Buddhism key words Flashcards
Dukkha
Life is suffering or ‘disease’
Tanha
The cause of suffering is desire
“Attachment is the root of all suffering” -Buddha
Nirvana
- The cure for suffering is to overcome ‘desire’
- The realisation that all known objects and what appear to be individual experiences are illusions
Bodh Gaya
Buddha reached enlightenment here after meditating for the whole night under a tree
Sangha
- Is the universal community of Buddhist
- Initially consisted of the close companions of the Lord Buddha, Monks and Nuns
Dharma
The teachings of the Buddha, found in sacred text, is the lived experiences of Buddhism throughout the ages
Three poisons
- Greed, hatred and delusion
- Said to be the root of all other
- Produce desire and brings suffering into the world
Theravada
- Carries the og teachings of the Buddha based on the earliest written texts
- Strict interpretation of the Anatta (Non Self) doctrine and emphasises the need for the individual effort in working out one’s own salvation for one’s self
- Buddhists strive to become Arahants and gain freedom from the cycle of Samsara
Mahayana
- Buddhists may choose to stay in the cycle pf Samsara out of compassion for others
- Began to develop a few hundred years after the Buddha’s departure
- Key value is compassion for others
- Communal journey to reach enlightenment
Vajrayana
- Originated from the Mahayana tradition
- Directs its followers on an accelerated path to enlightenment in this present life
- 9 levels of belief and practice to get to enlightenment. No level can be skipped over
Arhant
Buddhist monk who have achieved enlightenment
Mahapajapati
Buddha’s aunt, first female nun
The three Jewels ‘refuge’
Lord Buddha, Dharma, Sangha (Cornerstones of Buddhism)
The 8-fold path
- Way to overcome desire
- Path of enlightenment
- Solution
- Buddhist should be strong in their faith, speak the truth, behave and work in life - affirming ways and be diligent in their efforts towards spiritual advancement
Sections of the 8-fold path
- Right understanding
- Right thought
- Right speech
- Right Action
- Right livelihood
- Right effort
- Right Mindfulness
- Right Concentration
Anicca
Everything in life is impermanent, everything undergoes change
Anatta
There is no permanent self. Humans have no soul that gives them an identity
Karma
- The consequence of any act good and bad that a person willingly and knowingly does
- Karma from your past can be left over
Samsara
- The cycle of rebirth
- Rebirth is determined on the amount of Karma
- The most desirable rebirth is that of becoming a human, for only as a human can the Buddhist achieve enlightenment
Five precepts
- To refrain from taking life
- To refrain from taking what is not freely given
- To refrain from misuse of the senses or sexual misconduct
- To refrain from wrong speech
- To refrain from intoxicants that cloud the mind
Four Noble truths
- Buddha’s observation of the world and how to solve it
1. The truth of suffering
2. The truth of the cause of suffering
3. The truth of the end of suffering
4. The truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering
The Vinaya
- 227 rules by which monks must live, and the further rules that apply to nuns
- Set out the proper way of life and behaviour, how the Sangha should be organised and the nature of monastic duties
- Training, stripping ego and eliminate old habits
Puja
Worship; the buddhist ritual that honours the Buddha, a god or goddess as a divine guest, usually in a temple, but it can also be a domestic ritual
The Dalai Lama
- Born 1935
- Is the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists
- Has travelled extensively in the west, introducing the main schools of Tibetan Buddhism to the west
- Acting as a political leader for Tibetans in exile
Wesak (Vesak)
- Buddha’s birthday festival
- Public holiday, based on lunar calendar
- Aspects of the day:
- Encouragement to do good deeds
- Lantern festival - lanterns symbolise enlightenment
- Listen to a sermon from the monks
- More people go to temples to clear minds and soul
Joyful effort
- To experience joy means that you enjoy what you’re doing
- Result is that one’s awareness moved out of the grip of the hindrances, there is a lift of heart and of bodily energy
Seven factors that are conducive to clarifying and strengthening the mind
- Mindfulness
- Investigation
- Energy
- Joy
- Tranquillity
- Meditative concentration
- Equanimity
The Buddhist Councils establish
- Collectively decided what the truth of the Dharma was and how they should live it out
- These community meetings ensured that no hierarchical system of gov developed for all members of the Sangha
