Buddhism

Why is in news? Scholars are now exploring Buddhist art and literature through the lens of gender and find strands of misogyny

Buddha is also called as Sakyamuni or Thathagata. He is considered as the founder of Buddhism.

He was born as Siddhartha to Suddhodhana, the ruler of Sakyan republic, and his wife Maya, on Vaisaka Purnima in the Lumbini gardens near Kapilvastu in the 6th century BC

Siddhartha married Yashodhara and had a son Rahula.

His luxury life left him dissatisfied and he was troubled by the signs of sickness, old age and death that he observed in the worldly life.

At the age of 29, he decided to leave the palace in search of peace and understanding of the world’s ills.

At the age of 35, again on Vaisaka Purnima, he attained enlightenment at what is now famously known as Bodh Gaya. He gave his first sermon in a deer park at Sarnath before his first disciples

Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana at Kusinara.

Four noble truths of Buddhism are: They are the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering.

Noble Eightfold path- Right understanding (Samma ditthi), Right thought (Samma sankappa), Right speech (Samma vaca), Right action (Samma kammanta), Right livelihood (Samma ajiva), Right effort (Samma vayama), Right mindfulness (Samma sati) and Right concentration (Samma samadhi)

4 Buddhist Councils:

PlaceRulerPresidentFeatures

Rajagriha -Ajatashatru - Mahakassappa - Tripithakas were compiled

Vaishali – Kalasoka – Sabbakami - Division into Sthaviravadins and Mahasanghikas

Pataliputra – Ashoka - Mogaliputta Tissa - Buddhist missionaries were sent to other countries

Kashmir – Kanishka – Vasumitra - Divided into Mahayana and Hinayana

Tripiṭaka: the Sutra Piṭaka, the Vinaya Piṭaka, and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka

Schools of Buddhism: Hinayana, Mahayana, Vajrayana

Five mudras:

Dharmachakra mudra - first sermon after his Enlightenment at Sarnath

Bhumisparsha mudra - Known as the ‘earth witness’, in this posture that Sakyamuni overcame the obstructions of Mara while meditating on Truth

Varada mudra - symbolizes charity, compassion and boon-granting. It is the mudra of the accomplishment of the wish to devote oneself to human salvation.

Dhyana mudra – Meditation

Abhaya mudra - symbolizes protection, peace, and the dispelling of fear