Siddhartha Gaut The Four Noble Truths Of Buddhism

The focus of Buddhism is to find peace within oneself. Buddhists are non-theistic, meaning they do not believe in a God or Gods. Instead they believe that we must look to oneself to find happiness. This sets it apart from other popular religions that encourage their followers to look to higher powers for happiness and peace. The goals of Buddhist are to end suffering by following the four noble truths created by Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of buddhism; become enlightened, having happiness and understanding; and then reach Nirvana, a place of peace. One step a Buddhist takes in reaching Nirvana is by taking refuge in the three jewels. The three jewels are necessary elements of the Buddhist path. They include: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
The first of the three jewels is Buddha, or the teacher. Buddha refers to Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism. Teachers who are enlightened, meaning they fully understand the nature of the mind and reality, are also called Buddhas. Buddha was not a God, but a human being just like us. He became “awakened’ to reality and then helped others become “awakened” as well. This example shows us that we do not need a God to become enlightened; we human beings can too follow the path to enlightenment by ourselves. A buddhist takes refuge in Buddha as an example of a teacher. I find this to be interesting because it is telling us that we as humans are capable of finding peace and happiness within our own self instead of having to look to a higher power for this realization. The second jewel of Buddhism is Dharma, known as the teachings.
This begins with the four noble truths taught by Buddha himself. It also includes a number of other Buddha teachings which have come about over the years. This jewel is sometimes referred to as the dharma wheel that has 8 spokes representing the teachings of the eightfold path. The teachings are Buddha’s ideas of the “truth” concerning the laws of the universe. A buddhist takes refuge in Dharma as a way to trust in their practice of Buddhism. They do so through meditation or chanting, which teaches them to trust the present and to not put faith in something far away. I feel that in the Western culture we are often taught to look forward to the future and do not take the time to appreciate the present. As children, we look forward to grade school, then high school, then college, then to having a job, getting married, having a family, and retirement. We even grow up playing the board game, “The Game of Life,” which whizzes through the stages of life and not appreciating the present. I think we could all benefit from taking refuge in Dharma and trust the present and have faith in our current self instead of eagerly looking forward to what the future will
bring. The third and final jewel of Buddhism is Sangha, or the community.
It refers to Buddhist monks and nuns and also to groups of Buddhist people who practice together. Sangha teaches Buddhists that is okay to accept the support from others to reach enlightenment; we do not have to do it alone, Sangha shows us that everyone has desires and experiences suffering. The buddhists share their wisdom with one another and provide support while they experience the journey of life. One takes refuge in Sangha as companionship. Buddhists who take refuge in Sangha become part of the refuge for other Buddhists because they are welcoming and helping others follow the four noble truths and find enlightenment. Yes, enlightenment is something a buddhist finds within their own self, but that doesn’t mean they have to embark on the journey alone. The United States has a very independent mindset, and we are taught to be independant from a young age. When we are struggling we often keep it to ourselves and not reach out for help, which results into further suffering. If we were to take refuge in Sangha we would be able to open up to those around us and allow them to help us with our struggles, which in return would bring us closer to finding happiness within
ourselves. To take refuge in the three jewels is to commit oneself to Buddhism, to follow the path of awakening oneself to reality, to become enlightened, and to reach Nirvana. Buddhism speaks to everyone not just its followers. It teaches us to have trust in ourselves and that the answers we are looking for in life can be found within ourselves.