Henepola Gunaratana is a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk who has taught graduate level courses on Buddhism at several universities in the United States, including Georgetown University, American University, and the University of Maryland, College Park. He has also written extensively on the subject of Buddhism.

The message of the Buddha is traditionally known as the Four Noble Truths. The last of these four truths sets out eight steps to happiness, which are: skillful understanding, skillful thinking, skillful speech, skillful action, skillful livelihood, skillful effort, skillful mindfulness, and skillful concentration.

Gunaratana explains in his book “Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness”, that the Buddha’s path is grounded in common sense and in careful observation of reality. The Buddha understood that if we looked carefully at our lives we would realize that the choices we make lead to either happiness or unhappiness. And once we understand this principle thoroughly, we will be able to make good choices, because we want to happy.

Gunaratana adds the following: “The basis of Buddhist morality is that acting in unskillful ways leads to unhappy results, and acting in skillful ways leads to happy results. This simple principle of cause and effect is an aspect of what Buddhists call kamma (or karma).”

Once we understand that everything we think, say, or do is a cause, which will inevitably lead to some effect, we will naturally want to think, say, and do things which will lead to positive results. At the same time, we will avoid having thoughts, saying things, and doing things that will lead to negative results. Taking this approach will allow us to focus our attention on making choices that will lead to a happier life.

In order to act wrongfully, Gunaratana adds, you have to be lying to yourself about cause and effect. That is, you would be acting against the basic truth that actions have consequences. If you train yourself to be mindful of what you do, and ask yourself whether it’s likely to lead to positive or negative results, you’ll be heading in the right direction. You’ll be heading toward happiness.

Buddhism is a religious philosophy that, unlike many other traditional religions does not believe in a personal God that punishes our wrong-doings and rewards our good deeds individually. It was originally begun as an atheistic philosophy. It is based on the Noble Eightfold path and the Four Truths. The Buddha statue represents the “Enlightened One.” The Four Noble Truths are: that suffering is part of life, craving is what causes suffering, the suffering stops when the craving stops, and that the only way to conquer the cravings and suffering is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path.

The Noble Eightfold Path Is:

Right views, right aspiration, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right contemplation. As the Enlightened One the Buddha statue represents other values as well. The individual is not recognized in Buddhism. All that happens to individuals is based on an impersonal moral “karma.” Once an individual follows all of the steps on the Noble Eightfold path they reach an enlightened pure non-existent state called “nirvana.”

The First Statue

It is believed that the first Buddha statue was not created until four or five hundred years after the death of Buddha out of respect. Therefore, the statues are not an exact replication of the person and there is no “right way” to represent him. The artist had artistic freedom of expression in that area. But, there are certain characteristics and symbolic elements that you will find at least one of in every Buddha statue.

• If the hands are resting in the lap this represents meditation.

• The hands crossing over the chest are a symbol of Dharma-or a state of “being.”

• In the earliest Buddha statue, the figure has both hands raised with the ring finger on the left hand touching the thumb and the index finger on the right hand is touching the thumb to make a circle with the three other fingers held aright. It is not certain what this symbolizes.

Buddhism Exists In Three Forms Today

The first is Mahayana, which reveres Buddha as a God like figure and still uses the Buddha statue to represent him. It is called “the Greater Vehicle” and is the most practiced form of Buddhism in the world today. The second is practiced by just over a third of the Buddhists in the world and is called Theravada, or the “Doctrine of the Elders.” It is atheistic in nature and philosophy but still reveres the Buddha statue. Vajrayana is the least common type of Buddhism and uses the occult and shamanism. It is practiced by just 6 percent of the Buddhists.

Many people looking on the Buddha statue find it a source of happiness and serenity. It is a symbol of the end of suffering and true peace. The Buddhist philosophy that we must strive for perfection and control over our personal cravings to work for the good of all is not a bad philosophy. If society as a whole would adopt at least some of these concepts there would be much more peace and tolerance in the world-we could begin to come to a state of nirvana.