What we are interested in presenting in this content is the concept of BUDDHA as it is found in the Pali Nikaya, writings preserved by the Theravada Buddhists, which, all scholars agree, contain the earliest teachings of the Buddha. We shall call these early Buddhist teachings, Proto-Buddhism, because it is the prototype from which all modern schools of Buddhism arose.
What appears today in the modern world as Buddhism: whether Theravada, Mahayana, Vajirayana, Pure-land, or Zen are adulterated forms of the original teaching of the Buddha.
It is often thought today that Buddhism is a religion containing numerous myths, traditions and mystical practices. On close examination of the original teachings of the Buddha, however, we begin to recognize the error in this prevalent view. Therefore, it is vitally important to avoid confusing modern Buddhism, as it is practiced in different cultures today, with what was taught and practiced by Gotama the Buddha and his disciples more than twenty-five centuries ago. What is practiced today in the three main cultural forms of Buddhism, whether Theravada, Mahayana, or Vajrayana, are mainly rituals and ceremonies with symbols of worship, accompanied by emotionally held traditional dogmas. This type of Buddhism is not different from any other religion with different dogmas, rituals and symbols of worship, which serve mankind only as a placebo, in temporarily reducing the anxieties and worries of life, regarding the here and hereafter. A marked distinction succinctly presented would be that the early Buddhists sought refuge in the wisdom of the Buddha, while modern Buddhists seem to seek refuge in his supposed supernatural powers, just as theistic religions have always done.
The original teaching of the Buddha was a psychological solution to the troubles and tribulations of life. It is only through a thorough examination of the early teachings of the Buddha in comparison with the beliefs and practices of modern day Buddhists, that one may recognize the distinction between original Buddhism and the modern Buddhist traditions and practices. Without adequately understanding this important distinction between early Buddhism, and the culturally oriented modern Buddhism, it would not be possible to comprehend the important psychotherapeutic basis of the teachings of the Buddha.
Therefore, it is necessary to emphasize at this point that whenever the term “Buddhism” is used henceforth in this content, it is the original teachings of the Buddha that is referred to, and not to any form of modern Buddhism that is prevalent among people of any Buddhist culture today. The original teachings we refer to are the Sutta Pitaka and the Vinaya Pitaka that have been preserved by the Theravada Buddhists, but the comprehension of which is inadequately maintained. All modern scholars are agreed that Sutta and Vinaya Pitaka represent the original teachings, and the Abhidhamma Pitaka is only a later incorporation of the dogmas of a particular school of cultural Buddhism.