Buddhism

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A religion that traces its history backto the BUDDHA, Siddhartha Gautama (c. 560–c. 480B.C.E.). Buddhism is widely practiced throughoutsoutheast and east Asia. It also has strong traditionalties to Tibet (see TIBETAN RELIGION). In the 20thcentury small but vigorous Buddhist communitieswere established in North America and Europe.HISTORYSiddhartha Gautama is said to have discernedthe path that leads to release from suffering andrebirth (SAMSARA) at the age of 35. He lived almostto the age of 80. During his last 45 years he traveledwidely in India, teaching and organizing thecommunity of wandering ascetics (see SANGHA).By the time of his death or, as Buddhists prefer tosay, his parinirvana (see NIRVANA), Buddhism wasfi rmly established.During the next 1,200 years, Buddhism spreadbeyond India in three major waves. The fi rst wave,associated with the famed emperor of India, ASOKA,began in the third century B.C.E. The dominantform of Buddhism at that time was Theravada,"The Teachings of the Elders." This school adheresto the letter of Siddhartha's teaching. Carried alongthe oceanic trade routes southeast of India, Theravadabecame the dominant form of Buddhism inSri Lanka, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma),Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia (also known asKampuchea).The second major wave of Buddhist expansionbegan roughly in the second century C.E. Bythis time Mahayana or "Great Vehicle" Buddhismhad become dominant. Mahayana does not adherestrictly to the Buddha's words. It strives instead torecover the Buddha's experience of enlightenment.Carried along the land trade routes from northwestIndia, Mahayana became the dominant form ofBuddhism in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.The third wave of expansion began in the seventhcentury and carried Buddhism to Tibet andsurrounding areas. The form of Buddhism thatbecame dominant in these regions is Vajrayana,"Diamond Vehicle." It emphasizes the special powersof RITUALS, diagrams, and objects.In India itself Buddhism virtually died out.First it succumbed to a Hindu revival movementcentered on devotion to various gods that beganabout the eighth century C.E. This movement,known as BHAKTI, took lay supporters away fromBuddhism. Then, starting in the 12th centuryMuslim invaders pillaged monasteries and conventsand forced MONKS AND NUNS to abandon theorder. Indian Buddhism began to revive, however,toward the end of the 19th century. During the20th century some North Americans and Europeansbecame very interested in Buddhism (see BUDDHISMIN AMERICA).BELIEFSAlthough one sometimes hears that Buddhists areatheists, this is not quite correct. Buddhism doesnot generally deny the truth of other religions;instead, it tries to supplement another truth with atruth of its own. As a result, Buddhists often WORSHIPthe gods that their non-Buddhist neighborsworship. But in Buddhism it is ultimately more important to follow the Buddhist path than to worshipgods.One follows the Buddhist path to redress theroot problem that all sentient or conscious beingsface: suffering (see FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS). Buddhismblames suffering, along with bondage to the worldof ordinary existence and rebirth (samsara), onignorance. Two kinds of ignorance are most important.The fi rst kind leads people to think and act asif they are eternal, unchanging selves or souls. Thesecond leads people to think and act as if thingspersist, when in fact, Buddhism teaches, absolutelynothing at all is eternal and unchanging.Ignorance of the truths of "no self" and "impermanence"leads to attachment and craving, and theyin turn lead to suffering. To obtain release fromsuffering (nirvana), a person must overcome ignorance.That requires an intellectual acknowledgmentof Buddhist truths, but it also requires muchmore. It requires a total transformation of one'sthought, action, and experience.There are paradoxes hidden in these basictruths of Buddhism, and Mahayana thinkers exploredthem. If one practices Buddhism to achievenirvana, is one not craving nirvana? Again, if onepractices Buddhism to achieve nirvana, is onenot acting as if one had a self that could achieverelease? Moreover, if one accepts Buddhist teachingsas true, are they not eternal and unchanging?Questions such as these led Mahayana thinkersto formulate views that are subtle and diffi cultto understand. One such teaching, the "threebody doctrine," suggests that the buddha whoappeared in our world, Siddhartha Gautama,was only a manifestation in a world defi ned bynames and forms of what is beyond all namesand forms. Another very important teachingholds that everything is empty, including thecontent of Buddhist teaching. However, in orderto attain this ultimate, nirvanic realization, onemay fi rst follow the pains of "relative" truths,such as worshipping the manifested forms of theBuddha or seeing enlightenment as something tobe gained. In the end, one will understand thatnirvana is here and now yet beyond name andform. But MAHAYANA BUDDHISM did not limit itselfto such subtle thinking. It also developed elaboratemythologies of celestial Buddhas and BODHISATTVAS.These beings practiced Buddhism not tobenefi t themselves but to make it possible for allbeings to achieve enlightenment.PRACTICESJust as Buddhism has not required its adherentsto reject other religious beliefs, so it has notrequired them to refrain from other religious practices.As a result, Buddhist practice varies widely.Japanese Buddhists participate in SHINTO rituals.Buddhists in parts of southeast Asia engage inspirit-cults.Some specifi cally Buddhist practices aim atachieving nirvana. THERAVADA BUDDHISM emphasizesfollowing the Buddha's Eightfold Path: right views,right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood,right effort, right mindfulness, and rightconcentration. Most forms of Buddhism have welldeveloped traditions of MEDITATION. In Theravada,samadhi meditation focuses one's concentration inturn on a series of exercises in order to correct certainvices; vipassana or insight meditation aims ata complete awareness of one's surroundings. Practitionersof ZEN BUDDHISM sit and walk in meditation(ZAZEN and kinhin) and at times experiencemoments of satori, enlightenment. Such momentsmay come during ordinary activities, too, so thatZen has developed many arts, from swordsmanshipto fl ower arranging. Other forms, such as PURELAND BUDDHISM, teach their followers to rely on theassistance of a Buddha.Not all specifi cally Buddhist practices aim atenlightenment. Lay supporters within Theravadagive charity, visit STUPAS, and perform other activitiesin the hope of acquiring merit. This merit willresult in a better rebirth in the next life and takethem one step closer to release. Instead of acquiringmerit for oneself, Mahayana emphasizes actsof compassion to benefi t all beings.ORGANIZATIONDuring the 45 years of his wandering as the Buddha,Siddhartha Gautama organized his communityinto two groups, the Sangha, that is, the com-munity of monks and nuns, and the lay supporters.This organization has been typical of TheravadaBuddhism. Monks and nuns beg for their food anddevote their lives to following the Buddha's path.Political authorities such as kings and queens havealways been important lay supporters.In Mahayana the distinction between theSangha and lay supporters tends to be muchless rigid. The monastic life is not unknown, butMahayana makes ultimate release available to thosewho are not religious professionals. Furthermore,in certain Mahayana traditions priests may marry,eat meat, and drink wine. Such behavior violatesTheravada guidelines for monks and nuns.Although the Buddha made provision for anorder of nuns, the number of nuns has traditionallybeen small. As Buddhism has begun to growin Europe and North America, women are startingto assume more active leadership roles.SIGNIFICANCEBuddhism is one of the world's most important religions.At the end of the 20th century it had morethan 300,000,000 adherents. Buddhism has profoundlyinfl uenced philosophy, literature, and thearts in Asia for over 2,000 years. In recent decadesit has also been extremely popular in some segmentsof American society.