Buddhism

Religion is a very complex issue to deal with. It can be interpreted through myriad ways and through
different lenses- it could be studied as a phenomena, as culture, as morals, metaphysics etc. there can
be various approaches to study religion in a historical context. Through etymology, sociological
approach, cultural-anthropological approach etc. To study religion effectively we have to take all these
views simultaneously and take cognizance of all the factors we can contextualize the historical
development of religion. This becomes particularly important while dealing with religion in the context
of ancient India as we have to deal with lack of critical sources and ‘embedded history’ in the words of
Romila thapar, concealing the historical information on religion. Here, we will deal with genesis,
development and dynamics of one such religion in India, that is, Buddhism, which for a long time, in
ancient times, remain a predominant religious force.

Buddhism and Jainism represent some sort of protest against the prevailing set of belief during 6 th
century bce, particularly the Vedic religion. There is a plethora of Buddhist canonical and non canonical
texts for our understanding of Buddhism. According to peter Harvey, initially these sources were passed
on orally, and during this oral transmission went through lot of transformation but also regulation on
the dissemination of knowledge by the sanghas, particularly a section of oral bard monks called bhand.
The introduction of writing enhanced the degree of transmission of Buddhist creed inside and outside
Indian subcontinent. According to scholars, Buddhism can be seen as both organized religion as well as a
philosophical discourse. Apart from textual sources, the period of development of Buddhism and Jainism
also correspond to great upheaval in economic, social and cultural life in the Indian subcontinent which
could be ascertained through the archaeological data available through excavations and many scholars
have tried to connect the origin of Buddhism with the changing material milieu from 6 th century bce
onwards.

According to Max Weber, Buddhism presented itself as a product of urban development, of urban
kingship and city nobles. Peter Harvey terms Buddhism along with islam and Christianity as three
missionary religions although according to him, the Buddhist missionary work in Buddhism has a “come-
see-ish” approach, that is, the monks are not allowed to preach as long as they are not invited to preach.
According to D.N.jha, the newly developed social and economic changes with the coming of city states,
2nd urbanization, merchant and artisanal classes, there were certain cultural changes as well and this
new life does not correspond to the Vedic ritualism and animal sacrifices. The conflict between the vedic
religious practices and philosophical ideas which could fit in with the changes in material life in this
period. Out of the 363 sects that emerged during this period only Jainism and Buddhism remained in
Indian subcontinent as independent religion. R.S.Sharma ascribes various causes for the origins of
Buddhism- firstly, both Buddhism and Jainism could be seen as ksatriya reaction against the ritual
dominance of Brahmanas (both Buddha and Mahavira were kshatriyas), secondly he associates
Buddhism with the coming of new agricultural economy and clearing of forests. Bullocks were crucial for
the maintenance of these agricultural economies which naturally came in conflict with the ritual killing
of cattles in big sacrifices like ashvamedha, Rajasuya, gomedha etc. thirdly, there was a dichotomy
between the ritual status of trading and artisan classes in the varna hierarchy as vaishya and their actual
prosperous and dominant economic and social status. Thus, patronage to these new emerging religions
was a way to legitimize their position and strive for upward mobility. What differentiates Buddhism and
Jainism from Hinduism is also the fact that unlike vedic religion, Buddhism and Jainism have historical
founders, canonical literature and a stong and well laid down monastic tradition and also strong
architectural reflection.

Coming to chief tenets of Buddhism, According to Buddhist philosophy, the world is transient (anicca)
and constantly changing; it is also soulless (anatta) as there is nothing permanent or eternal in it. Within
this transient world, sorrow (dukkha) is intrinsic to human existence. It is by following the path of
moderation between severe penance and self-indulgence that human beings can rise above these
worldly troubles. In the earliest forms of Buddhism, whether or not god existed was irrelevant. The
Buddha emphasized individual agency and righteous action as the means to escape from the cycle of
rebirth and attain self-realization and nibbana, literally the extinguishing of the ego and desire – and
thus end the cycle of suffering for those who renounced the world. According to Buddhist tradition, his
last words to his followers were: “Be lamps unto yourselves as all of you must work out your own
liberation.” The main teachings of Buddhism can be summarized below-

There are four “noble truths” (arya satya) that we need to take cognizance of- first, the world is full of
sorrow (dukkha); secondly, the sorrows are due to cravings (trishna); thirdly, we can liberate from this
cycle of dukkha by achieving “nibbana”(nirvana or liberation); fourthly, nirvana could be attained by
following the eight fold path (aastang marg). These 8 fold paths are- right view, right intention, right
speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration etc. Buddhist
philosophy does not talk about the concept of either god or soul though it believes in rebirths until one
attains nirvana, thus, Buddhism is also sometimes regarded as a philosophy rather than a religion or a
agnostic tradition. Buddhism totally rejects the authority of the Vedas and thus is referred to as “Nastika
School”. But beyond these broad generalizations, there are many differences within the Buddhist
tradition as well.

Soon after the death of Buddha, there were attempts to codify and interpret the teachings of Buddha.
These canons were compiled in the form of three “pitakas” or baskets- sutta Pitaka, vinaya Pitaka and
Abhidhamma Pitaka. Apart from these, lot of non canonical literature assimilated to the Buddhist corpus
some like ashvaghosha’s “buddhacharita” and nagarjuna’s “milindpanho” earned high repute. According
to Heinz Bechert, the concept of sanghas bheda or the split in sanghas was based on the question of
monastic discipline, and not doctrinal issues, but on close reading we do find certain important changes
in the doctrine of Buddhism. By the first century CE, there is evidence of changes in Buddhist ideas and
practices. Early Buddhist teachings had given great importance to self-effort in achieving nibbana.
Besides, the Buddha was regarded as a human being who attained enlightenment and nibbana through
his own efforts. However, gradually the idea of a savior emerged. It was believed that he was the one
who could ensure salvation. Simultaneously, the concept of the Bodhisatva also developed. Bodhisatvas
were perceived as deeply compassionate beings who accumulated merit through their efforts but used
this not to attain nibbana and thereby abandon the world, but to help others. The worship of images of
the Buddha and Bodhisatvas became an important part of this tradition. This new way of thinking was
called Mahayana – literally, the “great vehicle”. Those who adopted these beliefs described the older
tradition as Hinayana or the “lesser vehicle”.

These changes get reflected in the discussions in the 4 Buddhist councils organized at different points of
time for compiling teachings of Buddha and sorting out doctrinal and monastic issues. The 1 st Buddhist
council was organized in rajgriha just after the death of Buddha organized by king Ajatshatru in which
tripitakas were compiled. The second buddhist council was organized 100 years after death of Buddha
where two branches of Buddhism emerge- the mahasanghika and sthavirvadins. The great schism
between Mahayana and Hinayana/Theravada Buddhism took place in the 3 rd Buddhist council in
patliputra. Mahayana philosophy built upon and added new elements to the mahasanghika philosophy.
The 4th council in Kashmir organized by kanishka further re-emphasized this division more clearly. Apart
from these broader divisions, there were as many as 18 sects of Buddhism by early Christian centuries.
Many new philosophies and approaches of Buddhism also emerged during this time. Major
philosophical school of Buddhism includes- vaibhashik, strotantrik, yogacharya and madhyamika.out of
which madhyamika and Yogachara School attain special popularity. The idea of nihilism (shunyavad) is
an important aspect of Madhyamika School founded by nagarjuna. Yogachara School on the other hand,
focuses on meditation for attaining nirvana.

The expansion of Buddhism has a lot to do with the establishment of monastic order of Buddhist monks
and nuns. The body of disciples of the Buddha and he founded a sangha, an organization of monks who
too became teachers of dhamma. These monks lived simply, possessing only the essential requisites for
survival, such as a bowl to receive food once a day from the laity. As they lived on alms, they were
known as bhikkhus. Initially, only men were allowed into the sangha, but later women also came to be
admitted. According to Buddhist texts, this was made possible through the mediation of Ananda, one of
the Buddha’s dearest disciples, who persuaded him to allow women into the sangha. The Buddha’s
foster mother, Mahapajapati Gotami was the first woman to be ordained as a bhikkhuni. Many women
who entered the sangha became teachers of dhamma and went on to become theris, or respected
women who had attained liberation. The Buddha’s followers came from many social groups. They
included kings, wealthy men and gahapatis, and also humbler folk: workers, slaves and crafts people.
The internal functioning of the sangha was based on the traditions of ganas and sanghas, where
consensus was arrived at through discussions. If that failed, decisions were taken by a vote on the
subject. Buddhism grew rapidly both during the lifetime of the Buddha and after his death, as it
appealed to many people dissatisfied with existing religious practices and confused by the rapid social
changes taking place around them. The importance attached to conduct and values rather than claims of
superiority based on birth, the emphasis placed on metta (fellow feeling) and karuna (compassion),
especially for those who were younger and weaker than one, were ideas that drew men and women to
Buddhist teachings. Also according to scholars, Buddhism was not only more popular than Hinduism but
also Jainism as Buddhism though focusing on non violence (ahimsa), penance etc also emphasized on
the middle path (madhyam marga) rather than the extreme denunciatory tradition of Jainism.
Buddhism, unlike Jainism and Hinduism, Buddhism spread beyond Indian subcontinent as well, and
spread to almost whole of asia and beyond. Peter Harvey recognize three traditions of Buddhism in asia-
the southern tradition (predominantly Theravada like in srilanka, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam etc.), northern
tradition (predominantly Vajrayana the tantric form of Buddhism) and eastern Buddhism
(predominantly Mahayana Buddhism in china, Japan, Korea).