Talk:Buddhism/Lead workshop

2004 introduction

Buddhism is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (Sanskrit; in Pali, Siddhattha Gotama), who lived between approximately 563 and 483 BCE. This religion originated in India and gradually spread throughout Asia, to Central Asia, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, as well as the East Asian countries of China, Mongolia, Korea, and Japan.

Buddhism is unusual among world religions because it does not involve the worship of gods or other higher beings. Buddhism does not deny the existence of gods, and they are frequently referred to in Buddhist scripture, but they are not regarded as ultimate powers in the universe or as special sources of salvation. For the Buddha, the key to liberation was mental purity and correct understanding, and for this reason he rejected the notion that we can gain salvation by petitioning a distant deity.

To shun all evil.

To do good.

To purify one's heart.

This is the teaching of the Buddhas.

—Dhammapada, XIV, 5

Buddhism largely consists of the doing of good action, the avoidance of bad action, and mental training. The aim of these practices is to put an end to suffering and achieve enlightenment; either for one's self, or for all beings. Enlightenment is considered to be touching or abiding in nirvana (Sanskrit; Pali: nibbana), which means "extinguishing" or "extinction."

Buddhist morality is guided by principles of non-harm and moderation. Buddhists frequently use formal sitting meditation, and also often chanting and walking meditation. Buddhists use such techniques to try to gain insight into the fundamental operations of human psychology, the causal processes of the world, or both.

Comments

To shun all evil.

To do good.
To purify one's heart.

This is the teaching of the Buddhas.

— Dhammapada, XIV, 5

• The Dhammapada quote breaks the flow, but might be worth including. It could be turned into a floating box as seen at right. ‣ᓛᖁᑐ 17:28, 28 January 2006 (UTC)

RandomTask's introduction

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, who lived in what is now the border region of Northern India and Nepal between 563 and 483 BCE. Buddhism spread throughout the ancient Indian sub-continent in the five centuries following his death. It continued to spread into Central, Southeast, and East Asia over the next two millennia.

With approximately 708 million followers, Buddhism is a major world religion whose adherents are called Buddhists. Buddhist denominations are historically categorised into two parent traditions, Mahayana and Theravada, divided on the efficacy of doctrine and practice. The Vajrayana tradition is often extricated from Mahayana categorization on the basis of its tantric and linguistic heritage.

The Theravada traditions recognize the sole authority of the (Pali Canon/Tripitaka) on matters of doctrine, which is comprised of the Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutta Pitaka, and the Abhidhamma. The name "Theravada", lit, "School of the Elders" pays homage to the Pre-Mahayana orthodox Buddhist doctrine that forms the school's doctrinal body.

The Mahayana traditions recognize the doctrinal foundation of the Tripitaka but also recognize the more esoteric teachings of the Mahayana Sutras as well as modifications to the Vinaya Pitaka arguing that adherents with different spiritual attainments require different teachings and differing strictures on behavior. The name "Mahayana", lit, "the Greater Vehicle" is styled on the breadth and self-reverent quality of the Mahayana doctrine and motivation, the Bodhisattva ideal.

The aim of Buddhist practice is to attain the realization of true reality (nirvana) by escaping the cycle of rebirth (samsara) (Pāli, Sanskrit), and preventing the cultivation of unwholesome Karma. To achieve this, one should purify and train the mind and act morally.

Comments

Should we discuss it here or on the talk page itself? --Klimov 21:29, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

I think this is the better place to discuss changes; hopefully this will help keep things focused and easy to keep track of. ‣ᓛᖁᑐ 01:35, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

• Anyways... 'divided on the efficacy of doctrine and practice' seems not correct. AFAIK, the efficacy of the practice depends on the type of person. Because of that there are 84000 types (i.e. a lot) of teachings for 84000 types of beings. Example: Milarepa.

• AFAIK, use of Theravada above is not correct. Theravada is only one of the Hinayana schools, even if the only existing one. There were many different Hinayana schools after parinirvana of Buddha Shakyamuni.

It's probably better to refer to the Nikaya schools, since there's confusion over what Hinayana means. (You do mean the Nikaya schools, right?) I agree it would be better to not gloss these as historical categories; the lead should summarize what Buddhism is now, leaving history for later. ‣ᓛᖁᑐ 17:06, 28 January 2006 (UTC)

• 'The aim of Buddhist practice is to attain the realization of true reality (nirvana) by escaping the cycle of rebirth (samsara) (Pāli, Sanskrit), and preventing the cultivation of unwholesome Karma. To achieve this, one should purify and train the mind and act morally.'

The above seems too simplistic. --217.185.87.96 21:18, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

There seems to be a kind of wiki sign-in problem or something. The above signature belongs actually to --Klimov 21:29, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

You're right. I think I prefer the last two paragraphs of the 2004 introduction here. ‣ᓛᖁᑐ 17:08, 28 January 2006 (UTC)