Were There Two Buddhas?
By Stephen Knapp
I was asked to look into this a few years ago by someone who knew of my
research abilities. But I have not been able to until now because of other
priorities. But this topic has come up before, that actually there were two
different Buddhas that played the part to establish Buddhism and its
principles of ahimsa and nonviolence and its monist philosophy. In the
following material, we will look at the evidence that seems to indicate that
there was first the Avatara Buddha, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu who
appeared near 1800 BCE, and then there was another person who became known
as Gautama called Buddha, born around 560 BCE.
1. The first Avatara Buddha established the philosophy of Ahimsa,
nonviolence, and convinced those followers of Vedic customs who had become
bent toward animal sacrifice to give up such rituals and simply follow him,
and become kind to animals. Being an avatara of Vishnu, He did not establish
any godless or monist philosophy.
2. The Avatara Buddha was also born of his mother Anjana in what became
known as Bodhgaya.
3. The second Buddha known as Gautama, Siddhartha, or Shakyamuni – sage of
the Shakyas – was born in Lumbini, now in Nepal, with Mayadevi as his
mother. He is the one we often hear about, the prince who left home to do
austerities to find enlightenment. He went to Bodhgaya to meditate because
of its spiritual potency as the birthplace of the avatara Buddha. Then he
became enlightened to the reasons for suffering in this world, and developed
a godless way of becoming free from suffering. From that point he
established the monist and godless philosophy of Buddhism, which became
named after him.
Of course, the Theravadin texts refer to six preceding Buddhas (those who
have awakened) as Vipasyin, Sikin, Krakuccanda, Konagamara, and Kashyapa,
and Maitreya as the Buddha of the future. But we are not talking of any of
these.
4. The reason why these two Buddhas became merged into one identity was
partly because Adi Sankaracharya, in discussions with others, related them
as one person and did not discriminate between the purpose of one or the
other. Sankaracharya developed his own sunya philosophy, which was very
much like the Buddhist philosophy, replacing the Buddhist nirvana with his
Vedic Brahman, to defeat Buddhism and drive it out of India. He succeeded
most effectively. At that time many were leaving Vedic culture altogether
and converting to Buddhism. But with this new Mayavadha philosophy from
Sankaracharya, Buddhism bowed and the conversions stopped, and Buddhism
itself started to decline.
However, those important acharyas who followed Sankaracharya defeated his
monist or impersonalist Mayavada philosophy and more clearly defined the
Vedic view, such as:
Sri Vishnuswami with his Suddha-advaita-vada, Ramanujacharya with his
Vasistadvaita-vada,
Nimbarkacharya with his Dvaita-advaita-vada,
Madhvacharya with the Dvaita-vada,
Sri Chaitanya with his Acintaya-bheda-bheda-vada,
with further commentary and arguments against Sankaracharya’s
impersonalist philosophy by Srila Baladevavidyabhushana and others.
Therefore, no matter how much some schools of thought have clung to the
Mayavada philosophy of Sankaracharya, it has been defeated and dismissed
many times over. Yet, Sankaracharaya played an important part in paving the
way for protecting the Vedic culture by using his own imagined philosophy,
based on his own interpretation of some of the Vedic stanzas, to defeat
Buddhism at the time.
Much of the evidence that follows comes from a book called Beyond Nirvana:
The Philosophy of Mayavadism: A Life History. This was written by Srila
Bhakti Prajnan Keshava Gosvami Maharaja of the Gaudiya Math, the person who
gave sannyasa initiation to His Divine Grace Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami. The book was later translated and published in English by Sri Srimad
Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaja, and published in 2003 in Mathura, India.
The whole book gives a lengthy dissertation on the development, history and
present situation of the impersonalist point of view.
Chapter Two especially focuses on the evidence for two Buddhas that had
existed. First, however, we should point out that there had always been a
conflict in the dates of the Buddha’s birth. One birth is around 560 BCE,
but when analyzing the records, there is evidence for a much earlier birth
of Lord Buddha, of which I have written before as follows:
Reestablishing the Date of Lord Buddha
(Excerpt from Proof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence)
Most of us are taught that Buddha was born around 560 to 550 B.C. However,
once we start doing some research, we find evidence that this date may be
too late. Buddha may have been born much earlier.
For example, in Some Blunders of Indian Historical Research (p. 189), P. N.
Oak explains that the Puranas provide a chronology of the Magadha rulers.
During the time of the Mahabharata war, Somadhi (Marjari) was the ruler. He
started a dynasty that included 22 kings that spread over 1006 years. They
were followed by five rulers of the Pradyota dynasty that lasted over 138
years. Then for the next 360 years was the 10 rulers of the Shishunag
family. Kshemajit (who ruled from 1892 to 1852 B.C.) was the fourth in the
Shishunag dynasty, and was a contemporary of Lord Buddha’s father,
Shuddhodana.
It was during this period in which Buddha was born. It was during the reign
of Bimbisara, the fifth Shishunag ruler (1852-1814 B.C.), when Prince
Siddhartha became the enlightened Buddha. Then it was during the reign of
King Ajatashatru (1814-1787 B.C.) when Buddha left this world. Thus, he was
born in 1887 B.C., renounced the world in 1858 B.C., and died in 1807 B.C.
according to this analysis.
Further evidence that helps corroborate this is provided in The Age of
Buddha, Milinda and King Amtiyoka and Yuga Purana, by Pandit Kota
Venkatachalam. He also describes that it is from the Puranas, especially
the Bhagavata Purana and the Kaliyurajavruttanta, that need to be consulted
for the description of the Magadha royal dynasties to determine the date
of Lord Buddha.
Buddha was the 23rd in the Ikshvaku lineage, and was a contemporary of
Kshemajita, Bimbisara, and Ajatashatru, as described above. Buddha was 72
years old in 1814 B.C. when the coronation of Ajatashatru took place. Thus,
the date of Buddha’s birth must have been near 1887 B.C., and his death in
1807 B.C. if he lived for 80 years.
Professor K. Srinivasaraghavan also relates in his book, Chronology of
Ancient Bharat (Part Four, Chapter Two), that the time of Buddha should be
about 1259 years after the Mahabharata war, which should make it around
1880 B.C. if the war was in 3138 B.C. Furthermore, astronomical
calculations by astronomer Swami Sakhyananda indicates that the time of the
Buddha was in the Kruttika period, between 2621-1661 B.C.
Therefore, the fact that Buddha lived much earlier than what modern history
teaches us has a number of ramifications. First, the time of the Buddha’s
existence is underestimated by about 1300 years. Secondly, this means that
Buddhism was in existence in the second millennium B.C. Thirdly, we also
know Buddha preached against the misused Vedic rituals of animal sacrifice.
Such misuse or misinterpretation of something in a culture generally only
happens after a long period of prominence. So the purer aspect of Vedic
culture must have been around for many hundreds if not thousands of years
before its tradition began to be misused. Therefore, this pushes the Vedic
period to a much earlier time from that of Buddha than originally figured,
and much earlier than many people have calculated. And lastly, everything
else we have figured according to the time frame of the appearance of
Buddha now has to be re-calculated. Again we find that history has to be
adjusted away from the speculations of modern researchers, and that many of
the advancements in society and philosophy, as outlined in the Vedic texts,
had taken place much earlier than many people want to admit.
* * *
However, now with new evidence, we can begin to see that the above
information may be quite right for the timing of the Buddha Avatara, but the
later birth figure of 560 BCE may also be correct for the second Buddha.
The first Buddha avatara established a form of Buddhism by revolting
against those rituals that accepted animal sacrifice and emphasized the
godly principles of ahimsa, nonviolence based on recognizing the Divine in
all beings, and divinity of all souls, arousing compassion for all. The
second Buddha styled what became Buddhism that was known for its monist or
impersonalistic philosophy (that God, the Absoute Truth, is inert,
nonactive, and without any characteristics) and that reaching the same
inert and non-active state of nirvana is the goal for attaining freedom
from all suffering.
To give further information in this regard, I will now simply include the
second chapter of Beyond Nirvana: The Philosophy of Mayavadism: A Life
History, as follows, with my own few comments in brackets:
Two Buddhas
------------
A)Shakya Simha Puddha and the B) Vishnu Avatara Buddha
It may be observed in different places in the Puranas that Mayavadism had
been referred to as Buddhism [or “covered Buddhism”. It is this “covered
Buddhism” that is described in the Puranas as being the major religion
after 10,000 years of Kali-yuga have passed, and when the world will have
forgotten all information about the personal form of God.]. It is therefore
necessary in this context to briefly discuss Buddhism. Sri Buddha’s
philosophy or views is Buddhism. Hence, it is imperative that readers
become acquainted with scriptural facts about Lord Buddha, who is declared
by scripture to be one of the ten incarnations (avataras) of the Supreme
Lord, Sri Vishnu. This is described in Srila Jayadeva Gosvami’s composition
“Gita Govinda”:
vedan uddharate jaganti vahate bhugolam udbibhrate
daityam darayate balim chalayate kshatra kshayam kurvate
paulastyam jayate halam kalayate karunyam atanvate
mlecchan murccayate dasaktikrite krishnaya tubhyam namaha
“O Krishna, He who accept ten incarnations! I offer my obeisances unto You
for saving the Vedic scriptures as Matsya-incarnation; You help up the
universe as Kurma-incarnation, and lifted up the world as Varaha, the Boar
incarnation; as Nrishimha You vanquished Hiranyakashipu; as Vamana You
deceived Bali Maharaja; as Parashurama You exterminated the corrupt warrior
class; as Rama You slew Ravana; as Balarama You took up the plough; as
Buddha You bestowed compassion, and as Kalki You kill the Mlecchas.” 1 In
his Dasa Avatara Stotram, Srila Jayadeva writes in the ninth verse:
nindasi yajna vidherahaha shrutijatam
sadaya hridaya darshita pashughatam
keshava dhrita bhuddha sharira
jaya jagadisha hare jaya jagadisha hare
“O Lord of the universe, Keshava! You took the form of Lord Buddha Who is
full of compassion and stopped the slaughter of animals which is strictly
forbidden in the Vedas.” If this Lord Buddha is an incarnation of Lord
Vishnu, then Sri Sankaracharya’s connection to Him requires further
elaboration and analysis. It becomes imperative to research this matter if
Sankaracharya’s philosophy is referred to as another presentation of
Buddhism. Sri Sankaracharya’s assessment of Buddha seems opaque, for he
would have us believe that Shakya Simha Buddha [the human] and the Lord
Buddha [the avatara] that the Vaishnavas worship, are one and the same
personality. However, this is far from the truth.
Our revered gurudeva, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, revealed
that Shakya Simha Buddha was simply a highly intelligent mortal, a vastly
learned person who had attained some inner realizations [his enlightement].
So by declaring Shakya Simha to be Lord Buddha or by equating him with Lord
Vishnu’s incarnation, Sri Sankaracharya gives sufficient proof of the
respect and dedication he quietly nurtured within him for Shakya Simha. The
berating and admonishment he directed towards Shakya Simha is indeed only
an “ eye-wash” intended to hoodwink the public.
One may ask at this point, in which context did Sri Sankaracharya opine
Shakya Simha Buddha (also known as Gautama Buddha [the human]) and Avatara
Buddha to be the same personality? In response, I kindly request the learned
readers to scrutinize Sri Sankaracharya’s commentaries. In his commentary to
Brahma Sutra that I referred earlier, the word sugatena refers to Gautama
Buddha, the son of Shuddhodana and Mayadevi, and not to the original Vishnu
incarnation of Buddha [as the Srimad-Bhagavatam describes as the son of
Anjana who appeared in the province of Gaya, or more specifically
Bodhgaya]. While discussing Buddha’s philosophy, Sri Sankaracharya mentions
his name in his commentary: sarvatha api anadarniya ayam sugata-samayah
shreyaskamaih iti abhiprayaha. In this statement sugata again refers to
Gautama Buddha, the son of Mayadevi [the person who appeared in the town now
known as Lumbini in Nepal]. However, it is true that another name for
Vishnu Avatara Buddha is Sugata, and thus Sankaracharya falsely
interpolated Shakya Simha Buddha as if he were Vishnu Avatara Buddha. The
use of the name Sugata-Buddha for Vishnu Avatara Buddha was already
existing in Buddhist scriptures [so combing the two into one was not
difficult]. This is substantiated in the book Amarakosha, an extremely
ancient treatise written by the famous nihilist and atheist Amara Simha. It
is believed that Amara Simha was born approximately 150 years prior to
Sankaracharya’s birth. Amara Simha was the son of the brahmana Sabara
Svami, who fathered a host of children with different mothers of different
castes. The ancient verse about Amara Simha was well known in the learned
circles of yore:
brahmanyam abhavad varaha mihiro jyotirvidam agranihi
raja bhartriharish cha vikramanripah kshatratratmajayam abhut
vaishyayam harichandra vaidya tilako jatash cha shankuh kriti
shudrayam amaraha shadeva shabara svami dvija sya atmajaha
“Varaha Mihira, foremost among the greatest astrologers, was born from the
womb of a brahmana lady. King Vikrama and King Bhartrihari were born from a
kshatriya mother. From a vaishya mother were born Harichandra, a vaidya
tilaka – an excellent Ayurveda physician and Shanku; and from a maidservant
(shudra) mother was born Amara Simha. These six were fathered by the
brahmana Shabara Svami.”
The Amarakosha Speaks of Two Buddhas
Amara Simha was the author of many books on Buddhism. By coincidence all
these books came into the possession of Sri Sankaracharya, who subsequently
preserved only the Amarakosha and burnt all the others. The following
verses about Buddha are found in the Amarakosha:
sarvajnah sugato buddho dharmarajas tathagataha
samanta bhadro bhagavan marajil lokajij jinaha
shadabhijno dashabalo dvayavadi vinayakaha
munindra shrighanah shasta munihi
“All knowing, transcendental Buddha, king of righteousness, He who has come,
beneficent, all encompassing Lord, conqueror of the god of love Mara,
conqueror of worlds, He who controls his senses, protector of the six
enemies, possessor of the ten powers, speaker of monism, foremost leader,
lord of the ascetics, embodiment of splendour and teacher of the ascetics.”
The above verse contains eighteen names of Vishnu Avatara Buddha including
the name Sugato, and the verse below contains the seven aliases of Shakya
Simha Buddha [the human] without any mention of Sugato.
Shakyamunis tu yah sa shakyasimhah sarvarthasiddha shauddhodanish cha
gautamash charkabandhush cha mayadevi sutash cha saha “Teacher of the
Shakyas, lion of the Shakyas, accomplisher of all goals, son of Shuddhodana,
of Gautama’s line, friend of the entrapped ones, the son of Mayadevi.” In
these verses, starting with sarvajnah and finishing with munih are eighteen
names addressing the original Vishnu incarnation Lord Buddha. The next
seven names beginning with Shakya-munistu to Mayadevi-Sutascha refer to
Shakya Simha Buddha. The Buddha referred to in the first eighteen names and
the Buddha referred to in the later seven names are clearly not the same
person. [This clearly indicates that knowledge of the two Buddhas was well
known long ago.] In the commentary on Amarakosha by the learned Sri
Raghunatha Cakravarti, he also divided the verses into two sections. To the
eighteen names of Vishnu Avatara Buddha he writes the words “astadash
buddha”, which clearly refers only to the Vishnu avatara. Next, on his
commentary for the seven aliases of Shakya Simha he writes: “ete sapta
shakya bangshabatirneh buddha muni bishete”, meaning “the next seven names
starting from Shakya-munistu are aliases of Buddha-muni [the human] who
was born into the Shakya dynasty.”
Thus from the above verses and their commentaries it is indeed transparent
that Sugata Buddha [the avatara] and the atheist sage Gautama Buddha are
not one and the same person.
I take this opportunity to request the learned readers to refer to the
Amarakosha published by the respected Mr. H. T. Colebrooke in 1807. 2 On
pages 2 & 3 of this book the name ‘Buddha’ has been explained. The ‘Marginal
Note’ on page 2 for the first eighteen names, states they are names of Ajina
or Buddha and the ‘Marginal Note’ for the later seven states these are
aliases of Shakya Simha Buddha. A further footnote is added to clarify the
second Buddha, of the latter seven names – Footnote (b) “the founder of the
religion named after him.” Mr. Colebrooke lists in his preface the names of
the many commentaries he used as references. Besides Raghunatha Cakravarti’s
commentary, he took reference from twenty-five others. It can be said with
certainty that the propagator of Bahyatmavada, Jnanatmavada and Sunyamavada,
the three pillars of atheism, was Gautama Buddha or Shakya Simha Buddha.
There is no evidence whatsoever that Sugata Buddha, Lord Vishnu’s
incarnation, was in any way connected with atheism in any form. Shakya Simha
or Siddhartha Buddha, received the name Gautama from his spiritual master
Gautama Muni, who belonged to the Kapila dynasty. This is confirmed in the
ancient Buddhist treatise Sundarananda Charita: “guru gotrad atah kautsaste
bhavanti sma gautamah” – meaning “O Kautsa, because his teacher was
Gautama, they became known from his family line.”
Other Buddhist Literatures Recording Two Buddhas
------------------------------
-----------------------
Besides the Amarakosha, so highly favored by Sankaracharya, there are other
famous Buddhist texts like Prajna-Paramita Sutra, Astasahastrika
Prajna-Paramita Sutra, Sata-shastrika Prajna-Paramita Sutra, Lalita Vistara,
etc.
Proper scrutiny of these texts reveals the existence of three categories of
Buddha, namely:
Human Buddhas: like Gautama, who came to be known as Buddha after
enlightenment.
Bodhisattva Buddhas: Personalities like Samanta Bhadraka who were born
enlightened.
Adi (original) Buddha: the omnipresent Vishnu Avatara incarnation of Lord
Buddha.
The Amarakosha states that Lord Buddha, Sri Vishnu’s incarnation, is also
known as Samanta Bhadra, whereas Gautama Buddha is a human being. Other
than the eighteen names of the Vishnu Avatara Buddha mentioned in
Amarakosha, many names of Lord Buddha are recorded in the above mentioned
Buddhist texts. In Lalita Vistara, Chapter 21, page 178, it is described
how Gautama Buddha meditated on the same spot as the predecessor Buddha:
cha dharanimunde purvabuddhasanasthaha
samartha dhanur grihitva shunya nairatmavanaiha
klesharipum nihatva drishtijalancha bhitva
shiva virajamashoham prapsyate bodhim agryam
“The one seated on the hallowed earth of the previous Buddha’s birthplace is
on the path of voidism and renunciation. With his weapon, the powerful bow,
he vanquishes the enemies of distress and illusion. Thus with wisdom he will
attain the auspicious state of grieflessness and worldly detachment.”
It is transparent from this verse that Gautama Buddha, realizing the
spiritual potency of the previous Buddha’s birthplace, chose to perform
meditation and austerities in that vicinity, under a pipal tree. The ancient
and original name of this place was Kikata, but after Gautama attained
enlightenment there, it came to be known as Buddha Gaya (Bodhi Gaya) [now
Bodhgaya].
Even to the present day, the rituals of worship to the deity of Buddha at
Bodhi Gaya are conducted by a sannyasi (renounced monk) of the Giri order,
belonging to the Sri Sankaracharya sect. It is commonly accepted amongst
those monks that Buddha-Gaya (Vishnu Avatara Buddha) was a predecessor of
Gautama Buddha, who came later to the original Buddha’s birthplace to
practice meditation. Shakya Simha Buddha chose this place to attain
liberation, knowing it to be saturated with immense spiritual power.
Lankavatara Sutra is a famous and authoritative Buddhist scripture. From
the description of the Buddha, which is found in this book, it may be
firmly concluded that he is not the more recent Shakya Simha or Gautama
Buddha. In the beginning of this book we find Ravana, King of Lanka,
praying first to the original Vishnu incarnation Buddha and then to the
successive [and in this case the] future Buddha. A part of this prayer is
reproduced here:
lankavatara sutram vai purva buddha anuvarnitam
smarami purvakaih buddhair jina-putra puraskritaihi
sutram etan nigadyante bhagavan api bhashatam
bhavishyatyanagate kale buddha buddha-sutas cha ye
“Ravana, the king of Lanka, at first recited in the Totaka metre, then sang
the following – ‘I invoke in my memory the aphorisms known as
Lankavatara-sutra, compiled and propagated by the previous Buddha (Vishnu’s
incarnation). The son of Jina (Lord Buddha) presented this book. Lord
Buddha and his sons, who will appear in the future, as well as Bhagavan,
the Vishnu incarnation, will continue to instruct all from this book.’”
Anjana’s Son, Named Buddha, is Different from Shuddhodana’s Son
Some people may consider that it is not Sankaracharya but the Vaishnavas
who demonstrate a greater degree of respect and sincere reverence towards
Buddha, therefore, it is they who should also be known as Buddhists. In
this regard my personal view is, according to the Linga Purana, Bhavishya
Purana, and the ninth of the ten Vishnu incarnations mentioned in the
Varaha Purana, the Buddha described there is not the same personality as
Gautama Buddha, [the person] who was the son of Shuddhodana. Vaishnavas
never worship the nihilist and atheist (sunyavada) Buddha or Gautama Buddha,
with this prayer from the Srimad-Bhagavatam 10/40/22:
namo buddhaya shuddhaya daitya-danava-mohine
“O Supreme Lord Buddha! I offer my obeisance unto You, Who is faultless and
have appeared to delude the demoniac and atheistic class of men.” Earlier in
the Srimad-Bhagavatam 1/3/24, Lord Buddha’s advent is described in the
following manner:
tatah kalau sampravritte
sammohaya sura-dvisham
buddho namnanjana-sutaha
kikateshu bhavishyati
“Then in the beginning of Kali-yuga, the Lord will appear as Buddha, son of
Anjana, in the province of Gaya, just for the purpose of deluding those who
are envious of the faithful theist.” The Buddha mentioned in this verse is
Lord Buddha, son of Anjana; also known by some as Ajina’s son. Sri Sridhara
Svami writes in his authoritative commentary to this verse:
buddha avartaramaha tata iti anjanasya sutaha
ajina suta it pathe ajino’ pi sa eva kikateshu madhye gaya-pradeshe “The
words tatah kalau etc., describe Vishnu’s incarnation Buddha as the son of
Anjana. Ajina in the word ajina sutaha actually means Anjana. Kikata is the
name of the district of Gaya.” The monists, either by mistake or some other
reason, regard Sri Sridhara Svami as belonging to their sect and persuasion.
Be as it may, his comments however on this matter can easily be accepted by
the Mayavadis as true without hesitation. The following quote is from the
Nrisimha Purana 36/29:
kalau prapte yatha buddho bhavannarayana – prabhuh
“In Kali-yuga the Supreme Lord Narayana appears as Buddha.”
A fair estimate of Lord Buddha’s appearance can be made from this verse;
that He lived approximately 3500 years ago, or by accurate astronomical and
astrological calculation around 4000 years ago. Regarding the astrological
facts at the time of His birth, the treatise Nirnaya-sindhu states in the
second chapter:
jyaishtha shuka dvitiyayam buddha-janma bhavisyati
“Lord Buddha will appear on the second day of the waxing moon, in the month
of Jyaishtha.” Elsewhere in this book is described the procedure for Lord
Buddha’s worship:
pausha shuklasya saptamyam kuryat buddhasya pujaanam
“Lord Buddha is especially worshipped in the seventh day of the waxing moon
in the month of Pausha.” The rituals, prayers and procedures for worship
mentioned in these scriptures all clearly indicate that they are meant for
Lord Vishnu’s ninth avatara incarnation. Lord Buddha also finds repeated
mention in many authentic
Vedic scriptures like the Vishnu Purana, Agni Purana, Vayu Purana, and
Skanda Purana. The Buddha mentioned in the Devi Bhagavat, a more recent
text, and in Shakti Pramoda, refers to Shakya Simha Buddha – not the Vishnu
Avatara Buddha.
The truth remains that there are many different demigods and demigoddesses
who are worshipped by their respective devotees, in the same way that
Shakya Simha Buddha (who was an atheist) is worshipped or glorified by his
followers. However, this is all completely separate and unrelated to the
path of Sanatana-dharma, which is the eternal religion of man enunciated in
the Srimad-Bhagavatam.
According to the German scholar Max Mueller, Shakya Simha Buddha was born in
477 BC in the Lumbini gardens, within the city of Kapilavastu. This ancient
and at that time well-populated city in the Terai region of Nepal was well
known. Shakya Simha or Gautama Buddha’s father was known as Shuddhodana,
while his mother was called Mayadevi, this is all accepted as historical
fact. Although Anjana’s son and Shuddhodana’s son both share the name of
Buddha, they are nevertheless two different personalities. One of them was
born in Kikata – which is now famous as Bodhi-Gaya, while the second Buddha
was born in Kapilavastu, Nepal. Thus, the birthplace, parents, and era of
Vishnu Avatara Buddha and the birthplace, parents, era, etc., of Gautama
Buddha are totally at variance.
We can therefore now observe that the famous personality generally referred
to as Buddha is not the Vishnu incarnation, the original Lord Buddha and,
hence, Sankaracharya’s views on this are completely unacceptable. It is not
uncommon to find disagreements in matters of tradition and history, but in
regards to important and significant issues an unbiased and objective
discussion is imperative. Attracted by Buddha’s personality and fame, it is
one thing to honor and respect him, but being impressed by his philosophy
and teachings and reverentially surrendering to him is wholly another
matter. Whatever the case may be, I am sure that the respected readers have
grasped the crucial point that Buddha is not a single person, but at least
two separate identities – Shakya Simha is not the same as Lord Buddha,
Vishnu’s ninth incarnation. It is certainly undeniable that there are some
similarities between these two Buddhas, yet it is incontestable that they
are two different persons [with two different purposes].
Footnotes
1. Mleccha – derived from the Sanskrit root mlech meaning to utter
indistinctly (Sanskrit) – a foreigner; non-Aryan; a man of an outcaste
race; any non-Sanskrit speaking person who does not conform to the Vedic
social and religious customs.
2. This book was published under the auspices of the Asiatic Society and
can be referenced at it library. See _www.indev.nic.in/asiatic/_
(http://www.indev.nic.in/asiatic/)
END OF CHAPTER TWO – BEYOND NIRVANA
CONCLUSION
Actually, there is much I like about Buddhism. I like its peaceful and
gentle ways, the basis of its connection with all of life, but also its
principle of detachment and renunciation as a means to enter higher forms of
existence. I like some of the forms of meditation that it uses to gain more
understanding and control of the mind. I like its mild form of determination
to the principles and its goals.
However, from the above descriptions we can understand that the worship of
the first Buddha, which at this point in time has practically been
forgotten, is a means of definite spiritual progress through nonviolence,
compassion for all and renunciation from the world for one’s self-interest.
However, these days most of what is known of Buddhism is based on the
monistic path as established by Shakya Simha Buddha, the second Buddha who
was but a mortal who, with great intellectual ability, propounded a path
that promised the end of suffering, and the eventual entrance into what is
called nirvana. This goal of entering nirvana actually requires such a
discipline that, in this day and age, it is practically impossible to
achieve. This would also mean that, no matter how much one progresses along
this path, the most one can attain, besides a more peaceful life which may
be good enough for some people, are still future rounds of birth in this
world. Praying to Shakya Simha or Gautama Buddha, or any of the other forms
of which he may be depicted, still cannot offer any Divine assistance,
since he is not really Divine. Nor does Buddhism really acknowledge God,
either outside us or within.
The soul is also not recognized. So, it is perfect for those who wish to
follow a path that is basically atheistic in nature.
In this way, it is very similar to the philosophy that was established by
Sankaracharya who proposed, through his own imaginative interpretation of
some basic Sanskrit verses, that the Absolute Truth was impotent, inert,
and without any characteristics. Like the Buddhist sunya or void, nirvana,
or Great White Light, Sankaracharya also propounded a monistic Brahman that
is the eternal and timeless void, nondual, an impersonal oneness, and great
white light, the Brahman effulgence. You could say that it is merely an
adaptation of the core concepts of Buddhism but with a Vedic slant. As
Shakya Simha Buddha tried to nullify the sufferings of the world through
voidism, Sankaracharya tried to do the same thing with his conception of
impersonal Brahman. Sankaracharya says that Brahman is all that is eternal,
while Shakya Simha proposed that the void is all that remains.
Students of Sankaracharya will accept him as a scholar of Vedanta and a
great theist and will follow what appears to be his apparently theistic
teachings, but in this way they actually become atheists by giving up the
concept of God and any chance of establishing a relationship with the
Supreme Being.
Sri Krishna-Dvaipayana Vyasadeva, who compiled the major Vedic texts, has
declared in his writings in the Puranas that the monistic, impersonal
Mayavada philosophy is false and non-Vedic. The same would apply to what we
presently know as Buddhism. You can find this in the Padma Purana 25/7:
mayavadam asacchastram pracchannam bauddham uchyate
“The theory of Mayavadism is a concocted scripture and is known as a
disguised Buddhism.” Therefore, if we accept the traditional and major Vedic
view, as found in all Vedic samhitas and original texts, it ultimately
leads to the premise that God is personal, with personality and
characteristics, active and eternal, though beyond our mental ability to
comprehend, but with whom everyone has a relationship that only needs to be
reawakened. The real Vedic tradition points to the ways in which we can grow
beyond our limitations and realize by direct perception our natural
spiritual identity and reawaken our eternal loving relationship with the
Supreme Spirit. This is the direction and ultimate goal of all truly Vedic
processes of spiritual development.
