Is Theravada Buddhism for Arahatship Only?

marcteng SG

Are there Theravada Buddhists who aspire for Buddhahood?

We are glad to answer in the affirmative. But since not many of them are on record, we cannot say how many. At least there was a king in Myanmar during the Pagan Period who built a pagoda and dedicated it to the Dispensation of the Buddha. In that pagoda he left an inscription where he clearly declared his aspiration for Buddhahood; and almost all kings of ancient Myanmar considered themselves to be aspirants for Buddhahood. There are also authors of religious books, mostly monks, who mentioned their aspiration for Buddhahood at the end of their books.

So, we can say that there are not a few Theravada Buddhists who aspire for Buddhahood

http://www.budsas.org/ebud/ebdha064.htm

sinweiy SG

from Mahayana POV, they will still eventually walk the path of Buddhahood. if one cannot attain like what Buddha attain, then what's call equanimity (ping2 den3 fa3)?
Arahat will take around 20 maha kalpas to wake up from the resting of niravana and start to go for further study of bodhisattvahood and Buddhahood.
Pratyekabuddha will take around 10 mahakalpas.
it's like a person study finish poly, then they work for a while, and later feel like going to further study university per se.

reference:
http://home.earthlink.net/~mpaw12/id23.html

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An Eternal Now SG

I think you made a mistake. It's the other way round - arhat take 20 mahakalpas, pratyekabuddha take 10 mahakalpas, bcos pratyekabuddha is higher/slightly more advanced than the arhat.

An Eternal Now SG

I believe Theravada is NOT only for Arhatship. I also know and read of many Thai kings who aspired to be Buddhas. As we all know, Thailand is a Theravada Buddhist country.

However, it is also undeniable that Theravada as a sect emphasizes and focuses on practising Self-liberation - the path to Arhatship. Therefore in Buddhist history it is known as one of the 18 Hinayana sects - and the last surviving sect.

Reasons include the lack of teachings on the Bodhisattva ideals, etc etc... teachings of the One-Buddha vehicle, Bodhisattva ways, etc, are lacking or not present. This is the big difference between Theravada and Mahayana traditions.

But on the other hand, there are also many Buddhists who practise in the Mahayana sects but only attain Arhatship. Anyone - regardless of what sect - who lack the aspirations of the Bodhisattva will simply enter into Nirvana as an arhat after they reach the point of liberation. Whether you become arhat or bodhisattva is very much up to you.

Those who think 'aiya, after I attain arhatship then I continue to be Bodhisattva la', chances are he will simply attain self-liberation but the will to continue practising to Buddhahood is not there. Thus said by my dharma teacher.

marcteng SG

Yes, it depends on the individuals.

But one thing differentiates between Mahayana and Theravada practises is compassion for sentient beings.

Because of the vow to be a Buddha to save all sentient beings, he thus embarked the pathway of a bodhisattva to practise the paramittas in every life until he is perfect to be a Buddha.

Whereas an arahant is to end suffering for himself after so many innumerable existences in samsara, he seeks an end to rebirth and once he attained arahantship, this is his last life as a human, no more in the state of becoming anymore.

So, if you have accepted and adopted the Mahayana practises, you must ask yourself why you want to be a Buddha. The only reason you want to be a Buddha is to save all sentient beings isn't it. Only a Buddha has the ability to save sentient beings. To have this vow is indeed very great, but how many people can safely say thay want to save his fellow sentient beings by being a Buddha.

An Eternal Now SG

Ultimately everyone will attain full Buddhahood, Anuttarasamyaksambodhi. The fastest and most direct way is to walk to Bodhisattva path now. One should have the will to save the inner sentient being and also the outer sentient beings, only then will it be complete.

I suggest you may want to speak to a Mahayana teacher about this if you have doubts.

neutral_onliner SG

Not everyone likes the same kind of food. When a huge buffet is spread before us, we choose the dishes that we like. There is no obligation to like everything. Although we may have a taste for sweets, that does not mean that the salty dishes are not good and should be thrown away! Similarly, we may prefer a certain approach to the teachings: Theravada, Pure Land, Zen, Vajrayana, and so on. We are free to choose the approach that suits us best and with which we feel the most comfortable. Yet we still maintain an open mind and respect for other traditions. As our mind develops, we may come to understand elements in other traditions that we failed to comprehend previously. In short, whatever is useful and helps us live a better life, we practice, and whatever we do not yet understand, we leave aside without rejecting it.

While we may find one particular tradition best suited for our personality, do not identify with it in a concrete way: "I am a Mahayanist, you are a Theravadin," or "I am a Buddhist, you are a Christian." It is important to remember that we are all human beings seeking happiness and wanting to realize the truth, and we each must find a method suitable for our disposition.

sinweiy SG

yes, u are right... careless mistake. i edited already. thanks. Amituofo!

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marcteng SG

What abt Mahayana Buddhism?

Does all followers of Mahayana Buddhism all strive for Buddhahood?

sinweiy SG

Mahayana is the way of bodhisattva and bodhisattva is the way toward Buddhaood.

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marcteng SG

Yes, its good that someone is practising & walking the Mahayana's path so that more Buddha's can appear in the future to save all sentient beings.

sinweiy SG

Mahayana also known as Great vehicle that can ferry many beings.
there's also Buddha-yana. The One vehicle, Buddha vehicle(yi1 cheng4 fa3) for Buddhas.

there's a few sutras that Buddha spoken without the disciples asking, as they don't know to ask. when you read those sutras that start with "fo suo...", they are all spoken without asking.
Like the Lotus sutra, Brahma net sutra and Amitabha Sutra.
Amitabha's cultivations of pureland path is a Buddha-yana.
they are so profound that even Ven Shariputra (foremost in wisdom) also not able to ask!

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neutral_onliner SG

Generally, there are two divisions: Theravada and Mahayana. The Theravada lineage (Tradition of the Elders), which relies on sutras recorded in the Pali language, spread from India to Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, etc. It emphasizes meditation on the breath to develop concentration and meditation on mindfulness of the body, feelings, mind and phenomena in order to develop wisdom. The Mahayana (Great Vehicle) tradition, based on the scriptures recorded in Sanskrit spread to China, Tibet, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, etc. Although in the Theravadin practice love and compassion are essential and important factors, in the Mahayana they are emphasized to an even greater extent. Within Mahayana, there are several branches: Pure Land emphasizes chanting the name of Amitabha Buddha in order to be reborn in his pure land; Zen emphasizes meditation to eliminate the noisy, conceptual mind; Vajrayana (Diamond Vehicle) employ meditation on a deity in order to transform our contaminated body and mind into the body and mind of Buddha.

bohiruci SG

The One vehicle or the Buddha Vehicle is yi1 cheng4 fa3 in hanyu pinyin

please edit after you post to avoid embarassment Cool

there's a few sutras that Buddha spoken without the disciples asking, as they don't know to ask. when you read those sutras that start with "fo suo...", they are all spoken without asking.

Like the Lotus sutra, Brahma net sutra and Amitabha Sutra.
Amitabha's cultivations of pureland path is a Buddha-yana.
they are so profound that even Ven Shariputra (foremost in wisdom) also not able to ask!

There are alot of sutra which start with Buddha said (fo suo)
like Ullambana Sutta

actually a proper study of the teachings should be done before any expert will point out mistake...

there are basically 12 categories of Buddha teaching method

one of them is indeed , "self-preach or zi suo " which ,because the faculties of the ordinary ppl and arhat could not fathom the inconceivable power of Buddha Amitabha ,so Buddha preach on Amitabha Sutra

Wink

bohiruci SG

vajrayana buddhism is not totally abt employing meditation deity ,they also practise meditation in the Emptiness which is in Tibetan the Mahamudra and Dzogchen practice .

They do seek rebirth in the Western Paradise ,Especially in the Nyimgma(Red Sect) and Kagyu(White Sect)

Close follow-up and strict practise is important in Vajrayana Buddhism ,
and Exemplified by Samantabhadra (Pu3 Xian2) Bodhisattva which is in tibetan as Vajrasattva

and GuanYin as Chenresig

for better understanding of Tibetan Buddhism ,visit http://www.lamrim.com
for the 3 principal path from Je Tsongkhapa .

Tashi Deleg(Full of Dharma Joy)

Cool Cool

neutral_onliner SG

thnks Laughing

neutral_onliner SG

thnks Laughing

earthling82 SG

Hi all,

In my study of both Theravada and Mahayana, the word Arhant is most commonly disputed and also widely misunderstood.

The correct meaning of Arhant/Arhat is --> The seeking/seeker stops. And an enlightened being be it an "Arhat", bodhisattva, pratyekaBuddha or Buddha are all considered Arhants. I learnt this from a layman Professor (forgot his name). He was the curriculum planner of Mangala Vihara, coming from Sri Lanka.

In Theravada, when you see someone who aspires towards Arhant-hood, it actually means to aspire to enlightenment. There isn't a fixed goal of "Arhat" or Bodhisttva or Buddhahood.

Futhermore in Bodhisattvahood, there is this "Due to having a great vow, there in his mind actually contains no Vows". Now readers do not be in unrest. This happens because the Bodhisattva vow is not an Emotion triggered by thoughts. It is a arising from the un-arised. We may find this text in Diamond Sutra.

In some Mahayana text, we can see this. The Bodhisattva for the sake of liberating sentient beings, deserts society and lives alone in un-manned forests actively seeking self-liberation. During this period, his mind is set on self-liberation. But however this action stems from a desire to enrich the ppl around him with the Dhamma in future. Now ladies and gentlemen, is this an act of Hinayana or Mahayana?

Knowing this, we know that both Theravada and Mahayana are similar in doctrine fundamentally. Smile

An Eternal Now SG

Yes thats right. All Bodhisattvas will go through that stage. The only difference is in his aspirations.

Anyway, in Mahayana Buddhism, a Bodhisattva will no longer need to rely on vows only at the 8th Bhumi level.

sinweiy SG

Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
Anyway, in Mahayana Buddhism, a Bodhisattva will no longer need to rely on vows only at the 8th Bhumi level.[/b]

hmm..i don't know abt that. meaning?

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