Lecture on Buddha.

Professor C. R. Lanman addressed the members of the Religious Union last evening on the subject of "Buddha and His Teaching." In introduction he referred to the prevalence of interest in the subject of the world's religions at the present day. This interest is, he said, beneficial, in so far as it reminds men of the all-importance of the subject of religion; but men should not allow themselves to be carried away by their feelings of charity as some Americans have been who have supposed themselves to be converted to Mohamedanism and Buddhism. On the other hand, some Christians consider it in the light of a detriment to their own religion if any of the good qualities of other religions are pointed out.

One who wishes to appreciate Buddha and his teachings must first obtain an idea of the place and time into which Buddha was born.

The earliest religion of which there is any trace, was one in which the principal manifestations of nature were personified and worshipped. This was the period of the Vedas. The early religion of nature degenerated into a degraded ritualistic system with which began the growth of asceticism and belief in pantheism. At this time there came a number of sects, each one of which offered its own way to heaven. There is no doubt that there was much that was holy and noble about many of these teachings. The outgrowth of this period was the idea of the Supreme Being. The Indian pantheism made each soul not a part of, but identical with, this being. The tendency of this belief is to drown all personality. That is why so few names of great men have come to us from India.

When Buddha was twenty-nine years old he resolved to devote his life to religious reflection. For six years, according to the Indian legend, he studied the existing systems without getting any satisfaction from them. At last an "illumination" came to him which was the basis of future Buddhistic theory. It was expressed in a sort of psalm, full of the elaborate wording and solemn tone of the oriental style. Three immutable "facts" were laid down concerning the "constituents of being;" first, that they were "transitory;" secondly, "miserable;" third, "lacking in the ego." As the doctrine of faith and works may be considered the characteristic of Christ's religion, so knowledge was the basis of Buddha's teaching. The aim of life was to get rid of existence; existence was a simple illusion; therefore knowledge was what was most needed.

What has given Buddha his great influence, is not so much the theory which he propounded as the beautiful, mild life which he practiced. When men asked what the Nirvanah was to be, and what was the explanation of existence, he would answer, "Do not discuss what Nirvanah is; it is the going out from your souls of the fires of passion and lust." Thus he brought his questioners down to the practical duties of life. When we see how good and lovable a man he was and how he tried to make men better, both in his time and afterwards, we cannot deny that he was a great teacher, and that some of God's truth was revealed through him.