So the first stop made by Sramana Siddhartha was Rajagraha and the reason was to seek out famous “enlightened” masters to teach him how to become enlightened. It is useful for us to know that there were already other people who claimed to be enlightened then. Therefore, Siddhartha’s plan was a very rational and logical one.

In earlier chapters, we studied the 6 Sramana schools of thought that were not Buddhist and should be rejected by Buddhists. Some of those Sramana masters claimed to be enlightened too. And Siddhartha did not buy their story because it simply didn’t click with him. For example, that guy who denied the existence of good or evil and taught that no evil is committed even if you were to behead a thousand men? Yup, Siddhartha did not approach him for guidance.

An important question for beginners in Buddhism is; Are the enlightenment of these ancient masters the same as Shakyamuni Buddha’s? The Buddhist answer is no. So in ancient India, what do people mean when they claim enlightenment?

Besides possessing transcendental knowledge, there is this expectation that he or she becomes omniscient. Some believe that enlightenment is the grace of a divine being. But Buddhism denied that too.

In Eastern Spirituality, people tried very hard to separate the “soul” from the body. So in Buddhism, The Buddha taught that this is possible. For example, in the Kevatta sutta, there is instruction on how to do it after we obtain the 4th Jhana. So basically, when these men and women are outside their bodies (aka Astral), they can visit other planes of existence. In that manner, they became aware of other planes of existence, communicate with the beings there, etc.

For Siddhartha’s first meditation teacher, Alara. He went beyond the realm of Form and enter the realm of Formlessness and pushed himself into “nothingness”. To escape the pain of existence. And when he managed to attain the 7th Jhana, Alara believed that he had escaped Samsara.

Unfortunately, it was still a dualistic positioning of the mind, and the state achieved or reached was based on an “I”, “wanting” a “Nothingness”

Until here, we are just setting the record straight so that we do not mistake the Buddha’s method for enlightenment as we embark on this path. Ok, back to the story.

In his quest for enlightenment, Sramana Siddhartha approached the esteemed meditation master Alara for guidance. Upon joining Alara’s order, Siddhartha quickly grasped the essence of his teachings and even mastered the profound meditative state known as Akincannayatana Jhana, or the 7th Jhanic state within 3 days!

Alara was overjoyed upon witnessing Siddhartha’s rapid progress and recognized Siddhartha’s attainment as his equivalent. Such was Alara’s delight in Siddhartha’s achievement that he offered half of his disciples to Siddhartha and proposed they co-lead the school together, acknowledging Siddhartha as his equal. 

However, Siddhartha’s enlightenment journey didn’t end there. Despite the apparent profundity of Alara’s teachings, Siddhartha soon realized their limitations. He discovered that while the meditative absorption into infinite nothingness provided a temporary respite from suffering, it was transient and dissipated upon exiting the meditative state. 

Siddhartha recognized this as akin to a mental escape that offered solace within the confines of meditation but failed to address the fundamental nature of suffering in the broader context of existence. With this realization, Siddhartha respectfully parted ways with Master Alara.

After parting ways with Master Alara, Siddhartha sought out Master Udaka, who was renowned for teaching Supreme Peace (Santivara). 

Udaka inherited his teachings and followers from his esteemed father, Master Rama. Despite this lineage, Udaka had not achieved the same spiritual heights as his father. But within just three days, Siddhartha mastered everything from Udaka and reached the same level of meditative attainment as Master Rama himself. This state is known as Nevasaññānāsaññā-yatana jhana or commonly called the 8th Jhana.

The reason why Siddhartha displayed such a remarkable flair for meditation was due to his countless meditation practices during his former lifetimes.

Master Udaka was delighted that Siddhartha had achieved the same level as Master Rama. Therefore, he offered to pass his leadership role to Siddhartha. However, Siddhartha still felt a sense of incompleteness. Despite achieving the profound meditative states, he did not alleviate suffering permanently. Thus, Siddhartha declined the leadership and continued his quest for an end to suffering.

It’s important to remember the following:

• Siddhartha rejected the methods of these 2 meditative masters.
• Therefore, Buddhism is not a branch or a subset of Sramanaism or Hinduism.
• Buddha was not a disciple of these two Indian sages, also known as Rishi (Sanskrit) or Rueshi (Thai).
• The method of meditation based on an “I” is not Buddhist
• The Sramana philosophies were rejected by Shakyamuni Buddha
• Going into 5th Jhana and beyond is unnecessary and carries a certain risk of spiritual “self-exile” into a formless state.

So all these are typically taught to a beginners in the 80s. I am not sure if Buddhist schools still teach all these. Honestly, I remembered trying very hard to stay awake as the monks were explaining all these because they are so unreliable to me back then.

But I guess it is that effort to stay awake and register what was taught, that this knowledge was etched deep into my mind. These are all important road signs and landmarks for navigating the path towards enlightenment.

May all be well and happy.

Discussion

Do you think Siddhartha was wrong in walking away from his Guru?

This question is important because we see “later” Buddhist schools promoting a concept of blind loyalty. There is that unhealthy sense of guilt in a student for leaving a wayward spiritual teacher.

So think about it. Did Buddha really teach us to blindly and senselessly be loyal and faithful to a Buddhist teacher even when that teacher is bad and evil?

2nd question.

Are we sure we completely mastered what our teacher taught before we decide it doesn’t work?

Siddhartha attained the same stage of spiritual attainment as his meditation teacher. Only then, did he conclude that their methods were not working.

Happy reflecting.