Anthology

• where is the anthology from

  extract from Karen Armstrong's book "the Buddha" which argues that every event in the life of the Buddha led to his enlightenment, using evidence from the Pali Cannon
• why is Armstrong's use the story of the Buddha as a young child at the ploughing festival relevant and important

  the story goes that the Buddha was left alone and watched the ploughing, noticing that it was destroying the insects and their eggs and he felt a deep compassion towards them, demonstrating Ahimsa

  this is supposed to be a time of joy but the Buddha realises every moment is underpinned by suffering and that we need to accept this

  Buddha fell into spontaneous meditational state which was unintentional, showing you need no experience/severe austerity to reach higher states of consciousness; it's accessible to all and you can be content and spontaneously achieve these states

  a myth showed that nature protected Gotama when he was in this state which demonstrates an important moment
• how did meditation help the Buddha to cultivate a positive attitude towards pleasures and a genuine development of wholesome action and loving kindness

  meditation separates one from Tanha but not from pleasure - wholesome pleasures exist and they're good for us and required, e.g. food, and they can aid our spiritual development which shows that they don't need to be gotten rid of

  Buddha realised what benefits meditation, like secluding yourself from distraction which involved not only avoiding distraction but cultivating the opposite value, e.g. one should not lie but must also engage in right speech

  Buddha "resolved to then on work with human nature and not fight against it" - some things in our conditioned state/human nature are positive and beneficial but should be indulged in moderation to bring you happiness
• how did mindfulness aid the Buddha


  Buddha used mindfulness (awareness of emotions and why they arise) as a preliminary to meditation, scrutinising behaviours at every moment of the day, noting feelings and sensations, sensual desires, what caused them, how long they lasted and the sheer amount of them that plagued him in such short periods of time

  this wasn't to punish himself but to recognise what was useful for attaining Nirvana and what wasn't, e.g. guilt is unhelpful as it fuels the ego and also to become acquainted with himself in order to exploit his capacities, to work with it and not against it, not punishing himself for natural habits

  this wasn't about preventing negative emotion but recognising it and letting it pass

  he realised suffering comes from within, from our desires as they prevent us from being satisfied with the present meaning we're constantly discontent but also that everything is impermanent so we shouldn't hold onto these negative desires and thoughts - we can't suppress them but we can choose not to act on them

  cravings go in cycles and this compulsion of desire consumes us
• what are the benefits of seeing things as they really are

  yoga can aid us in cooling the ego meaning Gotama's insights gained new clarity as he could observe them without the filter (ego) which usually distorts them - we can never truly understand something unless we're untainted by the self which can be achieved by cultivating positive states whilst performing yogic exercises and banishing desire

  banishing negative emotion with cultivate a positive one - e.g. banning malevolence will cultivate compassion

  Gotama highlighted the slow process that was his development
• what were some of the stages of meditation the Buddha encountered in the enlightenment story of the scriptures (Pali Cannon)

  - Gotama thought about the conditional nature of all life as we know it, seeing his past lives and recovering the "secluded and solitary state" he experienced as a child

  - he went from the first jhana and progress through higher states of consciousness until he gained ultimate insight which freed him from samsara and transformed him forever

  - his revelation was unoriginal except for his claim to have discovered the path to nirvana