Buddhism beliefs and teachings Flashcards
What was the Buddhas name?
Siddhartha Gotama.
What are three unusual things about the Buddhas birth?
Lotus flowers bloomed where he stepped.
He could walk and talk straight away.
After his birth a prophecy was made saying he would either be a great king or holy man.
What are the name of the buddhas mother and farther.
mother- Queen Maya
father- King Suddhodana
Why did Siddhartha’s father try to shelter him from suffering.
Because he feared the prophecy and wanted him to be the king.
Why are the four sights important to Buddhists today?
Show that they are all a part of life & wealth does not eliminate them.
What were the four sights that Siddhartha saw when he left the palace.
holy man, sickness, death and old age.
4 pieces of info about Buddhas ascetic life.
- gave up all possessions & symbols of old life.
- rejected anything that would give him pleasure to practise self discipline.
- Fasted for long periods of time and began meditation.
- slept in a bed of thorns.
Why did the Buddha turn away from his ascetic life?
- got too weak to meditate.
- his practises didn’t bring him any closer to the cause of suffering.
What did the Buddha do after his ascetic life?
Began meditating under a peepul tree.
4 ways Mara tried to prevent the Buddha from achieving enlightenment.
- sent his daughters to seduce him.
- sent armies to attack him.
- offered him power of his own kingdom.
- Mara himself tried to attack him.
3 watches of the night.
- Gained all knowledge of previous lives.
- understood cycle of samsara.
- understood why suffering happens and how to overcome it.
What are the three marks of existence and what do they mean?
anicca- impermanence
anatta- no self or soul
dukkha- suffering.
3 things in the world affected by impermanence?
- minds
- living things
- non living things
What was Nagasena’s analogy of no self or soul?
A chariot- collection of parts.
5 aggregates.
- body
- perceptions
- consciousness
- feelings
- thoughts
What do Buddhists believe is passed on through to the next life?
Kamma (karma)
Seven states of suffering.
- birth
- old age
-sickness - death
- sorrow
- contact with unpleasant things
- not getting what you want.
3 types of Dukkha.
- suffering
- change
- attachment
1st NT (dukkha)
Suffering cannot be avoided.
2nd NT (Samudaya)
Suffering caused by greed, hatred, ignorance
3rd NT (Nirodha)
Suffering will stop troubling you once you accept it as a part of life and lose selfish desires.
4th NT (Magga)
Eightfold path sets out ways of living to help ease suffering.
EFP - panna (wisdom)
- understanding
- intention
EFP- samadhi (meditation)
- mindfullness
- concentration
- effort
EFP- sila (ethics)
Right..
- action
- speech
- livelihood
Arhat.
‘Perfected person’ who has overcome the main causes of suffering (three poisons) to achieve enlightenment.
Boddhisattva.
Someone who has become enlightenment but chooses to remain in the cycle of samsara to help others achieve enlightenment. This can be attained by practising the six perfections.
Sunyata
emptiness - for Mahayana Buddhists
emphasises all things are dependant and continuously changing.
Theravada Buddhism.
- ‘school of the elders’ it’s more traditional and orthodox
- goal to achieve enlightenment and reach Nibbana.
- Buddha seen as guide and teacher not God.
- teaches five aggregates.
Mahayana Buddhism.
- includes some later buddhist traditions such as pure land, Tibetan and Zen Buddhism.
- emphasises teaching of Sunyata.
- In some M traditions Buddha nature is important.
Dependant arising.
belief that everything is interconnected, nothing is permanent or unchanging.
Tanha.
Craving.
What is a Buddha?
Someone who has woke up to the truth of existence.
Nibbana.
A state of complete enlightenment, happiness and peace/ extinction of three poisons.
Teachings on Tanha.
- Tanha leads to three poisons.
- Craving rooted in ignorance.
Six perfections and who they are important to.
- Bodhisattvas.
- generosity
- wisdom
- morality
- energy
- meditation
- patience
Buddha nature
- everyone has the seed of a Buddha already inside them.
- it is hidden by desires/attachments and negative thoughts
- when someone comes to understand the Buddhas teachings they experience their inner buddha nature.
What are the three jewels?
- sangha (community of practitioners)
- dharma (teachings)
- Buddha
