The Buddha

Western scholars, and most Westerners, generally use the word Buddha—which means the Awakened One—as the name of the historical Buddha or Shakyamuni (the sage of the Shakya clan) in the same sense in which Jesus Christ is a name.

There are two reasons for this Western usage. First, Western scholars first learned about Buddhism from such places as Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, countries where the Theravada or Southern Tradition of Buddhism is practiced and where the word Buddha is in fact often used to mean Shakyamuni. Second, people in the West recognized only Shakyamuni as a Buddha and consider the two appellations, Buddha and Shakyamuni as being synonymous. On this point they are misinformed.

Recognizing other Buddhas of the past and the future, the Southern Tradition makes a distinction by referring to Shakyamuni as Gotama (Gautama) Buddha, Gotama being a surname of the Shakya clan into which Shakyamuni was born.

In his own time, Shakyamuni was referred to by the people of other spiritual traditions as Samana Gotama, which means Gotama the ascetic.

The teachings of the Mahayana or Northern Tradition of Buddhism differ in several aspects from the Theravada School. One point of discrepancy is the Mahayana teaching that, in addition to the many Buddhas in the three realms of past, present, and future there are innumerable other Buddhas.

All Living Beings possess Buddha Nature. All Beings are "Buddhas in waiting." Many people in history have realized their innate Buddha Nature.

Since there are many Buddhas in the Southern Theravada Tradition and many more in the Northern Mahayana Tradition, to refer to Shakyamuni simply as the Buddha invites confusion. The problem is solved if another name is added to the title Buddha.