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Teachings of buddha
"One thing I teach: suffering and
the end of suffering.
It is just ill and the ceasing of ill that I proclaim."
-- The Buddh
Believe nothing, O monks, merely because you have
been told it...or because you yourself have imagined
it. Do not believe what your teacher tells you
merely out of respect for the teacher. But whatsoever,
after due examination and analysis, you find the
be conducive to the good, the benefit, the welfare
of all beings that doctrine believe and cling
to, and take it as our guide!
Buddha
Let us live in joy, never falling sick
like those who hate us. Let us live in freedom,
without hatred even among
those who hate.
Buddha
Like a beautiful flower that is colorful but has
no fragrance, even well spoken words bear no fruit
in one who does not put them into practice.
Buddha
More than those who hate you, more than
all your enemies, an undisciplined mind does greater
harm.”
~ Buddha
The Eightfold Path of
buddhism:
The Noble Eightfold Path describes
the way to the end of suffering, as it was laid
out by Siddhartha Gautama. It is a practical
guideline to ethical and mental development
with the goal of freeing the individual from
attachments and delusions; and it finally leads
to understanding the truth about all things.
Together with the Four Noble Truths it constitutes
the gist of Buddhism
The Buddha's Eightfold Path consists of:
1. Right View
Right view is the beginning and the end of the
path, it simply means to see and to understand
things as they really are and to realise the
Four Noble Truth. As such, right view is the
cognitive aspect of wisdom. It means to see
things through, to grasp the impermanent and
imperfect nature of worldly objects and ideas,
and to understand the law of karma and karmic
conditioning. It begins with the intuitive insight
that all beings are subject to suffering and
it ends with complete understanding of the true
nature of all things. Since our view of the
world forms our thoughts and our actions, right
view yields right thoughts and right actions.
2. Right Intention
While right view refers to the cognitive aspect
of wisdom, right intention refers to the volitional
aspect, i.e. the kind of mental energy that
controls our actions. Right intention can be
described best as commitment to ethical and
mental self-improvement. Buddha distinguishes
three types of right intentions: 1. the intention
of renunciation, which means resistance to the
pull of desire, 2. the intention of good will,
meaning resistance to feelings of anger and
aversion, and 3. the intention of harmlessness,
meaning not to think or act cruelly, violently,
or aggressively, and to develop compassion.
3. Right Speech
Right speech is the first principle of ethical
conduct in the eightfold path. Ethical conduct
is viewed as a guideline to moral discipline,
which supports the other principles of the path.
This aspect is not self-sufficient, however,
essential, because mental purification can only
be achieved through the cultivation of ethical
conduct. The importance of speech in the context
of Buddhist ethics is obvious: words can break
or save lives, make enemies or friends, start
war or create peace. Buddha explained right
speech as follows: 1. to abstain from false
speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies
and not to speak deceitfully, 2. to abstain
from slanderous speech and not to use words
maliciously against others, 3. to abstain from
harsh words that offend or hurt others, and
4. to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose
or depth. Positively phrased, this means to
tell the truth, to speak friendly, warm, and
gently and to talk only when necessary.
4. Right Action
The second ethical principle, right action,
involves the body as natural means of expression,
as it refers to deeds that involve bodily actions.
Unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of
mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound
states of mind. Again, the principle is explained
in terms of abstinence: right action means 1.
to abstain from harming sentient beings, especially
to abstain from taking life (including suicide)
and doing harm intentionally or delinquently,
2. to abstain from taking what is not given,
which includes stealing, robbery, fraud, deceitfulness,
and dishonesty, and 3. to abstain from sexual
misconduct. Positively formulated, right action
means to act kindly and compassionately, to
be honest, to respect the belongings of others,
and to keep sexual relationships harmless to
others.
5. Right Livelihood
Right livelihood means that one should earn
one's living in a righteous way and that wealth
should be gained legally and peacefully. The
Buddha mentions four specific activities that
harm other beings and that one should avoid
for this reason: 1. dealing in weapons, 2. dealing
in living beings (including raising animals
for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution),
3. working in meat production and butchery,
and 4. Selling intoxicants and poisons, such
as alcohol and drugs. Furthermore any other
occupation that would violate the principles
of right speech and right action should be avoided.
6. Right Effort
Right effort can be seen as a prerequisite for
the other principles of the path. Without effort,
which is in itself an act of will, nothing can
be achieved, whereas misguided effort distracts
the mind from its task, and confusion will be
the consequence. Mental energy is the force
behind right effort; it can occur in either
wholesome or unwholesome states. The same type
of energy that fuels desire, envy, aggression,
and violence can on the other side fuel self-discipline,
honesty, benevolence, and kindness. Right effort
is detailed in four types of endeavours that
rank in ascending order of perfection: 1. to
prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome
states, 2. to abandon unwholesome states that
have already arisen, 3. to arouse wholesome
states that have not yet arisen, and 4. to maintain
and perfect wholesome states already arisen.
7. Right Mindfulness
Right mindfulness is the controlled and perfected
faculty of cognition. It is the mental ability
to see things as they are, with clear consciousness.
Usually, the cognitive process begins with an
impression induced by perception, or by a thought,
but then it does not stay with the mere impression.
Instead, we almost always conceptualise sense
impressions and thoughts immediately. We interpret
them and set them in relation to other thoughts
and experiences, which naturally go beyond the
facticity of the original impression. The mind
then posits concepts, joins concepts into constructs,
and weaves those constructs into complex interpretative
schemes. All this happens only half consciously,
and as a result we often see things obscured.
Right mindfulness is anchored in clear perception
and it penetrates impressions without getting
carried away. Right mindfulness enables us to
be aware of the process of conceptualisation
in a way that we actively observe and control
the way our thoughts go. Buddha accounted for
this as the four foundations of mindfulness:
1. contemplation of the body, 2. contemplation
of feeling (repulsive, attractive, or neutral),
3. contemplation of the state of mind, and 4.
Contemplation of the phenomena.
8. Right Concentration
The eighth principle of the path, right concentration,
refers to the development of a mental force
that occurs in natural consciousness, although
at a relatively low level of intensity, namely
concentration. Concentration in this context
is described as one-pointedness of mind, meaning
a state where all mental faculties are unified
and directed onto one particular object. Right
concentration for the purpose of the eightfold
path means wholesome concentration, i.e. concentration
on wholesome thoughts and actions. The Buddhist
method of choice to develop right concentration
is through the practice of meditation. The meditating
mind focuses on a selected object. It first
directs itself onto it, then sustains concentration,
and finally intensifies concentration step by
step. Through this practice it becomes natural
to apply elevated levels concentration also
in everyday situations.
so,the basic belief of Buddhism is that the
buddhist do not eat meat, do not kill, and believe
in something like reincarnation and karma.
The Four Noble Truths:
The Four Noble Truths comprise the essence of
Buddha's teachings, though they leave much left
unexplained.
The Buddha's belief Four Noble Truths explores
human suffering. They may be described (somewhat
simplistically) as:
»
Dukkha: Suffering exists: (Suffering is real
and and almost universal. Suffering has many
causes: loss, sickness, pain, failure,
the impermanence of pleasure.)
»
Samudaya: There is a cause for every suffering.
(It is the desire to have and control things.
It can take many forms: craving of
sensual pleasures; the desire for fame; the
desire to avoid unpleasant sensations, like
fear, anger or jealousy.)
»
Nirodha: There is an end to suffering. (Suffering
ceases with the final liberation of Nirvana.
The mind experiences complete freedom,
liberation and non-attachment. It lets go of
any desire or craving.)
Magga: In order to end suffering, you must follow
the Eightfold Path
The Five Precepts of buddhism:
These are rules to live by. They are somewhat
analogous to the second half of the Ten Commandments
in Judaism and Christianity -- that part of
the Decalogue which describes behaviors to avoid.
However, they are recommendations, not commandments.
Believers of buddhism are expected to use their
own intelligence in deciding exactly how to
apply these rules.
»
Do not kill. This is sometimes translated as
"not harming" or an absence of violence.
»
Do not steal. This is generally interpreted
as including the avoidance of fraud and economic
exploitation.
»
Do not lie. This is sometimes interpreted as
including name calling, gossip, etc.
» Do
not misuse sex. For monks and nuns, this means
any departure from complete celibacy. For the
laity, adultery is forbidden,
along with any sexual
harassment or exploitation, including that within
marriage. The Buddha did not discuss consensual
premarital sex within
a committed relationship; Buddhist traditions
differ on this.
»
Do not consume alcohol or other drugs. The main
concern here is that intoxicants cloud the mind.
Some have included as a
drug other methods
of divorcing ourselves from reality -- e.g.
movies, television, the Internet.
Those preparing for
monastic life or who are not within a family
are expected to follow an additional five precepts:
»
Taking untimely meals.
»
Dancing, singing, music, watching grotesque
mime.
»
Use of garlands, perfumes and personal adornment.
»
Use of high seats.
»
Accepting gold or silver.
There is also a series of eight precepts which
are composed of the first seven listed above,
followed by the eighth and ninth combined as
one. "Ordained Theravada monks promise
to follow 227 precepts!"
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