Ancient Buddhists

Textual analysis and comparative discussion on early Buddhist sects and scriptures.
dcs
Posts: 10
Joined: Tue Feb 01, 2011 7:49 pm
Location: New York

Ancient Buddhists

Post by dcs »

Does anyone know what term Buddhists used to refer to themselves during the ancient and medieval time periods? I imagine that "Buddhist" must be a relatively recent term coined by Westerners during the Colonial era.
User avatar
tiltbillings
Posts: 23046
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:25 am

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by tiltbillings »

I am sure it was not Buddha-wallahs.

I haven't a clue, but Buddha-sasana, is a way of referring to the Buddha's teachings; Dhammika, a follower of the Dhamma, but my guess is that some one will have answer.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
User avatar
Ben
Posts: 18438
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:49 am
Location: kanamaluka

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Ben »

I recollect that the term "dhammika" is in the tipitaka and refers to one who practices the Dhamma.
Other terms: "savaka" or "hearer". Originally used for the Buddha's chief disciples but a wider usage was adopted later. Other ancient terms which I think became the names of ancient schools are Savakavadin and Vibhangavadin. If memory serves me well, a vibhangavadin was one who responded after careful analysis of a question or one who's path is analysis.
kind regards

Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725

Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global ReliefUNHCR

e: [email protected]..
Nyana
Posts: 2233
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2010 11:56 am

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Nyana »

dcs wrote:Does anyone know what term Buddhists used to refer to themselves during the ancient and medieval time periods? I imagine that "Buddhist" must be a relatively recent term coined by Westerners during the Colonial era.
Yes, both "Buddhist" and "Buddhism" are modern terms.

In Pāli the term most frequently used to refer to the Buddhist religion is sāsana, meaning the "doctrine" or "teaching" (lit. "message"), or Buddhasāsana, meaning the "doctrine/teaching of the Buddha."

In Chinese the term for the Buddhist religion is fo jiao (佛教), meaning the "teaching of the Buddha."

In Tibetan the term for the Buddhist religion is nang pa'i chos, meaning the "dharma of the insiders," and a Buddhist is called a nang pa, meaning "insider."

All of these terms (i.e. sāsana, fo jiao, nang pa'i chos) are commonly translated into English as "Buddhism."

All the best,

Geoff
User avatar
Kare
Posts: 767
Joined: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:58 am
Location: Norway
Contact:

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Kare »

In the Pali text we find that those who follow a teacher, can be called sons and daughters of that teacher. So we sometimes find Buddhists called Buddhaputta (son of Buddha).
Mettāya,
Kåre
User avatar
Cittasanto
Posts: 6646
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:31 pm
Location: Ellan Vannin
Contact:

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Cittasanto »

Kare has it to my readings also, but I also remember (not the pali) sons/daughters of the sakiyan, but I think both may of been interchangeable. the Buddha also refered to his disciples as his children though.

on another note Ajahn Chah also was given a prophesy of "not having a wife but 100's of children" before he was ordained! he did apparently wonder how this was possible.
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
User avatar
ancientbuddhism
Posts: 887
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2011 12:53 pm
Location: Cyberia

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by ancientbuddhism »

As for the °ism there is 'doctrine and discipline' (dhammavinaye), and another descriptor for a follower of such is ‘appamatto vihassati’ (DN.16) for one who ‘vigilantly abides’ in dhammavinaya.
I say, beware of all enterprises that require new clothes, and not rather a new wearer of clothes.” – Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854

Secure your own mask before assisting others. – NORTHWEST AIRLINES (Pre-Flight Instruction)

A Handful of Leaves
User avatar
gavesako
Posts: 1794
Joined: Sun Jan 04, 2009 5:16 pm

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by gavesako »

These days in Thailand it is common to refer to dedicated Buddhists as "Buddha-māmaka" though I am not sure how old this Pali term is.
Bhikkhu Gavesako
Kiṃkusalagavesī anuttaraṃ santivarapadaṃ pariyesamāno... (MN 26)

Access to Insight - Theravada texts
Ancient Buddhist Texts - Translations and history of Pali texts
Dhammatalks.org - Sutta translations
User avatar
Kare
Posts: 767
Joined: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:58 am
Location: Norway
Contact:

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Kare »

But I have to admit that when I first saw the heading "Ancient Buddhists", I thought it was something about us Buddhists who are approaching 70 ... :mrgreen:
Mettāya,
Kåre
Nyana
Posts: 2233
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2010 11:56 am

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Nyana »

Kare wrote:But I have to admit that when I first saw the heading "Ancient Buddhists", I thought it was something about us Buddhists who are approaching 70 ... :mrgreen:
:rofl:
User avatar
Monkey Mind
Posts: 538
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2009 8:56 pm
Location: Pacific Northwest, USA

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Monkey Mind »

What about this term upasaka or upasika? I see it used sometimes, but I don't know the origin.
"As I am, so are others;
as others are, so am I."
Having thus identified self and others,
harm no one nor have them harmed.

Sutta Nipāta 3.710
User avatar
bodom
Posts: 7215
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:18 pm
Location: San Antonio, Texas

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by bodom »

Monkey Mind wrote:What about this term upasaka or upasika? I see it used sometimes, but I don't know the origin.
upásaka: lit. 'sitting close by', i.e. a 'lay adherent', is any lay follower who is filled with faith and has taken refuge in the Buddha, his doctrine and his community of noble disciples (A. VIII, 25). His virtue is regarded as pure if he observes the 5 Precepts (pañca-síla; s. sikkhápada). He should avoid the following wrong ways of livelihood: trading in arms, in living beings, meat, alcohol and poison (A. V, 177). See also A. VIII, 75.

upásiká: 'female adherent';

http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma2/dic ... /bd23.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

:anjali:
Liberation is the inevitable fruit of the path and is bound to blossom forth when there is steady and persistent practice. The only requirements for reaching the final goal are two: to start and to continue. If these requirements are met there is no doubt the goal will be attained. This is the Dhamma, the undeviating law.

- BB
Nori
Posts: 126
Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2011 9:42 pm

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Nori »

dcs wrote:Does anyone know what term Buddhists used to refer to themselves during the ancient and medieval time periods? I imagine that "Buddhist" must be a relatively recent term coined by Westerners during the Colonial era.
Samana, or Śramaṇas

Buddha was not the first Śramaṇa. His father, King Śuddhodana, while Siddhārtha was still a householder, feared that he would become a Śramaṇa. Śramaṇa's were a certain type of ascetics around at the time who shaved their heads and renounced the household life. They typically engaged in austerities, and meditation. Mahavira and Gotama the Buddha were both Śramaṇa contemporaries.

"Mahāvīra, the 24th Jina, and Gautama Buddha were leaders of their śramaṇa orders. According to Jain literature and the Buddhist Pali Canon, there were also some other śramaṇa leaders at that time." - quote from article below

The Buddha later realized that the sort of austerities they practiced had no benefit, and began his own path, up until his enlightenment. From this point on, his views/position greatly differed with the other Śramaṇa orders.
---
From Article:

Śramaṇa movement
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s ... clnk&gl=us" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Several śramaṇa movements are known to have existed before the 6th century BCE dating back to Indus valley civilization.

Samkhya and Yoga are two early and very important philosophies that follow the Sramana philosophy and which had their origins in the Indus Valley period of about 3000-2000 BCE. Yoga is probably the most important Sramana practice to date, which follows the Samkhya philosophy of liberating oneself from the grip of Prakriti (nature) through individual effort. Elaborate processes are outlined in Yoga to achieve individual liberation through breathing techniques (Pranayama), physical postures (Asanas) and meditations (Dhyana). Patanjali's Yoga sutra is one product (school) of this philosophy. Other Yogic schools and the Tantra traditions are also important derivatives and branches of the Sramana practices.

The movement later received a boost during the times of Mahavira and Buddha when Vedic ritualism had become the dominant tradition in certain parts of India. Śramaṇas adopted a path alternate to the Vedic rituals to achieve liberation, while renouncing household life. They typically engage in three types of activities: austerities, meditation, and associated theories (or views). As spiritual authorities, at times śramaṇa were at variance with traditional Brahmin authority, and they often recruited members from Brahmin communities themselves, such as Cānakya and Śāriputra[3].

Mahāvīra, the 24th Jina, and Gautama Buddha were leaders of their śramaṇa orders. According to Jain literature and the Buddhist Pali Canon, there were also some other śramaṇa leaders at that time. ...
User avatar
retrofuturist
Posts: 27839
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 9:52 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Contact:

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by retrofuturist »

Greetings,
bodom wrote:upásaka: lit. 'sitting close by',
For this reason I used to call my Buddhist work colleague who sat next to me "Upásika".

8-)

Metta,
Retro. :)
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
Bankei
Posts: 430
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2009 4:40 am

Re: Ancient Buddhists

Post by Bankei »

Sakyaputra
-----------------------
Bankei
Post Reply