- published: 05 Oct 2010
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![Alan Watts: Mahayana Buddhism (1960) [full length]](http://web.archive.org./web/20121223120435im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/B4s-OvHfXVg/default.jpg "Here is an episode from the 1960 season of Alan Watts' KQED television series, Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life, entitled")
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Bhutan
Coordinates: 27°25′01″N 90°26′06″E / 27.417°N 90.435°E / 27.417; 90.435
Bhutan (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, tr ʼbrug-yul, "Druk Yul"; Devanagari भूटान, Bhūṭān), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China. Bhutan is separated from the nearby country of Nepal to the west by the Indian state of Sikkim, and from Bangladesh to the south by the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal.
Bhutan existed as a patchwork of minor warring fiefdoms until the early 17th century, when the area was unified by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, who fled religious persecution in Tibet and cultivated a separate Bhutanese identity. In the early 20th century, Bhutan came into contact with the British Empire, after which Bhutan continued strong bilateral relations with India upon its independence. In 2006, Business Week rated Bhutan the happiest country in Asia and the eighth-happiest in the world, based on a global survey.
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Bodhi Tree
Coordinates: 24°41′45.29″N 84°59′29.29″E / 24.6959139°N 84.9914694°E / 24.6959139; 84.9914694
The Bodhi Tree, also known as Bo (from the Sinhalese Bo), was a large and very old Sacred Fig tree (Ficus religiosa) located in Bodh Gaya (about 100 km (62 mi) from Patna in the Indian state of Bihar), under which Siddhartha Gautama, the spiritual teacher later known as Gautama Buddha, is said to have achieved enlightenment, or Bodhi. In religious iconography, the Bodhi tree is recognizable by its heart-shaped leaves, which are usually prominently displayed.
The term "Bodhi Tree" is also widely applied to currently existing trees, particularly the Sacred Fig growing at the Mahabodhi Temple, which is a direct descendant planted in 288 BC from the original specimen. This tree is a frequent destination for pilgrims, being the most important of the four main Buddhist pilgrimage sites. Other holy Bodhi trees which have a great significance in the history of Buddhism are the Anandabodhi tree in Sravasti and the Bodhi tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. Both are believed to have been propagated from the original Bodhi tree.
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China
China (
i/ˈtʃaɪnə/; Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó; see also Names of China), officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is the world's most-populous country, with a population of over 1.3 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometres, the East Asian state is the world's second-largest country by land area, and the third- or fourth-largest in total area, depending on the definition of total area.
The People's Republic of China is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party of China. It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directly controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau). Its capital city is Beijing. The PRC also claims Taiwan—which is controlled by the Republic of China (ROC), a separate political entity—as its 23rd province, a claim controversial due to the complex political status of Taiwan and the unresolved Chinese Civil War. The PRC government denies the legitimacy of the ROC.
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East Java
East Java (Indonesian: Jawa Timur, Javanese: Jawa Wétan) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the eastern part of the island of Java and includes neighboring Madura and islands to its east (the Kangean and Sapudi groups) and to its north (Bawean and the Masalembu Islands. The provincial capital is Surabaya, the second largest city in Indonesia and a major industrial center and port.
According to the 2000 census, East Java has 34 million inhabitants, estimated to increase to 37½ million in 2010, making it the second most populous Indonesian province after West Java. The inhabitants are predominantly ethnically Javanese. Native minorities include migrants from nearby Madura, and distinct Javanese ethnicities such as the Tengger people in Bromo, the Samin and the Osing people in Banyuwangi. East Java also hosts a significant population of other ethnic groups, such as Chinese, Indians, and Arabs. In addition to the national language, Indonesian, they also speak Javanese. Javanese as spoken in the western East Java is a similar dialect to the one spoken in nearby Central Java, with its hierarchy of high, medium, and low registers. In the eastern cities of Surabaya, Malang, and surrounding areas, a more egalitarian version of Javanese is spoken, with less regard for hierarchy and a richer vocabulary for vulgarity.
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India
India (i/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Bhārat Gaṇarājya), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.
Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history. Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance led by Mahatma Gandhi.
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Indonesia
Indonesia (i/ˌɪndəˈniːʒə/ IN-də-NEE-zhə or /ˌɪndoʊˈniːziə/ IN-doh-NEE-zee-ə), officially the Republic of Indonesia (Indonesian: Republik Indonesia Indonesian pronunciation: [rɛpʊblɪk ɪndɔnɛsɪa]), is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 17,508 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an elected legislature and president. The nation's capital city is Jakarta. The country shares land borders with Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Malaysia. Other neighboring countries include Singapore, Philippines, Australia, and the Indian territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Indonesia is a founding member of ASEAN and a member of the G-20 major economies. The Indonesian economy is the world's 17th largest economy by nominal GDP.
The Indonesian archipelago has been an important trade region since at least the 7th century, when Srivijaya and then later Majapahit traded with China and India. Local rulers gradually absorbed foreign cultural, religious and political models from the early centuries CE, and Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms flourished. Indonesian history has been influenced by foreign powers drawn to its natural resources. Muslim traders brought Islam, and European powers brought Christianity and fought one another to monopolize trade in the Spice Islands of Maluku during the Age of Discovery. Following three and a half centuries of Dutch colonialism, Indonesia secured its independence after World War II. Indonesia's history has since been turbulent, with challenges posed by natural disasters, corruption, separatism, a democratization process, and periods of rapid economic change.
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Japan
Japan
i/dʒəˈpæn/ (Japanese: 日本 Nihon or Nippon; formally 日本国 
Nippon-koku or Nihon-koku, literally the State of Japan) is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters that make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes referred to as the "Land of the Rising Sun".
Japan is an archipelago of 6,852 islands. The four largest islands are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū and Shikoku, together accounting for ninety-seven percent of Japan's land area. Japan has the world's tenth-largest population, with over 127 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents.
Archaeological research indicates that people lived in Japan as early as the Upper Paleolithic period. The first written mention of Japan is in Chinese history texts from the 1st century AD. Influence from other nations followed by long periods of isolation has characterized Japan's history. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, victory in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War and World War I allowed Japan to expand its empire during a period of increasing militarism. The Second Sino-Japanese War of 1937 expanded into part of World War II in 1941, which came to an end in 1945 following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Since adopting its revised constitution in 1947, Japan has maintained a unitary constitutional monarchy with an emperor and an elected parliament called the Diet.
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Korea
Korea (/kəˈriːə/ kə-REE-ə; Korean: 한국 Hanguk [hanɡuːk] or 조선 Joseon [tɕosʌn] – (see etymology) is an East Asian region that is divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait and the Sea of Japan (East Sea), and separated from Taiwan to the south by the East China Sea.
Archaeological and linguistic evidence suggest the origins of the Korean people might have been Altaic language-speaking people from south-central Siberia,[dubious – discuss] who populated ancient Korea in successive waves from the Neolithic age to the Bronze Age. The adoption of the Chinese writing system ("Hanja" in Korean) in the 2nd century BC, and Buddhism in the 4th century AD, had profound effects on the Three Kingdoms of Korea.
The Three Kingdoms of Korea was first united during the Silla dynasty under the king Munmu of Silla. The united Silla dynasty fell to Goryeo Dynasty in 935 at the end of Later Three Kingdoms of Korea era. Goryeo was a highly cultural state and created the Jikji in the 14th century, using the world's first movable metal type printing press. The Mongol invasions in the 13th century, however, greatly weakened the nation which was forced to become a tributary state. After the Mongol Empire's collapse, severe political strife followed and Goryeo was replaced by the Joseon Dynasty in 1388.
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Ladakh
Ladakh (Wylie: la-dwags, Ladakhi [lad̪ɑks], Hindi: लद्दाख़, Urdu: لدّاخ [ləd̪ˈd̪aːx]; "land of high passes") is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state in the control of the Republic of India. It is however disputed territory between Pakistan and India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Jammu and Kashmir.
Historically, the region included the Baltistan (Baltiyul) valleys, the Indus Valley, the remote Zangskar, Lahaul and Spiti to the south, Aksai Chin and Ngari, including the Rudok region and Guge, in the east, and the Nubra valleys to the north.
Contemporary Ladakh borders Tibet to the east, the Lahaul and Spiti to the south, the Vale of Kashmir, Jammu and Baltiyul regions to the west, and the trans–Kunlun territory of Xinjiang to the far north. Ladakh is renowned for its remote mountain beauty and culture. It is sometimes called "Little Tibet" as it has been strongly influenced by Tibetan culture.
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Lumbini
Lumbinī (Sanskrit: लुम्बिनी, "the lovely") is a Buddhist pilgrimage site in the Rupandehi district of Nepal. It is the place where Queen Mayadevi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama, who as the Buddha Gautama founded the Buddhist tradition. The Buddha lived between roughly 563 and 483 BCE. Lumbini is one of four magnets for pilgrimage that sprang up in places pivotal to the life of the Buddha, the others being at Kushinagar, Bodh Gaya and Sarnath.
Lumbini was where the Buddha lived until the age of 29. Lumbini has a number of temples, including the Mayadevi temple, and others under construction. Also located here is the Puskarini or Holy Pond where the Buddha's mother took the ritual dip prior to his birth and where he, too, had his first bath, as well as the remains of Kapilvastu palace. At other sites near Lumbini, earlier Buddhas were, according to tradition, born, achieved ultimate awakening and finally relinquished earthly form.
In the Buddha's time, Lumbini was situated between Kapilavastu and Devadaha. It was there that the Buddha was born. A pillar now marks the spot of Asoka's visit to Lumbiní. According to an inscription on the pillar, it was placed there by the people then in charge of the park to commemorate Asoka's visit and gifts. The park was previously known as Rummindei, two miles north of Bhagavanpura.
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Maharashtra
Maharashtra /mɑːhəˈrɑːʃtrə/ (Marathi: महाराष्ट् mahārāṣṭra [məharaːʂʈrə] (
listen)) is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India. Maharashtra is the richest state in India, contributing 15% of the country's industrial output and 13.3% of its GDP (2006–2007 figures).
Maharashtra is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Gujarat and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the northwest, Madhya Pradesh to the northeast, Chhattisgarh to the east, Karnataka to the south, Andhra Pradesh to the southeast, and Goa to the southwest. The state covers an area of 307,731 km2 (118,816 sq mi) or 9.84% of the total geographical area of India. Mumbai, the capital city of the state, is India's largest city and the financial capital of the nation. Nagpur is the second capital of the state. Marathi is the official language.
Maharashtra is the world's second most populous first-level administrative country sub-division. Were it a nation in its own right, Maharashtra would be the world's tenth most populous country ahead of Mexico.
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Mongolia
Mongoliai/mɒŋˈɡoʊliə/ (Mongolian: 
Монгол улс (help·info), literally Mongol country/state) is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest city, is home to about 45% of the population. Mongolia's political system is a parliamentary republic.
The area of what is now Mongolia has been ruled by various nomadic empires, including the Xiongnu, the Xianbei, the Rouran, the Gökturks and others. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in 1206. After the collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols returned to their earlier pattern of constant internal conflict and occasional raids on the Chinese borderlands. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Mongolia came under the influence of Tibetan Buddhism. At the end of the 17th century, all of Mongolia had been incorporated into the area ruled by the Qing Dynasty. During the collapse of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, Mongolia declared independence, but had to struggle until 1921 to firmly establish de facto independence from the Republic of China, and until 1945 to gain international recognition.
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Singapore
Singapore (i/ˈsɪŋəpɔər/ SI-ngə-pohr), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, 137 kilometres (85 mi) north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the Singapore Strait to its south. Singapore is highly urbanised but almost half of the country is covered by greenery. More land is being created for development through land reclamation.
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Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (i/ʃriː ˈlɑːŋkə/, /sriːˈlɑːŋkə/, or /sriːˈlæŋkə/;Sinhala: ශ්රී ලංකාව, Tamil: இலங்கை), is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent in South Asia. Known until 1972 as Ceylon ( /sɨˈlɒn/, /seɪˈlɒn/, or /siːˈlɒn/), Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar, the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the Maldives.
As a result of its location in the path of major sea routes, Sri Lanka is a strategic naval link between West Asia and South East Asia. It was an important stop on the ancient Silk Road. Sri Lanka has also been a center of the Buddhist religion and culture from ancient times, being the nation where the Buddhist teachings were first written down as well as the oldest continually Buddhist country. Sri Lanka boasts a diverse range of cultures, languages and religions. The Sinhalese people form the majority of the population; Tamils, who are concentrated in the north and east of the island, form the largest ethnic minority. Other communities include Moors, Burghers, Kaffirs, Malays and the aboriginal Vedda people.
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Taiwan
Taiwan (i/ˌtaɪˈwɑːn/ TY-WAHN; Chinese: 臺灣 or 台灣; pinyin: Táiwān; see below), officially the Republic of China (ROC; Chinese: 中華民國; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó), is a state in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China now governs the island of Taiwan (formerly known as Formosa), which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and other minor islands. Neighboring states include the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east and northeast, and the Philippines to the south. Taipei is the capital city and economic and cultural centre of the country, and New Taipei is the most populous city.
The earliest evidence of inhabitation of Taiwan dates back to the late Paleolithic era. The island of Taiwan was mainly inhabited by Taiwanese aborigines before being colonized in the 17th century by the Dutch and the Spanish Empire. The first Han Chinese polity on Taiwan began when Koxinga's troops defeated Dutch forces and established the Kingdom of Tungning. The island was subsequently ruled by the Qing Dynasty after the kingdom's defeat in the Battle of Penghu in 1683, a period that lasted for over 200 years. Following Japan's victory over the Qing Dynasty in the first Sino-Japanese war, Taiwan was ceded to Japan under the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895.
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Tripitaka Koreana
The Tripitaka Koreana (lit. Goryeo Tripitaka) or Palman Daejanggyeong ("Eighty-Thousand Tripitaka") is a Korean collection of the Tripitaka (Buddhist scriptures, and the Sanskrit word for "three baskets"), carved onto 81,258 wooden printing blocks in the 13th century. It is the world's most comprehensive and oldest intact version of Buddhist canon in Hanja script, with no known errors or errata in the 52,382,960 characters which are organized in over 1496 titles and 6568 volumes. Each wood block measures 70 centimeters in width and 24 centimeters in length. The thickness of the blocks range from 2.6 to 4 centimeters and each weighs about three to four kilograms. The work is stored in Haeinsa, a Buddhist temple in South Gyeongsang province, in South Korea.
The name "Goryeo Tripitaka" comes from "Goryeo", the name of Korea from the 10th to the 14th centuries. It served as reference for the edition of the Chinese Buddhist canon.
The Tripitaka Koreana was first carved in 1087 during the Third Goryeo-Khitan War. The act of carving the woodblocks was considered to be a way of bringing about a change in fortune by invoking the Buddha's help.
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Varanasi
Varanasi Hindustani pronunciation: [ʋaːˈraːɳəsi] ( listen)), also commonly known as Banaras or Benaras (Banāras [bəˈnaːrəs] ( listen)) and Kashi, Kāśī [ˈkaːʃi] ( listen)), is a city situated on the banks of the River Ganges in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, 320 kilometres (199 mi) southeast of state capital Lucknow. It is regarded as a holy city by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the oldest in India.
The Kashi Naresh (Maharaja of Kashi) is the chief cultural patron of Varanasi and an essential part of all religious celebrations. The culture of Varanasi is closely associated with the River Ganges and the river's religious importance. The city has been a cultural and religious centre in North India for several thousand years. The Benares Gharana form of the Indian classical music developed in Varanasi, and many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers, and musicians resided or reside in Varanasi. Gautama Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath located near Varanasi (Kashi).
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Vietnam
Vietnam ( listen), formally the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Cộng hòa xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam; listen), is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With an estimated 91.5 million inhabitants as of 2012, it is the world's 13th-most-populous country, and the eighth-most-populous Asian country. The name Vietnam translates as "South Viet", and was officially adopted in 1945. The country is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east.
The Vietnamese became independent from Imperial China in 938 AD, following the Battle of Bạch Đằng River. Successive Vietnamese royal dynasties flourished as the nation expanded geographically and politically into Southeast Asia, until the Indochina Peninsula was colonized by the French in the mid-19th century. The First Indochina War eventually led to the expulsion of the French in 1954, leaving Vietnam divided politically into two states, North and South Vietnam. Conflict between the two sides intensified, with heavy foreign intervention, during the Vietnam War, which ended with a North Vietnamese victory in 1975.
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Ahl-e Haqq
The Ahl-e Haqq or Yârsân (Kurdish: یارسان Yâresân,Persian: اهل حق Ahl-e Haqq "People of Truth"), are members of a religion founded by Sultan Sahak in the late 14th century in western Iran. The total number of members is estimated at around 1,000,000, primarily found in western Iran and Iraq, mostly ethnic Kurds, though there are also smaller groups of Persian, Luri, Azeri and Arab adherents. Some Yârsânî in Iraq are called Kaka'i.
The Yârsân have a distinct religious literature primarily written in Gorani and partly in Persian, although few modern Yâresânî can speak or read Gorani, as their mother tongues are Gorani and Soranî. The Sarl living near Eski Kalak are adherents, as Edmonds (1957: 195) surmised and Moosa (1988: 168) observed. Their central religious book is called as Kalâm-e Saranjâm, written in the 15th century based on the teachings of Sultan Sahak.
Up to the 20th century, the Yârsânî faith was strictly for Kurds who were born into it, called checkedea ("a drop of"), as opposed to individuals who married into a Yârsânî family, called chasbedea ("attached"). Adherents today are mainly found among the Kurdish tribes of the Guran, Qalkhani, Bajalani and Sanjabi, located in western Iran, forming approximately a third of the population in the religiously diverse province of Kermanshah. There are some groups located around Kirkuk in Iraq. The Arabic-speaking adherents are based in the Iraqi cities of Mandali, Baquba, and Khanaqin. According to Encyclopædia Britannica, "The chief source of information about the Ahl-e Haqq is the Firqan al-Akhbar, written in... early 20th century by Hajj Nematollah"
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Ananda
Ānanda was one of the principal disciples and a devout attendant of the Buddha. Amongst the Buddha's many disciples, Ānanda had the most retentive memory and most of the suttas in the Sutta Pitaka are attributed to his recollection of the Buddha's teachings during the First Buddhist Council. For that, he was known as the Guardian of the Dharma.
According to the Buddha every Buddha in the past and to come will have two chief disciples and one attendant during his ministry. In the case of Gautama Buddha the pair of disciples were Sariputta and Mahamoggallana and the attendant Ānanda.
The word 'Ānanda' means 'bliss' in Pali, Sanskrit as well as other Indian languages. It is a popular Buddhist and Hindu name, but popular also among Muslims in Indonesia.
In the Kannakatthala Sutta (MN 90), Ananda is identified with the meaning of his name:
Ānanda was the first cousin of the Buddha by their fathers, and was devoted to him. In the twentieth year of the Buddha's ministry, he became the Buddha's personal attendant, accompanying him on most of his wanderings and taking the part of interlocutor in many of the recorded dialogues. He is the subject of a special panegyric delivered by the Buddha just before the Buddha's Parinibbana (the Mahaparinibbana Sutta (DN 16)); it is a panegyric for a man who is kindly, unselfish, popular, and thoughtful toward others.
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Asanga
Asaṅga (Sanskrit: असङ्ग; Tibetan: ཐོགས་མེད།; Wylie: Thogs med; traditional Chinese: 無著; pinyin: Wúzhuó; Romaji: Mujaku) was a major exponent of the Yogācāra tradition in India, also called Vijñānavāda. Traditionally, he and his half-brother Vasubandhu are regarded as the founders of this school. The two half-brothers were also major exponents of Abhidharma teachings, which were highly technical and sophisticated hermeneutics as well.
Asaṅga was born as the son of a Kshatriya father and Brahmin mother in Purushapura (present day Peshawar in Pakistan), which at that time was part of the ancient kingdom of Gandhāra. Current scholarship places him in in the fourth century CE. He was perhaps originally a member of the Mahīśāsaka school or the Mūlasarvāstivāda school but later converted to Mahāyāna.
In the record of his journeys through the kingdoms of India, Xuanzang wrote that Asaṅga was initially a Mahīśāsaka monk, but soon turned toward the Mahāyāna teachings. Asaṅga had a half-brother, Vasubandhu, who was a monk from the Sarvāstivāda school. Vasubandhu is said to have taken up Mahāyāna Buddhism after meeting with Asaṅga and one of Asaṅga's disciples.
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Ashoka the Great
Ashoka (Devanāgarī: अशोक, IAST: Aśoka, IPA: [aˈɕoːkə], ca. 304–232 BC), also known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests. His empire stretched from present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan in the west, to the present-day Bangladesh and the Indian state of Assam in the east, and as far south as northern Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. He conquered the kingdom named Kalinga, which none of his ancestors had conquered starting from Chandragupta Maurya. His reign was headquartered in Magadha (present-day Bihar). He embraced Buddhism after witnessing the mass deaths of the Kalinga War, which he himself had waged out of a desire for conquest. He was later dedicated to the propagation of Buddhism across Asia and established monuments marking several significant sites in the life of Gautama Buddha. Ashoka was a devotee of ahimsa (nonviolence), love, truth, tolerance and vegetarianism. Ashoka is remembered in history as a philanthropic administrator. In the history of India, Ashoka is referred to as Samraat Chakravartin Ashoka – the "Emperor of Emperors Ashoka".
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Atisha
Atiśa Dipankara Shrijnana (Bengali: অতীশ দীপঙ্কর শ্রীজ্ঞান Ôtish Dipôngkor Srigên, IAST: Dīpaṃkara- śrījñiāna Atiśa; Chinese: 燃燈吉祥智; pinyin: Rándēng Jíxiángzhì) (980–1054 CE) was a Buddhist teacher from the Pala Empire who, along with Konchog Gyalpo and Marpa, was one of the major figures in the establishment of the Sarma lineages in Tibet after the repression of Buddhism by King Langdarma (Glang Darma).
Atisha is most commonly said to have been born in the year 980 in Vajrayogini village[citation needed] in Bikrampur, the northeastern region of Bengal (located in modern day Bangladesh). His homestead in the village is still known to the local people as the "Ponditer bhita" (the homestead of the Pundit - a learned man). The exact years of his birth and death are widely disputed. Some sources indicate that Atisha was born in 982 and died in 1054, while more recent studies contend that his life began in 980 and ended in 1052.[citation needed] In any case, it is unanimously recognised that Atisha lived to the age of seventy-two. It is noteworthy that, while no direct connections can be made to the birth of Atisha, the year 980 also saw a major power shift in Bengali politics as the resurgent Pala dynasty seized control of the region, disposing of the incumbent Kamboja rulers. Atisha was allegedly born into royalty, and it would be intriguing to know whether his royal status stemmed from one of these two contemporaneous contending powers.
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Bodhidharma
Bodhidharma was a Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th/6th century CE. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Ch'an (Sanskrit: Dhyāna, Japanese: Zen) to China, and regarded as the first Chinese patriarch. According to Chinese legend, he also began the physical training of the Shaolin monks that led to the creation of Shaolinquan.
Little contemporary biographical information on Bodhidharma is extant, and subsequent accounts became layered with legend. There are three principal sources for Bodhidharma's biography: Yáng Xuànzhī's (Yang Hsüan-chih) The Record of the Buddhist Monasteries of Luoyang (547), Tánlín's preface to the Two Entrances and Four Acts (6th century CE), and Dàoxuān's (Tao-hsuan) Further Biographies of Eminent Monks (7th century CE).
These sources vary on their account of Bodhidharma being either "from Persia" (547 CE), "a Brahman monk from South India" (645 CE), "the third son of a Brahman king of South India" (ca. 715 CE).Some traditions specifically describe Bodhidharma to be the third son of a Tamil Pallava king from Kanchipuram.
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Buddhaghosa
Bhadantācariya Buddhaghoṣa（Thai: พระพุทธโฆษาจารย์, Chinese: 覺音）was a 5th-century Indian Theravadin Buddhist commentator and scholar. His best-known work is the Visuddhimagga, or Path of Purification, a comprehensive summary and analysis of the Theravada understanding of the Buddha's path to liberation. The interpretations provided by Buddhaghosa have generally constituted the orthodox understanding of Theravada scriptures since at least the 12th century CE. He is generally recognized by both Western scholars and Theravadins as the most important commentator of the Theravada.
Limited reliable information is available about the life of Buddhaghosa. Three primary sources of information exist: short prologues and epilogues attached to Buddhaghosa's works; details of his life recorded in the Mahavamsa, a Sri Lankan chronicle; and a later biographical work called the Buddhaghosuppatti. A few other sources discuss the life of Buddhaghosa, but do not appear to add any reliable material. His name means "Reverend Teacher" (Bhadanta+ācariya) and "Voice of the Buddha" (Buddha+ghosa) in Pali.
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Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy indigenous to the Indian subcontinent and encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs, and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha (meaning "the awakened one" in Sanskrit and Pāli). The Buddha lived and taught in the eastern part of Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE. He is recognized by Buddhists as an awakened or enlightened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end ignorance (avidyā), craving (taṇhā), and suffering (dukkha), by recognizing dependent origination and sunyata, and attain Nirvana.
Two major branches of Buddhism are recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada has a widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. Mahayana is found throughout East Asia and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, Tiantai (Tendai) and Shinnyo-en. In some classifications, Vajrayana—practiced mainly in Tibet and Mongolia, and adjacent parts of China and Russia—is recognized as a third branch, while others classify it as a part of Mahayana. There are other categorisations of these three Vehicles or Yanas.
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China
China (i/ˈtʃaɪnə/; Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó; see also Names of China), officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is the world's most-populous country, with a population of over 1.3 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometres, the East Asian state is the world's second-largest country by land area, and the third- or fourth-largest in total area, depending on the definition of total area.
The People's Republic of China is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party of China. It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directly controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau). Its capital city is Beijing. The PRC also claims Taiwan—which is controlled by the Republic of China (ROC), a separate political entity—as its 23rd province, a claim controversial due to the complex political status of Taiwan and the unresolved Chinese Civil War. The PRC government denies the legitimacy of the ROC.
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Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Sino-Mongolian word далай (dalai) meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word བླ་མ་ bla-ma (with a silent "b") meaning "chief, high priest".
In religious terms, the Dalai Lama is believed by his devotees to be the rebirth of a long line of tulkus who are considered to be manifestations of the bodhisattva of compassion, Avalokiteśvara. Traditionally, the Dalai Lama is thought of as the latest reincarnation of a series of spiritual leaders who have chosen to be reborn in order to enlighten others. The Dalai Lama is often thought to be the leader of the Gelug School, but this position belongs officially to the Ganden Tripa, which is a temporary position appointed by the Dalai Lama who, in practice, exerts much influence. The line of Dalai Lamas began as a lineage of spiritual teachers; the 5th Dalai Lama assumed political authority over Tibet.
For certain periods between the 17th century and 1959, the Dalai Lamas sometimes directed the Tibetan government, which administered portions of Tibet from Lhasa. The 14th Dalai Lama remained the head of state for the Central Tibetan Administration ("Tibetan government in exile") until his retirement on March 14, 2011. He has indicated that the institution of the Dalai Lama may be abolished in the future, and also that the next Dalai Lama may be found outside Tibet and may be female. The Chinese government was very quick to reject this and claimed that only it has the authority to select the next Dalai Lama.
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Gandhara
Gandhāra (Sanskrit: गन्धार Gandḥārā, Urdu: گندھارا Ghandhāra, Pashto: ګندارا, Punjabi: گندھارا, Persian: ویهیند) is the name of an ancient kingdom (Mahajanapada), located in modern day northern Pakistan and parts of eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau (see Taxila) and on the Kabul River. Its main cities were Purushapura (modern Peshawar), literally meaning "City of Man", Varmayana (modern Bamyan) and Takshashila (modern Taxila).
The Kingdom of Gandhara lasted from the early 1st millennium BC to the 11th century AD. It attained its height from the 1st century to the 5th century under the Buddhist Kushan Kings. The Hindu term Shahi is used by history writer Al-Biruni to refer to the ruling Hindu dynasty that took over from the Turki Shahi and ruled the region during the period prior to Muslim conquests of the 10th and 11th centuries. After it was conquered by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1021 CE, the name Gandhara disappeared. During the Muslim period the area was administered from Lahore or from Kabul. During Mughal times the area was part of Kabul province.
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Gautam Buddha
Gautama Buddha or Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम बुद्ध; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. The word Buddha is a title for the first awakened being in an era. In most Buddhist traditions, Siddhartha Gautama is regarded as the Supreme Buddha (P. sammāsambuddha, S. samyaksaṃbuddha) of our age, "Buddha" meaning "awakened one" or "the enlightened one." Gautama Buddha may also be referred to as Śākyamuni (Sanskrit: शाक्यमुनि "Sage of the Śākyas"). The Buddha found a Middle Way that ameliorated the extreme asceticism found in the Sramana religions.
The time of Gautama's birth and death are uncertain: most early 20th-century historians dated his lifetime as c. 563 BCE to 483 BCE, but more recent opinion dates his death to between 486 and 483 BCE or, according to some, between 411 and 400 BCE. UNESCO lists Lumbini, Nepal, as a world heritage site and birthplace of Gautama Buddha. There are also claims about birth place of Gautama Buddha to be Kapileswara, Orissa or Kapilavastu at Piprahwa, Uttar Pradesh He later taught throughout regions of eastern India such as Magadha and Kośala.
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Gautama Buddha
Gautama Buddha or Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम बुद्ध; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. The word Buddha is a title for the first awakened being in an era. In most Buddhist traditions, Siddhartha Gautama is regarded as the Supreme Buddha (P. sammāsambuddha, S. samyaksaṃbuddha) of our age, "Buddha" meaning "awakened one" or "the enlightened one." Gautama Buddha may also be referred to as Śākyamuni (Sanskrit: शाक्यमुनि "Sage of the Śākyas"). The Buddha found a Middle Way that ameliorated the extreme asceticism found in the Sramana religions.
The time of Gautama's birth and death are uncertain: most early 20th-century historians dated his lifetime as c. 563 BCE to 483 BCE, but more recent opinion dates his death to between 486 and 483 BCE or, according to some, between 411 and 400 BCE. UNESCO lists Lumbini, Nepal, as a world heritage site and birthplace of Gautama Buddha. There are also claims about birth place of Gautama Buddha to be Kapileswara, Orissa or Kapilavastu at Piprahwa, Uttar Pradesh He later taught throughout regions of eastern India such as Magadha and Kośala.
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Huvishka
Huvishka (Kushan: Οοηϸκι, "Ooishki") was a Kushan emperor from the death of Kanishka (assumed on the best evidence available to be in 140 CE) until the succession of Vasudeva I about forty years later. His rule was a period of retrenchment and consolidation for the Empire. In particular he devoted time and effort early in his reign to the exertion of greater control over the city of Mathura. Mathura represented the southernmost extent of the Empire and, like much of the Indian Subcontinent, had been ruled via a series of subordinate rulers. These rulers, the ksatraps, maintained a certain amount of autonomy up under Kanishka, but they vanish from records in Huvishka's reign, while Huvishka patronised both Buddhist and Brahmin institutions in the town.
Huvishka was the son of Kanishka.. Huvishka was the first indian emperor who introduced golden coins. His reign also known as the golden age of kushan rule. The reign of Huvishka corresponds to the first known epigraphic evidence of the Buddha Amitabha, on the bottom part of a 2nd century statue which has been found in Govindo-Nagar, and now at the Mathura Museum. The statue is dated to "the 28th year of the reign of Huvishka", and dedicated to "Amitabha Buddha" by a family of merchants.
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Katyayana (Buddhist)
Katyayana was a disciple of Gautama Buddha.
Katyayana, also known as Kaccana (or Kaccayana), Mahakatyayana, Mahakaccana and in Japanese as Kasennen, is one of the "Ten Disciples of the Buddha". [(1) Mahakashyapa, 2) Ananda, 3) Shariputra, 4) Subhuti, 5) Purna, 6) Mahamaudgalyayana, 7) Maha Katyayana, 8) Aniruddha, 9) Upali and 10) Rahula.] He was foremost in explaining Dharma. He was born in a brahmin family at Ujjayini (Ujjain) and received a classical Brahminical education studying the Vedas. Katyayana studied assiduously under Asita on Mount Vindhya, who had predicted that Prince Siddharta would become either a cakravartin, a great worldly ruler, or a Buddha. With a group of seven friends he invited the Buddha to visit, and gained enlightenment (bodhi) while listening to him preach. He was ordained, and made numerous converts in the state of Avanti.
Tradition attributes the authorship to Katyayana of the Nettipakarana, a work of grammar, and the Petakopadesa, a treatise on exegetical methodology, although these were most probably composed by a school descended from him.
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Khema
Khema was one of the two chief female disciples of Buddha (the other being Uppalavanna).
The name Khema means well-composed and she was quite beautiful. The nun belonged to the royal family of Magadha and was one of the chief queens of King Bimbisara.
She did not want to meet the Buddha as she knew he did not care much about beauty, and she was very self conscious about hers. She heard about the Buddha from her husband who encouraged her to hear his sermons and told her how beautiful Buddha's monastery was. Very interested in seeing beautiful things, decked out in royal splendor, she went to the monastery of Lord Buddha. There Buddha saw her approaching and created an exceptionally beautiful maiden by his side, whose beauty surpassed her own. Khema was captivated, seeing this, Buddha slowly aged the maiden :
Khema was finally willing to listen to Buddha, after his sermons, she attained full enlightenment, she became an arahant. With her husband's permission, she joined the order of nuns.
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Lokaksema
Lokakṣema (Ch: 支婁迦讖 Zhī Lóujiāchèn, sometimes abbreviated 支讖 Zhī Chèn), born around 147 CE, was the earliest known Buddhist monk to have translated Mahayana sutras into the Chinese language and as such was an important figure in Buddhism in China. The name Lokakṣema means 'welfare of the world' in Sanskrit.
Lokaksema was a Kushan of Yuezhi ethnicity from Gandhara. His ethnicity is described in his adopted Chinese name by the prefix Zhi (Chinese: 支), abbreviation of Yuezhi (Chinese: 月支). As a Yuezhi, his native tongue was one of the Tocharian languages, an Indo-European language group.
He was born in Gandhara (presently known as a center of Greco-Buddhist art) at a time when Buddhism was actively sponsored by the Kushan Emperor Kanishka, who convened the Fourth Buddhist Council. The proceedings of this Council actually oversaw the formal split of Nikaya Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism. It would seem that Kanishka was not ill-disposed towards Mahayana Buddhism, opening the way for missionary activities in China by monks such as Lokaksema.
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Mahapajapati Gotami
Mahāpajābatī Gotamī (in Pali; Mahāprajābatī Gautamī in Sanskrit) was the first woman to request ordination from the Buddha and to join the Saṅgha. Mayadevi and Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī were the Koliyan Princess and was sisters of Suprabuddha . She was both the Buddha's maternal aunt and adoptive mother, raising him after her sister, Queen Maya (Mahāmāyā), the Buddha's birth mother, died.
An eminent Therī, Mahāprajāpatī was born at Devadaha, in the family of Suppabuddha, as the younger sister of Mahāmāyā. Mahāprajāpatī was so called because, at her birth, augurs prophesied that she would have a large following. Both sisters married King Śuddhodana, leader of the Śākya. When Mahāmāyā died, seven days after the birth of the Buddha, Pajāpati looked after the Buddha and nursed him. She raised the Buddha and had her own children, Siddhartha's half-brother Nanda and half-sister Sundari Nanda, but it is said that she gave her own children to nurses and herself nursed the Buddha.
When her sister, Queen Maya, died, Mahapajapati Gotami decided to attain Ordination. Mahapajapati Gotami went to the Buddha and asked to be ordained into the Sangha. The Buddha refused and went on to Vesāli. Undaunted, Gotami cut off her hair and donned yellow robes and with a large number of Sakyan ladies followed the Buddha to Vesāli on foot. Upon arrival, she repeated her request to be ordained. Ananda, one of the principal disciples and an attendant of the Buddha, met her and offered to intercede with the Buddha on her behalf.
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Mahākāśyapa
Mahākāśyapa (Sanskrit; Pali: Mahākassapa; Japanese: Maha Kasho or Makakasho) or Kāśyapa was a brahman of Magadha, who became one of the principal disciples of Śākyamuni Buddha and who convened and directed the first council. Mahākāśyapa is one of the most revered of the Buddha's early disciples, foremost in ascetic practices. He is often depicted in statuary together with Ananda, each standing to one side of the Buddha.
Zen purports to lead its adherents to insights akin to that mentioned by Śākyamuni Buddha in his Flower Sermon in which he held up a white flower and just admired it in his hand. Mahākāśyapa smiled faintly, and Śākyamuni Buddha picked that disciple as one who truly understood him and who was worthy to be his successor.
The words of the Śākyamuni Buddha addressed to Mahākāśyapa are described below:
I possess the true Dharma eye, the marvelous mind of Nirvana, the true form of the formless, the subtle dharma gate that does not rest on words or letters but is a special transmission outside of the scriptures. This I entrust to Mahākāśyapa.
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Mandaeism
Mandaeism or Mandaeanism (Modern Mandaic: Mandaʻiūtā (מנדעיותא); Arabic: مندائية Mandāʼīyah/Mandāʾiyyah; Persian: مندائیان Mandâ'iyân) is a gnostic religion[citation needed] (Aramaic manda means "knowledge", as does Greek gnosis) with a strongly dualistic worldview.
Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, Seth, Enosh, Noah, Shem, Aram and especially John the Baptist, but reject Jesus of Nazareth and are hostile to Christianity. They are sometimes identified with mentions in the Quran of the Sabian religion, particularly in an Arabian context, but the Sabian religious community is extinct today.
According to most scholars, Mandaeans migrated from the Southern Levant to Mesopotamia in the first centuries CE and are certainly of pre-Arab and pre-Islamic origin. They are Semites and speak a dialect of Eastern Aramaic known as Mandaic. They may well be related to the "Nabateans of Iraq" who were pagan, Aramaic speaking indigenous pre-Arab and pre-Islamic inhabitants of southern Iraq.
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Manichaeism
Manichaeism ( /ˈmænɨkiːɪzəm/; in Modern Persian آیین مانی Āyin e Māni; Chinese: 摩尼教; pinyin: Móní Jiào) was a major gnostic religion, originating in Sassanid era Babylonia. Although most of the original writings of the founding prophet Mani (in Persian: مانی, Syriac: ܡܐܢܝ, Latin: Manichaeus or Manes) (c. 216–276 CE) have been lost, numerous translations and fragmentary texts have survived.
Manichaeism taught an elaborate cosmology describing the struggle between a good, spiritual world of light, and an evil, material world of darkness. Through an ongoing process which takes place in human history, light is gradually removed from the world of matter and returned to the world of light from which it came. Its beliefs, based on local Mesopotamian gnostic and religious movements, contained elements of Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Buddhism.
Manichaeism thrived between the third and seventh centuries, and at its height was one of the most widespread religions in the world. Manichaean churches and scriptures existed as far east as China and as far west as the Roman Empire. It was widespread among the legions of the Roman Empire, who considered it a soldier's religion, and it was briefly the main rival to Christianity in the competition to replace classical paganism. Manichaeism survived longer in the East than in the West, and it appears to have finally faded away after the 14th century in southern China, contemporary to the decline in China of the Church of the East – see Ming Dynasty.
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Mazdak
Mazdak (in Persian مزدک) (died c. 524 or 528) was a proto-socialistPersian reformer and religious activist who gained influence under the reign of the Sassanian Shahanshah Kavadh I. He claimed to be a prophet of God, and instituted communal possessions and social welfare programs.
Mazdak was the chief representative of a religious and philosophical teaching called Mazdakism, which he viewed as a reformed and purified version of Zoroastrianism, although his teaching has been argued to display influences from Manichaeism as well. Zoroastrianism was the dominant religion of Sassanid Persia, and Mazdak himself was a Zoroastrian priest, or mobed, but most of the Zoroastrian clergy regarded his teaching as a heresy. Information about it is scarce and little is known beyond what is listed below; some further details may be inferred from the later doctrine of Khurramism, which has been seen as a continuation of Mazdakism.
Some sources claim that the original founders of this sect lived earlier than Mazdak. These were another mobed named Zardusht (of the same name, but not the same person as the founder of Zoroastrianism) and/or a Zoroastrian philosopher known as Mazdak the Elder, who taught a combination of altruism and hedonism: "he directed his followers to enjoy the pleasures of life and satisfy their appetite in the highest degree with regard to eating and drinking in the spirit of equality,to aim at good deeds; to abstain from shedding blood and inflicting harm on others; and to practice hospitality without reservation". This doctrine was further developed by the best known Mazdak, Mazdak the Younger, son of Bāmdād. At later stages the opposition to Mazdak blamed them for heresy and sharing women etc. which is not true. They are considered to be the first real socialists of human history who emphasized the community work and benefits for all.
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Moggallana
This article incorporates text from the Dictionary of Pali Proper Names by G. P. Malalasekera, a publication now in the public domain.
Maudgalyāyana (Pali: Moggallāna; Chinese: 目連; pinyin: Mùlián; Japanese: 目犍連, Mokuren or Mokkenren), also known as Mahāmaudgalyāyana or Mahāmoggallāna, was one of the Śākyamuni Buddha's closest disciples. A contemporary of famous arhats such as Subhūti, Śāriputra, and Mahākāśyapa, he is considered the second of the Buddha's two foremost disciples (foremost in supernatural powers), together with Śāriputra. He was born in a Brahmin family of Kolita.
Maudgalyāyana was the most accomplished of all the Buddha's disciples in the various supernormal powers that could be developed through meditation. These abilities included being able to use mind-reading for such things as detecting lies from truths, transporting himself from his body into the various realms of existence, and speaking with ghosts and gods. He is traditionally attributed with the ability to do such things as walking through walls, walking on water, flying through the air, and moving with a speed comparable to the speed of light.[citation needed]
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Nagarjuna
Acharya Nāgārjuna (Devanagari:नागार्जुन, Telugu: నాగార్జున, Tibetan: ཀླུ་སྒྲུབ་ klu sgrub, Chinese: 龍樹, Sinhala නාගර්පුන) (ca. 150–250 CE) was an important Buddhist teacher and philosopher. Along with his disciple Āryadeva, he is credited with founding the Mādhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. The Mādhyamaka school was in turn transmitted to China under the name of the Sānlùn School (Ch. 三論宗, "Three Treatise School").
Nāgārjuna is sometimes credited with developing the philosophy of the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, and being associated with the Buddhist university of Nālandā. In the Jodo Shinshu and Shingon schools of Buddhism in Japan he is considered the First Patriarch. In some Mahāyāna traditions, Nāgārjuna is regarded as a second buddha.
According to most available accounts, Nāgārjuna was originally from Southern India. Archaeological discoveries at Amarāvatī confirm the fact that Nāgārjuna maintained a friendship with the Sātavāhana king Gautamīputra Śātakarṇi, to whom he addressed his Letter to a Friend (Skt. Sahṛd-lekhā). On this basis, Nāgārjuna is conventionally placed at around 150–250 CE.
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Nanda (Buddhist)
Prince Nanda was the younger half-brother of the Buddha. He shared the same father as the Buddha, King Śuddhodana and his mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, was the Buddha's mother's younger sister.
It was seven years after his Enlightenment that the Buddha, at the request of his father, who missed him dearly, returned to his home city of Kapilavatthu.
On the third day of his return, the Buddha, after partaking of his meal, silently handed his bowl to Nanda, rose and exited. Thinking that the Buddha would take his bowl back, Nanda followed him until he reached the Park of Nigrodha, where the Buddha was staying. This was the Buddha's silent demonstration of the Dhamma to his younger brother: a scene which is often represented in Greco-Buddhist art.
When they arrived at the Park, the Buddha questioned Nanda regarding whether he might become a Monk. Although Nanda had just wedded the beautiful Janapada Kalyāni ,, that same day, he took ordination and joined the community of Monks.
However, Nanda enjoyed no spiritual happiness. His thoughts were constantly directed towards to Janapada Kalyāni and his heart pined for her.
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Nichiren
Nichiren (日蓮) (February 16, 1222 – October 13, 1282) was a Buddhist monk who lived during the Kamakura period (1185–1333) in Japan. Nichiren taught devotion to the Lotus Sutra, entitled Myōhō-Renge-Kyō in Japanese, as the exclusive means to attain enlightenment and the chanting of Nam-Myōhō-Renge-Kyō as the essential practice of the teaching. Nichiren Buddhism includes various schools with diverging interpretations of Nichiren's teachings. While virtually all Nichiren Buddhist schools regard him as a reincarnation of the Lotus Sutra's Bodhisattva Superior Practices, Jōgyō Bosatsu (上行菩薩), some schools of Nichiren Buddhism's Nikkō lineages regard him as the actual Buddha of this age, or the Buddha of the Latter day of the Law.
Nichiren was born on February 16, 1222 in the village of Kominato, Nagase District, Awa Province (within present-day Chiba Prefecture). Nichiren's father was Mikuni-no-Tayu Shigetada, also known as Nukina Shigetada Jiro (d. 1258) and his mother was Umegiku-nyo (d. 1267). On his birth, his parents named him Zennichimaro (善日麿?) which has variously been translated into English as "Splendid Sun" and "Virtuous Sun Boy" among others. The exact site of Nichiren's birth is believed to be submerged off the shore from present-day Kominato-zan Tanjō-ji (小湊山 誕生寺), a temple in Kominato that commemorates Nichiren's birth. In his own words about his birth, Nichiren stated that he was "the son of a chandala family who lived near the sea in Tojo in Awa Province, in the remote countryside of the eastern part of Japan."
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Nichiren Buddhism
Nichiren Buddhism (日蓮系諸宗派: Nichiren-kei sho shūha) is a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th century Japanese monk Nichiren (1222–1282). Various forms of Nichiren Buddhism have had great influence among certain sections of Japanese society at different times in the country's history, such as among the merchants of Kyoto in Japan's Middle Ages and among some ultranationalists during the pre-World War II era. Nichiren Buddhism is generally noted for its focus on the Lotus Sutra and an attendant belief that all people have an innate Buddha nature and are therefore inherently capable of attaining enlightenment in their current form and present lifetime. It is also noted for positioning itself in opposition to other forms of Japanese Buddhism—in particular the Zen, Pure Land, esoteric, and Ritsu schools, which Nichiren saw as deviating from the orthodoxy of Mahayana Buddhism. Nichiren Buddhism is a comprehensive term covering several major schools and many sub-schools, as well as several of Japan's new religions. Nichiren Buddhists believe that the spread of Nichiren's teachings and their effect on practitioners' lives will eventually bring about a peaceful, just, and prosperous society.
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Paul Carus
Paul Carus, Ph.D. (18 July 1852 – 11 February 1919) was a German-American author, editor, a student of comparative religion, and professor of philosophy.
Carus was born at Ilsenburg, Germany, and educated at the universities of Strassburg, France and Tübingen, Germany. After obtaining his Ph.D. from Tübingen in 1876 he served in the army and then taught school. He had been raised in a pious and orthodox Protestant home, but gradually moved away from this tradition.
He left Bismarck's Germany for the United States, "because of his liberal views". After he immigrated to the USA (in 1884) he lived in Chicago, and in LaSalle, Illinois. Paul Carus married Edward C. Hegeler's daughter Mary (Marie) and the couple later moved into the Hegeler Carus Mansion, built by her father. They had six children.
In the United States, Carus briefly edited a German-language journal and wrote several articles for the Index, the Free Religious Association organ.
Soon after, he became the first managing editor of the Open Court Publishing Company, founded in 1887 by his father-in-law. The goals of Open Court were to provide a forum for the discussion of philosophy, science, and religion, and to make philosophical classics widely available by making them affordable.
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Punna
Purna Maitrayani-putra, also called Puṇṇa, was an arahant and one of the ten leading disciples of the Buddha.
When asked by the Buddha what he would think if people were to assault or kill him, each time Puṇṇa explained how he would find himself fortunate. As a result, the Buddha commended Puṇṇa on his self-control and peacefulness. Puṇṇa went on to establish a thousand lay followers in the Buddha's teaching. Upon Puṇṇa's death, the Buddha discerned that Puṇṇa had attained final Nibbana.
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Rāhula
Rāhula (born c. 534 BC) was the only son of Siddhartha Gautama (Pāli Siddhattha Gotama), later known as the Buddha, and his wife Princess Yasodharā.
Accounts of his life differ in certain points. The following is that given in the Pāli Canon.
Prince Siddhartha was preparing himself to leave the palace. One account claims that when he received the news of his son's birth he replied Rāhu jāto, bandhanam jātam — "A rāhu is born, a fetter has arisen." Accordingly the child was named Rāhula, meaning "fetter", or "impediment", recognizing that the child could be a tie that bound him to his wife Yashodhara, a binding that may impede a search for enlightenment. Others, however, feel rāhu does not mean "fetter" in this sense. The second account, found in the Mūlasarvāstivāda vinaya, is that Rāhula received his name in accordance with an eclipse of the moon, caused by the snake Rahu.
Supporting the first account, in the Dhammapada, the pleasure and joy that a man receives in his wife and children is called a "soft fetter" that ties individuals to life and suffering, not just through eventual loss and separation of loved ones but more deeply and subtly may act as ties to cyclic existence (samsara).
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Samaritan
The Samaritans (Hebrew: שומרונים Shomronim, Arabic: السامريون as-Sāmariyyūn) are an ethnoreligious group of the Levant. Religiously the Samaritans are adherents of Samaritanism, an Abrahamic religion closely related to Judaism. Based on the Samaritan Torah, Samaritans claim their worship is the true religion of the ancient Israelites prior to the Babylonian Exile, preserved by those who remained in the Land of Israel, as opposed to Judaism, which they assert is a related but altered and amended religion brought back by those returning from exile.
Ancestrally, Samaritans claim descent from a group of Israelite inhabitants from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh (the two sons of Joseph) as well as some descendants from the priestly tribe of Levi, who have connections to ancient Samaria from the period of their entry into the land of Canaan, while some suggest that it was from the beginning of the Babylonian Exile up to the Samaritan Kingdom of Baba Rabba. The Samaritans, however, derive their name not from this geographical designation, but rather from the Hebrew term Shamerim שַמֶרִים, "Keepers [of the Law]".
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Sariputta
Śāriputra (Sanskrit: शारिपुत्र) or Sāriputta (Pāli) was one of two chief male disciples of the Buddha along with Maudgalyayana (Pali: Moggallāna), counterparts to the nuns Khema and Uppalavanna, named the two chief female disciples. He became an Arhat "foremost in wisdom" renowned for his teaching and is depicted in the Theravada tradition as one of the most important disciples of the Buddha.
Śāriputra came from a Brahmin family and had already embarked on life as a spiritual ascetic when he encountered the teachings of the Buddha. Śāriputra had a close friend Mahāmaudgalyāyana (Pāli: Mahāmoggallāna), another wandering ascetic. They both renounced the world on the same day and became disciples of the sceptic Sañjaya Belaṭṭhaputta before converting to Buddhism.
After hearing of the Buddha's teachings from a monk named Assaji (Sanskrit: Asvajit), Śāriputra sought out the Buddha and became an adherent to his teachings. These two are often depicted together with the Buddha, and several sutras regard interactions between Śāriputra and Mahāmaudgalyāyana (who became renowned among the early Buddhists for his mastery of supernatural powers).
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Taiwan
Taiwan (i/ˌtaɪˈwɑːn/ TY-WAHN; Chinese: 臺灣 or 台灣; pinyin: Táiwān; see below), officially the Republic of China (ROC; Chinese: 中華民國; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó), is a state in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China now governs the island of Taiwan (formerly known as Formosa), which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and other minor islands. Neighboring states include the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east and northeast, and the Philippines to the south. Taipei is the capital city and economic and cultural centre of the country, and New Taipei is the most populous city.
The earliest evidence of inhabitation of Taiwan dates back to the late Paleolithic era. The island of Taiwan was mainly inhabited by Taiwanese aborigines before being colonized in the 17th century by the Dutch and the Spanish Empire. The first Han Chinese polity on Taiwan began when Koxinga's troops defeated Dutch forces and established the Kingdom of Tungning. The island was subsequently ruled by the Qing Dynasty after the kingdom's defeat in the Battle of Penghu in 1683, a period that lasted for over 200 years. Following Japan's victory over the Qing Dynasty in the first Sino-Japanese war, Taiwan was ceded to Japan under the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895.
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Upali
Upali (Sanskrit उपालि upāli) was a monk, one of the ten chief disciples of the Buddha. Before joining the order, he worked as a barber. He asked the Buddha if a person of "low birth" such as he could join the order. Buddha ordained him before the princes and asked the princes to pay homage to Upali, who by then had become an Arhant with Buddha's sermons while Buddha was getting a hair cut. He became the chief disciple in knowing the rules of the order and the foremost disciple in keeping precepts.
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Uppalavanna
Uppalavannā (蓮華色比丘尼)was considered to be amongst the two chief female disciples of the Buddha, the other being Khema.
She was the daughter of a wealthy merchant and was known for her great beauty. Her name means "one with the hue of the blue lotus".
She was the daughter of a businessman from Savatthi (Shravasti). She was named Uppalavanna because her complexion was that of a blue lotus. She was so beautiful that when she came of age, powerful and wealthy suitors sent messengers to her father asking for her hand. Not wanting to displease so many people, he suggested that she become a bhikkhuni. She agreed and became a nun. She quickly progressed in meditation and became an Arahant (fully liberated).
Buddha declared her to be the foremost in supernormal powers among the nuns.
Samyutta Nikaya V.5, the Uppalavanna Sutta, is attributed to her:
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Vasubandhu
Vasubandhu (Sanskrit: वसुबन्दु; traditional Chinese: 世親; pinyin: Shìqīn; Tibetan: དབྱིག་གཉེན་, Wylie: dbyig gnyen) (fl. 4th c.) was an Indian Buddhist monk, and along with his half-brother Asanga, one of the main founders of the Indian Yogācāra school. However, some scholars consider Vasubandhu to be two distinct people. Vasubandhu is one of the most influential figures in the entire history of Buddhism. In the Jodo Shinshu branch of Buddhism, he is considered the Second Patriarch. In Zen, he is the 21st Patriarch.
Born a brahmin Vasubandhu was said to have been the half brother of Asanga, another key personage in the founding of the Yogacara School. He was also, as well as his elder half brother Asanga, one of the ‘Six Ornaments’(i.e. six great commentators on the Buddha’s teachings). He resided at Kausambhi (near modern Allahabad) where he was trained in the orthodox Sarvastivada Order of Buddhism, which had its seat at Kausambhi. He was contemporaneous with King Chandragupta I, the father of Samudragupta. This information temporally places this Vasubandhu in the fourth century CE.
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Śuddhodana
King Suddhodana (Sanskrit: Śuddhodana) was the father of Siddhartha Gautama, later known as the Buddha. He was a leader of the Shakya people, who lived in northern India and southern Nepal. Suddhodana's father was Sihahanu. Suddhodana won a battle against his father, thus gaining permission to marry the two sisters of his cousin, Suprabuddha, of the Koliya clan. Suprabuddha in turn married Suddhodana's two sisters. Siddhartha, later Buddha, in turn married his cousin, Yasodhara, daughter of Suprabuddha and his father's sister. Suddhodana's consorts, Mayadevi and Mahaprajapati of Devadaha Kingdom located in southern Nepal and northern India on the bank of the river Anoma, were in turn Buddha's mother, and step-mother.
The sage Asita visited Siddhartha when he was just a baby, and was surprised when the infant prince placed his feet on top of the sage's head. After Asita examined the prince’s feet, he kneeled and paid homage to the infant. King Suddhodana copied his action and said, “Son, this is my first act of obeisance.”. Siddhartha later received his name from the Five Forest Brahmana, Kaundinya, Mahaanaama, Baspa, Asvajita, and Bharika, who later became Buddha's companions during his ascetic practices, and his first five followers after his enlightenment at Bodh Gaaya and his first sermon (Dharmacakraptavatana sutra - Turning of the Wheel of Law) at Sraavastii.
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Alan Watts: Mahayana Buddhism - Pt. 1 of 2
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 14:05
- Updated: 20 Dec 2012
http://wn.com/Alan_Watts_Mahayana_Buddhism_Pt_1_of_2
Nagarjuna: "Founder " of Mahayana Buddhism
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:27
- Updated: 22 Dec 2012
by Paul Kacynski Through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org Perhaps the title overstates the case, but this has been said of the great Madhyamaka scholar who, we are told, brought back the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras from Nagas, hence his name. No more influential thinker exists in Buddhism, apart from the Buddha Siddhartha himself. As he says in his introductory work, the Stanzas on the Root of the Middle Way, he is he claims, merely a commentator on the Buddha's doctrine of "no self". He extends this idea to include all phenomena and as the brilliant expositor of Mahayana tradition, is revered as an ancestor of all the Mahayana schools, from Tibet to Japan. Very nice job, offered in the first person.
http://wn.com/Nagarjuna_Founder_of_Mahayana_Buddhism
by Paul Kacynski Through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org Perhaps the title overstates the case, but this has been said of the great Madhyamaka scholar who, we are told, brought back the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras from Nagas, hence his name. No more influential thinker exists in Buddhism, apart from the Buddha Siddhartha himself. As he says in his introductory work, the Stanzas on the Root of the Middle Way, he is he claims, merely a commentator on the Buddha's doctrine of "no self". He extends this idea to include all phenomena and as the brilliant expositor of Mahayana tradition, is revered as an ancestor of all the Mahayana schools, from Tibet to Japan. Very nice job, offered in the first person.
- published: 17 Jul 2008
- views: 42095
- author: JAMES K POWELL II
Mahayana buddhism
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 55:44
- Updated: 10 Dec 2012
http://wn.com/Mahayana_buddhism
Nagarjuna: "Founder " of Mahayana Buddhism 2010 re-edit
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:18
- Updated: 13 Nov 2012
by Paul Kacynski Through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org Perhaps the title overstates the case, but this has been said of the great Madhyamaka scholar who, we are told, brought back the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras from Nagas, hence his name. No more influential thinker exists in Buddhism, apart from the Buddha Siddhartha himself. As he says in his introductory work, the Stanzas on the Root of the Middle Way, he is he claims, merely a commentator on the Buddha's doctrine of "no self". He extends this idea to include all phenomena and as the brilliant expositor of Mahayana tradition, is revered as an ancestor of all the Mahayana schools, from Tibet to Japan. Very nice job, offered in the first person.
http://wn.com/Nagarjuna_Founder_of_Mahayana_Buddhism_2010_re-edit
by Paul Kacynski Through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org Perhaps the title overstates the case, but this has been said of the great Madhyamaka scholar who, we are told, brought back the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras from Nagas, hence his name. No more influential thinker exists in Buddhism, apart from the Buddha Siddhartha himself. As he says in his introductory work, the Stanzas on the Root of the Middle Way, he is he claims, merely a commentator on the Buddha's doctrine of "no self". He extends this idea to include all phenomena and as the brilliant expositor of Mahayana tradition, is revered as an ancestor of all the Mahayana schools, from Tibet to Japan. Very nice job, offered in the first person.
- published: 24 Dec 2009
- views: 1538
- author: JAMES K POWELL II
Island: Aldous Huxley's Mahayana Buddhist Utopia Pt. 1
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 10:43
- Updated: 09 Dec 2012
by Adam Slavens through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org In this very interesting examination of Aldous Huxley's late work Island, we see the kind of Mahayana Buddhist utopia he seems to have dreamt. Very nice imagery capturing the psychedelic essence of Huxley's dream world, the Mahayana Island in a beautiful climate where humans and animals happily co-abide....
http://wn.com/Island_Aldous_Huxley's_Mahayana_Buddhist_Utopia_Pt_1
by Adam Slavens through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org In this very interesting examination of Aldous Huxley's late work Island, we see the kind of Mahayana Buddhist utopia he seems to have dreamt. Very nice imagery capturing the psychedelic essence of Huxley's dream world, the Mahayana Island in a beautiful climate where humans and animals happily co-abide....
- published: 03 Apr 2009
- views: 5250
- author: JAMES K POWELL II
Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:51
- Updated: 14 Dec 2012
differences and similarities
http://wn.com/Theravada_and_Mahayana_Buddhism
Mahayana Buddhist Shrine Basics
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:20
- Updated: 11 Dec 2012
How to set up a complex Mahayana Buddhist shrine for newcomers to Buddhism. Music: Maid with the Flaxen Hair - Richard Stoltzman Yoga Zone-Zen Meditation - Unknown
http://wn.com/Mahayana_Buddhist_Shrine_Basics
How to set up a complex Mahayana Buddhist shrine for newcomers to Buddhism. Music: Maid with the Flaxen Hair - Richard Stoltzman Yoga Zone-Zen Meditation - Unknown
- published: 17 Feb 2012
- views: 2143
- author: TheBuddhaNexus
Mahayana Buddhism - Alan Watts (1960)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 29:03
- Updated: 14 Sep 2012
Here is an episode from the 1960 season of Alan Watts' KQED television series, Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life, entitled "Mahayana Buddhism". To find out how you can purchase the entire Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life series on DVD, please visit: alanwatts.com A native of England, Alan Watts attended the King's School near Canterbury Cathedral, and at the age of fourteen he became fascinated with the philosophies of the Far East. By sixteen he regularly attended the Buddhist Lodge in London, where he met Zen scholars Christmas Humphries and DT Suzuki. As a speaker and contributor to the Lodge's journal, The Middle Way, he wrote a series of philosophical commentaries and published his first book on Eastern thought, The Spirit of Zen, at age twenty-one. In the late thirties he moved to New York, and a few years later he became an Episcopalian priest. In 1942 he moved to Illinois and spent the wartime years as chaplain at Northwestern University. Then, in 1950, he left the Church, and his life took a turn away from organized religion back toward Eastern ways and expanding horizons. After meeting author and mythologist Joseph Campbell and composer John Cage in New York he headed to California and began teaching at the American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There his popular lectures spilled over into coffeehouse talks and appearances with the well-known beat writers Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg. In late 1953 he began what would become the longest ...
http://wn.com/Mahayana_Buddhism_Alan_Watts_1960
Here is an episode from the 1960 season of Alan Watts' KQED television series, Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life, entitled "Mahayana Buddhism". To find out how you can purchase the entire Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life series on DVD, please visit: alanwatts.com A native of England, Alan Watts attended the King's School near Canterbury Cathedral, and at the age of fourteen he became fascinated with the philosophies of the Far East. By sixteen he regularly attended the Buddhist Lodge in London, where he met Zen scholars Christmas Humphries and DT Suzuki. As a speaker and contributor to the Lodge's journal, The Middle Way, he wrote a series of philosophical commentaries and published his first book on Eastern thought, The Spirit of Zen, at age twenty-one. In the late thirties he moved to New York, and a few years later he became an Episcopalian priest. In 1942 he moved to Illinois and spent the wartime years as chaplain at Northwestern University. Then, in 1950, he left the Church, and his life took a turn away from organized religion back toward Eastern ways and expanding horizons. After meeting author and mythologist Joseph Campbell and composer John Cage in New York he headed to California and began teaching at the American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There his popular lectures spilled over into coffeehouse talks and appearances with the well-known beat writers Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg. In late 1953 he began what would become the longest ...
- published: 15 Jun 2012
- views: 654
- author: ShaktipatSeer2
Alan Watts: Mahayana Buddhism (1960) [full length]
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 29:03
- Updated: 20 Dec 2012
Here is an episode from the 1960 season of Alan Watts' KQED television series, Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life, entitled "Mahayana Buddhism". To find out how you can purchase the entire Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life series on DVD, please visit: alanwatts.com A native of England, Alan Watts attended the King's School near Canterbury Cathedral, and at the age of fourteen he became fascinated with the philosophies of the Far East. By sixteen he regularly attended the Buddhist Lodge in London, where he met Zen scholars Christmas Humphries and DT Suzuki. As a speaker and contributor to the Lodge's journal, The Middle Way, he wrote a series of philosophical commentaries and published his first book on Eastern thought, The Spirit of Zen, at age twenty-one. In the late thirties he moved to New York, and a few years later he became an Episcopalian priest. In 1942 he moved to Illinois and spent the wartime years as chaplain at Northwestern University. Then, in 1950, he left the Church, and his life took a turn away from organized religion back toward Eastern ways and expanding horizons. After meeting author and mythologist Joseph Campbell and composer John Cage in New York he headed to California and began teaching at the American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There his popular lectures spilled over into coffeehouse talks and appearances with the well-known beat writers Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg. In late 1953 he began what would become the longest ...
http://wn.com/Alan_Watts_Mahayana_Buddhism_1960_full_length_
Here is an episode from the 1960 season of Alan Watts' KQED television series, Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life, entitled "Mahayana Buddhism". To find out how you can purchase the entire Eastern Wisdom & Modern Life series on DVD, please visit: alanwatts.com A native of England, Alan Watts attended the King's School near Canterbury Cathedral, and at the age of fourteen he became fascinated with the philosophies of the Far East. By sixteen he regularly attended the Buddhist Lodge in London, where he met Zen scholars Christmas Humphries and DT Suzuki. As a speaker and contributor to the Lodge's journal, The Middle Way, he wrote a series of philosophical commentaries and published his first book on Eastern thought, The Spirit of Zen, at age twenty-one. In the late thirties he moved to New York, and a few years later he became an Episcopalian priest. In 1942 he moved to Illinois and spent the wartime years as chaplain at Northwestern University. Then, in 1950, he left the Church, and his life took a turn away from organized religion back toward Eastern ways and expanding horizons. After meeting author and mythologist Joseph Campbell and composer John Cage in New York he headed to California and began teaching at the American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There his popular lectures spilled over into coffeehouse talks and appearances with the well-known beat writers Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg. In late 1953 he began what would become the longest ...
- published: 20 Feb 2012
- views: 1384
- author: shinobirastafari
Partially Examined Life podcast - Nagarjuna - Mahayana Buddhism
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 14:46
- Updated: 26 Oct 2012
This is an excerpt from a past episode of The Partially Examined Life podcast, discussing "Reasoning: The Sixty Stanzas" and "Emptiness: The Seventy Stanzas," by the 2nd century Indian Buddhist Nagarjuna. Is the world of our experience ultimately real? If not, does it have something metaphysically basic underlying it? For Nagarjuna, the answers are "no" and "no... well... not that we can talk about." Mark and Seth (Wes was sick) are joined by guest Erik Douglas to discuss metaphysics, causality, the possibility of remaking your perceptual habits, why someone who believes that all is empty might still want to act ethically, and how to deny a claim without affirming its equally dubious opposite: Guest-starring Erik R. Douglas: www.partiallyexaminedlife.com You can find the unabridged Nagarjuna podcast, along with dozens of others discussing philosophers from Aristotle to Wittgenstein, at the Partially Examined Life website: www.partiallyexaminedlife.com About PEL The podcasters were all graduate students in philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin back in the Clinton years. They all left the program at some point before getting their doctorates and have consequently since had time to get outside that whole weird world of academia and reflect on it and the various philosophical topics with a different, and probably much more lazy, perspective.
http://wn.com/Partially_Examined_Life_podcast_Nagarjuna_Mahayana_Buddhism
This is an excerpt from a past episode of The Partially Examined Life podcast, discussing "Reasoning: The Sixty Stanzas" and "Emptiness: The Seventy Stanzas," by the 2nd century Indian Buddhist Nagarjuna. Is the world of our experience ultimately real? If not, does it have something metaphysically basic underlying it? For Nagarjuna, the answers are "no" and "no... well... not that we can talk about." Mark and Seth (Wes was sick) are joined by guest Erik Douglas to discuss metaphysics, causality, the possibility of remaking your perceptual habits, why someone who believes that all is empty might still want to act ethically, and how to deny a claim without affirming its equally dubious opposite: Guest-starring Erik R. Douglas: www.partiallyexaminedlife.com You can find the unabridged Nagarjuna podcast, along with dozens of others discussing philosophers from Aristotle to Wittgenstein, at the Partially Examined Life website: www.partiallyexaminedlife.com About PEL The podcasters were all graduate students in philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin back in the Clinton years. They all left the program at some point before getting their doctorates and have consequently since had time to get outside that whole weird world of academia and reflect on it and the various philosophical topics with a different, and probably much more lazy, perspective.
- published: 09 Dec 2010
- views: 996
- author: shinobirastafari
Alan Watts: Mahayana Buddhism - Pt. 2 of 2
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 14:54
- Updated: 09 Dec 2012
http://wn.com/Alan_Watts_Mahayana_Buddhism_Pt_2_of_2
Asanga: Founder of Mahayana Yogacara Buddhism
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 10:00
- Updated: 13 Jul 2012
by Cale Bakken with instructor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org This very nice project examines the life and thought of Asanga, 3rd-4th century Indian founder of the Yogacara or "Yoga-praxis" school. We get a nice picture of the eight levels of consciousness, the mechanism of reincarnation and the nature of habitual thought patterns that bind one to the "convolution" or sansara.
http://wn.com/Asanga_Founder_of_Mahayana_Yogacara_Buddhism
by Cale Bakken with instructor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org This very nice project examines the life and thought of Asanga, 3rd-4th century Indian founder of the Yogacara or "Yoga-praxis" school. We get a nice picture of the eight levels of consciousness, the mechanism of reincarnation and the nature of habitual thought patterns that bind one to the "convolution" or sansara.
- published: 26 Aug 2008
- views: 3102
- author: JAMES K POWELL II
Om Mani Padme Hum - (Serene Version) 六字真言〔唱誦〕.wmv
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:31
- Updated: 20 Dec 2012
Mahāyāna Buddhism relates Avalokiteśvara to the six-syllable mantra: "Om Mani Padme Hūm", due to his association with this mantra, in Tibetan Buddhism Avalokiteśvara is also called Shadakshari, which means "Lord of the Six Syllables." Recitation of this mantra along with prayer beads, is the most popular religious practice in Tibetan Buddhism. The connection between this famous mantra and Avalokiteśvara occurs for the first time in the Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra. This text is first dated to around the late 4th century CE to the early 5th century CE.[18] In this sūtra, a bodhisattva is told by the Buddha that recitation of this mantra while focusing on the sound can lead to the attainment of eight hundred samdhis. Image : Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha _________________________________________________________ I do not own the copyright of the audio track ~ My purpose for up loading this on to YouTube is to share it with the world whom seek for it ~ My sincere Thank You, may merit be bless to all for allowing me to accomplish this ~ Amitabha 阿彌陀佛Namasté
http://wn.com/Om_Mani_Padme_Hum_Serene_Version_六字真言〔唱誦〕wmv
Mahāyāna Buddhism relates Avalokiteśvara to the six-syllable mantra: "Om Mani Padme Hūm", due to his association with this mantra, in Tibetan Buddhism Avalokiteśvara is also called Shadakshari, which means "Lord of the Six Syllables." Recitation of this mantra along with prayer beads, is the most popular religious practice in Tibetan Buddhism. The connection between this famous mantra and Avalokiteśvara occurs for the first time in the Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra. This text is first dated to around the late 4th century CE to the early 5th century CE.[18] In this sūtra, a bodhisattva is told by the Buddha that recitation of this mantra while focusing on the sound can lead to the attainment of eight hundred samdhis. Image : Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha _________________________________________________________ I do not own the copyright of the audio track ~ My purpose for up loading this on to YouTube is to share it with the world whom seek for it ~ My sincere Thank You, may merit be bless to all for allowing me to accomplish this ~ Amitabha 阿彌陀佛Namasté
- published: 13 Jul 2011
- views: 9755
- author: ellisoninwonderland
Pure Land Buddhism 念佛法門(Its Origins, History, and Practices)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 11:23
- Updated: 03 Dec 2012
Sakyamuni Buddha's teaching in Pure Land practice has had a significant impact in the history of Mahayana Buddhism. This so-called one of remarkable teachings in Buddhist traditions catching Buddhists eyes and minds for so long. Today, Pure Land Buddhism (Reciting the name of Amita Buddha) is definitely the most well-known practice for Buddhists in Mahayana tradition of those Asian countries. This brief video is particularly made for those English-speakers who are interesting to learn more about this excellent teaching from Sakyamuni Buddha.
http://wn.com/Pure_Land_Buddhism_念佛法門Its_Origins,_History,_and_Practices
Sakyamuni Buddha's teaching in Pure Land practice has had a significant impact in the history of Mahayana Buddhism. This so-called one of remarkable teachings in Buddhist traditions catching Buddhists eyes and minds for so long. Today, Pure Land Buddhism (Reciting the name of Amita Buddha) is definitely the most well-known practice for Buddhists in Mahayana tradition of those Asian countries. This brief video is particularly made for those English-speakers who are interesting to learn more about this excellent teaching from Sakyamuni Buddha.
- published: 31 May 2012
- views: 538
- author: Tayu Shi
Vietnam burning monk
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:03
- Updated: 10 Dec 2012
Caution, may not be suitable for younger viewers. Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist monk who burned himself to death at a busy Saigon road intersection on June 11, 1963
http://wn.com/Vietnam_burning_monk
Caution, may not be suitable for younger viewers. Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist monk who burned himself to death at a busy Saigon road intersection on June 11, 1963
- published: 15 May 2008
- views: 173161
- author: Tah Welve
The Buddha Nature
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 7:12
- Updated: 24 Nov 2012
ekbtv.blogspot.com doctrine important for many schools of Mahayana Buddhism. The Buddha Nature or Buddha Principle (Buddha-dhatu) is taught to be a truly real, but internally hidden, eternal potency or immortal element within the purest depths of the mind, present in all sentient beings, for awakening and becoming a Buddha. In some Mahayana sutras it is equated with the eternal Buddhic Self, the Essence (svabhava) or Soul (atman) which is nothing less than the uncreated and deathless Buddha himself. Nagarjuna, the founder of Madhyamaka, presents a view that states that Buddha-nature is Shunyata (empty).[citation needed] The primary sutras on Buddha-nature maintain that what the Buddha-nature is empty of is not its own ever-enduring reality but impermanence, impurity, moral defects, and suffering - in other words, the painful constrictions and imperfections of samsara.
http://wn.com/The_Buddha_Nature
ekbtv.blogspot.com doctrine important for many schools of Mahayana Buddhism. The Buddha Nature or Buddha Principle (Buddha-dhatu) is taught to be a truly real, but internally hidden, eternal potency or immortal element within the purest depths of the mind, present in all sentient beings, for awakening and becoming a Buddha. In some Mahayana sutras it is equated with the eternal Buddhic Self, the Essence (svabhava) or Soul (atman) which is nothing less than the uncreated and deathless Buddha himself. Nagarjuna, the founder of Madhyamaka, presents a view that states that Buddha-nature is Shunyata (empty).[citation needed] The primary sutras on Buddha-nature maintain that what the Buddha-nature is empty of is not its own ever-enduring reality but impermanence, impurity, moral defects, and suffering - in other words, the painful constrictions and imperfections of samsara.
- published: 08 Nov 2007
- views: 77067
- author: justbernard
Indonesia - Part 3: Borobudur
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:47
- Updated: 17 Dec 2012
Not far from Yogyakarta, Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa. This is the single most visited tourist attraction in Indonesia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
http://wn.com/Indonesia_Part_3_Borobudur
Not far from Yogyakarta, Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa. This is the single most visited tourist attraction in Indonesia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- published: 05 Mar 2009
- views: 8393
- author: monkeetime
Vasubandhu: the Brilliant Yogacara Thinker
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:42
- Updated: 17 Aug 2012
by Peatra Babe through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org This work depicts the great Mahayana Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu, half-brother of Asanga. His subtle explanation of the nature of consciousness has been so influential in the Mahayana Buddhist world, especially in East Asia. He elucidates the 8 levels of consciousness including the first model of a sub-consciousness - almost two thousand years before Freud! The theories are older than that, but it took the brilliant Vasubandhu to codify and assemble everything so tightly and logically.
http://wn.com/Vasubandhu_the_Brilliant_Yogacara_Thinker
by Peatra Babe through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II, opensourcebuddhism.org This work depicts the great Mahayana Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu, half-brother of Asanga. His subtle explanation of the nature of consciousness has been so influential in the Mahayana Buddhist world, especially in East Asia. He elucidates the 8 levels of consciousness including the first model of a sub-consciousness - almost two thousand years before Freud! The theories are older than that, but it took the brilliant Vasubandhu to codify and assemble everything so tightly and logically.
- published: 20 Jul 2008
- views: 2273
- author: JAMES K POWELL II
Alan Watts - What Buddhism's About
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 7:24
- Updated: 21 Dec 2012
Wisdom Of The Mountains: A Seminar On Tibetan Buddhism In this dynamic series of lectures recorded in 1965 and 1969, Alan Watts joyfully takes us on an exploration of Buddhism, from its roots in India over 2500 years ago to the explosion of interest in Zen and the Tibetan tradition in the West. These lectures have been transcribed and edited by the author's son, Mark Watts, who also provides an introduction that sets them in their historical context. This book then begins with Journey From India, which presents a brief explanation of the Indian worldview and cosmology followed by a discussion of the important differences between Hinduism and Buddhism. The Middle Way offers an insight into the radical methods of the Mahayana, or "great vehicle," and reviews the basic Buddhist terms and teaching, including the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Alan Watts then turns his attention to Zen and Tibetan Buddhism in the remaining four chapters. In Religion of No-Religion he discusses how the Buddha taught the method of awakening through the experience of no-self, no-concept, and no-religion. This technique of short-circuiting the mind is seen today in the method of instruction centered upon Zen koans. In contrast to the intellectual methods of Zen, the Tibetan, or Vajrayana school, retained much more of the original Indian flavor of Mahayana Buddhism, and in Wisdom of the Mountains Watts provides an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism by explaining its unique practices. In ...
http://wn.com/Alan_Watts_What_Buddhism's_About
Wisdom Of The Mountains: A Seminar On Tibetan Buddhism In this dynamic series of lectures recorded in 1965 and 1969, Alan Watts joyfully takes us on an exploration of Buddhism, from its roots in India over 2500 years ago to the explosion of interest in Zen and the Tibetan tradition in the West. These lectures have been transcribed and edited by the author's son, Mark Watts, who also provides an introduction that sets them in their historical context. This book then begins with Journey From India, which presents a brief explanation of the Indian worldview and cosmology followed by a discussion of the important differences between Hinduism and Buddhism. The Middle Way offers an insight into the radical methods of the Mahayana, or "great vehicle," and reviews the basic Buddhist terms and teaching, including the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Alan Watts then turns his attention to Zen and Tibetan Buddhism in the remaining four chapters. In Religion of No-Religion he discusses how the Buddha taught the method of awakening through the experience of no-self, no-concept, and no-religion. This technique of short-circuiting the mind is seen today in the method of instruction centered upon Zen koans. In contrast to the intellectual methods of Zen, the Tibetan, or Vajrayana school, retained much more of the original Indian flavor of Mahayana Buddhism, and in Wisdom of the Mountains Watts provides an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism by explaining its unique practices. In ...
- published: 12 Dec 2010
- views: 39252
- author: mugikuyu
Heart Sutra (Sanskrit)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:39
- Updated: 21 Dec 2012
a musical rendition by Imee Ooi The Heart of Perfect Wisdom Sutra or Heart Sutra or Essence of Wisdom Sutra (Sanskrit: प्रज्ञापारमिताहृदय Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya; Chinese: 摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經) (the word sutra is not present in known Sanskrit manuscripts[1]) is a well-known Mahāyāna Buddhist sutra that is very popular among Mahayana Buddhists both for its brevity and depth of meaning. Buddhist writer and translator Bill Porter calls the Heart Sutra the best known[2] and most popular of all Buddhist scriptures (wikipedia)
http://wn.com/Heart_Sutra_Sanskrit
a musical rendition by Imee Ooi The Heart of Perfect Wisdom Sutra or Heart Sutra or Essence of Wisdom Sutra (Sanskrit: प्रज्ञापारमिताहृदय Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya; Chinese: 摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經) (the word sutra is not present in known Sanskrit manuscripts[1]) is a well-known Mahāyāna Buddhist sutra that is very popular among Mahayana Buddhists both for its brevity and depth of meaning. Buddhist writer and translator Bill Porter calls the Heart Sutra the best known[2] and most popular of all Buddhist scriptures (wikipedia)
- published: 22 Feb 2010
- views: 40328
- author: hnqa2010
Emp - ti - ness - Wisdom of Emptiness - a Buddhist lecture
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 135:30
- Updated: 09 Dec 2012
The wisdom of emptiness is the ultimate teaching in Buddhism; its main tenet is that our suffering is caused by our inability to perceive the true nature of reality. These teachings on emptiness are very subtle, profound and deeply transforming, Yet with correct understanding, we can shift our experience of the world. In this course, we'll begin to explore these ideas through meditation, understanding the process of attaining the wisdom understanding emptiness and practice some of the purification techniques to clear the obstacles to realization of emptiness. Emptiness Emptiness is a key concept in Buddhist philosophy, or more precisely, in the ontology of Mahayana Buddhism. The phrase "form is emptiness; emptiness is form" is perhaps the most celebrated paradox associated with Buddhist philosophy. It is the supreme mantra. The expression originates from the Prajna Paramita Hridaya Sutra, commonly known as the Heart Sutra, which contains the philosophical essence of about six hundred scrolls making up the Maha Prajna Paramita. The Heart Sutra is the shortest text in this collection. It belongs to the oldest Mahayana texts and presumably originated in India around the time of Jesus Christ. Emptiness of emptiness. In The Art of Living (2001) the 14th Dalai Lama says, "As your insight into the ultimate nature of reality is deepened and enhanced, you will develop a perception of reality from which you will perceive phenomena and events as sort of illusory, illusion-like, and ...
http://wn.com/Emp_ti_ness_Wisdom_of_Emptiness_a_Buddhist_lecture
The wisdom of emptiness is the ultimate teaching in Buddhism; its main tenet is that our suffering is caused by our inability to perceive the true nature of reality. These teachings on emptiness are very subtle, profound and deeply transforming, Yet with correct understanding, we can shift our experience of the world. In this course, we'll begin to explore these ideas through meditation, understanding the process of attaining the wisdom understanding emptiness and practice some of the purification techniques to clear the obstacles to realization of emptiness. Emptiness Emptiness is a key concept in Buddhist philosophy, or more precisely, in the ontology of Mahayana Buddhism. The phrase "form is emptiness; emptiness is form" is perhaps the most celebrated paradox associated with Buddhist philosophy. It is the supreme mantra. The expression originates from the Prajna Paramita Hridaya Sutra, commonly known as the Heart Sutra, which contains the philosophical essence of about six hundred scrolls making up the Maha Prajna Paramita. The Heart Sutra is the shortest text in this collection. It belongs to the oldest Mahayana texts and presumably originated in India around the time of Jesus Christ. Emptiness of emptiness. In The Art of Living (2001) the 14th Dalai Lama says, "As your insight into the ultimate nature of reality is deepened and enhanced, you will develop a perception of reality from which you will perceive phenomena and events as sort of illusory, illusion-like, and ...
- published: 24 Dec 2011
- views: 10103
- author: localmcmedia
Buddhist Teachings on Reincarnation
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 15:03
- Updated: 21 Dec 2012
Please Come Again: The Reincarnation of Zasep Tulku Rinpoche. Zasep Tulku Rinpoche is a Tibetan Buddhist born in Tibet in1948. At an early age he was recognized as the 13th incarnation of Lama Konchog Tenzin of Zuru Monastery. In 1959, during the Chinese invasion, he escaped from Tibet and continued his education for sixteen years in India under the tutelage of many of the greatest teachers of Mahayana Buddhism.
http://wn.com/Buddhist_Teachings_on_Reincarnation
Please Come Again: The Reincarnation of Zasep Tulku Rinpoche. Zasep Tulku Rinpoche is a Tibetan Buddhist born in Tibet in1948. At an early age he was recognized as the 13th incarnation of Lama Konchog Tenzin of Zuru Monastery. In 1959, during the Chinese invasion, he escaped from Tibet and continued his education for sixteen years in India under the tutelage of many of the greatest teachers of Mahayana Buddhism.
- published: 04 Oct 2011
- views: 19691
- author: ITMWORLDVIDEOS
Bodhisattvas of the Lotus Sutra
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:48
- Updated: 16 Jul 2012
Highlights the Lotus Sutra as one of the most wonderful of the Mahayana Buddhist scriptures. Points to skillful means or tactfulness and the eternal life of the Buddha as the main teachings. Asserts that the Buddha of eternal life in the sutra is actually Amida Buddha. Describes key cosmic bodhisattvas who appear within the sutra, ie, Avalokitesvara, Manjusri, Samantabhadra, and Maitreya. Cross references Samantabhadra to the Avatamsaka sutra.
http://wn.com/Bodhisattvas_of_the_Lotus_Sutra
Highlights the Lotus Sutra as one of the most wonderful of the Mahayana Buddhist scriptures. Points to skillful means or tactfulness and the eternal life of the Buddha as the main teachings. Asserts that the Buddha of eternal life in the sutra is actually Amida Buddha. Describes key cosmic bodhisattvas who appear within the sutra, ie, Avalokitesvara, Manjusri, Samantabhadra, and Maitreya. Cross references Samantabhadra to the Avatamsaka sutra.
- published: 27 Jan 2011
- views: 950
- author: acalaacala
photo: AP / Alfred de Montesquiou
21 Dec 2012
UNITED NATIONS -- The U.N. Security Council on Thursday authorized military action to wrest northern Mali from the control of al-Qaida-linked extremists, but it demanded progress first on political reconciliation, elections and training African troops and police ... Instead, it set out benchmarks to be met before the start of offensive operations, starting with progress on a political roadmap to restore constitutional order ... U.N ... On Nov ... ....(size: 3.1Kb)
photo: AP / Aijaz Rahi
22 Dec 2012
Tweet. 0 Email. Report. Photo 1 of 18. In 2009, ELLE Magazine named Mrs Assad the most stylish woman in world politics. She is an icon of fashion in her country. Credit. Aimee Kligman. In 2009, ELLE Magazine named Mrs Assad the most stylish woman in world politics. She is an icon of fashion in her country.In 2009, ELLE Magazine named Mrs Assad the most stylish woman in world politics ... Syrians detained by the Assad regime. 13 Photos ... 10 Photos ... ....(size: 6.3Kb)
photo: AP / Carolyn Kaster
20 Dec 2012
Obama held a White House news conference on Wednesday to announce that Vice President Joe Biden will lead an interagency effort to craft new gun policies. The group is expected to offer its proposals in January. “We know this is a complex issue that stirs deeply held passions and political divides,” Obama said. “But the fact that this problem is complex can no longer be an excuse for doing nothing.” ... WAKE-UP CALL ... ....(size: 6.1Kb)
photo: Public Domain / Tm
21 Dec 2012
The UN Security Council on Thursday unanimously approved sending an African-led intervention force to help Mali’s army reconquer much of the country from Islamist militants. The 15-member council gave the force an initial one year mandate to use “all necessary measures” to help the Mali government take back the northern half of the country from “terrorist, extremist and armed groups.” ... Agence France-Presse ....(size: 1.9Kb)
photo: AP / Kirsty Wigglesworth
21 Dec 2012
Former Chelsea and Liverpool midfielder Raul Meireles is said to have been given an 11-match ban by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) for spitting at a referee. In trouble. Raul Meireles is alleged to have spat at the referee after being sent-off . By Telegraph Sport. 10.14AM GMT 21 Dec 2012. Comments ... It is alleged that Meireles spat at the official and also made a homophobic comment ... After the match he said ... . European ... View ... ....(size: 8.6Kb)
The Examiner
23 Dec 2012
What Buddhism is not supposed to be is a religion. There are no worship entities in Buddhism ... Now granted there are people around the world that practice Buddhism as a religion and ever worship the Buddha statues and possibly a living Buddha someplace ... Those that think they understand Buddhism and are not Buddhist usually do not understand at all. Most in fact will compare Buddhism to Christianity and other religions ... Buddhism is peace....(size: 6.6Kb)
Mail Guardian South Africa
23 Dec 2012
When the government made a general appeal for help in overcoming a shortage of hotel accommodation, the Jogye Order, the country's largest Buddhism sect, saw an opportunity and began opening its temples to short-term paying guests. "There were shared voices within Buddhism that we needed to interact with the outside world by opening ourselves to the public," said Kumgang, the head monk of Mihwangsa ... Buddhism....(size: 5.5Kb)
The Examiner
23 Dec 2012
... been the Tibetan government in exile in Dharamsala, India that has been inciting such suicidal actions, "in a covert but merciless manner that has been proved beyond doubt."And it is stated that, "Unless Dharamsala exercises restraint, and shows true respect for the lives of believers in Tibetan Buddhism, there will be no end to such tragedies."...(size: 2.2Kb)
The Times of India
23 Dec 2012
BAAN PA CHI. The monks of this northern Thai village no longer perform one of the defining rituals of Buddhism, the early-morning walk through the community to collect food. Instead, the temple's abbot dials a local restaurant and has takeout delivered. "Most of the time, I stay inside," said the abbot, Phra Nipan Marawichayo, who is one of only two monks living in what was once a thriving temple ... ....(size: 2.2Kb)
The Guardian
23 Dec 2012
The US rapper, film director and human rights activist was a funny, inspiring and dependable friend. Adam Yauch photographed in Los Angeles in 1987. Photograph. Michael Ochs Archives ... He opened my mind to everything from dining out to understanding the futility of materialism; he had started to study Buddhism early in our friendship and told me wonderful stories of local traditions he'd learned from his travels ... Adam Yauch ... ....(size: 4.4Kb)
The Miami Herald
23 Dec 2012
BEIJING -- Charismatic preacher Gong Shengliang led a popular Christian group that spiraled into violence under persecution by Chinese authorities and the temptations of power. Now Gong has suffered an apparent stroke in prison, and his family members are calling for his release ... Though Buddhism and folk religions are the biggest draws, Christianity has grown so quickly that there are not enough well-trained preachers ... 1 . .. ....(size: 3.5Kb)
Chicago Tribune
23 Dec 2012
LIU BO’S wife begged him not to do it. She said he was ill-prepared for the dizzying altitude and the treacherous roads ... His list ... Close to where the G6 ends in Qinghai, a near-obligatory stop for motorists is Kumbum Monastery, a centre of Tibetan Buddhism ... The Westerners who settle in Dharamsala, the Indian town that is home to the Dalai Lama, to soak up the wisdom of Tibetan Buddhism have their counterparts in China ... ....(size: 18.7Kb)
The Daily Telegraph
23 Dec 2012
Parish pews and cathedral carol services are packed to the brim as we celebrate the season ... Full of Christmas cheer. a service at Canterbury Cathedral Photo. FIONA HANSON. By Cole Moreton ... The new national faith described in her research is ad hoc, individualistic and sentimental, and informed by a mix of ideologies including neo-paganism, environmentalism and Buddhism – but also shot through with Christianity ... . Religion....(size: 18.9Kb)
Canada Dot Com
22 Dec 2012
That is why their path is known as Pure Land Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism, according to specialists, is the major school of Buddhism practised in Metro Vancouver, mostly by people with roots in China, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan. Globally, Pure Land is also arguably the largest arm of Buddhism, accounting for roughly 200 million of the Eastern religion's 500 million adherents ... It is often called "ethnic Buddhism."...(size: 13.0Kb)
The New York Times
22 Dec 2012
the demolition of a vast complex of richly decorated ancient Buddhist monasteries ... From about the third century until the ninth century, Afghanistan served as a bridge between India and China and played a key role in shaping the Buddhism that swept across Central Asia ... a company based in China, which received Buddhism via Afghanistan, will destroy a key locus of that transmission ... 31 ... Mines and Mining Afghanistan China Buddhism. campaign....(size: 9.4Kb)
Taipei Times
22 Dec 2012
A planned Asian equivalent of the Nobel Prize, to be called the Tang Award (唐獎), is to start its nomination and screening process next year ... Tang awards will be presented every two years, it added ... In creating a category for Sinology studies, the entrepreneur was showing his gratitude to his mentor, philosopher Nan Huai-chin (南懷謹), considered by many to be a major force in the revival of Chinese Buddhism ... ....(size: 2.7Kb)
The Himalayan
22 Dec 2012
. Added At. 2012-12-22 9.30 PM. Last Updated At. 2012-12-22 9.30 PM. The Himalayan Times - Saved Articles(s) ... Close ... ... In this fascinating and far-reaching book, Newsweek science writer Sharon Begley reports on how cutting-edge science and the ancient wisdom of Buddhism have come together to reveal that, contrary to popular belief, we have the power to literally change our brains by changing our minds ... ....(size: 5.3Kb)
The Times of India
21 Dec 2012
GAYA. The week-long 'Kagyu Monlan' prayers for world peace began in Bodh Gaya on Friday ... A similar prayer was earlier offered by Ogyen's rival in the Mahabodhi Temple premises ... The participants, according to the Karmapa camp office include monks, nuns and lay followers of Buddhism ... ....(size: 1.6Kb)
Mahāyāna (Sanskrit: महायान mahāyāna, literally the "Great Vehicle") is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice. Mahāyāna Buddhism originated in India,[1] and is associated with the oldest historical sect of Buddhism, the Mahāsāṃghika.[2][3][4][5][6]
The Mahāyāna tradition is the larger of the two major traditions of Buddhism existing today, the other being that of the Theravāda school. According to the teachings of Mahāyāna traditions, "Mahāyāna" also refers to the path of seeking complete enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, also called "Bodhisattvayāna", or the "Bodhisattva Vehicle.[1][7]
In the course of its history, Mahāyāna Buddhism spread from India to various other Asian countries such as China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, and Mongolia. Major traditions of Mahāyāna Buddhism today include Zen/Chán, Pure Land, Tiantai, and Nichiren, as well as the Esoteric Buddhist traditions of Shingon, Tendai and Tibetan Buddhism.
Contents |
Etymology[link]
According to Jan Nattier, the term Mahāyāna ("Great Vehicle") was originally an honorary synonym for Bodhisattvayāna ("Bodhisattva Vehicle")[8] — the vehicle of a bodhisattva seeking buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.[1] The term Mahāyāna was therefore formed independently at an early date as a synonym for the path and the teachings of the bodhisattvas. Since it was simply an honorary term for Bodhisattvayāna, the creation of the term Mahāyāna and its application to Bodhisattvayāna did not represent a significant turning point in the development of a Mahāyāna tradition.[8]
The earliest Mahāyāna texts often use the term Mahāyāna as a synonym for Bodhisattvayāna, but the term Hīnayāna is comparatively rare in the earliest sources. The presumed dichotomy between Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna can be deceptive, as the two terms were not actually formed in relation to one another in the same era.[9]
Among the earliest and most important references to the term Mahāyāna are those that occur in the Lotus Sūtra (Skt. Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra) dating between the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE.[10] Seishi Karashima has suggested that the term first used in an earlier Gandhāri Prakrit version of the Lotus Sūtra was not the term mahāyāna but the Prakrit word mahājāna in the sense of mahājñāna (great knowing).[11] At a later stage when the early Prakrit word was converted into Sanskrit, this mahājāna, being phonetically ambivalent, was mistakenly converted into mahāyāna, possibly due to what may have been a double meaning in the famous Parable of the Burning House, which talks of three vehicles or carts (Skt: yāna).[12][13]
History[link]
Early Mahāyāna Buddhism[link]
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Origins of Mahāyāna[link]
The origins of Mahāyāna are still not completely understood.[14] The earliest views of Mahāyāna Buddhism in the West assumed that it existed as a separate school in competition with the so-called "Hīnayāna" schools. Due to the veneration of buddhas and bodhisattvas, Mahāyāna was often interpreted as a more devotional, lay-inspired form of Buddhism, with supposed origins in stūpa veneration,[15] or by making parallels with the history of the European Protestant Reformation. These views have been largely dismissed in modern times in light of a much broader range of early texts that are now available.[16] These earliest Mahāyāna texts often depict strict adherence to the path of a bodhisattva, and engagement in the ascetic ideal of a monastic life in the wilderness, akin to the ideas expressed in the Rhinoceros Sūtra.[17] The old views of Mahāyāna as a separate lay-inspired and devotional sect are now largely dismissed as misguided and wrong on all counts.[18]
The earliest textual evidence of "Mahāyāna" comes from sūtras originating around the beginning of the common era. Jan Nattier has noted that in some of the earliest Mahāyāna texts such as the Ugraparipṛccha Sūtra use the term "Mahāyāna", yet there is no doctrinal difference between Mahāyāna in this context and the early schools, and that "Mahāyāna" referred rather to the rigorous emulation of Gautama Buddha in the path of a bodhisattva seeking to become a fully enlightened buddha.[19]
There is also no evidence that Mahāyāna ever referred to a separate formal school or sect of Buddhism, but rather that it existed as a certain set of ideals, and later doctrines, for bodhisattvas.[19] Paul Williams has also noted that the Mahāyāna never had nor ever attempted to have a separate Vinaya or ordination lineage from the early schools of Buddhism, and therefore each bhikṣu or bhikṣuṇī adhering to the Mahāyāna formally belonged to an early school. This continues today with the Dharmaguptaka ordination lineage in East Asia, and the Mūlasarvāstivāda ordination lineage in Tibetan Buddhism. Therefore Mahāyāna was never a separate rival sect of the early schools.[20]
The Chinese monk Yijing who visited India in the 7th century CE, distinguishes Mahāyāna from Hīnayāna as follows:[21]
Both adopt one and the same Vinaya, and they have in common the prohibitions of the five offences, and also the practice of the Four Noble Truths. Those who venerate the bodhisattvas and read the Mahayana sūtras are called the Mahāyānists, while those who do not perform these are called the Hīnayānists.
Much of the early extant evidence for the origins of Mahāyāna comes from early Chinese translations of Mahāyāna texts. These Mahāyāna teachings were first propagated into China by Lokakṣema, the first translator of Mahāyāna sūtras into Chinese during the 2nd century CE.[22]
Earliest Mahāyāna sūtras[link]
Some scholars[who?] have traditionally considered the earliest Mahāyāna sūtras to include the very first versions of the Prajñāpāramitā series, along with texts concerning Akṣobhya Buddha, which were probably written down in the 1st century BCE in the south of India.[23][24][25] Some early Mahāyāna sūtras were translated by the Kuṣāṇa monk Lokakṣema, who came to China from the kingdom of Gandhāra. His first translations to Chinese were made in the Chinese capital of Luoyang between 178 and 189 CE.[22] Some Mahāyāna sūtras translated during the 2nd century CE include the following:[26]
- Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra
- Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra
- Larger Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra
- Akṣobhyatathāgatasyavyūha Sūtra
- Ugraparipṛccha Sūtra
- Mañjuśrīparipṛcchā Sūtra
- Drumakinnararājaparipṛcchā Sūtra
- Śūraṅgama Samādhi Sūtra
- Bhadrapāla Sūtra
- Ajātaśatrukaukṛtyavinodana Sūtra
- Kāśyapaparivarta Sūtra
- Lokānuvartana Sūtra
- An early sūtra connected to the Avataṃsaka Sūtra
Some of these were probably composed in the north of India in the 1st century CE.[27] Thus scholars generally think that the earliest Mahāyāna sūtras were mainly composed in the south of India, and later the activity of writing additional scriptures was continued in the north.[28] However, the assumption that the presence of an evolving body of Mahāyāna scriptures implies the contemporaneous existence of distinct religious movement called "Mahāyāna", may be a serious misstep.[29]
Earliest inscriptions[link]
The earliest stone inscription containing a recognizably Mahāyāna formulation and a mention of the Buddha Amitabha was found in the Indian subcontinent in Mathura, and dated to around 180 CE. Remains of a statue of a Buddha bear the Brahmi inscription: "Made in the year 28 of the reign of king Huvishka, ... for the Buddha Amitabha" (Mathura Museum).
However, this image was in itself extremely marginal and isolated in the overall context of Buddhism in India at the time, and had no lasting or long-term consequences.[30] Evidence of the name "Mahāyāna" in Indian inscriptions in the period before the 5th century is very limited in comparison to the multiplicity of Mahāyāna writings transmitted from Central Asia to China at that time.[31][32]
These views of a discrepancy between translated texts and epigraphical evidence assume the presence of Mahāyāna as distinct from the "Hīnayāna" schools. This view has been largely disproved in more recent scholarship[citation needed], as Mahāyāna is now recognized as a tradition working within the context of the early Buddhist schools rather than as a separate movement.
Early Mahāyāna Buddhism[link]
During the period of early Mahāyāna Buddhism, four major types of thought developed: Mādhyamaka, Yogācāra, Buddha Nature (Tathāgatagarbha), and Buddhist Logic as the last and most recent.[33] In India, the two main philosophical schools of the Mahāyāna were the Mādhyamaka and the later Yogācāra.[34]
Legacy of Early Mahāyāna Buddhism[link]
Earlier stage forms of Mahāyāna such as the doctrines of Prajñāpāramitā, Yogācāra, Buddha Nature, and the Pure Land teachings are still popular in East Asia. In some cases these have spawned new developments, while in others they are treated in the more traditional syncretic manner. Paul Williams has noted that in this tradition in the Far East, primacy has always been given to study of the sūtras.[35]
Late Mahāyāna Buddhism[link]
Late stage forms of Mahāyāna Buddhism in India are found largely in the schools of Esoteric Buddhism. These were replaced in India and Central Asia after the early millennium by Islam (Sufism etc.) and Hinduism, and in south-east Asia by Theravāda Buddhism from Sri Lanka and Islam. They continue to exist in certain regions of the Himalayas. In contrast to the East Asian traditions, there has been a strong tendency in Tibetan Buddhism and the Himalayan traditions to approach the sūtras indirectly through the medium of exegetical treatises if at all.[35]
Doctrine[link]
Few things can be said with certainty about Mahāyāna Buddhism,[36] especially its early Indian form, other than that the Buddhism practiced in China, Vietnam, Korea, Tibet, and Japan is Mahāyāna Buddhism.[37] Mahāyāna can be described as a loosely bound collection of many teachings with large and expansive doctrines that are able to coexist simultaneously.[38]
Mahāyāna constitutes an inclusive tradition characterized by plurality and the adoption of new Mahāyāna sūtras in addition to the earlier Āgama texts. Mahāyāna sees itself as penetrating further and more profoundly into the Buddha's Dharma. There is a tendency in Mahāyāna sūtras to regard adherence to these sūtras as generating spiritual benefits greater than those that arise from being a follower of the non-Mahāyāna approaches to Dharma. Thus the Śrīmālādevī Sūtra claims that the Buddha said that devotion to Mahāyāna is inherently superior in its virtues to the following the śravaka or pratyekabuddha paths.[39]
The fundamental principles of Mahāyāna doctrine were based on the possibility of universal liberation from suffering for all beings (hence the "Great Vehicle") and the existence of buddhas and bodhisattvas embodying Buddha Nature. The Pure Land school of Mahāyāna simplify the expression of faith by allowing salvation to be alternatively obtained through the grace of the Amitābha Buddha by having faith and devoting oneself to mindfulness of the Buddha. This devotional lifestyle of Buddhism has greatly contributed to the success of Mahāyāna in East Asia, where spiritual elements traditionally relied upon mindfulness of the Buddha, mantras and dhāraṇīs, and reading of Mahāyāna sūtras. In Chinese Buddhism, most monks, let alone lay people, practice Pure Land, some combining it with Chán (Zen).[40]
Most Mahāyāna schools believe in supernatural bodhisattvas who devote themselves to the perfections (Skt. pāramitā), ultimate knowledge (Skt. sarvajñāna), and the liberation of all sentient beings. In Mahāyāna, the Buddha is seen as the ultimate, highest being, present in all times, in all beings, and in all places, and the bodhisattvas come to represent the universal ideal of altruistic excellence.
Universalism[link]
Mahāyāna traditions generally consider that attainment of the level of arhat is not final. This is based on a subtle doctrinal distinction between the Mahāyāna and some views contained in the early Buddhist schools concerning the issues of Nirvāṇa With Remainder and Nirvāṇa Without Remainder. The Mahāyāna position here is similar to that of the early school of the Mahāsāṃghika[citation needed].
Some of the early schools considered that Nirvāṇa Without Remainder always follows Nirvāṇa With Remainder (Buddhas first achieve enlightenment and then, at "death", Mahāparinirvāṇa) and that Nirvāṇa Without Remainder is final; whereas the Mahāyāna traditions consider that Nirvāṇa Without Remainder is always followed by Nirvāṇa With Remainder[citation needed] — the state of attainment of arhat is not considered final, and should be succeeded by Bodhisattvahood[citation needed].
This distinction is most evident regarding doctrinal concerns about the capability of a Buddha after Nirvāṇa, which is identified by the early schools as being Nirvāṇa Without Remainder. Amongst the early schools, a completely enlightened buddha (Skt. samyaksaṃbuddha) is not able to directly point the way to Nirvāṇa after death. Some[who?] Mahayana schools however, hold that once a completely enlightened Buddha (Skt. samyaksaṃbuddha) arises, he or she continues to directly and actively point the way to Nirvāṇa until there are no beings left in saṃsāra[citation needed]. Consequently, some Mahāyāna schools talk of a bodhisattva deliberately refraining from Buddhahood.[41] The Lotus Sutra states that Shakyamuni Buddha's parinirvana is an expedient, and that he actually remains in the world to teach and guide living beings.[42] This is why Nichiren Buddhism regards Shakyamuni as the Eternal Buddha.[43]
The early schools held that Maitreya will be the next Buddha to rediscover the path to Nirvana, when teachings of Gautam Buddha are forgotten[citation needed]. In contrast, some Mahāyāna schools[who?] hold that Maitreya will be the next buddha manifest in this world and will introduce the Dharma when it no longer exists, but when he dies (or enters Mahāparinirvāṇa), he will likewise continue to teach the Dharma for all time[citation needed]. Moreover, some Mahāyāna schools[who?] argue that although it is true that, for this world-system, Maitreya will be the next buddha to manifest, there are an infinite number of world-systems, many of which have currently active buddhas or bodhisattvas manifesting[citation needed].
Because the Mahāyāna traditions assert that eventually everyone will achieve complete enlightenment (Skt. Anuttarā Samyaksaṃbodhi), the Mahāyāna is labeled universalist, whereas the stance of the early scriptures is that attaining Nirvāṇa depends on effort and is not pre-determined.[44]
Bodhisattva[link]
The Mahāyāna tradition holds that pursuing only the release from suffering and attainment of Nirvāṇa is too narrow an aspiration, because it lacks the motivation of actively resolving to liberate all other sentient beings from Saṃsāra. One who engages in this path is called a bodhisattva.
The defining characteristic of a bodhisattva is bodhicitta, the intention to achieve omniscient Buddhahood (Trikaya) as fast as possible, so that one may benefit infinite sentient beings. Sometimes the term bodhisattva is used more restrictively to refer to those sentient beings on the grounds. As Ananda Coomaraswamy notes, "The most essential part of the Mahayana is its emphasis on the Bodhisattva ideal, which replaces that of the arhat, or ranks before it."[45] According to Mahāyāna teachings, being a high-level bodhisattva involves possessing a mind of great compassion and transcendent wisdom (Skt. prajñā) to realize the reality of inherent emptiness and dependent origination. Mahāyāna teaches that the practitioner will finally realize the attainment of Buddhahood.
Six perfections (Skt. pāramitā) are traditionally required for bodhisattvas:
- dāna-pāramitā: the perfection of giving
- śīla-pāramitā: the perfection on behavior and discipline
- kṣānti-pāramitā: the perfection of forbearance
- vīrya-pāramitā: the perfection of vigor and diligence
- dhyāna-pāramitā: the perfection of meditation
- prajñā-pāramitā: the perfection of transcendent wisdom
Expedient means[link]
Main article: Upaya
Expedient means (Skt. upāya) is found in the Lotus Sutra, one of the earliest dated Mahāyāna sūtras, and is accepted in all Mahāyāna schools of thought. It is any effective method that aids awakening. It does not necessarily mean that some particular method is "untrue" but is simply any means or stratagem that is conducive to spiritual growth and leads beings to awakening and nirvana. Expedient means could thus be certain motivational words for a particular listener or even the noble eightfold path itself. Basic Buddhism (what Mahāyāna would term śravakayāna or pratyekabuddhayāna) is an expedient method for helping people begin the noble Buddhist path and advance quite far. But the path is not wholly traversed, according to some Mahāyāna schools, until the practitioner has striven for and attained Buddhahood for the liberation of all other sentient beings from suffering.
Some scholars have stated that the exercise of expedient means, "the ability to adapt one's message to the audience, is also of enormous importance in the Pāli canon."[46] In fact the Pāli term upāya-kosalla does occur in the Pāli Canon, in the Sangiti Sutta of the Digha Nikāya.[47]
Liberation[link]
“Devotional” Mahāyāna developed a rich cosmography, with various Buddhas and bodhisattvas residing in paradise realms. The concept of the three bodies (trikāya) supports these constructions, making the Buddha himself a transcendental figure. Dr. Guang Xing describes the Mahāyāna Buddha as "an omnipotent divinity endowed with numerous supernatural attributes and qualities ...[He] is described almost as an omnipotent and almighty godhead."[48]
Under various conditions, the realms Buddha presides over could be attained by devotees after their death so, when reborn, they could strive towards buddhahood in the best possible conditions. Depending on the sect, this salvation to “paradise” can be obtained by faith, imaging, or sometimes even by the simple invocation of the Buddha’s name. This approach to salvation is at the origin of the mass appeal of devotional Buddhism, especially represented by the Pure Land (浄土宗).
This rich cosmography also allowed Mahāyāna to be quite syncretic and accommodating of other faiths or deities. Various origins have been suggested to explain its emergence, such as “popular Hindu devotional cults (bhakti), and Persian and Greco-Roman theologies, which filtered into India from the northwest”.[49]
Buddha nature[link]
Main article: Buddha nature
The teaching of a "Buddha nature" (Skt. tathāgatagarbha) may be based on the "luminous mind" concept found in the Āgamas. The essential idea, articulated in the Buddha nature sūtras, but not accepted by all Mahāyānists, is that no being is without a concealed but indestructible interior link to the awakening of bodhi and that this link is an uncreated element (dhātu) or principle deep inside each being, which constitutes the deathless, diamond-like "essence of the self".[50] The Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra states: "The essence of the Self (ātman) is the subtle Buddha nature..." while the later Lankāvatāra Sūtra states that the Buddha nature might be taken to be self (ātman), but it is not. In the Buddha nature class of sūtras, the word "self" (ātman) is used in a way defined by and specific to these sūtras. (See Atman (Buddhism).)
According to some scholars, the Buddha nature discussed in some Mahāyāna sūtras does not represent a substantial self (ātman); rather, it is a positive language and expression of emptiness (śūnyatā) and represents the potentiality to realize Buddhahood through Buddhist practices.[51] It is the "true self" in representing the innate aspect of the individual that makes actualizing the ultimate personality possible.
The actual "seeing and knowing" of this Buddha essence (Buddha-dhātu, co-terminous with the Dharmakāya or self[citation needed] of Buddha) is said to usher in nirvanic liberation. This Buddha essence or "Buddha nature" is stated to be found in every single person, ghost, god and sentient being. In the Buddha nature sūtras, the Buddha is portrayed as describing the Buddha essence as uncreated, deathless and ultimately beyond rational grasping or conceptualisation. Yet, it is this already real and present, hidden internal element of awakeness (bodhi) that, according to the Buddha nature sūtras, prompts beings to seek liberation from worldly suffering, and lets them attain the spotless bliss that lies at the heart of their being. Once the veils of negative thoughts, feelings, and unwholesome behaviour (the kleśas) are eliminated from the mind and character, the indwelling Buddha principle (Buddha-dhātu: Buddha nature) can shine forth unimpededly and transform the seer into a Buddha.
Prior to the period of these sūtras, Mahāyāna metaphysics was dominated by teachings on emptiness, in the form of Madhyamaka philosophy. The language used by this approach is primarily negative, and the Buddha nature genre of sūtras can be seen as an attempt to state orthodox Buddhist teachings of dependent origination and on the mysterious reality of nirvana using positive language instead, to prevent people from being turned away from Buddhism by a false impression of nihilism. In these sūtras the perfection of the wisdom of not-self is stated to be the true self; the ultimate goal of the path is then characterized using a range of positive language that had been used in Indian philosophy previously by essentialist philosophers, but was now transmuted into a new Buddhist vocabulary that described a being who has successfully completed the Buddhist path.[52]
The Uttaratantra (an exegetical treatise on Buddha nature) sees Buddha nature not as caused and conditioned (saṃskṛta), but as eternal, uncaused, unconditioned, and incapable of being destroyed, although temporarily concealed within worldly beings by adventitious defilements.[53] According to Buddhist scholar Dr. C. D. Sebastian, the Uttaratantra's reference to a transcendental self (ātma-pāramitā) should be understood as "the unique essence of the universe,"[54] thus the universal and immanent essence of Buddha nature is the same throughout time and space.[55]
Mahāyāna scriptures[link]
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Mahāyāna and the Āgamas[link]
Main article: Mahayana sutras
Mahāyāna Buddhism takes the basic teachings of the Buddha as recorded in early scriptures as the starting point of its teachings, such as those concerning karma and rebirth, anātman, emptiness, dependent origination, and the Four Noble Truths. Mahāyāna Buddhists in East Asia have traditionally studied these teachings in the Āgamas preserved in the Chinese Buddhist canon. "Āgama" is the term used by those traditional Buddhist schools in India who employed Sanskrit for their basic canon. These correspond to the Nikāyas used by the Theravāda school. The surviving Āgamas in Chinese translation belong to at least two schools, while most of the Āgamas teachings were never translated into Tibetan.
In addition to accepting the essential scriptures of the various early Buddhist schools as valid, Mahāyāna Buddhism also maintains large additional collections of sūtras that are not used or recognized by the Theravāda school. In the past, these were also not recognized by some individuals within the early Buddhist schools. In other cases, Buddhist communities were divided along these doctrinal lines. In Mahāyāna Buddhism, the Mahāyāna sūtras are often given greater authority than the Āgamas. The first of these Mahāyāna-specific writings were written probably around the 1st century BCE[56] or 1st century CE.[57]
Turnings of the Dharma Wheel[link]
Dating back at least to the Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra is a classification of the corpus of Buddhism into three categories, based on ways of understanding the nature of reality, known as the "Three Turnings of the Dharma Wheel". According to this view, there were three such "turnings":[58]
- In the first turning, the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths at Vārāṇasī for those in the śravaka vehicle. It is described as marvelous and wonderful, but requiring interpretation and occasioning controversy.[59] The doctrines of the first turning are exemplified in the Dharmacakra Pravartana Sūtra. This turning represents the earliest phase of the Buddhist teachings and the earliest period in the history of Buddhism.
- In the second turning, the Buddha taught the Mahāyāna teachings to the bodhisattvas, teaching that all phenomena have no-essence, no arising, no passing away, are originally quiescent, and essentially in cessation. This turning is also described as marvelous and wonderful, but requiring interpretation and occasioning controversy.[59] Doctrine of the second turning is established in the Prajñāpāramitā teachings, first put into writing around 100 BCE. In Indian philosophical schools, it is exemplified by the Mādhyamaka school of Nāgārjuna.
- In the third turning, the Buddha taught similar teachings to the second turning, but for everyone in the three vehicles, including all the śravakas, pratyekabuddhas, and bodhisattvas. These were meant to be completely explicit teachings in their entire detail, for which interpretations would not be necessary, and controversy would not occur.[59] These teachings were established by the Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra as early as the 1st or 2nd century CE.[60] In the Indian philosophical schools, the third turning is exemplified by the Yogācāra school of Asaṅga and Vasubandhu.
Some traditions of Tibetan Buddhism consider the teachings of Esoteric Buddhism and Vajrayāna to be the third turning of the Dharma Wheel. Tibetan teachers, particularly of the Gelugpa school, regard the second turning as the highest teaching, due to their particular interpretation of Yogācāra doctrine. The Buddha Nature teachings are normally included in the third turning of the wheel. The Chinese tradition has a different scheme.
The Chinese scholar T'ien-T'ai believed the Buddha taught over Five Periods[61]. These are:
- The Flower Garland Period[62].
- The Agama Period[63].
- The Correct and Equal Period (provisional Mahayana Sutras, including the Amida, Mahavairochana and Vimalakirti Sutras)[64].
- The Wisdom Period (Perfection of Wisdom Sutras)[65].
- The Lotus and Nirvana Period (when Shakyamuni taught from the standpoint of his Enlightenment)[66].
Mahāyāna and early canon[link]
Scholars have noted that many key Mahāyāna ideas are closely connected to the earliest texts of Buddhism. The seminal work of Mahāyāna philosophy, Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, mentions the canon's Katyāyana Sūtra (SA 301) by name, and may be an extended commentary on that work.[67] Nāgārjuna systematized the Mādhyamaka school of Mahāyāna philosophy. He may have arrived at his positions from a desire to achieve a consistent exegesis of the Buddha's doctrine as recorded in the canon. In his eyes the Buddha was not merely a forerunner, but the very founder of the Mādhyamaka system.[68] Nāgārjuna also referred to a passage in the canon regarding "nirvanic consciousness" in two different works.[69]
Yogācāra, the other prominent Mahāyāna school in dialectic with the Mādhyamaka school, gave a special significance to the canon's Lesser Discourse on Emptiness (MA 190).[70] A passage there (which the discourse itself emphasizes) is often quoted in later Yogācāra texts as a true definition of emptiness.[71] According to Walpola Rahula, the thought presented in the Yogācāra school's Abhidharma-samuccaya is undeniably closer to that of the Pali Nikayas than is that of the Theravadin Abhidhamma.[72]
Both the Mādhyamikas and the Yogācārins saw themselves as preserving the Buddhist Middle Way between the extremes of nihilism (everything as unreal) and substantialism (substantial entities existing). The Yogācārins criticized the Mādhyamikas for tending towards nihilism, while the Mādhyamikas criticized the Yogācārins for tending towards substantialism.[73]
Key Mahāyāna texts introducing the concepts of bodhicitta and Buddha nature also use language parallel to passages in the canon containing the Buddha's description of "luminous mind" and may have been based on this idea.[74]
Mahāyāna and the Theravāda school[link]
Role of the Bodhisattva[link]
In the early Buddhist texts, and as taught by the modern Theravada school, the goal of becoming a teaching Buddha in a future life is viewed as the aim of a small group of individuals striving to benefit future generations after the current Buddha's teachings have been lost, but in the current age there is no need for most practitioners to aspire to this goal. Theravada texts do, however, hold that this is a more perfectly virtuous goal.[75]
Theravāda and Hīnayāna[link]
Although the Theravāda school is usually described as belonging to Hīnayāna,[76][77][78][79][80] some authors have argued that it should not be considered such from the Mahāyāna perspective. Their view is based on a different understanding of the concept of Hīnayāna. Rather than regarding the term as referring to any school of Buddhism that hasn't accepted the Mahāyāna canon and doctrines, such as those pertaining to the role of the boddhisatva,[77][79] these authors argue that the classification of a school as "Hīnayāna" should be crucially dependent on the adherence to a specific phenomenological position. They point out that unlike the now-extinct Sarvāstivāda school, which was the primary object of Mahāyāna criticism, the Theravāda does not claim the existence of independent entities (dharmas); in this it maintains the attitude of early Buddhism.[81][82][83] Adherents of Mahāyāna Buddhism disagreed with the substantialist thought of the Sarvāstivādins and Sautrāntikas, and in emphasizing the doctrine of emptiness, Kalupahana holds that they endeavored to preserve the early teaching.[84] The Theravādins too refuted the Sarvāstivādins and Sautrāntikas (and other schools) on the grounds that their theories were in conflict with the non-substantialism of the canon. The Theravāda arguments are preserved in the Kathāvatthu.[85] Thus, according to this view, no form of real Hīnayāna Buddhism survives today.
Some contemporary Theravādin figures have indicated a sympathetic stance toward the Mahāyāna philosophy found in texts such as the Heart Sūtra (Skt. Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya) and Nāgārjuna's Fundamental Stanzas on the Middle Way (Skt. Mūlamadhyamakakārikā).[86][87]
See also[link]
References[link]
- ^ a b c Keown, Damien (2003), A Dictionary of Buddhism: p. 38
- ^ Warder, A.K. Indian Buddhism. 2000. p. 11
- ^ Ray, Reginald. Buddhist Saints in India: A Study in Buddhist Values and Orientations. 1999. p. 426
- ^ Guang Xing. The Concept of the Buddha: Its Evolution from Early Buddhism to the Trikaya Theory. 2004. p. 65-6
- ^ Skilton, Andrew. A Concise History of Buddhism. 2004. p. 48
- ^ Williams, Jane, and Williams, Paul. Buddhism: Critical Concepts in Religious Studies, Volume 2. 2005. p. 189
- ^ "The Mahayana, 'Great Vehicle' or 'Great Carriage' (for carrying all beings to nirvana), is also, and perhaps more correctly and accurately, known as the Bodhisattvayana, the bodhisattva's vehicle." - Warder, A.K. (3rd edn. 1999). Indian Buddhism: p. 338
- ^ a b Nattier, Jan (2003), A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra: p. 174
- ^ Nattier, Jan (2003), A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra: p. 172
- ^ Ven. Dr. W. Rahula, Theravada - Mahayana Buddhism
- ^ Williams, Paul. Buddhism. Vol. 3. The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Routledge. 2004. p. 50.
- ^ I have assumed that, in the earliest stage of the transmission of the Lotus Sūtra, the Middle Indic forn jāṇa or *jāna (= Pkt < Skt jñāna, yāna) had stood in these places ... I have assumed, further, that the Mahāyānist terms buddha-yānā ("the Buddha-vehicle"), mahāyāna ("the great vehicle"), hīnayāna ("the inferior vehicle") meant originally buddha-jñāna ("buddha-knowledge"), mahājñāna ("great knowledge") and hīnajñāna ("inferior knowledge"). Karashima, Seishi (2001). Some Features of the Language of the Saddharma-puṇḍarīka-sūtra, Indo-Iranian Journal 44: 207-230
- ^ Williams, Paul. Buddhism. Vol. 3. The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Routledge. 2004. p. 50
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 260
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (1993), A History of Indian Buddhism: From Sakyamuni to Early Mahayana: p. 271
- ^ e.g. Williams, Mahayana Buddhism
- ^ "As scholars have moved away from this limited corpus, and have begun to explore a wider range of Mahayana sūtras, they have stumbled on, and have started to open up, a literature that is often stridently ascetic and heavily engaged in reinventing the forest ideal, an individualistic, antisocial, ascetic ideal that is encapsulated in the apparently resurrected image of “wandering alone like a rhinoceros.” Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 494
- ^ "One of the most frequent assertions about the Mahayana ... is that it was a lay-influenced, or even lay-inspired and dominated, movement that arose in response to the increasingly closed, cold, and scholastic character of monastic Buddhism. This, however, now appears to be wrong on all counts." Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 494
- ^ a b Nattier, Jan (2003), A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra: p. 193-194
- ^ Williams, Paul (2008) Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations: p. 4-5
- ^ Williams, Paul (2008) Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations: p. 5
- ^ a b "The most important evidence — in fact the only evidence — for situating the emergence of the Mahayana around the beginning of the common era was not Indian evidence at all, but came from China. Already by the last quarter of the 2nd century CE, there was a small, seemingly idiosyncratic collection of substantial Mahayana sutras translated into what Erik Zürcher calls 'broken Chinese' by an Indoscythian, whose Indian name has been reconstructed as Lokaksema." Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 492
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 263, 268
- ^ "The south (of India) was then vigorously creative in producing Mahayana Sutras" – Warder, A.K. (3rd edn. 1999). Indian Buddhism: p. 335.
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 253
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 248-251
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 252, 253
- ^ "The sudden appearance of large numbers of (Mahayana) teachers and texts (in North India in the second century AD) would seem to require some previous preparation and development, and this we can look for in the South." - Warder, A.K. (3rd edn. 1999). Indian Buddhism: p. 335.
- ^ "But even apart from the obvious weaknesses inherent in arguments of this kind there is here the tacit equation of a body of literature with a religious movement, an assumption that evidence for the presence of one proves the existence of the other, and this may be a serious misstep." - Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 493
- ^ "In other words, once nontextual evidence is taken into account the picture changes dramatically. Rather than being datable to the beginning of the common era, this strand of Mahayana Buddhism, at least, appeared to have no visible impact on Indian Buddhist cult practice until the 2nd century, and even then what impact it had was extremely isolated and marginal, and had no lasting or long-term consequences — there were no further references to Amitabha in Indian image inscriptions. Almost exactly the same pattern occurs (concerning Mahayana) on an even broader scale when nontextual evidence is considered." - Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 493
- ^ "Certainly, we have for this period an extensive body of inscriptions from virtually all parts of India. ... But nowhere in this extensive body of material is there any reference, prior to the fifth century, to a named Mahāyāna.", Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 493
- ^ "What is particularly disconcerting here is the disconnect between expectation and reality: We know from Chinese translations that large numbers of Mahāyāna sutras were being composed in the period between the beginning of the common era and the fifth century. But outside of texts, at least in India, at exactly the same period, very different — in fact seemingly older — ideas and aspirations appear to be motivating actual behavior, and old and established Hinayana groups appear to be the only ones that are patronized and supported., Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 494
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 8,9
- ^ Harvey, Peter (1993). An Introduction to Buddhism. Cambridge University Press: p. 95.
- ^ a b Williams, Paul (1989). Mahayana Buddhism: p.103
- ^ "There are, it seems, very few things that can be said with certainty about Mahayana Buddhism", Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 492
- ^ "But apart from the fact that it can be said with some certainty that the Buddhism embedded in China, Korea, Tibet, and Japan is Mahayana Buddhism, it is no longer clear what else can be said with certainty about Mahayana Buddhism itself, and especially about its earlier, and presumably formative, period in India.", Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 492
- ^ "It has become increasingly clear that Mahayana Buddhism was never one thing, but rather, it seems, a loosely bound bundle of many, and — like Walt Whitman — was large and could contain, in both senses of the term, contradictions, or at least antipodal elements." - Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 492
- ^ Hookham, Dr. Shenpen, trans. (1998). The Shrimaladevi Sutra. Oxford: Longchen Foundation: p.27
- ^ Welch (1967). Practice of Chinese Buddhism. Harvard: p. 396
- ^ Cook (1977). Hua-Yen Buddhism. Pennsylvania State University Press
- ^ Lotus Sutra, Ch. 16, Lifespan of the Thus Come One
- ^ Nichiren the Buddhist Prophet, MASAHARU ANESAKI, p. 27, CAMBRIDGE HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS (1916)
- ^ Harvey, Peter (1995). The Selfless Mind. Curzon Press: p. 87.
- ^ Coomaraswamy, Ananda (1975). Buddha and the Gospel of Buddhism. Boston: University Books, Inc.. p. 229. LCCN 64056434.
- ^ "It is true that the term translated 'expounding in means', upaya-kausalya, is post-canonical, but the exercise of expounding to which it refers, the ability to adapt one's message to the audience, is of enormous importance in the Pali Canon." Gombrich, Richard F. (1997). How Buddhism Began. Munshiram Manoharlal: p. 17
- ^ Walshe, M. trans. (1987). Thus Have I Heard: the Long Discourses of the Buddha. Wisdom: p. 486
- ^ Guang Xing (2005). The Three Bodies of the Buddha: The Origin and Development of the Trikaya Theory. Oxford: Routledge Curzon: pp.1 and 85
- ^ Lowenstein, Tom. The Vision of the Buddha
- ^ Nirvāṇa Sūtra
- ^ Heng-Ching Shih, The Significance Of "Tathagatagarbha"—A Positive Expression Of "Sunyata".
- ^ King, Sallie B. The Doctrine of Buddha-Nature is impeccably Buddhist: pp. 174-179.
- ^ Sebastian, Professor C. D. (2005), Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism. Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications: p. 268
- ^ Sebastian, Professor C. D. (2005), Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism. Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications: p. 151; cf. also p. 110
- ^ Sebastian, Professor C. D. (2005), Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism. Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications: p. 278
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993). A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 252
- ^ Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 293
- ^ Kitagawa, Joseph Mitsuo (2002). The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture. Routledge. ISBN 0-7007-1762-5: p. 80
- ^ a b c Keenan, John (2000). The Scripture on the Explication of the Underlying Meaning. Numata Center. ISBN 1-886439-10-9: p. 49
- ^ Powers, John (1993), Hermeneutics and tradition in the Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra, Brill Academic Publishers, pp. 4–11, ISBN 90-04-09826-7
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism, 'Five Periods'
- ^ Kalupahana, David (2006). Mulamadhyamakakarika of Nagarjuna. Motilal Banarsidass: p. 5.
- ^ Lindtner, Christian (1997). Master of Wisdom. Dharma Publishing: p. 324.
- ^ Lindtner, Christian (1997). Master of Wisdom. Dharma Publishing: p. 322. Lindtner says that Nāgārjuna is referencing the DN.
- ^ Nagao, Gadjin M.; Kawamura, Leslie S., trans. (1991). Madhyamika and Yogachara. Albany: SUNY Press: p. 53.
- ^ Nagao, Gadjin M.; Kawamura, Leslie S., trans. (1991). Madhyamika and Yogachara. Albany: SUNY Press: p. 200.
- ^ Dan Lusthaus, Buddhist Phenomenology. Routledge, 2002, page 44, note 5. Lusthaus draws attention to Rahula's Zen and the Taming of the Bull.
- ^ Harvey, Peter (1993). An Introduction to Buddhism. Cambridge University Press: p. 106.
- ^ Harvey, Peter (1989). Consciousness Mysticism in the Discourses of the Buddha. In Werner, Karel ed., The Yogi and the Mystic. Curzon Press: p. 97.
- ^ Harvey, Peter (2000). An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics. Cambridge University Press: p. 123.
- ^ Google Books
- ^ a b Gombrich, Richard Francis (1988). Theravāda Buddhism: P.83
- ^ Collins, Steven. 1990. Selfless Persons: Imagery and Thought in Theravāda Buddhism. P.21
- ^ a b Gellner, David N. (2005). Rebuilding Buddhism: P.14
- ^ Swearer, Donald (2006). Theravada Buddhist Societies. In: Juergensmeyer, Mark (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Global Religions: P.83
- ^ Hoffman, Frank J. and Mahinda, Deegalle (1996). Pali Buddhism. Routledge Press: p. 192.
- ^ King, Richard (1999). Indian Philosophy: An Introduction to Hindu and Buddhist Thought. Edinburgh University Press: p. 86.
- ^ Nyanaponika, Nyaponika Thera, Nyanaponika, Bhikkhu Bodhi (1998). Abhidhamma Studies: Buddhist Explorations of Consciousness and Time. Wisdom Publications: p. 42.
- ^ Kalupahana, David (2006). Mulamadhyamakakarika of Nagarjuna. Motilal Banarsidass: p. 6.
- ^ Kalupahana, David (2006). Mulamadhyamakakarika of Nagarjuna. Motilal Banarsidass: p. 24.
- ^ Lopez, Donald S. and Dge-ʼdun-chos-ʼphel (2006). The Madman's Middle Way: Reflections on Reality of the Tibetan Monk Gendun Chopel. University of Chicago Press: p. 24.
- ^ Gil Fronsdal, in Tricycle, posted online on November 8, 2007
Notes[link]
- "Mahayana". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2002.
Further reading[link]
- Beal (1871). Catena of Buddhist Scriptures from the Chinese
- Kuroda, S. (1893). Outline of Mahayana
- Lowenstein, Tom. The Vision of the Buddha. ISBN 1-903296-91-9
- Lynch, Kevin (2005). The Way Of The Tiger: A Buddhist's Guide To Achieving Nirvana. Yojimbo Temple
- Murdoch (1910). History of Japan, volume i.
- Schopen, G. "The inscription on the Kusan image of Amitabha and the character of the early Mahayana in India", Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 10, 1990
- Suzuki, D. T. (1914). In Paul Carus, ed., The Monist, volume xxiv,.
- Suzuki, D. T. (1907). Outline of Mahayana Buddhism
- Williams, Paul (1989). Mahayana Buddhism. Routledge.
External links[link]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mahayana |
- Digital Dictionary of Buddhism
- Sacred Library Contains many Mahāyāna sūtras
- Comparison of Buddhist Traditions (Mahayana - Therevada - Tibetan)
- Mahayana Buddhist Sutras in English
- The Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra: complete text and analysis.
- Major Mahayana Tathagatagarbha sutras in English translation
- Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism
- April 2010 Smithsonian Magazine Article
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Buddhism is a religion and philosophy indigenous to the Indian subcontinent and encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs, and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha (meaning "the awakened one" in Sanskrit and Pāli). The Buddha lived and taught in the eastern part of Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.[1] He is recognized by Buddhists as an awakened or enlightened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end ignorance (avidyā), craving (taṇhā), and suffering (dukkha), by recognizing dependent origination and sunyata, and attain Nirvana.
Two major branches of Buddhism are recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada has a widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. Mahayana is found throughout East Asia and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, Tiantai (Tendai) and Shinnyo-en. In some classifications, Vajrayana—practiced mainly in Tibet and Mongolia, and adjacent parts of China and Russia—is recognized as a third branch, while others classify it as a part of Mahayana. There are other categorisations of these three Vehicles or Yanas.[2]
While Buddhism remains most popular within Asia, both branches are now found throughout the world. Estimates of Buddhists worldwide vary significantly depending on the way Buddhist adherence is defined. Lower estimates are between 350–500 million.[3][4][5]
Buddhist schools vary on the exact nature of the path to liberation, the importance and canonicity of various teachings and scriptures, and especially their respective practices.[6] Two of the most important teachings are dependent origination and sunyata. The foundations of Buddhist tradition and practice are the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings), and the Sangha (the community). Taking "refuge in the triple gem" has traditionally been a declaration and commitment to being on the Buddhist path and in general distinguishes a Buddhist from a non-Buddhist.[7] Other practices may include following ethical precepts; support of the monastic community; renouncing conventional living and becoming a monastic; the development of mindfulness and practice of meditation; cultivation of higher wisdom and discernment; study of scriptures; devotional practices; ceremonies; and in the Mahayana tradition, invocation of buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Contents
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Life of the Buddha[link]
Main article: Gautama Buddha
This narrative draws on the Nidānakathā biography of the Theravāda sect in Sri Lanka, which is ascribed to Buddhaghoṣa in the 5th century CE.[8] Earlier biographies such as the Buddhacarita, the Lokottaravādin Mahāvastu, and the Mahāyāna / Sarvāstivāda Lalitavistara Sūtra, give different accounts. Scholars are hesitant to make unqualified claims about the historical facts of the Buddha's life. Most accept that he lived, taught and founded a monastic order, but do not consistently accept all of the details contained in his biographies.[9][10]
According to author Michael Carrithers, while there are good reasons to doubt the traditional account, "the outline of the life must be true: birth, maturity, renunciation, search, awakening and liberation, teaching, death."[11] In writing her biography of Buddha, Karen Armstrong noted, "It is obviously difficult, therefore, to write a biography of the Buddha that will meet modern criteria, because we have very little information that can be considered historically sound... [but] we can be reasonably confident Siddhatta Gotama did indeed exist and that his disciples preserved the memory of his life and teachings as well as they could."[12]
The evidence of the early texts suggests that Siddhārtha Gautama was born in a community that was on the periphery, both geographically and culturally, of the northeastern Indian subcontinent in the 5th century BCE.[13] It was either a small republic, in which case his father was an elected chieftain, or an oligarchy, in which case his father was an oligarch.[13]
According to the Theravada Tripitaka scriptures[which?] (from Pali, meaning "three baskets"), Gautama was born in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, around the year 563 BCE, and raised in Kapilavastu.[14][15]
According to this narrative, shortly after the birth of young prince Gautama, an astrologer visited the young prince's father—King Śuddhodana—and prophesied that Siddhartha would either become a great king or renounce the material world to become a holy man, depending on whether he saw what life was like outside the palace walls.
Śuddhodana was determined to see his son become a king, so he prevented him from leaving the palace grounds. But at age 29, despite his father's efforts, Gautama ventured beyond the palace several times. In a series of encounters—known in Buddhist literature as the four sights—he learned of the suffering of ordinary people, encountering an old man, a sick man, a corpse and, finally, an ascetic holy man, apparently content and at peace with the world. These experiences prompted Gautama to abandon royal life and take up a spiritual quest.
Gautama first went to study with famous religious teachers of the day, and mastered the meditative attainments they taught. But he found that they did not provide a permanent end to suffering, so he continued his quest. He next attempted an extreme asceticism, which was a religious pursuit common among the Shramanas, a religious culture distinct from the Vedic one. Gautama underwent prolonged fasting, breath-holding, and exposure to pain. He almost starved himself to death in the process. He realized that he had taken this kind of practice to its limit, and had not put an end to suffering. So in a pivotal moment he accepted milk and rice from a village girl and changed his approach. He devoted himself to anapanasati meditation, through which he discovered what Buddhists call the Middle Way (Skt. madhyamā-pratipad[16]): a path of moderation between the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification.[17][18]
Gautama was now determined to complete his spiritual quest. At the age of 35, he famously sat in meditation under a sacred fig tree — known as the Bodhi tree — in the town of Bodh Gaya, India, and vowed not to rise before achieving enlightenment. After many days, he finally destroyed the fetters of his mind, thereby liberating himself from the cycle of suffering and rebirth, and arose as a fully enlightened being (Skt. samyaksaṃbuddha). Soon thereafter, he attracted a band of followers and instituted a monastic order. Now, as the Buddha, he spent the rest of his life teaching the path of awakening he had discovered, traveling throughout the northeastern part of the Indian subcontinent,[19][20] and died at the age of 80 (483 BCE) in Kushinagar, India. The south branch of the original fig tree available only in Anuradhapura Sri Lanka is known as Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi.
Buddhist concepts[link]
Main article: Buddhist terms and concepts
As writing was uncommon in India at the time Gautama lived, everything we know about him was carefully memorized and passed on orally until it was written down, probably during the first century BCE.[21]
The English word "Buddhism" is relatively new. It was first used in the Oxford English Dictionary of 1801 (spelled "Boudhism") and its spelling changed to the present one in 1816, in a comment published in the Asiatic Journal ("The name and peculiarities of Buddhism have a good deal fixed my attention").[22]
"The Three Jewels", Buddha, Dharma and Sangha,[23] as well as the concepts of karma,[24] rebirth (and reincarnation[25]) and the practice of yoga[26] existed before Gautama lived but they later became associated with Buddhism.
Life and the world[link]
Karma[link]
Main article: Karma in Buddhism
Karma (from Sanskrit: "action, work") in Buddhism is the force that drives saṃsāra—the cycle of suffering and rebirth for each being. Good, skillful deeds (Pāli: "kusala") and bad, unskillful (Pāli: "akusala") actions produce "seeds" in the mind which come to fruition either in this life or in a subsequent rebirth.[27] The avoidance of unwholesome actions and the cultivation of positive actions is called śīla (from Sanskrit: "ethical conduct").
In Buddhism, karma specifically refers to those actions (of body, speech, and mind) that spring from mental intent ("cetana"),[28] and which bring about a consequence (or fruit, "phala") or result ("vipāka").
In Theravada Buddhism there can be no divine salvation or forgiveness for one's karma, since it is a purely impersonal process that is a part of the makeup of the universe. In Mahayana Buddhism, the texts of certain Mahayana sutras (such as the Lotus Sutra, the Angulimaliya Sutra and the Nirvana Sutra) claim that reciting or merely hearing their texts can expunge great swathes of negative karma. Some forms of Buddhism (for example, Vajrayana) regard the recitation of mantras as a means for cutting off previous negative karma.[29] The Japanese Pure Land teacher Genshin taught that Amida Buddha has the power to destroy the karma that would otherwise bind one in saṃsāra.[4][5]
Rebirth[link]
Main article: Rebirth (Buddhism)
Rebirth refers to a process whereby beings go through a succession of lifetimes as one of many possible forms of sentient life, each running from conception[30] to death. Buddhism rejects the concepts of a permanent self or an unchanging, eternal soul, as it is called in Hinduism and Christianity. According to Buddhism there ultimately is no such thing as a self independent from the rest of the universe (the doctrine of anatta). Rebirth in subsequent existences must be understood as the continuation of a dynamic, ever-changing process of "dependent arising" ("pratītyasamutpāda") determined by the laws of cause and effect (karma) rather than that of one being, transmigrating or incarnating from one existence to the next.
Each rebirth takes place within one of five realms according to Theravadins, or six according to other schools.[31][32] These are further subdivided into 31 planes of existence:[33]
- Naraka beings: those who live in one of many Narakas (Hells);
- Preta: sometimes sharing some space with humans, but invisible to most people; an important variety is the hungry ghost;[34]
- Animals: sharing space with humans, but considered another type of life;
- Human beings: one of the realms of rebirth in which attaining Nirvana is possible;
- Asuras: variously translated as lowly deities, demons, titans, antigods; not recognized by Theravāda (Mahavihara) tradition as a separate realm;[35]
- Devas including Brahmas: variously translated as gods, deities, spirits, angels, or left untranslated.
Rebirths in some of the higher heavens, known as the Śuddhāvāsa Worlds (Pure Abodes), can be attained by only skilled Buddhist practitioners known as anāgāmis (non-returners). Rebirths in the arupa-dhatu (formless realms) can be attained by only those who can meditate on the arūpajhānas, the highest object of meditation.
According to East Asian and Tibetan Buddhism, there is an intermediate state (Tibetan "Bardo") between one life and the next. The orthodox Theravada position rejects this; however there are passages in the Samyutta Nikaya of the Pali Canon (the collection of texts on which the Theravada tradition is based), that seem to lend support to the idea that the Buddha taught of an intermediate stage between one life and the next.[36][37]
Saṃsāra[link]
Main article: Saṃsāra (Buddhism)
Sentient beings crave pleasure and are averse to pain from birth to death. In being controlled by these attitudes, they perpetuate the cycle of conditioned existence and suffering (saṃsāra), and produce the causes and conditions of the next rebirth after death. Each rebirth repeats this process in an involuntary cycle, which Buddhists strive to end by eradicating these causes and conditions, applying the methods laid out by the Buddha and subsequent Buddhists.
Suffering's causes and solution[link]
The Four Noble Truths[link]
Main article: Four Noble Truths
According to the Pali Tipitaka[38] and the Āgamas of other early Buddhist schools, the Four Noble Truths were the first teaching of Gautama Buddha after attaining Nirvana. They are sometimes considered to contain the essence of the Buddha's teachings:
- Life as we know it ultimately is or leads to suffering/uneasiness (dukkha) in one way or another.
- Suffering is caused by craving. This is often expressed as a deluded clinging to a certain sense of existence, to selfhood, or to the things or phenomena that we consider the cause of happiness or unhappiness. Craving also has its negative aspect, i.e. one craves that a certain state of affairs not exist.
- Suffering ends when craving ends. This is achieved by eliminating delusion, thereby reaching a liberated state of Enlightenment (bodhi);
- Reaching this liberated state is achieved by following the path laid out by the Buddha.
This method is described by early Western scholars, and taught as an introduction to Buddhism by some contemporary Mahayana teachers (for example, the Dalai Lama).[39]
According to other interpretations by Buddhist teachers and scholars, lately recognized by some Western non-Buddhist scholars,[40] the "truths" do not represent mere statements, but are categories or aspects that most worldly phenomena fall into, grouped in two:
- Suffering and causes of suffering;
- Cessation and the paths towards liberation from suffering.
Thus, according to the Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism[41] they are
- "The noble truth that is suffering";
- "The noble truth that is the arising of suffering";
- "The noble truth that is the end of suffering";
- "The noble truth that is the way leading to the end of suffering".
The traditional Theravada understanding is that the Four Noble Truths are an advanced teaching for those who are ready for them.[42][43] The East Asian Mahayana position is that they are a preliminary teaching for people not yet ready for the higher and more expansive Mahayana teachings.[44]
Noble Eightfold Path[link]
Main article: Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path—the fourth of the Buddha's Noble Truths—is the way to the cessation of suffering (dukkha). It has eight sections, each starting with the word "samyak" (Sanskrit, meaning "correctly", "properly", or "well", frequently translated into English as "right"), and presented in three groups known as the three higher trainings. (NB: Pāli transliterations appear in brackets after Sanskrit ones):
- Prajñā is the wisdom that purifies the mind, allowing it to attain spiritual insight into the true nature of all things. It includes:
- dṛṣṭi (ditthi): viewing reality as it is, not just as it appears to be;
- saṃkalpa (sankappa): intention of renunciation, freedom and harmlessness.
- Śīla is the ethics or morality, or abstention from unwholesome deeds. It includes:
- vāc (vāca): speaking in a truthful and non-hurtful way;
- karman (kammanta): acting in a non-harmful way;
- ājīvana (ājīva): a non-harmful livelihood.
- Samādhi is the mental discipline required to develop mastery over one's own mind. This is done through the practice of various contemplative and meditative practices, and includes:
- vyāyāma (vāyāma): making an effort to improve;
- smṛti (sati): awareness to see things for what they are with clear consciousness, being aware of the present reality within oneself, without any craving or aversion;
- samādhi (samādhi): correct meditation or concentration, explained as the first four jhānas.
The practice of the Eightfold Path is understood in two ways, as requiring either simultaneous development (all eight items practiced in parallel), or as a progressive series of stages through which the practitioner moves, the culmination of one leading to the beginning of another.
The Four Immeasurables[link]
Main article: Brahmavihara
While he searched for enlightenment, Gautama combined the yoga practice of his teacher Kalama with what later became known as "the immeasurables".[45] Gautama thus invented a new kind of human, one without egotism.[45] What Thich Nhat Hanh calls the "Four Immeasurable Minds" of love, compassion, joy, and equanimity[46] are also known as brahmaviharas, divine abodes, or simply as four immeasurables.[47] Pema Chödrön calls them the "four limitless ones".[48] Of the four, mettā or loving-kindness meditation is perhaps the best known.[47] The Four Immeasurables are taught as a form of meditation that cultivates "wholesome attitudes towards all sentient beings."[49] The practitioner prays:
- May all sentient beings have happiness and its causes,
- May all sentient beings be free of suffering and its causes,
- May all sentient beings never be separated from bliss without suffering,
- May all sentient beings be in equanimity, free of bias, attachment and anger.[50]
Middle Way[link]
Main article: Middle Way
An important guiding principle of Buddhist practice is the Middle Way (or Middle Path), which is said to have been discovered by Gautama Buddha prior to his enlightenment. The Middle Way has several definitions:
- The practice of non-extremism: a path of moderation away from the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification;
- The middle ground between certain metaphysical views (for example, that things ultimately either do or do not exist);[51]
- An explanation of Nirvana (perfect enlightenment), a state wherein it becomes clear that all dualities apparent in the world are delusory (see Seongcheol);
- Another term for emptiness, the ultimate nature of all phenomena (in the Mahayana branch), a lack of inherent existence, which avoids the extremes of permanence and nihilism or inherent existence and nothingness.
Nature of existence[link]
Buddhist scholars have produced a remarkable quantity of intellectual theories, philosophies and world view concepts (see, for example, Abhidharma, Buddhist philosophy and Reality in Buddhism). Some schools of Buddhism discourage doctrinal study, and some regard it as essential practice.
In the earliest Buddhist teachings, shared to some extent by all extant schools, the concept of liberation (Nirvana)—the goal of the Buddhist path—is closely related to the correct understanding of how the mind causes stress. In awakening to the true nature of clinging, one develops dispassion for the objects of clinging, and is liberated from suffering (dukkha) and the cycle of incessant rebirths (saṃsāra). To this end, the Buddha recommended viewing things as characterized by the three marks of existence.
Three Marks of Existence[link]
Main article: Three marks of existence
The Three Marks of Existence are impermanence, suffering, and not-self.
Impermanence (Pāli: anicca) expresses the Buddhist notion that all compounded or conditioned phenomena (all things and experiences) are inconstant, unsteady, and impermanent. Everything we can experience through our senses is made up of parts, and its existence is dependent on external conditions. Everything is in constant flux, and so conditions and the thing itself are constantly changing. Things are constantly coming into being, and ceasing to be. Since nothing lasts, there is no inherent or fixed nature to any object or experience. According to the doctrine of impermanence, life embodies this flux in the aging process, the cycle of rebirth (saṃsāra), and in any experience of loss. The doctrine asserts that because things are impermanent, attachment to them is futile and leads to suffering (dukkha).
Suffering (Pāli: दुक्ख dukkha; Sanskrit दुःख duḥkha) is also a central concept in Buddhism. The word roughly corresponds to a number of terms in English including suffering, pain, unsatisfactoriness, sorrow, affliction, anxiety, dissatisfaction, discomfort, anguish, stress, misery, and frustration. Although the term is often translated as "suffering", its philosophical meaning is more analogous to "disquietude" as in the condition of being disturbed. As such, "suffering" is too narrow a translation with "negative emotional connotations"[52] which can give the impression that the Buddhist view is one of pessimism, but Buddhism seeks to be neither pessimistic nor optimistic, but realistic. In English-language Buddhist literature translated from Pāli, "dukkha" is often left untranslated, so as to encompass its full range of meaning.[53][54][55]
Not-self (Pāli: anatta; Sanskrit: anātman) is the third mark of existence. Upon careful examination, one finds that no phenomenon is really "I" or "mine"; these concepts are in fact constructed by the mind. In the Nikayas anatta is not meant as a metaphysical assertion, but as an approach for gaining release from suffering. In fact, the Buddha rejected both of the metaphysical assertions "I have a Self" and "I have no Self" as ontological views that bind one to suffering.[56] When asked if the self was identical with the body, the Buddha refused to answer. By analyzing the constantly changing physical and mental constituents (skandhas) of a person or object, the practitioner comes to the conclusion that neither the respective parts nor the person as a whole comprise a self.
Dependent arising[link]
Main article: Pratītyasamutpāda
The doctrine of pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit; Pali: paticcasamuppāda; Tibetan: rten.cing.'brel.bar.'byung.ba; Chinese: 緣起) is an important part of Buddhist metaphysics. It states that phenomena arise together in a mutually interdependent web of cause and effect. It is variously rendered into English as "dependent origination", "conditioned genesis", "dependent co-arising", "interdependent arising", or "contingency".
The best-known application of the concept of pratītyasamutpāda is the scheme of Twelve Nidānas (from Pāli "nidāna" meaning "cause, foundation, source or origin"), which explain the continuation of the cycle of suffering and rebirth (saṃsāra) in detail.[57]
Main article: Twelve Nidānas
The Twelve Nidānas describe a causal connection between the subsequent characteristics or conditions of cyclic existence, each one giving rise to the next:
- Avidyā: ignorance, specifically spiritual ignorance of the nature of reality;[58]
- Saṃskāras: literally formations, explained as referring to karma;
- Vijñāna: consciousness, specifically discriminative;[59]
- Nāmarūpa: literally name and form, referring to mind and body;[60]
- Ṣaḍāyatana: the six sense bases: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind-organ;
- Sparśa: variously translated contact, impression, stimulation (by a sense object);
- Vedanā: usually translated feeling: this is the "hedonic tone", i.e. whether something is pleasant, unpleasant or neutral;
- Tṛṣṇā: literally thirst, but in Buddhism nearly always used to mean craving;
- Upādāna: clinging or grasping; the word also means fuel, which feeds the continuing cycle of rebirth;
- Bhava: literally being (existence) or becoming. (The Theravada explains this as having two meanings: karma, which produces a new existence, and the existence itself.);[61]
- Jāti: literally birth, but life is understood as starting at conception;[62]
- Jarāmaraṇa: (old age and death) and also śokaparidevaduḥkhadaurmanasyopāyāsa (sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and misery).
Sentient beings always suffer throughout saṃsāra, until they free themselves from this suffering by attaining Nirvana. Then the absence of the first Nidāna—ignorance—leads to the absence of the others.
Emptiness[link]
Main article: Śūnyatā
Mahayana Buddhism received significant theoretical grounding from Nagarjuna (perhaps c. 150–250 CE), arguably the most influential scholar within the Mahayana tradition. Nagarjuna's primary contribution to Buddhist philosophy was the systematic exposition of the concept of śūnyatā, or "emptiness", widely attested in the Prajñāpāramitā sutras which were emergent in his era. The concept of emptiness brings together other key Buddhist doctrines, particularly anatta and pratītyasamutpāda (dependent origination), to refute the metaphysics of Sarvastivada and Sautrantika (extinct non-Mahayana schools). For Nagarjuna, it is not merely sentient beings that are empty of ātman; all phenomena (dharmas) are without any svabhava (literally "own-nature" or "self-nature"), and thus without any underlying essence; they are "empty" of being independent; thus the heterodox theories of svabhava circulating at the time were refuted on the basis of the doctrines of early Buddhism. Nagarjuna's school of thought is known as the Mādhyamaka. Some of the writings attributed to Nagarjuna made explicit references to Mahayana texts, but his philosophy was argued within the parameters set out by the agamas. He may have arrived at his positions from a desire to achieve a consistent exegesis of the Buddha's doctrine as recorded in the Canon. In the eyes of Nagarjuna the Buddha was not merely a forerunner, but the very founder of the Mādhyamaka system.[63]
Sarvastivada teachings—which were criticized by Nāgārjuna—were reformulated by scholars such as Vasubandhu and Asanga and were adapted into the Yogacara (Sanskrit: yoga practice) school. While the Mādhyamaka school held that asserting the existence or non-existence of any ultimately real thing was inappropriate, some exponents of Yogacara asserted that the mind and only the mind is ultimately real (a doctrine known as cittamatra). Not all Yogacarins asserted that mind was truly existent; Vasubandhu and Asanga in particular did not.[64] These two schools of thought, in opposition or synthesis, form the basis of subsequent Mahayana metaphysics in the Indo-Tibetan tradition.
Besides emptiness, Mahayana schools often place emphasis on the notions of perfected spiritual insight (prajñāpāramitā) and Buddha-nature (tathāgatagarbha). There are conflicting interpretations of the tathāgatagarbha in Mahāyāna thought. The idea may be traced to Abhidharma, and ultimately to statements of the Buddha in the Nikāyas. In Tibetan Buddhism, according to the Sakya school, tathāgatagarbha is the inseparability of the clarity and emptiness of one's mind. In Nyingma, tathāgatagarbha also generally refers to inseparability of the clarity and emptiness of one's mind. According to the Gelug school, it is the potential for sentient beings to awaken since they are empty (i.e. dependently originated). According to the Jonang school, it refers to the innate qualities of the mind which expresses itself in terms of omniscience etc. when adventitious obscurations are removed. The "Tathāgatagarbha Sutras" are a collection of Mahayana sutras which present a unique model of Buddha-nature. Even though this collection was generally ignored in India,[65] East Asian Buddhism provides some significance to these texts.
Nirvana[link]
Main article: Nirvana (concept)
Nirvana (Sanskrit; Pali: "Nibbana") means "cessation", "extinction" (of craving and ignorance and therefore suffering and the cycle of involuntary rebirths (saṃsāra)), "extinguished", "quieted", "calmed"; it is also known as "Awakening" or "Enlightenment" in the West. The term for anybody who has achieved nirvana, including the Buddha, is arahant.
Bodhi (Pāli and Sanskrit, in devanagari: बॊधि) is a term applied to the experience of Awakening of arahants. Bodhi literally means "awakening", but it is more commonly translated into English as "enlightenment". In Early Buddhism, bodhi carried a meaning synonymous to nirvana, using only some different metaphors to describe the experience, which implies the extinction of raga (greed, craving),[66] dosa (hate, aversion)[67] and moha (delusion).[68] In the later school of Mahayana Buddhism, the status of nirvana was downgraded in some scriptures, coming refer to only to the extinction of greed and hate, implying that delusion was still present in one who attained nirvana, and that one needed to attain bodhi to eradicate delusion:
An important development in the Mahayana [was] that it came to separate nirvana from bodhi ('awakening' to the truth, Enlightenment), and to put a lower value on the former (Gombrich, 1992d). Originally nirvana and bodhi refer to the same thing; they merely use different metaphors for the experience. But the Mahayana tradition separated them and considered that nirvana referred only to the extinction of craving (passion and hatred), with the resultant escape from the cycle of rebirth. This interpretation ignores the third fire, delusion: the extinction of delusion is of course in the early texts identical with what can be positively expressed as gnosis, Enlightenment.—Richard F. Gombrich, How Buddhism Began[69]
Therefore, according to Mahayana Buddhism, the arahant has attained only nirvana, thus still being subject to delusion, while the bodhisattva not only achieves nirvana but full liberation from delusion as well. He thus attains bodhi and becomes a buddha. In Theravada Buddhism, bodhi and nirvana carry the same meaning as in the early texts, that of being freed from greed, hate and delusion.
The term parinirvana is also encountered in Buddhism, and this generally refers to the complete nirvana attained by the arahant at the moment of death, when the physical body expires.
Buddha eras[link]
Buddhists believe Gautama Buddha was the first to achieve enlightenment in this Buddha era and is therefore credited with the establishment of Buddhism. A Buddha era is the stretch of history during which people remember and practice the teachings of the earliest known Buddha. This Buddha era will end when all the knowledge, evidence and teachings of Gautama Buddha have vanished. This belief therefore maintains that many Buddha eras have started and ended throughout the course of human existence.[70][71] The Gautama Buddha, then, is the Buddha of this era, who taught directly or indirectly to all other Buddhas in it (see types of Buddhas).
In addition, Mahayana Buddhists believe there are innumerable other Buddhas in other universes.[72] A Theravada commentary says that Buddhas arise one at a time in this world element, and not at all in others.[73] The understandings of this matter reflect widely differing interpretations of basic terms, such as "world realm", between the various schools of Buddhism.
The idea of the decline and gradual disappearance of the teaching has been influential in East Asian Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism holds that it has declined to the point where few are capable of following the path, so it may be best to rely on the power of the Amitabha Buddha.
Practice[link]
Devotion[link]
Main article: Buddhist devotion
Devotion is an important part of the practice of most Buddhists.[74] Devotional practices include bowing, offerings, pilgrimage, and chanting. In Pure Land Buddhism, devotion to the Buddha Amitabha is the main practice. In Nichiren Buddhism, devotion to the Lotus Sutra is the main practice.
Yoga[link]
Buddhism traditionally incorporates states of meditative absorption (Pali: jhāna; Skt: dhyāna).[75] The most ancient sustained expression of yogic ideas is found in the early sermons of the Buddha.[76] One key innovative teaching of the Buddha was that meditative absorption must be combined with liberating cognition.[77] The difference between the Buddha's teaching and the yoga presented in early Brahminic texts is striking. Meditative states alone are not an end, for according to the Buddha, even the highest meditative state is not liberating. Instead of attaining a complete cessation of thought, some sort of mental activity must take place: a liberating cognition, based on the practice of mindful awareness.[78]
Meditation was an aspect of the practice of the yogis in the centuries preceding the Buddha. The Buddha built upon the yogis' concern with introspection and developed their meditative techniques, but rejected their theories of liberation.[79] In Buddhism, mindfulness and clear awareness are to be developed at all times; in pre-Buddhist yogic practices there is no such injunction. A yogi in the Brahmanical tradition is not to practice while defecating, for example, while a Buddhist monastic should do so.[80]
Religious knowledge or "vision" was indicated as a result of practice both within and outside of the Buddhist fold. According to the Samaññaphala Sutta, this sort of vision arose for the Buddhist adept as a result of the perfection of "meditation" coupled with the perfection of "discipline" (Pali sīla; Skt. śīla). Some of the Buddha's meditative techniques were shared with other traditions of his day, but the idea that ethics are causally related to the attainment of "transcendent wisdom" (Pali paññā; Skt. prajñā) was original.[81]
The Buddhist texts are probably the earliest describing meditation techniques.[82] They describe meditative practices and states which had existed before the Buddha as well as those which were first developed within Buddhism.[83] Two Upanishads written after the rise of Buddhism do contain full-fledged descriptions of yoga as a means to liberation.[84]
While there is no convincing evidence for meditation in pre-Buddhist early Brahminic texts, Wynne argues that formless meditation originated in the Brahminic or Shramanic tradition, based on strong parallels between Upanishadic cosmological statements and the meditative goals of the two teachers of the Buddha as recorded in the early Buddhist texts.[85] He mentions less likely possibilities as well.[86] Having argued that the cosmological statements in the Upanishads also reflect a contemplative tradition, he argues that the Nasadiya Sukta contains evidence for a contemplative tradition, even as early as the late Rig Vedic period.[85]
Refuge in the Three Jewels[link]
Main articles: Refuge (Buddhism) and Three Jewels
Traditionally, the first step in most Buddhist schools requires taking refuge in the Three Jewels (Sanskrit: tri-ratna, Pāli: ti-ratana)[87] as the foundation of one's religious practice. The practice of taking refuge on behalf of young or even unborn children is mentioned[88] in the Majjhima Nikaya, recognized by most scholars as an early text (cf. Infant baptism). Tibetan Buddhism sometimes adds a fourth refuge, in the lama. In Mahayana, the person who chooses the bodhisattva path makes a vow or pledge, considered the ultimate expression of compassion. In Mahayana, too, the Three Jewels are perceived as possessed of an eternal and unchanging essence and as having an irreversible effect: "The Three Jewels have the quality of excellence. Just as real jewels never change their faculty and goodness, whether praised or reviled, so are the Three Jewels (Refuges), because they have an eternal and immutable essence. These Three Jewels bring a fruition that is changeless, for once one has reached Buddhahood, there is no possibility of falling back to suffering."[89]
The Three Jewels are:
- The Buddha. This is a title for those who have attained Nirvana. See also the Tathāgata and Gautama Buddha. The Buddha could also be represented as a concept instead of a specific person: the perfect wisdom that understands Dharma and sees reality in its true form. In Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha can be viewed as the supreme Refuge: "Buddha is the Unique Absolute Refuge. Buddha is the Imperishable, Eternal, Indestructible and Absolute Refuge."[90]
- The Dharma. The teachings or law of nature as expounded by the Gautama Buddha. It can also, especially in Mahayana, connote the ultimate and sustaining Reality which is inseparable from the Buddha. Further, from some Mahayana perspectives, the Dharma embodied in the form of a great sutra (Buddhic scripture) can replace the need for a personal teacher and can be a direct and spontaneous gateway into Truth (Dharma). This is especially said to be the case with the Lotus Sutra. Dr. Hiroshi Kanno writes of this view of the Lotus Sutra: "it is a Dharma-gate of sudden enlightenment proper to the Great Vehicle; it is a Dharma-gate whereby one awakens spontaneously, without resorting to a teacher".[91]
- The Sangha. Those who have attained to any of the Four stages of enlightenment, or simply the congregation of monastic practitioners.
According to the scriptures, Gautama Buddha presented himself as a model. The Dharma offers a refuge by providing guidelines for the alleviation of suffering and the attainment of Nirvana. The Sangha is considered to provide a refuge by preserving the authentic teachings of the Buddha and providing further examples that the truth of the Buddha's teachings is attainable.
Buddhist ethics[link]
Main article: The Five Precepts
Śīla (Sanskrit) or sīla (Pāli) is usually translated into English as "virtuous behavior", "morality", "ethics" or "precept". It is an action committed through the body, speech, or mind, and involves an intentional effort. It is one of the three practices (sila, samadhi, and panya) and the second pāramitā. It refers to moral purity of thought, word, and deed. The four conditions of śīla are chastity, calmness, quiet, and extinguishment.
Śīla is the foundation of Samadhi/Bhāvana (Meditative cultivation) or mind cultivation. Keeping the precepts promotes not only the peace of mind of the cultivator, which is internal, but also peace in the community, which is external. According to the Law of Karma, keeping the precepts are meritorious and it acts as causes which would bring about peaceful and happy effects. Keeping these precepts keeps the cultivator from rebirth in the four woeful realms of existence.
Śīla refers to overall principles of ethical behavior. There are several levels of sila, which correspond to "basic morality" (five precepts), "basic morality with asceticism" (eight precepts), "novice monkhood" (ten precepts) and "monkhood" (Vinaya or Patimokkha). Lay people generally undertake to live by the five precepts, which are common to all Buddhist schools. If they wish, they can choose to undertake the eight precepts, which add basic asceticism.
The five precepts are training rules in order to live a better life in which one is happy, without worries, and can meditate well:
- To refrain from taking life (non-violence towards sentient life forms), or ahimsā;
- To refrain from taking that which is not given (not committing theft);
- To refrain from sensual (including sexual) misconduct;
- To refrain from lying (speaking truth always);
- To refrain from intoxicants which lead to loss of mindfulness (specifically, drugs and alcohol).
The precepts are not formulated as imperatives, but as training rules that laypeople undertake voluntarily to facilitate practice.[92] In Buddhist thought, the cultivation of dana and ethical conduct will themselves refine consciousness to such a level that rebirth in one of the lower heavens is likely, even if there is no further Buddhist practice. There is nothing improper or un-Buddhist about limiting one's aims to this level of attainment.[93]
In the eight precepts, the third precept on sexual misconduct is made more strict, and becomes a precept of celibacy. The three additional precepts are:
- 6. To refrain from eating at the wrong time (eat only from sunrise to noon);
- 7. To refrain from dancing and playing music, wearing jewelry and cosmetics, attending shows and other performances;
- 8. To refrain from using high or luxurious seats and bedding.
The complete list of ten precepts may be observed by laypeople for short periods. For the complete list, the seventh precept is partitioned into two, and a tenth added:
- 6. To refrain from taking food at an unseasonable time, that is after the mid-day meal;
- 7. To refrain from dancing, music, singing and unseemly shows;
- 8. To refrain from the use of garlands, perfumes, ointments, and from things that tend to beautify and adorn (the person);
- 9. To refrain from (using) high and luxurious seats (and beds);
- 10. To refrain from accepting gold and silver;[94]
Monastic life[link]
Vinaya is the specific moral code for monks and nuns. It includes the Patimokkha, a set of 227 rules for monks in the Theravadin recension. The precise content of the vinayapitaka (scriptures on Vinaya) differs slightly according to different schools, and different schools or subschools set different standards for the degree of adherence to Vinaya. Novice-monks use the ten precepts, which are the basic precepts for monastics.
Regarding the monastic rules, the Buddha constantly reminds his hearers that it is the spirit that counts. On the other hand, the rules themselves are designed to assure a satisfying life, and provide a perfect springboard for the higher attainments. Monastics are instructed by the Buddha to live as "islands unto themselves". In this sense, living life as the vinaya prescribes it is, as one scholar puts it: "more than merely a means to an end: it is very nearly the end in itself."[95]
In Eastern Buddhism, there is also a distinctive Vinaya and ethics contained within the Mahayana Brahmajala Sutra (not to be confused with the Pali text of that name) for Bodhisattvas, where, for example, the eating of meat is frowned upon and vegetarianism is actively encouraged (see vegetarianism in Buddhism). In Japan, this has almost completely displaced the monastic vinaya, and allows clergy to marry.
Meditation[link]
Main article: Buddhist meditation
Buddhist meditation is fundamentally concerned with two themes: transforming the mind and using it to explore itself and other phenomena.[96] According to Theravada Buddhism the Buddha taught two types of meditation, samatha meditation (Sanskrit: śamatha) and vipassanā meditation (Sanskrit: vipaśyanā). In Chinese Buddhism, these exist (translated chih kuan), but Chán (Zen) meditation is more popular.[97] According to Peter Harvey, whenever Buddhism has been healthy, not only monks, nuns, and married lamas, but also more committed lay people have practiced meditation.[98] According to Routledge's Encyclopedia of Buddhism, in contrast, throughout most of Buddhist history before modern times, serious meditation by lay people has been unusual.[99] The evidence of the early texts suggests that at the time of the Buddha, many male and female lay practitioners did practice meditation, some even to the point of proficiency in all eight jhānas (see the next section regarding these).[100]
Samādhi (meditative cultivation): samatha meditation[link]
Main articles: Samādhi (Buddhism) and Dhyāna in Buddhism
In the language of the Noble Eightfold Path, samyaksamādhi is "right concentration". The primary means of cultivating samādhi is meditation. Upon development of samādhi, one's mind becomes purified of defilement, calm, tranquil, and luminous.
Once the meditator achieves a strong and powerful concentration (jhāna, Sanskrit ध्यान dhyāna), his mind is ready to penetrate and gain insight (vipassanā) into the ultimate nature of reality, eventually obtaining release from all suffering. The cultivation of mindfulness is essential to mental concentration, which is needed to achieve insight.
Samatha meditation starts from being mindful of an object or idea, which is expanded to one's body, mind and entire surroundings, leading to a state of total concentration and tranquility (jhāna) There are many variations in the style of meditation, from sitting cross-legged or kneeling to chanting or walking. The most common method of meditation is to concentrate on one's breath (anapanasati), because this practice can lead to both samatha and vipassana'.
In Buddhist practice, it is said that while samatha meditation can calm the mind, only vipassanā meditation can reveal how the mind was disturbed to start with, which is what leads to knowledge (jñāna; Pāli ñāṇa) and understanding (prajñā Pāli paññā), and thus can lead to nirvāṇa (Pāli nibbāna). When one is in jhana, all defilements are suppressed temporarily. Only understanding (prajñā or vipassana) eradicates the defilements completely. Jhanas are also states which Arahants abide in order to rest.
In Theravāda[link]
Main article: Jhāna in Theravada
In Theravāda Buddhism, the cause of human existence and suffering is identified as craving, which carries with it the various defilements. These various defilements are traditionally summed up as greed, hatred and delusion. These are believed to be deeply rooted afflictions of the mind that create suffering and stress. In order to be free from suffering and stress, these defilements need to be permanently uprooted through internal investigation, analyzing, experiencing, and understanding of the true nature of those defilements by using jhāna, a technique which is part of the Noble Eightfold Path. It will then lead the meditator to realize the Four Noble Truths, Enlightenment and Nibbana. Nibbana is the ultimate goal of Theravadins.
Prajñā (Wisdom): vipassana meditation[link]
Prajñā (Sanskrit) or paññā (Pāli) means wisdom that is based on a realization of dependent origination, The Four Noble Truths and the three marks of existence. Prajñā is the wisdom that is able to extinguish afflictions and bring about bodhi. It is spoken of as the principal means of attaining nirvāṇa, through its revelation of the true nature of all things as dukkha (unsatisfactoriness), anicca (impermanence) and anatta (not-self). Prajñā is also listed as the sixth of the six pāramitās of the Mahayana.
Initially, prajñā is attained at a conceptual level by means of listening to sermons (dharma talks), reading, studying, and sometimes reciting Buddhist texts and engaging in discourse. Once the conceptual understanding is attained, it is applied to daily life so that each Buddhist can verify the truth of the Buddha's teaching at a practical level. Notably, one could in theory attain Nirvana at any point of practice, whether deep in meditation, listening to a sermon, conducting the business of one's daily life, or any other activity.
Zen[link]
Main article: Zen
Zen Buddhism (禅), pronounced Chán in Chinese, seon in Korean or zen in Japanese (derived from the Sanskrit term dhyāna, meaning "meditation") is a form of Buddhism that became popular in China, Korea and Japan and that lays special emphasis on meditation.[101] Zen places less emphasis on scriptures than some other forms of Buddhism and prefers to focus on direct spiritual breakthroughs to truth.
Zen Buddhism is divided into two main schools: Rinzai (臨済宗) and Sōtō (曹洞宗), the former greatly favouring the use in meditation on the koan (公案, a meditative riddle or puzzle) as a device for spiritual break-through, and the latter (while certainly employing koans) focusing more on shikantaza or "just sitting".[102]
Zen Buddhist teaching is often full of paradox, in order to loosen the grip of the ego and to facilitate the penetration into the realm of the True Self or Formless Self, which is equated with the Buddha himself.[103] According to Zen master, Kosho Uchiyama, when thoughts and fixation on the little 'I' are transcended, an Awakening to a universal, non-dual Self occurs: ' When we let go of thoughts and wake up to the reality of life that is working beyond them, we discover the Self that is living universal non-dual life (before the separation into two) that pervades all living creatures and all existence.'.[104] Thinking and thought must therefore not be allowed to confine and bind one.[105]
Vajrayana and Tantra[link]
Though based upon Mahayana, Tibeto-Mongolian Buddhism is one of the schools that practice Vajrayana or "Diamond Vehicle" (also referred to as Mantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Tantric Buddhism, or esoteric Buddhism). It accepts all the basic concepts of Mahāyāna, but also includes a vast array of spiritual and physical techniques designed to enhance Buddhist practice. Tantric Buddhism is largely concerned with ritual and meditative practices.[106] One component of the Vajrayāna is harnessing psycho-physical energy through ritual, visualization, physical exercises, and meditation as a means of developing the mind. Using these techniques, it is claimed that a practitioner can achieve Buddhahood in one lifetime, or even as little as three years. In the Tibetan tradition, these practices can include sexual yoga, though only for some very advanced practitioners.[107]
History[link]
Main article: History of Buddhism
Philosophical roots[link]
Historically, the roots of Buddhism lie in the religious thought of ancient India during the second half of the first millennium BCE.[108] That was a period of social and religious turmoil, as there was significant discontent with the sacrifices and rituals of Vedic Brahmanism.[109] It was challenged by numerous new ascetic religious and philosophical groups and teachings that broke with the Brahmanic tradition and rejected the authority of the Vedas and the Brahmans.[110][111] These groups, whose members were known as shramanas, were a continuation of a non-Vedic strand of Indian thought distinct from Indo-Aryan Brahmanism.[112][113] Scholars have reasons to believe that ideas such as samsara, karma (in the sense of the influence of morality on rebirth), and moksha originated in the shramanas, and were later adopted by Brahmin orthodoxy.[114][115][116][117][118][119]
This view is supported by a study of the region in which these notions originated. Buddhism arose in Greater Magadha, which stretched from Sravasti, the capital of Kosala in the north-west, to Rajagrha in the south east. This land, to the east of aryavarta, the land of the Aryas, was recognised as non-Vedic.[120] Other Vedic texts reveal a dislike of the people of Magadha, in all probability because the Magadhas at this time were not Brahmanised.[121] It was not until the 2nd or 3rd centuries BCE that the eastward spread of Brahmanism into Greater Magadha became significant. Ideas that developed in Greater Magadha prior to this were not subject to Vedic influence. These include rebirth and karmic retribution which can be found in a number of movements in Greater Magadha, including Buddhism. These movements inherited notions of rebirth and karmic retribution from an earlier culture.[122]
At the same time, these movements were influenced by, and in some respects continued, philosophical thought within the Vedic tradition as reflected e.g. in the Upanishads.[123] These movements included, besides Buddhism, various skeptics (such as Sanjaya Belatthiputta), atomists (such as Pakudha Kaccayana), materialists (such as Ajita Kesakambali), antinomians (such as Purana Kassapa); the most important ones in the 5th century BCE were the Ajivikas, who emphasized the rule of fate, the Lokayata (materialists), the Ajnanas (agnostics) and the Jains, who stressed that the soul must be freed from matter.[124]
Many of these new movements shared the same conceptual vocabulary - atman ("Self"), buddha ("awakened one"), dhamma ("rule" or "law"), karma ("action"), nirvana ("extinguishing"), samsara ("eternal recurrence") and yoga ("spiritual practice").[109] The shramanas rejected the Veda, and the authority of the brahmans, who claimed to be in possession of revealed truths not knowable by any ordinary human means; moreover, they declared that the entire Brahmanical system was fraudulent: a conspiracy of the brahmans to enrich themselves by charging exorbitant fees for the performance of bogus rites and the giving of futile advice.[125]
A particular criticism of the Buddha's was Vedic animal sacrifice.[81] The Buddha declared that priests reciting the Vedas were like the blind leading the blind.[126] According to him, those priests who had memorized the Vedas really knew nothing.[127] He also mocked the Vedic "hymn of the cosmic man".[128] He declared that the primary goal of Upanishadic thought, the Atman, was in fact non-existent,[129] and, having explained that Brahminical attempts to achieve liberation at death were futile, proposed his new idea of liberation in life.[130][131] At the same time, the traditional Brahminical religion itself gradually underwent profound changes, transforming it into what is recognized as early Hinduism.[109][110][132] In particular, the brahmans thus developed "philosophical systems of their own, meeting the new ideas with adaptations of their doctrines".[133]
Indian Buddhism[link]
Main article: History of Buddhism in India
The history of Indian Buddhism may be divided into five periods:[134] Early Buddhism (occasionally called Pre-sectarian Buddhism), Nikaya Buddhism or Sectarian Buddhism: The period of the Early Buddhist schools, Early Mahayana Buddhism, Later Mahayana Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism (also called Vajrayana Buddhism).
Pre-sectarian Buddhism[link]
Main article: Pre-sectarian Buddhism
Pre-sectarian Buddhism is the earliest phase of Buddhism, recognized by nearly all scholars. Its main scriptures are the Vinaya Pitaka and the four principal Nikayas or Agamas. Certain basic teachings appear in many places throughout the early texts, so most scholars conclude that Gautama Buddha must have taught something similar to the Three marks of existence, the Five Aggregates, Dependent origination, Karma and Rebirth, the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, and Nirvana.[135] Some scholars disagree, and have proposed many other theories.[136][137]
Early Buddhist schools[link]
According to the scriptures, soon after the parinirvāṇa (from Sanskrit: "highest extinguishment") of Gautama Buddha, the first Buddhist council was held. As with any ancient Indian tradition, transmission of teaching was done orally. The primary purpose of the assembly was to collectively recite the teachings to ensure that no errors occurred in oral transmission. In the first council, Ānanda, a cousin of the Buddha and his personal attendant, was called upon to recite the discourses (sūtras, Pāli suttas) of the Buddha, and, according to some sources, the abhidhamma. Upāli, another disciple, recited the monastic rules (vinaya). Scholars regard the traditional accounts of the council as greatly exaggerated if not entirely fictitious.[138]
According to most scholars, at some period after the Second Council the Sangha began to break into separate factions.[139] The various accounts differ as to when the actual schisms occurred. According to the Dipavamsa of the Pāli tradition, they started immediately after the Second Council, the Puggalavada tradition places it in 137 AN, the Sarvastivada tradition of Vasumitra says it was in the time of Asoka and the Mahasanghika tradition places it much later, nearly 100 BCE.
The root schism was between the Sthaviras and the Mahāsāṅghikas. The fortunate survival of accounts from both sides of the dispute reveals disparate traditions. The Sthavira group offers two quite distinct reasons for the schism. The Dipavamsa of the Theravāda says that the losing party in the Second Council dispute broke away in protest and formed the Mahasanghika. This contradicts the Mahasanghikas' own vinaya, which shows them as on the same, winning side. The Mahāsāṅghikas argued that the Sthaviras were trying to expand the vinaya and may also have challenged what they perceived to be excessive claims or inhumanly high criteria for arhatship. Both parties, therefore, appealed to tradition.[140]
The Sthaviras gave rise to several schools, one of which was the Theravāda school. Originally, these schisms were caused by disputes over vinaya, and monks following different schools of thought seem to have lived happily together in the same monasteries, but eventually, by about 100 CE if not earlier, schisms were being caused by doctrinal disagreements too.[141]
Following (or leading up to) the schisms, each Saṅgha started to accumulate an Abhidharma, a detailed scholastic reworking of doctrinal material appearing in the Suttas, according to schematic classifications. These Abhidharma texts do not contain systematic philosophical treatises, but summaries or numerical lists. Scholars generally date these texts to around the 3rd century BCE, 100 to 200 years after the death of the Buddha. Therefore the seven Abhidharma works are generally claimed not to represent the words of the Buddha himself, but those of disciples and great scholars.[142] Every school had its own version of the Adhidharma, with different theories and different texts. The different Adhidharmas of the various schools did not agree with each other. Scholars disagree on whether the Mahasanghika school had an Abhidhamma Pitaka or not.[142][143]
Early Mahayana Buddhism[link]
Main article: Mahāyāna
The origins of Mahāyāna, which formed between 100 BCE and 100 AD,[144] are still not completely understood.[145] The earliest views of Mahāyāna Buddhism in the West assumed that it existed as a separate school in competition with the so-called "Hīnayāna" schools. The split was on the order of the European Protestant Reformation, which divided Christians into Catholic and Protestant.[144] Due to the veneration of buddhas and bodhisattvas, Mahāyāna was often interpreted as a more devotional, lay-inspired form of Buddhism, with supposed origins in stūpa veneration.[146] The old views of Mahāyāna as a lay-inspired sect are now largely considered misguided and wrong.[147]
There is no evidence that Mahāyāna ever referred to a separate formal school or sect of Buddhism, but rather that it existed as a certain set of ideals, and later doctrines, for bodhisattvas.[148] Initially it was known as Bodhisattvayāna (the "Vehicle of the Bodhisattvas").[144] Paul Williams has also noted that the Mahāyāna never had nor ever attempted to have a separate Vinaya or ordination lineage from the early schools of Buddhism, and therefore each bhikṣu or bhikṣuṇī adhering to the Mahāyāna formally belonged to an early school. This continues today with the Dharmaguptaka ordination lineage in East Asia, and the Mūlasarvāstivāda ordination lineage in Tibetan Buddhism. Therefore Mahāyāna was never a separate rival sect of the early schools.[149] From Chinese monks visiting India, we now know that both Mahāyāna and non-Mahāyāna monks in India often lived in the same monasteries side by side.[150]
The Chinese monk Yijing who visited India in the 7th century CE, distinguishes Mahāyāna from Hīnayāna as follows:[151]
Both adopt one and the same Vinaya, and they have in common the prohibitions of the five offences, and also the practice of the Four Noble Truths. Those who venerate the bodhisattvas and read the Mahāyāna sūtras are called the Mahāyānists, while those who do not perform these are called the Hīnayānists.
Much of the early extant evidence for the origins of Mahāyāna comes from early Chinese translations of Mahāyāna texts. These Mahāyāna teachings were first propagated into China by Lokakṣema, the first translator of Mahāyāna sūtras into Chinese during the 2nd century CE.[152] Some scholars have traditionally considered the earliest Mahāyāna sūtras to include the very first versions of the Prajñāpāramitā series, along with texts concerning Akṣobhya Buddha, which were probably composed in the 1st century BCE in the south of India.[153][154][155]
Late Mahayana Buddhism[link]
During the period of Late Mahayana Buddhism, four major types of thought developed: Madhyamaka, Yogacara, Tathagatagarbha, and Buddhist Logic as the last and most recent.[156] In India, the two main philosophical schools of the Mahayana were the Madhyamaka and the later Yogacara.[157] According to Dan Lusthaus, Madhyamaka and Yogacara have a great deal in common, and the commonality stems from early Buddhism.[158] There were no great Indian teachers associated with tathagatagarbha thought.[159]
Vajrayana (Esoteric Buddhism)[link]
Main article: Vajrayana
Scholarly research concerning Esoteric Buddhism is still in its early stages and has a number of problems which make research difficult:[160]
- Vajrayana Buddhism was influenced by Hinduism, and therefore the research has to include research on Hinduism as well.
- The scriptures of Vajrayana have not yet been put in any kind of order.
- Ritual has to be examined as well, not just doctrine.
Development of Buddhism[link]
Main article: Timeline of Buddhism
Buddhism may have spread only slowly in India until the time of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka, who was a public supporter of the religion. The support of Aśoka and his descendants led to the construction of more stūpas (Buddhist religious memorials) and to efforts to spread Buddhism throughout the enlarged Maurya empire and even into neighboring lands—particularly to the Iranian-speaking regions of Afghanistan and Central Asia, beyond the Mauryas' northwest border, and to the island of Sri Lanka south of India. These two missions, in opposite directions, would ultimately lead, in the first case to the spread of Buddhism into China, and in the second case, to the emergence of Theravāda Buddhism and its spread from Sri Lanka to the coastal lands of Southeast Asia.
This period marks the first known spread of Buddhism beyond India. According to the edicts of Aśoka, emissaries were sent to various countries west of India in order to spread Buddhism (Dharma), particularly in eastern provinces of the neighboring Seleucid Empire, and even farther to Hellenistic kingdoms of the Mediterranean. It is a matter of disagreement among scholars whether or not these emissaries were accompanied by Buddhist missionaries.[161]
The gradual spread of Buddhism into adjacent areas meant that it came into contact with new ethnical groups. During this period Buddhism was exposed to a variety of influences, from Persian and Greek civilization, to changing trends in non-Buddhist Indian religions—themselves influenced by Buddhism. Striking examples of this syncretistic development can be seen in the emergence of Greek-speaking Buddhist monarchs in the Indo-Greek Kingdom, and in the development of the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhāra. A Greek king, Menander, has even been immortalized in the Buddhist canon.
The Theravada school spread south from India in the 3rd century BCE, to Sri Lanka and Thailand and Burma and later also Indonesia. The Dharmagupta school spread (also in 3rd century BCE) north to Kashmir, Gandhara and Bactria (Afghanistan).
The Silk Road transmission of Buddhism to China is most commonly thought to have started in the late 2nd or the 1st century CE, though the literary sources are all open to question.[162][163] The first documented translation efforts by foreign Buddhist monks in China were in the 2nd century CE, probably as a consequence of the expansion of the Kushan Empire into the Chinese territory of the Tarim Basin.[164]
In the 2nd century CE, Mahayana Sutras spread to China, and then to Korea and Japan, and were translated into Chinese. During the Indian period of Esoteric Buddhism (from the 8th century onwards), Buddhism spread from India to Tibet and Mongolia.
Buddhism today[link]
Main article: Timeline of Buddhism:Common Era
By the late Middle Ages, Buddhism had become virtually extinct in India, and although it continued to exist in surrounding countries, its influence was no longer expanding. It is now again gaining strength in India and elsewhere.[165][166] Estimates of the number of Buddhist followers by scholars range from 230 million to 1.691 billion. Most scholars classify similar numbers of people under a category they call "Chinese folk" or "traditional" religion, an amalgam of various traditions that includes Buddhism.
Formal membership varies between communities, but basic lay adherence is often defined in terms of a traditional formula in which the practitioner takes refuge in The Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings of the Buddha), and the Sangha (the Buddhist community).
Estimates are uncertain for several reasons:
- difficulties in defining who counts as a Buddhist;
- syncretism among the Eastern religions. Buddhism is practiced by adherents alongside many other religious traditions- including Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto, traditional religions, shamanism, and animism- throughout East and Southeast Asia.[167][168][169][170][171][172][173]
- difficulties in estimating the number of Buddhists who do not have congregational memberships and often do not participate in public ceremonies;[174]
- official policies on religion in several historically Buddhist countries that make accurate assessments of religious adherence more difficult; most notably China, Vietnam and North Korea.[175][176][177] In many current and former Communist governments in Asia, government policies may discourage adherents from reporting their religious identity, or may encourage official counts to underestimate religious adherence.
Nava bauddha[link]
The nava - bauddha or neo-Buddhist are the followers of Ambedkar an Indian who converted to Buddhism, in 1956 and later. [178][179]
Demographics[link]
According to one analysis, Buddhism is the fourth-largest religion in the world behind Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.[188] The monks' order (Sangha), which began during the lifetime of the Buddha, is among the oldest organizations on earth. Buddhism was the first world religion[189][190][191] and was the world's largest religion in the first half of the 20th century — in 1951 Buddhism was the world's largest religion with 520 million adherents. By comparison, the second largest was Christianity with 500 million adherents.[192][193][194][195][196][197][198][199][200][201][202][203]
- Theravada Buddhism, using Sanskrit and Pāli as its scriptural languages, is the dominant form of Buddhism in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Burma. The Dalit Buddhist movement in India (inspired by B. R. Ambedkar) also practices Theravada. Approximately 124 million adherents.[204]
- East Asian forms of Mahayana Buddhism that use Chinese scriptures are dominant in most of China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Vietnam as well as such communities within Indochina, Southeast Asia and the West. Approximately 500 million to one billion.[205]
- Tibetan Buddhism is found in Bhutan, Nepal, Mongolia, areas of India (it's the majority religion in Ladakh; significant population in Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim), China (particularly in Tibet and Inner Mongolia), and Russia (Kalmyk Autonomous Republic). Approximately 20 million adherents.[204]
Most Buddhist groups in the West are at least nominally affiliated with one of these three traditions.
At the present time, the teachings of all three branches of Buddhism have spread throughout the world, and Buddhist texts are increasingly translated into local languages. While in the West Buddhism is often seen as exotic and progressive, in the East it is regarded as familiar and traditional. Buddhists in Asia are frequently well organized and well funded. In a number of countries, it is recognized as an official religion and receives state support. Modern influences increasingly lead to new forms of Buddhism that significantly depart from traditional beliefs and practices.
Overall there is an overwhelming diversity of recent forms of Buddhism.[206]
Schools and traditions[link]
Main articles: Schools of Buddhism and Buddhahood
Two of his disciples became the inspiration for two main schools of Buddhism that were developed at least 200 years after Gautama died. Gautama praised both of them and to this day both schools are "authentic". Sariputta inspired the Theravada school, generally known to be analytical and monastic. Maudgalyayana inspired the Mahayana school which emphasizes compassion and tends to be democratic.[207]
Buddhists generally classify themselves as either Theravada or Mahayana.[208] This classification is also used by some scholars[209][page needed] and is the one ordinarily used in the English language.[210] An alternative scheme used by some scholars[211] divides Buddhism into the following three traditions or geographical or cultural areas: Theravada, East Asian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism.
Some scholars[212] use other schemes. Buddhists themselves have a variety of other schemes. Hinayana (literally "lesser vehicle") is used by Mahayana followers to name the family of early philosophical schools and traditions from which contemporary Theravada emerged, but as this term is rooted in the Mahayana viewpoint and can be considered derogatory, a variety of other terms are increasingly used instead, including Śrāvakayāna, Nikaya Buddhism, early Buddhist schools, sectarian Buddhism, conservative Buddhism, mainstream Buddhism and non-Mahayana Buddhism.
Not all traditions of Buddhism share the same philosophical outlook, or treat the same concepts as central. Each tradition, however, does have its own core concepts, and some comparisons can be drawn between them. For example, according to one Buddhist ecumenical organization,[213] several concepts common to both major Buddhist branches:
- Both accept the Buddha as their teacher.
- Both accept the Middle way, Dependent origination, the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path and the Three marks of existence.
- Both accept that members of the laity and of the sangha can pursue the path toward enlightenment (bodhi).
- Both consider buddhahood to be the highest attainment.
Timeline[link]
This is a rough timeline of the development of the different schools/traditions:
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Theravada school[link]
Main article: Theravada
Theravada ("Doctrine of the Elders", or "Ancient Doctrine") is the oldest surviving Buddhist school. It is relatively conservative, and generally closest to early Buddhism.[216] This school is derived from the Vibhajjavāda grouping which emerged amongst the older Sthavira group at the time of the Third Buddhist Council (c. 250 BCE). This school gradually declined on the Indian subcontinent, but its branch in Sri Lanka and South East Asia continues to survive.
The Theravada school bases its practice and doctrine exclusively on the Pāli Canon and its commentaries. After being orally transmitted for a few centuries, its scriptures, the Pali Canon, were finally committed to writing in the 1st century BCE, in Sri Lanka, at what the Theravada usually reckon as the fourth council. It is also one of the first Buddhist schools to commit the complete set of its canon into writing.[citation needed] The Sutta collections and Vinaya texts of the Pāli Canon (and the corresponding texts in other versions of the Tripitaka), are generally considered by modern scholars to be the earliest Buddhist literature, and they are accepted as authentic in every branch of Buddhism.
Theravāda is primarily practiced today in Sri Lanka, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia as well as small portions of China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bangladesh. It has a growing presence in Europe and America.
Theravadin Buddhists think that personal effort is required to realize rebirth. Meditation is done by forest monks for the most part, while village monks teach and serve their lay communities. Laypersons can perform good actions, producing merit which can be traded to the gods who may reward it with material benefits.[217]
In Theravada doctrine, a person may awaken from the "sleep of ignorance" by directly realizing the true nature of reality; such people are called arahants and occasionally buddhas. After numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving, they have reached the end of the cycle of rebirth, no longer reincarnating as human, animal, ghost, or other being. The commentaries to the Pali Canon classify these awakened beings into three types:
- Sammasambuddha, usually just called Buddha, who discovers the truth by himself and teaches the path to awakening to others
- Paccekabuddha, who discovers the truth by himself but lacks the skill to teach others
- Savakabuddha, who receive the truth directly or indirectly from a Sammasambuddha
Bodhi and nirvana carry the same meaning, that of being freed from craving, hate, and delusion. In attaining bodhi, the arahant has overcome these obstacles. As a further distinction, the extinction of only hatred and greed (in the sensory context) with some residue of delusion, is called anagami.
Mahayana traditions[link]
Main article: Mahayana
Mahayana Buddhism flourished in India from the 5th century CE onwards, during the dynasty of the Guptas. Mahāyāna centres of learning were established, the most important one being the Nālandā University in north-eastern India.
Mahayana schools recognize all or part of the Mahayana Sutras. Some of these sutras became for Mahayanists a manifestation of the Buddha himself, and faith in and veneration of those texts are stated in some sutras (e.g. the Lotus Sutra and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra) to lay the foundations for the later attainment of Buddhahood itself.
Native Mahayana Buddhism is practiced today in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, parts of Russia and most of Vietnam (also commonly referred to as "Eastern Buddhism"). The Buddhism practiced in Tibet, the Himalayan regions, and Mongolia is also Mahayana in origin, but will be discussed below under the heading of Vajrayana (also commonly referred to as "Northern Buddhism". There are a variety of strands in Eastern Buddhism, of which "the Pure Land school of Mahayana is the most widely practised today.".[218] In most of this area however, they are fused into a single unified form of Buddhism. In Japan in particular, they form separate denominations with the five major ones being: Nichiren, peculiar to Japan; Pure Land; Shingon, a form of Vajrayana; Tendai, and Zen. In Korea, nearly all Buddhists belong to the Chogye school, which is officially Son (Zen), but with substantial elements from other traditions.[219]
In the Mahayana, the Buddha tends not to be viewed as merely human, but as the earthly projection of a beginningless and endless, omnipresent being (see Dharmakaya) beyond the range and reach of thought. Moreover, in certain Mahayana sutras, the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha are viewed essentially as One: all three are seen as the eternal Buddha himself.
The Buddha's death is seen as an illusion, he is living on in other planes of existence, and monks are therefore permitted to offer "new truths" based on his input. Mahayana also differs from Theravada in its concept of śūnyatā (that ultimately nothing has existence), and in its belief in bodhisattvas (enlightened people who vow to continue being reborn until all beings can be enlightened).[220]
Celestial Buddhas are individuals who no longer exist on the material plane of existence, but who still aid in the enlightenment of all beings.
Nirvana came to refer only to the extinction of greed and hate,[dubious – discuss] implying that delusion was still present in one who attained Nirvana. Bodhi became a higher attainment that eradicates delusion entirely.[69] Thus, the Arahant attains Nirvana but not Bodhi, thus still being subject to delusion, while the Buddha attains Bodhi.[dubious – discuss]
The method of self-exertion or "self-power"—without reliance on an external force or being—stands in contrast to another major form of Buddhism, Pure Land, which is characterised by utmost trust in the salvific "other-power" of Amitabha Buddha. Pure Land Buddhism is a very widespread and perhaps the most faith-orientated manifestation of Buddhism and centres upon the conviction that faith in Amitabha Buddha and the chanting of homage to his name will liberate one at death into the Blissful (安樂), Pure Land (淨土) of Amitabha Buddha. This Buddhic realm is variously construed as a foretaste of Nirvana, or as essentially Nirvana itself. The great vow of Amitabha Buddha to rescue all beings from samsaric suffering is viewed within Pure Land Buddhism as universally efficacious, if only one has faith in the power of that vow or chants his name.
Bodhisattvas[link]
Main article: Bodhisattva
Bodhisattva means "enlightenment being", and generally refers to one who is on the path to buddhahood, typically as a fully enlightened buddha (Skt. samyaksaṃbuddha). Theravada Buddhism primarily uses the term in relation to Gautama Buddha's previous existences, but has traditionally acknowledged and respected the bodhisattva path as well.[221]
Mahāyāna Buddhism is based principally upon the path of a bodhisattva. According to Jan Nattier, the term Mahāyāna ("Great Vehicle") was originally even an honorary synonym for Bodhisattvayāna, or the "Bodhisattva Vehicle."[222] The Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, an early and important Mahāyāna text, contains a simple and brief definition for the term bodhisattva, and this definition is the following:[223][224][225]
Because he has enlightenment as his aim, a bodhisattva-mahāsattva is so called.
Mahāyāna Buddhism encourages everyone to become bodhisattvas and to take the bodhisattva vows. With these vows, one makes the promise to work for the complete enlightenment of all beings by practicing six perfections (Skt. pāramitā).[226] According to the Mahāyāna teachings, these perfections are: giving, discipline, forbearance, effort, meditation, and transcendent wisdom.
Vajrayana traditions[link]
Main article: Vajrayana
The Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism spread to China, Mongolia, and Tibet. In Tibet, Vajrayana has always been a main component of Tibetan Buddhism, while in China it formed a separate sect. However, Vajrayana Buddhism became extinct in China but survived in elements of Japan's Shingon and Tendai sects.
There are differing views as to just when Vajrayāna and its tantric practice started. In the Tibetan tradition, it is claimed that the historical Śākyamuni Buddha taught tantra, but as these are esoteric teachings, they were passed on orally first and only written down long after the Buddha's other teachings. Nālandā University became a center for the development of Vajrayāna theory and continued as the source of leading-edge Vajrayāna practices up through the 11th century. These practices, scriptures and theories were transmitted to China, Tibet, Indochina and Southeast Asia. China generally received Indian transmission up to the 11th century including tantric practice, while a vast amount of what is considered to be Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayāna) stems from the late (9th–12th century) Nālandā tradition.
In one of the first major contemporary academic treatises on the subject, Fairfield University professor Ronald M. Davidson argues that the rise of Vajrayana was in part a reaction to the changing political climate in India at the time. With the fall of the Gupta dynasty, in an increasingly fractious political environment, institutional Buddhism had difficulty attracting patronage, and the folk movement led by siddhas became more prominent. After perhaps two hundred years, it had begun to get integrated into the monastic establishment.[227][page needed]
Vajrayana combined and developed a variety of elements, a number of which had already existed for centuries.[228] In addition to the Mahāyāna scriptures, Vajrayāna Buddhists recognise a large body of Buddhist Tantras, some of which are also included in Chinese and Japanese collections of Buddhist literature, and versions of a few even in the Pali Canon.
Buddhist texts[link]
Main article: Buddhist texts
Buddhist scriptures and other texts exist in great variety. Different schools of Buddhism place varying levels of value on learning the various texts. Some schools venerate certain texts as religious objects in themselves, while others take a more scholastic approach. Buddhist scriptures are mainly written in Pāli, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese. Some texts still exist in Sanskrit and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit.
Unlike many religions, Buddhism has no single central text that is universally referred to by all traditions. However, some scholars have referred to the Vinaya Pitaka and the first four Nikayas of the Sutta Pitaka as the common core of all Buddhist traditions.[229] This could be considered misleading, as Mahāyāna considers these merely a preliminary, and not a core, teaching. The Tibetan Buddhists have not even translated most of the āgamas (though theoretically they recognize them) and they play no part in the religious life of either clergy or laity in China and Japan.[230] Other scholars say there is no universally accepted common core.[231] The size and complexity of the Buddhist canons have been seen by some (including Buddhist social reformer Babasaheb Ambedkar) as presenting barriers to the wider understanding of Buddhist philosophy.
The followers of Theravāda Buddhism take the scriptures known as the Pāli Canon as definitive and authoritative, while the followers of Mahāyāna Buddhism base their faith and philosophy primarily on the Mahāyāna sūtras and their own vinaya. The Pāli sutras, along with other, closely related scriptures, are known to the other schools as the āgamas.[232]
Over the years, various attempts have been made to synthesize a single Buddhist text that can encompass all of the major principles of Buddhism. In the Theravada tradition, condensed 'study texts' were created that combined popular or influential scriptures into single volumes that could be studied by novice monks. Later in Sri Lanka, the Dhammapada was championed as a unifying scripture.
Dwight Goddard collected a sample of Buddhist scriptures, with the emphasis on Zen, along with other classics of Eastern philosophy, such as the Tao Te Ching, into his 'Buddhist Bible' in the 1920s. More recently, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar attempted to create a single, combined document of Buddhist principles in "The Buddha and His Dhamma". Other such efforts have persisted to present day, but currently there is no single text that represents all Buddhist traditions.
Pāli Tipitaka[link]
Main article: Pāli Canon
| Pali Canon |
|---|
| Vinaya Pitaka |
| Sutta Pitaka |
| Abhidhamma Pitaka |
The Pāli Tipitaka, which means "three baskets", refers to the Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutta Pitaka, and the Abhidhamma Pitaka. The Vinaya Pitaka contains disciplinary rules for the Buddhist monks and nuns, as well as explanations of why and how these rules were instituted, supporting material, and doctrinal clarification. The Sutta Pitaka contains discourses ascribed to Gautama Buddha. The Abhidhamma Pitaka contains material often described as systematic expositions of the Gautama Buddha's teachings.
The Pāli Tipitaka is the only early Tipitaka (Sanskrit: Tripiṭaka) to survive intact in its original language, but a number of early schools had their own recensions of the Tipitaka featuring much of the same material. We have portions of the Tipitakas of the Sārvāstivāda, Dharmaguptaka, Sammitya, Mahāsaṅghika, Kāśyapīya, and Mahīśāsaka schools, most of which survive in Chinese translation only. According to some sources, some early schools of Buddhism had five or seven pitakas.[233]
According to the scriptures, soon after the death of the Buddha, the first Buddhist council was held; a monk named Mahākāśyapa (Pāli: Mahākassapa) presided. The goal of the council was to record the Buddha's teachings. Upāli recited the vinaya. Ānanda, the Buddha's personal attendant, was called upon to recite the dhamma. These became the basis of the Tripitaka. However, this record was initially transmitted orally in form of chanting, and was committed to text in the last century BCE. Both the sūtras and the vinaya of every Buddhist school contain a wide variety of elements including discourses on the Dharma, commentaries on other teachings, cosmological and cosmogonical texts, stories of the Gautama Buddha's previous lives, and various other subjects.
Much of the material in the Canon is not specifically "Theravadin", but is instead the collection of teachings that this school preserved from the early, non-sectarian body of teachings. According to Peter Harvey, it contains material which is at odds with later Theravadin orthodoxy. He states: "The Theravadins, then, may have added texts to the Canon for some time, but they do not appear to have tampered with what they already had from an earlier period."[234]
Mahayana sutras[link]
Main article: Mahayana sutras
The Mahayana sutras are a very broad genre of Buddhist scriptures that the Mahayana Buddhist tradition holds are original teachings of the Buddha. Some adherents of Mahayana accept both the early teachings (including in this the Sarvastivada Abhidharma, which was criticized by Nagarjuna and is in fact opposed to early Buddhist thought[235]) and the Mahayana sutras as authentic teachings of Gautama Buddha, and claim they were designed for different types of persons and different levels of spiritual understanding.
The Mahayana sutras often claim to articulate the Buddha's deeper, more advanced doctrines, reserved for those who follow the bodhisattva path. That path is explained as being built upon the motivation to liberate all living beings from unhappiness. Hence the name Mahāyāna (lit., the Great Vehicle).
According to Mahayana tradition, the Mahayana sutras were transmitted in secret, came from other Buddhas or Bodhisattvas, or were preserved in non-human worlds because human beings at the time could not understand them:[236]
Some of our sources maintain the authenticity of certain other texts not found in the canons of these schools (the early schools). These texts are those held genuine by the later school, not one of the eighteen, which arrogated to itself the title of Mahayana, 'Great Vehicle'. According to the Mahayana historians these texts were admittedly unknown to the early schools of Buddhists. However, they had all been promulgated by the Buddha. [The Buddha's] followers on earth, the sravakas ('pupils'), had not been sufficiently advanced to understand them, and hence were not given them to remember, but they were taught to various supernatural beings and then preserved in such places as the Dragon World.
Approximately six hundred Mahayana sutras have survived in Sanskrit or in Chinese or Tibetan translations. In addition, East Asian Buddhism recognizes some sutras regarded by scholars to be of Chinese rather than Indian origin.
Generally, scholars conclude that the Mahayana scriptures were composed from the 1st century CE onwards: "Large numbers of Mahayana sutras were being composed in the period between the beginning of the common era and the fifth century",[237] five centuries after the historical Gautama Buddha. Some of these had their roots in other scriptures composed in the 1st century BCE. It was not until after the 5th century CE that the Mahayana sutras started to influence the behavior of mainstream Buddhists in India: "But outside of texts, at least in India, at exactly the same period, very different—in fact seemingly older—ideas and aspirations appear to be motivating actual behavior, and old and established Hinnayana groups appear to be the only ones that are patronized and supported."[237] These texts were apparently not universally accepted among Indian Buddhists when they appeared; the pejorative label hinayana was applied by Mahayana supporters to those who rejected the Mahayana sutras.
Only the Theravada school does not include the Mahayana scriptures in its canon. As the modern Theravada school is descended from a branch of Buddhism that diverged and established itself in Sri Lanka prior to the emergence of the Mahayana texts, debate exists as to whether the Theravada were historically included in the hinayana designation; in the modern era, this label is seen as derogatory, and is generally avoided.
Comparative studies[link]
Buddhism provides many opportunities for comparative study with a diverse range of subjects. For example, dependent origination can be considered one of Buddhism's contributions to metaphysics. Additionally, Buddhism's emphasis on the Middle way not only provides a unique guideline for ethics but has also allowed Buddhism to peacefully coexist with various differing beliefs, customs and institutions in countries in which it has resided throughout its history. Also, its moral and spiritual parallels with other systems of thought—for example, with various tenets of Christianity—have been subjects of close study.
List of Buddhism related topics in comparative studies[link]
- Buddhism and Jainism
- Buddhism and Hinduism
- Buddhism and Christianity
- God in Buddhism (Buddhism, mysticism, and monotheism)
- Buddhism and Eastern teaching (Buddhism and East Asian teaching)
- Buddhism and psychology
- Buddhism and science
- Buddhist ethics (Buddhism and ethics)
- Buddhist philosophy (Buddhism and Western philosophy)
- Buddhism and Thelema[238]
See also[link]
 |
Book: Buddhism |
| Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print. | |
- Outline of Buddhism
- Buddhism by country
- Criticism of Buddhism
- Index of Buddhism-related articles
- List of books related to Buddhism
- List of Buddhist temples
- Dharma Drum Retreat Center
- Nonviolence
- Indian religions
- Easily confused Buddhist representations
- Chinese folk religion
- Iconography of Gautama Buddha in Laos and Thailand
Footnotes[link]
- ^ "Buddhism". (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved November 26, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition.
- ^ "Nine Yana categorisation". Rigpawiki.org. 2011-08-17. http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Nine_yanas. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ Major Religions Ranked by Size; U.S. State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2004. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/ Accessed 20 September 2008; Garfinkel, Perry. "Buddha Rising", National Geographic Dec. 2005: 88–109; CIA - The World Factbook
- ^ a b Lopez, Story of Buddhism. p. 239
- ^ a b Lopez, Buddhism. p. 248
- ^ Robinson et al., Buddhist Religions, page xx; Philosophy East and West, vol 54, ps 269f; Williams, Mahayana Buddhism, Routledge, 1st ed., 1989, pp. 275f (2nd ed., 2008, p. 266)
- ^ Padmasambhava, Jamgon Kongtrul, Erik Pema Kunsang (2004). Light of Wisdom. Rangjung Yeshe Publications. ISBN 978-962-7341-37-6. http://books.google.com/?id=qjbBKG06To0C&pg=PA111#v=onepage&q=. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ Swearer, Donald. Becoming the Buddha. 2004. p. 177
- ^ Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism Vol. 1, p. 352
- ^ Lopez (1995). Buddhism in Practice. Princeton University Press. p. 16. ISBN 0-691-04442-2.
- ^ Carrithers, Michael. "The Buddha", in the Oxford University paperback Founders of Faith, 1986, p. 10.
- ^ Armstrong, Karen (September 28, 2004). Buddha. Penguin Press. p. xii. ISBN 0-14-303436-7.
- ^ a b Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988, page 49.
- ^ UNESCO, Lumbini is the birthplace of the Lord Buddha, Gethin Foundations, p. 19, which states that in the mid-3rd century BCE the Emperor Ashoka determined that Lumbini was Gautama's birthplace and thus installed a pillar there with the inscription: "... this is where the Buddha, sage of the Śākyas (Śākyamuni), was born."
- ^ For instance, Gethin Foundations, p. 14, states: "The earliest Buddhist sources state that the future Buddha was born Siddhārtha Gautama (Pali Siddhattha Gotama), the son of a local chieftain—a rājan—in Kapilavastu (Pali Kapilavatthu) what is now the Indian–Nepalese border." However, Professor Gombrich (Theravāda Buddhism, p. 1) and the old but specialized study by Edward Thomas, The Life of the Buddha, ascribe the name Siattha/fitta to later sources.
- ^ Kohn, Michael (1991). The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen. Shambhala. p. 143. ISBN 0-87773-520-4.
- ^ "The Middle Way of the Buddha". Buddhamind.info. http://www.buddhamind.info/leftside/arty/his-life/middle.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ "Buddhism - The Middle Path". Buddhanet.net. http://www.buddhanet.net/cbp2_f4.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ Keown, Dictionary of Buddhism, p. 267
- ^ Skilton, Concise, p. 25
- ^ Armstrong, p. xiii.
- ^ Waterhouse, David (2005). The origins of Himalayan studies: Brian Houghton Hodgson in Nepal and Darjeeling, 1820-1858. Routledge via Amazon Look Inside. p. 53. ISBN 0-415-31215-9. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0415312159/.
- ^ Armstrong, p. 42.
- ^ "The Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism: karma". Soka Gakkai International. http://www.sgilibrary.org/search_dict.php?id=1166. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
- ^ The idea of reincarnation existed in the Upanishads, in Hinduism and Taoism as well as ancient predecessors of Christianity and Judaism, in Das, Surya (1998). Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World. Broadway Books. p. 110. ISBN 0-7679-0157-6. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0767901576/.
- ^ Johnson, Larry. "Buddhist Yoga". Now Yoga. http://www.nowyoga.com/pages/buddhistyoga.html. Retrieved January 12, 2011.
- ^ Journal of Buddhist Ethics: "Zen as a Social Ethics of Responsiveness" (PDF), T. P. Kasulis, Ohio State University
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 40
- ^ Dr. Richard K. Payne (ed.), Tantric Buddhism in East Asia, Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2006, p. 74
- ^ Keown, Buddhism, Oxford University Press, 1996, p. 107
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 34
- ^ Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (Volume Two), p. 711
- ^ The 31 Planes of Existence (PDF), Ven. Suvanno Mahathera
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 33
- ^ André Bareau, Les Sectes bouddhiques du Petit Véhicule, École Française d'Extrême-Orient, Saigon, 1955, pp. 212–223: the top of p. 212 says: "Here are the theses of the Theravadins of the Mahavihara"; then begins a numbered list of doctrines over the following pages, including on p. 223: "There are only five destinies ... the kalakanjika asuras have the same colour, same nourishment, same foods, same lifespan as the petas, with whom ... they marry. As for the Vepacittiparisa, they have the same colour, same nourishment, same foods, same lifespan as the gods, with whom they marry."(Translated from the French)
- ^ Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism. Vol. 1, p. 377
- ^ The Connected Discourses of the Buddha. A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya, Bhikkhu Bodhi, Translator. Wisdom Publications.
- ^ Thera, Piyadassi (1999). "Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta". The Book of Protection. Buddhist Publication Society. http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn56/sn56.011.piya.html. In what is said in Theravāda to be the Buddha's first sermon, the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, which was given to the five ascetics with whom he had practiced austerities. He talks about the Middle Way, the noble eightfold path and the Four Noble Truths.
- ^ See for example: The Four Noble Truths
- ^ Gethin, Foundations, p. 60
- ^ (2004), Volume One, p. 296
- ^ Harvey, Introduction, p. 47
- ^ Hinnels, John R. (1998). The New Penguin Handbook of Living Religions. London: Penguin Books. pp. 393f. ISBN 0-14-051480-5.
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 92
- ^ a b Armstrong, p. 77.
- ^ Nhat Hahn, Thich, p. 36.
- ^ a b Roth, Beth. "Family Dharma: A Bedtime Ritual". Tricycle (Tricycle Foundation). http://www.tricycle.com/online-exclusive/family-dharma-bedtime-ritual. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
- ^ Chodron, Pema (2002). The Places that Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times. Shambhala via Amazon Look Inside. p. 37. ISBN 1-57062-921-8. http://www.amazon.com/dp/1570629218/.
- ^ "Unit Six: The Four Immeasurables". Buddha Dharma Education Association & Buddhanet. http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/bs-s15.htm. and "Unit Six: Loving-Kindness". Buddha Dharma Education Association & Buddhanet. http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/pbs2_unit06.htm. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
- ^ "A View on Buddhism: The Four Immeasurables". Rudy Harderwijk (viewonbuddhism.org). http://viewonbuddhism.org/immeasurables_love_compassion_equanimity_rejoicing.html. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
- ^ Kohn, Shambhala, pp. 131, 143
- ^ Jeffrey Po, "Is Buddhism a Pessimistic Way of Life?"
- ^ Rahula, Walpola (1959). "Chapter 2". What the Buddha Taught. Grove Press. ISBN 0-8021-3031-3.
- ^ Prebish, Charles (1993). Historical Dictionary of Buddhism. The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-2698-4.
- ^ Keown, Damien (2003). Dictionary of Buddhism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-860560-9.
- ^ Thanissaro Bhikkhu, The Not-Self Strategy, See Point 3 – The Canon quote Thanissaro Bhikkhu draws attention to is the Sabbasava Sutta.
- ^ This twelve nidana scheme can be found, for instance, in multiple discourses in chapter 12 of the Samyutta Nikaya—Nidana Vagga (e.g., see SN 12.2, Thanissaro, 1997a). Other "applications" of what might be termed "mundane dependent origination" include the nine-nidana scheme of Digha Nikaya 15 (e.g., Thanissaro, 1997b) and the ten-nidana scheme of Samyutta Nikaya 12.65 (e.g., Thanissaro, 1997c). So-called "transcendental dependent origination" (also involving twelve nidanas) is described in Samyutta Nikaya 12.23 (e.g., see Bodhi, 1995). In addition, Digha Nikaya 15 describes an eleven-nidana scheme (starting with "feeling") that leads to interpersonal suffering ("the taking up of sticks and knives; conflicts, quarrels, and disputes; accusations, divisive speech, and lies").
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, page 56
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 57
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 58
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 59
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 60
- ^ Christian Lindtner, Master of Wisdom. Dharma Publishing 1997, p. 324.
- ^ Dan Lusthaus, "What is and isn't Yogacara"
- ^ Williams, Paul. Buddhist Thought. Routledge 2000, page 161.
- ^ raga, Pali-English Dictionary, The Pali Text Society
- ^ dosa, Pali-English Dictionary, The Pali Text Society
- ^ moha, Pali-English Dictionary, The Pali Text Society
- ^ a b Richard F. Gombrich, How Buddhism Began, Munshiram Manoharlal, 1997, p. 67
- ^ "''Access to Insight'', a Theravada Buddhist website, discusses Buddha Eras". Accesstoinsight.org. 2010-06-05. http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bullitt/bfaq.html#maitreya. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Gautama Buddha discusses the Maitreya Buddha in the Tipitaka". Accesstoinsight.org. 2010-06-08. http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.26.0.than.html. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ Kogen Mizuno, Essentials of Buddhism, Shunju-sha, 1972, English translation, Kosei, Tokyo, 1996, p. 57
- ^ Dispeller of Delusion. Vol. II. Pali Text Society, p. 184
- ^ Harvey, p. 170
- ^ Zen Buddhism: A History (India and China) by Heinrich Dumoulin, James W. Heisig, Paul F. Knitter (page 22)
- ^ Barbara Stoler Miller, Yoga: Discipline of Freedom: the Yoga Sutra Attributed to Patanjali; a Translation of the Text, with Commentary, Introduction, and Glossary of Keywords. University of California Press, 1996, page 8.
- ^ Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge, 2007, page 73.
- ^ Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge, 2007, page 105.
- ^ Michael Carrithers, The Buddha. Taken from Founders of Faith, published by Oxford University Press, 1986, page 30.
- ^ Alexander Wynne, The origin of Buddhist meditation. Routledge, 2007, p. 72.
- ^ a b Dharmacarini Manishini, Western Buddhist Review. Accessed at http://www.westernbuddhistreview.com/vol4/kamma_in_context.html
- ^ Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988, page 44.
- ^ Johannes Bronkhorst, The Two Traditions of Mediation in Ancient India. Franz Steiner Verlag Weisbaden GmbH, pages 1-17.
- ^ Randall Collins, The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change. Harvard University Press, 2000, page 199.
- ^ a b Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge 2007, page 51.
- ^ Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge 2007, page 56.
- ^ Bhikku, Thanissaro (2001). "Refuge". An Introduction to the Buddha, Dhamma, & Sangha. Access to Insight. http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/thanissaro/refuge.html#goi.
- ^ Middle-Length Discourses of the Buddha, tr. Nanamoli, rev. Bodhi, Wisdom Publications, 1995, pp. 708f
- ^ Professor C.D. Sebastian, Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism, Sri Satguru Publications, Bibliotheca Indo-Buddhica Series No. 238, Delhi, 2005, p. 83
- ^ Professor C.D. Sebastian, Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism, Delhi, 2005, p. 82
- ^ Hiroshi Kanno, Huisi's Perspective on the Lotus Sutra as Seen Through the Meaning of the Course of Ease and Bliss in the Lotus Sutra, p. 147, http://www.iop.or.jp/0414/kanno2.pdf, consulted 5 February 2010
- ^ Stewart McFarlane in Peter Harvey, ed., Buddhism. Continuum, 2001, page 187.
- ^ Stewart McFarlane in Peter Harvey, ed., Buddhism. Continuum, 2001, pages 195-196.
- ^ Morgan, Peggy; Lawton, Clive A., eds. (2007). Ethical Issues in Six Religious Traditions (2nd ed.). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 62–63. ISBN 978-0-7486-2330-3.
- ^ Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988, page 89. He is quoting Carrithers.
- ^ B. Alan Wallace, Contemplative Science. Columbia University Press, 2007, p. 81.
- ^ Welch, Practice of Chinese Buddhism, Harvard, 1967, p. 396
- ^ Peter Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism. Cambridge University Press, 1990, page 144.
- ^ Damien Keown, Charles S Prebish, editors, Encyclopedia of Buddhism. Routledge, 2007. p. 502
- ^ Sarah Shaw, Buddhist Meditation: An Anthology of Texts from the Pāli Canon. Routledge, 2006, page 13. Shaw also notes that discourses on meditation are addressed to "bhikkhave", but that in this context the terms is more generic than simply (male) "monks" and refers to all practitioners, and that this is confirmed by Buddhaghosa.
- ^ According to Charles S. Prebish (in his Historical Dictionary of Buddhism, Sri Satguru Publications, Delhi, 1993, p. 287): "Although a variety of Zen 'schools' developed in Japan, they all emphasize Zen as a teaching that does not depend on sacred texts, that provides the potential for direct realization, that the realization attained is none other than the Buddha nature possessed by each sentient being ...".
- ^ Prebish comments (op. cit., p. 244): "It presumes that sitting in meditation itself (i.e. zazen) is an expression of Buddha nature." The method is to detach the mind from conceptual modes of thinking and perceive Reality directly. Speaking of Zen in general, Buddhist scholar Stephen Hodge writes (Zen Masterclass, Godsfield Press, 2002, pp. 12–13): "... practitioners of Zen believe that Enlightenment, the awakening of the Buddha-mind or Buddha-nature, is our natural state, but has been covered over by layers of negative emotions and distorted thoughts. According to this view, Enlightenment is not something that we must acquire a bit at a time, but a state that can occur instantly when we cut through the dense veil of mental and emotional obscurations."
- ^ (Critical Sermons on the Zen Tradition, Hisamatsu Shin'ichi, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2002, passim) Commenting on Rinzai Zen and its Chinese founder, Linji, Hisamatsu states: "Linji indicates our true way of being in such direct expressions as 'True Person' and 'True Self'. It is independent of words or letters and transmitted apart from scriptural teaching. Buddhism doesn't really need scriptures. It is just our direct awakening to Self ..." (Hisamatsu, op. cit., p. 46).
- ^ Kosho Uchiyama, Opening the Hand of Thought: Approach to Zen, Penguin Books, New York, 1993, p. 98
- ^ Harvey, Introduction, pp. 165f
- ^ Williams, Mahayana Buddhism, Routledge, 1st ed., 1989, p. 185
- ^ Routledge Encyclopedia of Buddhism, p. 781 .
- ^ Gethin, Sayings of the Buddha, Oxford University Press, 2008, p. xv
- ^ a b c Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Buddhism: The foundations of Buddhism: The cultural context. Retrieved 19-07-2009.
- ^ a b Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Hinduism: History of Hinduism: The Vedic period (2nd millennium - 7th century BCE); Challenges to Brahmanism (6th - 2nd century BCE); Early Hinduism (2nd century BCE - 4th century CE). Retrieved 19-07-2009.
- ^ Warder, A.K. 2000. Indian Buddhism. P.32
- ^ Y. Masih (2000) In : A Comparative Study of Religions, Motilal Banarsidass Publ : Delhi, ISBN 81-208-0815-0 Page 18. "There is no evidence to show that Jainism and Buddhism ever subscribed to vedic sacrifices, vedic deities or caste. They are parallel or native religions of India and have contributed to much to the growth of even classical Hinduism of the present times."
- ^ S. Cromwell Crawford, review of L. M. Joshi, Brahmanism, Buddhism and Hinduism, Philosophy East and West (1972): "Alongside Brahmanism was the non-Aryan Shramanic culture with its roots going back to prehistoric times."
- ^ "This confirms that the doctrine of transmigration is non-aryan and was accepted by non-vedics like Ajivikism, Jainism and Buddhism. The Indo-aryans have borrowed the theory of re-birth after coming in contact with the aboriginal inhabitants of India. Certainly Jainism and non-vedics [..] accepted the doctrine of rebirth as supreme postulate or article of faith." Masih, page 37.
- ^ Karel Werner, The Longhaired Sage in The Yogi and the Mystic. Karel Werner, ed., Curzon Press, 1989, page 34. "Rahurkar speaks of them as belonging to two distinct 'cultural strands' ... Wayman also found evidence for two distinct approaches to the spiritual dimension in ancient India and calls them the traditions of 'truth and silence.' He traces them particularly in the older Upanishads, in early Buddhism, and in some later literature."
- ^ Gavin D. Flood (1996), An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge University — Press : UK ISBN 0-521-43878-0 - "The origin and doctrine of Karma and Samsara are obscure. These concepts were certainly circulating amongst sramanas, and Jainism and Buddhism developed specific and sophisticated ideas about the process of transmigration. It is very possible that the karmas and reincarnation entered the mainstream brahaminical thought from the sramana or the renouncer traditions." Page 86.
- ^ Padmanabh S. Jaini 2001 "Collected Paper on Buddhist Studies" Motilal Banarsidass Publ 576 pages ISBN 81-208-1776-1: "Yajnavalkya's reluctance and manner in expounding the doctrine of karma in the assembly of Janaka (a reluctance not shown on any other occasion) can perhaps be explained by the assumption that it was, like that of the transmigration of soul, of non-brahmanical origin. In view of the fact that this doctrine is emblazoned on almost every page of sramana scriptures, it is highly probable that it was derived from them." Page 51.
- ^ Govind Chandra Pande, (1994) Life and Thought of Sankaracarya, Motilal Banarsidass ISBN 81-208-1104-6 : Early Upanishad thinkers like Yajnavalkya were acquainted with the sramanic thinking and tried to incorporate these ideals of Karma, Samsara and Moksa into the vedic thought implying a disparagement of the vedic ritualism and recognising the mendicancy as an ideal. Page 135.
- ^ "The sudden appearance of this theory [of karma] in a full-fledged form is likely to be due, as already pointed out, to an impact of the wandering muni-and-shramana-cult, coming down from the pre-Vedic non-Aryan time." Kashi Nath Upadhyaya, Early Buddhism and the Bhagavadgita. Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1998, page 76.
- ^ Satapatha Brahmana 13.8.1.5
- ^ Oldenburg, Hermann, The Doctrine of the Upanishads and Early Buddhism, 1915, reprinted 1991 by Shridhar B. Shrotri, Delhi, Motilalal Banardass
- ^ Greater Magadha, Studies the Culture of Early India, Bronkhorst, Johannes, Brill Academic Publishers Inc, 2007, Series: Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 2 South Asia Series, ISBN 978-90-04-11519-4
- ^ Warder, A.K. 2000. Indian Buddhism. P.30-32
- ^ Warder, A.K. 2000. Indian Buddhism. P.39
- ^ Warder, A.K. Indian Buddhism. P.33
- ^ Walpola Rahula, What the Buddha Taught, pages 9-10.
- ^ "The brahmin by caste alone, the teacher of the Veda, is (jokingly) etymologized as the 'non-meditator' (ajhāyaka). Brahmins who have memorized the three Vedas (tevijja) really know nothing: it is the process of achieving Enlightenment — what the Buddha is said to have achieved in the three watches of that night — which constitutes the true 'three knowledges.'" R.F. Gombrich in Paul Williams, ed., "Buddhism: Critical Concepts in Religious Studies." Taylor and Francis 2006, page 120.
- ^ Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988, page 85.
- ^ Richard Francis Gombrich, How Buddhism began: the conditioned genesis of the early teachings Continuum International Publishing Group, 1996, pages 38-39
- ^ Michael Carrithers, The Buddha, 1983, pages 41-42. Found in Founders of Faith, Oxford University Press, 1986.
- ^ Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge 2007, page 21.
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Vedic religion. Retrieved 19-07-2009.
- ^ Warder, A.K. 2000. Indian Buddhism. P.35
- ^ A History of Indian Buddhism — Hirakawa Akira (translated and edited by Paul Groner) - Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, Delhi, 1993, p. 7
- ^ Mitchell, Buddhism, Oxford University Press, 2002, p. 34 & table of contents
- ^ Skorupski, Buddhist Forum, vol I, Heritage, Delhi/SOAS, London, 1990, p. 5; Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, vol 21 (1998), part 1, pp. 4, 11
- ^ see also the book Bones, Stones, and Buddhist Monks, University of Hawai'i Press, by Dr Gregory Schopen
- ^ Encyclopedia of Religion, Macmillan, New York, sv Councils, Buddhist
- ^ Journal of the Pāli Text Society, volume XVI, p. 105)
- ^ Janice J. Nattier and Charles S. Prebish, 1977. Mahāsāṅghika Origins: the beginnings of Buddhist sectarianism in History of Religions, Vol. 16, pp. 237–272
- ^ Harvey, Introduction to Buddhism, p. 74
- ^ a b "Abhidhamma Pitaka." Encyclopædia Britannica. Ultimate Reference Suite. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008.
- ^ Encyclopedia of Buddhism. Routledge. p. 485.
- ^ a b c Keown, Damien (1996). Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. pp. 58, 61. ISBN 978-0-19-285386-8.
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 260
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (1993), A History of Indian Buddhism: From Sakyamuni to Early Mahayana: p. 271
- ^ "One of the most frequent assertions about the Mahayana ... is that it was a lay-influenced, or even lay-inspired and dominated, movement that arose in response to the increasingly closed, cold, and scholastic character of monastic Buddhism. This, however, now appears to be wrong on all counts." Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 494
- ^ Nattier, Jan (2003), A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra: p. 193-194
- ^ Williams, Paul (2008) Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations: p. 4-5
- ^ Williams, Paul (2000) Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition: p. 97
- ^ Williams, Paul (2008) Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations: p. 5
- ^ "The most important evidence — in fact the only evidence — for situating the emergence of the Mahayana around the beginning of the common era was not Indian evidence at all, but came from China. Already by the last quarter of the 2nd century CE, there was a small, seemingly idiosyncratic collection of substantial Mahayana sutras translated into what Erik Zürcher calls 'broken Chinese' by an Indoscythian, whose Indian name has been reconstructed as Lokaksema." Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004): p. 492
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 263, 268
- ^ "The south (of India) was then vigorously creative in producing Mahayana Sutras" – Warder, A.K. (3rd edn. 1999). Indian Buddhism: p. 335.
- ^ Akira, Hirakawa (translated and edited by Paul Groner) (1993. A History of Indian Buddhism. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass: p. 253
- ^ A History of Indian Buddhism — Hirakawa Akira (translated and edited by Paul Groner) - Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, Delhi, 1993, p. 8,9
- ^ Peter Harvey, "An Introduction to Buddhism." Cambridge University Press, 1993, page 95.
- ^ Dan Lusthaus, Buddhist Phenomenology. Routledge, 2002, pages 236-237.
- ^ Peter Harvey, "An Introduction to Buddhism." Cambridge University Press, 1993, page 113. "There were no great Indian teachers associated with this strand of thought."
- ^ A History of Indian Buddhism — Hirakawa Akira (translated and edited by Paul Groner) - Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, Delhi, 1993, p. 9
- ^ Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism, Routledge, 2nd ed, 2006, page 135
- ^ Zürcher (1972), pp. 22-27.
- ^ Hill (2009), p. 30, for the Chinese text from the Hou Hanshu, and p. 31 for a translation of it.
- ^ Zürcher (1972), p. 23.
- ^ Carol E. Henderson, Culture and Customs of India. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002, page 42.
- ^ Joseph B. Tamney in William H. Swatos, editor, Encyclopedia of Religion and Society. Rowman Altamira, 1998, page 68.
- ^ "Chinese Cultural Studies: The Spirits of Chinese Religion". Academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu. http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/core9/phalsall/texts/lopez.html. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Windows on Asia - Chinese Religions". Asia.isp.msu.edu. 2011-09-23. http://asia.isp.msu.edu/wbwoa/east_asia/china/religion.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ "Religions and Beliefs in China". Travelchinaguide.com. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/religion. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "SACU Religion in China". Sacu.org. http://www.sacu.org/religion.html. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Index-China Chinese Philosophies and religions". Index-china.com. http://www.index-china.com/index-english/people-religions-s.html. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Buddhism in China". AskAsia. http://www.askasia.org/teachers/essays/essay.php?no=16. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Buddhism And Its Spread Along The Silk Road". Globaled.org. http://www.globaled.org/curriculum/china/bessay1.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "U.S. Department of States - International Religious Freedom Report 2006: China (includes Tibet, Hong Kong, and Macau)". State.gov. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71338.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ State Attitudes to Religion[dead link] (PDF), The Atlas of Religion, Joanne O'Brien & Martin Palmer, openDemocracy.net
- ^ "Center for Religious Freedom - Survey Files". Crf.hudson.org. http://crf.hudson.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=survey_files. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "The Range of Religious Freedom". http://crf.hudson.org/articledocs/TheRangeofReligiousFreedom.doc. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ A. C. Paranjpe (30 September 1998). Self and identity in modern psychology and Indian thought. Springer. p. 351. ISBN 978-0-306-45844-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=7Eqa6eoerDAC&pg=PA351. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
- ^ Urmilā Pavāra (June 2009). The weave of my life: a Dalit woman's memoirs. Columbia University Press. pp. xv–xviii. ISBN 978-0-231-14900-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=5EELAQAAMAAJ. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
- ^ "Buddha Rising, Buddhism in the West, map - National Geographic Magazine". Ngm.nationalgeographic.com. http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0512/feature4/map.html. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ http://oproject.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/mapofwar.jpg
- ^ "History of Religion". Maps of War. 2006-11-12. http://www.mapsofwar.com/ind/history-of-religion.html. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/02016/images/map_of_religions.png
- ^ http://www.wadsworth.com/religion_d/special_features/popups/maps/matthews_world/images/w001.jpg
- ^ "Wads Worth - Religions in Asia". http://www.wadsworth.com/religion_d/special_features/popups/maps/matthews_world/images/w091.jpg. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ Britannica[dead link]
- ^ "The Range of Religious Freedom". http://crf.hudson.org/articledocs/TheRangeofReligiousFreedom.doc. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ^ Garfinkel, Perry (December 2005). "Buddha Rising". National Geographic: 88–109.
- ^ The world's living religions page 335
- ^ An introduction to Hinduism page 76
- ^ Sources of Japanese Tradition: From earliest times through the sixteenth century page 101
- ^ http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_195401_bush.pdf
- ^ Buddhism: religion in Korea paghe 13
- ^ On the antiquity of intellectual man page 104
- ^ Eclectic magazine: foreign literature, Volume 40
- ^ The Eclectic magazine of foreign literature, science, and art, Volume 103
- ^ Religions of Primitive Peoples - Page 28 4
- ^ The Wisdom of Life, and Other Essays page 217
- ^ Universal classics library: Volume 29
- ^ Christianity and non-Christian religions compared - page 79
- ^ Why India lives - page 228
- ^ Prabuddha bharata: or awakened India: Volume 69
- ^ The Vedanta kesari: Volume 51
- ^ a b Major Branches of Buddhism, Adherents.com, retrieved on 2008-01-15
- ^ The Everything Buddhism Book - page 121
- ^ Philosophy East and West, volume 54, page 270
- ^ Armstrong, pp. 130—131.
- ^ Keown, Buddhism, Oxford University Press, 1996, page 12
- ^ Smith, Buddhism; Juergensmeyer, Oxford Handbook.
- ^ "Tibetan Buddhism". American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Houghton Mifflin Company. 2004. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tibetan%20buddhism. Retrieved 2007-07-07.
- ^ (Harvey, 1990); (Gombrich,1984); Gethin (1998), pp. 1–2, identifies "three broad traditions" as: (1) "The Theravāda tradition of Sri Lanka and South-East Asia, also sometimes referred to as 'southern' Buddhism"; (2) "The East Asian tradition of China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, also sometimes referred to as 'eastern' Buddhism"; and, (3) "The Tibetan tradition, also sometimes referred to as 'northern' Buddhism."; Robinson & Johnson (1982) divide their book into two parts: Part One is entitled "The Buddhism of South Asia" (which pertains to Early Buddhism in India); and, Part Two is entitled "The Development of Buddhism Outside of India" with chapters on "The Buddhism of Southeast Asia", "Buddhism in the Tibetan Culture Area", "East Asian Buddhism" and "Buddhism Comes West; Penguin handbook of Living Religions, 1984, page 279; Prebish & Keown, Introducing Buddhism, ebook, Journal of Buddhist Ethics, 2005, printed ed, Harper, 2006
- ^ See e.g. the multi-dimensional classification in Encyclopedia of Religion, Macmillan, New York, 1987, volume 2, pages 440ff
- ^ A Comparative Study of the Schools, Tan Swee Eng
- ^ Cousins, L.S. (1996); Buswell (2003), Vol. I, p. 82; and, Keown & Prebish (2004), p. 107. See also, Gombrich (1988/2002), p. 32: “…[T]he best we can say is that [the Buddha] was probably Enlightened between 550 and 450, more likely later rather than earlier."
- ^ Williams (2000, pp. 6-7) writes: "As a matter of fact Buddhism in mainland India itself had all but ceased to exist by the thirteenth century CE, although by that time it had spread to Tibet, China, Japan, and Southeast Asia." Embree et al. (1958/1988), "Chronology," p. xxix: "c. 1000-1200: Buddhism disappears as [an] organized religious force in India." See also, Robinson & Johnson (1970/1982), pp. 100-1, 108 Fig. 1; and, Harvey (1990/2007), pp. 139-40.
- ^ Gethin, Foundations, page 1
- ^ Hawkins, p. 88.
- ^ Clarke & Beyer, The World's Religions, Routledge, 2009, page 86
- ^ Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (Volume One), pages 430, 435
- ^ Hawkins, pp. 40, 46.
- ^ "Bodhisattva Ideal in Buddhism". Access to Insight. http://www.buddhanet.net/budsas/ebud/ebdha126.htm. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
- ^ Nattier, Jan (2003), A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra: p. 174
- ^ Mall, Linnart. Studies in the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita and Other Essays. Motilal Banarsidass. 2005. pp. 53-54.
- ^ Hirakawa, Akira. A History of Indian Buddhism: from Śākyamuni to Early Mahāyāna. Motilal Banarsidass. 2007. p. 297.
- ^ Conze, Edward. The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines and its Verse Summary. Grey Fox Press. 2001. p. 89.
- ^ The Bodhisattva Vow: A Practical Guide to Helping Others, pages 4-12, Tharpa Publications (2nd. ed., 1995) ISBN 978-0-948006-50-0
- ^ Davidson, Ronald M. (2003). Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-12619-0.
- ^ Prebish & Keown, Introducing Buddhism, page 89
- ^ A.K. Warder, Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition (2000)
- ^ Eliot, Japanese Buddhism, Edward Arnold, London, 1935, page 16
- ^ Gethin, Sayings of the Buddha, Oxford University Press, 2008, page xiv
- ^ "Buddhism". Knowledge Resources. Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs. http://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/resources/traditions/buddhism. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
- ^ Journal of the Pali Text Society, volume XVI, page 114
- ^ Peter Harvey, The Selfless Mind. Curzon Press, 1995, page 9.
- ^ David Kalupahana, "Sarvastivada and its theory of sarvam asti." University of Ceylon Review 24 1966, 94-105.
- ^ Indian Buddhism, 3rd edition, page 4
- ^ a b MacMillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism, 2004, page 494
- ^ Thelema & Buddhism (PDF) in Journal of Thelemic Studies, Vol. 1, No. 1, Autumn 2007, pp. 18-32
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External links[link]
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- Frequently Asked Questions About Buddhism
- Orange Tip Editions Buddhism in everyday life
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- Religion and Spirituality: Buddhism at Open Directory Project
- "Buddhism — objects, art and history". Asia. Victoria and Albert Museum. http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/asia/asia_features/buddhism/index.html. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
- Buddhist texts at Sacred Texts.com
- Buddhism in various languages
- The Future of Buddhism series, from Patheos
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| Born | (1915-01-06)6 January 1915 Chislehurst, Kent, England |
|---|---|
| Died | 16 November 1973(1973-11-16) (aged 58) Mt. Tamalpais, California, USA |
| Era | Contemporary philosophy |
| Region | Eastern Philosophy |
| School | Zen Buddhism · Hinduism · Pantheism · Religious naturalism · Taoism |
| Main interests | Personal identity · Higher consciousness · Aesthetics · Public Ethics |
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Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was a British philosopher, writer, and speaker, best known as an interpreter and populariser of Eastern philosophy for a Western audience. Born in Chislehurst, he moved to the United States in 1938 and began Zen training in New York. Pursuing a career, he attended Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, where he received a master's degree in theology. Watts became an Episcopal priest but left the ministry in 1950 and moved to California, where he joined the faculty of the American Academy of Asian Studies.
Living on the West Coast, Watts gained a large following in the San Francisco Bay Area while working as a volunteer programmer at KPFA, a Pacifica Radio station in Berkeley. Watts wrote more than 25 books and articles on subjects important to Eastern and Western religion, introducing the then-burgeoning youth culture to The Way of Zen (1957), one of the first bestselling books on Buddhism. In Psychotherapy East and West (1961), Watts proposed that Buddhism could be thought of as a form of psychotherapy and not just a religion. Like Aldous Huxley before him, he explored human consciousness in the essay, "The New Alchemy" (1958), and in the book, The Joyous Cosmology (1962).
Towards the end of his life, he divided his time between a houseboat in Sausalito and a cabin on Mount Tamalpais. His legacy has been kept alive by his son, Mark Watts, and by many of his recorded talks and lectures that have found new life on the Internet. According to the critic Erik Davis, his "writings and recorded talks still shimmer with a profound and galvanizing lucidity."[1]
Contents |
Early years[link]
Watts was born to middle class parents in the village of Chislehurst, Kent, in 1915, living at 3 (now 5) Holbrook Lane. His father was a representative for the London office of the Michelin Tyre Company, his mother a housewife whose father had been a missionary. With modest financial means, they chose to live in pastoral surroundings and Alan, an only child, grew up playing at brookside, learning the names of wildflowers and butterflies.[2] Probably because of the influence of his mother’s religious family[3] the Buchans, an interest in "ultimate things" seeped in. But it mixed with Alan’s own interests in storybook fables and romantic tales of the mysterious Far East.[4]
Watts also later wrote of a mystical vision he experienced while ill with a fever as a child. During this time he was influenced by Far Eastern landscape paintings and embroideries that had been given to his mother by missionaries returning from China. The few Chinese paintings Watts was able to see in England riveted him, and he wrote "I was aesthetically fascinated with a certain clarity, transparency, and spaciousness in Chinese and Japanese art. It seemed to float...".[5] These works of art emphasized the participative relationship of man in nature, a theme that stood fast throughout his life.
Buddhism[link]
By his own assessment, Watts was imaginative, headstrong, and talkative. He was sent to boarding schools (which included both academic and religious training of the Muscular Christianity sort) from early years. Of this religious training, he remarked “Throughout my schooling my religious indoctrination was grim and maudlin…”[6] During holidays in his teen years, Francis Croshaw, a wealthy Epicurean with strong interests in both Buddhism and the exotic little-known aspects of European culture, took Watts on a trip through France. It was not long afterward that Watts felt forced to decide between the Anglican Christianity he had been exposed to and the Buddhism he had read about in various libraries, including Croshaw’s. He chose Buddhism, and sought membership in the London Buddhist Lodge, which had been established by Theosophists, and was now run by the barrister Christmas Humphreys. Watts became the organization’s secretary at 16 (1931). The young Watts explored several styles of meditation during these years.
Education[link]
Watts attended The King's School next door to Canterbury Cathedral. Though he was frequently at the top of his classes scholastically, and was given responsibilities at school, he botched an opportunity for a scholarship to Oxford by styling a crucial examination essay in a way that was read as presumptuous and capricious.[7]
Hence, when he graduated from secondary school, Watts was thrust into the world of employment, working in a printing house and later a bank. He spent his spare time involved with the Buddhist Lodge and also under the tutelage of a "rascal guru" named Dimitrije Mitrinović. (Mitrinović was himself influenced by Peter Demianovich Ouspensky, G. I. Gurdjieff, and the varied psychoanalytical schools of Freud, Jung and Adler.) Watts also read widely in philosophy, history, psychology, psychiatry and Eastern wisdom. By his own reckoning, and also by that of his biographer Monica Furlong, Watts was primarily an autodidact. His involvement with the Buddhist Lodge in London afforded Watts a considerable number of opportunities for personal growth. Through Humphreys, he contacted eminent spiritual authors (e.g., Nicholas Roerich, Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan) and prominent theosophists like Alice Bailey. In 1936, aged 21, he attended the World Congress of Faiths at the University of London, heard D. T. Suzuki read a paper, and afterwards was able to meet this esteemed scholar of Zen Buddhism. Beyond these discussions and personal encounters, Watts absorbed, by studying the available scholarly literature, the fundamental concepts and terminology of the main philosophies of India and East Asia.
Influences and first publication[link]
In 1936, Watts' first book was published, The Spirit of Zen, which he later acknowledged to be mainly digested from the writings of Suzuki.
In 1938 he and his bride left England to live in America. He had married Eleanor Everett, whose mother Ruth Fuller Everett was involved with a traditional Zen Buddhist circle in New York. A few years later, Ruth Fuller married the Zen master (or "roshi"), Sokei-an Sasaki, and this Japanese gentleman served as a sort of model and mentor to Watts, though he chose not to enter into a formal Zen training relationship with Sasaki. During these years, according to his later writings, Watts had another mystical experience while on a walk with his wife.
Watts' fascination with the Zen (or Chan) tradition—beginning during the 1930s—developed because that tradition embodied the spiritual, interwoven with the practical, as exemplified in the subtitle of his Spirit of Zen: A Way of Life, Work, and Art in the Far East. "Work," "life," and "art" were not demoted due to a spiritual focus.
Priesthood and after[link]
Watts left formal Zen training in New York because the method of the teacher didn't suit him. He was not ordained as a Zen monk, but he felt a need to find a professional outlet for his philosophical inclinations. He entered Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, an Anglican (Episcopalian) school in Evanston, Illinois, where he studied Christian scriptures, theology, and Church history. He attempted to work out a blend of contemporary Christian worship, mystical Christianity, and Asian philosophy. Watts was awarded a master's degree in theology in response to his thesis, which he published as a popular edition under the title Behold the Spirit. The pattern was set, in that Watts did not hide his dislike for religious outlooks that he decided were dour, guilt-ridden, or militantly proselytizing—no matter if they were found within Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, or Buddhism.
All seemed to go reasonably well in his next role, as Episcopalian priest (beginning in 1945, aged 30), until an extramarital affair resulted in his young wife having their marriage annulled. It also resulted in Watts leaving the ministry by 1950. He spent the New Year getting to know Joseph Campbell; his wife, Jean Erdman; and John Cage.
In early 1951, Watts moved to California, where he joined the faculty of the American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. Here he taught alongside Saburō Hasegawa, Frederic Spiegelberg, Haridas Chaudhuri, lama Tokwan Tada, and various visiting experts and professors. Hasegawa, in particular, served as a teacher to Watts in the areas of Japanese customs, arts, primitivism, and perceptions of nature. Besides teaching, Watts served for several years as the Academy's administrator. One notable student of his was Eugene Rose, who later went on to become a famous Hieromonk and theologian in the Eastern Orthodox Church of America.
Watts also studied written Chinese and practiced Chinese brush calligraphy with Hasegawa as well as with some of the Chinese students who enrolled at the Academy. While Watts was noted for an interest in Zen Buddhism, his reading and discussions delved into Vedanta, "the new physics", cybernetics, semantics, process philosophy, natural history, and the anthropology of sexuality.
Middle years[link]
After heading up the Academy for a few years, Watts left the faculty for a freelance career in the mid 1950s. In 1953, he began what became a long-running weekly radio program at Pacifica Radio station KPFA in Berkeley, which continued until his death in 1973. Like other volunteer programmers at the listener-sponsored station, Watts was not paid for his broadcasts; they did, however, gain him a large following in the San Francisco Bay Area. These programs were later carried by additional Pacifica stations, and were re-broadcast many times over in the decades following his death. The original tapes are currently held by the Pacifica Radio Archives, based at KPFK in Los Angeles, and at the Electronic University archive founded by his son, Mark Watts (alanwatts.org).
In 1957 when 42, Watts published one of his best known books, The Way of Zen, which focused on philosophical explication and history. Besides drawing on the lifestyle and philosophical background of Zen, in India and China, Watts introduced ideas drawn from general semantics (directly from the writings of Alfred Korzybski and also from Norbert Wiener's early work on cybernetics, which had recently been published). Watts offered analogies from cybernetic principles possibly applicable to the Zen life. The book sold well, eventually becoming a modern classic, and helped widen his lecture circuit.
Around this time, Watts toured parts of Europe with his father, meeting the renowned psychiatrist Carl Jung. In relation to modern psychology, Watts's instincts were closer to Jung's or Abraham Maslow's than to those of Freud.
Experimentation[link]
When he returned to the United States, he began to dabble in psychedelic drug experiences, initially with mescaline given to him by Dr. Oscar Janiger. He tried LSD several times with various research teams led by Drs. Keith Ditman, Sterling Bunnell, and Michael Agron. He also tried marijuana and concluded that it was a useful and interesting psychoactive drug that gave the impression of time slowing down. Watts’ books of the ’60s reveal the influence of these chemical adventures on his outlook. He would later comment about psychedelic drug use, "When you get the message, hang up the phone."[8]
For a time, Watts came to prefer writing in the language of modern science and psychology (Psychotherapy East and West is a good example), finding a parallel between mystical experiences and the theories of the material universe proposed by 20th-century physicists. He later equated mystical experience with ecological awareness, and typically emphasized whichever approach seemed best suited to the audience he was addressing.
Supporters and critics[link]
Watts's explorations and teaching brought him into contact with many noted intellectuals, artists, and American teachers in the human potential movement. His friendship with poet Gary Snyder nurtured his sympathies with the budding environmental movement, to which Watts gave philosophical support. He also encountered Robert Anton Wilson, who credited Watts with being one of his "Light[s] along the Way" in the opening appreciation of Cosmic Trigger.
Though never affiliated for long with any one academic institution, he did have a fellowship for several years at Harvard University. He also lectured to many college and university students. His lectures and books gave him far-reaching influence on the American intelligentsia of the 1950s–1970s, but he was often seen as an outsider in academia. When questioned sharply by students during his talk at University of California Santa Cruz in 1970, Watts responded that he was not an academic philosopher but rather "a philosophical entertainer."
Watts has been criticized by Buddhists such as Roshi Philip Kapleau, John Daido Loori, and D. T. Suzuki for allegedly misinterpreting several key concepts of Zen Buddhism. Examples of the criticisms by those who believe that zazen can only be achieved by a strict and specific means of sitting as opposed to a cultivated state of mind available at any moment in any situation would be when Kapleau claimed that Watts dismissed zazen on the basis of only half a koan.[9] In regard to the aforementioned koan, Robert Baker Aitken reports that Suzuki told him "I regret to say that Mr. Watts did not understand that story."[10] In Loori's translation of Dogen's The True Dharma Eye, the author also mentions this and expands further to suggest that Zen in its essence is zazen, and cannot be grasped without the practice. This had been the predominant interpretation of Zen in the West before Alan Watts began to write. One major point raised today, however, is that the state of Zen is like that of a dog, always in the moment, regretting nothing. Although in one Koan Zhaozhou is said to have answered that a Dog does not have Buddha nature, in a different Koan from the same period Zhaozhou answered the same question in the positive, demonstrating the disagreements between the sects of 'walking monks' and 'sitting monks' that go back thousands of years. In his talks, Watts addressed the issue of defining zazen practice when he said, "A cat sits until it is tired of sitting, then gets up, stretches, and walks away."
He did, however, have his supporters in the Zen community, including Shunryu Suzuki, the founder of the San Francisco Zen Center. As David Chadwick recounted in his biography of Suzuki, when a student of Suzuki's disparaged Watts by saying “we used to think he was profound until we found the real thing," Suzuki "fumed with a sudden intensity," saying, "You completely miss the point about Alan Watts! You should notice what he has done. He is a great bodhisattva."[11]
Applied aesthetics[link]
Watts often wrote about, or sometimes alluded to, a group of neighbors in Druid Heights (near Mill Valley, California), who had endeavored to combine architecture, gardening, and carpentry skills to make a beautiful and comfortable life for themselves. These neighbors accomplished this by relying on their own talents and using their own hands, as they lived in what has been called "shared bohemian poverty."[12] Druid Heights was founded by the writer Elsa Gidlow,[13] and Watts dedicated his book The Joyous Cosmology to the people of this neighborhood.[14]
Regarding his intentions, Watts attempted to lessen the alienation that accompanies the experience of being human that he felt plagued the modern Westerner, and (like his fellow British expatriate and friend, Aldous Huxley) to lessen the ill will that was an unintentional by-product of alienation from the natural world. He felt such teaching could improve the world, at least to a degree. He also articulated the possibilities for greater incorporation of aesthetics (for example: better architecture, more art, more fine cuisine) in American life. In his autobiography he wrote, "… cultural renewal comes about when highly differentiated cultures mix".[15]
In his last novel Island (1962), Aldous Huxley mentions the religious practice of maithuna as being something like what Roman Catholics call "coitus reservatus". A few years before, Alan Watts had discussed the theme in his own book Nature, Man and Woman. There, he discusses the possibility of the practice being known to early Christians and of it being kept secretly by the Church.
Later years[link]
In his writings of the 1950s, he conveyed his admiration for the practicality in the historical achievements of Chán (Zen) in the Far East, for it had fostered farmers, architects, builders, folk physicians, artists, and administrators among the monks who had lived in the monasteries of its lineages.
In his mature work, he presents himself as "Zennist" in spirit as he wrote in his last book, Tao: The Watercourse Way. Child rearing, the arts, cuisine, education, law and freedom, architecture, sexuality, and the uses and abuses of technology were all of great interest to him.
Though known for his Zen teachings, he was equally if not more influenced by ancient Hindu scriptures, especially Vedanta, and spoke extensively about the nature of the divine Reality Man that Man misses, how the contradiction of opposites is the method of life and the means of cosmic and human evolution, how our fundamental Ignorance is rooted in the exclusive nature of mind and ego, how to come in touch with the Field of Consciousness and Light, and other cosmic principles. These are discussed in great detail in dozens of hours of audio that are in part captured in the ‘Out of Your Mind’ series.
On the personal level, Watts sought to resolve his feelings of alienation from the institutions of marriage and the values of American society, as revealed in his classic comments on love relationships in "Divine Madness" and on perception of the organism-environment in "The Philosophy of Nature".
In looking at social issues he was quite concerned with the necessity for international peace, for tolerance and understanding among disparate cultures. He also came to feel acutely conscious of a growing ecological predicament; as one instance, in the early 1960s he wrote: “Can any melting or burning imaginable get rid of these ever-rising mountains of ruin—especially when the things we make and build are beginning to look more and more like rubbish even before they are thrown away?"[16] These concerns were later expressed in a television pilot made for NET filmed at his mountain retreat in 1971 in which he noted that the single track of conscious attention was wholly inadequate for interactions with a multi-tracked world.
Political stance[link]
Distrusting both the established political left and right, Watts found political inspiration in the Chinese sage Chuang-Tzu, an ancient Taoist thinker[citation needed]. He disliked much in the conventional idea of "progress." He hoped for change, but personally he preferred amiable, semi-isolated rural social enclaves, and also believed in tolerance for urban tenderloins, social misfits, and eccentric artists. Watts decried the suburbanization of the countryside and the way of life that went with it.
In one campus lecture tour, which Watts titled "The End to the Put-Down of Man", Watts presented positive images for both nature and humanity, spoke in favor of the various stages of human growth (including the teenage years), reproached excessive cynicism and rivalry, and extolled intelligent creativity, good architecture and food[citation needed].
On spiritual and social identity[link]
Watts felt that absolute morality had nothing to do with the fundamental realization of one’s deep spiritual identity. He advocated social rather than personal ethics. In his writings, Watts was increasingly concerned with ethics applied to relations between humanity and the natural environment and between governments and citizens. He wrote out of an appreciation of a racially and culturally diverse social landscape.
He often said that he wished to act as a bridge between the ancient and the modern, between East and West, and between culture and nature.
Watts led some tours for Westerners to the Buddhist temples of Japan. He also studied some movements from the traditional Chinese martial art T'ai chi ch'uan, with an Asian colleague, Al Chung-liang Huang.
Worldview[link]
In several of his later publications, especially Beyond Theology and The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, Watts put forward a worldview, drawing on Hinduism, Chinese philosophy, pantheism, and modern science, in which he maintains that the whole universe consists of a cosmic self playing hide-and-seek (Lila), hiding from itself (Maya) by becoming all the living and non-living things in the universe, forgetting what it really is; the upshot being that we are all IT in disguise. In this worldview, Watts asserts that our conception of ourselves as an "ego in a bag of skin" is a myth; the entities we call the separate "things" are merely processes of the whole.
Internet phenomenon[link]
As part of his growing popularity, Matt Stone and Trey Parker—creators of the animated series South Park—have also contributed a video tribute by animating some of his lectures. This has spawned a culture of user-animated videos all around the net.[17]
Personal life[link]
Watts married three times and had seven children, five daughters and two sons. His oldest son, Mark Watts, currently serves as curator of his father's work.
Watts met Eleanor Everett in 1936, when her mother, Ruth Fuller Everett, brought her to London to study piano. They met at the Buddhist Lodge, were engaged the following year and married in April 1938. A daughter, Joan, was born November 1938 and another, Anne, was born in 1943. Their marriage ended eleven years later, but Watts continued to correspond with his former mother-in-law.[18]
After leaving Eleanor in 1950, Watts married Dorothy DeWitt and moved to San Francisco in early 1951 to teach. They began a family that grew to include five children: Tia, Mark, Richard, Lila, and Diane. However the couple separated in the early sixties after Watts met Mary Jane Yates King while lecturing in New York. After a difficult divorce he married Mary Jane in 1964.
Watts lived with Mary Jane in Sausalito, California, in the mid-60s.[19] He lived his later years at times on a houseboat in Sausalito called the Vallejo,[20] and at times in a secluded cabin on Mount Tamalpais.
In October 1973, Watts returned from an exhausting European lecture tour to his cabin in Mount Tamalpais. On November 16, 1973, he died in his sleep of heart failure.
Publications[link]
- 1936 The Spirit of Zen, Paperback. 1969 ISBN 0-8021-3056-9 A preview from Google Books
- 1937 The Legacy of Asia and Western Man
- 1940 The Meaning of Happiness, Paperback. 1970, ISBN 0-06-080178-6
- 1944 Theologica Mystica of St. Dionysius, (translation from Greek of pseudo-Dionysius, available online)
- 1948 Behold the Spirit:A Study in the Necessity of Mystical Religion, Vintage ed. 1972, ISBN 0-394-71761-9
- 1950 Easter – Its Story and Meaning
- 1950 The Supreme Identity, Vintage ed. 1972, ISBN 0-394-71835-6
- 1951 The Wisdom of Insecurity, Vintage ed. 1968, ISBN 0-394-70468-1
- 1953 Myth and Ritual in Christianity, Beacon Press 1971, ISBN 0-8070-1375-7
- 1957 The Way of Zen, Vintage Spiritual Classics 1999, ISBN 0-375-70510-4
- 1958 Nature, Man, and Woman, Vintage reissue 1991, ISBN 0-679-73233-0
- 1959 Beat Zen Square Zen and Zen, Paperback, ASIN B000F2RQL4
- 1960 "This Is It" and Other Essays on Zen and Spiritual Experience, Vintage reprint 1973, ISBN 0-394-71904-2
- 1961 Psychotherapy East and West, Vintage ed. 1975, ISBN 0-394-71609-4 An excerpt
- 1962 The Joyous Cosmology – Adventures in the Chemistry of Consciousness
- 1963 The Two Hands of God – The Myths of Polarity
- 1964 Beyond Theology – The Art of Godmanship, Vintage 1973, ISBN 0-394-71923-9
- 1966 The Book – On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, Vintage reissue 1989, ISBN 0-679-72300-5 An excerpt
- 1967 Nonsense, ISBN 0-525-47463-3. (This book is a spiritual application of literary nonsense).
- 1970 Does It Matter?: Essays on Man's Relation to Materiality, Vintage ed. 1971, ISBN 0-394-71665-5
- 1971 Erotic Spirituality – The Vision of Konarak
- 1972 The Art of Contemplation
- 1972 In My Own Way – An Autobiography 1915–1965, Vintage 1973, ISBN 0-394-71951-4 A preview from Google Books
- 1973 Cloud-hidden, Whereabouts Unknown: A Mountain Journal, Vintage 1974, ISBN 0-394-71999-9
Posthumous publications[link]
- 1974 The Essence of Alan Watts, ed. Mark Watts, Celestial Arts 1977, ISBN 0-89087-210-4
- 1975 Tao: The Watercourse Way, with Al Chung-liang Huang, Pantheon 1977, ISBN 0-394-73311-8
- 1976 Essential Alan Watts ed. Mark Watts,
- 1978 Uncarved Block, Unbleached Silk: The Mystery of Life
- 1979 Om: Creative Meditations ed. Mark Watts,
- 1982 Play to Live ed. Mark Watts,
- 1983 Way of Liberation: Essays and Lectures on the Transformation of the Self ed. Mark Watts,
- 1985 Out of the Trap ed. Mark Watts,
- 1986 Diamond Web ed. Mark Watts,
- 1987 The Early Writings of Alan Watts, Paperback. 1995, ISBN 0-89087-794-7
- 1990 The Modern Mystic: A New Collection of Early Writings
- 1994 Talking Zen ed. Mark Watts,
- 1995 Become What You Are, Shambhala Expanded ed. 2003, ISBN 1-57062-940-4
- 1995 Buddhism: The Religion of No-Religion ed. Mark Watts, A preview from Google Books
- 1995 The Philosophies of Asia ed. Mark Watts,
- 1995 The Tao of Philosophy, ed. Mark Watts, edited transcripts, Tuttle Publishing 1999, ISBN 0-8048-3204-8
- 1996 Myth and Religion ed. Mark Watts,
- 1997 Taoism: Way Beyond Seeking ed. Mark Watts,
- 1997 Zen and the Beat Way ed. Mark Watts,
- 1998 Culture of Counterculture ed. Mark Watts,
- 1999 Buddhism: The Religion of No-Religion, ed. Mark Watts, edited transcripts, Tuttle Publishing, ISBN 0-8048-3203-X
- 2000 What Is Zen?, editor: Mark Watts, New World Library, ISBN 0-394-71951-4 A preview from Google Books
- 2000 What Is Tao?, ed. Mark Watts, New World Library, ISBN 1-57731-168-X
- 2000 Still the Mind: An Introduction to Meditation, ed. Mark Watts, New World Library, ISBN 1-57731-214-7
- 2000 Eastern Wisdom, ed. Mark Watts, MJF Books, ISBN 1-56731-491-0, three books in one volume: What is Zen?, What is Tao?, and An Introduction to Meditation (Still the Mind). These were assembled from transcriptions of audio tape recordings made by his son Mark, of lectures and seminars given by Alan Watts during the last decade of his life. They constitute simplified introductions to the philosophies he taught.
- 2002 Zen, the Supreme Experience: The Newly Discovered Scripts, ed. Mark Watts, Vega
- 2006 Eastern Wisdom, Modern Life: Collected Talks, 1960-1969, New World Library
Audio and video works, essays[link]
Including recordings of lectures at major universities and multi-session seminars: Many of his works have made it easier for western people to apprehend eastern esoteric thinking, which until now required western people to travel to Asia and spend years learning the subtle nuances of the profound traditions.
- 1960 Eastern Wisdom and Modern Life, television series, (here)
- 1960 Essential Lectures, audio recordings, (here)
- 1960 Nature of Consciousness, essay, (here)
- 1960 The Value of Psychotic Experience
- 1960 The World As Emptiness
- 1960 From Time to Eternity
- 1960 Lecture On Zen
- 1960 The Cross of Cards
- 1960 Taoism
- 1962 This Is IT
- 1968 "Psychedelics & Religious Experience", in California Law Review (here)
- 1969 Why Not Now: The Art of Meditation
- 1971 A Conversation With Myself (part 1 part 2part 3)
- 1994 Zen: The Best of Alan Watts (VHS)
- 2005 Do You Do It, or Does It Do You?: how to let the universe meditate you (CD)
- 2007 Zen Meditations with Alan Watts, DVD, (here)
Biographical publications[link]
- Genuine Fake: a Biography of Alan Watts, by Monica Furlong, Published by Heinemann, 1986
Academic connections[link]
Saybrook University offers the only course on Watts in the United States and perhaps the world (HTP 3075: The Life of Alan Watts). Saybrook also has the only Watts academic chair in the world, which is held by Stanley Krippner, Executive Faculty Member.[citation needed]
Notes[link]
- ^ David, Erik (2006). The Visionary State: A Journey through California's Spiritual Landscape. Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-4835-3.
- ^ Watts, Alan W. 1973 In My Own Way: An Autobiography 1915–1965, New York: Pantheon
- ^ Zen Effects: The Life of Alan Watts, by Monica Furlong, p. 12
- ^ Zen Effects: The Life of Alan Watts, by Monica Furlong, p. 22
- ^ Watts, Alan W. 1973, pp. 71–72
- ^ Watts, Alan W. 1973, p. 60
- ^ Watts, Alan W. 1973, p. 102
- ^ The Joyous Cosmology: Adventures in the Chemistry of Consciousness (the quote is new to the 1965/1970 edition (page 26), and not contained in the original 1962 edition of the book).
- ^ Kapleau 1967, pp. 21–22
- ^ Aitken 1997, p. 30. [1]
- ^ Chadwick, D: Crooked Cucumber: The Life and Zen Teaching of Shunryu Suzuki, Broadway Books,2000
- ^ ^ Davis, Erik (May 2005). Druids and Ferries "Druids and Ferries". Arthur (Brooklyn: Arthur Publishing Corp.) (16). http://www.techgnosis.com/index_druid.html Druids and Ferries.
- ^ Davis, Erik (May 2005). "Druids and Ferries". Arthur (Brooklyn: Arthur Publishing Corp.) (16). http://www.techgnosis.com/index_druid.html.
- ^ The Joyous Cosmology, p. v
- ^ Watts, In My Own Way
- ^ The Joyous Cosmology, p. 63
- ^ Flash Animated Philosophy From South Park Creators www.coldhardflash.com
- ^ Stirling 2006, pg. 27
- ^ The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are (1966)
- ^ Watts, Alan, 1973, pp. 300–304
References[link]
- Aitken, Robert. Original Dwelling Place. Counterpoint. Washington, D.C. 1997. ISBN 1-887178-41-4 (paperback)
- Charters, Ann (ed.). The Portable Beat Reader. Penguin Books. New York. 1992. ISBN 0-670-83885-3 (hard cover); ISBN 0-14-015102-8 (paperback)
- Furlong, Monica, Zen Effects: The Life of Alan Watts Houghton Mifflin. New York. 1986 ISBN 0-395-45392-5, Skylight Paths 2001 edition of the biography, with new foreword by author: ISBN 1-893361-32-2
- Kapleau, Philip. Three Pillars of Zen (1967) Beacon Press. ISBN 0-8070-5975-7
- Stirling, Isabel. "Zen Pioneer: The Life & Works of Ruth Fuller Sasaki" Shoemaker & Hoard. 2006. ISBN 978-1-59376-110-3
- Watts, Alan, In My Own Way New York. Random House Pantheon. 1973 ISBN 0-394-46911-9 (his autobiography)
External links[link]
|
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alan Watts |
- The Alan Watts Electronic University – Alan Watts audio and video courses, co-founded by Alan Watts, Mark Watts, and Henry Jacobs in 1973.
- Alan Watts Podcast – The official Podcast of Alan Watts
- Master Enlightenments Arts Seminars and Lectures by Alan Watts – Looking at many different forms of enlightenment – Recorded by Henry Jacobs in 1964/65 who set up the original Alan Watts radio network.
- Alan Watts Online – Project Unicorn (also via Archive.org)
- Works by or about Alan Watts in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
- Watts essay on Nothingness (This link no longer functions.)
- Alan Watts Lectures and Essays Audio, video, essays and articles – resources from deoxy.org
- Alan Watts' This Is IT: The First Psychedelic LP essay by Patrick Lundborg
- Alan Watts Resource Compilation A collection of audio and video links of Alan Watts lecture and essays
- Alan Watts on YouTube, South Park Interview with Mark Watts on the resurgence of his father's work
- watts.progressiveradionetwork.org Gary Nulls online station with Alan Watts show including some archived audio lectures.
- Alan Watts. The Book: On The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Watts, Alan |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | English philosopher |
| Date of birth | January 6, 1915 |
| Place of birth | Chislehurst, Kent, England |
| Date of death | November 16, 1973 |
| Place of death | Mt. Tamalpais, California |
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The following is a list of significant men and women known for being the father, mother, or considered the founders mostly in Western socities in a field, listed by category. In most non-science fields, the title of being the "father" is debatable.
|
Church[link]
Main article: Church Fathers
Games[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Miniature wargaming | H.G. Wells[1] | |
| The modern video game industry | Nolan Bushnell | Creator of Pong and founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese's |
| Modern video game | Shigeru Miyamoto[2] | Creator of many successful Nintendo franchises |
| Role-playing game | Gary Gygax[3] | Creator of Dungeons & Dragons |
| Stealth game | Hideo Kojima[4] | Creator of the Metal Gear stealth-action games |
| Video game | Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. | Inventor of the First video game |
| Wargaming | Charles S. Roberts[5] |
Humanities[link]
Military[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Aerial warfare | Oswald Boelcke[6] | The first to formalize rules of air fighting, which he presented as the Dicta Boelcke, also credited as being the first pilot to shoot down an aircraft. |
| Atomic bomb | Robert Oppenheimer[7] Leó Szilárd[8] Enrico Fermi[9] |
|
| Blitzkrieg | Heinz Guderian[10][11] | |
| The West's Hydrogen bomb | Edward Teller[12] | |
| Atomic submarine and "nuclear navy" | Hyman G. Rickover[13][14][15] | |
| Fourth Generation Warfare | William S. Lind[citation needed] | |
| French sailing navy | Jean-Baptiste Colbert[16] | Built on the fleet of France inherited from Cardinal Richelieu. |
| Naval Special Warfare | Phil H. Bucklew[17] | US Naval Officer and First Commanding Officer of Navy SEAL Team One |
| Naval tactical studies | Paul Hoste[18] | Jesuit Professor of Mathematics at the Royal College of the Marine in Toulon; wrote L'Art des Armées Navales (1697) |
| Luftwaffe and Luftstreitkräfte | Oswald Boelcke[19] | |
| The Soviet Union's Hydrogen Bomb | Andrei Sakharov[20] | |
| United States Airborne | William C. Lee[21] | First commander of the parachute school at Fort Benning, Georgia. |
| United States Cavalry | Kazimierz Pułaski[22] | Brigadier-general and commander of the cavalry of the Continental Army (1770s). |
| United States Navy | Commodore John Barry[23] Captain John Paul Jones[24] |
Nations[link]
Natural and social sciences[link]
Sports[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| American football | Walter Camp[25] | |
| American motocross | Edison Dye[26] | Introduced motorcross to American riders. |
| American road racing | Cameron Argetsinger[27] | Introduced the first US auto race that was dedicated to road courses at Watkins Glen. |
| American soccer | Steve Ross[28] | Godfather, created the New York Cosmos soccer team and imported a number of well known international footballers to the team in an attempt to bring interest to soccer in the US. |
| Angling | Izaak Walton[29] | Author of The Compleat Angler. |
| Argentine football | Alexander Watson Hutton[30] | |
| Argentine professional golf | José Jurado[31] | |
| Argentine winter sports | Otto Meiling[32] | |
| Association football | Ebenezer Cobb Morley[33] | |
| Baseball | Henry Chadwick[34][35][36][37] | |
| Basketball | James Naismith | Left many diaries and interviews that explain how and when he created basketball. |
| BMX | Scot Breithaupt[38] | |
| Brazilian football | Charles William Miller[39] | |
| Camel Lights | Jim Downing | Built a racecar a season before it became the basis of a new lightweight prototype class in |
| Canadian rodeo | O. Raymond Knight[41] | Coined the rodeo term "stampede" and was world's first rodeo producer, rodeo stock contractor, and rodeo champion in 1902. |
| Drag racing | Wally Parks[42] | Founder of the NHRA and organized the first legitimate drag race. |
| Don Garlits[43] | Considered to be one of the innovators of drag racing safety. | |
| Eddie Hill[44] | Regarded as the forefather of drag racing. | |
| Drifting | Kunimitsu Takahashi[45] | Introduced an aggressive high speed cornering technique that became widely used for illicit purposes which eventually became a sport. |
| East Coast skateboarding | Vinny Raffa (godfather)[46] | |
| Florida skateboarding | Bruce Walker (godfather)[47] | |
| Modern football | Ebenezer Cobb Morley[48] | |
| Freestyle BMX | Bob Haro[49][50] | |
| Freestyle Motocross | Mike Metzger[51] | Godfather. |
| Funny Car | Dick Landy[52] | |
| Ice Hockey | James Creighton (ice hockey) | Captained of one of the two teams that participated in the first indoor hockey game on March 3, 1875 in Montreal. |
| Import drag racing | Frank Choi[53] | Hosted one of the first events specifially for import cars in the mid-1990s to keep drivers out of street racing that progressed into a professional category. |
| Italian football | James Richardson Spensley[54] | Given due to his association with Genoa CFC and his contribution to the modern day variation of the game in Italy. |
| William Garbutt[55] | Laying the foundations of skilled coaching in Italian football. | |
| Japanese baseball | Horace Wilson[56] | Credited for introducing baseball in Japan. |
| Hiroshi Hiraoka[57] | Credited for establishing the first baseball team. | |
| Jogging | Jim Fixx[58] | Founding father. |
| Kart racing | Art Ingels[59] | Developed the world's first kart (1956). |
| Lacrosse | William George Beers[60][61][62][63] | Codified the sport. |
| Mixed martial arts | Bruce Lee[64] | Called so by Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. For his experimentation into other styles and invention of Jeet Kune Do. |
| Modern bodybuilding | Eugen Sandow[65] | |
| Harold Zinkin[66] | Called so by Arnold Schwarzenegger during a press statement on his passing in 2004. Inventor of the modern exercise machines. | |
| Modern boxing | James Figg[67] | |
| James J. Corbett[citation needed] | ||
| Modern figure skating | Jackson Haines[68] | "Jackson Haines - The Father of Figure Skating," according to Roy Blakey |
| Modern football in Japan | Dettmar Cramer[69] | |
| Modern rodeo | Earl W. Bascom[70] | Bascom's many equipment innovations pioneered the sport starting in 1916. |
| Modern sabre fencing | Italo Santelli[71] | |
| Modern surfing | Duke Kahanamoku[72] | |
| Rodeo bareback bronc riding | Earl W. Bascom[70] | Bascom designed and made the first one-hand rigging in 1924. |
| Rugby union | A. G. Guillemard[73] | |
| William Webb Ellis[74] | "Who with a fine disregard for the rules of football as played in his time first took the ball in his arms and ran with it thus originating the distinctive feature of the rugby game". | |
| Scuba diving | Jacques Cousteau[75] | Developed the aqua-lung jointly with Émile Gagnan; popularized scuba diving as a research diver, writer, and film and television producer and personality. |
| Skateboarding | Skip Engblom (godfather)[76] | |
| Tony Hawk (godfather)[77] | ||
| Snowboarding | Jake Burton Carpenter[78] | |
| Stock car racing | Bill France, Sr.[79][80] | Foundation of the sanctioning body for stock car racing |
| Supercross | Mike Goodwin[81] | Organized the first supercross race. |
| Televised golf | Frank Chirkinian[82][83] | Personally responsible for much of the production conventions of modern golf broadcasting. |
Technology[link]
Fields[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Aerodynamics (modern) | Sir George Cayley [84][85] | Founding father of modern Aerodynamics. The first to identify the four aerodynamic forces of flight—weight, lift, drag, and thrust. Modern airplane design is based on those discoveries. |
| Architecture | Imhotep[86] | Built the first pyramid |
| Astronautics | Konstantin Tsiolkovsky[87] |
|
| Aviation | Father Francesco Lana-Terzi[90] | Book: Prodromo alla Arte Maestra (1670). First to describe the geometry and physics of a flying vessel. |
| British watchmaking | Thomas Tompion[91] | |
| Clinical trials | James Lind[92] | Conducted the first controlled clinical trial in the modern era of medicine, an investigation on using citrus food as a treatment for scurvy aboard HMS Salisbury in 1747 |
| Computing | Charles Babbage[93] | Inventor of the Analytical Engine which was never constructed in his lifetime. |
| Cybernetics | Norbert Wiener[94][95] | |
| Genetics | Gregor Mendel | Founder of the Genetics[96] |
| Modern Bladesmithing | William F. Moran | Founder of the American Bladesmith Society |
| Modern Kinematics | Ferdinand Freudenstein | Applied digital computation to the kinematic synthesis of mechanisms.[97] |
| Modern Knifemaking | Bob Loveless | Founder of the Knifemakers' Guild |
| Photography | Louis Daguerre[98] Nicéphore Niépce[99] William Henry Fox Talbot[100] Thomas Wedgwood[101] |
Inventions[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Air conditioning | Willis Carrier | [102] |
| C (programming language) | Dennis Ritchie | |
| Chronograph | George Graham[91][103] | Referred so by Bernard Humbert of the Horology School of Bienne on his 1990 book he Chronograph as Graham was the first to construct a horological mechanism |
| Compact Disc | Kees Immink[104] | |
| Compiler | Grace Hopper | |
| Computer | Konrad Zuse[105] | Invented world's first functional program-controlled computer. |
| Alan Turing[106][107] | Was a secret code breaker during WWII and invented the Turing machine (1936). | |
| John von Neumann[108] | Became "intrigued" with Turing's universal machine and later emphasised the importance of the stored-program concept for electronic computing (1945), including the possibility of allowing the machine to modify its own program in useful ways while running. | |
| John V. Atanasoff[109] | Invented the digital computer in the 1930s | |
| John W. Mauchly [110] J.Presper Eckert[111] |
Invented the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer) in 1946. ENIAC was the first general-purpose electronic computer capable of being reprogrammed to solve a full range of computing problems. | |
| Computer Program | Ada Lovelace[112] | Recognized by historians as the writer of the world's first computer program which was for the Charles Babbage Analytical Engine, but was never complete within either her or his lifetime. |
| Ekranoplan | Rostislav Alexeev | |
| Helicopter | Igor Sikorsky [113] | Invented the first successful helicopter, upon which further designs were based. |
| Internet | Vint Cerf[114][115] Bob Kahn[116] [117] |
Co-invented Internet protocol (IP) and Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) in 1973, the two original protocols of the Internet protocol suite.[118] |
| Instant noodle | Momofuku Ando[119] | Inventor of the instant noodle, also founder of Nissin Foods to produce and market them. |
| Japanese television | Kenjiro Takayanagi[120][121] | |
| Jet engine | Frank Whittle[122][123] | |
| Karaoke | Daisuke Inoue[124] | Inventor of the machine as a means of allowing people to sing without the need of a live back-up. |
| Laser | Charles Hard Townes | |
| Lightning prediction system | Alexander Stepanovich Popov | The first lightning prediction system, the Lightning detector, was invented in 1894 by Alexander Stepanovich Popov. |
| Marine chronometer | John Harrison[125] | |
| Microprocessor | Marcian Hoff[126] Masatoshi Shima[127] |
|
| Mobile phone | Martin Cooper[128] | He is the main brainchild of hand-held phone and with the help of Motorola team he developed the first handset in 1973 weighing in at two kilos. |
| Pentium microprocessor | Vinod Dham[129][130] | The original Pentium (P5) was developed by a team of engineers, including John H. Crawford, chief architect of the original 386,[131] and Donald Alpert, who managed the architectural team. Dror Avnon managed the design of the FPU.[132] Dham was general manager of the P5 group.[133] Some media sources have called him the "father of the Pentium". |
| Personal computer | Chuck Peddle[134] | Developed the 6502 microprocessor, the KIM-1 and the Commodore PET |
| Henry Edward "Ed" Roberts[135] André Truong Trong Thi[136] |
||
| Programmable logic controller | Dick Morley[citation needed] | |
| Radio | Alexander Stepanovich Popov [137] Lee De Forest[138][139][140] Guglielmo Marconi[141] Jagdish Chandra Bose[142] Nikola Tesla[143] |
The research of these pioneers led to the development of the radio |
| Radio (Radio broadcasting) | Reginald Fessenden[citation needed] David Sarnoff[citation needed] |
Fessenden is credited as the first to broadcast radio signals on Christmas Eve, 1906. Sarnoff proposed a chain of radio stations to Marconi's associates in 1915. |
| Radio (FM radio) | Edwin H. Armstrong[citation needed] | Obtained the first Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license to operate an FM station in Alpine, New Jersey at approximately 50 megahertz (1939) |
| Radiotelephony | Reginald Fessenden[144][145] | |
| Search Engine | Alan Emtage[146][147][148] | Created Archie, a pre-Web search engine which pioneered many of the techniques used by subsequent search engines |
| SGML | Charles Goldfarb[149] | |
| Telephone | Alexander Graham Bell[150] | See Invention of the telephone |
| Television | Philo T. Farnsworth[151] | Co-Inventors of the Electronic Television. Farnsworth invented the Image dissector while Zworykin created the Iconoscope, both fully electronic forms of television. Logie Baird invented the world's first working television system, also the first electronic color television system. |
| Tokamak | Lev Artsimovich | |
| Tube structure | Fazlur Khan[156] | Invented the tube structural system and first employed it in his designs for the DeWitt-Chestnut Apartments, John Hancock Center and Sears Tower. |
| World Wide Web | Tim Berners-Lee[157] | |
| Visual Basic | Alan Cooper[158] | |
| XML | Jon Bosak[159] |
Towns, cities and regions[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | James Douglas[160] | Fur trader and manager for the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company, Governor of the Colony of Vancouver Island and first Governor of the Colony of British Columbia. |
| Lan Kwai Fong | Allan Zeman[161] | Noted for turning a small square of streets in Central, into a thriving bar and night life districts in Hong Kong. |
Transport[link]
| Subject | Father/Mother | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 20th century American car industry | Henry Ford[162] | Noted for introducing a simple and affordable car for the ordinary American masses. |
| American Interstate Highway System | Dwight D. Eisenhower[163] | |
| High-performance VW industry | Gene Berg[164] | |
| Hot rod | Ed Winfield[165] | |
| Import Car Culture | RJ DeVera[166] | Influential for popularising the import car scene in the mid-1990s. |
| Kustom Kulture | Von Dutch[167] | |
| Monster truck | Bob Chandler[168] | Famed for building Bigfoot, which was the first to be capable of driving over cars and subsequently became one of the most famous monster truck in history |
| Mountain bike | Gary Fisher[169] | |
| Rotary engine | Felix Wankel[170][171] | |
| Route 66 | Cyrus Avery[172] | |
| Tailfin | Harley Earl[173][174][175] | |
| Traffic safety | William Phelps Eno[176] | |
| Yellow school bus | Frank W. Cyr[177] |
See also[link]
References[link]
- ^ The Miniatures Page. The World of Miniatures - An Overview.
- ^ "Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, 'The Father of Modern Video Games,' Receives The Jim". Reuters. 2009-01-15. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS218035+15-Jan-2009+PRN20090115.
- ^ Rausch, Allen (August 15, 2004). "Gary Gygax Interview - Part I". GameSpy. http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/538/538817p1.html. Retrieved 2005-01-03.
- ^ "Hideo Kojima 'GDC 2009 Keynote' video Part 2 of 4". 1UP.com. March 26, 2009. http://gamevideos.1up.com/video/id/24175. Retrieved 2010-04-01.
- ^ "Charles S. Roberts: The Founding Father"
- ^ http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8194
- ^ J Robert Oppenheimer
- ^ Bernstein, Barton J: "Introduction" to The Voice of the Dolphins and Other Stories (expanded edition), by Leo Szilard. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1992, p.5: "Its author, Leo Szilard, now dead nearly three decades, was a Hungarian émigré scientist and one of many putative fathers of the A-bomb."
- ^ Lichello, R. (1971). Enrico Fermi: Father of the Atomic Bomb. SamHar Press. ISBN 978-0-87157-011-6. http://books.google.com/?id=Xh8eKgAACAAJ&dq=Lichello.
- ^ Chris Trueman. "Heinz Guderian". http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/heinz_guderian.htm. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
- ^ Chris Shimp (March 1, 2001). "General Heinz Guderian: The Father of Blitzkrieg". http://history.sandiego.edu/GEN/st/~cshimp/guderian.htm. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
- ^ "'Father of H-Bomb' Agrees to Rally Scientific Talent." The New York Times, December 31, 1965, p.19. Story opens: "Albany, December 30—Governor Rockefeller will make an intensified attack on air pollution with the help of Dr. Edward Teller, the 'father of the hydrogen bomb.'"
- ^ Jeffries, John (2001). Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr. Fordham Univ Press. ISBN 0-8232-2110-5. , p.162: "'Admiral Rickover', said Powell, '"father of the atomic submarine", is a great naval officer... It is not equally clear that he is a careful and thorough student of American education.'"
- ^ "Submarine Range Called Unlimited; Rickover Says Atomic Craft Can Cruise Under Ice To North Pole and Beyond," The New York Times, December 6, 1957, p.33: "The admiral, who is often called the 'Father of the Atomic Submarine'..."
- ^ Galantin, I. J. (1997). Submarine Admiral: From Battlewagons to Ballistic Missiles. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 0-252-06675-8. , p. 217: "Chet Holifield... member of the JCAE... said 'Of all the men I dealt with in public service, at least one will go down in history: Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, the father of the nuclear Navy.'"
- ^ Warner, Oliver (1973). Great Battle Fleets. Hamlyn. p. 98. ISBN 0-600-33913-0 ISBN 978-0-600-33913-7.
- ^ Lanning, Col. Michael Lee (October 29, 2002). Blood Warriors: American Military Elites. New York: Ballantine. pp. 368. ISBN 978-0-345-44891-0.
- ^ Warner, Oliver (1973). Great Battle Fleets. Hamlyn. p. 96. ISBN 0-600-33913-0 ISBN 978-0-600-33913-7.
- ^ http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWboelcke.htm
- ^ "Andrei Sakharov: Soviet Physics, Nuclear Weapons, and Human Rights". Center for the History of Physics. American Institute of Physics. http://www.aip.org/history/sakharov/. Retrieved 2007-03-03.
- ^ "General William C. Lee: Father of the Airborne". Archived from the original on 2008-06-12. http://web.archive.org/web/20080612100930/http://www.screamingeagle.org/WilliamLeeChapter/williamclee.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
- ^ Yale Richmond (1995). From Da to Yes: understanding the East Europeans. Intercultural Press. p. 72. ISBN 1-877864-30-7, ISBN 978-1-877864-30-8. http://books.google.com/?id=2Y8GNIp42ysC&printsec=frontcover.
- ^ John Barry Kelly. "Commodore Barry". http://www.ushistory.org/people/commodorebarry.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-16.
- ^ Hoover Library, "Revolutionary America! Where Did We Go From There? The Continental Navy -- John Paul Jones"
- ^ http://www.collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=88004
- ^ http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/hofbiopage.asp?id=163
- ^ http://www.wheels.ca/newsFeatures/article/485678
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=cosmos
- ^ New International Encyclopedia. New York City: Dodd, Mead and Company. 1914. pp. Fathers.
- ^ "32". International Federation of Football History & Statistics. http://www.iffhs.de/?29dad5a85ad4a91b972b9815e85fdcdc3bfcdc0aec28d6eda0a70c. Retrieved November 9, 2011. "Arnoldo Pencliffe Watson Hutton (20.8.1886-29.7.1951), popularly known as "El Fantástico", was the son of Scotsman Alexander (Alejandro) Watson Hutton, who was a football pioneer and is considered the father of Argentine football."
- ^ "Pro Shop & Clubhouse". Algodon Wine Estates. InvestProperty Group, LLC. http://www.algodonwineestates.com/en_US/tourism/golf/proshop/_view/lang=en_US. Retrieved November 9, 2011. "Only at our pro shop can you find unique AWE merchandise, as well as memorabilia of the legends who inspire us; José Jurado, "The Father of Argentine Professional Golf", and José Luis Clerc ("Batata"), one of the most important Argentine tennis players in history."
- ^ Mirodan, Seamus (February 14, 2004). "Nazis' Argentine village hide-out pulls in tourists". The Sunday Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/argentina/1454352/Nazis-Argentine-village-hide-out-pulls-in-tourists.html. Retrieved November 9, 2011. "Across the road from Priebke's delicatessen is the Club Andino Bariloche, a mountaineering association set up in 1931 by Otto Meiling, the father of Argentine winter sports and a former member of the Hitler Youth."
- ^ http://www.sportsbooks.net/soccer/history.html
- ^ "Henry Chadwick, Chad, The Father of Base Ball [sic]"; National Baseball Hall of Fame bio,[1]. Not a player, but a journalist and organizer, the Hall of Fame credits him as "inventor of the box score" and "author of the first rule-book."
- ^
- 'Spalding's Baseball Guide and Official League Book for 1889, ed. Henry Chadwick at Project Gutenberg: "Henry Chadwick, the veteran journalist, upon whom the honored sobriquet of 'Father of Base Ball[sic]' rests so happily and well, appears in portraiture, and so well preserved in his physical manhood that his sixty-three years rest lightly upon his well timed life."
- ^ "Matty" at Harvard; The New York Times, February 16, 1909, p. 7: "Charles H. Ebbets, Chairman of the Chadwick Monument Committee, has announced that the contract has been awarded for a suitable monument to be placed on the plot in Greenwood[sic] Cemetery where the remains of the late Henry Chadwick, 'the Father of Baseball,' repose."
- ^ Collins, Glen (2004): "Ground as Hallowed as Cooperstown," The New York Times, April 1, 2004. (Article on baseball notables interred in the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn) "Among the nearly 600,000 people buried there are no less than four pioneers who were accorded the title 'Father of Baseball' in the popular press: Henry Chadwick, Duncan Curry, William Tucker and William Wheaton....The memorial for Henry Chadwick bears a 'Father of Base Ball' inscription.... [Duncan] Curry, first president of the Knickerbocker Baseball Club, is immortalized with a monument that proudly dubs him 'Father of Baseball' because he headed the club that scholars say first codified many of the game's rules...."
- ^ http://citracycling.multiply.com/journal/item/27
- ^ Hamilton, Aidan (1998). An Entirely Different Game, The British Influence on Brazilian Football. Mainstream Publishing. ISBN 1-84018-041-2.
- ^ Goudinoff, Connie (1992). Mazda Motorsports: 20 Victorious Years in America. Motorbooks International. p. 96. ISBN 0-87938-582-0.
- ^ Hicken, J.O. Ed. "Raymond Roundup 1902–1967". Lethbridge, Alberta Canada: The Lethbridge Herald Company, Ltd., 1967. pp. 243, 519.
- ^ http://www.mshf.com/hof/parks_wally.htm
- ^ http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091003/A_SPORTS/910030344#STS=g0jw5l2c.1e6j
- ^ http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=30337&FS=NHRA
- ^ http://ezinearticles.com/?The-History-of-Drifting&id=875478
- ^ http://boarding.com/skate/video/totalvid/2/7.html
- ^ http://www.skaterlegends.com/skaters/bruce_walker.htm
- ^ http://www.hull.co.uk/websitefiles/Did%20You%20Know.pdf
- ^ http://www.pinkbike.com/news/article1273.html
- ^ http://www.23mag.com/com/haro/haro.htm
- ^ http://www.freestyle-motocross.co.uk/top3-freestyle-motocross-riders
- ^ http://www.mopar.com/life/legends/dicklandy.html
- ^ "Frank Choi, the father of import drag racing, has done it again..." http://turbohightechperformance.automotive.com/65970/turp-0311-battle-in-virginia-drag-race/index.html
- ^ "English Players in Italy". RSSSF.com. http://www.rsssf.com/players/eng-players-in-it.html. Retrieved August 2007.
- ^ http://www.target.com/William-Garbutt-Father-Italian-Football/dp/1899807829
- ^ http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/16820/the_social_impact_of_japanese_baseball_pg2_pg2.html?cat=9
- ^ Klein, Christopher (2006-10-01). "A passion for the Sox in Kyoto's Fenway Park". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/travel/articles/2006/10/01/a_passion_for_the_sox_in_kyotos_fenway_park/?page=2.
- ^ "Fathers (and mothers) of invention: ultimate victims of their own success". The Independent (London). 2004-02-12. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/fathers-and-mothers-of-invention-ultimate-victims-of-their-own-success-569681.html. Retrieved 2010-05-08.
- ^ http://www.vintagekarts.com/ingels.htm - vintagekarts.com
- ^ STX Lacrosse
- ^ HickokSports.com - History - Lacrosse
- ^ Lacrosse History. Historical Facts About Lacrosse
- ^ http://www.schoolnet.ca/aboriginal/handbook/arts_lacrosse.html
- ^ Wickert, Marc. 2004. Dana White and the future of UFC. kucklepit.com. See Wikiquotes for the text.
- ^ http://www.musclepowershop.com/2009/04/eugene-sandow-father-of-bodybuilding.html
- ^ http://gov.ca.gov/press-release/2761/
- ^ http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=4864&more=1
- ^ Roy Blakey's Icestage Archive, accessed December 15, 2011.
- ^ http://www.worldsoccer.com/blogs/the-football-professor-a-profile-of-dettmar-cramer
- ^ a b Elgin, Fran, et al. Editors. "Mohahve VI, A Collection of Histories", Hesperia, California, USA: Mohahve Historical Society, 2011. pp.77.
- ^ Santelli bio including several references backing up the statement, including a quote from Dr. William Gaugler December 1997: "I am, in fact, only two generations removed from the 'father of modern sabre' [referring to Santelli]".
- ^ http://www.surfingmuseum.org/collection/duke/duke.html
- ^ http://www.basicbloganomics.com/2009/03/first-fa-cup-final-on-march-16-1872.html
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WWEplaque_700.jpg
- ^ Diving Almanac article.
- ^ http://www.kontinent.se/slideshow.php?story=70
- ^ http://www.danshamptons.com/content/hamptonstyle/2008/july_11/11.html
- ^ http://www.nestle.bg/news.details.asp?lang=1&nid=48&page=1
- ^ "The Hall dinner and ceremony that also would include induction of William H.G. France, the father of stock car racing" http://books.simonandschuster.com/Wildest-Ride/Joe-Menzer/9780743226257/excerpt_with_id/14145
- ^ http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1842&dat=19920609&id=KFAeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=YscEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1892,1191270
- ^ http://www.drivingtoday.com/wcco/features/archive/thompson/index.html
- ^ Dolch, Craig (March 4, 2011). "Chirkinian's impact on televised golf can't be overstated". PGATOUR.com. http://www.pgatour.com/2011/r/03/04/dolch-column-chirkinian/index.html. Retrieved July 15, 2011. "Bringing sounds to golf is just part of the reason why Chirkinian — who is considered "the father of televised golf" — was elected February 9 into the World Golf Hall of Fame on an emergency vote."
- ^ Goldstein, Richard (March 5, 2011). "Frank Chirkinian, the Father of Televised Golf, Dies at 84". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/sports/golf/06chirkinian.html. Retrieved July 15, 2011. "Frank is universally regarded as the father of golf television,” Jim Nantz, CBS’s longtime lead golf announcer, told the PGA Tour Web site this year. “He invented it. He took a sport that no one knew how to televise and made it interesting. He brought the Masters tournament to life."
- ^ "Sir George Carley (British Inventor and Scientist)". Britannica. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/100795/Sir-George-Cayley-6th-Baronet. Retrieved 2009-07-26. "English pioneer of aerial navigation and aeronautical engineering and designer of the first successful glider to carry a human being aloft."
- ^ "The Pioneers: Aviation and Airmodelling". http://www.ctie.monash.edu.au/hargrave/cayley.html. Retrieved 2009-07-26. "Sir George Cayley, is sometimes called the 'Father of Aviation'. A pioneer in his field, he is credited with the first major breakthrough in heavier-than-air flight. He was the first to identify the four aerodynamic forces of flight—weight, lift, drag, and thrust—and their relationship and also the first to build a successful human carrying glider."
- ^ Albert Gallatin Mackey, The Builder Magazine, December 1922, Volume VIII, Number 12, Part XVI.
- ^ Tsiolkovskiy
- ^ Goddard
- ^ Oberth
- ^ Woods, Thomas. How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization, p 36. (Washington, DC: Regenery, 2005); ISBN 0-89526-038-7.
- ^ a b . http://www.watchtime.com/2010/03/the-man-behind-the-brand-george-graham/.
- ^ Twyman, Richard (22 September 2004). "A brief history of clinical trials". The Human Genome. Wellcome Trust. http://genome.wellcome.ac.uk/doc_WTD020948.html. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ Lee, J.A.N. (1995). International Biographical Dictionary of Computer Pioneers. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn. ISBN 1-884964-47-8.
- ^ Belzer, Belzer (1977). Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology: Volume 7 - Curve Fitting to Early Development.... Marcel Dekker. ISBN 0-262-73009-X. , p. 55: "It is probably not an accident that the 'father of cybernetics,' Norbert Wiener, ..."
- ^ Wiener, Norbert (1965) [1948]. Cybernetics, Second Edition: or the Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine. MIT Press. ISBN 0-8247-2257-4. (Wiener is credited with coining the term in its common modern usage)
- ^ Bowler, Peter J. (2003). Evolution: the history of an idea. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-23693-9.
- ^ http://www.springerlink.com/content/p68g683357756307/fulltext.pdf?page=1 Life and career of Ferdinand Freudenstein
- ^ Barger, M. Susan; William B. White (2000). The Daguerreotype: Nineteenth-Century Technology and Modern Science. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-6458-5. p. 20, "Louis Jacques Monde Daguerre: The second father of photography is Daguerre..."
- ^ Barger, M. Susan; William B. White (2000). The Daguerreotype: Nineteenth-Century Technology and Modern Science. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-6458-5. p. 17, "The first father of photography was Nicéphore Niépce...."
- ^ Ellis, Roger (2001). Who's Who in Victorian Britain. Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-8117-1640-6. , p. 116: cites book title: "A. H. Booth: William Henry Fox Talbot: father of photography, 1965".
- ^ Booth, Martin (1999). Opium: A History. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-20667-4. p. 30 "Robert Hall, the divine, was addicted [to opium], as was Thomas Wedgwood, the father of photography."
- ^ The Father of Cool - Willis Haviland Carrier and Air Conditioning
- ^ http://www.thetimetv.com/news-brawn-announces-new-team-partnership-with-graham-london-859-133
- ^ Untitled Document
- ^ Konrad Zuse's versus John von Neumann's Computer Concepts
- ^ Gray, Paul (1999-03-29). "Alan Turing - Time 100 People of the Century". Time. http://www.time.com/time/time100/scientist/profile/turing.html. Retrieved 2009-06-13. "The fact remains that everyone who taps at a keyboard, opening a spreadsheet or a word-processing program, is working on an incarnation of a Turing machine"
- ^ 'Father of the computer' honoured - BBC News, Monday, 7 June 2004
- ^ The Modern History of Computing - Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- ^ Bruner, Jeffrey. "Atanasoff, father of the computer, dies at 91". Rebuilding the ABC. Ames Laboratory. http://www.scl.ameslab.gov/ABC/Articles/Register6-95.html. Retrieved 2006-07-28.
- ^ "Inventor Profile: John Mauchly". Invent Now - Hall of Fame. North Canton, OH, USA: National Inventors Hall of Fame. March 29, 2004. http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/182.html. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
- ^ "Inventor Profile: J. Presper Eckert". Invent Now - Hall of Fame. North Canton, OH, USA: National Inventors Hall of Fame. March 29, 2004. http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/181.html. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
- ^ Ada Lovelace
- ^ Igor Sikorsky is considered to be the "father" of helicopters not because he invented the first. He is called that because he invented the first successful helicopter, upon which further designs were based, an article from inventors.About.com by Mary Bellis
- ^ Making Televised Emergency Information Accessible from the Gallaudet University website
- ^ Although it's a title he objects to (see Interview with Vinton Cerf, from a January 2006 article in Government Computer News), Cerf is willing to call himself one of the Internet's fathers, citing Bob Kahn in particularly as being someone with whom he should share that title.
- ^ Kahn do, No (2007). " Father of internet warns against Net Neutrality", The Register, Thursday 18 January
- ^ Louis Pouzin
- ^ "Fascinating facts about the invention of the Internet by Vinton Cerf in 1973". The Great Idea Finder. http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/internet.htm.
- ^ http://www.wakin-web.com/Wakin/NewsVault/InstantNoodles.html
- ^ "Kenjiro Takayanagi: The Father of Japanese Television". NHK Science & Technical Research Laboratories. http://www.nhk.or.jp/strl/aboutstrl/evolution-of-tv-en/p05/. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
- ^ "Kenjiro Takayanagi, Electrical Engineer, 91 (obituary)". New York Times. 1990-07-25. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE6D61231F936A15754C0A966958260. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
- ^ "Sculpture to jet engine inventor". BBC News. 2005-10-20. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/coventry_warwickshire/4362374.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-08.
- ^ Aircraft Engine
- ^ http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-234142.html
- ^ . http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/clocks-n-watches/watch/watches/harrison/index.htm.
- ^ http://www.rpi.edu/about/hof/hoff.html
- ^ "Kosaku Inagaki’s Home Page". Kyoto University. http://inagaki.ist.i.kyoto-u.ac.jp. Retrieved 2010-04-01.
- ^ "Meet the man who invented the mobile phone". BBC News. 2010-04-23. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/8639590.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-08.
- ^ The Technology Trailblazer: Vinod Dham. University of Cincinnati.
- ^ Priya Ganapati at Techfest 99, IIT Bombay. Rediff.com.
- ^ p. 54, "Intel Turns 35: Now What?", David L. Margulius, InfoWorld, July 21, 2003, ISSN 0199-6649.
- ^ p. 21, "Architecture of the Pentium microprocessor", D. Alpert and D. Avnon, IEEE Micro, 13, #3 (June 1993), pp. 11–21, doi:10.1109/40.216745.
- ^ p. 90, "Inside Intel", Business Week, #3268, June 1, 1992.
- ^ Commodore History: Chuck Peddle
- ^ "Microsoft founders lead tributes to 'father of the PC'". BBC News. April 2, 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8600493.stm. Retrieved April 2, 2010.
- ^ A Talk with the Father of Computing, Wired Magazine
- ^ The "The First Electronic Church of America" website poses the question: "Russia's Popov: Did he 'invent' radio?" According to this account, Alexander Popov is the "radio man." Among other things, it notes that Popov reported sending and receiving a wireless signal across a 600 yards distance in 1895. Two years later, it says, he set up a shore station at Kronstadt and equipped the Russian navy cruiser Africa with his wireless communications apparatus to provide ship-to-shore communication., an article by Stan Horzepa wondering who is the father of the radio
- ^ De Forest, Lee (1950). Father of Radio: The Autobiography of Lee de Forest. Chicago: Wilcox & Follett. (This book sold fewer than a thousand copies and is accordingly rare and expensive today).
- ^ Dennis, Everette E..; Edward Pease (1994). Radio—The Forgotten Medium. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 1-56593-873-9. , p. 198: "the egotistical Lee De Forest who discovered, however unwittingly, the audion tube that allowed him to proclaim himself 'the father of radio'"
- ^ Shurkin, Joseph (1996). Engines of the Mind: The Evolution of the Computer from the Mainframes to Microprocessors. W. W. Norton and Company. ISBN 0-393-31471-5. , p. 132: "De Forest, who was not a modest man, called himself the 'Father of Radio,' an epithet whose accuracy is debatable."
- ^ Guglielmo Marconi - the "father of radio"
- ^ A. K. Sen (1997). "Sir J.C. Bose and radio science", Microwave Symposium Digest 2 (8-13), pp. 557-560.
- ^ Ask the average person "Who invented radio?" and the average answer will be "Marconi." Ask the same question on the Internet, and the average answer will not likely be "Marconi." Instead, try one of the following on for size: Nikola Tesla, Alexander Popov, Oliver Lodge, Reginald Fessenden, Heinrich Hertz, Mahlon Loomis, Nathan Stubblefield, James Clerk Maxwell and even Thomas Edison, among others, an article by Stan Horzepa wondering who is the father of the radio
- ^ McLuhan, Marshall; Barrington Nevitt (1972). Take Today; the Executive as Dropout. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. ISBN 0-15-187830-7. "Fessenden, the Forgotten Father of 'Wireless' Telephony" (section heading)[2]
- ^ Zuill, William S. (2001): The Forgotten Father of Radio", American Heritage of Science and Technology, 17(1)40–47, as cited in Silverman, Steve (2003). Lindbergh's Artificial Heart: More Fascinating True Stories From Einstein's Refrigerator. Andrews McMeel Publishing. ISBN 0-7407-3340-0. p. 160
- ^ [3] from the Eweek website
- ^ [4] History of the Internet
- ^ [5] History of the Search Engine - What Came Before Google?
- ^ XML for Newcomers and Managers - Part I
- ^ Van Meggelen, Jim; Jared Smith, Leif Madsen (2005). Asterisk: The Future of Telephony. O'Reilly. ISBN 0-596-00962-3. , p.190: "Although Alexander Graham Bell is most famously remembered as the father of the telephone, the reality is that during the latter half of the 1800s dozens of minds were at work on the project of carrying voice over telegraph lines."
- ^ http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/F/htmlF/farnsworthp/farnsworthp.htm
. Society of Television Engineers. URL accessed January 20, 2008. "Isn't it about time that Philo Farnsworth gets some credit??? - ^ "Zworykin at IEEE Global History Network". http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index.php/Vladimir_Zworykin. Retrieved 2008-03-03. ""the oft-called Father of Television Vladimir Zworykin""
- ^ "Zworykin at Museum.TV". http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/Z/htmlZ/zworykinvla/zworykinvla.htm. Retrieved 2008-03-03. ""inventor Vladimir Zworykin is often described as "the father of television". ""
- ^ "John Logie Baird: TV Inventor". http://www.sydenham.org.uk/john_logie_baird.html. Retrieved 2009-07-26. "John Logie Baird invented Television in 1926. His initial TV system was electro-mechanical. He (later) embraced electronic TV and developed the world's first color television system."
- ^ "The World's First High Definition Color Television System". http://www.bairdtelevision.com/colour.html. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ^ Weingardt, Richard (2005). Engineering Legends. ASCE Publications. p. 75. ISBN 0-7844-0801-7.
- ^ Three loud cheers for the father of the web, 28 January 2005, Telegraph.co.uk
- ^ Cooper, Alan, Why I am called "the Father of Visual Basic" "Mitchell Waite called me the "father of Visual Basic" in the foreword to what I believe was the first book ever published for VB, called the Visual Basic How-To (now in its second edition, published by The Waite Group Press). I thought the appellation was an appropriate one, and frequently use the quoted phrase as my one-line biography."
- ^ XML.com: "XML Father" leaves W3C for OASIS
- ^ BC Archives: Sir James Douglas
- ^ http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_429594.html
- ^ http://trendsupdates.com/henry-ford-father-of-20th-century-american-industry/
- ^ Federal Highway Administration [6]. URL accessed July 21, 2006.
- ^ http://www.vwtrendsweb.com/features/0106vwt_people/index.html
- ^ http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2008/02/01/hmn_feature17.html
- ^ http://www.versusmotorsport.com/about_us.php
- ^ http://www.hotrod.com/eventcoverage/kustom_kulture_tribute/index.html
- ^ http://mthof.angelfire.com/CLASS2008.html
- ^ http://www.bvv.cz/i2000/Akce/b-slife.nsf/WWWAllPDocsID/BEXP-7L6PQ9?OpenDocument&LANG=GB&NAV=1&ID=0
- ^ http://irishcar.com/wankelge.htm
- ^ http://www.rotorhead.ca/articles/2002/12/22/felix-wankel-bio/
- ^ Steil, Tim (2000). Route 66. MBI Publishing Company. p. 18. ISBN 0-7603-0747-4. "Avery, though dubbed the 'Father of Route 66' by some, was a political appointee who also left office the next year."
- ^ http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=X91l3wqJnikC&pg=PA179&lpg=PA179&dq=%22father+of+the+tail+fin%22&source=bl&ots=0R7qHrSvev&sig=NllowJaW5UQa_SJB7MZgZOoVbWA&hl=en&ei=xTYaTZ2WKIa4hAeOj_W3Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22father%20of%20the%20tail%20fin%22&f=false
- ^ McCosh, Dan (2003-03-07). "DRIVING; Most Cars Are Born As Models of Clay". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/07/travel/driving-most-cars-are-born-as-models-of-clay.html?src=pm.
- ^ http://www.retrofuture.com/index.php/2009/01/24/harley-earls-dream-car-the-firebird-iii/
- ^ Eno Transportation Foundation [7]. URL accessed August 23, 2006.
- ^ Watson, Rollin J. (2002). The School As a Safe Haven. Bergen Garvey/Greenwood. p. 30. ISBN 0-89789-900-8. http://books.google.com/?id=uNbd6oIXm0MC&pg=PA30&lpg=PA30. "The modern school bus began in a conference in 1939 called by Frank W. Cyr, the 'Father of the Yellow School' bus, who was a professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. At that meeting, Cyr urged the standardization of the school bus. Participants came up with the standard yellow color and some basic construction standards. Cyr had... found that children were riding in all sorts of vehicles—one district, he found, was painting their buses red, white, and blue to instill patriotism."
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This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
| Aldous Huxley | |
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| Born | Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894-07-26)26 July 1894 Godalming, Surrey, England |
| Died | 22 November 1963(1963-11-22) (aged 69) Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Resting place | Compton, Surrey, England |
| Occupation | Writer (fiction & non-fiction) |
| Notable work(s) | Brave New World, Island, Point Counter Point, The Doors of Perception, The Perennial Philosophy |
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Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel writing, film stories and scripts. Huxley spent the later part of his life in the United States, living in Los Angeles from 1937 until his death.
Aldous Huxley was a humanist, pacifist, and satirist, and he was latterly interested in spiritual subjects such as parapsychology and philosophical mysticism.[1][2] He is also well known for advocating and taking psychedelics.
By the end of his life Huxley was widely recognized to be one of the pre-eminent intellectuals of his time and respected as an important researcher into visual communication and sight-related theories as well.[3]
Contents |
Early life[link]
See also: Huxley family
Aldous Huxley was born in Godalming, Surrey, UK, in 1894. He was the third son of the writer and schoolmaster Leonard Huxley and his first wife, Julia Arnold, who founded Prior's Field School. Julia was the niece of poet and critic Matthew Arnold and the sister of Mrs. Humphrey Ward. Aldous was the grandson of Thomas Henry Huxley, the zoologist, agnostic and controversialist ("Darwin's Bulldog"). His brother Julian Huxley and half-brother Andrew Huxley also became outstanding biologists. Aldous had another brother, Noel Trevelyan (1891–1914), who committed suicide after a period of clinical depression.[4]
Huxley began his learning in his father's well-equipped botanical laboratory, then continued in a school named Hillside. His teacher was his mother, who supervised him for several years until she became terminally ill. After Hillside, he was educated at Eton College. Huxley's mother died in 1908 when he was 14. In 1911, he suffered an illness (keratitis punctata) which "left [him] practically blind for two to three years".[5] Aldous' near-blindness disqualified him from service in the First World War. Once his eyesight recovered sufficiently, he was able to study English literature at Balliol College, Oxford. In 1916 he edited Oxford Poetry and later graduated (B.A.) with first class honours. His brother Julian wrote,
I believe his blindness was a blessing in disguise. For one thing, it put paid to his idea of taking up medicine as a career ... His uniqueness lay in his universalism. He was able to take all knowledge for his province.[6]
Following his education at Balliol, Huxley was financially indebted to his father and had to earn a living. He taught French for a year at Eton, where Eric Blair (later to become George Orwell) and Stephen Runciman were among his pupils, but was remembered as an incompetent and hopeless teacher who couldn’t keep discipline. Nevertheless, Blair and others were impressed by his use of words.[7] For a short while in 1918, he was employed acquiring provisions at the Air Ministry.
Significantly, Huxley also worked for a time in the 1920s at the technologically advanced Brunner and Mond chemical plant in Billingham, Teesside, and the most recent introduction to his famous science fiction novel Brave New World (1932) states that this experience of "an ordered universe in a world of planless incoherence" was one source for the novel.[8]
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Career[link]
Huxley completed his first (unpublished) novel at the age of 17 and began writing seriously in his early 20s. His first published novels were social satires, beginning with Crome Yellow (1921).
Bloomsbury set[link]
During the First World War, Huxley spent much of his time at Garsington Manor, home of Lady Ottoline Morrell, working as a farm labourer. Here he met several Bloomsbury figures including Bertrand Russell and Clive Bell. Later, in Crome Yellow (1921) he caricatured the Garsington lifestyle. In 1919 he married Maria Nys, a Belgian woman he met at Garsington; they had one son. The family lived in Italy part of the time in the 1920s, where Huxley would visit his friend D. H. Lawrence. Following Lawrence's death in 1930, Huxley edited Lawrence's letters (1933).
Works of this period included important novels on the dehumanising aspects of scientific progress, most famously Brave New World, and on pacifist themes (for example, Eyeless in Gaza). In Brave New World Huxley portrays a society operating on the principles of mass production and Pavlovian conditioning. Huxley was strongly influenced by F. Matthias Alexander and included him as a character in Eyeless in Gaza.
Starting from this period, Huxley began to write and edit non-fiction works on pacifist issues, including Ends and Means, An Encyclopedia of Pacifism, and Pacifism and Philosophy, and was an active member of the Peace Pledge Union.[9]
The U.S.[link]
In 1937, Huxley moved to Hollywood, with his wife Maria, son Matthew, and friend Gerald Heard. He lived in the U.S., mainly in southern California, until his death, but also for a time in Taos, New Mexico, where he wrote Ends and Means (published in 1937). In this work he examines the fact that although most people in modern civilisation agree that they want a world of "liberty, peace, justice, and brotherly love", they have not been able to agree on how to achieve it.
Heard introduced Huxley to Vedanta (Upanishad-centered philosophy), meditation, and vegetarianism through the principle of ahimsa. In 1938 Huxley befriended J. Krishnamurti, whose teachings he greatly admired. He also became a Vedantist in the circle of Hindu Swami Prabhavananda, and introduced Christopher Isherwood to this circle. Not long after, Huxley wrote his book on widely held spiritual values and ideas, The Perennial Philosophy, which discussed the teachings of renowned mystics of the world. Huxley's book affirmed a sensibility that insists there are realities beyond the generally accepted "five senses" and that there is genuine meaning for humans beyond both sensual satisfactions and sentimentalities.
Huxley became a close friend of Remsen Bird, president of Occidental College. He spent much time at the college, which is in the Eagle Rock neighbourhood of Los Angeles. The college appears as "Tarzana College" in his satirical novel After Many a Summer (1939). The novel won Huxley that year's James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction.[10] Huxley also incorporated Bird into the novel.
During this period Huxley earned some Hollywood income as a writer. In March 1938, his friend Anita Loos, a novelist and screenwriter, put him in touch with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer who hired Huxley for Madame Curie which was originally to star Greta Garbo and be directed by George Cukor. (The film was eventually completed by MGM in 1943 with a different director and cast.) Huxley received screen credit for Pride and Prejudice (1940) and was paid for his work on a number of other films, including Jane Eyre (1944).
However, his experience in Hollywood was not a success. When he wrote a synopsis of Alice in Wonderland, Walt Disney rejected it on the grounds that "he could only understand every third word".[11] Huxley's leisurely development of ideas, it seemed, was not suitable for the movie moguls, who demanded fast, dynamic dialogue above all else. For Dick Huemer, during the 1940s, Huxley went to the first of a five meetings' session to elaborate the script of Alice in Wonderland but never came again.[12] For author John Grant, although the movie's character the Caterpillar displays some characteristics familiar from Huxley's discussion of his experiments with hallucinogens, Huxley's contribution to the movie is nonexistent.[13]
On 21 October 1949, Huxley wrote to George Orwell, author of Nineteen Eighty-Four, congratulating him on "how fine and how profoundly important the book is". In his letter to Orwell, he predicted:
Within the next generation I believe that the world's leaders will discover that infant conditioning and narco-hypnosis are more efficient, as instruments of government, than clubs and prisons, and that the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience.[14]
Post World War II[link]
After the Second World War, Huxley applied for United States citizenship. His application was continuously deferred on the grounds that he would not say he would take up arms to defend the U.S. He claimed a philosophical, rather than a religious objection, and therefore was not exempt under the McCarran Act.[15] He withdrew his application. Nevertheless, he remained in the country; and in 1959 he turned down an offer of a Knight Bachelor by the Macmillan government. During the 1950s Huxley's interest in the field of psychical research grew keener, and his later works are strongly influenced by both mysticism and his experiences with psychedelic drugs.
In October 1930, the English occultist Aleister Crowley dined with Huxley in Berlin, and to this day rumours persist that Crowley introduced Huxley to peyote on that occasion.[citation needed] He was introduced to mescaline (the key active ingredient of peyote) by the psychiatrist Humphry Osmond in 1953.[16] Through Dr. Osmond, Huxley met millionaire Alfred Matthew Hubbard who would deal with LSD on a wholesale basis.[17] On 24 December 1955, Huxley took his first dose of LSD. Indeed, Huxley was a pioneer of self-directed psychedelic drug use "in a search for enlightenment", famously taking 100 micrograms of LSD as he lay dying. His psychedelic drug experiences are described in the essays The Doors of Perception (the title deriving from some lines in the book The Marriage of Heaven and Hell by William Blake), and Heaven and Hell. Some of his writings on psychedelics became frequent reading among early hippies.[18] While living in Los Angeles, Huxley was a friend of Ray Bradbury. According to Sam Weller's biography of Bradbury, the latter was dissatisfied with Huxley, especially after Huxley encouraged Bradbury to take psychedelic drugs.
Association with Vedanta[link]
Beginning in 1939 and continuing until his death in 1963, Huxley had an extensive association with the Vedanta Society of Southern California, founded and headed by Swami Prabhavananda. Together with Gerald Heard, Christopher Isherwood, and other followers he was initiated by the Swami and was taught meditation and spiritual practices.
In 1944 Huxley wrote the introduction to the "Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God",[19] translated by Swami Prabhavanada and Christopher Isherwood, which was published by The Vedanta Society of Southern California.
From 1941 through 1960 Huxley contributed 48 articles to Vedanta and the West, published by the Society. He also served on the editorial board with Isherwood, Heard, and playwright John van Druten from 1951 through 1962.
Huxley also occasionally lectured at the Hollywood and Santa Barbara Vedanta temples. Two of those lectures have been released on CD: Knowledge and Understanding and Who Are We from 1955.
After the publication of The Doors of Perception, Huxley and the Swami disagreed about the meaning and importance of the LSD drug experience, which may have caused the relationship to cool, but Huxley continued to write articles for the Society's journal, lecture at the temple, and attend social functions.
Eyesight[link]
With respect to details about the true quality of Huxley's eyesight at specific points in his life, there are differing accounts. Around 1939, Huxley encountered the Bates Method for better eyesight, and a teacher, Margaret Corbett, who was able to teach him in the method. In 1940, Huxley relocated from Hollywood to a 40-acre (160,000 m2) ranchito in the high desert hamlet of Llano, California, in northernmost Los Angeles County. Huxley then said that his sight improved dramatically with the Bates Method and the extreme and pure natural lighting of the southwestern American desert. He reported that for the first time in over 25 years, he was able to read without glasses and without strain. He even tried driving a car along the dirt road beside the ranch. He wrote a book about his successes with the Bates Method, The Art of Seeing, which was published in 1942 (US), 1943 (UK). It was from this period, with the publication of the generally disputed theories contained in the latter book, that a growing degree of popular controversy arose over the subject of Huxley’s eyesight.
It was, and to a noticeable extent still is, widely held that, for most of his life, since the illness in his teens which left Huxley nearly blind, that his eyesight was exceedingly poor (despite the partial recovery which had enabled him to study at Oxford). For instance, some ten years after publication of The Art of Seeing, in 1952, Bennett Cerf was present when Huxley spoke at a Hollywood banquet, wearing no glasses and apparently reading his paper from the lectern without difficulty: "Then suddenly he faltered—and the disturbing truth became obvious. He wasn't reading his address at all. He had learned it by heart. To refresh his memory he brought the paper closer and closer to his eyes. When it was only an inch or so away he still couldn't read it, and had to fish for a magnifying glass in his pocket to make the typing visible to him. It was an agonising moment."[20]
On the other hand, Huxley's second wife, Laura Archera Huxley, would later emphasise in her biographical account, This Timeless Moment: "One of the great achievements of his life: that of having regained his sight." Here, she portrays the accomplishment as both metaphorical and considerably physiological in nature, attributing that which she cites J. Krishnamurti as naming the spirit of "freedom from the known", which she suggests that Huxley applied, non-exhaustively, in writing The Art of Seeing and utilising the Bates Method. After revealing a letter she wrote to the Los Angeles Times disclaiming the label of Huxley as a "poor fellow who can hardly see" by Walter C. Alvarez, she tempers this: "Although I feel it was an injustice to treat Aldous as though he were blind, it is true there were many indications of his impaired vision. For instance, although Aldous did not wear glasses, he would quite often use a magnifying lens."[21] Laura Huxley proceeds to elaborate a few nuances of inconsistency peculiar to Huxley's vision. Her account, in this respect, is discernibly congruent with the following sample of Huxley's own words from The Art of Seeing. "The most characteristic fact about the functioning of the total organism, or any part of the organism, is that it is not constant, but highly variable." Nevertheless, the topic of Huxley’s eyesight continues to endure similar, significant controversy, regardless of how trivial a subject matter it might initially appear.[22]
Personal life[link]
He married Maria Nys (10 September 1899 – 12 February 1955), a Belgian he met at Garsington, in 1919. They had one child, Matthew Huxley (19 April 1920 – 10 February 2005), who had a career as an author, anthropologist, and prominent epidemiologist.[23] In 1955, Maria died of breast cancer.
In 1956 he married Laura Archera (1911–2007), also an author. She wrote This Timeless Moment, a biography of Huxley. In 1960 Huxley himself was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer, and in the years that followed, with his health deteriorating, he wrote the Utopian novel Island,[24] and gave lectures on "Human Potentialities" at the Esalen Institute, which were fundamental to the forming of the Human Potential Movement.
Death[link]
On his deathbed, unable to speak, Huxley made a written request to his wife Laura for "LSD, 100 µg, intramuscular". According to her account of his death[25] in This Timeless Moment, she obliged with an injection at 11:45 am & a few hours later; he died aged 69, at 5:20 pm on 22 November 1963, several hours after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Huxley's ashes were interred in the family grave at the Watts Cemetery, home of the Watts Mortuary Chapel in Compton, a village near Guildford, Surrey, England.[26]
Media coverage of Huxley's passing was overshadowed by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, on the same day, as was the death of the British author C. S. Lewis, who also died on 22 November. This coincidence was the inspiration for Peter Kreeft's book Between Heaven and Hell: A Dialog Somewhere Beyond Death with John F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis, & Aldous Huxley. Huxley's literary legacy continues to be represented by the literary agency headed by Georges Borchardt.
Awards[link]
- 1939 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for After Many a Summer Dies the Swan.
- 1959 Aldous Huxley American Academy of Arts and Letters Award of Merit for Brave New World.
- 1962 the Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature.[27]
Film adaptations of Huxley's work[link]
- 1968 Point Counter Point BBC mini-series by Simon Raven.
- 1971 The Devils (Ken Russell) adapted Huxley's The Devils of Loudun.
- 1998 US TV adaptation of Brave New World
Selected works[link]
Novels[link]
- Crome Yellow (1921)
- Antic Hay (1923)
- Those Barren Leaves (1925)
- Point Counter Point (1928)
- Brave New World (1932)
- Eyeless in Gaza (1936)
- After Many a Summer (1939)
- Time Must Have a Stop (1944)
- Ape and Essence (1948)
- The Genius and the Goddess (1955)
- Island (1962)
Short story collections[link]
- Limbo (1920)
- Mortal Coils (1922)
- Little Mexican (U.S. title: Young Archimedes) (1924)
- Two or Three Graces (1926)
- Brief Candles (1930)
- Jacob's Hands: A Fable (discovered 1997) co-written with Christopher Isherwood
- Collected Short Stories (1944)
Poetry collections[link]
- Oxford Poetry (magazine editor) (1916)
- The Burning Wheel (1916)
- Jonah (1917)
- The Defeat of Youth and Other Poems (1918)
- Leda (1920)
- Selected Poems (1925)
- Arabia Infelix and Other Poems (1929)
- The Cicadas and Other Poems (1931)
- Collected Poems (1971, posthumous)
Essay collections[link]
- On the Margin (1923)
- Along the Road (1925)
- Essays New and Old (1926)
- Proper Studies (1927)
- Do What You Will (1929)
- Vulgarity in Literature (1930)
- Music at Night (1931)
- Texts and Pretexts (1932)
- The Olive Tree and other essays (1936)
- Ends and Means (1937)
- Words and their Meanings (1940)
- The Art of Seeing (1942)
- The Perennial Philosophy (1945)
- Science, Liberty and Peace (1946)
- Themes and Variations (1950)
- The Doors of Perception (1954)
- Heaven and Hell (1956)
- Adonis and the Alphabet (U.S. title: Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow) (1956)
- Collected Essays (1958)
- Brave New World Revisited (1958)
- Literature and Science (1963)
- Moksha: Writings on Psychedelics and the Visionary Experience 1931–63 (1977)
- The Human Situation: Lectures at Santa Barbara, 1959 (1977)
Screenplays[link]
- Brave New World
- Ape and Essence
- Pride and Prejudice (Collaboration. 1940)
- Madame Curie (Collaboration. 1943)
- Jane Eyre (Collaboration with John Houseman. 1944)
- A Woman's Vengeance 1947
- Original screenplay for Disney's animated Alice in Wonderland 1951 (rejected)[28]
- Eyeless in Gaza BBC Mini-series (Collaboration with Robin Chapman. Aired 1971)[29]
Travel books[link]
- Along The Road: Notes and essays of a tourist (1925)
- Jesting Pilate: The Diary of a Journey (1926)
- Beyond the Mexique Bay: A Traveller's Journey (1934)
Children's fiction[link]
- The Crows of Pearblossom (1967)
- The Travails and Tribulations of Geoffrey Peacock (1967)
Drama[link]
- The Discovery (adapted from Francis Sheridan, 1924)
- The World of Light (1931)
- Mortal Coils – A Play. (Stage version of The Gioconda Smile, 1948)
- The Genius and the Goddess (stage version, co-written with Betty Wendel, 1958)
- The Ambassador of Captripedia (1967)
- Now More Than Ever (Huxley's lost play discovered in 2000 in the University of Münster, Germany's Department of English Literature)
[edit] Articles written for Vedanta and the West
- Distractions (1941)
- Distractions II (1941)
- Action and Contemplation (1941)
- An Appreciation (1941)
- The Yellow Mustard (1941)
- Lines (1941)
- Some Reflections of the Lord's Prayer (1941)
- Reflections of the Lord's Prayer (1942)
- Reflections of the Lord's Prayer II (1942)
- Words and Reality (1942)
- Readings in Mysticism (1942)
- Man and Reality (1942)
- The Magical and the Spiritual (1942)
- Religion and Time (1943)
- Idolatry (1943)
- Religion and Temperament (1943)
- A Note on the Bhagavatam (1943)
- Seven Meditations (1943)
- On a Sentence From Shakespeare (1944)
- The Minimum Working Hypothesis (1944)
- From a Notebook (1944)
- The Philosophy of the Saints (1944)
- That Art Thou (1945)
- That Art Thou II (1945)
- The Nature of the Ground (1945)
- The Nature of the Ground II (1945)
- God In the World (1945)
- Origins and Consequences of Some Contemporary Thought-Patterns (1946)
- The Sixth Patriarch (1946)
- Some Reflections on Time (1946)
- Reflections on Progress (1947)
- Further Reflections on Progress (1947)
- William Law (1947)
- Notes on Zen (1947)
- Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread (1948)
- A Note on Gandhi (1948)
- Art and Religion (1949)
- Foreword to an Essay on the Indian Philosophy of Peace (1950)
- A Note on Enlightenment (1952)
- Substitutes for Liberation (1952)
- The Desert (1954)
- A Note on Patanjali (1954)
- Who Are We? (1955)
- Foreword to the Supreme Doctrine (1956)
- Knowledge and Understanding (1956)
- The "Inanimate" is Alive (1957)
- Symbol and Immediate Experience (1960)
Audio Recordings on CD[link]
- Knowledge and Understanding (1955) [30]<[31]
- Who Are We? (1955) [31][32]
Other[link]
- Pacifism and Philosophy (1936)
- An Encyclopedia of Pacifism (editor, 1937)
- Grey Eminence (1941)
- The Devils of Loudun (1953)
- The Politics of Ecology (1962)
- Selected Letters (2007)
References[link]
- ^ Thody, Philipe (1973). Huxley: A Biographical Introduction. Scribner. ISBN 0-289-70188-0.
- ^ David King Dunaway (1998) Aldous Huxley recollected: an oral history p.90. Rowman Altamira, 1998
- ^ Thody, Philipe (1973).
- ^ Holmes, Charles Mason (1978) Aldous Huxley and the Way to Reality. Greenwood Press, 1978, p. 5
- ^ Huxley, Aldous (1939). "biography and bibliography (appendix)". After Many A Summer Dies The Swan (1st Perennial Classic Ed.). Harper & Row, Publishers. p. 243.
- ^ Julian Huxley 1965. Aldous Huxley 1894–1963: a Memorial Volume. Chatto & Windus, London. p. 22
- ^ Crick, Bernard (1992). George Orwell: A Life. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-014563-X.
- ^ Baggini, Julian (2009) Atheism, A Brief insight Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., 2009
- ^ "Aldous Huxley". Peace Pledge Union. http://www.ppu.org.uk/people/huxley.html. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
- ^ Haugrud Reiff, Raychel (2003) Aldous Huxley: Brave New World p.103. Marshall Cavendish, 2009
- ^ Clark, Ronald William (1968). The Huxleys. New York: McGraw-Hill. p. 295. ISBN 0-434-13580-1.
- ^ David Koenig, Mouse Under Glass, p.82
- ^ John Grant, The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters, p.233.
- ^ Huxley, Aldous (1969). Grover Smith. ed. Letters of Aldous Huxley. London: Chatto & Windus. ISBN 0-7011-1312-X.
- ^ J Derbyshire (2003). What Happened to Aldous Huxley?. The New Criterion. http://www.charlestonvt.com/Holly/BCL/MCV%20Aldous%20Huxley/Originals/Derbyshire_WhatHappened.ORG.pdf
- ^ Martin, Douglas. Friday, 22 August 2008 "Humphry Osmond, 86, Who Sought Medicinal Value in Psychedelic Drugs, Dies". New York: New York Times
- ^ Stevens, Jay (1998). Storming heaven: LSD and the American dream. Grove Press. pp. 47–64. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/0-8021-3587-2|0-8021-3587-2]]. http://books.google.com/?id=rKlGAdNUDAkC&pg=PA47&dq=Storming+heaven+Noonday+Sun#v=onepage&q=. "All sorts of crazy things started happening..."
- ^ Cain, Chelsea (2004). The Hippie Handbook: How to Tie-Dye a T-Shirt, Flash a Peace Sign, and Other Essential Skills for the Carefree Life. Chronicle Books. p. 167. ISBN 978-0-8118-4320-1.
- ^ Isherwood, Christopher; Swami Prabhavananda; Aldous, Huxley (1987). Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God. Hollywood, Calif: Vedanta Press. ISBN 978-0-87481-043-1.
- ^ From Bennet Cerf’s column in The Saturday Review, 12 April 1952, quoted in Gardner, Martin (1957). Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science. Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-20394-8.
- ^ Huxley, Laura (1968). This Timeless Moment. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. ISBN 0-89087-968-0.
- ^ Rolfe, Lionel (1981) Literary L.A. p.50. Chronicle Books, 1981. University of California
- ^ "Author, NIMH Epidemiologist Matthew Huxley Dies at 84". 17 February 2005 Washington Post
- ^ Peter Bowering Aldous Huxley: A Study of the Major Novels, p. 197, Oxford University Press, 1969
- ^ "Account of Huxley's death on Letters of Note". Lettersofnote.com. 2010-03-25. http://www.lettersofnote.com/2010/03/most-beautiful-death.html. Retrieved 2011-12-19.
- ^ Aldous Huxley at Find a Grave
- ^ Chevalier, Tracy (1997). Encyclopedia of the Essay. Routldge. p. 416. ISBN 1-57958-342-3.
- ^ Bradshaw, David (1993). "Introduction". Aldous Huxley's "Those Barren Leaves" (Vintage Classics Edn., 2005). Vintage, Random House, 20 Vauxhall Brigade Road, London. xii.
- ^ "Eyeless in Gaza" (1971)
- ^ listing in Allmusic.com
- ^ a b Note on lecturing in Santa Barbara
- ^ listing in Allmusic.com
Further reading[link]
- Atkins, John. Aldous Huxley: A Literary Study, J. Calder, 1956
- Bedford, Sybille. Aldous Huxley: A Biography, Harper and Row, 1974, rev. ed., Ivan R. Dee, 2002 ISBN 1-56663-454-7
- Dunaway, David King. Huxley in Hollywood, HarperCollins 1990, ISBN 0-385-41591-5
- Huxley, Aldous. The Human Situation: Aldous Huxley Lectures at Santa Barbara 1959, Flamingo Modern Classic, 1994, ISBN 0-00-654732-7
- Huxley, Laura Archera. This Timeless Moment, Celestial Arts, 2001, ISBN 0-89087-968-9
- Meckier, Jerome. Aldous Huxley: modern satirical novelist of ideas, Firchow and Nugel editors, LIT Verlag Berlin-Hamburg-Münster, 2006, ISBN 3-8258-9668-3
- Murray, Nicholas. Aldous Huxley, Macmillan, 2003, ISBN 0-312-30237-5
- Rolo, Charles J. (ed.). The World of Aldous Huxley, Grosset Universal Library, 1947.
- Sexton, James (ed.). Aldous Huxley: Selected Letters, Ivan R. Dee, 2007, ISBN 1-56663-629-2
- Sawyer, Dana. Aldous Huxley, Crossroad Publishing Co., 2002, ISBN 0-8245-1987-2
- Watt, Conrad (ed.). Aldous Huxley, Routledge, 1997, ISBN 0-415-15915-9
External links[link]
| Find more about Aldous Huxley on Wikipedia's sister projects: | |
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Quotations from Wikiquote |
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Source texts from Wikisource |
- Raymond Fraser, George Wickes (Spring 1960). "Interview: Aldous Huxley: The Art of Fiction No. 24". The Paris Review. http://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/4698/the-art-of-fiction-no-24-aldous-huxley.
- Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery
- BBC discussion programme In our time: "Brave New World". Huxley and the novel. 9 April 2009. (Audio, 45 mins)
- BBC In their own words series. 12 October 1958. (Video, 12 mins).
- "The Ultimate Revolution" (talk at UC Berkeley, 20 March 1962)
- Huxley interviewed on The Mike Wallace interview 18 May 1958. (Video)
- Works by Aldous Huxley on Open Library at the Internet Archive
- Works by or about Aldous Huxley in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
- Works by Aldous Huxley at Project Gutenberg
- Centre for Huxley Research
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Huxley, Aldous |
| Alternative names | Huxley, Aldous Leonard |
| Short description | Writer; author |
| Date of birth | 26 July 1894 |
| Place of birth | Surrey, England |
| Date of death | 22 November 1963 |
| Place of death | Los Angeles, California, United States |
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Wiki Summary
Mahāyāna (Sanskrit: महायान mahāyāna, literally the "Great Vehicle") is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice. Mahāyāna Buddhism originated in India, and is associated with the oldest historical sect of Buddhism, the Mahāsāṃghika.
The Mahāyāna tradition is the larger of the two major traditions of Buddhism existing today, the other being that of the Theravāda school. According to the teachings of Mahāyāna traditions, "Mahāyāna" also refers to the path of seeking complete enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, also called "Bodhisattvayāna", or the "Bodhisattva Vehicle.
In the course of its history, Mahāyāna Buddhism spread from India to various other Asian countries such as China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, and Mongolia. Major traditions of Mahāyāna Buddhism today include Zen/Chán, Pure Land, Tiantai, and Nichiren, as well as the Esoteric Buddhist traditions of Shingon, Tendai and Tibetan Buddhism.
