Buddhahood

Buddhahood (Sanskrit: buddhatva; Pali: buddhatta or buddhabhāva; Chinese: 成佛) is the condition and state of a buddha.

[2] This highest spiritual state of being is also termed sammā-sambodhi (Sanskrit: samyaksaṃbodhi; "full, complete awakening") and is interpreted in many different ways across schools of Buddhism.

In Theravada Buddhism, a Buddha is commonly understood as a being with the deepest spiritual wisdom about the nature of reality who has transcended rebirth and all suffering.

In Mahayana Buddhism, Buddhahood is the universal goal and all Mahayanists ultimately aim at becoming a Buddha, in order to benefit and liberate all sentient beings.

In Theravada Buddhism, Buddha refers to one who has reached awakening (bodhi) through their own efforts and insight, without a teacher to point out the dharma.

In Mahāyāna Buddhism meanwhile, a Buddha is seen as a transcendent being who has extensive powers, such as omniscience, omnipotence, and whose awakened wisdom (buddha-jñana) is all pervasive.

Thus, the Ratnagotravibhāga (Analysis of the Jeweled Lineage), a key Mahāyāna treatise, defines the Buddha as "the uncompounded (asamskrta), and spontaneous (anabhoga) Dharmakaya" and as "self-enlightened and self-arisen wisdom (jñana), compassion and power for the benefit of others.

The Theravada Buddhist tradition generally sees the Buddha as a supreme person who is neither a God in the theistic sense, nor a deva, nor a regular human.

Instead, he is seen as having many supranormal powers (siddhi), such as the superknowledges (abhijna), the capacity for a very long lifespan, as well as the thirty-two marks of a great man.

[20] Because he has attained the highest spiritual knowledge, the Buddha is also identified with the Dhamma (the most fundamental reality) In the Vakkali Sutta (SN 22.87).

[21] In the early Buddhist schools, the Mahāsāṃghika branch regarded the buddhas as being characterized primarily by their supramundane (lokottara) nature.

[23] Of the 48 special theses attributed by the Indian scholar Vasumitra to the Mahāsāṃghika sects of Ekavyāvahārika, Lokottaravāda, and Kukkuṭika, 20 points concern the supramundane nature of buddhas and bodhisattvas.

[30] Guang Xing writes that the Acchariyābbhūtasutta of the Majjhimanikāya along with its Chinese Madhyamāgama parallel is the most ancient source for the Mahāsāṃghika view.

The Chinese version even calls him Bhagavan, which suggests the idea that the Buddha was already awakened before descending down to earth to be born.

Guang Xing describes the Buddha in Mahāyāna as an omnipotent and almighty divinity "endowed with numerous supernatural attributes and qualities".

His life and death were a "mere appearance," like a magic show; in reality, the Buddha still exists and is constantly helping living beings.

"[42] In a similar fashion, Jack Maguire, a Western monk of the Mountains and Rivers Order in New York, writes that Buddha is inspirational based on his humanness: A fundamental part of Buddhism's appeal to billions of people over the past two and a half millennia is the fact that the central figure, commonly referred to by the title "Buddha", was not a god, or a special kind of spiritual being, or even a prophet or an emissary of one.

All Buddhist traditions hold that a Buddha is fully awakened and has completely purified his mind of the three poisons of craving, aversion and ignorance.

[53] Likewise, in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha shakes the earth and shines a beam of light which illuminates thousands of "buddha-fields".

The inscription made when Emperor Asoka at Nigali Sagar in 249 BCE records his visit, the enlargement of a stupa dedicated to the Kanakamuni Buddha, and the erection of a pillar.

[88][89] According to Xuanzang, Koṇāgamana's relics were held in a stupa in Nigali Sagar, in what is now Kapilvastu District in southern Nepal.

[90] The historical Buddha, Gautama, also called Shakyamuni ("Sage of the Shakyas"), is mentioned epigraphically on the Pillar of Ashoka at Rummindei (Lumbini in modern Nepal).

The Brahmi script inscription on the pillar gives evidence that Ashoka, emperor of the Maurya Empire, visited the place in 3rd-century BCE and identified it as the birth-place of the Buddha.

(He) made the village of Lummini free of taxes, and paying (only) an eighth share (of the produce).The Pali literature of the Theravāda tradition includes tales of 28 previous Buddhas.

In countries where Theravāda Buddhism is practiced by the majority of people, such as Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, it is customary for Buddhists to hold elaborate festivals, especially during the fair weather season, paying homage to the last 28 Buddhas described in the Buddhavamsa.

According to Buddhist scripture, Metteyya will be a successor of Gautama who will appear on Earth, achieve complete enlightenment, and teach the pure Dharma.

They are generally seen as living in other realms, known as buddha-fields (Sanskrit: buddhakṣetra) or pure lands (Ch: 淨土; p: Jìngtǔ) in East Asian Buddhism.

Also called Yamantaka ("Slayer of Death") and identified as the fierce expression of the gentle Manjushri, he was accorded quasi-buddha rank.

The Buddha may also be depicted with various accessories, such as a victory banner (dhvaja), a lotus seat, and a begging bowl.

The exactly design and style of these features vary regionally but most often they are elements of list of thirty-two physical characteristics of the Buddha called "the signs of a great man" (Skt.

Buddha Shakyamuni , in Greco-Buddhist style , c. 1st –2nd century CE, Gandhara
A painting of the primordial Buddha , Vajradhara , of Tibetan Buddhism
A classic Sukhothai style Buddha statue
Buddha statue on the upper floor of Ajanta Cave No.6. The Ajanta caves are associated with the Mahāsāṃghika school. [ 22 ]
A Ming Bronze of the supreme cosmic Buddha Vairocana ("The Illuminator"). The bronze depicts the cosmic body of Vairocana (which is equal to the universe itself) and also depicts the numerous manifestations (nirmanakayas) of Vairocana (the small Buddhas covering his body).
Seated Shakyamuni Buddha, Seokguram cave , Korea .
Shakyamuni Buddha demonstrating control over the fire and water elements. Gandhara , 3rd century CE.
A painting of the miraculous birth of the Buddha
" Amida Manifesting in the Dharma-body of Expedient Means ", Japanese painting, at the Met .
"The Seven Buddhas" , at Sanchi (1st century BCE/CE). Six Buddhas of the past are represented, together with the current Buddha, Gautama Buddha , with his Bodhi Tree (at the extreme right). In the central section are three stupas alternating with four trees with thrones in front of them, adored by figures both human and divine. These represent six Buddhas of the past (namely: Vipassī Buddha , Sikhī Buddha , Vessabhū Buddha , Kakusandha Buddha , Koṇāgamana Buddha and Kassapa Buddha ). Three are symbolized by their stupas, and four by the trees under which each respectively attained enlightenment. The tree on the extreme right is the pipal tree of Gautama Buddha and the one next to it is the banyan tree of Kassapa Buddha. The identification of the others is less certain. [ 83 ]
" Budha-sa Konākamana-sa " ("Of the Kanakamuni Buddha ") inscription in Brahmi script , at Nigali Sagar , 250 BCE
The words " Bu-dhe " and " Sa-kya-mu-nī " in Brahmi script , on the Rummindei pillar of Ashoka.
Buddhist men at the Sule Pagoda in Yangon , Myanmar , paying homage to the 29 Buddhas described in Chapter 27 of the Buddhavamsa
The Great Buddha of Kamakura , a Japanese statue of Amida ( Amitābha ), 13th-century.
A Mahayana illustration of 35 Confession Buddhas
Painting of Vajrayoginī (Dorjé Neljorma), a female Buddha in Tibetan Buddhism.
Various types of Buddha statues at Pindaya caves , Myanmar
Buddha statues at Longhua Temple
A Buddha's head, showing an uṣṇīṣa at the top of the head and an ūrṇā between the eyes