1) Describe the origins of Buddhism, including the circumstances behind the founder's enlightenment.
2) Explain the essential beliefs of Buddhism, including customs and holidays.
3) List the elements of the Eightfold Path and describe what each means.
4) What are the Four Noble Truths?
Buddhists do not worship the Buddha Instead, they seek peace and enlightenment within themselves by following a path of kindness towards others.
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Buddhism was founded by a young prince named Siddhartha Guatama in India about 2500 years ago. Siddhartha was raised in a life of luxury and led a very sheltered life. In fact, it is said that he probably never ventured outside the palace walls at all during his childhood and young adult life. Siddhartha, however, was a very wise youth and curious about the world beyond the walls.
One day, Siddhartha left his home, including his wife and young child, in order to see the "real world". On his journey, he came across four sights which disturbed him. He saw an old man, a sick man, and a corpse. When he saw these things, he wondered why there was so much suffering in the world.
The final sight that he saw was a monk, begging beside the road. But instead of looking unhappy, the monk appeared to be calm, happy, and at peace with himself. This puzzled Siddhartha because he couldn't figure out why someone so poor should be so happy. At that moment, Siddhartha decided to give up all of his own worldly goods, including his lavish clothes, to find out why there was suffering and how suffering could be prevented.
Siddhartha spent several years wandering the country, meditating and praying. All the while he was wandering, he nearly starved himself in an effort to try to be like the monk. Siddhartha had almost given up on his quest when he decided to sit down beneath a bodhi tree to meditate. He remembered a quiet time when he was a child and had felt very peaceful.
At that moment, he became calm and suddenly realized that the secret to happiness wasn't making oneself miserable by starving nearly to death. He discovered Four Noble Truths which, if followed, would lead to a calm and happy life.
Basic Beliefs
These Four Noble Truths are:
1) The realization that all of life has some suffering.
2) The cause of suffering is desire (wanting things) and becoming attached to worldly objects as well as to people.
3) The way to end suffering is to stop wanting things.
4) The key to not wanting things is to follow The Eightfold Path.
The Middle Path:
The Middle Path means to live your life in moderation. Don't do anything to excess. There is no need to be a "monk" (unless you want to be) but then you should also avoid a life of extreme luxury and indulgence in worldly things.
The Eight-Fold Path
1) Right Knowledge: Learn as much as you can about helping others
2) Right Thinking: Think compassionately, not selfishly
3) Right Speech: Don't tell lies and don't spread gossip
4) Right Conduct: Help others whenever you can
5) Right Livelihood: Do something useful; avoid jobs which harm people
6) Right Effort: Encourage good thoughts, avoid negative thinking
7) Right Mindfulness: Be aware of what you think and do because your thoughts become your actions.
8) Right Concentration: Practice meditation to keep your mind calm
Following his "enlightenment" under the Bodhi tree, Siddhartha was given the name "Buddha" meaning "enlightened one". He took his knowledge and traveled around India and part of Asia. After the Buddha's death, his followers spread his philosophy throughout Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, China, and Nepal.
2. Where did Buddhism originate?
3. How is Buddhism more of a philosophy, rather than a religion?
2) Listen to a 7 minute audio explanation of Buddhism from Minnesota Public Radio (Buddhism audio file)
3) Read the text from the LINKS section above. Write a one-page, five to six paragraph reflection paper on your readings.
4) Find 3 web articles about the Dalai Lama. Copy and paste these into a descriptive paper and submit to your teacher.
5) Add Buddhism to your Compare/Contast diagram and insert information as needed.
Vassa: A time for study and meditation. This tradition comes from the fact that during the rainy season in Asia it is very hard to travel, so this is an excellent time for monks to spend indoors meditating.
Notice the robes, the bowls, and the bare feet and shaved heads.
Born in 1935, he currently lives in exile in India after China annexed his native country of Tibet.
