Principal Beliefs (HSC SSCE Studies of Religion): Revision Notes

Principal Beliefs

Buddhism is understood as a religious tradition that emphasises practical approaches to everyday life and ethical conduct. At the heart of Buddhist teaching lies the philosophical principle of cause and effect. This means that if suffering (or anguish) is the result, Buddhism aims to remove its root cause.

The Three Jewels

The Three Jewels represent the three fundamental elements that form the foundation of Buddhism. These are the Buddha (the person), the Dharma (the teachings), and the Sangha (the community). Together, they provide Buddhists with a framework for spiritual development and guidance.

When someone chooses to become a Buddhist, they formally "take refuge" in the Three Jewels. This involves expressing confidence in the Buddha, the teachings, and the community, usually performed in the presence of a Buddhist monk. This act represents a commitment to following the Buddhist path.

The Buddha

Different Buddhist traditions hold varying views about the Buddha's significance and role. Traditionalists view him simply as an exemplar - someone who achieved enlightenment approximately 2500 years ago and has since left the cycle of suffering. According to this perspective, he provides a model for others to follow but is no longer actively involved in worldly affairs.

In contrast, particularly in East Asian Buddhism, the Buddha is recognised as a powerful being, sometimes even regarded as a deity-like figure to whom believers can pray and request assistance. This represents a significant theological difference within Buddhism.

Initially, Buddhists were cautious about creating visual representations of the Buddha. His presence was first symbolised through footprints, serving as reminders that he once walked the Earth. Many sacred sites claim to possess the Buddha's footprint, though these are typically stylised sculptures rather than actual imprints. Later, stupas (large burial mounds containing relics) became another way to commemorate him.

Eventually, Buddhists began creating statues depicting the Buddha's physical form. These statues, characterised by graceful features and elongated ears, now appear in temples worldwide. His image and life story serve as focal points for meditation practice.

Dharma

The Dharma comprises the words spoken by the Buddha during his lifetime. In Sanskrit, Dharma means the right way of living, righteousness, and fulfilling one's purpose. In Pali (another ancient language), it is written as "dhamma".

These teachings are recited during rituals, used as guidelines for daily living, and form the foundation of Buddhist philosophical debate. The Dharma includes crucial concepts such as the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, along with accounts of teachings the Buddha shared with his disciples.

Sangha

The Sangha represents the third Jewel of Buddhism. Originally, this term referred exclusively to monks and nuns living in monasteries. They were considered precious to Buddhism because they memorised the Buddha's words and demonstrated his teachings through their lifestyle choices.

Lay Buddhists (non-monastics) look to the Sangha for spiritual guidance, meditation instruction, and advice about daily life. In return, lay followers have the responsibility of providing food for monks and nuns. Following the Buddha's example, Theravada monks and nuns leave their monasteries each day carrying begging bowls. People place food in these bowls as an act of generosity, which is believed to generate good merit (positive karma).

In contemporary usage, the term "sangha" has expanded to include the entire Buddhist community: laypeople, monks, and nuns together. This reflects a more inclusive understanding of Buddhist community.

The Four Noble Truths

After his enlightenment experience, the Buddha outlined a straightforward plan that people could follow to achieve enlightenment themselves. This plan begins with four fundamental truths:

The Buddha continued teaching these principles for 40 years following his night of revelation. He consistently emphasised that he was not a god and explicitly stated that no one should worship him after his death. The Buddha had a clear destination in mind: he sought release from the cycle of reincarnation, entering a state where all suffering is eliminated, known as nirvana.

The first truth: suffering exists (dukkha)

Suffering is woven into the fundamental fabric of existence. If we consider the Buddhist worldview of thousands of years of lives, deaths, and rebirths, this teaching places each individual life in perspective. Every person's experience includes suffering as an inescapable reality of being alive.

Sometimes the Pali word "dukkha" is translated as "anguish," suggesting a deeper yearning than simple suffering. This first truth is often expressed simply as "life is suffering," though this captures only part of its meaning. It acknowledges that pain, disappointment, and dissatisfaction are inherent aspects of human experience.

The second truth: the origin of suffering

Our senses continuously seek satisfaction, creating what Buddhists call a "thirst for life." This thirst predominantly leads to disappointment and frustration. Even when people overcome many sensory desires, they remain attached to intellectual concepts and beliefs.

The Buddha teaches that suffering arises from desire, and everything we can desire is impermanent and ultimately unobtainable. This inevitable gap between desire and reality creates disappointment, which manifests as suffering.

The third truth: the cessation of suffering

The end of dukkha is a condition the Buddha called nirvana. Essentially, nirvana - or the state free from defilement - represents the exit point from suffering. Enlightenment is typically a state achievable by those still living, who are called arhat. Nirvana is usually understood as the cessation of suffering that occurs when the cycle of samsara (rebirth) is completed, at the moment of an enlightened person's death.

The word "nirvana" literally means "quenching" or "extinction" of desire. In everyday practical terms, the cessation of suffering comes from ending attachment and desire.

The fourth truth: the Noble Eightfold Path

The Fourth Noble Truth provides practical methods for implementing Buddhist theory. It represents the pathway to attaining enlightenment and, ultimately, nirvana. By following the Noble Eightfold Path, one becomes a noble person, working systematically to end suffering.

The path represents the avoidance of two extremes: indulgence in sensory pleasure and harsh asceticism (self-denial). This balanced approach is known as "the middle way." The eight components are:

1. Right view involves having correct concepts and understanding. It means observing reality clearly, avoiding delusions and mistaken perspectives. This includes truly comprehending the principle of cause and effect.

2. Right thought means avoiding greed, anger, and ignorance. It involves distancing oneself from evil intentions, delusion, greed, and inappropriate desires.

3. Right speech represents wholesome verbal action. This includes refraining from lying, being duplicitous (double-tongued), speaking harsh or hurtful words, and using insincere flattery.

4. Right action refers to behaviour that produces wholesome physical outcomes. This includes avoiding killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct. These actions create positive karma.

5. Right livelihood concerns choosing the appropriate occupation and ethical ways of earning a living. One's work should not cause harm to others or violate Buddhist principles.

6. Right effort involves striving to do good while eliminating evil. Also known as right diligence or right skillful means, it represents dedicated practice toward positive transformation.

7. Right mindfulness is described as true contemplation, recognising that the body is impure, feelings originate suffering, thoughts are impermanent, and all phenomena are interconnected and interdependent.

8. Right concentration focuses the mind and settles the distracted body for improved spiritual practice. This primarily involves meditation practice and is considered extremely important for Buddhists.

The marks of existence

The marks of existence represent three fundamental characteristics that define all existence according to Buddhist philosophy. Understanding these marks is essential for progressing toward enlightenment.

Anicca (impermanence)

Anicca represents the absence of permanence - the principle that nothing lasts forever. Although our lives may be structured to suggest certainties exist, Buddhism teaches that there are none. Not even the self constitutes a certain and unchanging entity.

Even as we perceive the world around us, it has already changed. As things come into existence, they simultaneously begin fading and decaying. This constant flux means that nothing remains stable. Impermanence explains why desire inevitably leads to suffering: we desire things that cannot last, creating inevitable disappointment when they change or disappear.

Dukkha (suffering)

While usually translated as "suffering," dukkha connects closely to the five aggregates of personality. None of these aspects of personality proves completely satisfactory. Buddhists suggest that the self depends on:

1. The material form and physical aspects of existence in the world
2. Feelings and emotions, whether pleasant or unpleasant
3. The capacity to process sensory or mental objects, including colours, concepts, and emotional abstractions
4. The will and intention through which people define themselves
5. Discriminative consciousness - the ability to distinguish and recognise what objects consist of

According to Buddhism, the world is fundamentally "empty." At a basic level, this means those things we consider "real" are actually part of an existence that lacks substantial, independent reality. Individuality itself is merely a social and psychological construct rather than an ultimate truth. Therefore, dukkha refers to the suffering arising from a false notion of self - a common human condition perhaps best expressed as anguish, defilement, or affliction.

Anatta (non-self)

Anatta refers to the concept of non-self or the absence of an individual, permanent soul. Since all life is impermanent in Buddhism, the idea of a fixed, eternal self is equally impermanent and ultimately illusory.

Buddhists recognise that people construct a concept of self from moment to moment. This self is continuously built and rebuilt as an impermanent, ever-changing reaction to sensory experiences. Buddhist teaching describes the mind as a constant flow of unstable mental states. Consciousness resembles a flowing river, always changing in its movement. Another comparison likens the mind to a rotating wheel - only a small portion touches the earth at any given moment, just as only a small part of consciousness is active at any time.

Ultimately, accepting anatta leads to the realisation that nothing truly separates the self from every other aspect of existence. The construction of ourselves as separate individuals, distinct from all that exists, represents a fundamentally false understanding of reality.

Karma, samsara and nirvana

Several core concepts in Buddhist teaching originate from Hinduism, though Buddhism interprets them with significant differences in meaning and application. These include karma, samsara, and nirvana.

Karma

Karma represents natural law, accepted by Buddhists as unquestioningly as it was by Hindus. The law of karma is fundamentally a law of moral causation - the principle that actions have consequences. Actions and attitudes create repercussions that can affect people in their current life or in future lives.

Hindus used this doctrine to explain why souls are reborn into positions of higher or lower social status, why some people experience better fortune than others, and why some individuals possess greater capabilities. In Buddhism, where the existence of a permanent soul is questioned, karma nevertheless explains how all beings are influenced by intentional actions that accumulate effects over time. The karmic energies generated in one life accumulate and transfer into another existence.

Buddhist vegetarianism makes philosophical sense when one realises that consuming meat cuts short the earthly journey of a sentient being simply for food, whether one personally kills the animal or another does. While some Buddhist schools require monks to accept whatever food laypeople generously offer (which may include meat), many Buddhists choose vegetarianism in accordance with the principle of non-harm toward sentient beings.

Samsara

In Hinduism, samsara represents the doctrine of rebirth. In Buddhist philosophy, it functions more as a metaphorical system representing the endless cycle accompanying an unenlightened life. Nirvana provides the only means to break this unending cycle.

The karmic force generated during life continues after the physical body ceases to exist, manifesting in the next life. As a consequence of karma, sentient beings are reborn as lower or higher forms of life, continuing the search for enlightenment either in the next life or in subsequent existences. This cycle continues until enlightenment is achieved.

Nirvana

Nirvana represents the endpoint for all evolved souls. While Westerners might compare this to heaven, the comparison is somewhat misleading. Strict philosophical and Theravada Buddhists rely on what the Buddha explicitly taught: that nirvana is the complete extinguishment of all desire for life. It essentially represents a state of nothingness, a release from the cycle of samsara.

Some Buddhists explain this silence by comparing it to a frog being unable to explain to a tadpole what breathing air feels like - the experience lies beyond the comprehension of those who have not experienced it.

Other Buddhists suggest that if Buddhahood involves realising the self is ultimately a construct empty of inherent meaning, and enlightenment means recognising that everything forms part of the same unified reality, then achieving nirvana represents absolute emptiness, devoid of concept, experiencing absolute peace and the end of mortal anguish. This perspective leads to complex philosophical debates suggesting that if everything is fundamentally the same - unified by emptiness - then the self, the world, and nirvana cannot truthfully be spoken of as distinct, separate entities.