Buddhism And Taoism Essay, Research Paper

The belief in some higher presence, other than our own, has existed since man

can recollect. Religion was established from this belief, and it can survive and

flourish because of this belief. In Chinese history, Taoism and Buddhism are two

great phiosophical and religious traditions along with Confucianism. Taoism,

originated in China around the sixth century B.C.E. and Buddhism, came to China

from India around the second century of the common era, Together have shaped

Chinese life and thought for nearly twenty-five hundred years. One dominate

concept in Taoism and Buddhism is the belief in some form of reincarnation. The

idea that life does not end when one dies is an integral part of these religions

and the culture of the Chinese people. Reincarnation, life after death, beliefs

are not standardized. Each religion has a different way of applying this concept

to its belief. The goal in Taoism is to achieve tao, to find the way. Tao is the

ultimate reality, a presence that existed before the universe was formed and

which continues to guide the world and everything in it. Tao is sometimes

identified as the Mother, or the source of all things. That source is not a god

or a supreme being, as Taoism is not monotheistic. The focus is not to worship

one god, but instead on coming into harmony with tao (Watts, 1957). Tao is the

essence of everything that is right, and complications exist only because people

choose to complicate their own lives. Desire, ambition, fame, and selfishness

are seen as hindrances to a harmonious life. It is only when a person rids

himself of all desires can tao be achieved. By shunning every earthly

distraction, the Taoist is able to concentrate on life itself. The longer the

person’s life, the more saintly the person is presumed to have become.

Eventually the hope is to become immortal, to achieve tao, to have reached the

deeper life. This is the after life for a Taoist, to be in harmony with the

universe, to have achieved tao (Watts, 1957). To understand the relationship

between life, and the Taoism concept of life and death, the origin of the word

tao must be understood. The Chinese character for tao is a combination of two

characters that represent the words head and foot. The character for foot

represents the idea of a person’s direction or path. The character for head

represents the idea of conscious choice. The character for head also suggests a

beginning, and foot, an ending. Thus the character for tao also conveys the

continuing course of the universe, the circle of heaven and earth. Finally,

thecharacter for tao represents the Taoist idea that the eternal Tao is both

moving and unmoving. The head in the character means the beginning, the source

of all things, or Tao itself, which never moves or changes; the foot is the

movement on the path (Schipper, 1978). Taoism upholds the belief in the survival

of the spirit after death. "To have attained the human form must be always

a source of joy. And then to undergo countless transitions, with only the

infinite to look forward to, what comparable bliss is that! Therefore it is that

the truly wise rejoice in, that which can never be lost, but endures

always" (Watts, 1957, p90). Taoist believe birth is not a beginning, death

is not an end. There is an existence without limit. There is continuity without

a starting point. Applying reincarnation theory to Taoism is the belief that the

soul never dies, a person’s soul is eternal. "You see death in contrast to

life; and both are unreal – both are a changing and seeming. Your soul does not

glide out of a familiar sea into an unfamiliar ocean. That which is real in you,

your soul, can never pass away, and this fear is no part of her" (Watts,

1957, p59). In the writings of The Tao Te King, tao is described as having

existed before heaven and earth. Tao is formless, stands alone without change

and reaches everywhere without harm. The Taoist is told to use the light that is

inside to revert to the natural clearness of sight. By divesting oneself of all

external distractions and desires, only then can one achieve tao. In ancient

days a Taoist that had transcended birth and death, achieved tao, was said to

have cut the Thread of Life(Schipper, 1978). The soul, or spirit, is Taoism does

not die at death. The soul is not reborn, it migrates to another life. This

process, the Taoist version of reincarnation, is repeated until tao is achieved.

The following translation from The Tao Te King best summarizes the the theory

behind tao and how a Taoist can achieve Tao. The Great Way is very smooth, but

the people love the by-paths. . . The wearing of gay embroidered robes, the

carrying of sharp swords, fastidiousness in food and drink, superabundance of

property and wealth: – this I call flaunting robbery; most assuredly it is not

Tao. . . He who acts in accordance with Tao, becomes one with Tao. . . Being

akin to Heaven, he possesses Tao. Possessed of Tao, he endures forever. . .

Being great (Tao) passes on; passing on, it becomes remote; having become

remote, it returns (Watts, 1957). The followers of the Buddha believe life goes

on and on in many reincarnations or rebirths. The eternal hope for all followers

of Buddha is that through reincarnation one comes back into successively better

lives – until one achieves the goal of being free from pain and suffering and

not having to come back again. This wheel of rebirth, known as samsara, goes on

forever or until one achieves Nirvana. The Buddhist definition of Nirvana is

"the highest state of spiritual bliss, as absolute immortality through

absorption of the soul into itself, but preserving individuality"

(Humphreys,1991, p15). Birth is not the beginning and death is not the end. This

cycle of life has no beginning and can go on forever without an end. The

ultimate goal for every Buddhist, Nirvana, represents total enlightenment and

liberation. Only through achieving this goal is one liberated from the never

ending round of birth, death, and rebirth (David-Noel, 1971). Transmigration,

the Buddhist cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, involves not the reincarnation

of a spirit but the rebirth of a consciousness containing the seeds of good and

evil deeds. Buddhism’s world of transmigration encompasses three stages. The

first stage in concerned with desire, which goes against the teachings of

Buddha, is the lowest form and involves a rebirth into any number of hells. The

second stage is one in which animals dominate. But after many reincarnations in

this stage the spirit becomes more and more human, until one attains a deep

spiritual understanding. At this point in the second stage the Buddhist

gradually begins to abandon materialism and seek a contemplative life. The

Buddhist in the third stage is ultimately able to put his ego to the side and

become pure spirit, having no perception of the material world. This stage

requires one to move from perception to non-perception. And so, through many

stages of spiritual evolution and numerous reincarnations, the Buddhist reaches

the state of Nirvana. The transition from one stage to another, or the

progression within a stage is based on the actions of the Buddhist. All actions

are simply the display of thought, the will of man. This will is caused by

character, and character is manufactured from karma. Karma means action or

doing. Any kind of intentional action whether mental, verbal or physical is

regarded as karma. All good and bad actions constitute karma. As is the karma,

so is the will of the man. A person’s karma determines what he deserves and what

goals can be achieved. The Buddhists past life actions determine present

standing in life and current actions determine the next life, all is determined

by the Buddhist’s karma. Buddha developed a doctrine known as the Four Noble

Truths based on his experience and inspiration about the nature of life. These

truths are the basis for all schools of Buddhism. The fourth truth describes the

way to overcome personal desire through the Eightfold Path. Buddha called his

path the Middle Way, because it lies between a life of luxury and a life of

poverty. Not everyone can reach the goal of Nirvana, but every Buddhist is at

least on the path toward enlightenment. To achieve Nirvana the Buddhist must

follow the steps of the Eightfold Path. 1. Right Knowledge is knowledge of what

life is all about; knowledge of the Four Noble Truths is basic to any further

growth as a Buddhist. 2. Right Aspiration means a clear devotion to being on the

Path toward Enlightenment. 3. Right Speech involves both clarity of what is said

and speaking kindly and without malice. 4. Right Behavior involves reflecting on

one’s behavior and the reasons for it. It also involves five basic laws of

behavior for Buddhists: not to kill, steal, lie, drink intoxicants, or commit

sexual offenses. 5. Right Livelihood involves choosing an occupation that keeps

an individual on the Path; that is, a path that promotes life and well-being,

rather than the accumulation of a lot of money. 6. Right Effort means training

the will and curbing selfish passions and wants. It also means placing oneself

along the Path toward Enlightenment. 7. Right Mindfulness implies continuing

self-examination and awareness. 8. Right Concentration is the final goal to be

absorbed into a state of Nirvana (Sangharak*censored*a, 1990, p11). Compliance

to the path does not guarantee reaching Nirvana, but it is the only path that

leads to Nirvana. Only through following this path established by Buddha does a

Buddhist have a chance to reach enlightenment, to free oneself from the

continuous rounds of birth, death and rebirth, to have reached the ultimate goal

- to be absorbed into a state of Nirvana. The goal in both Taoism and Buddhism

is to reach the ultimate goal, to transcend life on earth as a physical being,

to achieve harmony with nature and the universe. The ultimate goal for both

religions is to achieve immortality. The Taoist called this ultimate goal Tao,

while the Buddhist seek Nirvana. Whatever the name, the followers of these

religions believe there is an existence beyond life which can be achieved

provided the right path or behavior is followed. The path to Tao and Nirvana are

similar, yet different. Both believe there is an inner light which guides a

person in the right direction to the ultimate goal. Personal desires must be

forsaken to enable the inner light to guide a person to achieve eternal bliss.

The inner light concept is similar, but the actual path is the difference

between Taoism and Buddhism. The path toward enlightenment for the Buddhist was

defined by Buddha in his Eightfold Path. Only through following this path does

the Buddhist reach Nirvana. The path to Tao is individual, it comes from within.

No one can define a path for the Taoist, it must come from the inner light.

"Tao means way, but in the original and succeeding manuscripts no direct

path is explored or expounded. Desire, ambition, fame, and selfishness are seen

as complications. That idea is consistent with Buddhist teachings; it is the

personal life of each individual that gives Taoism its special form"

(Watts, 1957). Taoism and Buddhism perceive life, death and rebirth as a

continuous cycle. This cycle has no beginning and no end. The soul is eternal,

yet the soul is not the object of reincarnation. Taoist believe the soul is not

reborn, it "migrates to another life" (schipper 1978, p90). Buddhist

also believe the soul is not reborn, but instead a "consciousness

containing the seeds of good and evil deeds" is the object of rebirth

(Harvey, 1990, p171). One major difference between Taoism and Buddhism is the

concept of karma to the Buddhist. This idea that all actions are the display of

thought, the will of man, is known as karma. Karma determines the Buddhist

actions and position in life. A person’s karma limits the goals which can be

achieved. Karma determines where in the cycle of birth, death and rebirth the

consciousness returns. This return can be in the form of an animal or human, and

the Buddhist must progress through a hierarchy to achieve Nirvana. The Taoist

has no concept similar to karma, and no mention of the soul migrating to an

animal form. The determining factor to one’s life is contained in the individual

behavior for the Taoist. By forsaking personal desires in life, by concentrating

of the self, a longer life is prolonged. Eventually, by following the inner

light, immortality can be achieved. The similarities between Taoism and Buddhism

in the belief of life after death far outweigh the differences. Both religions

believe the individual must focus on the self to achieve the ultimate goal. To

focus on oneself, all desires and personal ambitions must be forsaken. One must

focus on the self and the proper way of life to reach immortality. The cycle of

life continues indefinitely until the Thread of Life is broken. These two

religion teach us only through proper living, by following the correct path

guided by the inner light, one can achieve the ultimate goal of Tao or Nirvana.

There exist so many different religions, and a lot of them are the basis of

people?s culture and belief. They seem to provide various tpyes of beliefs and

principle. People worship numerous ?gods? for different occasions. In

ultimatum, the religion can be anything a person makes of it.

1. David-Noel, Alexandra. ?Buddhism, Its Doctrine and Its Method.? March

1971. 2. Harvey, Peter. ?Introduction to Buddhism.? May 1990. 3. Humphreys,

Christmas. ?Buddhism.? January 1991. 4. Sangharakshita, Maha Sthavira. ?A

Survey of Buddhism.? December 1987. 5. Schipper, Kristofer. ?The Taoist

Body, History of Religions.? October 1978. 6. Watts, Alan Wilson. ?The

Philosophy of the Tao.? May 1957.