Anthropology

Most religions define the human condition as having some kind of problem that must be solved. This view of humanity and its problem is called the “anthropology” of a religion. The first two noble truths address the human condition: the fact of suffering in samsara is based on three main characteristics: dissatisfaction, impermanence, and selflessness.

1. Dissatisfaction, suffering, stress (dukkha): Our experience of existence is one of imbalance, unease. We cannot control either ourselves or the world around us.
2. Impermanence The conditions of life constantly changing moment to moment.
3. Non-self or selflessness: According to Buddhist thought, there is no permanent “self” that controls the five categories of experience. We create the idea of a self out of these five aspects of experience, but that self is a temporary category, not a permanent thing.
   • Form, the physical world: experience of the world through the senses.
   • Sensations: these feelings can be pleasant, unpleasant and neutral.
   • Perceptions: how we label and classify our experience of the world.
   • Karmic impulses: these are our habitual reactions to sensations and perceptions.
   • Consciousness: overall awareness of sight, sound, taste, touch, smell, and mental objects.

Review the section on the Four Noble Truths in the section on Doctrine.

Soteriology

Soteriology in Buddhism means to free oneself of the “three poisons” of greed, hatred, and delusion. This transforms your outlook on the world. In early and mainstream Buddhism, the goal of nirvana is reached through the eightfold path which trains a person in morality, concentration (meditation), and wisdom.

In Mahāyāna Buddhism, the path to nirvana expands to include the bodhisattva path which includes working toward nirvana while helping everyone else. The bodhisattva vow includes the goal of compassion to others while transforming oneself. In addition, the bodhisattva sees that everything is interdependent through the principle of emptiness. From that perspective, samsara and nirvana, although opposites, are actually dependent on each other.

The Mahāyāna teaching of Amitabha Buddha in his Pure Land offers yet another path to awakening. Through faith in Amitabha, even a person who has little morality or wisdom can be reborn in the Pure Land where everything teaches the Dharma and nirvana can easily be attained. In Pure Land faith one needs only to rely on Amitabha with complete faith.

Finally, Vajrayāna or Tantric Buddhism offers a method based on devotion and visualization. Body, speech, and mind are trained through rituals and practices that one learns from a teacher after receiving the ritual of commitment.

Review the sections on Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna Buddhism to see the variety of methods of transformation in Buddhism.