The Sangha

Introduction

Sangha was established by Buddha, for his followers. The original aim of the sangha was to present a means, to those followers who wish to practice full-time in a disciplined and strict manner. So Buddha created the sangha and those who wished to follow Buddha and his teaching full time, joined the sangha. The monks and common people in the sangha would wander here and there with Buddha and spread his teaching. Those who joined the sangha underwent a ceremony in which they shaved their head to show renunciation from this world.

Those who joined the sangha solely focused their lives on following every teaching of Buddha and that's why they left behind their homes, families, and all earthy possession and desires. The sangha became their family, and it was a group of highly dedicated followers of Buddha.

What is Sangha?

• Sangha can be easily understood as a Buddhist society. It consists of monks, nuns, common men, women, and children. Individuals in the sangha claim to be true followers of Buddha.

• Sangha has two meanings, one is a community of individuals who left their home, family desires, and passion, to follow the strict and fully disciplined way of Buddha's teaching. They follow strict discipline and shave their heads as a sign of renunciation.

• Another meaning of sangha is associated with the Buddha himself. The followers of Buddha would take refuge with Buddha himself and follow him everywhere he went. This sangha was associated with men, women, and children who would join Buddha in his journey. Those who joined the sangha had to take the vow of Celibacy, scarcity, and Faith. There are three jewels in Buddhism: Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, and sangha is the last jewel and core of Buddhism.

• Due to the organized structure and teaching of the Sangha, Buddhism gained popularity and spread rapidly, even in Buddha’s lifetime. Even after the death of Buddha, his followers continued to live in a community and live off the offerings of people. They would gather and recite the core teachings of Buddha.

Importance of Sangha

The sangha became important for followers of Buddha in many aspects −

• Spread of Buddhism − with the formation of the Sangha, monks and common people who joined the sangha, wander here and there and spread the teachings of Buddha.

• Feeling of solidarity and family − those who joined sangha had left their family and house and for them, their community was home. They often meet and would recite the prayers and teachings of the Buddha.

• The popularity of yoga and meditation − monks in the sangha, perform meditation and yoga together and wherever they go it becomes popularised there.

Buddhism is generally marked as a path of isolation and solitude. The person meditates and tries to find happiness on his own. But, the concept of sangha in Buddhism is the opposite of solitary, it claims to form a community where everyone together tries to find happiness. It gives the feeling of security and hopes to the followers of Buddha, and all have the same goal.

Buddha himself signified the role of friendship and companionship. According to Buddha, one can easily achieve the eightfold path for ourselves among friends and companions.

Ancient Social Life and Sangha

The ancient Indian society was divided into Varnas or sections.

• The first Verna was Brahaman, it was the most dominant and powerful section. Brahmanas were associated with the role of priest and teacher.

• The second Varna was the Kshatriya. They were the warrior class and generally the kings were of Kshatriya Varna only. Sometimes disputes were seen between Kshatriyas and Brahmanas for supremacy.

• The third Varna was Vaishya, it was the merchant class, that associated themselves with business and became traders. They were the main taxpayers in society.

• The last and most deprived class was the Sudra. They were labourers and used to work as events in the household and fields of upper Varnas. Sudras were not allowed to study and they were not seen as equal to other sections of society.

The sangha became most popular because in Sangha everyone was equal. There was no Varna system in the sangha and Buddhism highly condemned the Varna system. Thus, people from lower caste adopted Buddhism and became equal. The sangha became a community of equals who lived in harmony and followed the path and teachings of Buddha.

Buddha and Sangha

When Buddha was alive, he used to wander from place to place, spreading his knowledge and his followers joined him everywhere he went. Buddha was joined by all, men, women, and children.

This community of dedicated followers of Buddha, who left all desires and their home and joined the Buddha in search of truth, came to be known as the Sangha. Even after his death, this tradition continues and the sangha became the core of Buddhism. Buddhism became a religion of secular values and the sangha played a vital role in this.

To popularise Buddhism, the sangha allowed everyone to be a part, of who truly believed in the teachings of the Buddha. Sangha created a structure within which a common man could have his aim and his customs. The religion became famous not so much by the widespread teachings and philosophy as by the extension of its structure. Another factor in the expansion of Buddhism was the patronage of rulers like Ashoka, who adopted Buddhism and propagated it all over the world.

Conclusion

The sangha simply means a community or association. It is a group of devotees and followers of Buddhism. The sangha has been working since the times of Buddha. Buddha has emphasised the need for a true friend and companion. Sangha is the third jewel of Buddhism, and the first and the second jewel of Buddhism are Buddha and Dhamma. The Sangha is credited with the popularisation of the Buddhist religion.

FAQs

Q1. What is the eight-fold policy in Buddhism?

Ans. Eight-fold policy of Buddha is a path to achieve liberation and ultimately attain Nirvana. There eight paths are right to conduct, speech, resolve, view, effort, livelihood, mindfulness, and Samadhi.

Q2. What is Triratna?

Ans. Triratna simply means three jewels of Buddhism. These three jewels are, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

Q3. What are the four noble truths in Buddhism?

Ans. The four noble truths are, Suffering, Desire is the cause of suffering, the end of desire will bring an end to suffering and there is a path that leads away from desire and suffering.

Q4. What did Buddha do after attaining enlightenment?

Ans. Buddha firstly went to Sarnath to teach. After that, he moved from place to place to teach his wisdom and spread his religion.

Q5. Who could not join the Sangha?

Ans. The sangha was open to everyone, yet there were some exceptions in joining it. The slaves could not join the sangha on their own, they had to take permission from their masters. The children had to take permission from their parents and the women had to take permission from their husbands.