Buddhahood Totally Explained

Everything about Buddhas totally explained

In Buddhism, buddhahood (Sanskrit: buddhatva.Pali: buddhatta. Or (both) buddhabhāva) is the state of perfect enlightenment (Sanskrit: samyaksambodhi. Pali: sammāsambodhi) attained by a (Pali/Sanskrit for "awakened one").
In Buddhism, the term 'buddha' usually refers to one who has become enlightened (for example, awakened to the truth, or Dharma) on their own, without a teacher to point out the Dharma, in a time when the teachings on the Four Noble Truths or the Eightfold Path don't exist in the world, and teaches it to others. More broadly, it's occasionally used to refer to all who attain nirvana.. In this broader sense it's equivalent to Arahant. According to Theravada Buddhism, all Arahants (or Buddhas in the broader sense) are the same in the most fundamental aspects of Liberation (Nirvana), but differ in their practice of perfections paramis. Mahayana Buddhism, however, considers there's a fundamental difference between Buddhas and ordinary arhants. Buddhists don't consider Siddhartha Gautama to have been the only Buddha. The Pali Canon refers to many previous ones (see List of the 28 Buddhas), while the Mahayana tradition additionally has many Buddhas of celestial, rather than historical, origin (see Amitabha or Vairocana as examples). A common Buddhist belief across all Buddhism is that the next Buddha will be one named Maitreya (Pali: Metteyya).

Kinds of Buddha

In the Pali commentaries, three kinds of buddha are mentioned:

Sammasambuddhas attain buddhahood, then decide to teach others the truth they've discovered. They lead others to awakening by teaching the Dhamma in a time where it has been forgotten. Siddhartha Gautama is considered a sammasambuddha. (See also the List of the 28 Buddhas (all of whom are sammasambuddhas).)
Paccekabuddhas, sometimes called 'silent Buddhas' are similar to sammasambuddhas in that they attain nirvana and acquire many of the same powers as a sammasambuddha, but are unable to teach what they've discovered. They are considered second to the sammasambuddhas in spiritual development. They do ordain others; their admonition is only in reference to good and proper conduct (abhisamācārikasikkhā). In some texts, the paccekabuddhas are described as those who understand the Dhamma through their own efforts, but obtain neither omniscience nor mastery over the 'fruits' (phalesu vasībhāvam).(External Link)
Savakabuddhas attain nirvana after hearing the teaching of a sammasambuddha (directly or indirectly). The disciple of a sammasambuddha is called a savaka ("hearer" or "follower") or, once enlightened, an arahant. These terms have slightly varied meanings but can all be used to describe the enlightened disciple. Anubuddha is a rarely used term, but is used by the Buddha in the Khuddakapatha to refer to those who become Buddhas after being given instruction. Enlightened disciples attain nirvana and parinirvana as the two types of Buddha do. Arahant is the term most generally used for them, though it's also applicable to Buddhas. In the Pali Canon itself, the first two are mentioned by the above names, while numerous examples of the third type occur, without that name. There is no mention of types of buddhas, though the word buddha does sometimes appear to be used in a broad sense covering all the above.

Characteristics of a Buddha

Nine characteristics

Some Buddhists meditate on (or contemplate) the Buddha as having nine characteristics:

a worthy one (Skt: arhat)

perfectly self-enlightened (Skt: )

perfected in knowledge and conduct (Skt: )

well gone (Skt: sugata)

unsurpassed knower of the world (Skt: anuttara-loka-vid)

unsurpassed leader of persons to be tamed (Skt: )

teacher of the gods and humans (Skt: )

the Enlightened One (Skt: buddha)

the Blessed One or fortunate one (Skt: bhagavat) These characteristics are frequently mentioned in the Pali Canon, and are chanted daily in many Buddhist monasteries.

Other names

In several other suttas of the Pali canon, the Tathagatha is also known by the following epithets, among many others:
ť 1. Dhammakayo (body of the law)

   2. Brahmakayo (body of Brahman) ť 3. Dhammabhuto (become the Dhamma)

   4. Brahmabhuto (become Brahma). ť 5. Cakkhubhuto (become the eye)

   6. Jnanabhuto (become knowledge) ť 7. Amatassa data (bestower of immortality)

   9. Dhamma Sami (skt. Dharma swami or Lord of the Law). ť 10. Uttamapuriso (the supreme man)

   11. Paramapuriso (the superlative man) ť 12. Paramapattippatto (attainer of the supreme attainment)

Mahayana names

In the Lankavatara Sutra he's known by the following names:
ť The Self-existing One (svayambhuva), the Leader (nayaka), the Remover-of-obstacles (vinayaka), the Guiding One (parinayaka),

   Buddha, Rishi, Bull-king, Brahma, Vishnu, Isvara [God], the Originator (pradhana), Kapila, the Destroyer (bhutanta) [or:the ť Extreme of Reality], the Imperishable (arishta), Nemina, Soma (moon), Fire, Rama, Vyasa, Suka, Indra, the Strong One (Balin),

   or Varuna; there are others who know me as Immortality (anirodhanutpada) [literally:non-Cessation, non-Arising], Emptiness, ť Suchness, Truth (satyata), Reality (bhutata), Limit of Reality (bhutakoti), Dharmadhatu [Realmof Dharma], Nirvana, Eternity

   (nitya), Sameness (samata), Non-Duality (advaya), the Imperishable (anirodha) [literally:Non-Cessation; Non-Extinction, Non- ť Ending], Formless (animitta) [literally:Without Characteristic Marks/ Qualities], Causality [pratyaya),Teaching the Cause

   of Buddhahood (buddha-hetupadesa), the All-Knowing (sarvajna), the Conquering One [or Conqueror] (jina), or the Will-body ť (manomayakaya).

Ashvaghosha in his "Acts of the Buddha" states,

Spiritual realizations

All Buddhist traditions hold that a Buddha has completely purified his mind of desire, aversion and ignorance, and that he's no longer bound by Samsara. A Buddha is fully awakened and has realized the ultimate truth, the non-dualistic nature of life, and thus ended (for himself) the suffering which unawakened people experience in life.

Nature of the Buddha

The various Buddhist schools hold some varying interpretations on the nature of Buddha (see below).

Buddha as a supreme human

Different schools view Buddha differently, with Theravada Buddhism emerges the view that the Buddha was human, endowed with the greatest psychic powers (Kevatta Sutta). The body and mind (the five khandhas) of a Buddha are impermanent and changing, just like the body and mind of ordinary people. However, a Buddha recognizes the unchanging nature of the Dharma, which is an eternal principle and an unconditioned and timeless phenomenon. This view is common in the Theravada school, and the other early Buddhist schools.
   Although the Theravada school doesn't emphasize the more supernatural and divine aspects of the Buddha that are available in the Pali Canon, elements of Buddha as the supreme person are found throughout this canon.
   In MN 18 Madhupindika Sutta, Buddha is described in powerful terms as the Lord of the Dhamma (Pali: Dhammasami, skt.: Dharma Swami) and the bestower of immortality (Pali: Amatassadata).
   Similarly, in the Anuradha Sutta (SN 44.2) Buddha is described as " the Tathagata — the supreme man, the superlative man, attainer of the superlative attainment". Buddha is asked about what happens to the Tathagatha after death of the physical body.
   Buddha replies, "And so, Anuradha — when you can't pin down the Tathagata as a truth or reality even in the present life — is it proper for you to declare, 'Friends, the Tathagata — the supreme man, the superlative man, attainer of the superlative attainment — being described, is described otherwise than with these four positions: The Tathagata exists after death, doesn't exist after death, both does & doesn't exist after death, neither exists nor doesn't exist after death'?"
   In the Vakkali Sutta Buddha identifies himself with the Dhamma: ť O Vakkali, whoever sees the Dhamma, sees me [theBuddha]

Another reference from the Agganna Sutta of the Digha Nikaya, says to his disciple Vasettha: ť O Vasettha! The Word of Dhammakaya is indeed the name of the Tathagata

In the Pali Canons Gautama Buddha is known as being a "teacher of the gods and humans", superior to both the gods and humans in the sense of having nirvana or the greatest bliss (whereas the devas or gods of the Vedic era were still subject to anger, fear, sorrow, etc.).

Eternal Buddha in Mahayana Buddhism

In some sutras found in Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha teaches that the Buddha is no longer essentially a human being but has become a being of a different order altogether and that, in his ultimate transcendental "body/mind" mode as Dharmakaya, he's eternal and infinite life, is present in all things (for example, is "the boundless dharmadhatu", according to the Nirvana Sutra), and is possessed of great and immeasurable qualities. In the Mahaparinirvana Sutra the Buddha declares: "Nirvana is stated to be eternally abiding. The Tathagata [Buddha] is also thus, eternally abiding, without change." This is a particularly important metaphysical and soteriological doctrine in the Lotus Sutra and the Tathagatagarbha sutras. According to the Tathagatagarbha sutras, failure to recognize the Buddha's eternity and - even worse - outright denial of that eternity, is deemed a major obstacle to the attainment of complete awakening (bodhi).
For the Tibetan Buddhist master, Dolpopa, and his Jonangpa School, the Buddha is to be understood as the wondrous and holy wish-fulfilling Essence of all things, beyond comprehension:
"Buddha - an essence of immeasurable, incomprehensible, unfathomable, excellent exalted body, wisdom, qualities, and activities extremely wondrous and fantastic - is vast like space and the holy source, giving rise to all that's wished by sentient beings like a wish-granting jewel, a wish-granting tree …" (Dolpopa, Mountain Doctrine, tr. by Jeffrey Hopkins, Snow Lion Publications, 2006, p. 424).

The Buddha as compared to God

A common misconception among non-Buddhists is that the Buddha is the Buddhist counterpart to "God." Buddhism however, is in general non-theistic, in the sense of not teaching the existence of a supreme creator god (see God in Buddhism) or depending on any supreme being for enlightenment. The Buddha is a guide and teacher who points the way to enlightenment, however the struggle for enlightenment is one's own. The commonly accepted definition of the term "God" is of a being who rules and created the universe (see origin belief). In Buddhism, the supreme origin and creator of the universe isn't a god, but rather causes and conditions obscured by time. However, certain Mahayana sutras (such as the Nirvana Sutra and the Lotus Sutra) and especially such tantras as the Kunjed Gyalpo Tantra give expression to a vision of the Buddha as the omnipresent, all-knowing, liberative essence and deathless Reality of all things, and thus, to some extent, this conception of the Buddha draws close to pantheistic conceptions of godhead. Also, Indonesian Buddhism declares its belief in God, in accordance with the constitution.

Depictions of the Buddha in art

the Seated Buddha

the Reclining Buddha

the Standing Buddha

Hotei or Budai, the obese Laughing Buddha, usually seen in China (This figure is believed to be a representation of a medieval Chinese monk who is associated with Maitreya, the future Buddha, and is therefore technically not a Buddha image.)

the Emaciated Buddha, which shows Siddhartha Gautama during his extreme ascetic practice of starvation. The Buddha statue shown calling for rain is a pose common in Laos.

Markings

Most depictions of Buddha contain a certain number of markings, which are considered the signs of his enlightenment. These signs vary regionally, but two are common:

a protuberance on the top of the head (denoting superb mental acuity)

long earlobes (denoting superb perception) In the Pali Canon there's frequent mention of a list of 32 physical marks of Buddha.

Hand-gestures

The poses and hand-gestures of these statues, known respectively as asanas and mudras, are significant to their overall meaning. The popularity of any particular mudra or asana tends to be region-specific, such as the Vajra (or Chi Ken-in) mudra, which is popular in Japan and Korea but rarely seen in India. Others are more common; for example, the Varada (Wish Granting) mudra is common among standing statues of the Buddha, particularly when coupled with the Abhaya (Fearlessness and Protection) mudra.

Further Information

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