Life of the Buddha.
Life of the Buddha (Part One) 1. Queen Maha Maya's Dream More than 2,500 years ago, there was a king called Suddhodana. He married a beautiful Koliyan princess named Maha Maya. The couple ruled over the Sakyas, a warrior tribe living next to the Koliya tribe, in the north of India, in what is now known as Nepal. The capital of the Sakya country was laid out across the foothills of the Himalayas and called Kapilavatthu. Queen Maha Maya was the daughter of King Anjana of the Koliyas. Such was her beauty that the name Maya, meaning "vision" was given to her. But it was Maya's virtues and talents that were her most wonderful qualities, for she was endowed with the highest gifts of intelligence and piety. King Suddhodana was indeed worthy of his lovely wife. He himself was called "King of the Law" because he ruled according to the law. There was no other man among the Sakyas more honored and respected. The king was admired by his nobles and courtiers, as well as by the householders and merchants. Such was the noble family from which the Buddha was to arise. One full moon night, sleeping in the palace, the queen had a vivid dream. She felt herself being carried away by four devas (spirits) to Lake Anotatta in the Himalayas. After bathing her in the lake, the devas clothed her in heavenly cloths, anointed her with perfumes, and bedecked her with divine flowers. Soon after a white
Why Buddhism, Why Now? AND WHY IN AMERICA
Taking into account the nature of the country is the fourth of the five guides of propagation according to Nichiren Shonin. This means that one must consider the culture and values of the country in which one is going to teach, and above all one must consider to what extent Buddhism has or has not already become a part of the country. The "Teaching, Capacity, Time and Country" states, "there are countries wholly devoted to Hinayana teachings, countries wholly devoted to Mahayana teachings, and countries in which both Hinayana and Mahayana are pursued." (P. 50) One must also consider what kind of Buddhism has appeared in the country and in what manner it has been taught. This involves the proper order of teaching the Dharma which is the fifth of the five guides. Regarding the importance of understanding how Buddhism has already been taught in any given country, "Teaching, Capacity, Time, and Country" says, "Therefore, one must first learn what kind of Buddhist doctrines have already spread in a particular country before attempting to propagate Buddhism there." (P. 50) In the case of the United States of America, these guidelines can not be applied easily because the U.S.A. is such a large country that there are different regions which must be taken into account. The population of the country is also extremely diverse and can be divided by race, ethnicity, religion, and
Today is a result of yesterday, tomorrow is a result of today.(TM) To what extent is this statement an apt representation of Buddhist ethics?
'Today is a result of yesterday, tomorrow is a result of today.' To what extent is this statement an apt representation of Buddhist ethics? 'Today is a result of yesterday, tomorrow is a result of today.' - This statement, as a representation of Buddhist ethics, would seem to suggest the realm of ethical action is effectively deterministic. This raises many questions about the nature of Buddhist ethics, most significantly: Is this a coherent position? If today is a result of yesterday how can one be said to be possessed of free will? And if one has no free will surely one cannot be considered a moral agent - thus consequently, are responsible for one's actions. In this essay I will consider the evidence and arguments supporting this interpretation, together with counter-arguments in order to discuss the statement and reasoning behind this, resulting in my conclusion that will encompass all these arguments. Firstly I will look at morality in Buddhism as it is a Buddhist's ethics which determine their behaviour which ultimately affects the results of tomorrow. Classifying Buddhist ethics can be considered an instance of virtue ethics, centred on the idea that the basis of morality is the development of good character traits which, in Aristotle's system for example, include intelligence, wisdom (sila), and the ability to discern between good and bad. Peter Harvey contended that
Christianity and Judaism
CHRISTIANITY AND JUDAISM Julia Lot, nº16 CHRISTIANITY The Bible As we know, every religion has its own sacred text. The Bible, holy book, is the sacred text of Christianity. Christians believe that the Bible is the Word of God. The Bible could be described as a small library. The books in the Old Testament were written by different people over hundreds of years. Only a few people wrote the books in the New Testament over a period of fifty years or so. The Bible is divided in two parts: . The Old Testament (or Jewish Scripture) Was written before the time of Jesus. It remarks the story of God's people, the Jews. This part is special to the Jewish people. It is at the front of the Bible. 2. The New Testament Was written after the time of Jesus. It remarks the story of Jesus and the first Christians. This part is special to the Christian people. It is at the back of the Bible. Christians read both parts of the Bible; they read the Old Testament because it tells the story of how God prepared people for the coming of Jesus. The Dead Sea Scrolls One day, in 1947, a boy, was taking care of a group of goats, when one escaped. That goat, started to wander around a hillside near the Dead Sea. The boy started to look for it. The boy thought that the goat would be in one of the caves nearby, so, he threw a rock in a cave in order for the goat to get frightened and run out.
Buddhism is one of the biggest religions founded in India in the 6th and 5th century B
Buddhism is one of the biggest religions founded in India in the 6th and 5th century B.C. by Siddhartha Gautama, also known as "the Buddha." As one of the greatest Asian religion, it teaches the practice and the observance of moral perceptions. "Buddhism begins with a man. In his later years, when India was afire with his message, people came to him asking what he was. Not 'Who are you?' but 'What are you?' 'Are you god?' they asked. 'No.' 'An angel?' 'No.' 'A saint?' 'No.' 'Then, what are you?' Buddha answered, 'I am awake.' His answer became his title, for this is what Buddha means. The Sanskrit root budh means to awake and to know. While the rest of humanity was dreaming the dream we call the waking human state, one of their number roused himself. Buddhism begins with a man who woke up. Buddha was born a prince named Siddhartha Gautama in a small kingdom in what is now Nepal. Siddharta's birth is described as a miraculous event, his birth being the result of his mother's impregnation by a sacred white elephant that touched her left side with a lotus flower. The scriptures claim that when Gautama was born "immeasurable light spread through ten thousand worlds; the blind recovering their sight, as if from desire to see his glory" (Evans 141) Shortly after his birth, his father consulted with a number of astrologers, all of whom declared that the newborn prince would become
Teachings Now the Buddha wanted to tell other people how to become wise, good and do service for others. He advised his followers to follow the Middle Way, avoiding the two extremes of self-indulgence and self-torture. H
Early Life Buddha was born Siddhartha Gautama on the foothills of Lumbini, in what is now Nepal, in about 563 BCE. His father, King Shuddhodana was the ruler of the Shakya clan and his mother was Queen Mayadevi. The legends surrounding Buddha suggest that both his conception and birth were miraculous. His mother, Queen Mayadevi, conceived him when she dreamt that a white elephant entered her womb. She gave birth to him in a standing position while holding onto a tree in a garden. The child emerged from Mayadevi's right side, fully formed. He then proceeded to take seven steps and proclaimed, "I am the foremost of all. This is my last birth. I will cross the ocean of existence." 1 Queen Mayadevi died seven days after the birth and Siddhartha was raised by his aunt Mahaprajapati, the King's second wife. It was predicted at his birth that Siddhartha would become either a world ruler or a world teacher. Siddhartha's father felt very strongly about him taking over as ruler. He therefore gave Siddhartha everything he wanted and every luxury he could have. Siddhartha was kept inside and was not permitted to see the elderly, the sickly, the dead, or anyone who had dedicated themselves to spiritual practices. King Shuddhodana was afraid that these things would cause him to become disillusioned with his life at home and cause him to take a spiritual path in life. Only beauty and
A discussion of the Buddhist beliefs about Buddha and Christian beliefs about Christ
A discussion of the Buddhist beliefs about Buddha and Christian beliefs about Christ Over the years different religions have come into existence and many have branched out into further denominations, even so there are many similarities between them. I have selected the two religions Buddhism and Christianity with which I will explore this idea and I will focus mainly on their founders, Buddha and Christ. The first similarity between these two religions is that they have both adopted new names for their founders. The word Buddha literally means "enlightened one" and so this title was given to the Buddha only after he had become enlightened. Before his enlightenment the Buddha was known as Siddhartha Gautama. To non-believers the founder of Christianity is known as Jesus but to Christians he is known as Christ, "the anointed one". Although the facts about the two founder's births and upbringings are different, there is a similarity in that they both have myths told regarding their births. Everyone knows of the myth regarding Jesus' birth that is popular at Christmas time. Matthew's Gospel tells of the wise men from the east who asked, "Where is the baby born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star when it came up in the east, and we have come to worship him." King Herod called for the visitors and sent them to look for the child. When they were on their way they
Emergence Of The Buddha
Emma Tingey Homework - 26th October 2007 A). Outline the social, political and religious background from which Buddhism emerged. (10) Buddhism is one of the major religious traditions of the human race today. Buddhism was influenced by many different cultures over the thousands of years. This essay will outline the social, political and religious issues surrounding the background and the emergence of Buddhism in Indian Society. "In the 1920's archaeological excavations of the ancient cities of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa in North West India revealed the existence of an urban civilisation. This is called the Indus Valley Civilisation." (Buddhism Dominique Side) The background from which the Buddha emerged from stretched as far back as C2700 in a place called the Indus Valley. This was the first sign of civilisation to live on the Indian subcontinent. People were attracted to the Indus Valley because of the of the River Indus. The River provided a good source of vegetation; there was also flat land, stones and trees. The Indus Valley was an Egalitarian society, which meant that everybody living inside the society were all equal and they worshipped both Gods and Goddesses. They believed and worshiped in Brahman, who they believed was the most looked up to and modest God. Archaeologists found statues with engraved scriptures of Gods and Goddesses on; the finding of these pots
Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Judaism.
Buddhism Siddhartha Guatama was born into a wealthy family in what is now Nepal. Siddhartha's father sheltered him from the harsh realities of the world by surrounding him with only pleasant things. Siddhartha did not know of human suffering, sickness, advanced age or death until he met a man suffering from old age. He soon learned about human disease and of death. These things stayed in his mind and he began to think of them as being inescapable. He gave up on his normal life of distractions and went on a personal search for the life where age and death would not matter. Siddhartha Guatama searched the greatest Hindu masters for wisdom in his search for enlightenment. He learned from them all he could but did not find the answer he was searching for. He tried other things too, but still couldn't find the answers he wanted. This caused him to try another route to his goal of enlightenment, by way of strict thought and concentration. He sat down under a peepul tree (later known as the Bo tree) and with intense concentration and will power he was able to reach total enlightenment and become the Buddha. The teachings of the Buddha reached thousands in his native India. The Buddha, which Siddhartha was now called lived in poverty and begged for food. The Buddha's Four Noble Truths 1.Life is suffering 2.Life's dislocation is desire 3.The cure to desire is to
Select, describe and explain the events in the life of Siddhartha Gantama which illustrate his religious development
(1) a) Select, describe and explain the events in the life of Siddhartha Gantama which illustrate his religious development. It was quite obvious that Siddhartha Gantama was destined to become a very special man before he was even born. In 563 BCE Siddhartha's mother dreamt that a great six-tusked white elephant entered her womb and soon after she found she was pregnant. When she was walking through the woods one day she felt something unusual. As she gasped the branch of a tree Siddhartha emerged painlessly from her side. The minute Siddhartha was born he took seven steps to the north, south, east and west and said 'In this universe, I have come to purify the confused mind of all living beings'. Some say that as he walked lotuses blossomed from behind him, fountains sprang from the ground and a rainbow appeared in the sky. These events all indicated the Buddha's holiness. Asita, an astrologer read Siddhartha's stars and it became clear that he would either become a great king or a great holy man. As a child Siddhartha became exceptionally clever, being brilliant at everything he tried. It was when Siddhartha saw the 'Four Sights', a sick man, an old man and a corpse, and finally a holy man that he questioned the cause of suffering and decided to become a holy man as was predicted by Asita. He joined a group of ascetics for six years, almost starving himself to death. One