The Mormon Buddhist

    Buddhism went through many changes in the 2,500 years it has been around. After the Buddha died, there was nothing written down. His head monks all got together and told each other the teachings they remember him teaching. They voted on what was and wasn't Buddhism. This was essentially Buddhism's Council of Nicaea, but called First Council.     After These lessons and teachings were agreed upon, they were orally memorized by the monks present, and they went out to those they taught to teach from those oral lessons. It wasn't until quite some time after this that these teachings were written down for the first time.     There were several other councils where Buddhist leaders gave commentary on and decided on new doctrines.     Buddhism was brought to new heights by a Prince named Ashoka. He was violent and killed his father and brothers to seize the throne and expand his empire. He felt remorse later in life from his violent actions and joined Buddhism. He hel

There were 3 things that stuck out in my readings this week: how Buddha treated those who tried to kill him, when he helped people, and his final sermon. Devadatta was someone who grew up with Siddhartha. They had similar strengths, but Devadatta always lived in Siddhartha's shadow. Eventually they both pursued a life dedicated towards achieving enlightenment. Siddhartha became Buddha and many people followed his teachings. Devadatta reluctantly did as well. However, over time he felt that Buddha needed to instill ascetic practices into the monks, but Buddha refused. They clashed for a long time, and Devadatta grew to resent Buddha. Devadatta felt as if he was entitled to a following, just like his childhood rival. Eventually their clashes came to a head, and Devadatta left Buddha and his followers. Devadatta wasn't satisfied, however. He became vengeful. He tried to kill Buddha several times, including hiring archers and dropping boulders on him. Buddha was never killed

Sisyphus was a trickster character in Greek mythology. He was punished for his tricks with the task of rolling a boulder up a hill everyday only to have it roll back down. His life became extremely pointless and nihilistic. However, I like the idea that Sisyphus actually became a very blissful being. Most people try to grapple what the point of their life is for a long time, and that causes a lot of anguish. However, Sisyphus knows exactly what his purpose in life is: rolling the same rock up a hill every day. It wasn't glamorous, it was simple. I like the idea that he came to terms with that simplicity. And if he can come to terms with what he does, I can come to terms with what I do.

There were 2 things that really stood out to me in the reading this week. The first being who teachers are, and Buddha’s teachings. Buddha taught that all people in all places are teachers that can help you achieve enlightenment. I like this belief, because it doesn’t restrict learning from one or only several sources, but allows a wide variety of knowledge to be drawn from. With this, it also implies that you are also your own teacher. You are able to learn for yourself if put into the right circumstances. Buddha helped put the woman with the deceased child in the right circumstances to learn and accept that death is a part of being human. He didn’t force her to learn this, he simply pointed her in the right direction so she learned it herself, which is an extraordinary way of teaching.                Another radical thing that I learned is that during its formation Buddhism broke a lot of social norms for its time. People of the lower caste were preached to, which is not some

Many of Buddhism's concepts are used metaphorically in stories. Some of these metaphors are supernatural and completely unrealistic. Its another added layer that it happened 2,500 years ago, was passed down orally for several hundred years, and was in a culture that is very different from our own. Because of that, I see the stories behind Buddhism like I see Marvel, Doctor Who, Harry Potter, or Star Trek: great stories that tell a moral lesson. I don't have to literally believe that Star Trek happened to glean that all life should be respected. The idea behind the stories is what really matters. I will try to re-write stories in a way that omits the supernatural aspects but keeps the message intact. However, when it absolutely cannot happen, I may post about stories that 100% could not happen. Take then with a grain of salt, and just realize they aren't meant to be taken historically, just like Star Trek.

The story of Buddha, who is also known as Siddhartha Gautama, Bodhisattva, and Shakyamuni, is a fantastic one. It is a story of true journey for self improvement. Siddhartha Gautama was born the son of the king of the Shakyas, although his mother died a week after childbirth. He was an emotionally sensitive and contemplative boy who excelled in nearly everything he did. When he was extremely young, it was twice predicted that he would rather rule the world through kindness or be the greatest spiritual leader ever. His father wanted him to be a ruler, so he ensured that Siddhartha lived the most lavish life anyone could possibly live. He wanted nothing because he had everything. One day he wanted to go take a walk in a park several miles away. On his way there, he saw an extremely old man. Siddhartha had never seen an old person before, and asked his servant if he would grow old like the man, and the servant confirmed. Siddhartha was upset and went home. He wanted to go on that wal