BUDDHISM

For centuries, Buddhism has been the dominant Spiritual Belief of the Eastern world. Today it remains the predominant religion in China, Japan, Korea, and much of southeast Asia. Buddhism has made a tremendous impact in the United States also. Presently, there are over 500,000 Buddhists in the U.S. It remains the dominant belief in the state of Hawaii and many prominent Americans have accepted Buddhism, including the former governor of California, Jerry Brown.

The Origin of Buddhism

Buddhism began as an offspring of Hinduism in India. The founder was Siddhartha Gautama. Siddhartha Gautama was born in 563 B.C. in northern India. His father Suddhodana was the ruler over a place near the Himalayas which is today the country of Nepal. Suddhodana sheltered his son from the outside world and confined him to the palace where he surrounded Gautama with pleasures and wealth. Despite his father's efforts, Gautama one day saw the darker side of life on a trip he took outside the palace walls. He saw four things that forever changed his life: an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a hermit. Deeply distressed by the suffering he saw, he decided to leave the luxury of palace life and begin a quest to find the answer to the problem of pain and human suffering.

Gautama left his family and traveled the country seeking wisdom. He studied the Hindu scriptures under Brahmin priests, but became disillusioned with the teachings of Hinduism. He then devoted himself to a life of extreme asceticism in the jungle. Legend has it that he eventually learned to exist on one grain of rice a day which reduced his body to a skeleton. He soon concluded, however, that asceticism did not lead to peace and self realization but merely weakened the mind and body.

Gautama eventually turned to a life of meditation. While deep in meditation under a fig tree known as the Bohdi tree (meaning, "tree of wisdom"), Gautama experienced the highest degree of God-consciousness called Nirvana. Gautama then became known as Buddha, the "enlightened one." He believed he had found the answers to the questions of pain and suffering. His message now needed to be proclaimed to the whole world.

As he began his teaching ministry, he gained a quick audience with the people of India since many had become disillusioned with Hinduism. By the time of his death at age 80, Buddhism had become a major force in India. Three centuries later it had spread to all of Asia. Buddha never claimed to be deity but rather a "way- shower." However, seven hundred years later, followers of Buddha began to worship him as deity.

The Way of Salvation

The question Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, sought to answer was, Why is there pain and suffering? Also, he held to the Hindu belief of reincarnation: after death one returns to earthly life in a higher or lower form of life according to his good or bad deeds. This belief prompted a second question that needed to be answered, How does one break this rebirth cycle? The basic teachings of Buddhism, therefore, focus on what Gautama believed to be the answer to these questions. These basic tenants are found in the Four Noble Truths and the Eight-fold Path. Let us begin with the Four Noble Truths.

The First Noble Truth is that there is pain and suffering in the world. Gautama realized that pain and suffering are omnipresent in all of nature and human life. To exist means we will all encounter suffering. Birth is painful and so is death. Sickness and old age are painful. Throughout life, all living things encounter suffering.

The Second Noble Truth relates to the cause of suffering. Gautama believed the root cause of suffering is desire. It is the craving for wealth, happiness, and other forms of selfish enjoyment which cause suffering. These cravings can never be satisfied for they are rooted in ignorance.

The Third Noble Truth is the end of all suffering. Suffering will cease when a person can rid himself of all desires.

The Fourth Noble Truth is the extinguishing of all desire by following the eight-fold path. "The eight-fold path is a system of therapy designed to develop habits which will release people from the restrictions caused by ignorance and craving."

Here are the eight steps in following the eight-fold path. The first is the Right Views. One must accept the four noble truths. Step two is the Right Resolve. One must renounce all desires and any thoughts like lust, bitterness, and cruelty. He must harm no living creature. Step three is the Right Speech. One must speak only truth. There can be no lying, slander, or vain talk. Step four is the Right Behavior. One must abstain from sexual immorality, stealing, and all killing.

Step five is the Right Occupation. One must work in an occupation that benefits others and harms no one. Step six is the Right Effort. One must seek to eliminate any evil qualities within and prevent any new ones from arising. One should seek to attain good and moral qualities and develop those already possessed. Seek to grow in maturity and perfection until universal love is attained. Step seven is the Right Contemplation. One must be observant, contemplative, and free of desire and sorrow. The eighth is the Right Meditation. After freeing oneself of all desires and evil, a person must concentrate his efforts in meditation so that he can overcome any sensation of pleasure or pain and enter a state of transcending consciousness and attain a state of perfection. Buddhists believe that through self effort one can attain the state of peace and eternal bliss called Nirvana.

Karma, Samsara, and Nirvana

Three important concepts in understanding Buddhism are karma, Samsara, and Nirvana.

Karma refers to the law of cause and effect in a person's life, reaping what one has sown. Buddhists believe that every person must go through a process of birth and rebirth until he reaches the state of nirvana in which he breaks this cycle. According to the law of karma, "You are what you are and do what you do, as a result of what you were and did in a previous incarnation, which in turn was the inevitable outcome of what you were and did in still earlier incarnations." For a Buddhist, what one will be in the next life depends on one's actions in this present life. Buddha believed, unlike Hinduism, that a person can break the rebirth cycle no matter what class he is born into.

The second key concept to understand is the law of Samsara or Transmigration. This is one of the most perplexing and difficult concepts in Buddhism to understand. The law of Samsara holds that everything is in a birth and rebirth cycle. Buddha taught that people do not have individual souls. The existence of an individual self or ego is an illusion. There is no eternal substance of a person which goes through the rebirth cycle. What is it then that goes through the cycle if not the individual soul? What goes through the rebirth cycle is only a set of feelings, impressions, present moments, and the karma that is passed on. "In other words, as one process leads to another, ... so one's human personality in one existence is the direct cause of the type of individuality which appears in the next." The new individual in the next life will not be exactly the same person, but there will be several similarities. Just how close in identity they will be, Buddha did not define.

The third key concept is Nirvana. The term means "the blowing out" of existence. Nirvana is very different from the Christian concept of heaven. Nirvana is not a place like heaven but rather a state of being. What exactly it is, Buddha never really articulated.

Nirvana is an eternal state of being. It is the state in which the law of karma, and the rebirth cycle come to an end. It is the end of suffering, a state where there are no desires and the individual consciousness comes to an end. Although to our Western minds this may sound like annihilation, Buddhists would object to such a notion. Gautama never gave an exact description of Nirvana, but his closest reply was this. "There is disciples, a condition, where there is neither earth nor water, neither air nor light, neither limitless space, nor limitless time, neither any kind of being, neither ideation nor non-ideation, neither this world nor that world. There is neither arising nor passing-away, nor dying, neither cause nor effect, neither change nor standstill." Although no Buddhist really understands the condition of Nirvana, it is their eternal hope.

God and Buddhism

It may have occurred to the reader that in our discussion thus far no mention has been made of God or an eternal deity. It is clear that Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, did not claim to be divine. He claimed to be the one to point the way to Nirvana, but it was up to each individual to find his own way there.

The concept of a personal God does not fit into the Buddhist system of religion. Today there are many sects of Buddhism. Many differ in their concept of the divine and of Buddha. In general, Buddhists are pantheistic in their view of God. Many view God as an impersonal force which is made up of all living things and holds the universe together.

Here are what some of the most prominent of scholars say of the Buddhist view of God. Dr. John Noss states, "there is no sovereign Person in the heavens holding all together in unity, there is only the ultimate impersonal unity of being itself, whose peace enfolds the individual self when it ceases to call itself 'I' and dissolves in the featureless purity of Nirvana, as a drop of spray is merged in its mother sea."

Here is what the late Dr. Suzuki, one of the greatest teachers of Zen Buddhism, says about his concept of God: "If God after making the world puts Himself outside it, He is no longer God. If He separates Himself from the world or wants to separate Himself, He is not God. The world is not the world when it is separated from God. God must be in the world and the world in God."

Since Buddhism in general does not believe in a personal God or divine being, it does not have worship, praying, or praising of a divine being. It offers no form of redemption, forgiveness, heavenly hope, or final judgment. Buddhism is, therefore, more of a moral philosophy, an ethical way of life.

Professor Kraemer describes the Buddhist system as "a non-theistic ethical discipline, a system of self training, anthropocentric, stressing ethics and mind-culture to the exclusion of theology."

Since Gautama's death, many sects have developed within Buddhism. Many of these sects differ in many fundamental ways and comparing them to one another is like comparing two separate religions. Many sects have developed their own unique concept of God. Some are pantheistic in their view of God. Others are atheistic. Still others have developed a polytheistic system of gods. Some have combined pantheism and polytheism. Several sects have elevated Gautama (or Buddha) to the level of a savior or divine being although it is clear he never claimed to be a deity. Other sects have combined some of the doctrines of God from other religions with Buddhism.

Since Buddha never emphasized his concept of the divine, Buddhism is left with some life's deepest questions unanswered, questions such as the origin of the universe and the purpose of man's existence.

A Comparative Study of Christianity and Buddhism

It is quite clear that Christianity and Buddhism differ from one another in fundamental ways. Some sects of Buddhism have tried to synchronize the two together. However, the two are so different, they cannot both be right at the same time, nor can the two be blended together. Here is a comparison of these two religions.

Much of the Buddhist scriptures and sayings attributed to Gautama were written about four hundred years after his death. By the time they were written, Buddhism had split into many sects. What do we have then? Even the best scholars are not sure of the accuracy of the Buddhist scriptures. In Christianity, however, we have an accurate historical account written by eyewitnesses to Jesus and the events surrounding His life.

The two differ in their concept of God. For Buddhists in general, the Absolute does not play a vital role in daily living. Gautama said little about his concept of God. Buddha denied the existence of a personal God but was monistic in his view of the Absolute as an impersonal force made up of all living things. The Bible teaches of a God who rules the universe, and cares for man in a personal way. Psalm 46:10 states, "Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted among the earth."

It is clear that Buddha never claimed to be deity. Although several sects have elevated him to athe status of a god, he clearly claimed to be only the way-shower to Nirvana. Jesus, however, claimed to be God and not simply a way-shower but instead the only way to eternal life. Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 1:1 also states, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

There is another clear distinction between these two religions. Buddhism offers neither assurance of forgiveness or eternal life. Buddhists hope to enter into the state of Nirvana, but there is no clear, objective proof or teaching on what occurs beyond the grave. Even Buddha himself was not certain what lay beyond death. He left no clear teaching on Nirvana or eternity. What he did leave are philosophical speculations. Today the body of Buddha lies in a grave in Kusinara, at the foot of the Himalaya Mountains. The facts of life after death still remain an unsolved mystery in Buddhism.

In Christianity we have One who amazed His audience because He taught eternal truths with authority. His authority came from the fact that He existed before creation, and He proved His claims by rising from the dead. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is a proven fact of history and clearly demonstrates Christ's authority over sin and death. When witnessing to a Buddhist, ask him this: "Do you have tangible proof of what occurs after death?" All the Buddhist has is hope in a teaching Buddha was not sure of. As Christians, we have a certain hope in a risen Savior. There is no guessing what happens beyond the grave because Christ alone has conquered the grave.

Comparison of Buddhism with Christianity:

Since so many American adults are converting from Christianity to Buddhism, it may be useful to compare the two.

We define as "Christian" any person or group who thoughtfully, sincerely, prayerfully regard themselves as Christian. This is the definition that pollsters and the census offices of many countries use. It includes as Christians the full range of faith groups who consider themselves to be Christians, including Assemblies of God members, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, Southern Baptists, United Church members, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, etc. Many Christians have a much less inclusive definition of the term "Christian" and specifically exclude many faith groups from this list.

Beliefs not shared:

Buddhists do not share most of the core beliefs of historical Christianity and many of the less critical beliefs accepted by some Christians. Buddhism does not teach:

• An original golden era in the Garden of Eden, and a subsequent fall of humanity.
  
  
• Original sin shared by all present-day humans, derived from Adam and Eve.
  
  
• A world-wide flood in the time of Noah, causing the greatest human genocide in history.
  
  
• The need for a sinless personal savior whose execution enabled individual salvation through atonement.
  
  
• A god-man savior who was born of a virgin, executed, resurrected and ascended to heaven.
  
  
• Salvation achieved:
  
  
  • Through good works (a common liberal Christian belief) or
    
    
  • Specific actions and beliefs (as in repenting of one's sin and trusting Jesus as Lord and savior as taught by many conservative Protestant faith groups) or
    
    
  • Sacraments (e.g. the ritual of baptism within the Roman Catholic Church, followed by confession later in life).
    
    
• Most Christians believe in the soul: the essence of a person that lives on, unchanged, after death for all eternity. Buddhists have no such belief.
  
  
• Return of a savior to earth at some time in the future.
  
  
• An end of the world as we know it, in the near future with a war of Armageddon and the genocide of over two billion people who will be targeted because of their religious beliefs.
  
  
• The belief that their religion will continue forever. Most Christians believe that Christians will increase in numbers until essentially the entire world is of this one faith. Some Buddhists believe in Miroku, the "future Buddha." They expect that Buddhism will eventually fade from the scene. This belief is compatible with their principle that all objects, religions, etc. are impermanent. However, they expect that at some future time in the future, another person will attain Buddhahood -- the state of perfect enlightenment -- and will recreate a religion similar to Buddhism.

Some shared beliefs:

• Life continues in some form after death:
  
  
  Almost all religions teach that a person's personality continues after death. In fact, many religious historians believe that this belief was the prime reason that originally motivated people to create religions. However, Christianity and Buddhism conceive of life after death invery different forms:
  
  
  • Buddhism teaches that humans are trapped in a repetitive cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth. Each successive rebirth may be into a better, a worse life, or a similar life, depending upon the person's Karma -- the sins and merits that have accumulated during their present and previous lives. One's goal is to escape from this cycle and reach Nirvana. Once this is attained, the mind experiences complete freedom, liberation and non-attachment. Suffering ends because desire and craving -- the causes of suffering -- are no more.
    
    
  • Christianity has historically taught that everyone has only a single life on earth. After death, one's beliefs and/or actions are evaluated in the Final Judgment. An eternal life awaits everyone. Depending on the judgment, it will be either in Heaven or Hell. There is no suffering in Heaven; only joy. Torture is eternal without any hope of cessation for the inhabitants of Hell.
    
    
• Ethic of Reciprocity: Buddhism, Christianity and all of the other major world religions share a basic rule of behavior which governs how they are to treat others. Two quotations from Buddhist texts which reflect this Ethic are:
  • "...a state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another?"Samyutta NIkaya v. 353.
    
    
  • "Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." Udana-Varga 5:18.
    

This compares closely to Christianity's Golden Rule, which is seen in:

• "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." Matthew 7:12.
  
  
• "...and don't do what you hate..." Gospel of Thomas 6. This Gospel was widely used in early Christianity but never made it into the official canon because of its Gnostic content. However, it remains valuable today because it seems to have preserved many unique sayings of Jesus that do not appear in other gospels.
  
  
• Themes of morality, justice, love: These themes are found through both the Buddha's teaching and the Hebrew and Christian Bible.

Beliefs shared by some Buddhist traditions and Christianity:

• Deity: In its original forms, Buddhism did not teach of the existence of transcendent, immanent, or any other type of God, Gods, Goddess, and/or Goddesses. However, many Buddhists -- particularly in Japan where is it often merged with the Shinto religion -- do believe in a pantheon of superatural entities.
• Prayer: Some traditions within Buddhism believe in the power of prayer; others do not.

• Comparing Buddhism, Christianity and Islam

  Buddhism		Christianity	Islam
  Buddhism is a philosophy of life preached by Gautama Buddha("Buddha" means "enlightened one"), who lived and taught in northern India in the 6th Century B.C. The Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of Buddhism does not entail any theistic world-view until after it was introduced into China. Renowned Chinese gods in Buddhism like Guanyin (Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara) and Milefo (Maitreya) were actually humans who came to China to preach. Buddhism stresses the teaching of no self (Anatta). There is a famous saying, 'where can dust be collected if there is nothing to start out with.' Thus attachment to the idea of substantial and enduring self is only an illusion ('like the reflections of moon in the water and flowers in a mirror'), which can only lead to suffering. Therefore, suffering is a consequence of one's volitional actions. This is consistent with the Buddhist doctrine of causes and effects. ('If one sows melon seeds, one harvests melon; and if one sows beans, one reaps beans'). One is thus responsible for all the consequences of his own psychological states and volitional actions (karma). These good or bad actions or karma can be carried from one life to the other. Your well-being in this life is affected by your karma in your previous lives, and your karma in this life dictates your well-being in your future lives. The Chinese believe that if you are a good person, you may become a good person in your next life. However, if you are a bad person in this life, you may end up reincarnating into an animal or even an insect. Buddha taught the Four Truthsand the Eightfold Path.		Christian faith is the relationship with God, the Creator of all things. A person is accepted by God, not because of his deeds but because of who he is, a chosen child of God. (This concept is very similar to the fact you are a member of your earthly family regardless what you have done. Without this relationship, you are like a run-away child). Although we are all sinners, God stillloves us and sent his Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins on the cross. (God actually approached us first, like a parent looking for a run-away child! For all other religions, man seeks god instead!) To establish this relationship with God, one must accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, Who died for our sins and rose again. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we can then turn away from sin. If you would like to accept Jesus as your Savior, you can begin with the following prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, I want to have a relationship with You. I know I cannot save myself, because I am a sinner. I believe that You sent Your only Son to die for me on the cross and rose again from the grave. Please forgive my sin as I receive your gift of eternal life. I will turn away from my sin and place my trust on You. In Jesus' name I prayed. Amen	The religion of Islam is built upon the five pillars that define the essential elements of Islam. Once you become a Muslim you should implement all these in your daily life. The pillars are: 1)Testimony of Faith - Shahada Witness to two individuals that a)There is no god except Allah b)Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. 2)Five daily worships - Salaat 3)Fasting in the month of Ramadan- Sawm 4)Donation to charity - Zakat 5)Pilgrimage to Mecca once in your life Hajj Besides the outward witnessing, a Muslim should believe the Shahada in his heart with a firm conviction and unshakeable faith in order to be a new-born person. He must then behave accordingly, applying this faith to every thing he speaks or does Muslims believe that this will improve his character and draw him closer to perfection. The light of the living faith will fill his heart until he becomes the embodiment of that faith. Aside from the 5 pillars, all Muslim should love and be loyal to his Muslim brothers. He should, as a practice, dissociate himself completely from the unbelievers and refuse to be influenced by them, both in worldly and religious matters.
  On God
  The original Buddhist philosophy does not entail any theistic world-view. Godly figures were introduced later.	There is only one true God in Christianity, Who referred to Himself as, "I am who I am."		The Muslims also believe in one god known as Allah.
  On Salvation
  Man lives his own fate, and has no one to blame but himself. In other words, you have to work for your salvation	Salvation is not based on work. It is a free gift to all who would accept Jesus Christ as their Savior.		Salvation is based on work through implementing the five pillars in life.
  On Eternal Life
  In a sense, there is eternal life. But one is not sure what his next life will end up being. It depends on the karma of his present life.	Eternal life in heaven is promised to all who accept this free gift of salvation.		Eternal life is defined as 'eternal bliss in Hereafter'. Not everyone who obeys Allah and practices the five pillars is promised eternal life.
  On Love
  There is no god in Buddhism to love or take care of its people.	The Bible is filled with teachings of God's love towards us, to the extent that He sent his only Son to die for our sins.		The Quran does not mention Allah's unconditional love towards his people.