Human beings in Buddhism
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Human beings in Buddhism are the subjects of an extensive commentarial literature that examines the nature and qualities of a human life from the point of view of human beings' ability to achieve enlightenment.
In Buddhism, human beings have a very special status, if for no other reason than that only a human being can attain enlightenment as a fully enlightened Buddha. Enlightenment as an arhat can be attained from the realms of the Śuddhāvāsa deities. A bodhisattva can appear in many different types of lives, for instance as an animal or as a deva. Buddhas, however, are always human.[1]
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[edit] Qualities of human life
The status of life as a human being, at first glance, has nothing very special about it. In the hierarchy of Buddhist cosmology it is low but not entirely at the bottom. It is not intrinsically marked by extremes of happiness or suffering, but all the states of consciousness in the universe, from hellish suffering to divine joy to serene tranquility can be experienced within the human world.
Human beings can be seen as highly favored, in that they have an immediate reason to seek out the Dharma and yet also have the means to listen to it and follow it. Among the lower realms, Pretas, and dwellers in the Narakas are gripped by pain and fear, and can only endure their lot but cannot better themselves. Animals are intellectually unable to understand the Dharma in full. The way of life of the Asuras is dominated by violence and antithetical to the teachings of the Dharma, while most of the Devas simply enjoy reaping the fruits of their past actions and do not concern themselves with the future. When their past karmas have all had their result, these devas will fall into lower worlds and suffer again. The lowest sorts of devas deal with strife, love, and loss just as humans do, but even so they lack the spur of imminent mortality that can lead human beings to seek, not merely a better future life, but an escape from saṃsāra altogether[2].
For this reason, life in the world of human beings is known as "the precious human rebirth". Born close to the pivot point of happiness and suffering, human beings have a unique capacity for moral choices with long-term significance.[3]
The human rebirth is said to be extremely rare. The Bodhicaryāvatāra compares it to a wooden cattle-yoke floating on the waves of the ocean, tossed this way and that by the winds and currents. The likelihood of a half-blind turtle, rising from the depths of the ocean to the surface once in a hundred years, putting its head through the hole in the yoke is considered greater than that of a being in saṃsāra achieving rebirth as a human.[4]
Among humans there are also better and worse conditions for attaining enlightenment. Besides being born as a human, the favorable conditions for obtaning enlightenment are:
- Being born a human at a time when a Buddha has arisen, has taught the Dharma, and has left a Saṅgha that carries on the teachings; at such times there is a chance to learn the Dharma.
- Being born a human in countries where the Dharma is known. Buddhist commentaries contrast the "central lands" where Buddhism is known and can be practiced (originally just northern India, but now including a much larger portion of the globe) with "border countries" where Buddhism is unknown or cannot be practiced due to legal or practical impediments, for instance, a lack of qualified teachers. Technically a "central land" is one which possesses any one of the Buddhist saṅghas of bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas or upāsikās.
- Being born a human who has the physical and intellectual capacity to grasp the basic message of the Dharma.
- Accepting the relationship between good or evil actions and their consequences, believing that good actions will lead to a happier life, a better rebirth or to enlightenment.
- Confidence in the moral teachings conveyed in the Vinaya.
- Avoiding crimes against people and against the Dharma.
- Having sincere compassion for other people.[5]
Just as it is difficult to obtain birth as a human, it is also difficult to be born at the time when a Buddha's teaching is still available. Out of the infinite kalpas (incredibly long periods) in time, most have no Buddhas appearing in them at all. The present kalpa is called "Fortunate" because it is said that 1,000 Buddhas will appear in it, something that is very unusual.[6]
For this reason, Buddhist teachers say that one's present condition as a human being should be valued very highly, and not allowed to slide by, as the combination of existence as a human and the presence of a Buddha's teaching may not come again for a very long time. Any human, in this view, who finds himself or herself in a position to learn the Dharma, would be remiss if he or she did not take advantage of it. This view also stands in contrast to those who would claim that, if one is to be reborn multiple times, there is no need to worry about one's actions in this life as they can always be amended in the future; rather, there is no assurance that in a long series of lives one will ever obtain the right circumstances for enlightenment, so it is important to seize the day.
[edit] Myth of human origins
According to the Aggañña Sutta (DN.27), human beings originated at the beginning of the current kalpa as deva-like beings reborn from the Ābhāsvara deva-realm. They were then beings shining in their own light, capable of moving through the air without mechanical aid, living for a very long time, and not requiring sustenance.
Over time, they acquired a taste for physical nutriment, and as they consumed it, their bodies became heavier and more like human bodies; they lost their ability to shine, and began to acquire differences in their appearance. Their length of life decreased, they differentiated into two sexes and became sexually active. Following this, greed, theft and violence arose among them, and they consequently established social distinctions and government and elected a king to rule them, called Mahāsammata, "the great appointed one". Some of the kings of India in the Buddha's day claimed descent from him.
[edit] Nature of the human realm
In the visionary picture of the human realm presented in Buddhist cosmology, human beings live on four continents which are, relatively speaking, small islands a vast ocean that surrounds the axial world-mountain of Sumeru, and fills most of the earth's surface. The ocean is in turn surrounded by a circular mountain wall called Cakravāḍa (Sanskrit) or Cakkavāḷa (Pāli) which marks the horizontal limit of the earth. Because of the immenseness of the ocean, the continents cannot be reached from each other by ordinary sailing vessels, although in the past, when the cakravartin kings ruled, communication between the continents was possible by means of the treasure called the cakraratna (Pāli cakkaratana), which a cakravartin and his retinue could use to fly through the air between the continents.
The four continents are:
- Jambudvīpa (Sanskrit) or Jambudīpa (Pāli) is located in the south and is the dwelling of ordinary human beings. It is said to be shaped "like a cart", or rather a blunt-nosed triangle with the point facing south. (This description probably echoes the shape of the coastline of southern India.) It is 10,000 yojanas in extent (Vibhajyavāda tradition) or has a perimeter of 6,000 yojanas (Sarvāstivāda tradition) to which can be added the southern coast of only 3 1⁄2 yojanas' length. The continent takes its name from a giant Jambu tree (Syzygium cumini), 100 yojanas tall, which grows in the middle of the continent. Every continent has one of these giant trees. All Buddhas appear in Jambudvīpa. The humans here are five to six feet tall and their length of life varies between 80,000 and 10 years.
- Pūrvavideha or Pubbavideha is located in the east, and is shaped like a semicircle with the flat side pointing westward (i.e., towards Sumeru). It is 7,000 yojanas in extent (Vibhajyavāda tradition) or has a perimeter of 6,350 yojanas of which the flat side is 2,000 yojanas long (Sarvāstivāda tradition). Its tree is the acacia. The humans here are about 12 feet tall and they live for 250 years.
- Aparagodānīya or Aparagoyāna is located in the west, and is shaped like a circle with a circumference of about 7,500 yojanas (Sarvāstivāda tradition). The tree of this continent is a giant Kadambu tree. The human inhabitants of this continent do not live in houses but sleep on the ground. They are about 24 feet tall and they live for 500 years.
- Uttarakuru is located in the north, and is shaped like a square. It has a perimter of 8,000 yojanas, being 2,000 yojanas on each side. This continent's tree is called a kalpavṛkṣa (Pāli: kapparukkha) or kalpa-tree, because it lasts for the entire kalpa. The humans of Uttarakuru are said to be extraordinarily wealthy. They do not need to labor for a living, as their food grows by itself, and they have no private property. They have cities built in the air. They are about 48 feet tall and live for 1,000 years, and they are under the protection of Vaiśravaṇa.
[edit] Notes
[edit] Sources
- sGam.po.pa, The Jewel Ornament of Liberation, Chapter 2, translated by H.V. Guenther. JOL
- Ngorchen Konchog Lhundrub, The Beautiful Ornament of the Three Visions, translated by Lobsang Dagpa and Jay Goldberg, Section A2. BOTV
- G.P. Malalasekara, Dictionary of Pāli Proper Names
- Thus Have I Heard: The Long Discourse of the Buddha, translated by Maurice Walshe. DN
