“I teach one thing and one only: that is, suffering and the end of suffer.” Samsara is the Buddhist cycle of rebirth that represents the state of minds that you have in each life. Every living person is in this cycle, unless you have reached enlightenment. It is only then that you can escape this endless cycle as you have conquered the Three Root Poisons that fuel samsara; greed, hatred and ignorance. In Buddhism your aim in life is to escape the suffering caused by the three poisons and other human flaws in order to reach Nirvana, a state of mind where you have become aware of the ‘real’ world and are no longer attached to the physical world with the bonds of karma. The three root poisons are portrayed by Buddhists as a cockerel (greed), a snake (hatred) and a pig (ignorance) each biting each others tail. This shows that samsara is kept turning by the three poisons since they motivate each of the other animals actions. Therefore, our actions cause us to stay in this world of suffering, Samsara.  During rebirth you are born into a new life with a certain state of mind, depending on your previous actions and how they have affected your karma. Karma accounts for all the happiness and suffering in the world. It is only when one eliminates karma that one can be free from its bonds to the physical world. If, after every life, you remain with karma you must be reborn, keeping the cycle of samsara turning. Buddhists believe that when you have this attachment to the world you are constantly suffering as you cannot experience complete freedom. With this attachment to the world you must also experience the larger kinds of suffering that come along with this, such as the death of a loved one. Therefore, samsara is always a cycle of suffering. There are six different states of mind (realms) that you can be born into. The top realm that you can reach is the realm of the gods. Here you are happy but you still suffer due to the general unsatisfactoriness caused by the lack of answers to difficult questions. The realm of humanity is just below the realm of the gods. The benefit of this state is that you can choose your own actions. Suffering occurs in this realm because the actions we choose, craving, and the flaws you are born with. In the animal realm you can live perfectly happily as long as your needs are fulfilled. However, all animals are ignorant of the dharma causing suffering and keeping the three root poisons in motion, turning the cycle of samsara. The hell realms consist of over twenty hells which represent a mind set of extreme suffering. The realm of the pretas represents a state of selfishness. Pretas always want to eat no matter how much they have already had. I think this also shows craving and Buddhists believe craving (tanha) causes suffering as you cannot always have more. Again, this shows that samsara is a world of suffering. The final of the six realms is the realms of the asuras, here mythical beings make their decisions with hatred and envy. This causes suffering as the mind doesn’t work clearly when motivated by these emotions leading to bad decisions and negative actions. In all the realms, suffering occurs in some form showing that samsara is a world of suffering. The twelve nidanas also help to make up the wheel of samsara. The first image is of a blind man who represents peoples’ ignorance to the Buddhist fact of anatta – there is no fixed self (everything is co-dependent). As everything is co-dependent others’ actions affect you which will mean you will also suffer. It also shows that you must have the ‘right view; on life to escape samsara. A potter at work shows how we create our own karma by the decisions we make to shape our life like how the potter shapes his pot. Negative actions create negative karma which causes suffering. The third of the twelve nidanas is of a monkey climbing a tree. This represents the start of consciousness to your own existence. This can cause suffering as you begin to think about yourself and often do things for the wrong reasons. The five skandhas; perception, form, sensations, consciousness and mental formations, are shown as a boat with its passengers. These five things are what Buddhists believe make up what we know as a person. The fifth image is of a house with six openings. Each opening representing one of the five senses and the sixth, the mind. Both of the above can be used in either a way to cause suffering or to cause happiness. A couple embracing each other shows how we use our senses to create relationships with other people. Due to anicca, everything is constantly changing, this causes suffering because relationships never stay the same and you suffer because you want them to be perfect all the time. It also causes suffering to you as eventually the bond will have to be broken forever when you or the other member of the relationship dies (kisagotami). The seventh of the twelve nidanas is a man with an arrow in his eye. This shows us how contact with the world around us and the actions we make cause things to happen. These can lead to neutral, nice or painful feelings. This obvious example shows painful suffering. A woman offering a man a drink shows how feelings (thirst) leads to craving, in this instance for a drink. Buddhists strongly believe that tanha causes suffering which I can understand as the desperateness of craving makes your actions and doesn’t fit with the Eightfold Path (Right Action). Actions must be for the right reasons. The next image is of a man gathering fruit which represents how people act on their cravings, again this isn’t conducive with right action. The tenth and eleventh images concern the creation of life. A pregnant woman is shown and a woman giving birth. Both of these create more attachments to the world around us making it harder to escape samsara. They also cause suffering as new life changes and change creates suffering. The last of the twelve nidanas is a dead body which reminds us that everything that is born has to, eventually, die. Death and loss is something that causes suffering to all human beings as it makes you ask questions that, as a human, cannot be answered, causing unsatisfactoriness, as things have changed which, again, causes suffering. Buddhists believe that samsara can eventually be escaped by following the Buddha’s teachings. Magga, the Middle Way, is a lifestyle which is to be followed at all times. Buddhists use the Noble Eightfold Path to have a life that is neither in excess or in complete poverty, allowing them to open their mind to the questions of suffering and eventually reach nirvana.  Samsara is definitely a world of suffering for Buddhists, as each step of the cycle links to suffering in some way. Suffering is fuelled by our own cravings and excessive motivations (greed, hatred, and ignorance). I admire Buddhists for being so honest about the flaws of humanity and realising that everything cannot be repaired or stay perfect. I, unfortunately, see a lot of truth in the fact that life (samsara) is suffering. However, I have experienced true happiness in my life and suffering is well worth having if you can feel that great, even if its for an instant.  by Carla

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First of all it is important to understand that Buddhists believe that no living being must ever go through physical or mental suffering.   We can immediately see that Buddhists have compassion for all living beings in that they have a shared understanding and belief system to prevent suffering in another human or indeed, any living being e.g. right occupation.                        Buddhists ensure that their action are skilful and compassionate by considering three main factors which can be thought of as a tree:  right action, which represents the seed; then you have the roots. Intention is very important when committing an action as your action will either be linked to the three good roots of non-attachment, kindness and compassion or the three bad roots of hatred, greed and ignorance.  finally comes the consequences or the fruit of your actions.  If your action was compassionate then it is likely that the fruit or result of your action will be beneficial to all.  It is therefore important for Buddhists to think an action through in order to show compassion and prevent negative Karma which will them trapped in the wheel of Samsara. Compassion (Karuna), or loving Kindness (Metta) is the idea that an individual shows compassion for the right reasons, even if the other party may not receive it gratefully.  Buddhist theology teaches that it is important to persevere in order to show compassion.  An example of this are the Sangha Metta Monks who helped those with AIDS’ victims and their families.  These monks would take orphaned children into their care after their parents had died of HIV/AIDS related illnesses. At this time people were unaware of how AIDS was contracted so the monks were potentially putting their lives on the line for the greater good (displaying/practicing compassion). These monks are a perfect example of tough love and compassion. The Dalai Lama once said that the reason for compassion is as follows:   “The rationale for universal compassion is based on the same principle of spiritual democracy.  It is the recognition of the fact that every living being has an equal right and desire for happiness.  The true acceptance of (this) requires that we think and act in terms of the common good.  Compassion and universal responsibility requires a commitment to personal sacrifice anon the neglect of egotistical desires.”   What I believe the Dalai Lama is saying in this passage is that compassion must start with the recognition of the fact that all beings are entitled to happiness and we need to put others before ourselves.   Ultimately, Buddhists show compassion to prevent suffering.  If they were to cause suffering then it would have a negative impact on their Karma.  Compassion and the action taken is obviously dependent on the situation in which they find themselves.  I suppose Buddhists also show compassion, as they seem to realise that everyone is living in the world of Samsara and experience dukkha – this, as the Buddha taught, can be overcome. 

I think this is an admirable attitude to take in life as very often I find it hard to continue showing compassion, especially when someone is unwilling to accept it.

By Max

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Helpful Hints

Remember that we have been looking at Samsara in the ‘Human Condition’ section of the course.

A good way to approach the question would be by thinking about/discussing what suffering is. Define what suffering means in Buddhism. For example, place suffering clearly within the Three Conditioned Marks of Existence.

You then should think about Samsara in relation to Nirvana (the goal of Buddhism).

How helpful do you think Samsara is as a belief system? This might lead you to question if Samsara really is a world of suffering.

Towards the end of the essay you might want to close by directing the reader to the Middle Way as a way out of suffering and towards Nirvana – but is that way necessarily for us?

So, here’s a rough outline of what you could do

Introduction

• Quote
• Why Samsara is a world of suffering
• Three poisons fuelling this cycle of suffering.
• Indicate that there is a way out Samsara

Paragraph 2

• Inner circle – 3 root poisons
• Ignorance to the Dharma (Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path)

Paragraph 3

• Discuss the place of Karma as a means of keeping Samsara turning (e.g. Dependent Origination)

Paragraph 4

• Discuss the Six Realms as being states of mind and the difficulty of progression from one realm to the next.

Paragraph 5

• Give a brief overview of the 12 nidanas (Twelve Stages of Dependent Origination).
• In what ways do each of these stages lead to suffering.

Conclusion

• How can we escape samsara? (The Middle Way)
• Quote

If you need any help, please contact me via the learning log.

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·Recognition that the stories are heavily rooted in oral tradition and therefore, have become exaggerated/amended.
·Name prior to enlightenment was Siddhartha Gautama (perfect fulfilment).
·Buddhism is a religion of experience – therefore it is crucial to understand the life of the Buddha
·Birth in Lumbini, raised in a Palace at Kapilavastu in modern day Nepal
·Part of the Shakya clan + Kshatriya caste (warrier).
·Dramatic birth narrative – Queen Maya’s vision of the white six tusked elephant + the newly born Siddhartha declaring the Dharma from birth.
·Predictions of Asita – Either Siddhartha would grow up to be a great warrior/leader or a great holy man/religious leader.
·King Suddhodana wanted Siddhartha to remain within the confines of the palace, preferring the first of Asita’s predictions.
·Marriage to Yashodhara and birth of son. Siddartha begins to learn the art of being a warrior.
·Siddhartha continued to grow restless with his palace existence.
·Made several journeys out of the palace with his Charioteer, Channa. What Siddhartha witnessed on these journeys has been referred to as the Four Sights
·An Old Man – Siddhartha was informed that everyone grows old (youth does not last).
·A Sick Woman – Channa told Siddhartha that sickness could not be escaped; it was part of our earthly existence (health is not permanent, physical suffering is an inevitable part of the Human Condition).
·A Dead Man – Siddhartha learnt that we all die, our physical bodies are finite.
·A Holy Man – Siddhartha discovered that a life of an ascetic appeared to be more peaceful/fruitful, despite being deprived of material possessions.
·Siddhartha leaves the palace at the age of 29 and begins his religious quest for enlightenment.
·7 years are spent with ascetics, practising bodily mortification (meditating in extreme conditions) and depriving the body of physical comforts (eating only one grain of rice a day).
·Siddhartha turned away from ascetic lifestyle, preferring to follow a Middle Way (magga).
·Vow to meditate under a Bodhi tree until he achieved enlightenment.
·Temptations of Mara
·Enlightenment – a full understanding of existence and the Three Conditioned Marks of Existence.
-Anicca: Impermanence, nothing lasts forever
-Anatta: No fixed self/soul, everything is co-dependent
-Dukkha: Suffering, there is a general unsatisfactoriness about life. We are never content.

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Write an account of the Life of the Buddha (25 marks)

Buddhism is a religion based on the teachings of the Buddha, and stems from Nepal around 2500 years ago. Buddhists are people who follow what the Buddha learnt through his life and enlightenment. It is the Buddha’s life experiences which form the main message in Buddhism. It also creates a unique world religion, with no belief in a personal God. Buddhism is based on your life experiences. This is why the Buddha’s life is so crucial in understanding the Buddhist religion.
The stories about the Buddha’s life contain a lot of symbolism as the first was written around 600 years after his death. Up until that moment in time the stories had been told orally which allows for a lot personal adaptation. However inaccurate they are there was definitely a Buddha and the moral behind the stories are still strong and relevant today.
Before the Buddha was enlightened he was known as Siddhartha Gautama. He was born in Nepal to a tribal group called the Shakyas. His family were wealthy and noble, belonging to the Kshatriya or warrior class. During his mother, Queen Maya’s, pregnancy she is told to have had a dream of a white six tusked elephant blessing her. His birth was also magical. Siddhartha is said to have been born out of Queen Maya’s side as the trees held her during the birth. This extravagant and strange pregnancy and birth shows how important and radically life changing Siddhartha was going to be.
Siddhartha was also visited by a wise man, Asita, when he was born. Asita predicted that if Siddhartha stopped to think about suffering he would become a great holyman, and if he didn’t think about it then he would become a great king and warrior.
Siddhartha’s father wanted him to become a great king, so from that point onwards tried to protect him from suffering. The king gave Siddhartha all the luxuries he could ever need to keep him inside the palace. He was also protected from old age, sickness, and death so that he wouldn’t question suffering. His life should have been innocent and happy but Siddhartha knew something was missing, there was something he didn’t know.
During Siddhartha’s childhood he was sensitive to what was going on in the world around him. When he was taken out of the palace to see the beautiful countryside he say it’s beauty, but also its realist harshness.
At an older age Siddhartha decided to run away from the palace leaving his wife and child and all of his material possessions. This drastic action was influenced by what Siddhartha had seen when out on trips with his Charioteer, Channa. These are now known as the Four Sights which completely changed Siddhartha’s view of the world, life and the way things work.
The first of the Four Sights was of an old man. Siddhartha had never seen an old man before and asked Channa what was wrong with the man, Channa informed him that everyone grows old and that we are always growing older. The second sight was of a sick woman, this time Channa told Siddhartha that no one could avoid sickness and that everyone was sick sometime in their life. The third sight was of a dead man being carried through the streets in a funeral procession. Siddhartha asked what was wrong with the man and Channa answered truthfully that he was dead and everyone died sometime, no matter if they are rich or poor, old or young. The final sight was of an ascetic who looked happy and peaceful even though he had nothing. Siddhartha then realised this was what he would have to do to fill the emptiness in his life. The first three sights made Siddhartha consider the suffering in the world and its causes. The final shows him what he believes he will have to do to achieve a full understanding of why suffering occurs.
As Asita predicted Siddhartha left the palace and took up the life of an ascetic in the forest. I think this action shows that to become enlightened you must first separate yourself from the physical world, this includes Siddhartha’s wife and child and his material possessions. His decision to run away seems selfish and would certainly cause suffering for Yasodhara (his wife) illustrating the Three Marks of Existence well in the Buddha’s early life. I think it also shows us how important it was for Siddhartha to find the truth and his dedication, self-control and passion in doing so.
For the next seven years Siddhartha lived the life on ascetic. He starved himself, eating only one grain of rice a day, and meditated in the scorching sun in a circle of fire. This shows that the mind is stronger than the body which helped Siddhartha’s self control. During his time as an ascetic he was also taught by other holy men.
One day Siddhartha accepted a bowl of rice from a passer by. The other ascetics took this as a sign of weakness and were disgusted at him for giving up.
However, Siddhartha realised that he couldn’t achieve enlightenment in these painful situations. He then remembered meditating in the shade of a tree when he was younger and how his mind was very clear. Siddhartha had rejected the ascetic life, preferring a life of moderation. The Middle Way (magga) is an important aspect of Buddhist life. They strongly believe that a life of neither extravagant excess (such as the life of Siddhartha in the palace) or a life of poverty and suffering (like Siddhartha’s time as an ascetic) make you the best you can be.
Siddhartha then began to meditate in the shade, beneath a Bodhi tree. He promised himself he wouldn’t stop meditating until he reached the answer, no matter how long it took or the situation. Mara, who symbolises temptation, kept coming to Siddhartha as he was meditating with different things to distract him but the Buddha continued to meditate to try and reach his goal. At sunrise, Siddhartha was enlightened and became known as the Buddha. When one achieves enlightenment they escape the endless path of reincarnation and suffering and enter a state of perfect peace known as Nirvana/Nibbana.
Enlightenment is something which cannot be expressed fully through words or images but can only be experienced by yourself.
After his enlightenment the Buddha taught his disciples the Three Marks of Existence; Anicca – Everything is constantly changing; Anatta – Everything is co-dependant and Dukkha – suffering, to allow them all to achieve enlightenment.

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·The media becoming a dominant force – people are looking to media figures and celebrities for guidance, not religious leaders.
·The media has also portrayed certain religious traditions negatively, such as Islam post 9’11.
·People concerned with the physical (possessions/money) rather than the metaphysical (mysterious/unexplainable).
·Freedom of religious expression/choice has enabled people to leave a religious tradition if they so desire.
·People can express moral values without religion (humanism).
·Science has replaced religion as a source of truth (e.g. Big Bang vs. Creation myths).
·Religion, especially the Christian tradition has had a somewhat negative history and is seen as being judgemental (e.g. crusades, judgments on personal morality such as homosexuality/abortion/divorce).
·Modern life is too hectic, not allowing people to attend regular religious ceremonies.
·Career demands are leaving people with less time to practice private devotions.
·Religious traditions do not fit into a modern capitalist society: e.g. a Buddhist would find it difficult practicing the Noble Eightfold Path in Britain.
·Parents raising children to question the world around them, not accept traditional family beliefs.
·Society is pick n’ mix, allowing people to choose aspects of all religious traditions rather than solely one.
·People are trying out new forms of spirituality such as meditation, whirling etc.
·New technology, for example the internet does not allow human beings to ‘switch off’ and reflect on the deeper meaning of life.
·Society is becoming more educated, leading to a critical generation who question all aspects of the world we live in, including religion.
·Youth are questioning authority.
·Education in the developing world is more often than not rooted in religious belief. In the West, schools are non-denominational and often do not favour any one religious tradition.
·People are becoming religious by name, not by practise – e.g. 71% of Britons call themselves Christian yet only 6% attend a weekly church service.
·People are more aware of worldwide suffering now, due to the media – leading those with access to a TV/PC to question God’s existence even more.
·Religions are restrictive in a ‘work hard, party harder’ society.
·Religions are seen as exclusive in an inclusive/pluralistic society.
·Maybe religious practice is not declining, but rather becoming more diverse.

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“Between 1979 and 2005, half of all Christians stopped going to church on a Sunday.” Have people simply become lazy or is there some other reason why religious practice is deteriorating? In Britain we are often seen as a Christian nation but in modern society Christianity doesn’t always fit in. Our society is fast-paced and contemporary and to many ways I think the Church is viewed as old-fashioned and conservative. Ideas about female roles in society and homosexuality have changed and I think people don’t want to follow religions that, in their eyes, are not accepting the future and present changes around us.In Christianity a main religious practise is going to church every week on a Sunday. This practice doesn’t appear to fit in with some people’s modern lifestyles. Today, it is possible to be working on Sundays and many feel after a hectic week the thought of church is daunting when all they want to do is relax.Even though these more ‘classic’ religious practices are on the decline other practices aimed more for spiritual well-being are becoming popular. People are picking and choosing aspects of religions to follow. Buddhist meditation as well as more alternative spiritual paths like astro-planeing are becoming increasingly popular. The power of the media has increased in the last 50 years and I think the way the media has portrayed religion has affected it. Islam has suffered endless amounts of negative media over terrorism and there are now widespread feelings that religions cause war. However, whether this is necessarily true doesn’t really matter as this public disgracing of religion is bound to affect those undecided about their own faith.I think that religious practice is also declining in the West because of changes in family structures. Traditionally a religion may be ‘passed down’ from generation to generation and a whole family would always go to a church on a Sunday. Today, we see gaps in families due to divorce or separation and this often leads to less time or less pressure to go and follow the ‘family’ religion.Furthermore, society is less conservative and it is now encouraged for children to choose their faith when they decide to or if they wish. I think this more relaxed attitude to faith has led to less people growing up being made to go to church. Although I don’t think there is anything wrong with wishing your sense and feelings of faith upon a child I do think it is good for a person to make their own choice about faith. This does, however, lead to people being undecided about their faith for a long time and some choose not to believe in God. Personally, I think more people choose to wait to decide on a religion or to follow spiritual directions nowadays because there is not much pressure to ‘be’ part of a religion.In conclusion, I think there are many reasons why religious practice is declining in the West, but I think that this doesn’t mean there is less faith and belief in society, I just believe it has changed direction away from the restrictions of religious practice. People today see lots more choices in their lives and tend to take the time about decisions of faith.Perhaps we need to ask ourselves if it is not our faith that is declining but our need to conform with societies religious ideologies?

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Welcome to the RMPS Higher class learning log. Throughout the next session we shall be using this blog to discuss and debate the religious, moral and philosophical issues we encounter on this course.

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