THEO1161 Lecture Notes - Huangbo Xiyun, Taoism
Document Summary
Story of buddha began with the hermit sumedha (thousands of lifetimes before prince siddhartha 5th or 6th century bce) who laid in the road so. Dipankara (prior buddha) could walk over him, dipankara said e would become a buddha. Sumedha was dedicated to become the enlightened one (the vow of a bodhisattva) Bodhisattva- someone who has made the commitment to be the enlightened one and fulfill all those practices lifetime after lifetime until which he finally attains buddhahood. Buddha- someone who in prior lifetimes is a bodhisattva. The teaching of the buddha is not the product of a clever person, the. Buddhist teaching is not the product of a very smart human being, he is a cosmic figure. His teaching is the teaching of an eternal truth that is rediscovered from eon to eon. Sumedha took the formal responsibility (bodhisattva) to regain the. Dharma that was lost and reintroduce the dharma to the world once enlightenment is gained.
