Religions of India
Notes for 2/10
Buddhism

Class notes by C. Michael Schram
Buddhism
The founder of Buddhism was Prince
Sddhartha Gautama (Gotama), born 563
BC. He lived in the northern Indian
city-state of Kapilauatsu.
Gautama’s father the king has a prophecy
that his son would become a wandering
aesthetic monk. When his son sees four
signs and old man, a diseased man, a
dead man, and a wandering monk. His
father wanting a successor to the throne
tries to keep these things from his son's
site. His son has a yearning to see what
is outside the palace and asks his
charioteer to take him outside the palace.
Here he sees an old man, a diseased
man, a dead man and he asks his
charioteer about each. The prince is
troubled by what he sees and hears. He
then sees a wandering monk and asks
his charioteer about this person. The
charioteer tells him that the monk is out
seeking the truth. The son decides he too
means to learn the truth and to become a
monk. That way he will learn the truth of
suffering and how to escape from it. His
father hears of his plan and puts on a
party to keep his son home. The party is
extravagant and lewd; the prince is put off
by the whole affair. The Prince says
goodbye to his wife and daughter,
discards his princely clothes, takes on
the clothes of a monk, cuts off his beard
and goes out among the common
people. Here he meets a group of people
seeking enlightenment.
First he tries meditation alone to reach
enlightenment and finds it an adequate.
He then joins with a group of an aesthetic
monks (Hindus) who are in to bodily
testing. He determines that they
obsessed on things they are trying to get
away from. He becomes disillusioned
with this path. He then decides to take a
middle path and to steer a middle course
between luxurious ardent indulgence and
punishing aestheticism. He is said to
have sat under Buddha tree and was
resolved not to move until enlightenment
came. As he sat he recalled his past lives
and saw the suffering that was in these
lives.

The 4 Noble Truths
1) Life is suffering (unhappiness)
2) Desire is the cause of suffering. Tanha
= Craving. Desire is an addiction.
3) Extinguishing desire extinguishes
suffering.
4) The way to extinguish desire is the
“Eight Fold Path”

The Eight Fold Path
1) Understanding
2) Intention = Purpose, commitment.
3) Speech = Truth and honesty.
4) Action (conduct) = Don’t kill or harm
other beings.
5) Vocation (job) = Goes with other
percepts.
6) Effort = Working at the goal.
7) Mindfulness = Being aware of what you
are doing. Pay attention to what’s around
you.
8) Meditation.
See the book “Miracle of Mindfulness”


Desire is like “Itching”
a) Having to face the unpleasant
b) Being removed from the pleasant
c) Having what you don’t want
d) Wanting what you don’t have.

Similarities whit Hinduism
1) Importance of Meditation =
Enlightenment (Jnana, Raja)
2) Samara = the wheel of reincarnation
and karma.
3) Twin human problem that of desire
and ignorance.
4) Salvation through detachment and
enlightenment.




Differences with Hinduism.
1) No Bhakti (Devotion to God) or group of
gods, any god.
2) De-emphasis of tradition, ritual and
ceremony.
3) No Brahman
4) No Atman (Buddhist doctrine of
An-atman or no self, no soul)
5) No caste system
6) No metaphysical speculation (as in the
Upanishads) See the parable of the
poison arrow .Practical spirituality
(Buddha dose assume some
metaphysical, but seems to regard it as
self-evident)
7) Moksha (Liberation) as “Nirvana” is a
state of bliss, free from desire and
unconditional, ultimately free. The self is
a sense of related processes not a thing
or substance. See the “Candle example”

Nirvana
“Blowing out” or “Smothering”
a) Known as experienced by the Arhat
(perfected saint)
b) Final Nirvana = A state of bliss the
Arhat achieves after death.
C) Nothingness
d) The heavenly realm