Buddhism Origins & Core Concepts

• Buddhism origins and core concepts defined

Harappan Culture

• The Harappan Civilization (c. 2600–1900 BCE) was an advanced society in the Indus Valley, modern-day Pakistan, and northwest India
• It was known for well-planned cities, drainage systems, and trade networks
• Some scholars believe that early South Asian spiritual traditions like meditation and non-violence may originate in Harappan religious practices, though not directly linked to Buddhism

Aryans

• The Aryans migrated to the Indian subcontinent around 1500 BCE and were an Indo-European-speaking people
• They introduced the Vedic traditions, which influenced Hinduism and Buddhism
• Vedic texts describe a hierarchical society, sacrifices, and concepts of karma and rebirth, which evolved into Buddhist philosophy

Three Jewels (Triratna)

• The Three Jewels form the core foundations of Buddhism
• Buddha: the awakened teacher who attained enlightenment
• Dharma: the Buddha's teachings, guiding followers toward liberation
• Sangha: the community of monks, nuns, and lay practitioners
• Taking refuge in the Three Jewels is essential for becoming a Buddhist

Buddha & Siddhārtha Gautama

• Buddha means "Awakened One" and refers to Siddhārtha Gautama, the historical founder of Buddhism
• Siddhārtha Gautama was born a prince around the 5th-4th century BCE in present-day Nepal
• Upon witnessing suffering (the Four Sights), he renounced his luxurious life, practiced extreme asceticism, and achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya

Four Sights

• Siddhārtha encountered these four sights after leaving his palace
• An old man: realizing aging is inevitable
• A sick person: understanding that illness affects everyone
• A dead body: recognizing the reality of death
• A renunciant (monk): offering hope that suffering can be transcended
• These experiences inspired him to seek a spiritual solution to suffering

Māra

• Māra is a symbolic demon figure representing temptation, fear, and delusion
• He tried to distract Siddhārtha from enlightenment with visions of fear, desire, and self-doubt
• Siddhārtha overcame Māra's challenges and attained Buddhahood

Nirvāņa & Parinirvāņa

• Nirvāņa is the ultimate Buddhist goal: freedom from suffering and the cycle of rebirth (samsāra,) achieved by eliminating craving and ignorance
• Parinirvāņa is the final state of Nirvāņa attained at death, meaning the Buddha will never be reborn again

Samsāra

• Samsāra refers to the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth driven by karma
• The ultimate goal of Buddhism is to escape samsāra by attaining Nirvāņa

Dharma

• Dharma in Buddhism means the Buddha's truth and teachings
• It includes ethical principles, meditation, and wisdom

Four Noble Truths

• Dukkha (Suffering): Life is full of suffering
• Samudaya (Cause of Suffering): Suffering arises from craving and attachment
• Nirodha (Cessation of Suffering): Suffering can end by eliminating desire
• Magga (Path to Liberation): The Eightfold Path leads to Nirvāņa

Eightfold Path

• A set of ethical and meditative practices
• Right View: Understanding reality as it is
• Right Intention: Developing compassion and wisdom
• Right Speech: Avoiding lies, gossip, and harmful words
• Right Action: Acting ethically (no killing, stealing, or harming)
• Right Livelihood: Earning a living in a way that does not harm others
• Right Effort: Developing good mental habits
• Right Mindfulness: Being aware of one's thoughts and actions
• Right Concentration: Deep meditation to cultivate wisdom

Three Baskets (Tripițaka)

• Vinaya Pitaka: Monastic rules
• Sūtra Pitaka: The discourses of the Buddha
• Abhidharma Pitaka: Philosophical and psychological analyses of Buddhist teachings

Anātman (No-Self Doctrine)

• Unlike Hinduism, which believes in an eternal self (ātman), Buddhism teaches Anātman, meaning there is no permanent, unchanging soul
• Instead, a person is composed of five aggregates (skandhas)
• Form (rūpa): Physical body
• Sensation (vedanā): Feelings and emotions
• Perception (samjñā): Recognition and labeling of experiences
• Mental formations (samskāra): Thoughts, habits, and desires
• Consciousness (vijñāna): Awareness
• These aggregates constantly change, meaning there is no fixed "self"

Interdependent Origination (Pratītyasamutpāda)

• Everything arises due to conditions; nothing exists independently
• It explains how karma and rebirth function without a permanent soul

Impermanence (Anitya)

• All things, including emotions, relationships, and identities, are temporary and constantly changing
• Clinging to them causes suffering

Sangha

• The Buddhist monastic community includes monks (bhikkhus) and nuns (bhikkhunīs,) and plays a key role in preserving and spreading Buddhist teachings

Vinaya

• The monastic rulebook details ethical conduct, daily rituals, and disciplinary rules for monks and nuns

10 Precepts

• A moral code followed by monastics and lay practitioners
• No killing
• No stealing
• No sexual misconduct
• No lying
• No intoxicants
• No eating after noon (for monastics)
• No entertainment (singing, dancing, etc.)
• No adornments (jewelry, perfume)
• No luxurious beds
• No handling money

Meditation Practices

• Śamatha (Calm Abiding): Developing deep concentration and tranquility
• Vipaśyanā (Insight Meditation): Observing thoughts and sensations to gain wisdom
• Dhyāna (Absorption States): Higher meditative states leading to enlightenment
• Death Meditation (Maraṇasati): Reflecting on impermanence and mortality

Mahāyāna Buddhism

• Mahāyāna ("Great Vehicle") emerged around the 1st century CE
• Mahāyāna emphasizes compassion (karuņā), the Bodhisattva path, and the perfection of wisdom (prajñā-pāramitā)
• This contrasts with Theravāda Buddhism, which focuses more on individual liberation (Arhatship)

Bodhisattva

• A Bodhisattva is an enlightened being who delays their own Nirvāņa to help others attain enlightenment out of compassion
• Unlike an Arhat, who seeks personal liberation, a Bodhisattva vows to liberate all sentient beings before achieving full Buddhahood

Bodhicitta

• Bodhicitta is the awakening mind or the altruistic intention to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings
• It marks the beginning of the Bodhisattva path

Hīnayāna / Nikāya

• Hīnayāna ("Lesser Vehicle") is used by Mahāyāna to refer to early Buddhist schools (including Theravāda) that focus on individual Nirvāņa
• Nikāya Buddhism refers to these early traditions without the negative connotation of "Hīnayāna"

Tathāgata

• A term for the Buddha, translates to "Thus-Gone One" or "Thus-Come One"
• Refers to someone who has fully transcended samsāra and sees reality as it is

Compassion (Karuņā) & Skillful Means (Upāya Kāuśalya)

• Compassion (karuņā) is a core Mahāyāna value, which emphasizes helping others without self-interest
• Skillful Means (upāya) refers to adapting teachings based on the audience's capacity, such as using metaphors or simplifying complex ideas

Three Turnings of the Wheel of Dharma

• First Turning: Early Buddhist teachings (Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path)
• Second Turning: Mahāyāna doctrines (emptiness, compassion, Bodhisattva path)
• Third Turning: Yogācāra and Buddha-nature teachings

6/10 Perfections (Pāramitās)

• Mahāyāna Bodhisattvas cultivate these virtues
• Generosity (Dāna)
• Ethical Conduct (Śīla)
• Patience (Kṣānti)
• Effort (Vīrya)
• Meditative Concentration (Dhyāna)
• Wisdom (Prajñā)
• Some traditions expand the list to 10 perfections, adding Skillful Means, Power, and Aspiration

Perfection of Wisdom (Prajñā-pāramitā)

• The realization that all phenomena are empty (śūnyatā) of inherent existence
• Highest perfection in Mahāyāna philosophy

Famous Mahāyāna Sūtras

• Diamond Sūtra teaches that all things are impermanent and that wisdom comes from realizing non-attachment
• Heart Sūtra one of the most famous Mahāyāna texts, states: "Form is emptiness, emptiness is form."
• Lotus Sūtra Emphasizes universal Buddhahood and the idea that all beings have the potential to attain enlightenment

Madhyamaka (Middle Way School)

• Founded by Nāgārjuna (c. 2nd century CE), the school argues that all things are empty (śūnyatā) of inherent existence.
• Everything exists only in dependence on other factors (Interdependent Origination)

Nāgārjuna & The Tetralemma

• Nāgārjuna used logical paradoxes to show the limits of conceptual thought
• A thing does exist
• A thing does not exist
• A thing neither exists nor does not exist
• A thing both exists and does not exist
• This destroys any fixed ideas about reality

Two Truths Doctrine

• Madhyamaka distinguishes between:
• Conventional Truth: The everyday world (relative reality)
• Ultimate Truth: Reality beyond conceptual labels (emptiness)

Emptiness (Śūnyatā)

• Everything lacks an independent, permanent essence
• Things exist only in relation to other things, not by themselves

Prāsańgika vs. Svātantrika

• Prāsańgika (Logical Consequentialism): Uses reductio ad absurdum arguments to dismantle false views (main Madhyamaka approach)
• Svātantrika (Autonomous Inference): Accepts conventional truths as valid while denying ultimate existence

Yogācāra (Mind-Only School)

• Founded by Asanga (4th century CE), this school teaches that reality is fundamentally mental all experience arises from consciousness

Three Aspects (Trisvabhāva)

• Imagined Nature: The mistaken view that objects exist independently
• Dependent Nature: Things exist only due to conditions
• Perfected Nature: The ultimate realization of non-duality

Doctrine of the Three Bodies (Trikāya)

• Dharmakāya: Buddha's ultimate, formless wisdom
• Sambhogakāya: A celestial body appearing to Bodhisattvas
• Nirmāņakāya: A physical form, like Siddhārtha Gautama

Storehouse Consciousness (Ālayavijñāna)

• A subtle level of consciousness stores karmic seeds, shaping future experiences

Embryonic Buddha (Tathāgatagarbha)

• The idea that all beings already possess the seed of Buddhahood, which can be uncovered through practice

Amitābha

• Buddha of Infinite Light, associated with Pure Land Buddhism, a Mahāyāna tradition promising rebirth in a blissful paradise

Avalokiteśvara

• Bodhisattva of Compassion, depicted with multiple arms to help all beings, known as Guanyin in China

Mañjuśrī

• Bodhisattva of Wisdom, holding a sword to cut through ignorance

Tārā

• A female Bodhisattva associated with compassion and protection
• Green Tārā and White Tārā are especially revered in Tibetan Buddhism

Aśoka & the Mauryan Empire

• Aśoka (r. 268-232 BCE) was a Mauryan emperor who spread Buddhism across Asia after witnessing the war’s horrors
• He built stūpas, pillars, and sent missionaries to Sri Lanka, Central Asia, and beyond

Magadha

• A kingdom in ancient India became the center of early Buddhism
• The Buddha taught in cities like Rājagṛha and Vārāņasī

Buddhist Councils

• First Council (c. 400 BCE): After the Buddha's death, his teachings were recited and organized
• Second Council (c. 350 BCE): Debate over monastic rules
• Third Council (c. 250 BCE, under Aśoka): Standardization of Buddhist texts
• Fourth Council (1st century CE): Creation of Mahāyāna scriptures