Bodhi Essays

Merriam Webster defines Enlightenment as the obtainment of knowledge, understanding, and insight. As a general definition, this is a very accurate statement to describe the way Buddhist and Hindu religious texts define enlightenment, but both religions have more specifications regarding the process of achieving enlightenment such as dharma, karma, reincarnation, and an eight-fold path, all of which is explained in both religion’ sacred texts: The Upanishads and The Dhammapada. What texts do Hinduism

Buddhism teaches people how to end their agony by eliminating greed, hatred, and ignorance. Buddhism was established in 500 BC and it started with a prince called Siddhartha, a representative of the Gautama clan. Siddhartha was known as Buddha. Siddhartha grew up living the luxury life of a young prince. Siddhartha married a girl called Yasodhara when he was sixteen. His father demanded him to live a life isolated from outside sources. However, that did not stop Siddhartha to wander out into the

is essentially suffering. After learning all ascetic techniques of concentration and mind control that could be learned from the different sects of the Indian subcontinent, and not satisfied, the Buddha decided to sit under the sacred fig tree (the Bodhi tree) and not rise to understand the cause of suffering. The Four Noble Truths are the substance of the Buddha's enlightenment, doing what people might describe as an internal science, based on an impeccable self-observation . In an act of deep introspection

this enlightenment. His journey to find enlightenment was called “The Great Departure”. Siddhartha wandered for six years in the forests. He studied with two Hindu gurus, joined a group of ascetics, then renounces asceticism and meditates under a Bodhi tree for 49 days. At the end of his meditation, Siddhartha finally found enlightenment. Siddhartha Gautama had four nights of enlightenment at the end of his meditation. The first night, Siddhartha watched all of his previous lives. Hindus believe

Tara – A woman of many colors In Buddhism, bodhisattva is the term for a being with bodhi or enlightened. A bodhisattva is anyone who, motivated by great caring, has generated total enlightenment. Tara is a female Bodhisattva who appears as a female Buddha. She is known as the "mother of liberation", and represents the value of success in work and achievements. Statues of Tara represent the feminine counterpart of the bodhisattva (“Buddha-to-be”) Avalokiteshvara. According to popular belief, she

The portion of this week’s reading that I found most interesting was Siddhartha Gautama’s search for the ultimate Enlightenment. Gautama became a wandering monk and studied under spiritual teachers. These teachers taught him meditation techniques which allowed him to enter a profound state of trance. This allowed him to learn the sphere of nothingness in which the mind transcends all thought. However, Gautama quickly mastered this technique and began to learn the sphere of neither perception and

Siddhartha Gautama, later known to be referenced with nicknames such as the Buddha, enlightened one, and the awakened, was born in Nepal in 6 B.C. into a large clan called the Shakyas. Gautama’s mother died shortly after his birth. Days after Gautama’s birth, a prophet saw the young prince becoming a great military leader or a great spiritual teacher. His Father Suddhodana, king of Kapilavastu and leader of the Shakya clan, felt that in order to keep Gautama from witnessing the sorrow, violence,

Introduction: Enlightenment occurs when one becomes awake when they eliminate desire or attachment. Achieving enlightenment allows individuals to become Buddha. Furthermore, principle of dependent origination and karma states that every cause has its’ effect and the effects can be passed down to next life. Failing to eliminate desire will result in one suffering throughout their lives, and possibly their future life. Also, failing to eliminate desire prevents one from achieving enlightenment. In

century BCE, he lived in ancient India. He was born into a wealthy family and enjoyed a life of luxury until he resigned his privileged existence to seek enlightenment, according to Buddhist legend. He reached enlightenment while meditating under a Bodhi tree after years of meditation and reflection. He then devoted the rest of his life teaching others his insights and ideas, with the goal of assisting others in finding liberation from suffering and inner peace. The Buddha was a spiritual teacher and

Buddhism started with the Buddha who was born as Siddhartha Gautama in Nepal around 2,500 years ago. The word ‘Buddha’ means ‘who is awake’ and in the sense of having ‘woken up to reality’. He did not say his is a god or a prophet. He was a human being who became Enlightened, try to understanding life in the deepest way possible. Siddhartha is the prince of a small kingdom on the Indian-Nepalese border. After seven days of his birth, his mother died. His mother’s younger sister, Maha Pajapati take

Paul Carus, said in his book “The Monist”, that Buddhism represents ''the desire to escape the transiency of life which its incidental vicissitudes and to attain the permanent and enduring bliss of an undisturbed existence where there is no pain, no disease, no death, no incertitude of any kind". (Carus, 1897) In fact, Buddhism is a type of spiritual development prompting a genuine nature of reality. And Buddhist practices are all methods that aim changing individuals with the specific goal to build

Meditation as Medication in Buddhism Meditation is the act of the individual being able to focus their mind for a certain time period by either chanting for their religion or spiritual reasons as a way of relaxation. Meditation dates back thousands of years, possibly as early as the ancient times. Siddhartha, better known as the Buddha, proclaimed that suffering is nothing more than just an abstract and it can be lessened through self-awareness. Meditation is very renown in Buddhism and it is a

Zazen in Zen The word “Zen” roughly translates to meditative state, which is the practice and enlightenment technique central to Zen Buddhism. One of three Zen Buddhism sites in the Bay Area, the San Francisco Zen Center offers meditation periods, consultation with Zen priests, literature about Zen Buddhism, and a beautiful history lesson. The San Francisco Zen Center is located in an old building with a fascinating history. Originally, Julia Morgan established the Center as a residence for single

Memoir Bodhi Maximus Yost is my name, but I like to call myself Bodious Maximus because my mind is incomprehensible by mortal minds. The Bodhi Tree or Tree of Awakening in India is the tree that I am named after. According to Buddhism, a Buddha attained enlightenment there. Maximus my middle name means greatest or largest in Latin. I do not know much about my surname Yost, since my father only knows our family lineage up to my great grandfather. Art, basketball, and soccer are three things I

Abhidharma and Madhyamaka use different conceptions of the Buddhist notion of two realities and truths. This notion posits an ultimate version of reality and truth, the realization of which leads to liberation from suffering. Abhidharma and Madhyamaka both accept this theory, but they approach it in different ways. This paper will outline approaches both schools take to interpret this notion. Following this, I will consider an Abhidharma objection to the approach of Madhyamaka and a response to that

**************** A Brief History of Thai Buddhist Meditation Practice Meditation plays an important role in Buddhism (Buddhasasana) by the name of right mediation (sammasamadhi) being the second category of the Eight-Fold Path (Atthanghigamagga) consisted of three categories i.e., Personal Discipline (Silasikkha), Mental Perfection (Cittasikkha), and Wisdom (Panyasikkha), to obtain the ultimate goal Nibbhana of Buddhism. In Buddhist tradition, there are 2 forms of mediation i.e., tranquility meditation

Reading Summary – A Buddhism Experience For my Reading Summary assignment, I chose an article from our Week Six readings, “Buddhism; An Introduction,” featured on PBS Online. It is believed that the founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha Gautama, who ultimately created a kind and introspective religion, came from an unlikely family who enjoyed an extravagant lifestyle and whose father was an Indian warrior-king. Guatama lived from approximately 566 to 480 B.C. He sought to understand the true meaning

In Buddhism, Four Noble Truths are the principal teachings. To live means to suffer is the first Noble Truth. With no doubts, human nature is not perfect as well as the world people live in. Throughout the lifetime, people experience different kinds of suffering. This may be physical suffering including injury, sickness, tiredness, any type of pain and ultimately death. Also, people can suffer mentally, for example, they may feel fear, disappointment, sadness and this may eventually lead to depression

Dorje Shugden, otherwise called Dolgyal is connected to the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Dorje Shugden is distinctively looked upon as a gyalpo, an unremarkable minor protector whose appears to be enlightened one. The Dorje Shugden discussion emerged inside all schools of Tibetan Buddhism, including the Gelug school itself, in regards to Dorje Shugden’s personality, status of enlightenment and how it was different from standard Gelug teachings. Dorje Shugden was a very angry spirit. Shugden

How Did Buddhism Influence China: Buddhism was started by a man named Buddha. Buddha was a monk in india who believed in peace not war. Buddhism began in india as a minor religion. Buddha started to spread Buddhism first by getting his fellow monks to help him. About one year later Buddhism was one of india's biggest religion’s. Buddhism became so popular in india people who practiced built him a kingdom, naming Buddha emperor and he treated his people like family. But in 483 BC he died and his kingdom