Under the Bodhi Tree

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Under the Bodhi Tree

• He Buddhist Way

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• Buddhism has the characteristics of what would
  be expected in a cosmic religion for the future
  It transcends a personal God, avoids dogmas and
  theology it covers both the natural and the
  spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense
  aspiring from the experience of all things,
  natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity.
  Albert Einstein

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Buddhist Non-violence

• Buddhism is perhaps one of the most non-violent
  of all the worlds major religions.
• Kill no living thing. Buddha
• Like people of all religions and cultures,
  Buddhism can be put aside for the thing that has
  always been the greatest threat to peace, human
  rights, and appreciation of diversity
  expedience.
• Fifteen years ago, a notorious Thai Buddhist monk
  told the Bangkok press that "it is not sinful to
  kill a Communist." He later modified his
  statement, saying, "to kill communism or
  communist ideology is not a sin." He claimed that
  he did not encourage people to kill others.
  Nevertheless, he confessed that his nationalist
  feelings were more important than his Buddhist
  practice. Young people throughout Asia were
  astounded that a Buddhist monk had tried to
  justify an act of killing as there is simply no
  justification for killing of anyone or anything
  in Buddhism. In making his statement, the monk
  had chosen expedience over doctrine.

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Buddhism religion or philosophy?

• Characteristics of a religion
• Belief in the supernatural.
• Sacred versus the profane.
• Rituals and ceremonies.
• Moral communities.
• Personal experience.

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Buddhism religion or philosophy, continued

• Buddhism is a religion because it conforms to
  every major definition of what constitutes a
  religion, but
• Buddhists are atheists.
• Buddha is not a god. While Buddha did speak
  about the gods, they were not superior to
  menthey only had greater power and longer lives.
  In Buddhism, there is no God.
• Therefore, mans emancipation from suffering was
  and is solely his own responsibility.

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Not a path to God

• Siddhartha sought knowledge that would ultimately
  lead him to ultimate awareness. Once he reached
  that level of awareness, he was named the
  Awakened One.
• After reaching enlightenment, Buddha taught for
  40 yearshelping those that listened to his
  message to reach their own enlightenment.
• So, Buddha doesnt lead anyone to a God he
  only leads his followers along a path of
  self-discovery which ultimately will lead to
  their own enlightenment.

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Nirvana

• Nirvana is not heavenas Buddhists dont believe
  in a God.
• Nirvana is not a place.
• Nirvana is a state of mind.
• Nirvana is a state of nothingness.
• While we will discuss Nirvana in greater detail
  later in the course, for now you need only to
  know that Nirvana is freedom from suffering.

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Nothingness and the I

• What are the sources of your suffering?
• How do you achieve an end to your suffering?
• Who are you? Where is the I?

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Taking refuge

• Refuge a safe place. A place where we are
  sheltered and protected from those things that
  may distress us.
• Our minds can be our worst enemies.
• The I literally becomes our greatest
  taskmaster.
• Taking refuge in the three jewels
• The Buddha
• The Sangha
• The Dharma

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Sin

• If you live a Buddhist life, and try to follow
  Buddhas teachings, there is no such thing as
  sinonly actions and thoughts that can slow,
  stop, or reverse your path towards enlightenment
  (through Karma).
• Conversely, if one can do and say things that
  lead to bad Karma, men may also do and say things
  that can lead to good Karmathus speeding ones
  journey to enlightenment.

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Samsara

• In the Christian, and Islamic world, death is the
  end. The soul either travels on to some heavenly
  paradise or it burns in the fires of hell. The
  journey made in these religions is linear.
• In Buddhism (and other Eastern religions), that
  journey is circularit does not end with death.
• Samsara is the cycle of birth-death-rebirth it
  is suffering.

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Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.
• All things are one.