Mahayana sutras

Arthur C. Clarke couldn’t have chosen a better title for this brilliant science fiction short story. I’m a sucker for a story with a good title. “The Nine Billion Names of God" revolves around Tibetan Buddhist monks who plan to put together a list that consists of all the names of God. The story opens with Dr. Wagner-- he is asked to work on an automatic sequence computer (Mark V.) that can carry out letters by the lama. They need a computer with letters, so they can write the names of God. Obviously, a computer with only numbers won’t be able to carry it out the task. One of the engineers hired by the lama for three months to work on the computer soon figures out what happens once the Tibetan Buddhist monks type down the last name of God. The world ends. That’s pretty much a stock theme in science fiction typically dealing with post-apocalyptic or apocalyptic settings/issues. Nevertheless, eschatology is a common theme in “The Nine Billion Names of God." *** The conflict is Chuck nor George want to face any blame if what the monks believed that would happen didn’t come to fruition. I liked this part of the story most for a multitude of reasons because it reveals the overall meaning. Sometimes we as humans take on things that we don’t want to or don’t necessarily believe in. More importantly, when it comes to religion and the beliefs of others we are often judgmental. The lack faith played a role in “The Nine Billion Names of God." They didn’t believe in the task at first…

Mahayana is the largest division of Buddhism, so it is only appropriate to talk about this branch first. Mahayana is the dominant type of Buddhism in China, Japan, Korea, Tibet, Vietnam, and a few different countries. Since its starting point around 2,000 years prior, Mahayana Buddhism has separated into many sub-schools and factions with an immense scope of tenets and practices. This incorporates Vajrayana schools, for example, some branches of Tibetan Buddhism, which are frequently considered…

According to the history of buddhism, it has taken many different forms. Such as Theravada, Mahayana, Zen, Nichiren, Tendai and Pure Land are the main forms of Mahayana Buddhism. After the passing of Siddharta his teaching throughout the years and the spreading of the teaching became more misunderstood. Nichiren Daishonin (a japanese Buddhist reformer in the 13th century) declared the Lotus Sutra. Which was the taught the last 8 years of Shakyamuni's life. It is to be…

As such, a shift commenced within the established belief systems. Buddhism which initially did not support a life under deities began to experience a morphing from within. It was not long before Buddha himself was deified, well after the death of Siddhartha, marking the birth of the Mahayana Schools that promoted Mahayana Buddhism. Unlike its other counterpart, Mahayana Buddhism well-established the Bodhisattvas, a group of enlightened deity-like individuals who would stay behind from entering…

Concentration. Buddhism has been practiced for over 2,500 years, and during that course of time it has spread throughout the world and developed a great number of sects. The three main branches of Buddhism are Theravada ("Way of the Elders"), Mahayana ("Greater Vehicle") and Vajrayana ("Diamond Vehicle"). Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism were developed in the first century AD, and Vajrayana Buddhism was developed later. Theravada Buddhism is the most common form of Buddhism in southeast Asia and…

Buddhism is a major world religion, with several schools of thoughts and numerous sects. The two major branches are known as Theravada, “The Way of the Elders” and Mahayana, “The Great Vehicle.” Buddhism has been influential in many parts of the world, in this paper we will focus on Theravadas dominance in India and Mahayanist preeminence in Japan. Furthermore, we will introduce both schools of thought separately, explore the similarities and differences of these major schools and discuss…

the mind and soul to the Buddha. This religion asks for those that are committed to Buddhism to completely abandon their present lives for a completely new one. This is obviously too much to ask for most people, considering the extreme in this religion. In “Mahayana Buddhism: The Lotus Sutra, c. 100 C.E.,” it states that “Buddhas are difficult indeed to meet,/ Encounter but once in a million aeons.” From this, it explains the sacrifice in this type of Buddhism, and the reason for the creation of…

of Death in Buddhism, I have come to realize that just as in other major religions, the traditions of the Buddhist who is facing death can vary greatly depending on culture, location, and type of Buddhism one believes in. However, there are several main ideas that are generally followed by all Buddhist groups. For example, all Buddhists find that “only an individual who has achieved the highest goal of Buddhism, namely Enlightenment of Awakening (nirvana or Bodhi) is free from rebirth” and “some…

community members and consequently assists in the promotion of societal growth and advancement. Once an individual embraced the importance of acting with morality, can they truly understand the weight of not only wrongful actions but the mental state of an individual to commit such an action. The practice of abortion, the deliberate termination of human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks is an eminent issues with our modern day society.[8] Buddhist ethics correspondingly…

Gupta Empire, the Late Han Dynasty and the Muslim States, all faced the colonization of new lands while maintaining one cultural community. The expanding domination and the formation of tribute system of all three societies through force led to the need for male soldiers and as a byproduct the increasing “authority of senior males and arranged marriages” (Mckay,et.182,237,342). Through an exploration of Vatsyayana's Kama Sutra during the Gupta empire, as well as Pan Chao’s Lessons for a Woman…