Holy Conversations:  Understanding World Religions-Buddhism"

Sermon notes and questions from the sermon on Buddhism given on May 3

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Our second world religion is Buddhism, a close cousin of Hinduism.

Buddha means “awakened” or “enlightened” one.  Buddhism was founded in the 6th Century BC by Siddhartha Gautama, after he had rejected both Hinduism and ascetism for he believed it did not address life’s most pressing problem – the problem of suffering.  Buddhism is the fourth largest world religion, with most of its followers in southeast Asia.  Its influence is far-reaching in the west with its influence on enlightenment, the pursuit of the contemplative life, and the possibilities of achieving Nirvana.

Buddhism, although cousin to Hinduism, differs significantly in several features.  The goal is not union with God or Brahman.  Instead, the life goal is to achieve Nirvana, a spiritual state in which suffering is no longer a controlling force in one’s life.  The word literally means to “extinguish,” as in the controlling passions of one’s life.  It is to reach boundless self.  For the Buddhist, there is not Atman, because there is no concept of an eternal soul or even necessarily a God.  Everything is temporal, including the person, and what gets reincarnated are just vestiges of a person, like one flame being passed from one candle to another.  What gets passed are the desires or leftover, unresolved cravings of the person.  As an intensely humanistic religion the practices are therapeutic, to heal one of the life cravings which cause suffering.

The starting point of Buddhism are the four noble truths.  Suffering is so pervasive in the world and the major life events of birth, sickness, and death.  We are the source of our own suffering through the cravings and attachments that we have in our life.  To overcome it, the Buddha recommends the 8-fold path, the essence of Buddhist practice.

In each of these practices a balance is achieved through “right” application.  Views are the intellectual orientation of the believer; persistent taming of the human will is what is meant by intent; Speech and conduct are closely controlled to prevent gossip, slander, dishonesty as well as strict prohibitions of drinking alcohol, meat, and engaging in violent or uncharitable behaviors.  Certain jobs are prohibited for practicing Buddhists.  Right effort, mindfulness, and concentration view the will as more ignorant than evil.  It is posited that disciplines can educate and curb these tendencies.

There are two major sects of Buddhism.  The strict conservatives, Theraveda, are found more in Thailand and Cambodia and practice the religion in a more orthodox way – like the original Buddha with no belief in God.  They are often monastic, individualistic, and follow the Buddha as a sage, a provider of wisdom.  This is the little raft.  The big raft is Mahayana Buddhism.  It is found more in China and Japan.  It views Buddha more as a kind of savior.  Their key virtue is compassion and the religion is more heart-based.  They also worship other deities and are more likely to make divine claims.

Both religions are ultimately bound to their founders in many respects.  The differences are more pronounced when you look at the more orthodox Theraveda strain versus Christianity.  Theraveda is totally humanistic (no God – it’s all up to you).  Christianity, at its core, starts with the concept of God, a deeply personal God at work on humanity through salvation history.  The shared question that penetrates to the core of the two religions is, “Can suffering be redemptive.”  Since suffering is to be eliminated, is totally manmade, and because there is no God, Buddha would say “no.”  The Christian comes to a very different answer to this question through the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.