7 Buddhism Facts that
Will Surprise You
Wesley Baines
Beliefnet
Even the world's calmest
religion has its surprises.
From reincarnation to koans
to the the selection of the Dali Lama, Buddhism is a fascinating
and unique way of life with a few surprises in store for those
unfamiliar with it.
Arising from the ancient
teachings of the Buddha, it is currently the 4th largest religion
in the world, with over 495 million adherents, representing 7
percent of the global population spread out across nearly every
country in the world.
While Buddhism may seem to
be all about meditation, calmness, and quiet monasteries, it has
just as many interesting quirks as the other major belief systems
of the world. Let’s explore those quirks by taking a look at 7
Buddhism facts that will surprise you.
It was started by a
prince.
The title “buddha,” refers
to an enlightened person who has awakened from their ignorance and
achieved freedom from suffering. Hence, there is more than one
buddha.
The historical figure known
as the Buddha—capital “B”—was born near the Ganges River basin in
ancient Northern India, in what we know today as Nepal.
Before he became the
Buddha, his name was Siddhartha Gautama—his given name meaning, “he
who achieves his aim”—and he came from a royal family. His life was
one of luxury, sheltered and protected from the suffering and
violence of the world.
Around the age of 29,
Siddhartha witnessed suffering for the very first time while on a
chariot ride outside his family palace. This had a profound effect
on the man, and because of it, he subsequently renounced his wealth
and royal ties in a quest to find the cause of human suffering, and
to put an end to it.
For six years, he sought
out the best teachers of meditation, living a life marked by the
denial of his wants, begging for food in the streets. However, this
produced in him a feeling of weakness and ill health—he suffered,
and so concluded that this was not the way.
After this, he sought the
truth of suffering in yogic meditation. But in this, too, he was
unsatisfied.
Eventually, he settled on
what Buddhists call the Middle Way—a path of moderation that steers
an individual away from extremes of self-indulgence and
self-mortification.
Eventually Siddhartha sat beneath a pipal tree,
where he vowed not to arise until he found the truth. But find it
he did, and arose enlightened after 49 days of meditation, writing
down what he learned—writings that became the basis for
Buddhism.
It’s
ancient.
Most modern scholars agree
that the historical Buddha was alive between about 563 to 483 BCE.
That means that the teachings of Buddhism have been passed down for
over 2,500 years.
To give you an idea of how
ancient this is, let’s look at what else happened around the time
period in which the Buddha was alive.
Around this time, the
contemporary English city of London found its origins amidst marshy
waters near the River Thames, in the form of a few dozen huts and a
small river landing built by the Celtic king, Belin. The catapult
had also just been invented by the Greeks, and war was breaking out
between Sparta and the city-state of Elis. Jesus, founder of
Christianity, wouldn’t be born for hundreds of years.
With this in perspective,
it’s hard not to be surprised at how long the Buddha’s teachings
have been transmitted from teacher to teacher.
There is no single holy
book.
Unlike the other major
world religions, Buddhism has no single holy book from which all of
its teachings come. Instead, there is a vast number of texts and
teachings, but few that are accepted as authentic and
authoritative.
Buddhist scriptures are
called sutras, which means “thread”. This title indicates that the
work is a sermon given by the Buddha, or by one of his
disciples—many, however, have other origins.
There is a multitude of
sutras, ranging in size from a few lines to that of a large tome.
And beyond this, there are countless fables, rules for monks and
nuns, and commentaries.
To complicate matters,
Buddhism split into two major schools around 2,000 years ago,
becoming what are known today as Theravada and Mahayana. Buddhist
scriptures are divided into canons for each of these schools. And,
to go even further, the Mahayana canon is split between the Chinese
canon and the Tibetan canon.
Sound a little
overwhelming? It is. Better get reading now!
There's no Buddhist
god.
One major difference
between Buddhism and other major religions is the lack of a central
deity.
Siddhartha was just a man,
albeit an enlightened one, and made no claims to divinity at all.
Buddhists follow his teachings and try to live as he did, but they
do not worship him.
Interestingly, the Buddha,
in contrast to the gods of other faiths, encourages Buddhists to
not take his word for anything, but rather to go find out what work
for themselves—it’s all about exploring beliefs, understanding
them, and testing those beliefs against experience.
The Buddha, himself,
explains this best, when he writes, “Do not be led by reports, or
tradition, or hearsay. Be not led by the authority of religious
texts, nor by mere logic or inference, nor by considering
appearances, nor by the delight in speculative opinions, nor by
seeming possibilities, nor by the idea: ‘This is our Teacher’. But,
O Kalamas, when you know for yourselves that certain things are
unwholesome and wrong and bad, then give them up… and when you know
that certain things are wholesome and good, and that the wise
believe them to be so, then accept them and follow
them.”
This is Buddhism—it’s more
about practice than merely holding a certain set of dogmatic
beliefs.
It's closer to psychology
than religion.
One fact about Buddhism
fact that will surprise you the most is that it is closer to
psychology than religion—it’s really quite practical.
The Buddha could be seen as
an early psychologist, teaching his disciples the idea of
acceptance—that the world is a certain way, and that wishful
thinking only leads to sorrow.
One of the principal ideas
of Buddhism is that suffering comes from craving—mainly, from
wishing things were different than they are. We all wish that
sickness didn’t take hold of our bodies. We want money, friends,
and lovers. We want success and fame. We want and we want, and when
the world doesn’t align with those wants, we suffer.
But Siddhartha, in his
enlightenment, recognized the futility of this.
Buddhism fosters a mindset
that helps adherents accept the world as it really is, and to
abolish destructive cravings that lead to anger, sorrow, and
suffering.
Doing this requires
constant mindfulness—a concept that is becoming a huge trend in the
psychology field. To be mindful is simply to focus your awareness
on the present moment, while avoiding judging your thoughts and
feelings as either bad or good. It means to live totally in the
present, and it has proven to be incredibly therapeutic.
One of their leaders is
found, not chosen.
Another Buddhism fact that
may surprise you involves the Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of the
Tibetan people.
The Dalai Lama is found
rather than chosen.
The Dalai Lama is believed
to have the ability to choose the body he is reincarnated into,
meaning that each Dalai Lama is a reincarnation of the
last.
The High Lamas of the
Gelupta tradition take on the search for the reborn Dali Lama each
time the previous leader passes away. This can take years—it took,
in fact, 4 years to find the current Dalai Lama, Tensin
Gyatso.
When the High Lamas have a
vision, the search begins. They meditate at central Tibet’s holy
lake, waiting for signs that may indicate where the new Dalai Lama
resides.
When the boy is found, the
High Lamas enact a series of secret tests to make sure he is their
actual reincarnated leader—this includes presenting the boy with a
set of items, one of which belonged to the previous Dalai Lama, and
seeing if he chooses the correct one.
If chosen, the boy, family
in tow, is taken to Lhasa, where he studies the Buddhist sutra to
prepare for his place as spiritual leader of Tibet.
They study
kōans.
A Buddhist kōan is a
paradoxical statement or question that is used in Zen practice to
provoke doubt and test progress in Zen practice. Once the solution
has been found, the kōan is no longer paradoxical, and can be
understood for what it is—a profoundly meaningful statement
produced from the state of consciousness it is designed to
awaken.
They’re usually just a few
sentences in length. A well-known example is Master Hakuin Ekaku’s
question, "Two hands clap and there is a sound; what is the sound
of one hand?"
Contrary to popular belief,
these aren’t simply nonsensical statements which suddenly bring
about “Enlightenment”. They are meant to be creatively solved,
although not in the way our Western minds may expect.
This isn’t an easy process,
either. Students meditate on them for a year or more, and in some
schools, it can take up to 10 years to master all assigned
kōans.
At the most basic level a
kōan slowly breaks down a student’s conception of the way reality
works, allowing them to begin to truly “see,” through the fog of
presuppositions and expectations.
This last Buddhism fact may
surprise you simply because of its effectiveness. Paired with a
teacher, the solving of koans can breed immense clarity of
mind.
Don’t believe that? Find a
Zen master and try it out for yourself. You may just be
surprised.
Learn about the path to a
clearer vision.
Buddhism is very different
from its Western stereotypes. It is a way of life that’s focused on
alleviating suffering through a rational, emotional, and spiritual
journey toward clarity. Surprisingly compatible with Western life,
Buddhism is about cutting through prejudices and presuppositions to
get to the truth of what reality is.
And these 7 Buddhism facts
that will surprise you are only the beginning of this complex and
ancient belief system. For more information about the core
teachings of Buddhism, head here -
http://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/buddhism/buddhism-at-a-glance.aspx.