Psychology of Buddhism. Monograph

Chapter 2

PSYCHOLOGICAL BASIS OF BUDDHISM

In spite of its integrity and credibility, Buddha’s teachings shared the lot of all world models and moral systems: it underwent reassessment, revision, rethinking, it was subject to destructive criticism, fantasies and interpretations and sometimes changed to such extent that its essence was lost completely.

2.1. Primary sources

According to the legends, hardly had Buddha closed his eyes before passing into paranirvana and breathed out, bidding farewell to his life on earth, a serious split appeared between his followers. Philosopher-Brahmin Subhadra rejoiced at the news of Buddha’s death: finally the one, who had always told them what to do, died.

Buddha’s closest disciples and companions Kashyapa and Ananda decided to create a council in order to resolve the disagreements that arose within Buddhist community. The first council was presided over by Kashyapa. It gathered five hundred monks and lasted for seven months.

The second council took place a hundred years later.

The third one gathered in 250BC, under Ashoka the Great, who was the first to make Buddhism a state religion in India.

The Buddhist canon of scriptures “Tripitaka”, nowadays kept in Ceylon, coincides with the basic theoretical and practical propositions, which were approved at the third council.

It is said that the teaching, adopted at the first council, is completely identical to the doctrine approved under Ashoka the Great.

However, it is hard to believe that Buddhist canons were written immediately after

Buddha’s death. Besides, oral tradition is rarely accurate where transmitting knowledge and experience is concerned. The Pali canon consists of about eight thousand stories, legends, sermons, homilies and aphorisms. Taking into account the comments on each text, the

number of narrations, both in prose and verse, rises up to fifteen hundred. This huge amount

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of information was transmitted orally for five hundred years, or 20-30 generations, as it took an outstanding monk 20-25 years to learn all the texts by heart.

It is worth saying that Buddhism, in contrast to many other traditions, had other, special ways of transmitting knowledge, and quite effective ones.

The oral tradition included Sangitas (monotonous chants). Buddhist monks organized special meetings, dedicated to restoration and correction of canonical texts, reconstructed from memory.

Sangitas were attended by the most competent and respected members of Buddhist communities. There was a whole system of cross verification, every word of the teaching had to be checked for accuracy. At the councils held in the 1st century BC and the 5th century AD, text verification was performed by six types of monks: there were those who knew ancient texts, those who knew a part of Tripitaka, experts in comments on canonical texts, experts in comments on non-canonical texts and those who knew Sinhalese comments.

The Mahayana tradition recognized four Sangitas, in the course of which the following canons were approved:

1) The Sangita held in Rajagriha and presided over by Kashyapa and Ananda (three months after Buddha’s death), which canonized Vinaya Pitaka, Sutra Pitaka and

Abhidhamma Pitaka;

2)The Sangita held in Vaishali 100 years later, when there was a split of the Sangha;

3)The Sangita that took place in Pataliputra 200 years later. It was attended by 18 early schools of Buddhism. It was during this Sangita that Buddhism was recognized as a state religion by Ashoka the Great.

4)The Sangita held in Kashmir ( 1st-2nd century AD), marked by canonization of the Sanskrit version of the three baskets of teaching - Tripitaka of Sarvastivada school.

The Theravada tradition recognizes six Sangitas.

The texts approved by the first three above mentioned Sangitas are considered to be canonical.

According to the Theravada school, the fourth Sangita was held in 29 BC in Anuradhapura and Aluvihara near Matale (now the territory of Sri Lanka). Tripitaka in Pali, as well as comments on it in Sinhalese, were written down on palm leaves during this

Sangita.

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The fifth Sangita was held in 1871 in Mandalay, where monks carved the texts of Tripitaka in 729 stone slabs and built a pagoda over each of them.

The sixths Sangita was devoted to the 2500th anniversary of Buddha’s passing into paranirvana and took place in several cities of Burma (1954-1956). All of the 54 books of Pali Tripitaka (each of them contains about 400-500 pages) were checked and edited. Shorter translations of Tripitaka into Burman, Hindi and English were canonized.

2.2. The Three Baskets

The Tripitaka (literally – “three baskets”) is the main primary source of Buddhism. It represents a complete set of sacred Buddhist texts in Pali. The Sanskrit version of the Tripitaka is much smaller in size, it is known mainly as a translation into Chinese and Tibetan.

Buddha’s teaching was transmitted in Prankrit. It is a generic name for a group of local dialects, which includes Pali and can be characterized as a simplified Sanskrit.

The Tripitaka consists of three parts: the Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutra Pitaka and the Abhidhamma Pitaka.

The first basket. Vinaya Pitaka

The Vinaya Pitaka (disciplinary rules for monks) is divided into three parts: Suttavibhanga, Khandhaka and Parivara.

Suttavibhanga consists of 227 rules of conduct for monks (Patimokkha) and more than 300 for nuns.

Khandhaka contains two subsections, Mahavagga and Chulavagga.

The Mahavagga is devoted to Buddhist community admission rules, the uposatha ritual (confession), rules of reading Patimokkha, rules of monastic life during rainy season, clothing rules during the kathina ceremony and methods of punishment, including punishment for heresy.

The Chulavagga contains a list of misdeeds which lead to exclusion from Sangha, as well as conditions for those who want to reinstate themselves in their status of monks: rules for washing, dressing and using household articles; there is also a list of heresies and a list of

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degrees. It also contains the history of the first council in Rajagriha and the second one in Vaishali.

The Parivara section is a catechism for monks with classification of disciplinary

rules.

The Second Basket. Sutta Pitaka

The Sutta Pitaka contains Buddha’s sayings and sermons as presented by his beloved disciple Ananda. Each of the suttas began with the words: “Thus I have heard...”, then he told the name of the place where the sutta was said and sometimes enumerated those who were present at that moment (arhats, kings, Gods, etc.).

The second basket consists of five sections (Nikayas) – Digha (the collection of

“long” discourses), Majihima (the “middle-length” discourses), Samyutta (the “connected” discourses), Anguttara (the “numerical” discourses) and Khuddaka (the “minor collection”).

Digha Nikaya comprises of 34 suttas, divided into three sections (Vaggas): Silakkhandha, Maha and Patika. Silakkhandha-vagga explains how to identify false arguments about the nature of being and selfhood; it speaks about the true path to enlightenment, as well as the uselessness of Vedas and Brahmanic methods of salvation, the dangers of demonstrating supernatural abilities, the nature of morality, samadhi and wisdom. Maha-vagga is devoted to meditation as a way of gaining knowledge. It contains the famous

Mahaparinibbana sutta, which tells us about the end of Buddha’s life and of his passing into nirvana. Patika-vagga criticizes asceticism, discusses the origins of faith, provides a classification of human types and describes norms of conduct for laymen. There is also the story of chakravartin (an ideal universal ruler) and Buddha’s teaching as written down by disciple Sariputta.

Majihima Nikaya consists of 152 suttas, divided into 15 vaggas. Here Buddha teaches his disciples, monks, laymen, nobles and common people, earthly and heavenly creatures, what good works is. He teaches, how to control one’s thoughts, words and actions.

He also tells what anger and hatred lead to, describes the essence of the Dharma, of the ignorant and enlightened consciousness and explains the nature of the five skandhas, of dukkha, tathagata, bodhisattva and nirvana. Several suttas are devoted to Buddha’s disputes with Jains. Majihima Nikaya also contains Buddha’s teachings as presented by Sariputta,

Punna, Moggallana and some other disciples.

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Samyutta Nikaya comprises of 2889 suttas, divided into 56 groups (samyuttas), which are grouped into 5 vaggas: Sagatha, Nidana, Khandha, Salayatana, and Maha. Sagatha tells us about the difficulties that one has to face when he makes the first step on the Noble Eightfold Path. Nidana provides us with an insight into the nature of the law of dependent origination (the law of cause and effect). Khandha vagga clarifies the nature of skandhas, which constitute the selfhood of man and bind personality to the “wheel of life”. It also explains how to liberate oneself from them. Salayatana explains the functioning of the six sense bases (eyes, ears, tongue, nose, body and thought), which generate desire, as well as deals with the ways to overcome such desires, as they cause frustration and suffering. Maha vagga describes the last steps of the Noble Eightfold Path, leading to liberation, enlightenment and nirvana.

Anguttara Nikaya includes 2308 suttas, divided into 11 groups (nipatas), each of which is divided into vaggas, containing 10 or more suttas. The first group is devoted to the description of such phenomena as thought, love, good, Buddha, Sariputra, Mahakassapa, etc. The second group discusses certain dual phenomena: two kinds of karma, trained-untrained, true-false. The third group analyzes triple phenomena, etc. The eleventh group deals with 11 types of happiness, 11 paths leading to nirvana and goodness; 11 negative characteristics of a shepherd and a monk.

Khuddaka Nikaya consists of more than 2200 stories, homilies and aphorisms, divided into 15 collections.

The first collection, Khuddakapatha (the collection of short passages), includes the famous formula “I seek refuge in the Buddha, I seek refuge in the Dharma, I seek refuge in the sangha” and the five Buddhist percepts: “refrain from killing living things, refrain from stealing, refrain from un-chastity, refrain from lying, refrain from taking intoxicants”. It also contains 10 questions for a novice, the famous discourse on Blessings (Mangala Sutta), the discourse on the three treasures (the Buddha, the Dharma, the Sangha), a description of ways of transferring the religious merit (punya) to a deceased loved one, a poem about true friendship, etc.

Another original source, the Dhammapada, contains 423 most important sayings from different texts of the Pali canon. It is the deskbook of all Buddhists, which has to be

mastered with your heart and not with your mind.

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The Udana contains 80 important sayings attributed to Buddha in verse and in prose. The Itivuttaka consists of 112 suttas, explaining the nature of anger, passion, pride, lust and other negative states, which are in contrast with friendliness, compassion, modesty,

fairness, etc.

The Sutta Nipata, containing 71 suttas, which address monks, laymen, kings and gods, describe episodes from Buddha’s life, as well as his sermons on how to overcome selfcenteredness, greed, hatred and delusion, leading to an accumulation of unfavorable karma. They reflect the nature of the social and religious life of ancient India and reveal the essence of moral and ethical discussions between representatives of different teachings. They also provide us with information on the birth of Gautama, his departure from worldly life and the king Madagha Bimbisara, etc.

The Vimanavatthu and the Petavatthu are devoted to 11 levels of kamaloka. The Vimanavatthu, containing 85 poems, tells of the accumulation of religious merit, which leads to better karma and rebirth on the heavenly levels. There is also a description of the heavenly levels of existence. The Petavatthu, which includes 51 poems, describes life at the lowest levels. Here creatures, devoid of mind, suffer till the negative effects of karma disappear.

These are followed by two more collections of suttas: Theragatha and Therigatha, glorifying the feat of monks and nuns, who renounced worldly life in order to achieve enlightenment. Theragatha consists of 264 poems, Therigatha comprises of 73 poems. They are intended for inspiring laymen to perform religious exploits.

The “Jataka” is a collection of 550 tales about the previous births of Gautama. In essence, it is a set of fairy tales and legends of various peoples of Asia with bodhisattva (Buddha in his previous incarnations) as the main character.

Niddesa is a collection of commentaries on parts of the Suttanipata, ascribed to

Buddha’s disciple Sariputta.

The suttas of the Patisambhidamagga analyze various concepts concerning knowledge, morality, meditation, etc.

The Apadana is a collection of tales about previous births of famous monks and

nuns.

The Buddhavamsa is a poetic description of the life of the 24 Buddhas preceding

Buddha Shakyamuni. The tradition ascribes them to Buddha himself.

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The Cariya Pitaka (one of the last parts of the Khuddaka Nikaya) comprises 35 stories from the Jataka. They describe in verse 7 of the 10 perfections of Buddha.

The Third Basket. Abhiddhamma Pitaka

The Abhidhamma Pitaka (literally “the basket containing Buddhist doctrine”) consists of 7 books, which systematize the doctrinal material appearing in the Sutta Pitaka.

The first book, Dhammasangani, contains a classification of the elements of life (dhammas), which are defined as ethical factors present in physical body, psychological and mental states and manifesting themselves in the process of meditation. The second book, Vibhanga, clarifies the nature of khandhas (or skandhas, i.e. the objects of clinging) and explains how to overcome one’s craving for them. Next comes Kathavatthu, which consists of debates criticizing 18 early schools of Buddhism, contrasting them with the Theravada teaching, which is seen as the right one. The next book, Puggalapannatti, analyzes and classifies people prone to lust, hatred and delusions. The Dhatukatha discusses the location of dharmas, dependent on skandhas and the six senses (ayatanas). The Yamaka consists of pairs of questions. It analyses dhammas, stating whether they have a particular property or not. The Patthana, the seventh book of the Abhidhamma Pitaka, discusses the law of dependent origination.

2.2. Preliminary Remarks

We have given a short description of the Buddhist canon, which is not only the tables of law and morality of this great teaching, but also a cosmological, philosophical and psychological doctrine.

There is no doubt that every element of Buddhism, from skandhas to Vairocana, can be psychologically interpreted and analyzed. However, such strategy would be an infinite source of verbiage. Moreover, it would lead to the creation of concepts that had never really existed in Buddhism, and that have to do with nothing but our own way of thinking.

The major part of the Tripitaka consists of the disciples’ thoughts on Buddha’s sermons and personality. Some of the suttas are devoted to the interpretation of texts written by different outstanding disciples. Thus, we have to deal with texts which represent the result

of multiple interpretations, the understanding of the understanding of Buddhism.

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Buddha is the only source of true Buddhism. Therefore, we will restrict our analysis to the texts that are traditionally ascribed to Buddha himself and focus on their psychological side.

The “simple” Theravada Buddhism is closer to us in terms of content. It means “the Teaching of the Elders” in Pali. In the Christian tradition it corresponds to the “Teaching of the Apostles”. We have to remember that Buddha himself said that only his twelve disciples had the true knowledge of Buddhism. It is to the twelve elders that he delegated the responsibility to transfer his teaching before his death.

The Theravada is the oldest of the 18 Buddhist schools. It has more in common with the original source than any other schools, as it has managed to preserve the major elements of Buddha’s teaching.

According to the Pali Canon, the Theravada school emerged as the result of the great split of sangha, which took place in 350BC. It may be said that it appeared even earlier, in the course of Buddha’s life. It accompanied him when he thought over the sermons he delivered in front of his closest disciples. In a sense, the Theravada is the first level, the first response that his teaching evoked, the first feedback he got from his immediate social environment.

That is why Buddha is seen as a real personality, endowed with both weak and strong (sometimes superhuman) qualities in the Theravada tradition. He urged to refrain from all kinds of evil, to accumulate good karma and to liberate one’s mind from destructive desires.

The Theravada contains the teaching about the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path and the law of dependent origination. All the phenomena of life are explained indirectly, through the relationship of past and future actions, karma and vipaka. All the worldly phenomena are said to have three characteristics: Anicca (anitya in Sanscrit), Dukkha (Duhkha) and Anatta (Anatman).

According to the classical Tharavada Buddhism, Buddhahood is the vipaka (the result) of sadhana (spiritual practice). It is possible to become a Buddha in this lifetime and in this body, as every living being has the nature of Buddha.

Why study psychology of Buddhism, if it is more effective to join the Sangha, i.e.

Buddhist community?

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Every reader of this book may become a monk (a bhikkhu or bhikkshu) or a nun (bhikkhuni) and realize his or her Buddhahood, living by the rules of the Vinaya Pitaka.

However, here we face a few objections.

Firstly, Buddhist monastic life is almost inaccessible to women. There are very few female Buddhist communities. Even in Sri Lanka, where the overall count of monastic communities throughout the country is more than 7000, there are just 20 female monasteries. In the course of my three-week visit to Sri Lanka I have not met a single Buddhist nun.

Secondly, it is rather difficult for a modern man to become a bhikkhu, a mendicant monk in the traditional sense of the word, to live on alms given by laymen. No doubt, such a possibility does not evoke pleasant associations. Nowadays mendicants are at the bottom of society, and if men put on yellow robes and women don white robes, the picture will just become theatrical and fake.

Thirdly, if one becomes a monk at the monastery and does not have to gather alms, he will have to follow the 227 rules listed in the Patimokkha. The rules are divided into 7 groups. The first group consists of the four most serious offenses, for which one should be immediately expelled from the Sangha: any kind of sexual interaction, theft, deliberate murder and deliberate lying about having attained a superior state or being endowed with some abilities.

The second group lists 13 rules, the breaking of which leads to a period of punishment. They include lustful bodily contact with a woman, making lustful insulting remarks to a woman, pandering, etc.

The third group is devoted to misdeeds related to belongings (32). The fourth group lists misdemeanors requiring redemption (92). The fifth group consists of faults requiring repentance. The sixth group comprises rules for those who undergo training (75). The seventh group is devoted to rules concerning lying.

Following all of the 227 rules would mean not to live at all, as European life mostly consists in violating such rules. Moreover, for some people such violations represent the purpose, the meaning of life.

The genius of Buddhist monastic path is accessible to everybody. Anyone can become a Buddhist.

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But if you want to become a novice, you have to follow at least the 10 following rules: 1) refrain from killing 2) refrain from stealing 3) refrain from committing adultery 4) refrain from lying 5) refrain from drinking alcohol 6) refrain from eating after noon 7) refrain from dancing, singing, attending shows 8) refrain from wearing jewelry and cosmetics 9) refrain from sitting on high chairs 10) refrain from accepting gold or silver, study the dharma and the Vinaya Pitaka and get ready for upasampada, the rite of higher ordination, by which a novice becomes a monk.

According to the rules set by Buddha, the period of noviceship for adherents of a different faith is no less than 4 months. The ceremony of initiation is rather democratic and simple. You just have to pronounce a few well-known formulas like “I seek refuge in the Buddha, I seek refuge in the Dharma, I seek refuge in the Sangha”.

Those who want to be initiated have to tell whether they have leprosy, scabies, asthma, epilepsy or skin boils. You have to state that you are a man, that you are free, that you do not have debts, that you do not have to serve in the army, that your parents agree, that you are older than 20, that you have a bowl for alms and monastic robes. Finally, you have to tell them your name and the name of your guru.

As you may see, the average European could easily become a Buddhist monk. But being a Buddhist monk implies leading a very special way of life, which does not have much in common with worldly feelings, relationships and behavior that we are used to.

Buddhist monks live according to the rules set in the Vinaya Pitaka: they get up at sunrise and go to bed when the dark falls, they eat only before noon, usually two times, early in the morning and at 11-12 a.m.

Their free time is devoted to studying, reading scriptures and practicing Buddhist techniques, which vary from school to school and monastery to monastery. In addition, they take part in numerous ceremonies and talk to believers. In some monasteries they also have to do farming. The rules of promotion in Buddhist spiritual hierarchy are also quite specific.

Buddhist monks study Sanskrit and Pali and learn scriptures word for word. A monk tries to learn as many texts as possible, as his knowledge and competence in Buddhism depend on the amount of texts and commentaries he has learnt.

Rote learning, strongly criticized in modern teaching practice, is considered to be a

priority in the Buddhist tradition.

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