Collapse

SearchPrint The Buddha and What He Taught


The Buddha and What He Taught
Date Added: 7/24/2011
Viewed: 1661 times

Copyright 1994 by the Christian Research Institute.
----------------------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHT/REPRODUCTION LIMITATIONS:
This data file is the sole property of the Christian Research
Institute. It may not be altered or edited in any way. It may
be reproduced only in its entirety for circulation as "freeware,"
without charge. All reproductions of this data file must contain
the copyright notice (i.e., "Copyright 1994 by the Christian
Research Institute"). This data file may not be used without the
permission of the Christian Research Institute for resale or the
enhancement of any other product sold. This includes all of its
content with the exception of a few brief quotations not to
exceed more than 500 words.

If you desire to reproduce less than 500 words of this data file
for resale or the enhancement of any other product for resale,
please give the following source credit: Copyright 1994 by the
Christian Research Institute, P.O. Box 500-TC, San Juan
Capistrano, CA 92693.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"The Buddha and What He Taught: Part One in a Four-Part Series on
Buddhism in North America" (an article from the Christian Research
Journal, Spring/Summer 1994, page 8) by J. Isamu Yamamoto.
The Editor-in-Chief of the Christian Research Journal is
Elliot Miller.

-------------


*SUMMARY*

In recent years Asian immigration to North America has risen
dramatically, and with these people has come their Buddhist faith.
* At the same time many non-Asian North Americans have adopted
Buddhism as their religion. * In order to present the gospel
effectively to both of these groups it is clear that Christians
need to have a fundamental understanding of Buddhism. * Siddhartha
Gautama lived over twenty-five centuries ago, but as the Buddha his
life and teachings still inspire the faith of millions of people
throughout Asia. * The Buddha rejected the religions of his day in
India and taught a new approach to religion -- a life not of luxury
and pleasure nor of extreme asceticism, but the Middle Way. * Even
in the West many find Buddhism appealing because its principles
seem sensible and compassionate.

-------------

I must confess: I love peaches. The juicy texture, the sweet
fragrance, the luscious taste -- I love everything about peaches.
I always have. As a youngster I grew up in San Jose, California.
During the fifties, San Jose was a small town nestled in the Santa
Clara Valley. At that time it was a valley full of fruit orchards.
Today it is known as "Silicon Valley," and most of the orchards are
gone. Forty years ago I could wander through orchards and enjoy
cherries, apricots, and, of course, peaches.

One day I was with my dad, who worked in the orchards as a
field hand. It was a hot sunny afternoon, and I was famished. When
I saw a tree laden with peaches, I scurried over to it. There was
one peach that was within my reach. I quickly noticed the red blush
on its orange skin, and I knew it was ripe for my enjoyment. I
touched it, and it felt soft and round in my hand. I wanted it.

Just as I was about to bite into it, my dad grabbed it out of
my hand. He looked at it closely, and then he broke it open. A
slimy worm was crawling around the core.


*OBSERVATIONS AT THE PARLIAMENT*

At the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religions, held at the
Palmer Hotel last summer in Chicago, I recalled this early lesson
about discernment. In fact, three incidents occurred during the
opening plenary session of the first day of this convocation, which
was the centennial celebration of the World's Parliament of
Religions held in Chicago in 1893, when many of the Eastern
religions were first established in North America.

Since I live in the western suburbs of Chicago, I gave myself
an hour and a half to drive into the city, park my car, obtain my
press pass, and find a seat in the Grand Ballroom where the plenary
session would occur. It was not enough time, however, for by the
time I entered the Palmer Hotel, all seats in the ballroom were
taken. Initially I kicked myself for not allowing more time, but
then I realized that God had it planned for a crowd of people to
jam me against the lower end of a railing on a stairway going
downward. As I looked over the railing, Parliament staffers were
coming up the opposite stairway, clearing the path for the
procession of dignitaries -- the religious leaders who represented
the many world religious traditions and who were to parade into the
ballroom to commence the proceedings.

Soon a high official of the Parliament directed one group after
another into the ballroom. What was amazing to me was not so much
that I was an arm's length away from these religious leaders, but
the way in which this official commanded the movements of these
people. Here were the leaders in the Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic, and
Jewish faiths. There were also Sikhs, Zoroastrians, Jains, and even
Wiccan priestesses. In addition, Catholic priests and Protestant
clerics participated in this procession. But no matter who they
were they all submitted to the directions of that Parliament
official, who ordered them about like a police officer directing
traffic.

A moment of levity occurred during the middle of this
proceeding when the Parliament official cried out, "Where are the
Protestants? Go get them!" He was obviously irritated that they had
not promptly presented themselves according to his game plan. One
of the spectators shouted, "They're upstairs having a drink." Loud
laughter then erupted just as the Protestants scurried in with meek
smiles on their faces.

This was the first incident in which I said to myself, _"These
people are like lambs led to the slaughter, but unlike lambs they
have chosen to be compliant."_

After the entire procession had finally entered the ballroom,
I hurried to the overflow room where televisions monitored the
plenary session. One dignitary after another blessed the
conference, such as Swami Ghahanananda of the Vivekananda Vedanta
Society, Lady Olivia Robertson of the Fellowship of Isis, and
Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of the Roman Catholic church. They spoke
of harmony and peace, and how this Parliament was a gigantic step
forward in achieving unity among the different faiths.

As long as they spoke into the microphone, we could hear them
well, but if they didn't, we could only observe them on the
television screens. Most of the speakers used the microphone
correctly, but one of the Native American speakers neglected the
microphone and we didn't hear anything he said. Strangely, however,
as soon as he concluded his presentation, the people in the
overflow room cheered and clapped enthusiastically.

Here was someone who could have said anything, and the people
in the room would have demonstrated their highest approval. I was
amazed at how easily swayed were the people who attended this
Parliament. This was the second incident that reminded me of how
alluring was that peach.

Toward the end of the plenary session, Rev. Gyomay Kubose of
the Buddhist Council of the Midwest offered his blessing to the
conference. Kubose spoke directly into the microphone, and his
words were clear and easily understood. He too urged people to
promote world peace and universal brotherhood. He said we must
create harmony. He then read an ancient Buddhist poem, which said
that there is one source, one law, and that "all life is one."

How wonderful for Kubose and all the other speakers to
encourage peace and harmony among different peoples of different
faiths! Their words sounded good. They were certainly appealing.
Indeed, they were enchanting. But were they really saying what we
thought we heard? Was what appeared on the _surface_ of what they
were saying at the _core_ of their beliefs as well? Can there
really be harmony among all the world religions?

Since I have been a Christian for over 25 years and have
seriously studied Buddhism for nearly 20 years, I believe there
cannot be this harmony. Kubose's words were a third indication to
me that a very alluring, but also very corrupt peach was being
presented at the Parliament of the World's Religions.

In this article and the three that will follow, I would like to
demonstrate how there can be no harmony between the Buddhist
doctrine and the Christian faith. I will also reveal how we as
Christians can show this difference to Buddhists who are currently
living in our society.

In the past 20 years the number of legal and illegal Asian
immigrants into North America has increased dramatically. In fact,
estimates of the number of illegal immigrants alone entering
America each year range from 50,000 to 500,000. With these people
has come their Buddhist faith. Most Americans of Asian descent
still are professing Buddhists, which accounts for a sizable
population. For example, according to the 1990 U.S. Census, over
800,000 Americans point to Japan as their nation of origin. At the
same time thousands of non-Asian North Americans have adopted
Buddhism as their religion. Not surprisingly, there are now over
one thousand Buddhist temples, monasteries, and centers in the
United States.

Of course, Buddhists belong to many religious traditions, and
in many cases it seems that there is little similarity between the
various schools of Buddhism. Nevertheless, all Buddhists point back
to the Buddha as the founder of their religion and accept certain
fundamental principles that he taught. Therefore it is important
that we preface our examination of Buddhism in America with a look
at the life and teachings of this historical figure.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

GLOSSARY

*caste system:* Social groups in India that rank in a hierarchic
order and within which there is a minimum of social mobility.

*Pali Canon:* The most complete and generally regarded as the
earliest collection of canonical literature in Buddhism.

*Sanskrit:* The sacred language of India, which the Indians
consider "the language of the gods"; means "perfected" and
"cultured."

*Theravada (Theravadin tradition):* The oldest surviving Buddhist
tradition, which flourishes in parts of Southeast Asia and is known
as "the doctrine of the elders."

-------------------------------------------------------------------

*THE BUDDHA*

Over three thousand years ago the Aryans (a powerful group of
Indo-European-speaking people) spread in several directions
throughout Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia. After
conquering the Indus valley, the Aryans instituted Brahmanism
(today it has developed into Hinduism) and the caste system in the
Indian culture, which enabled the invaders to maintain the purity
of the Aryan race and establish themselves as spiritual and social
masters over the native Indians. The Brahmin (or Brahman) priests
further centralized their power over all the castes and soon set up
a religious monopoly for a privileged few.

In the sixth century B.C., a number of important religious
traditions were formed. One was Jainism, which was founded by
Mahavira and has survived to this day. Another was the birth of
Buddhism, which was to rival Hinduism as a major world religion.
The founder of Buddhism was Siddhartha Gautama, revered by millions
of people throughout the world today.

The biography of Siddhartha Gautama was not written during his
lifetime.[1] The earliest available accounts of his life were
collected some three hundred years after his death. Since then,
both historical and legendary descriptions of his life have been
included in the Pali Canon and Sanskrit accounts. Historians have
debated where to draw the line between history and legend, but no
one can know what are the facts. What follows is an account of the
Buddha which most Buddhists accept but which almost certainly
contains much myth. Nevertheless, whether the stories about
Siddhartha Gautama be true or myth, his life has been and still is
an inspiration and model for all Buddhists.

Siddhartha Gautama[2] probably was born in 563 B.C. and died
about eighty years later.[3] His father was King Suddhodana
Gautama, a raja (or chieftain) of the Sakya clan, a family of the
Kshatriya (warrior-nobility) caste of ancient Bharata. His father
reigned over Kapilavastu, a small district on the Indian slope of
the Himalayas in a region that borders between India and Nepal.

At birth Gautama (his family name) received the name of
Siddhartha, meaning "he who has accomplished his objectives." He is
also called Sakyamuni ("the wise sage of the Sakya clan"), Bhagavat
("blessed with happiness"), Tathagata ("the one who has gone
thus"), Jina ("the victorious"), and, of course, the Buddha ("the
Enlightened One").

During Siddhartha's infancy, the sage Asita[4] visited King
Suddhodana's court and prophesied that Siddhartha would become
either a great ruler like his father if he remained within his
father's palace or a Buddha if he went forth into the world. King
Suddhodana believed that if his son observed human misery in the
world, Siddhartha would leave his home to seek for truth.
Naturally, the king wanted his son to ascend to his throne after
his death. Therefore, he issued strict orders to his subjects that
the young prince was not to see any form of evil or suffering.

As Siddhartha grew to manhood, he manifested extraordinary
intelligence and strength. For example, at the age of sixteen
Siddhartha won the hand of his cousin, Yashodara, by performing
twelve marvelous feats in the art of archery.[5] Siddhartha might
have married other women, but if so, Yashodara was evidently his
principal wife.

Meanwhile, despite the diligence of his father to sequester him
from the sight of evil and suffering, Siddhartha decided to elude
the royal attendants and drive his chariot four times through the
city. During his excursions outside his father's palace, he
observed an old man, a leper, a corpse, and an ascetic.[6] He
realized from his observations that life was full of sorrows and
that happiness was an illusion. Thus Siddhartha became aware of
human suffering.

On the same night in which Yashodara gave birth to their son
Rahula, Siddhartha left his family and kingdom to seek for
truth.[7] Siddhartha certainly anguished over his decision to leave
everything he loved, but now that his son, whose name means
"hindrance," was born and could continue the royal line, he felt
free to begin his spiritual quest. He took his faithful servant
Channa and his devoted horse Kanthaka as far as the forest, where
he shaved off his hair and changed his robes. He left them there
and began a pilgrimage of inquiry and asceticism as a poor beggar
monk.[8]

For six or seven years, Gautama sought communion with the
supreme cosmic spirit, first through the teachings of two Brahmin
hermits and then in the company of five monks. He practiced the
traditional methods of asceticism such as fasting. Other physical
austerities included sleeping on brambles to mortify the desires of
his body and abstaining from sitting by crouching on his heels to
develop his concentration. For long periods he ate nothing except
a single grain of rice each day.

Despite all these efforts, Siddhartha did not succeed in
attaining truth. Finally, in a moment of profound insight he
realized that his life as an ascetic was of no greater value than
his previous life as a prince. Self-torture was vain and fruitless;
privation was no better than pleasure. He understood then the
importance of what he called the Middle Way. Abandoning a life of
extreme austerities, Siddhartha ate solid food. This act angered
his fellow monks, who thought Siddhartha had weakened and suc***bed
to his physical needs. They promptly deserted him, thoroughly
disgusted with his seeming worldliness.

On the wide bank of Meranjana at Gaya (a major city in
northeast India) near the village of Urvela, Siddhartha sat at the
foot of a fig tree (commemorated as the Bodhi tree). There Mara,[9]
the evil one, tried to thwart Siddhartha from becoming the Buddha,
enticing him with worldly temptations during his meditations.
Siddhartha withstood all the challenges and experienced the
revelation of liberating awareness -- the way that provides escape
from the cruel causality of samsara (the cycle of rebirths). He
discovered the Four Noble Truths, which became known as
_Pativedhanana,_ the wisdom of Realization. Siddhartha henceforth
was the Buddha -- the Enlightened One.

After his enlightenment, the Buddha was faced with a crucial
decision. He could either renounce the world and withdraw with his
knowledge as most monks did who thought they had attained spiritual
truth, or he could remain with people and share the Four Noble
Truths with those who also sought truth. Out of his compassion for
others, the Buddha chose the later. Thus the followers of the
Buddha believe that Buddhism is built not only on truth, but also
on compassion -- both wisdom and compassion are equally important
to the Buddhist faith.

In the Deer Park at "Isipatana" (near the Ganges River in
northeast India) two months after he had experienced enlightenment,
the Buddha gave his first sermon, setting in motion the Wheel of
the Law, the symbol of the Buddhist faith and of the Buddha as
well. There he approached the five monks who had deserted him. At
first they ignored him, but finally they sensed that he had
achieved some kind of realization of truth. So they sat and
listened to his teachings and were soon converted. He received them
into the _Sangha,_ the mendicant order that has spread the _Dharma_
(the doctrine of the Buddha) and the _Vinaya_ (the disciplinary
regulations concerning Buddhist conduct).

For more than 40 years the Buddha dedicated himself to his
ministry. Although he did not proselytize among the masses, he was
concerned for others and was fired with a zealous sense of mission.
The Sangha quickly grew. Many people were attracted to this man who
was calm, reasonable, gentle, and who possessed a sense of humor.

The Buddha was 80 when Cunda the blacksmith served him pig's
flesh or, perhaps, mushrooms. He became extremely ill. Before he
passed away, he sent a message to Cunda saying that he should not
feel guilty for being the cause of his death, for it was destined
to be. The Buddha died at Kusinara (modern Kasia) in the district
of Gorakhpur. Just before his death, he exhorted his disciples not
to grieve. His last recorded words were: "Decay is inherent in all
component things! Work out your own salvation with diligence."[10]

The Buddha probably never believed he was a god but rather that
he was an enlightened human being.


*THE DHARMA*

Dharma is an Indian term, which can mean either conformity to
one's duty within society or the basic principles of one's
existence within the universe. In its general sense it is simply
understood as the law of life. Within Buddhism, the Dharma took on
a more specific meaning, being understood as the teachings of the
Buddha.

After the death of the Buddha, his disciples convened their
first council at Rajagrha, where they tried to organize his
teachings within a system of doctrines on which they could agree.
These teachings were then orally passed down to future generations
of Buddhist monks within various Buddhist communities in India.
About four centuries later, in about 80 B.C., Buddhist scribes
finally compiled the teachings of the Buddha on paper, which became
the Pali Canon. The written collection of the Buddha's teachings is
also called the _Tripitaka_ (the "three baskets") because they
contain rules for conduct, methods for spiritual attainment, and
the ethics taught by the Buddha.

Like many of his contemporaries, the Buddha protested against
the aristocratic religion of his day, first because it was corrupt
and tyrannical, and second because it was too refined and
intellectual for the common people. His teachings were open to all
who would listen, and they were taught incisively and clearly so
that they could be understood and experienced.

The religious tyranny of the Brahmins in India was
uncompromising. The Brahmins held that the opportunity for the
union of the individual soul (_Atman_) with the Universal Soul
(_Brahman_) was reserved for the sage caste and that only through
numerous rebirths could lower castes enter into this caste. Since
the spiritual hope of the Indian people was to someday become one
with Brahman, this doctrine forced all other castes to submit to
the rules of the Brahmin priests in order to attain to higher
castes through rebirths. Not only this, but also it created an
atmosphere of awe and fear of Brahmin authority.

Contrary to the prevailing Brahmin doctrine, the Buddha
recruited disciples from all castes. According to him, nirvana
(deliverance from suffering) is extended to everyone who strictly
obeys the laws of a monastic life, not withstanding their caste
prior to conversion. The Buddha, however, did not seek to abolish
the caste system. Instead, he believed it was necessary for the
framework of the temporal life. Since Buddhist monks were committed
to the Dharma, only they were exempt from caste distinctions.
Nevertheless, however much the Buddha accepted the caste system
sociologically, his teachings on this issue were a gigantic step
forward in reforming the religious corruption of his day in Indian
culture.

In addition, the Buddha argued against the philosophical
speculations of the Brahmin priests, who tried to join the concept
of the soul's oneness with God (Brahman) and the concept of
reincarnation into a coherent theological system. The Buddha
rejected these speculations as futile because he believed they
prevented spiritual seekers from achieving true enlightenment. He
considered such speculations as vain and nonproductive.

Furthermore, the Buddha rejected subservience to a supreme God
and denied belief in an eternal self. His concept of karma (the
transcendental effect in a person's life of actions accomplished in
that person's previous existences) has sometimes been
misunderstood. Certainly he believed that karma determines the kind
of rebirth a person experiences according to past merit. The
Buddha, however, did not believe there is a self or soul that is
reborn. Instead, he taught that at birth there is a rearrangement
of the elements of a person's identity, which are called the "self"
-- much as a "chariot" is a name for a certain grouping of parts
that can be rearranged to be something else while still comprising
the same parts.

The Buddha also defined nirvana differently from the Brahmins.
Whereas in Brahmanism, nirvana or _moksha_ is attained when the
individual soul becomes one with the Universal Soul, the Buddha
held that nirvana is actually the termination of rebirths -- that
is, the identity of an individual is extinguished. One way to
distinguish classical Hindu teaching from Buddhist teaching on this
subject is to present the traditional metaphors taught in these two
religions. In describing nirvana symbolically in classical
Hinduism, the individual self is like the raindrop that falls into
the ocean, becoming one with the Universal Soul. In describing
nirvana symbolically in Buddhism, the identity of a person is like
a candle flame that is blown out.

The Buddha taught that true nirvana is not immediately
accessible -- several lives are required to achieve it. He declared
that if nirvana depended only on the suppression of all feeling and
thought, then the deaf, the blind, and the insane could enter into
it. Instead, he said the journey to nirvana is long and difficult,
but the fruits of this spiritual quest are inner peace and harmony
with all beings prior to nirvana and finally deliverance from
suffering at nirvana.

The Buddha believed that suffering dominates the lives of all
human beings, and he taught a practical way of deliverance from
suffering. These teachings on suffering are the heart of the Dharma
and are known as the Four Noble Truths: (1) the universality of
suffering, (2) the origin of suffering, (3) the overcoming of
suffering, and (4) the way leading to the suppression of suffering.
The first Truth defines the nature of being; the second and third
Truths develop various aspects of being; and the fourth Truth
indicates a practical way to deliverance from suffering.

The first Noble Truth is known as _Duhkha._ The Buddha taught
that all people discover that life is full of sorrow through the
experience of birth, aging, and death. Contrary to the pantheism of
Brahmanism which taught that a divine thread is woven in all
beings, the Buddha spoke of the self as a temporal creation cursed
with suffering until deliverance is achieved.

The second Noble Truth is _Tanha._ The Buddha taught that
suffering is caused by the false desires of the senses that have
been deceived into clinging to the impermanent world. A hopeless
quest for immortality further aggravates human pain, either because
people are obsessed with survival or because they fear the failure
of obtaining ultimate peace.

The third Noble Truth teaches how deliverance from suffering
can be attained. If the false desires of a changeable and
perishable self cause suffering, then the desires need to be
suppressed, abandoned, or rejected in order to nullify their
effects. Ignorance of the way of deliverance and the delusion that
there is a permanent self are the primordial cause of suffering.

The fourth Noble Truth is the Buddhist ethic, which the Buddha
taught as the Noble Eightfold Path. It is a sacred path with eight
branches called: right views or understanding, right aspirations,
right speech, right conduct or action, right livelihood, right
effort or endeavor, right mind control or concentration, and right
mindfulness. These eight branches are not stages that can be lived
out in succession or isolation from one another. Rather they are
different dimensions of a total way of life.

According to the Buddha, suffering is the result of selfish
desires that chain people to the wheel of insubstantial impermanent
things. Living according to the Dharma aims at eliminating these
selfish desires in ways described in the fourth Noble Truth, thus
guiding the individual to nirvana.

Although the Buddha did not deny the existence of gods, he
taught that the worship of gods obstructed one's quest for nirvana.
To him the gods inhabit the cosmos and are impermanent like all
other living beings. Thus they too must escape rebirth through
nirvana. Ironically many Buddhists revere the Buddha above the
gods. What was important to the Buddha, however, was certainly not
the worship of gods or himself but the following of his teachings.


*THE SANGHA*

After the Buddha addressed his first sermon to the five monks
near Benares, he continued to preach the Dharma to his followers
rather than to the masses. The five monks and those disciples who
came later became the first Buddhist monastic order known as the
Sangha, a society of Buddhist believers. During the Buddha's
lifetime, these Buddhist monks were wandering beggars and not
priests. They tried to exemplify the way of deliverance through the
conduct of their lives. If a person wanted to learn the Dharma and
become a part of the Sangha, he had to become a beggar-monk.

Those who did join the Sangha were usually at least 15 years
old. After one was accepted as a novice, his head was shaven to
symbolize his renunciation of the world. He was then given a new
name and a new robe. Finally, he made the vows of a Buddhist monk.
Later, after having completed his term as a novice and having been
accepted into the order, he again was given a new name and a new
robe. At any time, as a novice or a full monk, he could return to
lay life either temporarily or permanently.

The Buddha taught the Middle Way to his followers. He wanted
them to abstain from self-torture as well as self-indulgence.
Therefore, these early Buddhists renounced the world and material
comforts, but they also rejected severe self-mortification.

Heated debate currently rages in Buddhist circles over the
Buddha's teaching concerning women in the Sangha. Certainly women
had great difficulty being accepted into the Buddhist community.
Some say the Buddha was deeply suspicious of women: since he taught
against the physical temptations of the world, he must also have
denounced the sensual attraction that women exercise on men.
Therefore, the Buddha continually warned his disciples against the
sinister guile of women.

For a long while, the Buddha apparently resisted having women
in the Sangha, but finally he consented to their becoming a part of
his wandering entourage of followers. Nevertheless, numerous
restrictions were placed on the nuns. First and foremost, the nuns
were subject to the authority of the monks in all cir***stances. "A
nun," the Buddha laid down, "though she be a hundred years old must
reverence a monk, rise on meeting him, salute him with clasped
hands and honor him with her respects, although he may have been
received into the order only that day."[11]

Some Buddhists continue to hold this kind of attitude toward
women within their Buddhist community. But other Buddhists argue
that the Buddha went against the male chauvinism in his culture by
permitting women to serve in prominent roles within the Sangha. His
remarks about women, they say, were made because he could only
communicate on the level that his listeners could spiritually grasp
at the time. Later Buddhists would come to realize that women have
equal value to men, which the Buddha already knew. It is indeed
interesting that today the teachings of the Buddha attract a strong
following within the feminist movement in the West.

Meanwhile, the laity during the Buddha's lifetime were
permitted to follow his teachings while they continued to live in
the world. Although they could earn some benefits (such as material
prosperity) for aiding the monks in the Sangha, the laity could not
attain nirvana or receive any of the higher fruits of the Dharma
(such as inner tranquillity). One significant benefit they could
receive from their dedication to the Buddha and their generosity to
the Sangha was that they could be reborn as a person who becomes a
beggar-monk -- for only total renunciation of the world leads to
deliverance.

After the Buddha passed away, his followers continued to wander
from village to village, spreading his doctrine of deliverance from
suffering and receiving food, clothing, and sometimes shelter. As
the Sangha grew, the Buddhist monks broke apart from one another,
forming numerous groups with each interpreting the Dharma a little
differently than the others.

During the rainy season, wealthy landowners would provide
shelters for many of these groups of monks. In time one group after
another would accept the patronage of a landowner. Thus monasteries
were established throughout India, the Sangha eventually evolving
from a society of wandering monks and nuns to a community of
Buddhist monasteries.

Since a systematic Buddhist theology was apparently not put
into written form until four centuries after the Buddha's death,
schisms split the Sangha as Buddhists within different monasteries
argued over the content of the Dharma. By the close of the third
century B.C., the Buddhists were separated into no less than 18
schools. Three major branches of Buddhism eventually developed:
Theravada ("the doctrine of the elders"), Mahayana ("the Great
Wheel"), and Vajrayana ("the Diamond Vehicle"). How these branches
of Buddhism reveal themselves in the West will be the subject of my
next three articles on Buddhism. At this point it is enough to know
that the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha are known as the "Three
Jewels" of Buddhism.


*FURTHER OBSERVATIONS AT THE PARLIAMENT*

As the various forms of Buddhism have arrived in the United
States, there has been a general desire among these schools to
achieve some type of unity. But just as the leaves of a maple have
their source in the same tree, yet must inevitably fall and go
their own way because of their individuality, so the individual
Buddhist schools have divided and separated because of their
difference in practice and doctrine, despite their common origin.
Now the Eastern winds are blowing across the West and bringing with
them foliage of a variety of shapes, colors, and designs, but all
from the same tree.

How should we, as Christians, respond to the presence of these
people who follow the teachings of the Buddha in our society?
Should we demand that they get rid of their idols? Should we forbid
that they teach their false doctrines in our Christian country?
Should we tell them to go back to where they came from?

These questions came to my mind at the Parliament of the
World's Religions during one of the Buddhist sessions. The speaker,
Havanapola Ratanasara, a Sri Lankan and president of the American
Buddhist Congress, was enraged. Evidently he had come across a
handout that Christians were passing out at the conference. After
bitterly commenting on the handout, he read a portion of its
content, which stated that the reader would be blessed "if you obey
the Bible and cursed if you don't....You may come here from another
nation as an individual but you may not bring your gods, festivals,
your temples and your priests, nor your statutory ways, because
they violate the blessings of our country and bring on God's
judgment."[12]

Needless to say, these words not only infuriated the speaker
but also angered most of his listeners. At that moment the handout
confirmed in their minds that Buddhism is a religion of tolerance
and peace while Christianity is a religion of bigotry and
ignorance.

In one sense, the teachings of Christ _are_ intolerant. Jesus
quite frankly said there is no way to the Father except through
Himself. In another sense, this handout disturbed me as well. I
don't mind being ridiculed by nonbelievers because I believe that
only in Christ can we find salvation. I do mind, however, when my
witness is linked with a provincial and condemning attitude.

At a time when many countries are closing their doors to
Christian missionaries, I welcome the opportunity to share my faith
with Buddhists who are coming to our shores. Indeed, we should see
the immigration of Buddhists to North America as an opportunity to
share the Gospel with these people rather than a reason for God to
angrily punish the United States and Canada. For that reason I want
to examine the beliefs of the three major types of Buddhists who
live in our communities in the next three issues of the CHRISTIAN
RESEARCH JOURNAL -- not for the purpose of equipping Christians
with information so they can clobber Buddhists with the truth, but
for the purpose of enabling Christians to intelligibly convey to
them with power and grace the wonderful news that Jesus has died
for them.

I have one final observation to share regarding my experiences
at the Parliament. I attended another Buddhist session, which was
held in a small room. There were about 20 people squeezed in this
room to hear Yoga Guru, an elderly holy man from India, talk about
Nagarjuna (Nagarjuna is as important to Buddhism as Paul is to
Christianity) and the philosophy of emptiness in Buddhism.

After this modest gentleman spoke for about 10 minutes about
Nagarjuna's background, one of his listeners interrupted him. He,
like most of the listeners, was a Caucasian Westerner who was not
really interested in what Yoga Guru had to say. Instead, after
briefly saying how wonderful are the teachings of the Buddha and
Nagarjuna, he then encouraged all the people in the room to chant
the sacred Hindu word OM. For the rest of the session, everyone --
except myself -- chanted this word.

From my 20 years of interacting with people of other faiths, I
knew that these people were much like most Westerners who dabble in
Eastern religions. They are far more interested in what they can
mystically experience than what they can theologically understand.
Using the metaphor of the peach once more, they would prefer to
enjoy the consumption of the fruit rather than examine the quality
of its content.

Clearly, how we present the Gospel to _these people_ must be
different than how we present it to _Asian Buddhists._ This is
another subject that I would like to address in my upcoming
articles on Buddhism.

The life and teachings of the Buddha can be quite enchanting
with their emphasis on compassion and wisdom. The call for peace
and harmony among people of different faiths can also be alluring.
But what is the fruit that is really being offered? What will it
cost those who partake of it? As Christians, we will resist such a
temptation. But we must also be like my dad. We must open the fruit
in the sight of Buddhists of all backgrounds so they can see what
is crawling inside of it.


*NOTES*

1 My primary source for the biography of Siddhartha Gautama is
_The Life of Buddha as Legend and History_ by Edward J. Thomas
(London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1969).
2 Devout Buddhists avoid the use of his personal name and refer to
him as the Buddha.
3 Theravadin tradition dates his birth at 623 B.C.
4 Other accounts say he was visited by eight Brahmin holy men.
5 Other texts give her such names as Yasohara, Bhaddakacca, and
Bimba.
6 Other accounts say he merely envisioned these four states of
humanity.
7 Other accounts say he was born seven days before; others say
that his mother conceived him that night.
8 Some accounts say his horse died of a broken heart and was
reborn a god.
9 The name _Mara_ is found in Sanskrit accounts outside of
Buddhist texts in the identity of death, but not as a character.
In early Buddhist texts, Mara appears as a demonic figure who
personifies at various times evil, transitory pleasure, and
death.
10 Christmas Humphreys, _Buddhism_ (London: Penguin Books, 1951),
41.
11 Henri Arvon, _Buddhism_ (New York: Walker and Co., 1962), 55.
12 This handout was produced by the ***berland Missionary Society
in Evensville, Tennessee.

-------------

End of do***ent, CRJ0173A.TXT (original CRI file name),
"The Buddha and What He Taught: Part One in a Four-Part Series on
Buddhism in North America"
release A, February 28, 1995
R. Poll, CRI

(A special note of thanks to Bob and Pat Hunter for their help in
the preparation of this ASCII file for BBS circulation.)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

The Christian Research Journal is published quarterly by the
Christian Research Institute (CRI) -- founded in 1960 by the late
Dr. Walter R. Martin. While CRI is concerned with and involved
in the general defense of the faith, our area of research
specialization is limited to elements within the modern religious
scene that compete with, assault, or undermine biblical
Christianity. These include cults (that is, groups which deny
essential Christian doctrines such as the deity of Christ and the
Trinity); the occult, much of which has become focused in the
contemporary New Age movement; the major world religions; and
aberrant Christian teachings (that is, teachings which compromise
or confuse essential biblical truth).

Regular features of the Journal include "Newswatch," witnessing
tips and book reviews.

CHRISTIAN RESEARCH JOURNAL RATES: (subject to change)

One Year Two Years

U.S. Residents [ ] 20.00 [ ] 37.00

Canadian (U.S. funds) [ ] 24.00 [ ] 44.00

Other Foreign (U.S. funds) [ ] 36.00 [ ] 66.00


Please make checks payable to CRI

To place a credit card order by phone, call us toll-free at:
(800) 2-JOURNAL


To subscribe to the Christian Research Journal, please print this
coupon, fill in the necessary information and mail it with your
payment to:

CRI, P.O. Box 500-TC, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693-0500

[ ] Yes! I want to subscribe to the Christian Research Journal.

Name: ___________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________

City, State, ZIP: __________________________________________

Country: _______________ Phone: ____________________________




YOURS FOR THE ASKING

Did you know that CRI has a wealth of information on various
topics that is yours for the asking? In fact, a free
subscription to the Christian Research Newsletter is yours if you
contact CRI and ask for one saying that you found out about the
offer from this computer text file. We offer a wide variety of
articles and fact sheets free of charge. Write us today for
information on these or other topics. Our first-rate research
staff will do everything possible to help you.

Christian Research Institute
P.O. Box 500-TC
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693

(714) 855-9926

---------------
End of file.


CommentAdd Comment/Rating


Other Articles by this Author

Back
Set us as your default homepage Bookmark us Privacy  This website has been created in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ—the name above every other name! Viewers: Members and Guests Page load time 0.852 seconds Go To Top Of Page