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buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophy which is primarily focused on the Buddha's teachings, technically recorded in the sutras, but reading isn't required for laypeople when practice is what really matters. It is one of the three teachings with Confucianism and Daoism.

General concepts

In the Buddhist folklore, the Buddha had became aware of suffering and embarked on this spiritual quest to find answers, attempting to become an ascetic at first, but gave up asceticism after he almost died and Sujātā helped him up. Still looking for answers, the Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree for days until, one day, he had this standoff with Māra and achieved enlightenment after rejecting his temptations.

Lessons of the Buddha

For his first lesson, the Buddha introduces us to the Four Noble Truths in order to lay down the foundation and metaphysics of Buddhism. These four truths will usually be summarized as:

  1. Dukkha - There is inevitable suffering in life.
  2. Samudaya - There is a cause for our suffering: taṇhā (i.e. cravings, desires, ego).1)
  3. Nirodha - There is an end to suffering.
  4. Marga - In order to end suffering, follow the Noble Eightfold Path.

After this, we get the Noble Eightfold Path, which teaches us how to conduct ourselves in order to escape the karma-ridden samsara (rebirth) cycle with the ultimate goal of attaining nirvana.

  1. Right View (Sammā-diṭṭhi)
    In general, remember the Four Noble Truths.
  2. Right Intention (Sammā-saṅkappa)
    Refrain from selfish desires (greed), don't be resentful, and strive for non-violence.
  3. Right Speech (Sammā-vācā)
    Refrain from lying, slandering, abusive speech, and idle chatter (gossip).
  4. Right Conduct (Sammā-kammanta)
    Refrain from any physical misconduct (e.g. killing, stealing, sexual misconduct).
  5. Right Livelihood (Sammā-ājīva)
    Refrain from improper ways of living (e.g. weapons trafficking, human trafficking, business in meat,2) business in intoxicants, business in poisons).
  6. Right Effort (Sammā-vāyama)
    Try to prevent and abandon unwholesome states of mind.
  7. Right Mindfulness (Sammā-sati)
    Practice mindfulness.
  8. Right Concentration (Sammā-samādhi)
    Above all, mediate. Bring it all together and reflect.

You can also divide the Noble Eightfold Path into three categories, which leads up to what is generally called Threefold Training, in case eight was too much, which are shown below.

  1. Higher Virtue (Adhisīla-sikkhā) - Right speech, conduct, and livelihood.
    Remember the five precepts.
  2. Higher Mind (Adhicitta-sikkhā) - Right effort, mindfulness, and concentration.
    Dwell in the four jhānas.
  3. Higher Wisdom (Adhipaññā-sikkhā) - Right view and intention.
    Remember the four noble truths.

Visiting the temple

In my Theravada Buddhist experience, you occasionally3) visit a wat (temple), remove your shoes, echo Pali-language chants4) with soles pointed away,5) provide offerings (e.g. food, drinks, money), then there's this whole energy cleaning ritual involving strings or water, and it usually ends with strings tied to your wrist. Of course, my memory is a bit hazy, so I forgot the brief lulls and order of these things.

Branches of Buddhism

Buddhism is often divided into three branches, categories, schools of thought, or traditions, but these three categories can be broad or vague, especially with the vast array of sects, subsects, and movements. You also have Buddhist modernism which attempts to reinterpret and reformulate Buddhist concepts, with one example being secular Buddhism and its attempts to minimize superstitions.

  • Theravāda (Way of the Elders)6)
    The oldest surviving branch of Buddhism, which believes in one Buddha, and the highest rank is the arhat. Focuses on a solo journey. Pali language. Most prevalent in Southeast Asia.
  • Mahāyāna (Greater Vehicle)
    The adaptive branch of Buddhism that noticeably draws from the Lotus Sutra, a religious text in Mahayana Buddhism that establishes the bodhisattva and a belief in multiple Buddhas. Focuses on a collective effort. Most prevalent in East Asia, especially China and Japan.
  • Vajrayāna (Indestructible Vehicle)7)
    The lesser known branch of Buddhism, which focuses on mantras, mudras, and mandalas. Most prevalent in the historical regions of Mongolia, including Inner Mongolia, and Tibet.

List of notable branches

Most of the highly publicized branches of Buddhism are under the Mahayana and Vajrayana branches since people tend to be fascinated with East Asian countries. These would have clogged up this article's notes anyways, so without delay: here's a vague list of notable branches of Buddhism, along with the notes that I've taken on them over the years. Some serious, some humorous. Take what you will from these.

  • Pure Land Buddhism
    Mahayana branch that invents a pure land (jìngtǔ, jōdo), an analogue for heaven that eschews nirvana. Helped named the Garnidelia song, Gokuraku Jodo, common in MMD videos.
  • Chán Buddhism / Zen Buddhism
    Mahayana branch that puts heavy emphasis on meditation. Their monks have intentionally puzzling 'riddles' called a koan, such as the sound of one hand clapping and killing the Buddha. Famous historical Zen Buddhist monks include Budai8) and Hakuin Ekaku. Unfortunately, a lot of skewed Western perceptions of Buddhism kinda stem from this specific branch.
  • Nichiren Buddhism
    Mahayana branch that adds in a Japanese-language Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō chant, which just praises the Lotus Sutra and supposedly lowers your karma. It was named after Nichiren.
  • Sōka Gakkai / Soka Gakkai International
    Mahayana branch that acts like Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō is a cheat code. Related to Kōmeitō.9) Could be a cult. Surprisingly large international presence.10) Your Head A-Splode.
  • Gelug / Tibetan Buddhism
    Vajrayana branch that has a Dalai Lama who reincarnates in Tibet (Xizang), but the land has since been liberated which puts reincarnation into question. It's been highly publicized due to destabilization efforts, stemming from the CIA Tibetan program, but it fell out of relevance because the Belt and Road Initiative going through the Xinjiang region became the bigger threat.11)

Misconceptions

First off, Buddhism isn't this one-step solution for happiness, which is consumerist bunk, but it's also not antisocial or nihilistic, which are just disingenuous assumptions.12) Next, the average Buddhist layperson mediates very little, presumably coming from a failure to separate laypeople from monks. That's like watching a preacher, then going “You're a Christian? So, you say shit in front of people?”

Buddhism isn't really text heavy to begin with, unless you intend to be a monk, so what really matters is how the core lessons are communicated and how a layperson conducts themselves to alleviate suffering. The whole point of Buddhism is “look, we're all going through the bullshit, so learn to let go and show compassion to others”, meaning “drop the fucking ego” in the most contemporary terms. It's kinda like Stoicism.

Notes

  • Buddhism doesn't necessarially believe in any deities. The Buddha was more of a philosopher.
  • The Buddhist flag is a flag which borrows the aura colors supposedly emanated by the Buddha upon attaining enlightenment: blue, yellow, red, white, and orange. This flag was designed by the Theravada Buddhist-led Colombo Committee in British-occupied Sri Lanka around 1885 CE, which came during the Buddhist revival after years of suppression by Christian missionaries.
  • Sādhu is the Buddhist equivalent of the Abrahamic amen, but I have only heard it used among Theravada Buddhists and Southeast Asians. I have no clue if the other branches even use it.
  • In the Japanese branches, “namusan” (南無三) is a clipping of “namu sanbō” (南無三宝), which means to pay homages to the three treasures: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
    • The term “namu” (南無) is a mangled transliteration.13) It is meant to be read as “nāmó” (南无), based on the Pali word “namo” (नमो), the first word you hear in the Dhammacārī.
1)
The original line uses 'desires' or 'cravings', but modern Buddhism reinterprets this as 'ego' since the only thing you have control over is your ego, so it basically teaches us to cool your ego.
2)
It's important to clarify that this refers to 'business in meat'. It is not a strict dietary rule forbidding meat. Some of the Mahayana branches preach Buddhist vegetarianism, but one could argue that it was a small lie that allowed Buddhism to spread if the elites could hoard meat.
3)
Most laypeople will only visit during the weekend or a specific Buddhist holiday, but it's always a good idea to check in advance and see if they have any English services. Just watch out for full moons.
4)
The chants for Theravada Buddhist laypeople normally include: the homage, the three refuges, and the five precepts. However, there can be more chants depending on what exactly is happening.
5)
If you are at an old-school temple, you may be seated on the floor, so remember to point your soles away from the monks and icons of the Buddha. Some temples have chairs, so this isn't an issue.
6)
Mahāyāna Buddhists may call it 'Hīnayāna' (Small Vehicle), but this is discouraged as it's disrespectful and condescending. Nobody wants to be called a 'little brother' or 'poor man's anything', obviously.
7)
'Vajra' is a mythical tool with the properties of an indestructible diamond and a thunderbolt's sheer force. I'll leave this as 'indestructible', but you could translate this as 'diamond' or 'thunderbolt'.
8)
In the Chinese Buddhist folklore, Budai was a Buddha in Chan Buddhism that carried a sack of gifts, thus becoming a good luck symbol often seen in restaurants. Don't actually confuse him with The Buddha.
9)
Kōmeitō is to Sōka Gakkai, as Jimintō is to Unification Church. Look into that.
10)
Honestly, I was surprised to hear that Sōka Gakkai was a religious option that was representing Buddhism at one of the Statesian military's boot camps, but that's a story for another day.
11)
Xinjiang is a key point in the BRI as it connects China to Central Asia, and the long-term end goal is to connect and facilitate trade with Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, like the Silk Road. To counter this, you suddenly find Uyghur genocide allegations, and the United States no longer consider the Turkistan Islamic Party to be terrorists, just don't question why the Syrian branch exists or how they got there.
12)
You also have to consider that these types of arguments intentionally send the wrong messages as a way to promote another belief system, like Confucianism, but I'll leave that judgment up to you.
13)
If you took it at face value, you'd probably read “namu” (南無) as “south nothing”, which is just nonsense.
buddhism.txt · Last modified: 2025-01-29 00:56:07 by namelessrumia