LORD BUDDHA PART - 1 By SIDDHANT AGNIHOTRI B.Sc (Silver Medalist) M.Sc (Applied Physics) Facebook: sid_educationconnect
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WHAT WE WILL STUDY? EARLY LIFE EVERY HUMAN IS GOD TEACHINGS(Four noble truths,eight fold paths) PATH OF SALVATION(Nirvana)
EVENTS EVENTS SYMBOLS Buddha s Birth The Great Departure (Mahabhinishkramana) Enlightment (Nirvana ) First Sermon (Dhammachakraparivartan) Death (Parinirvana) Lotus & Bull Horse Bodhi Tree Wheel Stupa
EARLY LIFE Buddha who is the founder of the Buddhist religion is called Buddha Shakyamuni Shakya is the name of the royal family into which he was born, and Muni means Able One. Buddha Shakyamuni was born as a royal prince in 624 BC in a place called Lumbini, in what is now Nepal. His mother s name was Queen Mayadevi and his father s name was King Shuddhodana. He grew up in Kapilavastu. Gautama was born as a Kshatriya. The day of the Buddha's birth is widely celebrated in Theravada countries as Vesak. Buddha's Birthday is called Buddha Purnima in Nepal, Bangladesh, and India as he is believed to have been born on a full moon day.
EARLY LIFE Siddhartha was brought up by his mother's younger sister, Maha Pajapati. By tradition, he is said to have been destined by birth to the life of a prince and had three palaces (for seasonal occupation) built for him. His father, said to be King Śuddhodana, wishing for his son to be a great king, is said to have shielded him from religious teachings and from knowledge of human suffering When he reached the age of 16, his father reputedly arranged his marriage to a cousin of the same age named YASODHARA she gave birth to a son, named Rāhula. Siddhartha is said to have spent 29 years as a prince in Kapilavastu. Although his father ensured that Siddhartha was provided with everything he could want or need, Buddhist scriptures say that the future Buddha felt that material wealth was not life's ultimate goal
SUFFERINGS Sometimes Prince Siddhartha would go into the capital city of his father s kingdom to see how the people lived. During these visits he came into contact with many old people and sick people, and on one occasion he saw a corpse. These encounters left a deep impression on his mind and led him to realize that all living beings without exception have to experience the sufferings of birth, sickness, ageing and death. Because he understood the laws of reincarnation he also realized that they experience these sufferings not just once, but again and again, in life after life without cessation. He developed a sincere wish to free all of them from their suffering the power to help all living beings in this way, he resolved to leave the palace and retire to the solitude of the forest where he would engage in profound meditation until he attained enlightenment.
RENUNCIATION At the age of 29, Siddhartha left his palace to meet his subjects. His charioteer Channa explained to him that all people grew old, the prince went on further trips beyond the palace Accompanied by Channa and riding his horse Kanthaka, Gautama quit his palace for the life of a mendicant.gautama initially went to Rajagaha and began his ascetic life by begging for alms in the street. After King Bimbisara's men recognised Siddhartha and the king learned of his quest, Bimbisara offered Siddhartha the throne. Siddhartha rejected the offer but promised to visit his kingdom of Magadha first, upon attaining enlightenment. He left Rajagaha and practised under two hermit teachers of yogic meditation.after mastering the teachings of Alara Kalama However, Gautama felt unsatisfied by the practice, and moved on to become a student of yoga with Udaka Ramaputta he was not satisfied.
GYAN KI PRAPTI(ENLIGHTENMENT) After realising that meditative dhyana was the right path to awakening, but that extreme asceticism didn't work, Gautama discovered what Buddhists know as being, the Middle Way which was known as NOBLE EIGHT FOLD PATHS(Dhammacakkappavattana ). In a famous incident, after becoming starved and weakened, he is said to have accepted milk and rice pudding from a village girl named Sujata. Gautama was famously seated under a pipal tree now known as the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, India, when he vowed never to arise until he had found the truth. Kaundinya and four other companions, believing that he had abandoned his search and become undisciplined, ceased to stay with him, After a reputed 49 days of meditation, at the age of 35, he is said to have attained Enlightenment, and became known as the Buddha or "Awakened One.
GAUTAM BUDDHA He realised complete insight into the Four Noble Truths, thereby attaining liberation from samsara, the endless cycle of rebirth, suffering and dying again. Buddha have regarded the practice of dhyana as leading to Nirvana and moksha. Nirvana is the extinguishing of the "fires" of desire, hatred, and ignorance, that keep the cycle of suffering and rebirth going. Nirvana is also regarded as the "end of the world", in that no personal identity or boundaries of the mind remain. Immediately after his awakening, the Buddha debated whether or not he should teach the Dharma to others. He was concerned that humans were so overpowered by ignorance, greed and hatred that they could never recognise the path, which is subtle, deep and hard to grasp. But late was convinced that at least some will understand it..
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LORD BUDDHA PART - 2 By SIDDHANT AGNIHOTRI B.Sc (Silver Medalist) M.Sc (Applied Physics) Facebook: sid_educationconnect
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SANGHA TEACHINGS After his awakening, the Buddha met Taphussa and Bhallika who became his first lay disciples. He then travelled to the Deer Park near Varanasi where he set in motion what Buddhists call the Wheel of Dharma by delivering his first sermon to the five companions with whom he had sought enlightenment. Together with him, they formed the first saṅgha: the company of Buddhist monks. For the remaining 45 years of his life, the Buddha is said to have travelled in the Gangetic Plain, in what is now Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and southern Nepal, teaching a diverse range of people. Upon hearing of his son's awakening, Suddhodana sent, over a period, ten delegations to ask him to return to Kapilavastu. On the first nine occasions, the delegates failed to deliver the message and instead joined the sangha to become arahants. The tenth delegation, led by Kaludayi, a childhood friend of Gautama's (who also became an arahant), however, delivered the message.
MAGIC During the visit, many members of the royal family joined the sangha. The Buddha's cousins Ananda and Anuruddha became two of his five chief disciples. At the age of seven, his son Rahula also joined, and became one of his ten chief disciples. His half-brother Nanda also joined and became an arahant. In the fifth vassana, the Buddha was staying at Mahavana near Vesali when he heard news of the impending death of his father. He is said to have gone to Suddhodana and taught the dharma, after which his father became an arahant.
Mahaparinirvana At the age of 80, the Buddha announced that he would soon reach Parinirvana, or the final deathless state, and abandon his earthly body. After this, the Buddha ate his last meal, which he had received as an offering from a blacksmith named Cunda. According to Buddhist tradition, the Buddha died Kushinagar which became a pilgrimage centre. After his death, Buddha's cremation relics were divided amongst 8 royal families and his disciples; centuries later they would be enshrined by King Ashoka into 84,000 stupas.
NINE VIRTUES Recollection of nine virtues attributed to the Buddha is a common Buddhist meditation and devotional practice called Buddhānusmṛti. The nine virtues are also among the 40 Buddhist meditation subjects. The nine virtues include: Buddho Sammasambuddho Vijja-carana-sampano Sugato Lokavidu awakened self awakened higher knowledge well spoken knowledge of many worlds Anuttaro Purisa-damma-sarathi unexcelled trainer of untrained people. Satthadeva-Manussanam teacher of gods and humans. Bhagavathi Araham blessed one worthy of homage
WHAT AND WHO IS BUDDHA? Buddha means Awakened One, someone who has awakened from the sleep of ignorance and sees things as they really are. There is nothing that Buddha does not know. Because he has awakened from the sleep of ignorance and has removed all obstructions from his mind, he knows everything of the past, present, and future, directly and simultaneously. Moreover, Buddha has great compassion which is completely impartial, embracing all living beings without discrimination.. A Buddha s compassion, wisdom, and power are completely beyond conception. With nothing left to obscure his mind, he sees all phenomena throughout the universe as clearly as he sees a jewel held in the palm of his hand. Just as the sun does not need to motivate itself to radiate light and heat but does so simply because light and heat are its very nature, so a Buddha does not need to motivate himself to benefit others but does so simply because being beneficial is his very nature.
TEACHINGS OF BUDDHA Forty-nine days after Buddha attained enlightenment he was requested to teach. As a result of this request, Buddha rose from meditation and taught the first Wheel of Dharma. These teachings which include the Sutra of the Four Noble Truths and other discourses, are the principal source of the Hinayana, or Lesser Vehicle, of Buddhism. Later, Buddha taught the second and third Wheels of Dharma, which include the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras and the Sutra Discriminating the Intention respectively. These teachings are the source of the Mahayana, or Great Vehicle, of Buddhism. In the Hinayana teachings Buddha explains how to attain liberation from suffering for oneself alone, and in the Mahayana teaching he explains how to attain full enlightenment, or Buddhahood, for the sake of others.
FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS Dharma means protection. By practicing Buddha s teachings we protect ourself from suffering and problems. The truth of suffering (Dukkha) - Suffering comes in many forms. Three obvious kinds of suffering correspond to the first three sights the Buddha saw on his first journey outside his palace: old age, sickness and death. The truth of the origin of suffering (Samudāya) - Our day-to-day troubles may seem to have easily identifiable causes: thirst, pain from an injury, sadness from the loss of a loved one. This comes in three forms, which he described as the Three Roots of Evil, or the Three Fires, or the Three Poisons. 1 - Greed and desire, represented in art by a rooster 2 - Ignorance or delusion, represented by a pig 3 - Hatred and destructive urges, represented by a snake
FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS Cessation of suffering (Nirodha) - The Buddha taught that the way to extinguish desire, which causes suffering, is to liberate oneself from attachment.this is the third Noble Truth - the possibility of liberation. Nirvana means extinguishing. Attaining nirvana - reaching enlightenment - means extinguishing the three fires of greed, delusion and hatred.someone who reaches nirvana does not immediately disappear to a heavenly realm. Nirvana is better understood as a state of mind that humans can reach. It is a state of profound spiritual joy, without negative emotions and fears.someone who has attained enlightenment is filled with compassion for all living things.
EIGHT FOLD PATHS Path to the cessation of suffering (Magga) The final Noble Truth is the Buddha's prescription for the end of suffering. This is a set of principles called the Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path is also called the Middle Way: it avoids both indulgence and severe asceticism, neither of which the Buddha had found helpful in his search for enlightenment. THE EIGHT DIVISIONS Right Understanding Accepting Buddhist teachings. (The Buddha never intended his followers to believe his teachings blindly, but to practise them and judge for themselves whether they were true.)
EIGHT FOLD PATHS Right Intention - A commitment to cultivate the right attitudes. Right Speech -Speaking truthfully, avoiding slander, gossip and abusive Right Action - Behaving peacefully and harmoniously; refraining from stealing, killing and overindulgence in sensual pleasure. Right Livelihood - Avoiding making a living in ways that cause harm, such as exploiting people or killing animals, or trading in intoxicants or weapons. Right Effort - Cultivating positive states of mind; freeing oneself from evil and unwholesome states and preventing them arising in future. Right Mindfulness - Developing awareness of the body, sensations, feelings and states of mind.
EIGHT FOLD PATHS Right Concentration - Developing the mental focus necessary for this awareness. The eight stages can be grouped into Wisdom (right understanding and intention), Ethical Conduct (right speech, action and livelihood) and Meditation (right effort, mindfulness and concentration).the Buddha described the Eightfold Path as a means to enlightenment, like a raft for crossing a river. Once one has reached the opposite shore, one no longer needs the raft and can leave it behind.
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