Difference between revisions of "Preta" - New World Encyclopedia
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==Local traditions== | ==Local traditions== | ||
| − | In Japan, preta is translated as ''gaki'' ({{lang-ja|餓鬼}}, "hungry ghost"). In the modern [[Japanese language]], the word '''gaki''' is | + | In other [[East Asian]] religions such as [[Daoism]], a ''hungry ghost'' is a kind of [[ghost]] associated with [[hunger]] common to many religions. Recent stories involving dead characters stuck in 'ironic' hells often allude to them. |
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| + | In [[Japan]], preta is translated as ''gaki'' ({{lang-ja|餓鬼}}, "hungry ghost"). In the modern [[Japanese language]], the word '''gaki''' is also used to mean spoiled child, or brat. In a game of tag, the person who is "it" may be known as the "gaki." | ||
Since 657 C.E., some Japanese Buddhists have observed a special day in mid-August to remember the gaki. Through such offerings and remembrances (''segaki''), it is believed that the hungry ghosts may be released from their torment. The {{nihongo|''segaki''|施餓鬼||"feeding the hungry ghosts"}} is a [[ritual]] of [[Japanese Buddhism]], traditionally performed to stop the suffering of the gaki, [[ghost]]s tormented by insatiable hunger. Alternatively, the ritual forces the gaki to return to their portion of [[hell]] or keeps the [[spirit]]s of the dead from falling into the realm of the gaki. Today, the ceremony also gives participants an opportunity to remember those who have died and to symbolically sever ties with past [[sin]]s. The segaki may be performed at any time, but it is traditionally part of the O-Bon, a festival held every year in July or August to remember the dead. Due to Western influence, however, the ceremony is today often held around [[Halloween]]. | Since 657 C.E., some Japanese Buddhists have observed a special day in mid-August to remember the gaki. Through such offerings and remembrances (''segaki''), it is believed that the hungry ghosts may be released from their torment. The {{nihongo|''segaki''|施餓鬼||"feeding the hungry ghosts"}} is a [[ritual]] of [[Japanese Buddhism]], traditionally performed to stop the suffering of the gaki, [[ghost]]s tormented by insatiable hunger. Alternatively, the ritual forces the gaki to return to their portion of [[hell]] or keeps the [[spirit]]s of the dead from falling into the realm of the gaki. Today, the ceremony also gives participants an opportunity to remember those who have died and to symbolically sever ties with past [[sin]]s. The segaki may be performed at any time, but it is traditionally part of the O-Bon, a festival held every year in July or August to remember the dead. Due to Western influence, however, the ceremony is today often held around [[Halloween]]. | ||
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According to legend, the segaki began as a way for [[Moggallana]] (Maudgalyayna), on instruction of his master, the Buddha [[Sakyamuni]], to free his mother from [[gaki-do]], the realm of the gaki. Alternatively, Sakyamuni ordered Moggallana to preach the [[Lotus Sutra]] or to travel to hell himself, a feat that resulted in the escape of all gaki into the world and necessitating the segaki to force them to return to their realm. Another story says that the student [[Ananda]] was told by a gaki that he would become one himself in three days; he thus had to feed strangers to prevent the transformation. In reality, the segaki is likely an adaptation of a [[China|Chinese]] festival to remember the dead. Japanese [[monk]]s used the time as a chance to meditate upon and confess their sins, and over time, the modern ritual took shape from this. | According to legend, the segaki began as a way for [[Moggallana]] (Maudgalyayna), on instruction of his master, the Buddha [[Sakyamuni]], to free his mother from [[gaki-do]], the realm of the gaki. Alternatively, Sakyamuni ordered Moggallana to preach the [[Lotus Sutra]] or to travel to hell himself, a feat that resulted in the escape of all gaki into the world and necessitating the segaki to force them to return to their realm. Another story says that the student [[Ananda]] was told by a gaki that he would become one himself in three days; he thus had to feed strangers to prevent the transformation. In reality, the segaki is likely an adaptation of a [[China|Chinese]] festival to remember the dead. Japanese [[monk]]s used the time as a chance to meditate upon and confess their sins, and over time, the modern ritual took shape from this. | ||
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==In Tibetan Buddhism== | ==In Tibetan Buddhism== | ||
Revision as of 05:05, 18 September 2008
Preta (Sanskrit) or Peta (Pāli), Tibetan yi.dvags, is the name for a type of supernatural being described in Buddhist, Hindu and Jain texts that undergoes more than human suffering, particularly an extreme degree of hunger and thirst. They are often translated into English as "hungry ghosts", from the Chinese, which in turn is derived from later Indian sources generally followed in Mahayana Buddhism. In early sources such as the Petavatthu, they are much more varied. The descriptions below apply mainly in this narrower context.
Pretas are believed to have been jealous or greedy people in a previous life. As a result of their karma, they are afflicted with an insatiable hunger for a particular substance or object. Traditionally, this is something repugnant or humiliating, such as human corpses or feces, though in more recent stories, it can be anything, however bizarre.
Etymology
The word preta is derived from Sanskrit pra ita, literally "(one who is) gone forth" and originally referred to any of the spirits of the deceased - compare the English use of "the departed". It later became confined to a type of unhappy or malevolent spirit, and as such it was taken up by Buddhists to describe one of six possible states of rebirth.
Description
Pretas are invisible to the human eye, but some believe they can be discerned by humans in certain mental states. They are described as human-like, but with sunken, mummified skin, narrow limbs, enormously distended bellies and long, thin necks. This appearance is a metaphor for their mental situation: they have enormous appetites, signified by their gigantic bellies, but a very limited ability to satisfy those appetites, symbolized by their slender necks.
Pretas are often depicted in Japanese art (particularly that from the Heian period) as emaciated human beings with bulging stomachs and inhumanly small mouths and throats. They are frequently shown licking up spilled water in temples or accompanied by demons representing their personal agony. Alternately, they may be shown as balls of smoke or fire.
Pretas dwell in the waste and desert places of the earth, and vary in situation according to their past karma. Some of them can eat a little, but find it very difficult to find food or drink. Others can find food and drink, but find it very difficult to swallow. Others find that the food they eat seems to burst into flames as they swallow it. Others, if they see something edible or drinkable and desire it, it withers or dries up before their eyes. As a result, they are always hungry.
In addition to hunger, Pretas suffer from immoderate heat and cold; they find that even the moon scorches them in the summer, while the sun freezes them in the winter.
The sufferings of the Pretas often resemble those of the dwellers in Naraka, and the two types of being are easily confused. The simplest distinction is that beings in Naraka are confined to their subterranean world, while the Pretas are free to move about.
Six Realms of Tibetan Buddhist Cosmology
The Six realms (Tibetan: rigs drug gi skye gnas), are the six categories of rebirths within the system of traditional Buddhist cosmology. These six realms include all the possibilities, advantageous and less advantageous, of lives in saṃsāra.
The six realms are also known as the "six paths of rebirth", the "six paths of suffering", the "six planes", and the "six lower realms". They stand in contrast to the higher attainments of the Ten spiritual realms).
What determines which of these six realms one is reborn in, is one's previous actions and thoughts, one's karma.
The six realms are as follows: rebirth as a deva, an asura, a human being, an animal, a hungry ghost, or a being in Naraka (hell).
This six-fold system is most commonly seen in Tibetan Mahāyāna Buddhism. In Theravada Buddhism there are only five realms, because the realm of the asuras not being regarded as separate from the realm of the devas.
The Bhavacakra or "Wheel of Life" is a very useful and popular teaching tool. It is a kind of diagram which portrays these realms and the mechanism that causes these samsaric rebirths, see this (example Retrieved September 18, 2008.). In this depiction, the realm of the Devas is shown at the top, followed clockwise by the realms of the Asuras, the Pretas, Naraka, Animals, and Humans. Close examination will show that the Buddha is shown as being present in every one of these realms.
Note that the order of the realms differs among different Buddhist traditions; for instance, some traditions place the Asura realm second, before the Human realm.
Deva realm
The Deva realm is the realm of bliss and pride. The disadvantage of this realm is that things are so very comfortable there, that these beings completely neglect to work towards enlightenment. Instead they gradually use up the good karma they had previously accumulated, and so they subsequently fall to a lower rebirth.
The Deva realm is sometimes also referred to as the gods' realm, because its inhabitants are so powerful within their own realm, that compared to humans, they resemble the gods of Greek or Roman mythology. However, while the Devas may be referred to as gods, they are not immortal, omniscient, nor omnipotent, and they do not act as creators or judges at death, so they are notably very distinct from the monotheistic Western concept of God.
Asura realm
The Asura realm is the realm of the demigods. They are here because of actions based on jealousy, struggle, combat or rationalization of the world. They may be here because in human form they had good intentions but committed bad actions such as harming others.
The Asuras are said to experience a much more pleasurable life than humans, but they are plagued by envy for the devas, whom they can see just as animals can perceive humans.
The Asura realm is also sometimes referred to as the Ashura realm, Titan realm, Jealous God realm, Demigod realm, or Anti-God realm. Asura is also sometimes translated as "demon," "fighting demon," "those without wine," or "frightened ghost," which can cause confusion because beings of the hell realm are also sometimes referred to as demons.
Human realm
The Human realm (also known as the Manuṣya realm) is based on passion, desire, and doubt.
Buddhists see this realm as human existence. A human rebirth is in fact considered to be the by far most advantageous of all possible rebirths in samsara because a human rebirth is the only samsaric realm from which one can directly achieve enlightenment. This is because of the unique possibilities that a human rebirth offers.
A human rebirth is considered to have tremendous potential when used correctly, however human rebirths are very rare in occurrence. This is because we usually waste our human lifetime in materialistic pursuits, and end up reinforcing our unhelpful emotions, thoughts, and actions. Because of this, it is almost always the case that one descends to a lower rebirth after a human life, rather than immediately going on to another human birth.
In the lower realms, such as for example, the animal realm, it is a very slow and difficult process to accumulate enough merit to achieve a human birth once again, so it may be countless lifetimes before one has another chance.
Animal realm
The Animal realm (also known as the Tiryag-yoni realm) is based on strong mental states of stupidity and prejudice cultivated in a previous life or lives.
Buddhists believe that this realm is the realm of existence of the nonhuman animals on Earth. Humans can however see the animals, in the same way that the Asura can see the Devas.
Hungry Ghost realm
The Hungry Ghost realm (also known as the Preta realm) is a rebirth based on strong possessiveness and desire which were cultivated in a previous life or lives.
The sentient beings in this realm are known as "hungry ghosts". They are constantly extremely hungry and thirsty, but they cannot satisfy these needs. In Tibetan versions of the Bhavachakra these beings are drawn with narrow necks and large bellies. This represents the fact that their desires torment them, but they are completely unable to satisfy themselves.
Naraka realm
The Naraka realm, or "hell realm" is a rebirth based on strong states of hatred cultivated in a previous life or lives.
The Buddhist view of the Naraka realm differs significantly from that of most monotheistic religions in that those being punished in this realm are not trapped permanently. Rather, they remain there until their negative karma is used up, at which point they are reborn into another realm.
Relations between pretas and humans
Pretas are generally seen as little more than nuisances to mortals unless their longing is directed toward something vital, such as blood. However, in some traditions, pretas try to prevent others from satisfying their own desires by means of magic, illusions, or disguises. They can also turn invisible or change their faces to frighten mortals.
Generally, however, pretas are seen as beings to be pitied. Thus, in some Buddhist monasteries, monks leave offerings of food, money, or flowers to them before meals.
Local traditions
In other East Asian religions such as Daoism, a hungry ghost is a kind of ghost associated with hunger common to many religions. Recent stories involving dead characters stuck in 'ironic' hells often allude to them.
In Japan, preta is translated as gaki (Japanese: 餓鬼, "hungry ghost"). In the modern Japanese language, the word gaki is also used to mean spoiled child, or brat. In a game of tag, the person who is "it" may be known as the "gaki."
Since 657 C.E., some Japanese Buddhists have observed a special day in mid-August to remember the gaki. Through such offerings and remembrances (segaki), it is believed that the hungry ghosts may be released from their torment. The segaki (施餓鬼 "feeding the hungry ghosts") is a ritual of Japanese Buddhism, traditionally performed to stop the suffering of the gaki, ghosts tormented by insatiable hunger. Alternatively, the ritual forces the gaki to return to their portion of hell or keeps the spirits of the dead from falling into the realm of the gaki. Today, the ceremony also gives participants an opportunity to remember those who have died and to symbolically sever ties with past sins. The segaki may be performed at any time, but it is traditionally part of the O-Bon, a festival held every year in July or August to remember the dead. Due to Western influence, however, the ceremony is today often held around Halloween.
The segaki is normally preceded by several days of meditation. Participants then gather at a temple and present offerings (traditionally rice and water) on an altar placed out of sight of any statues or images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas. Participants then approach the altar in pairs, one burning incense and the other sprinkling water from a pine branch. Participants call the gaki (and all "unresolved karma" in some modern ceremonies) to consume the offerings. Participants then light a fire and burn pieces of paper on which they have written the names of the deceased, sins, or things they wish to "leave behind" or resolve. Participants then say prayers and chant dharani, scriptures, or names of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Someone may also read aloud the names of people who have died over the past year. In some modern segaki, the participants then eat the food offering after the ritual is completed.
According to legend, the segaki began as a way for Moggallana (Maudgalyayna), on instruction of his master, the Buddha Sakyamuni, to free his mother from gaki-do, the realm of the gaki. Alternatively, Sakyamuni ordered Moggallana to preach the Lotus Sutra or to travel to hell himself, a feat that resulted in the escape of all gaki into the world and necessitating the segaki to force them to return to their realm. Another story says that the student Ananda was told by a gaki that he would become one himself in three days; he thus had to feed strangers to prevent the transformation. In reality, the segaki is likely an adaptation of a Chinese festival to remember the dead. Japanese monks used the time as a chance to meditate upon and confess their sins, and over time, the modern ritual took shape from this.
In Tibetan Buddhism
In Tibetan Buddhism Hungry Ghosts (Sanskrit: pretas) have their own realm depicted on the Bhavacakra and are represented as teardrop or paisley-shaped with bloated stomachs and necks too thin to pass food such that attempting to eat is also incredibly painful. Some are described as having "mouths the size of a needle's eye and a stomach the size of a mountain"[citation needed]. This is a metaphor for people futilely attempting to fulfill their illusory physical desires.
According to the History of Buddhism, as elements of Chinese Buddhism entered a dialogue with Indian Buddhism in the Tibetan Plateau, this synthesis is evident in the compassion rendered in the form of blessed remains of food, etc., offered to the pretas in rites such as Ganachakra.
Notes
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Coleman, Graham, ed. 1993. A Handbook of Tibetan Culture. Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc.. ISBN 1-57062-002-4
- Ringu Tulku. 2006. The Ri-Me Philosophy of Jamgon Kongtrul the Great: A Study of the Buddhist Lineages of Tibet. Distributed in the United States by Random House. ISBN 1590302869 ISBN 9781590302866
- Smith, E. Gene. 2001. Among Tibetan Texts: History and Literature of the Himalayan Plateau. Boston: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86171-179-3
- Wallace, B. Alan. 1993. Tibetan Buddhism From the Ground Up: A Practical Approach for Modern Life. Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0861710754 ISBN 978-0861710751
- Yeshe, Lama Thubten. 2001. The Essence of Tibetan Buddhism. Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. ISBN 1-891868-08-X
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