The Main Teachings Of Buddha | Teaching Of Gautam Buddha | Buddha Taught #teachingsofbuddha

Did you know that Buddhism has a total of 84,000 sutras, containing the teachings of Buddha? It's a huge number, isn't it? If we study one sutra every day, it would take us 230 years to learn all of the Buddha's teachings. It is a big challenge for those new to Buddhism, because you have to deal with a huge amount of knowledge. So in this video we will introduce the main teachings of Buddha, the basic principles that you will find in most Buddhist sutras. Understanding these basic contents will help you gain basic knowledge to learn more deeply and practice properly in your journey to the wisdom of Buddhism. Please patiently watch the entire video and discover the main teachings of Buddha. Number 1, Four Noble Truths. The Four Noble Truths is a very famous content of Buddhism because it was the Buddha's first sermon after his enlightenment. The content of the Four Noble Truths is simply a method of healing in which the Buddha plays the role of a doctor. He showed us four things, first, each of us is sick, whether we realize it or not, it still exists. Second, the Buddha clearly pointed out the cause of this disease. Third, the Buddha described what the state of a person who has recovered from the disease and is completely healthy will look like. And fourth, Buddha gave us a remedy to completely cure this disease. Do you think this content sounds very logical? Yes, what Buddha taught is very practical and close to our lives, not mystical or magical at all. Because Buddha is not a god, he is also a human being like us, the only difference is that he was enlightened, meaning he saw through all the truths of the world. Let's learn in detail about the four contents of the Four Noble Truths. The first noble truth is Dukkha. In this first truth, the Buddha said that we all suffer from a common disease, which is Dukkha. Dukkha is often translated as suffering, however suffering is only a part of Dukkha, but more broadly Dukkha also includes dissatisfaction in life. It's really difficult to have any words to fully describe the meaning of Dukkha, so instead of understanding it in the translation sense, let's understand it through classification. According to the Buddha, there are three types of Dukkha, Dukkha Dukkha, Viparinama Dukkha and Samkhara Dukkha. Dukkha Dukkha means physical or mental suffering, such as the painful feeling of being burned or the feeling of heartbreak when breaking up with a lover. Viparinama Dukkha, means suffering and dissatisfaction caused by change. For example, a new car wears out over time, making us miserable. In this sense, the happiness we are pursuing is also Dukkha because it will not last forever. That's why sometimes when you gather with a happy family but still feel a little sad, that's Viparinama Dukkha, because you know for yourself that this happy moment won't last forever. Samkhara Dukkha, this is a difficult meaning of Dukkha, however you can simply understand it as suffering due to existence attached to conditions. For example, a happy family must rely on the conditions that everyone loves each other, the husband and wife has a stable job, and has enough material things such as a house and car. If one of the above factors is absent, the family will not be happy. Maintaining the existence of those factors to have a happy family makes you miserable and it is called Samkhara Dukkha. Based on the above three meanings of Dukkha, we can easily realize that this Dukkha disease really exists in each of us. Whether you are rich or poor, you can all experience Dukkha, the only difference is in its degree. So in the first truth the Buddha taught us to accept that we have an illness and it is Dukkha. The second noble truth is Samudaya. In this second truth, the Buddha shows us that the cause of Dukkha disease is Samudaya, meaning craving or attachment. According to the Buddha, there are three types of craving, craving for desire, craving for existence and craving for non-existence. Craving for desire means the desire to satisfy the senses such as the eyes liking to see beautiful sights, the ears liking to hear pleasant sounds, the nose liking fragrant smells, the tongue liking delicious tastes, and the body liking soft touches. Trying to satisfy these senses and getting attached to them is the cause of suffering. Craving for existence means the desire to possess something or the desire for existence, for example, the desire to have a lot of money or the desire for immortality after death such as going to heaven. Craving for non-existence is the desire not to experience something unpleasant or the desire for non-existence. For example, the desire not to feel guilty when doing something wrong or the desire to not exist after death, also known as nihilism, meaning the belief that death is the end. The third noble truth is Nirodha. In this third truth, the Buddha shows us that this disease of Dukkha can be ended when we reach Nirvana. Nirvana is the most difficult concept to imagine in Buddhism, because it is beyond our ordinary understanding. The Buddha repeatedly described in his suttas that, Nirvana means the cessation of greed, anger, and ignorance. Greed means craving as we presented above, anger is anger, fear or hatred, ignorance is ignorance which refers to not knowing the true nature of life. It is ignorance that is the origin of craving and anger. There are some people who think that Nirvana is some eternal realm, where after death we will exist forever, but that is a misconception, because Nirvana is unconditioned, meaning it does not exist in the worldly sense. In many sutras, when someone asked what immortality is, the Buddha answered that immortality is the cessation of greed, anger, ignorance or Nirvana. Therefore, Nirvana, if understood in the sense of immortality, means the cessation of greed, anger, and ignorance, not eternal existence. The fourth noble truth is Magga. In this fourth truth, the Buddha shows us a medicine called Magga, to completely cure this Dukkha disease. Magga is the eight-branch path, also known as the Noble Eightfold Path, that helps eliminate greed, anger, and ignorance to reach Nirvana. The Noble Eightfold Path is eight methods of practice including, right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration. Because the Noble Eightfold Path is as important and famous as the Four Noble Truths, we will dedicate a separate content to talk about the Noble Eightfold Path at the end of the video. Number 2 – Law of Karma The Buddha taught that there exists karma, and the results of karma, also known as the law of karma. The law of karma means that actions, words, and thoughts formed in the present by craving or ignorance, will produce a result in the future. If a good action produces a good result, on the contrary, a bad action produces a bad result. Many people still mistakenly think that, the law of karma was created by the Buddha. However, that is a misconception. The Buddha did not create it, but the Buddha experienced it when he became enlightened, and taught it to us. Because the law of karma is a law of nature, it is the same as physical laws such as gravity. The only thing is that the law of karma is an invisible law, you cannot see it clearly by picking up an apple, and dropping it like gravity. Therefore, the law of karma is not specific to Buddhism, but it is specific to all of us, no matter what religion or belief we follow. The law of karma is a very common belief in Buddhism, most Buddhists believe in the law of karma. Because they believe in the law of karma, Buddhists will try to do good deeds, and stay away from evil deeds to bring good results in life. Some people wonder that, if the law of karma exists, why are there some good people who encounter disasters, while evil people encounter good things and luck. To explain this, we must understand that the law of karma exists in the past, present and future. When you do an action, depending on the conditions, the result will be in the present or future. So sometimes the good deeds you do now, have not had time to give good results, then you have to receive bad karma due to bad deeds done in the past. When bad karma passes, bad luck will disappear, and good luck will come as a result of good deeds done. That's why we have the idiom, April showers bring May flowers. Therefore, everything that happens in our lives is created by ourselves, not by a god or any supernatural force. As the Buddha said in Majjhima Nikaya, Man is the owner of karma, the heir of karma. Number 3, Rebirth. Rebirth is a very popular view in Buddhism, it is defined as when a person dies, he or she will be reborn in one of the six realms, includes four bad realms, hell, hungry ghosts, animals, asura and two good realms, humans and gods. Whether you are reborn in a bad realms or a good realms, depends on the karma you have done. If you do bad things, you will be reborn in a bad realms. If you do good things, you will be reborn in a good realms. When we hear the concept of rebirth, we will see that it is quite similar to other religions, however there are two clear differences. Firstly, entering a good or bad realm is not due to blessing or disaster from a god, but due to our own good and evil karma. Second, rebirth in these realms is not permanent, but will depend on the lifespan of each realm. For example, in our human realm, it's about 100 years, or in the heavenly realm, even though our lifespan is very high, up to millions of years, even billions of years. When our lifespan expires, we will still have to die and be reborn in other realms based on their karma. Rebirth in Buddhism is often misunderstood with the concept of reincarnation, which are two very different concepts. Reincarnation is the concept of believing that, humans have an eternal soul. When humans die, this soul will continue a new life in an endless loop until enlightenment. To put it simply, rebirth is karma leading to a new life, and reincarnation is the soul leading to a new life. As in the Mahasakika Sutta, the Buddha recounts the moment when he became enlightened and clearly saw that karma leads to rebirth as follows. Thus, with pure, superhuman eyes, I see the life and death of living beings. I know clearly that living beings, the lowly, the noble, the beautiful, the ugly, the lucky, the unfortunate, all depend on their karma. Number 4, Three Truths of the Universe Three universal truths, also known as three marks of existence, are laws that apply to the entire universe including three characteristics, dukkha, anicca, and atta. Dukkha means suffering or unsatisfactoriness as we learned in the four noble truths. Perhaps you will wonder that suffering is only for humans, how can plants and rocks also have suffering? However, plants and rocks will also be destroyed over time and that deterioration creates dissatisfaction in its existence itself and that is dukkha. Anicca means impermanence, this concept emphasizes the constant change of all things, nothing is static or lasts forever. The change of day and night, the change of weather, even within ourselves, emotions change continuously, or more subtly, in our body every second, millions of cells are born and die. Understanding anicca helps us accept change, it helps us appreciate the present happy moments with loved ones, as well as comforts us when we encounter unfortunate things that they will also disappear, it cannot last forever. Anatta means non-self, this concept emphasizes the fact that everything does not have a permanent self but is created by conditions. Spiritually, we see anatta negating the existence of an eternal soul as in the theory of reincarnation. Scientifically, we can see that matter is made up of molecules, molecules are made up of atoms, atoms are made up of smaller particles such as protons, neutrons and electrons. And now we discover that these protons, neutrons or electrons are made up of much smaller particles called quarks. The three universal truths all remind us of letting go of attachments to transience and understanding the fluidity and interdependence of existence. Number 5. 5 Aggregates. The 5 aggregates or in Pali Pancakanda is a concept that talks about the 5 elements that make up who we are. These 5 elements include the aggregate of form, aggregate of feeling, aggregate of perception, aggregate of mental formations, and aggregate of consciousness. The aggregate of form means the physical elements that form the body that we can easily see externally such as hands, feet, eyes or internally such as the heart, liver, lungs. The aggregate of feeling means feeling, it arises due to contact between the 6 senses and the object. The eyes come into contact with sights, the ears come into contact with sounds, the nose comes into contact with sense, the tongue comes into contact with tastes, the body comes into contact with objects, the mind comes into contact with objects of mind. Feeling includes three types. Painful feeling means a feeling of suffering, pleasant feeling means a feeling of joy, feeling neither painful nor happy is a neutral feeling. The aggregate of perception is the perception that recognizes what this object is, this is the experience of the 6 senses and the 6 sense objects. For example, when the eyes see a car and clearly recognize that this is a car, it is due to the aggregate of perception. The aggregate of mental formations are psychological phenomena that lead us to act. To put it simply, it is like the will for actions. For example, when you walk, there will be a desire to walk from the volitional aggregates, then your feet will walk. Aggregate of consciousness means the recognition of objects through the senses. There are 6 types of consciousness corresponding to the 6 senses, eye consciousness, ear consciousness, nose consciousness, tongue consciousness, body consciousness and consciousness. The aggregate of consciousness only recognizes the presence of an object and also recognizes what that object is belonging to the aggregate of perception. For example, when the eyes see a car, eye consciousness arises to indicate that an object appears and the aggregate of perception will arise to indicate that it is a car. Number 6. Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path is the middle path of balance between the two extremes of a lifestyle of sensual pleasures and an ascetic lifestyle, discovered by Shakyamuni Buddha to reach the path of liberation and enlightenment. It is an eight-faceted practice that includes. Firstly, right view means correct understanding. In most sutras, the Buddha said that right view is understanding of the Four Noble Truths, it means knowing the existence of dukkha, the cause of dukkha, the cessation of dukkha or nirvana and the path to end dukkha. In addition, in some sutras, the Buddha also stated some of the following understandings that are considered right views, which is that almsgiving and offerings bring good things and rebirth in the next life. There is retribution for the good and evil deeds we have done, there are monks who live virtuous lives and achieve enlightenment like Buddha. Right view is very important because the Buddha believed that people's right understanding will lead them to do good deeds and as a result bring them happiness and peace in this life as well as the next. Second is right thought which means correct thinking. The Buddha taught that right thinking is the thinking of separate desire, no anger, no harm. Thinking about separate desire means thinking about giving up craving or attachment, the cause of our suffering. Thinking about non-anger means thinking about giving up anger, hatred and jealousy. Thinking about non-harmfulness means thinking about giving up bad actions, bad words and bad thoughts. Third is right speech which means speaking the right words. The Buddha taught that right speech is to avoid saying the following four things. First, lying means saying things that are not true. Second is saying two words meaning the same issue but saying two opposite ideas. Third, saying mean words means words that hurt others. Fourth, speaking frivolously means saying empty words. We know that words have great power, a sentence can make someone happy but sometimes it can bring suffering or worse, it can kill someone. Therefore, the Buddha advised us to avoid saying bad things and to speak the truth and say good things. Fourth is right action which means acting in the right way. Right action means we do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, and do not do bad actions to enjoy sensual pleasures. Right action can be understood as not doing actions that cause suffering to oneself or others. Fifth, right livelihood means right living. Right livelihood is to maintain life by doing honest work, not doing evil work such as killing animals, buying and selling drugs, poisons or deceitful work that harms others. Sixth is right effort which means correct effort. Right effort means making an effort to do good deeds and trying to prevent bad deeds. The seventh is right mindfulness, which means correctly recognizing what is going on inside us. The Buddha taught that right mindfulness is the observation of the body, feelings, mind, and dharmas to control craving. Simply put, we clearly know what is happening in our body and mind at the present moment, distinguishing whether it is good or evil such as greed, anger, and ignorance. If it is evil, we will immediately eliminate it, and if it is good, we will abide in it and make it grow. Eighth is right concentration and correct concentration of thoughts. The Buddha taught that right concentration is the attainment of the four stages of physical meditation—first meditation, second meditation, third meditation and fourth meditation. Simply put, right concentration is the result of meditation. However, to achieve right concentration, you must separate from desires and evil dharmas. Only then can attaining the four levels of meditation be considered right concentration, otherwise it is wrong concentration. So we have learned about the basic teachings of Buddha. Understanding these basic teachings helps us have a basic knowledge base to learn more deeply about Buddhism and gain wisdom. Thank you for watching the video and wish you a happy and peaceful life.