Honour to the Lord, Arahat, perfectly and completely Enlightened one!
Nine qualities of the Buddha is something that we should remember and recall every time. As a daily practise if someone is recalling and remembering these qualities of the Buddha, one starts living in the Buddhahood. A person who lives with recalling these qualities does not do any bad thing to anyone or think anything bad about anyone. Following is the list of the qualities of a Thatagatha and an explanation will follow as well.
01. Arahan
02. Samma Sambuddhda
03. Vijjha charana sampanna
04. Sugatha
05. Lokavidu
06. Anuthtar Purisadhamma sarathi
07. Sattha
08. Buddho
09. Bhagava .
The quality of Arahan (attained Nibbana)
The quality of Arahan means the one who has become to the state of NIbbana. The end of suffering. He, who destroyed the circle of rebirth and other endless sufferings coming with the rebirth. A person achieved the level of Arahat never breaks the five precepts. This is also a quality of the Buddha. But there is a different of using the word Arahan for the Buddha, it is a quality that other people who have attained Nibbana do not have. Even though both Arahat and a Buddha destroy the suffering the Buddha has a knowledge that other Arahat persons do not have. Because he himself found this truth of Nibbana at the Bo tree, he gained a knowledge that is unique to all Buddhas. This makes the Thatagata different from other Arahats. The other reason is that the Buddha has long running Paramitha for many lifetimes. This means that other than other Arahats, the Buddha has fulfilled different paramithas wishing the Buddhahood. Because of his good karma earned in the past lives, he gained this special knowledge with his enlightenment which other Araahts do not have.
The other reason we call Him Arahan is of his quality of introducing the Dhamma to the world. As you know that the Dhamma is only introduced to the world when a Buddha has been born. The Buddha understands the Dhamma by himself without a teacher. Now this is the Dependent origination (Patichcha samupada). Only a Buddha introduced this Dhamma to the world and people who understand that Dhamma become to the stage of Arahat by practising that Dhamma.
We also need to understand that it is only a Buddha that introduced the four noble truths to the world. They are the suffering, the cause for the suffering, the cessation of suffering and the path to cease the suffering. Now these four elements can only be seen in Buddhism.
The next article will cover the second quality, Samma Sambuddha.
