Buddhism — Core Philosophy and Development

3.1 Founding and Core Doctrine

Siddhartha Gautama's Life

• Born c. 563 BCE at Lumbini (now Nepal), son of King Suddhodana of the Sakya clan
• Age 29: renounced palace life after seeing the "four sights" (old man, sick man, corpse, wandering monk)
• After 6 years of extreme asceticism, rejected it and accepted milk-rice from Sujata at Bodh Gaya
• Attained enlightenment (Nirvana) at Bodh Gaya (Bihar), under the Bodhi tree, c. 528 BCE
• First sermon (Dhammachakkapavattana Sutta) at Sarnath (near Varanasi) to five former companions — established the Sangha
• Died c. 483 BCE at Kushinagar (Uttar Pradesh) — Mahaparinirvana

Four Noble Truths (Chatur Arya Satya)

1. Dukkha (suffering): All existence involves suffering — birth, death, separation from what we love, union with what we hate
2. Samudaya (origin): Suffering arises from craving/attachment (tanha) — for pleasure, existence, and non-existence
3. Nirodha (cessation): Suffering can be ended by the complete elimination of craving
4. Magga (path): The Eightfold Path leads to the cessation of suffering

The Eightfold Path (Ashtangika Marga)

Right View, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration — grouped into three clusters:

• Wisdom (prajna): Right View, Right Intention
• Morality (sila): Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood
• Meditation (samadhi): Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration

Key Doctrines

• Anatta: No permanent self
• Anicca: Impermanence
• Pratityasamutpada: Dependent origination — everything arises from conditions; nothing has independent existence
• Nirvana: Liberation from samsara — extinction of craving

3.2 Buddhist Councils and Schisms

Council	Date	Location	Key Result
First	483 BCE	Rajgriha (Bihar)	Compilation of Vinaya Pitaka and Dhamma Pitaka
Second	383 BCE	Vaishali	Schism begins — Mahasanghikas vs Sthaviravadins
Third	250 BCE	Pataliputra	Ashoka's patronage; Moggaliputta Tissa; missionaries sent abroad (Mahinda to Sri Lanka)
Fourth	c. 100 CE	Kundalvana, Kashmir	Kanishka's patronage; formal Hinayana/Mahayana split

3.3 Hinayana vs Mahayana

Aspect	Hinayana (Theravada)	Mahayana
Goal	Individual liberation (Nirvana)	Liberation of all beings (Bodhisattva ideal)
Language	Pali	Sanskrit
Buddha conception	Historical teacher, human	Divine being, cosmic Buddha
Geography	Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia	Tibet, China, Japan, Korea
Key texts	Tripitaka (Pali Canon)	Prajnaparamita Sutras, Lotus Sutra

Vajrayana (Tantric Buddhism) — a third school emerged in the 5th–7th century CE in northeast India; spread to Tibet; emphasises tantric rituals, mantras, and direct transmission.

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