Buddhism-Beliefs and Teachings Flashcards
What is the common traditional story commonly told about Siddhartha’s birth?
Queen Maya dreamed a white elephant came down from heaven and told her she would give birth to a holy child
When he was born, he could immediately walk and talk.
He walked 7 steps and lotus flowers appeared underneath his feet and he declared that he would not be reborn
What sort of life did Siddhartha live while he lived in the palace?
He lived a life of luxury
The Anguttara Nikaya describes how he was ‘delicately nutured’
He was entertained by female dancers, there were lotus ponds of many colours, he was always protected by a sunshade and had three mansions for winter, summer and rainy seasons
What were the four sights and what was each of their effects on Siddhartha?
Siddhartha saw a frail old man and realised that everyone will age
Siddhartha saw someone lying in the road in agony and realised that illness is a reality of life
Siddhartha saw a dead man being carried through the streets in a funeral procession and realised that everyone will die (impermanence)
Siddhartha wanted answers to the problems of old age, illness and death. He saw a holy man walking through the streets with a peaceful expression. This inspired Siddhartha to believe that a spiritual answer to suffering was possible
‘Seeing the four sights was the most important event in the Buddha’s life’
Evaluate this statement using two arguments to support the statement and two arguments to support a different point of view (FOR)
For:
If he hadn’t seen the four sights, Siddhartha might have never left the palace and achieved enlightenment
The four sights made Siddhartha realise that suffering was a problem which inspired him to search for an answer
The fourth sights inspired Siddhartha to follow a spiritual life, so this could be seen as the start of Buddhism
‘Seeing the four sights was the most important event in the Buddha’s life’
Evaluate this statement using two arguments to support the statement and two arguments to support a different point of view (AGAINST)
Against:
Siddhartha’s enlightenment was more important as this is when he understood how to overcome suffering
He gained enough knowledge about the nature of reality to share it with his followers, so this could be seen as the start of Buddhism
Give ways in which Siddhartha practised asceticism
Living in dangerous and hostile forests which were too hot in the day and freezing at night
Sleeping on a bed of thorns
Eating so little that he looked like a skeleton
‘Siddhartha’s ascetism was a necessary part of his path to enlightenment’
Evaluate this statement using two arguments to support the statement and two arguments to support a different point of view (FOR)
Asceticism taught Siddhartha self-discipline (discipline helped him overcome negative emotions and focus on meditating)
He confronted his fears
Through ascetism, Siddhartha learnt a middle way
He learnt various meditation techniques
‘Siddhartha’s ascetism was a necessary part of his path to enlightenment’
Evaluate this statement using two arguments to support the statement and two arguments to support a different point of view (AGAINST)
He became too weak to meditate
Ascetism was a waste of time because it did not provide an answer to suffering
‘When the Great Being was practising severe austerities for six years it was to him like a time of intertwining the sky with knots’ - The Jataka
Give ways in which Mara tried to distract Siddhartha from englightenment
- Sending his beautiful daughters to seduce Siddhartha
- Sending his armies to throw arrows and other weapons at Siddhartha
- Offering Siddhartha control of his kingdom
- Questioning Siddhartha’s right to sit at the seat of enlightenment
How did Siddhartha respond to Mara’s distractions?
He was not swayed by the charms of Mara’s daughters
The arrows and other weapons turned to lotus flowers before reaching him
He touched and called on the earth to witness his right to sit at the seat of enlightenment. The earth shook to acknowledge his right
What were the three watches?
Siddhartha gained knowledge of all his previous lives
He understood the cycle of birth, death and rebirth and how people are reborn based on their kamma or actions
He understood that beings suffer because of desire and attachment and he understood that suffering can be overcome through the path to enlightenment
‘The Buddha’s enlightenment can be best described as a state of knowledge’
Develop one argument to support this statement and one argument against it. Then write a conclusion (FOR)
The Buddha has a series of three insights on the night of his enlightenment which gave him the knowledge as to why people suffer and how to overcome it.
Therefore, enlightenment is best thought of as having a deep understanding about suffering
‘The Buddha’s enlightenment can be best described as a state of knowledge’
Develop one argument to support this statement and one argument against it. Then write a conclusion (AGAINST)
Enlightenment also requires the development of other qualities, not just knowledge. For example, compassion is important for Mahayana Buddhists.
Other qualities such as peace, tranquillity, freedom are part of enlightenment. Enlightenment also involves living and acting ethically
Give ways in which Buddhists understand the term ‘Dhamma’
The path of training the Buddha recommended for anyone who wants to get closer to enlightenment
A universal ‘law’ that governs how reality works, i.e the ways things are
The ‘truth’ about the nature of existence, as understood by the Buddha when he became enlightened
What did the Buddha say about his teachings?
In his book Old Path White Clouds, the monk Thich Nhat Hanh tells how the Buddha thought of his teaching as something to be practised but not to be worshipped or held on to
What are the three refuges/jewels?
The Dhamma
The Buddha
The Sangha (Buddhist community)
What is a quote that shows the Dhamma is important to Buddhists?
To the Buddha for refuge I go
To the Dhamma for refuge I go
To the Sangha for refuge I go
A Buddhist might recite these three refuges, showing their importance
What is the importance of the Dhamma for Buddhists?
One of the three refuges
Reduces suffering and creates satisfaction and happiness
Gives meaning to life
Leads to awareness, wisdom and more compassion
Improves Buddhist’s relationships with others and the world
Evaluate this argument in response to the statement
‘The Dhamma is the most important of the three refuges’ (FOR)
Make sure to say what the refuges are!!
The Dhamma is the most important refuge because it is the raft to enlightenment, which is the ultimate goal of Buddhism
It does not depend on the Buddha but can be discovered by anyone at any time.
By practising the Dhamma, Buddhists gain meaning, purpose and happiness in their lives
Without it, Buddhists might never have been able to understand the way out of suffering
Evaluate this argument in response to the statement
‘The Dhamma is the most important of the three refuges’ (AGAINST)
It is a way of showing respect for the Buddha and his accomplishments/teachings
This is the most important because the Buddha’s life story shows that it is possible to become enlightened in this lifetime
The Buddha provides a personal example to follow or role model to emulate
Give two reasons why Buddha rejected his life of wealth
He saw the Four Sights
He wanted to find a solution to suffering
Explain two ways in which learning about the life of the Buddha influences Buddhists today
The Buddha is the blueprint for enlightenment and he proved that humans can be enlightened, giving Buddhists confidence in that they too can be enlightened
The Buddha’s experiences help people to make sense out of experiences today-old age and sickness are parts of life and wealth cannot always bring complete happiness
What is dependant arising?
Dependant arising is the idea that everything depends on supporting conditions: nothing is independent
Dependant arising also means that everything is in a constant process of change, because everything is dependent on conditions which are themselves continually changing
What are some examples of dependent arising?
A tree depends on soil, rain and sunshine to survive and these conditions change as the weather changes
Kamma is an example of dependant arising that shows someone’s happiness and suffering depend on conditions, especially their previous actions.
The type of world a person is born into in their next life depends on their kamma
What is the Tibetan Wheel of Life?
It is an image that illustrates dependent arising as applied to the birth, death and rebirth of beings (samsara)
The outer wheel shows 12 links or stages (nidanas) which illustrate how human beings are subject to birth, death and rebirth
When this cycle is broken, it allows the possibility of nibbana
Develop this argument to support the statement
‘Dependent arising is the essence of the Buddha’s teachings’
Dependant arising is very important as it is what the Buddha understood in his enlightenment and it underpins all other Buddhist teachings
For instance, the Four Noble truths apply the principle of dependent arising to the reality of human suffering. It shows that a person’s happiness of suffering depends on their actions
What is dukkha?
Suffering and the unsatisfactory nature of
life. It is dissatisfaction and suffering. It is an inevitable part of life
It is important to accept it so we can do something about it
What are the seven states of suffering?
Birth
Old age
Sickness
Death
Not being able to achieve your dreams
Separation from someone or something you love
Contacts with someone or something you dislike
What are the three types of suffering?
Ordinary-suffering (dukkha-dukkhata) is physical and mental pain (breaking a leg, missing someone)
Suffering because of change (viparinama-dukkha) is caused by losing something good (getting older, the weather turning bad)
Suffering because of attachment (samkhara-dukhha) is dissatisfaction with life as a result of craving and attachment (trying to hold onto things a person is attached to, feeling unhappy for no reason)
What is anicca?
All things are impermanent, everything changes.
All things that exist did not exist at one time and everything will eventually cease to exist.
During their existence, things are constantly changing.
This is because everything is interdependent, everything interacts with everything else and so affects change in other things.
Explain two ways in which belief in the Buddha’s enlightenment influences Buddhists today
One way is that it makes Buddhists believe they can also achieve enlightenment
So they will put more effort into Buddhists practice such as following the Eightfold path or five moral precepts
A second way is that it makes Buddhists more respectful of the Dhamma
For example, Buddhists respect the Dhamma as one of the three refuges, which are the three central values to a Buddhist’s life
What is the story is Kisa Gotami and how does it relate of anicca?
Kisa Gotami’s child died at a young age and she went out of her mind with sorrow
The Buddha told her she should visit all the houses in the village and ask for a mustard seed from any house in which no one had died
She could not find a house where no one had died
Eventually she realised that death is inescapable and buried her child
When Kisa Gotami realised death (a result of anicca) is something that everyone has to experience, her suffering became more bearable and this is an example of how an awareness of impermanence helps to reduce suffering
Explain two teachings about impermanence
Refer to scripture or sacred writings in your response
An awareness of impermanence reduces suffering as shown in the story of Kisa Gotami
Impermenence affects the world in three different ways:
Living things (A tree sprouts from a seed, grows and eventually dies)
Non-living things (An iron nail will rust if left out in the rain)
People’s minds (thoughts and feelings change throughout life)
