THE BUDDHA’S DAILY SCHEDULE AND ANNUAL ROUTINE

The Majjhima Nikāya provided a fairly satisfactory picture of The Buddha’s daily activities and annual routine during the forty-five years of his ministry. 

The Buddha’s daily schedule as having been divided between periods of instructing the bhikkhus, giving  discourses to the laity, and secluded meditation, during which he usually dwelt either in the ‘abode of voidness’ or in the attainment of great compassion.  The day’s single meal was always taken in the forenoon, either received by invitation or collected on alms round, and his sleep was restricted to a few hours per night, except in the summer, when he rested   briefly during the middle of the day.  The annual routine was determined by Indian climate, which divided the year into three seasons.  As was customary among the ascetics of ancient India, the Buddha and his monastic community would remain at a fixed residence during the rainy season, when heavy rains swollen rivers made travel almost impossible.  During the rest of the year he would wander through the Ganges valley be expounding his teachings to all who were prepare to listen. 

The Buddha’s main seats for residence for the rainy retreat were located at Sāvatthi in the state of Kosala and Rajagaha in the state of Maghadha.   His wonderings, during which he was usually accompanied by large retinue of bhikkhus. Occasionally, when he saw that a special case required his individual attention, he would leave the Sangha and travel alone.

Note: Extracted from Middle length discourses of the Buddha translated by Bhikkhu Nanamouli and Bhikkhu Bodhi.

May all beings be happy!

NIBBĀNA

The state that supervenes when ignorance and craving have been uprooted is called Nibbāna (Sanskrit, Nirvana).

Nibbāna is described precisely as "profound, hard to see and hard to understand, unattainable by mere reasoning”.   Nibbāna is merely the destruction of defilements. Nibbāna cannot be perceived by those who live in lust and hate, but it can be seen with the arising of spiritual vision, and in the depths of meditation, the disciple can attain the destruction of the taints.

The Buddha does not devote many words to a philosophical definition of Nibbāna.  One reason is that Nibbāna, being unconditioned, transcendent, and supramundane, does not easily lend itself to definition in terms of concepts that are inescapably tied to the conditioned, manifest, and mundane.

  Another is that the Buddha's objective is leading beings to release from suffering, and thus his principal approach to the characterization of Nibbāna is to inspire the incentive to attain it and to show what must be done to accomplish this. To show Nibbāna as desirable, as the aim of striving, he describes it as the highest bliss, as the supreme state of sublime peace, as the ageless, deathless, and sorrow less.  Above all, Nibbāna is the cessation of suffering, and for those who seek an end to suffering such a designation is enough to beckon them towards the path.

--END--

Greetings

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                100 years old wooden monastery chauntha Beach

The pagoda in the Beach

The pagoda in the Island at Chauntha Beach

NEWS: Greetings

                                      By Ven. Sumedha Bodhi (Dhamma Soldier), India

For all the Buddhists in the world, who ever celebrating the water festival and new year.

PARITTA SUTTAS

          Paritta suttas are originally prayers for prosperity, safety and the welfare of the Buddhist devotees.  These Paritta Suttas are recited either individually or collectively in unison.   Some or all of these Suttas are recited as part of regular Buddhist devotions, to protect against dangers and disastrous whether they are natural or supernatural.  To ward off imminent unpleasant events, omens and to nullify the hazards which have already happened. These are two main purposes of recitation on special occasions.

The Buddha

          Prayer is a rite that cannot be neglected in any religious ceremony, but each religion has its own way of conducting the prayer, and some religious prayers are very complicated.  Even in present Buddhist community, they are indeed following the complicated rite.   There is a different between Buddhism and other religious practices.  Others basically perform their religious right under the influences of the hidden desire.  They request from their gods the well, wealth, free from dangers, longevity, be born in the heaven etc.  But the Buddhists are paying their due homage to the Blesses One.   During the Buddha’s time, The Blessed one rejected the rite and ritual which were performed by the devotees.   The Blessed One declared that rite and ritual does not have any concern with the attainment of Nibbāna. The Buddhist prayer is for the development of faith towards the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha. And as a remembrance to the Buddha who was full of virtuous whom we go for refuge.

Sadhu!  Sadhu!  Sadhu!

ABHIDHAMMA

The Abhidhammattha saṇgaha is a small book that was written by an Indian monk named Ācāriya Anuruddha in about the twelfth century. That small book provides an introduction to subjects taught in the Abhidhamma texts of the Tripitaka. Actually in order to understand the Abhidhamma texts in the pāli Canon, it is essential that the Abhidhammattha saṇgaha be thoroughly mastered.

The Word ‘Abhidhamma’ is composed of two parts — ‘Abhi’ and ‘Dhamma’. ‘Abhi’ here means excelling or distinguished. ‘Dhamma’ means teaching. ‘Abhidhamma’ means excelling teaching or distinguished teaching. Excelling does not mean that the teachings in Abhidhamma Pitaka are better than or loftier than, or nobler than those taught in the Sutta Pitaka. The only difference between those taught in Sutta Pitaka and Abhidhamma Pitaka is the method of treatment, the method of presentation. The same things are taught in Sutta and Abhidhamma. You find the same Dhamma, the same subjects, in both Sutta Piṭaka and Abhidhamma Piṭaka. But in Abhidhamma Piṭaka they are minutely analyzed. It excels the teachings in Sutta Piṭaka, it is distinguished from the teachings in Sutta Piṭaka, with regard to the method of treatment.

--END--

NEWS of March:

 I met Ms. Thin Zaw Win Kyaw best cinema artist of Myanmar.  As an engaged Buddhist, I will work with prominent people in future.  Dhamma Soldier's  projects are (1) To come out from Social, political, economic injustice & suffering & (2) Education for freedom through change.

Actress Thin Zaw Win Kyaw and Dhamma soldier Ven. Sumedha Bodhi