Tagged: Karma
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Attwood - Possible Iranian Origins for the Śākyas and Aspects of Buddhism (2012)
1This article explores Michael Witzel's theory that the Śākya tribe, the Buddha's clan, had Iranian origins, potentially as an early migration of Scythians (Sakas). The argument rests on circumstantial evidence linking Śākya and early Buddhist characteristics to Iranian or Zoroastrian culture, such as the origin story of sibling marriage (a known Iranian custom), the moral triad of body, speech, and mind, and an ethicized eschatology featuring post-mortem judgment, none of which are prominent in contemporary Brahmanical traditions. The author proposes that these ideas were transmitted via a migration of tribes like the Śākyas into the Central Ganges region around the 9th century BCE, bypassing the main Vedic cultural centers. This thesis challenges the view of Buddhism as solely a reaction to Brahmanism, suggesting instead that it emerged from a broader cultural milieu and that the Buddha may have been a product of his tribe's assimilated Iranian heritage.
Bronkhorst - Did the Buddha Believe in Karma and Rebirth (2021)
2Johannes Bronkhorst argues that the historical Buddha did believe in karma and rebirth, but that his crucial innovation was to redefine karma not as physical or mental activity, but as the psychological element of intention and desire (*tṛṣṇā*). This unique understanding explains why the Buddhist path to liberation is fundamentally psychological, focusing on mindfulness and insight, rather than relying on the physical asceticism or doctrines of an inactive Self found in contemporary traditions like Jainism. Bronkhorst critiques scholarly attempts to locate the "original" teaching in passages that resemble Vedic or Jaina ideas, suggesting these are more likely later borrowings or misunderstandings by followers who struggled to grasp the Buddha's distinct psychological focus.
Krishan - Buddhism and Belief in Ātman (1984)
3The central question in Buddhism regarding a permanent soul, or *ātman*, presents a significant dilemma - the doctrine of *anattā* (no-soul) appears to contradict the belief in karma and rebirth, as it leaves no entity to bear the consequences of actions. The Buddha himself rejected the extreme views of both an eternal, unchanging soul and complete annihilation after death, instead advocating a middle path. Various Buddhist schools attempted to resolve this by proposing concepts that function like a soul without being one, such as a "rebirth-linking consciousness" (*patisandhi viññāna*), an "intermediate existence" (*antarābhava*), or an inexpressible "person" (*pudgala*). The author argues that the doctrine of *anattā* is primarily a rejection of the ego and the notions of "I" and "mine," which are the root of suffering, rather than a denial of a conscious principle. This is supported by the development of concepts like the "store-consciousness" (*ālaya-vijñāna*) and post-mortem rituals in Buddhist cultures, which imply belief in a transmigrating entity. Ultimately, Buddhism seems to deny a static, eternal soul but affirms a dynamic, impermanent yet continuous empirical self that carries karma and memory, likened to a river's current, which is only extinguished upon attaining *nirvāṇa*.
Sopa - The Special Theory of Pratītyasamutpāda (1986)
4The Buddhist concept of Nirvana is fundamentally a metaphysical experience, defined not as an abstract or rational conclusion but as a direct, immediate, and felt knowledge of ultimate reality or "Being." This experience, which transcends sensory perception, is the goal of Buddhism, aiming for a special wisdom (prajñā) or intuitive understanding of the Ultimate Truth that underlies all phenomena. Evidence from early texts like the *Buddha-carita*, which describes the Buddha's enlightenment as a perfect, intuitive knowledge of all things, and interpretations from scholars like D.T. Suzuki, who characterizes Satori as a profound, non-conceptual awakening, both support the view of Nirvana as an experiential encounter with the metaphysical foundation of existence itself.
Anālayo - A Meditator's Life of the Buddha (2017)
5Bhikkhu Anālayo's "A Meditator's Life of the Buddha" presents a scholarly yet practical biography that traces the Buddha's inner journey, drawing exclusively from early Buddhist discourses in Pāli and their Chinese Āgama parallels to distinguish historical accounts from later legends. The book chronologically follows Siddhartha Gotama's quest from his initial motivation to go forth, through his struggles with asceticism and mastery of concentration, to the night of his awakening, his subsequent forty-five years of compassionate teaching, and his final meditation. Functioning as a guidebook for serious practitioners, each chapter concludes with a meditative exercise, enabling readers to engage with the Buddha's path and apply his insights—from developing moral conduct and overcoming fear to cultivating the four noble truths and dwelling in emptiness—to their own spiritual journey.
Dhammananda - What Buddhists Believe (2002)
6What Buddhists Believe by Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda presents Buddhism as a rational and practical path to end suffering, founded by Gautama Buddha, a human teacher who achieved enlightenment through his own efforts. The core of his message lies in the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, a 'Middle Way' that cultivates morality, mental discipline through meditation, and wisdom. Central doctrines include Karma, the natural law of cause and effect, and rebirth, which occurs without a permanent soul (Anatta). Rejecting blind faith and a creator god, Buddhism emphasises self-reliance, urging followers to verify truths for themselves and take personal responsibility for their salvation. The ultimate goal is Nirvana, a state of supreme peace and the cessation of all suffering, attainable not through prayer or rituals, but through the purification of one's own mind and the development of compassion and understanding for all beings.
Gombrich - What the Buddha Thought (2009)
7In *What the Buddha Thought*, Richard Gombrich argues that the Buddha was a brilliant and original thinker whose coherent system of thought can only be understood by placing it in its historical context as a pragmatic debate with and reaction to contemporary Brahminical and Jain ideas. Gombrich posits that the Buddha was not an essentialist philosopher but a practical teacher focused on how things function, redefining concepts like *kamma* from ritual action to ethical intention and clarifying "no-self" as the absence of an *unchanging* essence. A central thesis is that subsequent generations, failing to grasp the Buddha's use of metaphor, irony, and context-dependent arguments, took his teachings literally, thereby creating new scholastic doctrines—such as misinterpreting the *brahma-vihāras* as a path to heaven rather than nirvana. This process of misinterpretation, Gombrich contends, explains many apparent inconsistencies in the Pali Canon, which he establishes as the key evidence for understanding how the Buddha used fire as a central metaphor for non-random process and satirized Vedic cosmogony in the Chain of Dependent Origination.