What is the goal of the Buddha's teachings?
Buddhism is a teaching about how to live in peace, joy and harmony. It shows us how to be liberated from cravings, greed, addictions, envy, prejudice, anger, hatred, ill-will, confusion and ignorance. In short, to be free from all suffering, Ultimately, it directs the followers to break the bondage of birth and death through their own efforts and wisdom.
What
is Buddhist practice?
The Buddhist path to happiness consists of cultivating ethical behavior, mindfulness (concentration) and understanding (wisdom). These are practices that can be incorporated in our everyday activities.
Is faith or belief important
in Buddhist practices?
Yes. Faith is the motivational force
for the Buddhists to keep practicing diligently. The goal of total liberation
and true happiness through self-effort is not an easy target. However, faith or
belief for the Buddhist is very different from other religions. Faith must
always be balanced by wisdom, where nothing will be exempted from examination
and question. Total submission to any teacher, deity or god-figure is a
dangerous path and blind-belief must be rejected. The Buddha is entirely against
superstition and metaphysical speculation.
Are there any Buddhist
rituals?
In the Buddha's time, there is no
ritual in his teachings. After he passed away, religious rituals evolved. The
rituals are used to deepen the faith. The most common ones are prostration in
front of Buddha statues as a sign of deep respect and gratitude, offering of
flowers and fruits on the altar, burning of incense and oil lamp, and chanting
of Buddhist scriptures. Rituals are not essential to Buddhist practices. Please
read the essay 'A brief history of Buddhism' on this web site.
Do Buddhists believe in God?
Buddhists do not accept the concept of a 'Creator God'. However, Buddhists accepts the possibility of godlike heavenly existence, which is attainable for those with the aspiration and cultivation. Human existence is preferable to the Buddhists because it offers the right conditions for attaining full liberation from the bondage of birth and death.
What
is emptiness and conditioned origination?
Emptiness is not nothingness, extinction, vacuum, or void. The word is
used to described the reality that 'nothing can exist by itself'. Everything
exists as a composite of many components, a convergence of many ever-changing
conditions, thus the phrase Conditioned Origination. There can be no
self-existence, or self-nature. (Since God is perceived as the 'be all and end
all', and therefore can exist by itself, Buddhists do not accept God as a
reality).
Why
is self-effort so important in the Buddha's teachings?
Salvation and liberation from suffering is entirely dependent on self-effort. External help are merely minor factors. Human beings are capable of cultivating the conditions necessary for liberation because they have analytical faculties and memory, sense of regret for wrongdoings, and strong determination to self-improve. Cultivation of compassion, determination and wisdom is very important.
How does one become a Buddhist?
In Buddha's time, it is very simple. The Buddha or his assistant teachers would just say, come and see for yourself. Then one becomes a Buddhist. In later time, there is a simple ceremony which is called 'taking the three refuge'. Taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. The Buddha personified the ideal of total enlightenment, Dharma is the Law of Nature which encompasses ethical living, mindfulness and wisdom, and the Sangha refers to those Buddhists who have attained non-attachment, selflessness, great wisdom and compassionate.