Research Paper On Buddhism

The Buddha was a man whose own efforts led him to enlightenment. The Buddhist religion is based on the life and teaching of the Indian sage Siddhartha Gautama, the Enlightened One. Buddhists believe that individuals can overcome the misery of the world and reach their own Buddha status by a process of mental and moral purification. “The term Buddha applies to every individual who attains this state [of enlighten]” (___ 66). Although Siddhartha Gautama is the man most commonly known and referred to as the Buddha, there were, are, and will be other Buddhas. It can be complicated to say who is the Buddha since there are many. To better understand this, one has to familiarize themselves with the foundation and traditions of Buddhism.

Buddhism was founded in the late 6th century B.C.E. by Siddhartha Gautama. Gautama was born to a royal family and a life of privilege and was called Prince Siddhartha. During chariot …show more content…
After attaining enlightenment, he taught the Dharma (the path leading to enlightenment and liberation) and established the Sangha, a community of monastic people. He entered Nirvana at the age of eighty. In his time, Buddha Gautama was able to recollect his previous life up to “seven” generations back as a Buddha. Also, included in the scriptures of Theravada Buddhism, known as Tipitaka (the ‘‘Three Baskets’’), we have the Buddhavamsa which translates to Lineage of the Buddhas( 68). It contained Stories of 24 pre-Gautama Buddhas. “All Buddhas, of the past, present, or future, bound to irrefutable Transcendent Wisdom, reach completely full understanding and the highest awakening” ( 84). One example of a different Buddha is Buddha Amidabha of Mahayana Buddhism. The ‘‘Pure Land’’ tradition of Buddhism teaches that a Buddha named Amidabha created and now rules over a ‘‘Buddha-land’’ called the Pure Land (