Basic Buddhism

It is the set of teachings bequeathed by Shakyamuni Buddha that aim to eliminate the suffering of sentient beings and help them attain awakening.

Siddhartha Gautama was a human being who lived in ancient India approximately 2600 years ago. Although there are many legends about his life, we can affirm that he was born in the warrior clan of the Sakya and that since he was young, he felt a deep concern for the suffering of the human condition that led him to abandon his privileged life to embrace asceticism. Once he mastered these ascetic practices, he realized that the path of mortification did not lead to liberation. It was then, when he understood that the path to awakening was somewhere between indulgence and mortification, he reconstituted his health thanks to Sujata's food bowl and, full of determination, he sat under a large tree until he reached enlightenment. From that moment on, the Awakened One dedicated the rest of his life to sharing his discovery with others.

The Buddha synthesized his teaching into four truths: (1) there is suffering; (2) there is a cause for suffering; (3) there is a cessation for suffering; (4) there is an eight-step path leading to the cessation of suffering.

The eight steps are the recipe that Sakyamuni Buddha gave us to eliminate suffering. This is a middle path that avoids the extremes of indulgence and mortification. The eight steps are as follows: (1) a proper understanding of the world and ourselves; (2) an intention to follow the Buddhist path; (3 and 4) right speech and action that does not harm other beings and is directed to the truth; (5) a way of life that does not harm ourselves or others; (6) effort that is focused on the practice of the Buddhist path; (7 and 8) meditation and concentration that enables us to actualize the truths that Buddha transmitted to us.  

Dukkha is a term that is usually translated as suffering; however, it has nuances that should be noted. Paying attention to its literal meaning, it would be "there is dissatisfaction", evoking mental and physical pain derived from the stress of being born, growing old, getting sick, dying...in short, from feeling the impermanence and change in ourselves and in what surrounds us.  

All phenomena (thoughts, emotions, experiences...) are "marked" by three characteristics: they are impermanent (anicca), they associate suffering (dukkha) and they lack a permanent and independent essence (annata or anatman). These three marks apply to everything that exists except nirvana.  

The word karma has two meanings depending on the context: (1) Any action directed by intention (a physical action, a thought or a word); (2) The result of intentional actions, past or present. Karma and causality are concepts that explain how our actions influence our present and future life, as well as the interconnectedness of all phenomena according to specific causes and conditions. These teachings invite us to cultivate a greater awareness of our actions and to take responsibility for our own well-being and that of others.

Interdependence is a central concept in Buddhism. It affirms that all things (beings, phenomena, principles) exist because of their relationship to other things. Everything we experience arises as a function of a complex web of causes and conditions. Nothing and no one exists independently of everything else, including our 'self'. This teaching underlines the interrelated and dynamic nature of reality.

Nirvana is the goal of Buddhist life. Literally, it is 'cessation'; in other words, the extinguishing of cravings (bonno) and the extinction of ignorance (avidya) leading to the birth of an awakened being filled with wisdom and compassion and free from karmic bondage. 

Samsara means "the stream of time from birth to death and from death to birth", referring to the unenlightened state. All unenlightened beings repeat the empty and meaningless cycle in countless lives, driven only by the agitations of cravings (bonno). We like to explain samsara as if we stumble over the same stone over and over again or as if we repeat the same mistakes without the possibility of a solution.

Probably the most ancient way of accepting the Buddhist path is to take refuge in the three jewels or treasures. Taking refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha on a daily basis allows us to express our confidence in Awakening, in the teachings that lead to that awakening and in the community of practitioners that surrounds us in that noble task.

The word Buddha, the Awakened One, not only alludes to Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha, but also describes all the countless Buddhas who have appeared in this and other worlds throughout a time that has no beginning. Furthermore, Buddha is the awakening itself, the truth that liberates beings; Jōdo Shinshū practitioners identify that awakening with the light and life that have no limits in order to connect more easily with that reality. 

The Buddha's teachings and the reality they suggest to us are both called dharma. There are as many dharmas as there are people. The tradition itself speaks of the 84000 dharma doors, referring to the great diversity of methods devised by the Buddha to help beings to awaken. 

Sangha is a Sanskrit word meaning "community" or "gathering". More formally, it refers to the lineage of the great masters of Buddhism; informally, the sangha consists of monks and lay people (whether early disciples of the historical Buddha or present-day Buddhist practitioners). The sangha is united in the practice of the teachings and in mutual support aimed at fostering such learning. 

Many Buddhists believe that death marks the end of life and a transition to the next. According to Sakyamuni Buddha, beings are reborn through countless lives until they attain enlightenment. It is important to note that there is a portion of Buddhists who do not follow the traditional interpretation of rebirth and therefore conceive of this point differently.  

The Buddha refused to give an answer to some questions because they could become a distraction from our main goal, which is liberation from suffering. Many Buddhists interpret the doctrine of the not-self (anatta or anatman) as the absence of a fixed, inherent essence that is not subject to change. Attachment to this "I" is a source of great suffering, a reality that we can observe in ourselves and in the world around us. For the Buddha, the not-self was a strategy or method to become aware of our attachments and make it easier to 'let go'.

In the Buddha's Teachings, different gods and great spirits of ancient India are mentioned, either as interlocutors or as listeners to his discourses. According to Buddhist cosmology, there are different planes or realms of existence in which gods, spirits and other beings dwell. There is no obligation to believe in the literalness of their existence in order to practice Buddhism. They can be real, metaphors, mental states, etc...it doesn't really matter. In the eyes of Buddha we are all beings bound to the dissatisfactions and limitations of samsara.

The Buddhism of the great vehicle follows the fundamental teachings of the Buddha but emphasizes teachings that come from suttas composed several centuries after the death of Sakyamuni and which are considered to be the word of the Buddha (buddhavacana). This Buddhism does not focus on individual liberation as pursued by many of the generations of practitioners of the first centuries, but considers that all beings possess the seed of awakening within them and that if we do not all awaken, no one will be able to fully awaken. This generates a new Buddhist ideal called 'bodhisattva'.

A bodhisattva is literally a being who aspires to awakening. This name is given to different beings who practice Buddhism with deep dedication, conviction, compassion and wisdom. Through these qualities, they seek to help beings trapped in samsara to realize nirvana. 

Emptiness is a fundamental concept in Buddhism of the Mahayana school, especially rooted in the Madhyamaka philosophy and the doctrine of Prajnaparamita. This concept may be complex, but it is central to understanding the ultimate nature of reality according to Buddhism. Emptiness refers to the lack of inherent or substantial existence in phenomena and in the self. That is, things do not have an independent and permanent nature of their own. Instead, their existence depends on causes and conditions, as well as interaction with other things. Understanding emptiness is crucial to overcoming suffering; by realizing that things have no inherent existence, people can free themselves from clinging and attachment to things as if they were permanent or absolute. This leads to greater mental freedom and a reduction of suffering caused by ignorance and attachment.

The term tathagatagarbha comes from Mahayana Buddhism and is commonly translated as "womb of the Tathagata" or "embryo of the Buddha". In the Buddhist context, Tathagata is one of the names given to the Buddha, referring specifically to someone who has attained enlightenment. The concept of tathagatagarbha suggests that all beings have within them the capacity to attain enlightenment. Although they may be covered by veils of ignorance or afflictions, this "Buddha matrix" is always present and can be developed to full spiritual realization. This concept is important in Mahayana Buddhism because it emphasizes the intrinsically pure and potentially enlightened nature of all beings, in contrast to the idea that enlightenment is a state reserved for only a few special beings.