The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-05-12
BUDDHISM
BY Augusttls T. Knudsen.

Buddhism is by far the best known /
of the Oriental religions. In fact, it t
has received so much attention that
there are few people who do not know 1
enough about the great founder of the /
religion to treat his name with respect |
The Pail texts of Southern Asia. the |
Burmese and siamese. the Chinese and |
Japanese views of Buddhism have all |
been made accessible to Western stu
dents. But for a popular and at the
same time exact exposition, THE Light
of Asia by Sir Edwin Arnold, easily
takes first place. The wonderful mine
of ethical and spiritual germs given to
man by Gautama is there put in a fit
ting setting and gives one a splendid
example of what can be done by poets
TO make religion delightful reading for
the masses.
Passing quickly over the hstory-the
story of Prince Siddhartha's boyhood,
manhood, his life in the royal house
hold, all so beautifully depicted in
",The Light of Asia'-let US take up
his work when the desire to know re-
ligion led him to abandon his home and
wander forth.
Let us also avoid any discussion as
to the comparative values of his life
and his renunciations. Let US take UP
the subject with his starting out to
search for wisdom.
Siddhartha was Hindu of the sec
ond caste. He was a Vedantin; MS
search for enlightenment was based on
the Vedantic theory of evolution In
his desire to understand the woe OF
living he goes to the teachers ana
studies philosophy. Finding that in
adequate, he joins the ascetics, he
practises the austerities OF the
Yogis, and outdoes them in severity.
Emaciated, he faints, and on recovery
leads a life of moderation. Sitting IN
meditation, ne reaches the BEATING
Vision; he knows that he knows and
begins to teach.
He never intended to found another
cult; he was only another example or
what Vedantfc theory could produce.
Another evidence that man can attain
to a cognition of divine wisdom.
He preached continuously, and ms
followers wrote down his words. These
are the three Pitakas. Most of the lit
erature was written century after
his death.
He did not found religion, but a
naonastic order, the 'tSangha,' which
was to keep his work alive.
Gautamas illumination traced the
evolution of himself and humanity in
general through many births ana
deaths. sc after age he perfected his
character, until he could comprehend
the meaning of life
He traced the souls path to birth
and suffering and physical death, ana
gives the ignorance of its spirituality
as the cause of its seeking rebirth.
knowing or finding itself as spark
of the divine, it viii look upward.
Looking upward, it forsakes wt1@ldli-
ness: forsaking the world, it reaches
peace, rest, satisfaction.
From ignorance of our divinity we
identify ourselves with consciousness.
Then with name and form, and the
powers of perception. We lose our in
dividua1ity in personality, seeking per-
sonality we find sensation. From sem
sation we get desire, from desire we
learn attachment to the objects of de-
sire So we need a body to experience
sensation to the fullest. And thus the
soul is plunged into the whirl of birth
and death. Hence suffering. Then
comes the dissatisfaction that turns
the soul &c seek peace and rest, ana
then it follows the path to its Source
This path to God is morality; ethics
pure and simple. Doing and being good
is the sum total Of Gautama's teaching.
He teaches four Noble Truths" as be-
ing the cornerstones of life:
l. The truth of suffering. This
world gives suffering in birth, life,
death; attachment to objects gives no
peace. Desire for pleasure, change, va
riety, prosperity, brings only anxiety
and trouble.
?. The truth of cessation. Suffering
only ceases with abandonment of all
desires. The attention being with
drawn from outward activities, the
inner life gives peace-the only salts
faction that is lasting.
8. The truth that the end of Sepa-
rateness alone gives permanent peace; |
that Nirvana, the unity with God, Is
the final goal in the search for salts
faction.
What is Nirvana? 1t has been varl-
ously described. 1t is certainly trans
cending of the mind, but not necessar-
lily an extirpation of the thinking prln-
ciple. It is an attempt TO describe
what every religion believes in, j, e.
the unity with God. Buddha says it IS