Buddhism Initiation Ritual

While this dimension is not as important as in some other faiths of a strongly sacramental kind, it is still highly regarded. This can be attributed to the fact that it is through certain rituals that the core experience of enlightenment is obtained. (Hope, 1995) The ritual central to the Buddhist faith is the practice of meditation. The importance of meditation is paramount because it was through meditation that Buddha was able to gain enlightenment. Consequently, Buddhists attempt to emulate Buddha when meditating by endeavouring to cultivate wisdom and compassion, whilst also trying to gain control of the mind and expel suffering. (Mudge et al, 1993) If a Buddhist is successful in accomplishing this then they are said to have gained enlightenment. In terms of mass rituals, Buddhism maintains a plethora of ceremonies dealing with both the 'Sangha' (Order of monks and nuns) and laity. The primary rituals concerning the 'Sangha' includes; the initiation ritual in which the shaving of the head is a common practice and the annual Kathina Festival, in which the laity of the faith offers fabric to the monks for their new robes. For the laity, worship is more personal than congregation. A common practice is the taking of the three refuges (See appendix 3), in which adherents chant the same three sayings in repetition. This type of chanting, along with meditation, are common acts of devotion in Buddhism. Recently

The main focus of Buddhism is that the faith centers on correct understanding of human nature and ultimate reality, The Buddha was also called the Enlightened One, he taught that the way to eliminate suffering begins with understanding the true nature of the world. He rejected speculation about such matters as God, the nature of the universe, and the afyterlife, urging his folloers to focus instead on the Four Noble Truths by which they can free themselves from suffering. “We do not believe that this world is created and ruled by God.” The disbelief in God does not make Buddhism an atheistic religion. The Buddha rejected the concept of the atman, or soul. In

The first dimension used to understand a religion is based off its rituals. Buddhist perform rituals as a way to offer respect to the Buddha and find peace from within. The common ritual practiced by Buddhists is meditation. Meditation is all about focusing and purifying the mind. In meditation, Buddhists go through the steps called Samadhi (calming of the mind) and Vipassana (self-contemplation). During these steps they must adjust their body, breath, and mind, in order to achieve the goal of meditation. The rituals are an important part of Buddhism.

Whenever I thought of Buddhist I saw bald men or women with orange robes, white socks, and brown sandals. Obviously, not the older woman with gray hair that was now facing me and the other twenty congregants in the meditation room. She was obviously the leader.

After conducting my research on the daily practices of Buddhism, my mind kept going back to one of the first articles discussed in the class. In the article it briefly discusses how Buddhism, even though commonly viewed as a lifestyle, can be viewed as a religion by his criteria. Jane considers the core principles of Buddhism such as being kind to your neighbor, loving one another, genuineness, and inner peace that she deems more important than all other actions that could be done in her life; This idea gives her reason to act the way she does each and every single day.

Rituals have been an important aspect of Buddhism since the time of the Buddha. They made emphasis on rituals because they believed that it was an essential part in the transformation of the inner spiritual nature of man. In their point of view, a ritual can be “justified only to the extent that it contributes to a spiritual transformation” .Their rituals revolve around the Buddha and strengthening their connection to the Dharma as well as and the purpose and respect associated with it. Like the Virgin Mary in Eric Wolf’s article, “The Virgin of Guadalupe: A Mexican National Symbol”, the rituals of the Buddhist as well as the Buddhist image has provided a cultural style through which meaning and teachings can be expressed. The Guadalupe stands for “life, for hope, for health” while the Buddha symbolizes grace, balance, compassion, and wisdom. One of the rituals that Buddhist practice the most is that making offerings to their ancestors and the Triple Gem- Buddha, Dharma (Buddha’s teachings) and Dangha (the Buddhist community). The purpose of making offerings is not for approval, but to create positive energy, show gratitude, and perform the teaching of the Buddha. It is these admirable acts that reminds them not to be greedy or selfish.

Buddhism is a religion that focuses more on the individual and the actions of that individual, which was prevalent to me when I made my way into Portland and set foot in a Buddhist temple. The man I met within the walls of this temple was far from my stereotypical thoughts of Buddhist monks. The man I met looked like your plain old, average Joe, American man. Before I delve into the depths of my visit to this inspiring place, I need to sum up the Buddhist religion and why I chose to study this particular group of people.

Buddhism began in the fourth and fifth centuries before Christ by Siddhartha Gautama. The teachings of Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gautama, are the major beliefs of Buddhism. Buddhism is a belief and religion based on an assortment of customs, principles, and practices. The name Buddha means the awakened one. Buddha’s teachings were of the termination of suffering, attaining nirvana, and absconding from the cycle of suffering and rebirth. Buddhism has spread all across Asia and throughout the world, now with between two hundred thirty million and five hundred million followers. Buddhism is largely based around the belief of Karma. Karma is the “action, seen as bringing upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a reincarnation” (Dictionary.com) or “the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person’s deeds in the previous incarnation.” (Dictionary.com) In simpler words, how you live your life now determines how you will come back when your current soul expires. Buddhists live their lives in hopes of achieving to be placed in the highest state known as Heaven. The after-life stems from Karma and leads into Rebirth. Rebirth is a course of action where humans proceed within multiple lifetimes in one or more of the six states of after-life. Each lifetime begins with birth and ends with death. Buddhists believe that we should not fear death because

Desire is known as the human craving for sensual pleasure, fear of physical death, and avoidance of unpleasant situations. Buddhist’s ultimate goal is to remove the suffering by letting go greed and desire. Many followers of Buddhism refrain from grieving at a funeral, weeping the loss of a job, and having high expectations of riches. Monks take a vow that strips themselves of all of their possessions even shoes and hair. They do not work and are completely dependent on the generosity of others to eat. Each individual seeking interaction with the sacred is requested to constantly follow the three jewels at all time. The first Jewel involves taking refuge in the Buddha. During this time an individual must strip themselves of all tangible items before reenacting the life of Buddha. They will dress like Buddha, shave their heads like Buddha, and practice meditation like Buddha. The second Jewel is, “I take refuge in the dharma”. This includes five basic concepts such as abstaining from taking life, abstaining from stealing, abstain from inappropriate sexual conduct, abstaining from false speech, and abstaining from alcohol or drugs. As a result, the person seeking the status of a monk can focus on reaching inner enlightenment. The last Jewel is, “I take refuge in the sangha”. Sangha is a Buddhist community that comes together for several months every year. During these meetings, monks join together to

There are many different religions with many different beliefs, traditions, practices, and rituals. These differences are a very important part of understanding and appreciating the culture and history behind the specific religion. However, the practices that certain religions have in common can aid even more in furthering the understanding of specific beliefs of other religions. Since most religions cultivate from the practices and beliefs of other religions, they use those core values and beliefs and transform them into what they believe is a better way practicing. Religions use similarities within each other and twist them into their own. There are certain beliefs within every religion that shape their practices such as their morals or their most essential or absolute value, their position on human beings’ problems and solutions, and their view on life and death within their religion. Pure Land Buddhism (a form of Mahayana Buddhism) and Vaishnavites (a group within Hinduism) are great examples of this very concept.

* How do different social groups act as part of the ritual? Do men and women have different roles? Do younger people and older people have different roles? Buddha-lama-effigy-patron

To become a Buddhist monk which is known as a Bhikkhu, there is a long process of disciplinary training and education ceremony’s. The Bhikkhu is the main buddhist rite of passage because it involves immersing yourself into the buddhist lifestyle, and becoming totally devoted to the buddhist ways.

Ritual is a religious ceremony that involves a series of activities performed in a particular order by those who subscribe to the religion. Sacrifice is the act of giving something to a supernatural being to please it. The word sacrifice also means the offering given to the supernatural human being. The essay is going to discuss rituals and sacrifices in Confucianism, which is one the largest religion in China.

The main ritual which has been a part of my life for almost twenty-three years surrounds my children. When they were babies I found myself unable to relax and sleep without first “checking in” on them to ensure all was right with their worlds. Each night I would very quietly tip toe into each of their rooms, adjust their blankets, and place their favorite stuffed animal within reach to ward off any nightmares. My final step would be to stroke their tiny head, lean down and place a gentle kiss on their foreheads, and whisper, “sweet dreams”. If for some reason I was not able to do this I would not sleep peacefully. I felt something was missing or I had forgotten something important. As time passed and my children grew, my nighttime ritual was modified. My oldest son no longer sleeps with his favorite bear, and is rarely asleep when I am ready for bed. With him I now ruffle his hair and kiss his forehead, tell him not to stay up too late, and to have sweet dreams. This ritual seems to suffice as I am able to relax and sleep. However, it was very impractical to try this with my youngest as he is in Bloomington and I am in Converse, so he and I came to an alternate arrangement. Each night, roughly around 10:00pm, I receive a text from him to let me know he is alright. I reply to his text with sweet dreams and try not to study too late. In this way I am still practicing my nightly ritual, albeit an amended one, and am able to sleep knowing all is right with their worlds.

Historically, Buddhism begins with a man referred to as the Original Buddha in person of Siddhartha Gotama. The Peli Canon refers to many previous Budhas. The word” Buhda” means the “awakened” or “enlightened one”.