Questions about Buddhahood
Short answers, pulled from the story.
What does Buddhahood mean in Buddhism?
Buddhahood is the condition of being a fully awakened being, described in Sanskrit as buddhatva or buddhabhava. It represents the supreme spiritual goal of Buddhism, also called samma-sambodhi, meaning full, complete awakening, and involves liberation from all causes of suffering and the cycle of rebirth.
How is Buddhahood different in Theravada versus Mahayana Buddhism?
In Theravada Buddhism, the goal is individual liberation known as arhatship, and a Buddha is a supremely wise human who attained Nirvana through personal effort. In Mahayana Buddhism, Buddhahood is the universal goal for all practitioners, pursued to liberate every sentient being, and a Buddha is understood as a transcendent, all-knowing, eternal being whose awakened wisdom pervades the entire cosmos.
What are the six superknowledges attributed to a Buddha?
The six classes of superknowledge, the chalabhinna, include higher powers such as flight and invisibility, clairaudience across human and divine realms, telepathy, recall of one's own past lives, knowledge of where other beings will be reborn, and the destruction of all mental pollutants, called the liberation of the mind. These are recorded in early Buddhist texts and in later sources as well.
Who are the Seven Buddhas of Antiquity in Buddhism?
The Seven Buddhas of Antiquity, the Saptatathagata, are the earliest named Buddhas in the Pali texts. They are Vipassi, Sikhi, Vesabhu, Kakusandha, Konagamana, Kassapa, and Gautama. Four lived in the current good eon, and three lived in past eons, with Vipassi said to have lived ninety-one kalpas ago.
What is the Trikaya doctrine in Mahayana Buddhism?
The Trikaya, or triple body, is the central Mahayana framework for understanding a Buddha. It holds that a Buddha has three aspects: the Dharmakaya, the body of ultimate reality; the Sambhogakaya, a blissful divine body with infinite forms; and the Nirmanakaya, a transformation body that appears in the everyday world with the semblance of a human form.
What archaeological evidence exists for the historical Buddhas?
Konagamana Buddha is mentioned in a 3rd-century BCE inscription by Ashoka at Nigali Sagar in what is now Nepal, where an Ashoka pillar still stands at the site. Gautama Buddha's birthplace is marked by the Pillar of Ashoka at Rummindei in modern Lumbini, Nepal; the Brahmi script inscription records Ashoka's visit and his grant making the village of Lummini free of taxes.