Show Buddhism Failed To Flourish In InLand InLand Land Landof of Origin Spread Elsewhere I 4 C S I Ii 1 i cC 1 II I I I I s fW k kh h t e I 1 he I it elm gm-elm C I I ma lii hown i ti a C o iC fl q I I luil t t I y III I ii l I lile 1 I a it m time the oi Irre of 1 the religion 1 Inlo hit o Japan China oIlier Oriental l EDITORS EDITOR'S NOTE This Tills I H the thc fourth of n it Series erks erk's of sic s lx artIcles on lit II llio worlds world's 1 Time Ille JIt article Ie a will lit Ill be in By Dy D J W J 1 T SOX MASON Author of Ut Ii C mitten for NE NEA XE Service Few religions lons which attack the prevailIng faith flourish nourish In lands of ot their origin A prophet Is without honor In lii his own coun coun- country coun- coun country country try India the home of Buddha whelP sixteen religious Ihl W exist has few Buddhists Buddha suffered the fate of ot Christ ChristIn ChristIn ChristIn In this respect There are few Christians In Palestine Buddha whose name on earth was Prince lived probably ably 2500 years ears ago He lie was the tho hell heir to a Q small ruling family in northern India and his youth was spent In spiritual dreaming He lIe asked puzzling questions questions about about tho the rca rea- reasons rea reasons sons for evil and po poverty vert that the wIse men could not answer Suffering ot or others caused 1 him him such distress that his kingly fath fath- father fath- fath father er or forbade him to be shown any any- anything any anything thing that was not joyous But Dut pondered the problem of oC existence anti and finally left hIs wife and young oung child and depart depart- departed departed ed cd as a poor ioor wandering searcher after truth For years cars he lie lived 1 as an en n ascetic constantly trying to send his hIli mind to the center of at pt ex- ex exIstence existence ex to lea learn rn lifes life's secret EIl Till TREE BO-TREE O Knowledge I at last camo caine to him himat at the tho age of ot 33 35 after artel he ho had hadi i overcome nit nil carnal temptations under tinder the tree the Iree Bo the tree of ot en- en en enlightenment Au All suffering and seemed to him to be duo to the craving of desires stimulated d by existence They had hall no reality of their own lot So all existence appeared as an I Illusion of o the mind The Ideal purpose in life was to live so as asto asto asto to escape existence c depart from ones one's personality and ant enter cuter Into Nirvana ana Nirvana Is Idealized wisdom not embodied in any In- In Individual's In Individual's personality but pure self contained wisdom self contained Prince gained Nir- Nir Nir Nirvana volta vana on earth and after his death was known as a a Buddha an nit en- en enlightened enlightened en enlightened lightened one He lie lived 45 years to preach his gospel goepel being called usually during that time by his I family name of Buddhists Budd ludd- now name him Buddha to Identify him from tram ot- ot ol i-er i 1 Cr taught his followers to avoid both lust and asceticism and to live by the Middle Way In Iii or- or or order der to overcome the evils of at cx cx- cx cx Islene an and 1 finally gain Nirvana 11 Ii advocated what he called the Noble Eight raid Fold Path right le 8 right aspirations right speech right conduct right way ivay of livelihood right effort right mindedness right rapture 01 FUTURE LIFE He lie had nothing to say about a future life That he taught was no o concern of ot humanity on earth lie He accepted the theory ot of Imper Imper- Impersonal Impersonal reincarnation but denied the permanence ot of o the Individual soul and did not teach belief bellet In a god god- godhead godhead godhead head The followers of ot the ancient hindu religion therefore looked on him hint as an atheist and though Buddhism flourished for some sometime sometime time In India It was in hesitant fashion reaching its Iti highest Influence once ence under Asoka Asola king of or Magad Magad-ha Magad la ha India three centuries after I Buddha's death Thereafter it declined at home I b but t spread Into other countries where theologians disputed and its creed d In man many funda funda- fundamental fundamental mental wa waya Two main Buddhist schools arose one called or the Lesser Vehicle and the oth- oth other oth other er Mahayana or the Greater Ye- Ye Ve Vehicle hicle hide The fundamental difference be- be between between be between tween the tho two is not fully under under- understood understood stood Orl Originally however jima rana ana Buddhism probably taught that salvation or Nirvana ann could be attaIned only by those who practiced I iced strictly the almost Impossible impossible Impossible sible way of at holy living as did himself Then Mahayana Buddhism evolved as lIS the Greater Vehicle to carry to salvation the greater number num nuni- number ber who hail had not the self control self and force of character necessary to be bo forever pure on earth e-arth S nC CIUS X J ras Passing Into Inlo China eventually reached Japan Japon where It was ivas Greatly influenced by Shin Shin- Shintoism t and lo lost t Its tendency to pes pea pessimism Inherent In its that existence Is an Illusion front from which should escape became largely domi domi- dominant dominant nant In ono one form or another in Buddhism and has ro- ro re I I I I I so to the present da day Buddha existed many cemi- cemi cen centuries tunes tUlles before Buddha hay lav- lavIng hav having ing lug refused as long loni as asIt asIt asIt It was Impossible for tor everyone to tobe tobe tobe be saved Amida Anilda eventually became Bud Bud- Buddha Buddha dha and later became reincarnated cd ed as os thereby demonstrating ing imig that everybody might be saved SalvatIon was hel held 1 out to those who did no more than repeat the Amida Buddha save us without necessity tor for reIncarnatIon Amida salvation too meant not notI entrance Into an Inexplicable Nir- Nir Nir Nirvana vana vans but Into which ma Is akin to Heaven So Buddhism m has undergone an evolution since s 's day com corn commensurate with the the evolution which has lIas occurred In Christian creeds since the time timo ot or Christ ChristIts Its theologians differ among themselves as much as do Chris ChrIs- ChrIstian Christian tian theologians lint hut they have never carried their differences to the Ule point of ot engaging In religious warn ars |