Life of Siddhartha Gautama
Siddhartha Gautama was born about 583 BCE, in or near what is now
Nepal. His father, King Suddhodana, was leader of a large clan called the
Shakya. His mother, Queen Maya, died shortly after his birth. When Prince
Siddhartha was a few days old, a holy man prophesied the Prince would be either
a great military conqueror or a great spiritual teacher. King Suddhodana
preferred the first outcome and prepared his son accordingly. Siddhartha
Gauatama was raised the in great luxury and was shielded from knowledge
of religion and human suffering. He reached the age of 29 with little
experience of the world outside the palace walls.
Siddhartha
asked to leave the palace once to see life beyond the palace since he didn't
know what was really out there. On these journeys he was shocked by the sight
of an aged man, then a sick man, and then a corpse. The stark realities of old
age, disease, and death seized and sickened the Prince. Finally, he saw a
wandering ascetic. The charioteer explained that the ascetic was one who had
renounced the world and sought release from fear of death and suffering.
Three Jewels
The ideals at the heart of Buddhism are collectively known
as the ‘Three Jewels’, or the ‘Three Treasures’. These are theBuddha (the
yellow jewel), the Dharma (the blue jewel), and the Sangha (the
red jewel). It is by making these the central principles of your life that you
become a Buddhist.
Threefold Way
Another formulation of the path is the Threefold Way
of ethics, meditation, and wisdom. This is a progressive path, as
ethics and a clear conscience provides an indispensable basis for meditation,
and meditation is the ground on which wisdom can develop.
4 Noble Truths
The Four Aryan (or
Noble) Truths are perhaps the most basic formulation of the Buddha’s teaching.
They are expressed as follows:
1. All existence is dukkha.
2. The cause of dukkha is
craving.
3. The cessation of dukkha comes with
the cessation of craving.
4. There is a path that leads from
dukkha.
Noble Eight-fold Path
The Buddha’s ‘Noble Eightfold Path’ is a
further ‘unpacking’ of the ‘Threefold Way’ and is perhaps the most widely known
of the Buddha’s teachings. It is ancient, extending back to the Buddha’s first
discourse and is highly valued as a treasury of wisdom and practical guidance
on how to live our lives. Traditionally the teaching is seen as highlighting
eight areas or ‘limbs’ of ‘right’ practice (Sangharakshita prefers ‘perfect’ to
‘right’), which sit in mutual relationship to one other and are each essential
elements in an integrated approach to the Dharma:
1. Right Understanding or Perfect Vision
2.
Right
Resolve or Perfect Emotion
3.
Right
Speech or Perfect Speech
4.
Right
Action or Perfect Action
5.
Right
Livelihood or Perfect Livelihood
6.
Right
Effort or Perfect Effort
7.
Right
Mindfulness or Perfect Awareness
8.
Right Meditation or Perfect Samadhi
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