The Buddha – Chapter 20: How the Buddha Became a Bodhisattva

The Buddha brought the dharma to our world, for our age. But, as is clear from preceding chapters, he was not the first buddha, and he was not (at least according to some) the only buddha present in the universe at the time. Yet, he is our buddha and thus is regarded with especial

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The Buddha – Chapter 21: Proving the Buddha

Buddhism arose in India during a period of intense reflection on the nature of knowledge and the true sources of knowledge. As with so many elements of scholastic traditions, Buddhists did not only engage in discussions of these issues among themselves; they read, reacted to, and debated against the positions put forth by proponents

The Buddha – Chapter 22: Enshrining a Relic

Throughout the history of Buddhism and across the Buddhist world, relics have been considered potent objects, bestowing blessings and power on those who worship them. The monuments in which relics are enshrined, called stupas in India and pagodas in China, were not considered to contain bits of ash and bone, but were said to

The Buddha – Chapter 23: The Consecration of a Buddha Image

One of the most common objects of veneration in Buddhism is an image of the Buddha, whether it be in the form of a statue or a painting. Such images, however, are not considered suitable for veneration unless they have been consecrated. Ceremonies of consecration are thus among the most important, and the most

The Buddha – Chapter 24: A Hymn to the Buddha

The Buddha seems to have been an object of devotion, praise and homage from the beginning of the Buddhist tradition in India. As the tradition developed, he was not the only buddha to receive such devotion, but he was always held in special esteem as the buddha who compassionately chose to be born in,

Monastic Life – Chapter 25: The Evolution of Ordination

The sangha came into existence when the group of five who heard the Buddha’s first sermon requested his permission to go forth and be ordained. The Buddha ordained them simply by saying to each of them, *Come, monk’ (ehi bhikkhu). This same simple formula was used for the next group to hear the dharma,

Monastic Life – Chapter 26: Making Men into Monks

The procedures for the ordination of monks evolved over time. At the beginning of the process, it was the Buddha’s simple instruction, ‘Come, monk’, that made a man a monk. This developed into a number of more formal procedures (described in the previous chapter), which were abandoned after certain problems arose. At the end

Monastic Life – Chapter 27: A Murderer Becomes a Monk

The sangha grew through the Buddha’s encounters with all manner of persons, to whom he taught the dharma. Not all listened. Among those who did, some became monks, some became lay disciples. Stories of these encounters form an important part of the tradition. Among these, perhaps none is more famous than the story of

Monastic Life – Chapter 28: The Ascetic Ideal

Buddhism has long been famous for its celebration of the virtues of solitude and renunciation of the world. One of the most famous, and one of the earliest, expressions of these ideals is to be found in a poem known as the Rhinoceros Horn Sutta. It is the third sutra in the Sutta Nipata,

Monastic Life – Chapter 29: Monks in the Mahayana

The Mahayana has sometimes been portrayed as a kind of revolution in the history of Buddhism, in which the narrow monastic goal of nirvana was replaced by the greater goal of buddhahood, a goal that is made available to both monk and layperson, male and female. There are indeed texts which speak of the

Monastic Life – Chapter 30: Making New Monastic Rules

Some Buddhist texts and doctrines travelled from India to other parts of Asia more easily than others. One genre of texts that did not make the transition without difficulty was the codes of monastic discipline, especially in their movement to China. Chinese monks faced the initial problem of not knowing what rules they should

Monastic Life – Chapter 31: Lives of Eminent Monks and Nuns

Stories of renowned monks and nuns are told throughout the Buddhist world, but it was in East Asia (beginning in China) that compilations of the lives of eminent monks and nuns developed into a significant literary genre. There is little evidence of such works in India, suggesting that these Chinese works developed from indigenous

Monastic Life – Chapter 32: The Nine Patriarchs of the East

For a tradition that traces its origins to an enlightened master, the notion of the transmission of the master’s teachings is crucial. What is the route whereby the master’s teachings made their way to the present? And how can the authenticity of that route be assured? Has the line of transmission ever been interrupted

Monastic Life – Chapter 33: Taking the Vinaya Across the Sea

Buddhist nations have long counted the ordination of monks and the founding of monasteries among the significant moments in their histories. The rules of monastic discipline (vinaya) require that a novice seeking to become a fully ordained monk (bhiksu) receive ordination from a group of ten fully ordained monks. If the ordination is to

Monastic Life – Chapter 34: Zen for National Defence

The various schools and sects that have developed and, in some cases, disappeared over the history of Buddhism have not occurred in a simple linear progression. New movements have arisen among existing schools, and, if they are to succeed, it is necessary that they distinguish themselves from their contemporaries. In order to gain followers,

Monastic Life – Chapter 35: How a Monk Freed his Mother from Hell

It is sometimes assumed that when a Buddhist renounces the world to become a monk or a nun all communication and concern with his or her family ceases. However, there is ample evidence from India that monks and nuns maintained contact with their families and were concerned with the welfare of their departed parents,

Monastic Life – Chapter 36: Living in the Degenerate Age

The Buddha had said that, whether or not buddhas appear in the world, the nature of the dharma remains the same. He also said, however, that the dharma would disappear. These two statements are not contradictory. The first would seem to mean that the nature of reality is unchanging, regardless of whether buddhas appear

Meditation and other Rituals – Chapter 37: The Direct Path to Enlightenment

Buddhist meditation classically is divided into two forms, which might be referred to as stabilizing meditation and analytical meditation. The former involves the development of deepening levels of mental concentration, while the latter involves the development of insight into the nature of reality. The precise relation of these two forms of meditation, and the

Meditation and other Rituals – Chapter 38: Wisdom and Compassion

Modern descriptions of the Mahayana sutras, a huge collection of texts that began to be composed in India around the beginning of the Common Era, often focus on two topics: the wisdom of emptiness (sunyata) and the compassion of the bodhisattva. Such descriptions are in some ways misleading. The Mahayana sutras are a heterogeneous

Meditation and other Rituals – Chapter 39: Serenity and Discernment

Throughout the history of Buddhism in India, expositions of meditation typically grouped practices under two headings: those with the goal of deep concentration and those with the goal of insight into the nature of reality. Although certain practices (such as the ‘foundations of mindfulness’ set out in Chapter 37) claimed to achieve the two