Buddhist Morality By:Dan Behr

Image Of Buddha in Meditation/Click on Image for Biography of Buddha's life

Biography of Buddha Buddha was born Siddhartha Gautama, son of the powerful king of the Sakhyas, sometime in the early 560's B.C.E. Many Buddhist believe that the Buddha was conceived when a dream elephant carrying a lotus flower in his trunk touched his mothers side. Just seven days after Siddharthas birth, his mother died. He was raised by his mother's sister, Mahaprajapati. One day a prophet came to tell Siddhartha's father that he would either become a great king or a great religious leader. Because of this his father tried to pamper him and keep him from the religious life. Until Siddhartha was 29, he never went anywhere without an escort that cleared the way of any "discomforting" images like death or poverty. However, one day, Siddhartha asked his servant to sneak him out into the city. While out, he witnessed three sights: an old man, a man suffering of illness, and a funeral. These were the first signs of suffering Siddhartha had ever seen. On a second outing, he encountered a monk and began questioning him. After these four sights, Buddha snuck away from his fathers kingdom and traveled throughout India in search of truth. After failing to achieve enlightenment on his travels he established himself beside a river and meditated with only enough food and drink to survive for six years. This just weakened him and then began again to search for truth. Finally he settled under a fig/Bo tree where after extensive meditation he finally realized that only through the "Middle Way" (balance in life) could someone come to true enlightenment. With this recognition and with a realization that he was only part of the universal being, he reached his destination of enlightenment. Buddha traveled through India teaching anyone who would listen his method to enlightenment. At the age of 80 Buddha died among his followers.

The Four Noble Truths After his enlightenment, the Buddha taught his followers the "four noble truths" which he had discovered during his meditations.

I. Dukkha (suffering)--Human life is in a natural state of suffering. Birth, death, illness, separation from loved things and union with unwanted things are all suffering.

II. Samudaya-- Suffering stems from desires.

III. Nirodha-- Therefore, through diminishing or ridding oneself of desires also rids oneself of suffering.

IV. Maga-- The way to rid oneself of desire and suffering is to follow the eight fold path.

More on the Four Noble Truths Wikipedia on the Four Noble Truths

The Eightfold Path Buddhist believe that through the Eightfold Path people can clear their minds, build themselves up, and work towards enlightenment

1. Right Opinion- (or Right View) means that Buddha is asking us to strive to understand the world around us and the Four Noble Truths.

2. Right Intentions- means to be committed to enlightenment and to understanding the world around us.

3. Right Speech-- Buddha believed that words are a powerful force and improper use of them can lead to making enemies or hurting others. For these reasons, Buddhist try to abstain from lying, slandering, and aimless chattering.

4. Right Conduct-- Right conduct has to major parts a positive and a negative list. Right conduct stresses humility, kindness, and respect. Also, it stresses Buddhist to NOT do harm, take whats not given, lie, take lives(including your own).

5. Right Livelihood-- This part of the path asks the followers of Buddha to make their money through legal and honest means. Along with this there are certain jobs no Buddhist should facilitate: prositution, raising lifestock for slaughter, selling of alchol/drugs as well as guns, and the selling of slaves was strickly forbidden.

6. Right Effort-- Right effort deals with not just the desire of working towards enlightenment, like intentions, but also the will needed to achieve it. To have good right effort one must constantly be working to their full capacity to live as a good Buddhist.

7. Right Mindfulness-- Buddha stressed devotion to seeing through different perceptions and bias and the right mindfulness shows this aspect of Buddha's teaching. Buddhist desire to see the truth and so they must first see how their minds interpret situations and their bias so as to cut through them to the truth.

8. Right Concentration-- This step of the eightfold path focuses on meditation and achieving almost "superhuman" concentration. Buddha believed only through fully wholesome concentration could one see the truth. To increase their ability to concentrate, many Buddhist meditate as often as possible.

Wikipedia of Eightfold Path Chicago's Buddhist Temple's take on Eightfold Path

Buddhist Wheel of Life

--Buddha outlined his morality when he talked to a young man named Rahula--

"If there is a deed, Rahula, you wish to do, reflect thus: Is this deed conducive to my harm, or to others' harm, or to that of both? Then is this a bad deed entailing suffering. From such a deed, you must desist. If there is a deed you wish to do, reflect thus: Is this deed not conducive to my harm, nor to others' harm, nor to that of both? Then is this a good deed entailing happiness. Such a deed you must do again and again."

The Five Precepts of Buddhism (Pancasila)The five precepts of Buddhism are the most concrete "commandments" of the Buddhist religion

1. To Refrain From Taking Another's Or My Own Life

2. To Refrain From Taking What Is Not Given

3. To Refrain From Sexual Misconduct

4. To Refrain From False Speech

5. To Refrain From Intoxicating Things That Cloud The Mind

Wikipedia on The Five Precepts

Buddhist Stances on Moral Topics

Alcohol and Drugs-- Buddhist strongly reject any mind altering substances because it interfers with their concentration and search for enlightenment. To refrain from alchol and drugs is one of the five precepts of Buddhism.

Sexuality-- Buddhist believe that sexuality is something not to be abused which is stated in the third precept. However, Buddhist also believe that if sex is not abused or intended to hurt it is generally good.

Honesty-- Honesty is a key to the eightfold path of Buddhism. The path of good speech is intended to keep the mind clean from what is impure and to keep from hurting others through lies or slander.

Material Goods-- Since Buddhism makes a point to encourage "good livelihood" the issue of material goods is very distinct in Buddhism. If a person makes their wealth through honest and legal ways they are entitled to it. However, an excess of wealth should go towards the helping of others because Buddha's "Middle Way" states that neither the extreme of wealth or poverty are good.

The Human Condiiton-- Buddha clearly stated his thoughts on the Human condition in his first Noble Truth--Dukkha-- life, namely human life, is disjointed and full of suffering caused by human desires.

The Answer To Our Human Condition-- Buddha's last Noble Truth tells his followers where to start on their journey towards Nirvana, Moksha, or Enlightenment; The way to rid oneself of desire and suffering is to follow the eight fold path.

Great Page on Buddhist Stance on Moral Issues