Model Essay: "Worship is more important in Mahayana traditions than it is in Theravada Buddhism." Evaluate this statement.

 

Model Answer: “Worship is more important in Mahayana traditions than it is in Theravada Buddhism.” Evaluate this statement [15 marks - AQA]

In this essay I will conclude that worship (puja) is more important for Mahayana Buddhists than it is for Theravada Buddhists. This is because there is a greater emphasis on gaining punya (merit) within the Mahayana tradition, via the worship of bodhisattvas and the Buddha himself. Therefore, they have a greater emphasis on worship and acts of devotion than the Theravada sect.

One may disagree with my conclusion due to the emphasis on the person of the Buddha within the Theravada tradition, particularly the fact that he was the first being to gain enlightenment and preach the dharma for the sake of all others. Theravada Buddhists do worship and venerate the Buddha, for example they may have a shrine to him in their homes which they use as a focus for their meditation. The Buddha is seen as an inspiring role model and paying respect to him is seen as a way of gaining good punya which yields good karmic consequences. Therefore, worship could be said to be of significant importance within the Theravada tradition.

Despite this, most would agree that worship is more important within the Mahayana tradition, due to the sheer volume of beings that can be worshipped. An example of a bodhisattva who is worshipped within the Mahayana tradition is Avalokiteshvara, the ‘Bodhisattva of Compassion’. Buddhists believe that in chapter 25 of the Lotus Sutra the heavenly form of the Buddha actually recommended that people worship Avalokiteshvara in order to benefit from his unlimited punya, as he is right at the end of his bodhisattva career. People will worship Avalokiteshvara through giving offerings to his image, and by venerating his name and his great characteristics verbally. This is integral to Mahayana worship, particularly for the people of Tibet who link Avalokiteshvara with the Dalai Lama, their spiritual leader. Therefore the Buddha himself recommended that Mahayana Buddhists prioritise worship.

However, there is also a history of worship within Theravada communities. For example, the Wat Phra Dhammakaya movement, a modern Theravada movement in Northern Thailand, holds a monthly ceremony of ‘Honouring the Buddha by Food’, where a great feast is offered up to Siddhartha Gautama in Pari-Nirvana through Buddhist meditation. This is an important practice within the movement, suggesting that worship plays an equal role in Theravada sanghas.

It is also important to remember that the Buddha did not recommend excessive worship and veneration of himself when he was alive. He cautioned his followers that overly emotional worship causes attachment, which ultimately leads to dukkha (suffering) and contributes to people being trapped in the cycle of Samsara. Nyaponika Thera has commented that this makes it less likely that Theravada Buddhists would see worship as a first priority, they should instead focus on perfecting Magga. This is not true for Mahayana Buddhists, who believe that they have a personal relationship with the Buddha himself via the Trikaya Doctrine. Because the Buddha can still appear in Samsara via his heavenly form, it is believed that he can hear worship and prayers directed at him, and he returns punya to his followers. Therefore, puja is much more important within the Mahayana tradition.

Overal, puja is more important for Mahayana than Theravada Buddhists, as there are more beings that can worshipped, and a culture of making merit is essential to the Mahayana way of life. This is less true for Theravada Buddhists, who avoid personal attachment to the Buddha and instead see him as an inspiring role model.

Arhats or Bodhisattvas? The goals of Theravada and Mahayana monastics

 The Arhat Goal

·        Most Theravada Buddhists aim to become an arhat, one who gains enlightenment through the help of someone else. Arhat literally means “worthy one” as it is someone who has become worthy of achieving the difficult goal of enlightenment.

·        The first arhats were the Buddha’s ascetic companions who converted to Buddhism after hearing the Buddha’s First Sermon at the Deer Park in Sarnath.

·        As someone progresses through the Buddhist path, they may acquire supernatural powers through mastering meditation practices, but there are strict guidelines about how one should use these, and this should never be their intention – they should aim for nirvana, not to gain supernatural powers like the ability to fly and read minds.

·        It is a grave sin in Theravada Buddhism to falsely claim that you have become enlightened.

·        Arhats are treated with respect by Theravada Buddhists because they have undertaken the great feat of becoming nirvanaed – this is one of the reasons why the laity supports the sangha by giving donations. However, arhats should not be worshipped, as this could cause attachment.

The Bodhisattva Goal

•        A bodhisattva is a being that vows to become a future Buddha. As soon as the vow is taken, they are on the bodhisattva path (this is a vow taken only by monastics). A person who becomes a bodhisattva is motivated by compassion (karuna) for all of humanity and wants to save them from suffering. They therefore work over many lifetimes to help other beings to escape from Samsara. They do this by choosing to delay their own entry into pari-nirvana and instead remain in Samsara even after they have gained enlightenment, in order to wait for their time cycle and be able to become a Buddha once Buddhist teachings have been forgotten by the world.

•        Mahayana Buddhists view their teaching as the greater teaching/greater vehicle because the aim is more compassionate for all of mankind. In the Mahayana view, bodhisattvas are worshipped and are seen as being responsible for beings within Samsara, whilst the Buddha is in pari nirvana. The origin of the bodhisattva goal is explained in the Lotus Sutra. The Buddha taught the Lotus Sutra after his death when he appeared to his followers in the Samboghakaya (heavenly body). He introduced the bodhisattva path as the greatest goal for all Buddhists: it is greater to become a Buddha and to save others than to be an arhat.

•        A bodhisattva’s career starts with following the path of Buddhism, but then the thought of enlightenment (the ‘bodhicitta’) will arise in them, giving them karuna (compassion) for all beings in the universe. This will lead them to vow before the body of the heavenly Buddha (the Samboghakaya) that they will become a Buddha in a future timecyle for the benefit of all beings.

•        Avalokiteshvara is believed to be at the very end of his bodhisattva career, so he has unlimited punya (merit) to share with all followers. For this reason, he is known as the ‘Bodhisattva of Compassion’. Known as the ‘bodhisattva of 1,000 arms’ to show how much karuna he has to give. Also shown through his many faces – he is looking down on all beings in Samsara. In the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha recommended that his followers worshipped Avalokiteshavara, as he is able to hear all the suffering in the world and stop the suffering from occurring. If someone cries out to Avalokiteshvara when they are suffering (e.g. drowning or burning to death) he will save them.

•        Many Tibetan Buddhists argue that the 14^th Dalai Lama is the earthly form of Avalokiteshvara. Tibetan Buddhists believe that the current Dalai Lama is the earthly reborn form of Avalokiteshvara. He is therefore seen as Avalokiteshvara’s earthly instrument. ‘He is the “Bodhisattva” of our age, the “chief deity” of Tibet and the divine energy which functions directly behind the person of the Dalai Lama.’ Victor & Victoria Trimondi. This means that the Dalai Lama is believed to have all the same character aspects as Avalokiteshvara: being wholly compassionate for all beings. The Dalai Lama therefore suffers himself in order to help others escape Dukkha.

Impermanence in Buddhism: Anicca and Shunyata

             Anicca

·        Anicca is the teaching that everything is impermanent and in a constant state of flux. Impermanence is demonstrated in every aspect of human life: ageing, sickness and death are all as a result of impermanence. Impermanence also applies to human relationships, and one’s status, as in the next life one could be reborn into a completely different form. This is the basis of the First and Second Noble Truth. Anicca does not just apply to life itself, but also feelings and experiences - something that we crave and desperately desire will later becoming boring and lose its allure, humans can never be satisfied with what they have, and will constantly crave for more. Craving (Tanha) is therefore linked to anicca, as humans crave permanence, and when they do not experience this they suffer.

·        The personal expression of anicca is anatta (see below)

·        Anicca is intricately linked with dukkha: humans suffer because they crave permanence, but they do not realise that permanence is impossible in the constantly changing world. The Buddha describes anicca as "grasping", because humans are continually and desperately hoping that something will remain permanent when this is impossible.

Shunyata

·        The concept of anicca has been developed further by Mahayana Buddhists, who go so far as to say that not only is everything impermanent, but everything is empty of inherent existence. This means that nothing has any true nature when considered on a base (molecular) level. This view is renowned for being extremely complex, and monks may dedicate their whole lives to trying to understand it through vipassana mediation and study.

·        Mahayana Buddhists believe that the entire universe is made up of tiny, impermanent particles, and that these particles are called dharmas. They argue that dharmas are empty of inherent existence, meaning that nothing can truly exist permanently and that names and concepts within conventional reality are all meaningless and empty.

·        Mahayana Buddhists believe that it would be impossible for one to live their life and be constantly aware of shunyata, and that on some level one must function on a “conventional” level where they act as if things are not all empty. This is why people name things and interact with other people in meaningful ways. However, on the “ultimate” level, shunyata is true, and one will understand this upon gaining enlightenment.