Buddhism

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Buddhism

• Chapter 8 China

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Introduction

• Buddhism is a religion to about 300 million
  people around the world
• budhi to awaken
• founder Siddhartha Gotama The Buddha - the
  enlightened one
• _at_ 2500 years ago
• India was home to its founding

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• Some say Buddhism goes beyond being a religion
• Is more of a philosophy (way of life)
• Buddhist path is summed up as
• 1) to lead a moral life
• 2) to be mindful and aware of thoughts and
  actions, and
• 3) to develop wisdom and understanding

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Buddha (Siddhartha Gotama)

• born into a royal family in Nepal
• at 29 came to believe that wealth and luxury did
  not guarantee happiness
• he explored the different teaching religions and
  philosophies of the day to find the key to human
  happiness

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• for 6 years he studied and meditated and finally
  came upon what he called the middle path and
  he himself was enlightened
• After his enlightenment, the Buddha spent the
  rest of his life teaching the principles of
  Buddhism (known as Dhamma, or Truth)
• The Buddha died at the age of 80

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Teachings of Buddhism

• Four Noble Truths
• 1) life is suffering
• 2) suffering is caused by craving and
  aversion
• 3) suffering can be overcome and happiness can
  be attained
• 4) the Noble 8-fold path leads to the end of
  suffering

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Noble 8 fold Path

• Wisdom
• - right view
• - right intention

• Ethical Conduct
• - right speech
• - right action
• - right livelihood
• - right effort

• Concentration
• - right effort
• - right mindfulness
• - right concentration

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The Five Precepts

• Not to take the life of any living thing
• not take anything not freely given
• to abstain from sexual misconduct and sensual
  overindulgence
• to refrain from untrue speech
• to avoid intoxication (losing mindfulness)

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Karma

• is the law that every cause has an effect, (our
  actions have results)
• Karma underlines the importance of all
  individuals being responsible for their past and
  present actions

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• How can we test the karmic effect of our actions?
  The answer is summed up by looking at
• (1) the intention behind the action,
• (2) effects of the action on oneself, and
• (3) the effects on others

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Misc.

• Was Buddha a god?
• - no and he did not claim to be
• - He was a man who taught a path to
  enlightenment from his own experience

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2. Do Buddhists worship idols?

• They respect to the images of Buddha
• - not in worship
• - they do not ask for favors
• - a Buddha statue reminds them to strive to
  develop peace and love within themselves
• - in bowing to the statue they offer
  gratitude for the teaching of the Buddha

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Skinny Buddha vs. Fat Buddha
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Why Buddhism Spread IN China

• Traders and Missionaries from India brought
  Buddhism to China
• It was a time in China of decline and despair as
  civil war broke out
• Many died
• Buddhism taught that people could escape
  suffering by following the teachings of the Buddha

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How Did the Tang Rulers view Buddhism ?

• The early Tang rulers did not practice Buddhism,
  but they did not interfere with those who
  followed it
• They approved the building of temples and
  shrines
• The Buddhist monks and nuns helped local people
  by running schools and providing food and
  shelters

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• Many people opposed the religion
• They thought the Buddhists had become too
  wealthy with the donations they had used to build
  their buildings
• Some felt they weakened respect for family life,
  due to the monks and nuns not being allowed to
  marry
• Tang officials feared the growing influence
  being an enemy of Confucius

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• Tang officials began to destroy many of the
  Buddhist monasteries and temples
• Buddhism never fully recovered from the attacks
  in China
• The Chinese Buddhist took their religion to
  Korea
• The Korean leaders approved it
• Then it was spread to Japan

Buddhism in Korea
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