Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Horrified by what he had seen, Gautama undertook to give up his life as a prince,
leaving the palace and taking up the simple life to see if he could discover a way to end
suffering. Having sought out different religious instructors to no avail, he eventually
adopted a programme of self-denial, fasting almost to the point of death, until he
finally understood that this austerity only perpetuated the suffering he was trying to
resolve. On three successive nights, while meditating under a bodhi tree, he received
revelations leading to his
enlightenment
: on the first night he saw his former lives pass
before him; on the second night he understood the cycle of life, death and rebirth; on
the third, the four holy truths of suffering were shown to him.
Rather than passing straight to
nirvana
- a state free of suffering - as was his right as
one who had attained Buddhahood, he remained on earth to spread the
dharma
, the
doctrine of the
Middle Way
, encompassing the Four Noble Truths (see below) and
avoiding both the extremes of self-indulgence and self-denial. He preached his first
sermon at Sarnath, near Varanasi in northern India, and spent the rest of his life
travelling and teaching.
Mahayana and Theravada
Soon after the Buddha's death at the age of 80, his followers met to agree a consensus
on his teachings, which were passed on by word of mouth. By the time another
meeting of this type was called a hundred years later, variations had crept in (indeed
Buddhist teachings weren't written down until around 100 BC), leading to a schism:
two schools of Buddhism developed, Theravada and Mahayana.
Mahayana Buddhism
propounds that nirvana is accessible to everyone, and not confined only to a few
ascetics. It also holds that nirvana can be attained with the help of
bodhisattvas
(literally “enlightened beings”), future Buddhas who, rather than entering nirvana, have
chosen to remain in one of the various Buddhist heavens in order to assist other beings
along the road to enlightenment. Such bodhisattvas are worshipped in their own right
as compassionate deities. One example is Lokesvara (the local name for Avalokitesvara,
as he's usually known), whose image appears on the towers of the Bayon and elsewhere.
In contrast,
Theravada
Buddhism
(the dominant form of the religion in modern
Cambodia) does not accept the concept of the bodhisattva and holds that
enlightenment can only be attained by following a lengthy path of meditation, making
nirvana practically unattainable even for monks, let alone lay people. Ancient
Theravada Buddhist texts tell that seven Buddhas have already been to earth, the most
important of whom was Gautama, with one left to come, though later texts say that
nearly thirty Buddhas would appear (but only one per historic period). Among
Buddhist countries, it is only in Myanmar/Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka and
Thailand that Theravada Buddhism dominates.
Doctrine
Buddhism aims to release individuals from the endless cycle of birth, death and
rebirth. Each life is affected by the actions of the previous life, and it is possible to be
reborn at a higher or lower status depending on earlier actions. By right thoughts and
deeds, individuals accrue
karma
, or merit, in this life towards the next world and the
next reincarnation.
At the heart of Buddhist teachings are the
Four Noble Truths
, revealed to the Buddha
under the bodhi tree. The first is that all of human life is suffering. The second, that
suffering results from desire (the need for possessions, company, food, even for rebirth)
or ignorance (doing the right things, but in the wrong way). The third states that
suffering can cease and that the cycle of reincarnation can be broken.
The fourth truth lays down the path by which suffering is removed, namely the
Eightfold Path
, comprising right knowledge (an understanding of the Four Noble
Truths); right attitude (a quiet mind free from desire, envy and greed); right speech
(truthful, thoughtful words); right action (good moral conduct); right occupation
