to legend the Buddha was born Siddhartha Gautama in Lumbini, Nepal, some time in the 6th century BC. Traditionally the year of his birth is 563BC. In one legend his mother, Queen Maya, dreamed of a white elephant and later a child sprang miraculously from her side. Seven days later she died. Siddhartha’s father, King Suddhodana of the Shakya clan, kept Siddhartha within his palace in his kingdom of Kapilavastu, shielding him from pain, death, ageing and suffering, giving him luxuries and pleasures. At 16, Siddhartha married Princess Yashodhara (pictured, below left); they later had a son. At 29, Siddhartha went outside the palace for the first time. He decided to leave his privileged life and find out why life involved suffering. Siddhartha’s quest The prince left his palace, cut off his hair, put on simple robes and lived by begging. A yogi, or teacher, taught him meditation but he overtook his teacher’s abilities and left to find a way of going further. He tried starving himself and enduring pain, heat and cold. When this provided no answers he ate again, accepting rice pudding from a girl. He vowed to sit under a tree and meditate until he found the answer. Monks Famous Buddhists The world’s most famous Buddhist is the Dalai Lama. Born Lhamo Döndrub in 1935, he is believed to be a reincarnation of a great medieval teacher and founder of a Buddhist monastery. The King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, is also a prominent Buddhist. In the West, Buddhism began to be adopted by intellectuals in the 20th century, such as English barrister Christmas Humphreys. In the 1950s American beat poet Allen Ginsberg and author Jack Kerouac adopted Buddhist ideas. US movie star Richard Gere (right) is perhaps the West’s best-known Buddhist, but director George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, also espouses Buddhist philosophies. Worshippers gather in Hong Kong to mark Buddha’s birthday Under the tree Six years after leaving the palace, Siddhartha sat under a bodhi tree and decided the nature of human life was ruled by suffering or dissatisfaction caused by desire. As he was thinking of this Mara, the demon of desire, sent his minions to tempt Siddhartha but their weapons turned to flowers. Mara also sent his daughters to try to seduce the meditating man. But Siddhartha resisted. Mara melted away and Siddhartha became the Buddha. The eightfold path The path to nirvana is known as the eightfold path. It requires a person to: death of the Buddha 1 Believing in compassion, the Buddha wandered teaching. His first adherents were five men with whom he had practised self-denial and self-mortification. The Buddha established monasteries across India and gathered followers. He taught into his 80s until he died after eating a meal of pork. As he was dying, he told his followers to remember him by making pilgrimages to the places of his birth, the place of his enlightenment, where he first taught and the place of his death. For free teacher resources, visit thetelegraph.com.au/classmate After the Buddha died, one person who popularised the religion was Ashoka (323-304 BC). He was a warrior ruler but he renounced violence and turned to Buddhism in an effort to ease the suffering of his subjects. Over the next few centuries, Buddhism spread into China, Korea, Japan, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Buddhism became known to the West as early as the 4th century BC, through Macedonian Greek armies in India under Alexander, but it was not until the 20th century that it began to spread to Western nations. Have the right view, to see that suffering underpins existence and to be wise enough to want to do something about it the right intentions or thoughts, replacing anger 2 Have with compassion, selfishness with generosity and ignorance with wisdom in the right way, speaking truth, without harm 3 Speak or malice and speaking only things that are beneficial to others in the correct way – that is, to help rather than 4 Act harm others Buddhism spreads Live the right kind of life – that is, to work for the benefit 5 of others, not to the detriment of others (including animals) and not just for selfish reasons the right effort to avoid negative states of mind 6 Exert and prevent them from arising Prayer The role of prayer in Buddhism is not to pay homage to a deity, nor to ask a god for favours, but to honour your own Buddha nature – that is, to see all of the things inside yourself that can make you enlightened like the Buddha – such as composure, compassion, wisdom and generosity. RY NN IVER S Did you know? The Dalai Lama Teachings At Sarnath, in northern India, Buddha is said to have set the wheel of the dharma (system) in motion, as he introduced his teachings. Buddha delivered them orally and later his followers wrote them in collections known as sutras. In the sutras Buddha spoke of the “four noble truths’’. The first is that suffering, longing or dissatisfaction is a part of life. Secondly, suffering is caused by desire, cravings or attachment, although some versions of the sutras also identify negative actions as causing suffering. The third truth is that a person achieves a cessation of suffering. Fourthly, the path to the cessation has eight steps (see The eightfold path) which involve thinking and acting in a way that moves a person towards nirvana. A h Basics of Buddhism Image courtesy of the exhibition One Hundred Flowers, at the Art Gallery Of NSW until January 2, 2012 SS M A T 10t B uddhism is a major religion and thought system practised by millions of people. It originated in what is today Nepal and spread through India and then around the world, increasing in popularity in the Western world over the past century. It differs from most major religions in that it does not stress belief in a creator god but encourages questioning and the search for inner peace. Like most other major religions, it has an influential prophet or founder and has certain codes of behaviour. Also as with other religions, there are many interpretations of its central message and many schools of thought. Rituals vary according to regions. Buddhism, therefore, may be one religion but it is many different things to different people. A CL E thetelegraph.com.au/classmate Series 11 A 28 w awareness of what is happening right now with 7 Have your mind, body, emotions and thoughts, rather than being lost in regret or fears for the future focus the attention, try not to be 8 Concentrate, distracted from the path n Estimates of the number of Buddhists in the world range from about 300 million to a billion. Because it is not the sort of religion that requires any formal expression of faith, the numbers are difficult to estimate. n When Siddhartha’s son was born, the father had already decided to leave to go on his spiritual quest but the boy threatened to hold him back. So he named the baby Rahula, meaning “fetter’’ or “impediment’’. n By touching the ground, the Buddha affirmed his connection to the Earth, as opposed to claiming power from heavenly sources. n There are four sites of pilgrimage for Buddhists: Lumbini (Nepal), the place of Siddhartha’s birth; Bodh Gaya (India), where he found enlightenment; Sarnath (India), where he first taught; and Kusinara (India) where he died. Buddhists do not have a duty to visit these places, like Muslims visiting Makkah or Mecca, but they are places that provide inspiration for many adherents. n When the Buddha established his first monastery, he allowed everyone from every caste (class) in Indian society to join, as well as women. It showed a very radical approach for the time. n Famous Australian Buddhists include actress Tracy Mann and chef Kylie Kwong. Actress Naomi Watts once said she had some belief but “I am not a strict Buddhist or anything yet’’. Sources & further study Books Buddhism For Dummies by Jonathan Landaw and Stephan Bodian (Wiley) Buddhism Plain And Simple by Steve Hagen (Penguin) Why Buddhism by Vicki Mackenzie (Allen & Unwin) Websites Buddhist Education and Information Network www.buddhanet.net Buddhism Encyclopaedia Britannica www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/ 83184/Buddhism DVD The Buddha: The Story of Siddhartha, SBS DVD Cl@ssmate EVERY TUESDAY Email [email protected] Phone 9288 2542 Editor: Troy Lennon Graphics: Paul Leigh and Will Pearce