ABSTRACT

Preliminaries 'Buddhism', and its derivatives like 'Buddhist', are, of course, English words. They have parallels in other European languages, like 'Buddhismus' and 'Bouddhisme'. They refer for speakers of the English (German, French) language to the '-ism' which derives from the (or a) Buddha. The Buddha (Sanskrit/Piili: 'Awakened One') is thought by Buddhists to be one who has awakened fully to the final truth of things, and thus freed, liberated, himself once and for all from all forms of suffering. He is also one who, out of supreme compassion, has taught others the way to attain liberation themselves. Buddhas are not born that way, and they are certainly not thought to be eternal gods (or God). Once (many lifetimes ago) they were just like you and me. They strove through their own efforts, and became Buddhas. A Buddha is superior to the rest of us because he 'knows it how it is'. We, on the other hand, wallow in confusion, in ignorance (Sanskrit: avidya; Piili: avijja). Thus we are unhappy and suffer.