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Definitions, Premisses and Info

Pali Canon Fundamental Buddhism - When used in reference to a MetaPhysical Orientation as to Tradition, Culture or Preferred Flavour, is primarily defined, usually selfdefined by it's members and/or adherents as such, and holding the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha, and/or interpolations thereon as a primary or critical parameter of their Spiritual Paradigm. This Tradition of Buddhism pulls its teachings directly from part of the Pali canon collection (tipitaka), a total of 12,800 pages. These discourses were compiled almost immediately after the Buddha's death by the thousands of monks the Buddha established during his 45-year ministry. They were committed to writing in 29 b.c. they contain the heart of Buddhist teachings and are recognized by all Buddhist scholars as the oldest in existence. Some postulate that there is no monolithic Buddhism as such, but that there are Buddhisms such as Sinhala Buddhism or more precisely Sinhala Theravada Buddhism, Siam or Thai Buddhism, Myanmar or Amarapura Buddhism and so forth. (also see: the complete entry on Buddhism.) Buddhism is one of the world's great religions. The religion is based on the teaching of Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha, who lived approximately 557 b.c. to 477 b.c. the word "Buddha" means a supremely enlightened one or fully awakened one (also a tathagata) who has won the realization of the true permanent absolute reality, the ultimate truth. The fundamental Tradition of Buddhism promoted by Pali Canon Fundamental Buddhism is based on their extensive study and interpretation of the English translations of the Buddha's discourses, almost 5,000 pages, translated in 16 volumes by the Pali text society. They are part of the Pali canon collection (tipitaka), a total of 12,800 pages. These Pali text society translations are available through direct purchase from the Pali text society. These discourses were compiled almost immediately after the Buddha's death by the thousands of monks the Buddha established during his 45-year ministry. They were committed to writing in 29 b.c. they contain the heart of Buddhist teachings and are recognized by all Buddhist scholars as the oldest in existence. For a definitive understanding of what the Buddha really taught, there is no substitute for these recognized oldest written records of what the Buddha actually said. The first 3 volumes that we heartily recommend for study are the middle length sayings (majjhima-nikaya, majjhima nikaaya, further dialogues of the Buddha), volumes 1, 2 and 3. These three volumes contain most of the key essentials for understanding fundamental Buddhism, for thoroughly understanding the way things truly are, and for knowing the course back to true ultimate reality. The next discourse volumes are: kindred sayings (sanyutta-nikaya, sa.myutta-nikaaya, the book of the kindred sayings) volumes 1 to 5, then gradual sayings (anguttara-nikaya, a'nguttara-nikaaya, the book of the gradual sayings) volumes 1 to 5, followed by dialogues of the Buddha (digha-nikaya, diigha nikaaya, dialogues of the Buddha) volumes 1, 2 and 3. These discourses uttered by the Buddha, which deal with realizing true permanent reality, are an effective teacher to those seeking enlightenment, for those seeking nirvana (Nibbana), for those seeking the escape from all anguish and suffering, for those seeking the ultimate truth.
Siddhartha Gautama was born a prince in a kingdom around what is now the border area between India and Nepal. At the age of 29, desiring to know the path that lead to the ending of all impermanence and anguish, to ensuring his permanent well-being, he renounced everything of the world, becoming a homeless ascetic, vowing to find the way to true ultimate reality. He was a Bohdisattva, which is one who goes through an intense period of development and practice in order to attain the realization of perfect wisdom, total supreme enlightenment, Buddhahood. At the age of 35, by way of total focus of his entire being on this single goal, he accomplished his purpose and attained the realization of perfect wisdom. He found the answer that lead to the complete cessation of all impermanence and anguish, that lead to reaching the other shore that is permanent true reality - nirvana. He then began to teach, instruct and guide others who similarly were seeking wisdom and enlightenment. It is the teaching of the Buddha that is the foundation of Buddhism.
In fundamental Buddhism, the emphasis is on seeing truth, on knowing it, and on understanding it. The emphasis is not on blind faith. The teaching of Buddhism is on "come and see" but never on come and believe. Buddhism is rational and requires personal effort, stating that by only one's own efforts can perfect wisdom be realized. Each individual is responsible for his or her own emancipation from anguish and suffering.
Buddhism allows each individual to study and observe truth internally and requires no blind faith before acceptance. Buddhism advocates no dogmas, no creeds, no rites, no ceremonies, no sacrifices, no penances, all of which must usually be accepted on blind faith. Buddhism is not a system of faith and worship but rather it is merely a path to supreme enlightenment. The Buddha referred to his teaching as simply a raft to leave this shore of suffering and impermanence, and to get to the other shore of bliss and safety, true permanent reality, nirvana. Upon realization of nirvana, the raft is no longer needed.
The Buddha referred to his teaching as the middle path, called this because it avoids the extremes of both self-indulgence in the world and the self-mortification of strict asceticism. The path he taught incorporates both intellectual progress plus spiritual progress with practice that reflects compassion, morality, wisdom and concentration while at the same time seeing and understanding the world of existence as it truly is.
It should be noted in this dialogue, which attempts to outline what Buddhism really is, that no coercion, no persecutions and no fanaticisms play any part in Buddhism. Buddhism is the path of escape for those seeking the permanent end here and now of all anguish. And what exactly is anguish? Anguish is birth, suffering, pain, sorrow, sickness, disease, old age, decay, death, grief, despair, poverty, evil, lamentations, woe, tribulations, misfortune, war, insanity, hunger, unfulfilled wants, unfulfilled basic needs, association with the unwanted, disassociation from the wanted, and is what is unstable and uncontrollable. Buddhism is for those who have come to see that what has been created is impermanent; and that whatever is impermanent is inherently ill. No permanent bliss or happiness is to be found in what is impermanent, only pain and peril.
The aim of living the path of the doctrine of Buddhism is to plunge into nirvana. It has nirvana as its goal. Nirvana is its ending. True reality realized. The uncreated, the unborn, the permanent bliss of nirvana. The eightfold noble path of Buddhism is the means to this end. Eight activities - a very specific course of actions - that must be simultaneously developed to realize the goal, nirvana.

The first part of the eightfold noble path is right view or right understanding. This means knowing the four noble truths.
The first noble truth is the knowledge that all that has been created is impermanent. And whatever is impermanent is inherently ill. And what is impermanent and ill is selfless.
Two is the knowledge that the arising of ill is based on ignorance and it is perpetuated by the craving and intoxication for sensuality and sensations, becoming and rebecoming, delusion and ignorance.
Three is the knowledge that the ceasing of this ill that has arisen, the stopping of all future becomings, is nirvana. True reality realized, freed of this ill.
Four is the knowledge of the eightfold noble path that leads to the cessation of this ill and to winning the goal: nirvana. True permanent state of self, permanent changeless absolute reality itself, suchness, perfect wisdom.

The second part is right thinking or right aim. This means to aspire to attain realization of perfect wisdom, the ultimate true permanent reality. To abstain from all evil acts of thought. To attain the total destruction of all cravings. To renounce all manifesting, all constructions, all that is "created" make-believe. To develop dispassion, total detachment, absolute renunciation, self-surrender. To bring about the cessation of all "created" realities. To self-realize the incomparable awakening of self. To win the freedom of mind, the freedom through perfect intuitive wisdom, the sane and immune emancipation of will.

The third part is right speech. To abstain from all lying speech, all perjurious speech, all evil abusive speech and all frivolous speech. To engage in speech and discussion that pertains to and leads to nirvana, to what's actually permanent and real.

The fourth part is right action. To abstain from all killing of all creatures. To abstain from all stealing. To abstain from all sensual and sexual misconduct. To abstain from all evil acts. To abstain from all forms of intoxication.

The fifth part is right living. To abstain from all evil ways of living; to abstain from all evil methods of livelihood.

The sixth part is right effort. To destroy all evil states of mind that have already arisen; to keep new evil states of mind from arising; to maintain and grow good states of mind that have already arisen; and to make grow new good states of mind that have not yet arisen, such as loving kindness for all beings, compassion and pity for all creatures, sympathetic joy and equanimity.

The seventh part is right mindfulness. To contemplate as impermanent, ill and selfless: body, feelings, perception, mind, consciousness, thought, mental states, mental objects and mental activity. To grow revulsion for the world, seeing it for the decaying creation that it is, and to grow dispassion, total detachment, calm, tranquility, seeing that everything is not self. To disregard all that is perceived, remaining aloof from both the pleasures as well as the pains arising from the creation of senses and sensuality.

The eighth part is right concentration. Aloof from the world, aloof from evil states, aloof from all sensations from the senses, dwelling in solitude, seclusion, ardent, diligent, self-resolute, develop one-pointedness of mind through intense meditation and reflection.

To enter in, and then transcend, eight higher states of consciousness that lead to increasing intuitive wisdom, insight and direct super-knowledge, and to destroying the addictions and cravings, and to realizing true reality, effectively piercing the shell of ignorance and delusion. As one attains the higher states of mind, consciousness, the true nature of how things really are can be seen clearly, both intuitively and with supreme effort, by direct super-knowledge. True reality unfolding, self-enlightenment of self by self.
The developed links of the eightfold noble path are these: purity of moral habit is of purpose as far as purity of mind; purity of mind is of purpose as far as purity of view; purity of view is of purpose as far as purity through crossing over doubt; purity through crossing over doubt is of purpose as far as purity of knowledge and insight into the path and what is not the path to true reality; purity of knowledge and insight into the path and what is not the path to true reality is of purpose as far as purity of knowledge and insight into the course, into progress along the path; purity of knowledge and insight into the course, into progress along the path is of purpose as far as purity arising from knowledge and insight; purity arising from knowledge and insight is of purpose as far as nirvana realized, without any attachment remaining for what was created, impermanent, ill and without essence, selfless.
The seven links of enlightenment to cultivate begin with mindfulness, contemplating body and feelings, mind and mental states, thought and ideas, ardent, clearly conscious of them and mindful of them so as to control the covetousness and dejection common in the world; followed by investigation of the Dharma, learning and remembering the doctrine that leads to true reality, the uncreated; followed by energy of effort; followed by zest; then tranquility; then concentration; and finally equanimity.
The five controlling factors are: the power of faith, the power of energy, the power of mindfulness, the power of concentration, and the power of insight.
The basis of psychic power are the features of desire, energy, thought and investigation, together with the co-factors of concentration and struggle, with the focus of will: "i will win, attain, realize and abide in nirvana, the deathless, the unborn, true permanent absolute reality realized, right here and right now." And the practice that leads to the cultivation of psychic power to win the goal is the eightfold noble path. The three controlling faculties are: the consciousness that says: i shall know the unknown, the unborn, the uncreated, all of what is to be known, the true permanent state of reality; then followed by the consciousness of knowing; and then followed by the consciousness of one who has the knowing. And the "knowing" by intuitive wisdom, insight and direct knowledge is this: The true permanent state of reality is nirvana, that which is the unborn, the unmade, the unmanifested, the not-made, the unconditioned, the truth, the uncreated, the unconstructed, the not-created, the subtle, the stable, the undecaying, the unaging, the undying, the deathless, the taintless, the peace, the bliss, the purity, the excellent, the perfection and grandeur of wisdom, the state of freedom from ill, the release from ill, the nameless, the serenity and purity of absolute changeless reality itself, the norm, the wonderful, the goal, the real. In short, the end - what always was, not compounded, permanent and is with all that has been created, compounded, impermanent and fleeting, ceasing to be. Existence, with its realms of sense, form and formlessness, the physical universe and all realms from the hells to the heavens are all constructions. Fabricated artificial realities, with self, that which is absolute permanent reality itself, experiencing "vicariously" senses, sensations and sense experiences through incalculable manifested creations of body and mind -- "beings" - in incalculable varieties of manifested created worlds of both materiality and immateriality - low, middle and high - realms ranging from the heavens to the hells. But all that is created is impermanent, subject to decay and ending, and thus inherently a state of ill-being, and therefore selfless, for the true nature of absolute reality itself is not truly part of or in these manifestations, this round of playing "sand-castles" -- this vast puppet show of make-believe fiction, this delusion supported by a state of self-ignorance. According to Buddhism, any "being" that does not resolve to attain self-enlightenment and true reality will continue to "reform" these constructed fabricated realities of sense desire, form and formlessness. Continuous future rebirth will be and each "life" will be good or bad, happiness or unhappiness, pleasure or pain, or a combination of the two, all according to the good or evil past deeds done of act, speech and thought, with mind being the forerunner of all manifestations of constructed realities and created fabricated individual entity within such conditioned, made states of existence. In short, a pendulum of rebirth, going back and forth continuously between hells, heavens and the physical universe, until the self of each "being" decides to make an end of all manifesting, an end to living vicariously through constructions of artificial realities, to make an escape from what has been created, from what has become a tangled decayed, putrid manifested mass of suffering, pain and anguish perpetuated by craving, hatred, lust, delusion, illusion and ignorance. The evidence of perpetuating, continuous rebirth and reforming, with future "lives" determined according to former deeds done in past lives, can be readily seen in the wide diversity of beings born into this world who immediately have great good fortune or have great misfortune, even though no deeds of any kind have yet been done in their new life! Think about this and then compare your "present" life to the lives of the other five billion "human" beings in this world, and indeed to the lives of all the world's different types of beings. The goal of Buddhism is to escape this repeating ill that has arisen, this repeating rebirth and reforming, via the destruction of the "craving" for senses and sensations of the senses, for rebecoming as this or that, for delusion and for ignorance. And if you think the world is not really full of despair, suffering, pain and anguish, you need to examine closely the nature of this world you live in without the "rose-colored glasses." Just because in this life your suffering and anguish are not "too bad" you may not yet be immune from rebirth where your next life is as horrible as tens of millions of human lives are now this very day throughout this world. Think of "life" and all that has been created as sort of like an addictive repeating daydream - very, very old, incalculable in age, long corrupted, perverted, debased, become tainted by decomposition. To awake from the fantasy, the first step is for the self to investigate, analyze and reflect on what is really going on around here, and thus see, that all is impermanent, and then to see and know that what is impermanent, fleeting and subject to change is inherently ill, anguish and unhappiness. Then, with perfect intuitive wisdom, know that whatever is impermanent, subject to change and therefore ill cannot be self in its true nature. The self then must begin to look for a means of escape from this addictive daydream, this nightmarish artificial reality that has arisen that is pain, anguish and suffering.