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T And P > Buddhist Beliefs > Flashcards

Buddhist Beliefs Flashcards

1
Q

When was Buddhism founded?

A

2500 years ago by Siddhartha Guatama

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2
Q

When and where was Siddhartha born?

A

Around 500 BCE in Lumbini, Southern Nepal.

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3
Q

What does Buddha mean?

A

Enlightened one or awakened one. It is a title given to a being who has attained great wisdom and understanding through their own efforts.

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4
Q

What is the story of the Buddha’s birth?

A

One night Queen Maya had a dream that a white elephant came down from heaven and entered her womb. The elephant told her that she would give birth to a Holy Child and that he would achieve perfect wisdom. He could walk and talk from birth and whenever he stepped foot on the ground a lotus flower sprung up. He said when he was born that this would be his final re-birth. Shortly after he was born there was a prophecy saying that he would either be a great King or a revered Holy Man.

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5
Q

What was Siddhartha’s upbringing like?

A

It was full of luxury as his father didn’t want him to see suffering and become a Holy Man and thought that if he became attached to his life of luxury he would never want to leave.

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6
Q

What were the four sights?

A

Old age, illness, death, holy man.

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7
Q

What effect did the sight of the Old Man have on Siddhartha?

A

He was shocked as he had never seen age before.

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8
Q

What effect did the sight of illness have on Siddhartha?

A

He began to understand that illness was a reality of life.

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9
Q

What effect did the sight of death have on Siddhartha?

A

He realised that no one could escape all three of these things and ultimately death would come.

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10
Q

What effect did the sight of the Holy Man have on Siddhartha?

A

The sight of this peaceful man wearing rags inspired him to be like him and become a wandering truth seeker.

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11
Q

What are the Jataka tales?

A

Popular stories about the life of the Buddha.

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12
Q

What is an ascetic?

A

A person who gives up worldly pleasures.

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13
Q

What made Siddhartha give up asceticism?

A

He was bathing in a river and when he got out a girl offered him some rice and milk which he accepted because at this point he was too weak to even meditate. He understood that this lifestyle wasn’t bringing him closer to the truth of why people suffer and how to get rid of this suffering.

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14
Q

What did Siddhartha’s experiences with extreme pleasure and suffering teach him?

A

To follow the middle way.

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15
Q

What is enlightenment?

A

The gaining of true knowledge about God, self or the reality of nature, usually through meditation and self-discipline. In Buddhism, gaining freedom from the cycle of re-birth.

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16
Q

What is Mara?

A

A demon that represents spiritual obstacles, especially temptation.

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17
Q

What did Mara do to attempt to stop Siddhartha from achieving enlightenment?

A

Sent his daughters to seduce Siddhartha, sent his armies to attack Siddhartha, offered Siddhartha control of his Kingdom, and Mara himself tried to attack Siddhartha.

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18
Q

What were the three watches of the night?

A

The three realisations that the Buddha made in order to achieve enlightenment.

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19
Q

What are the three watches of the night?

A

First watch: Siddhartha gained knowledge of all his previous lives. Second watch: he came to understand the repeating cycle of life, death, and rebirth - he understood that beings were born based on their kamma as well as he understood the importance of anatta. Third watch: he understood why suffering happens and how to overcome it.

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20
Q

What is Dhamma?

A

The Buddha’s teachings.

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21
Q

What effect did the sick man have on Siddhartha?

A

The sick man had a profound effect on Siddhartha as it made him realise the inevitability of suffering and the impermanence of life, leading him on a spiritual journey to seek enlightenment.

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22
Q

What is Sanskrit?

A

The language used in later Indian texts.

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23
Q

What are the three different meanings of Sangha?

A
  1. All those who have become enlightened following the Buddha’s teachings.
  2. Monks and nuns.
  3. The community of all those who follow the Buddha’s teachings, whether ordained or lay.
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24
Q

What are the two different meanings of Dhamma?

A
  1. Buddha’s teachings.
  2. Refuge.
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25
Q

What is dependent arising?

A

The idea that all things arise in dependence upon conditions.

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26
Q

What is the name of dependent arising?

A

Paticcasamupada.

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27
Q

What is the Tibetan wheel of life?

A

An image that symbolises samsara, often found in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and temples.

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28
Q

What are nidanas?

A

12 factors that illustrate the process of birth, death, and rebirth.

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29
Q

What is samsara?

A

The repeating cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

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30
Q

What is kamma?

A

A person’s actions - the idea that skilful actions result in happiness and unskilful ones result in suffering.

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31
Q

What is nirvana?

A

A state of complete enlightenment, happiness, and peace.

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32
Q

Why is kamma important?

A

As good actions result in a more favourable rebirth.

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33
Q

What are the three marks of existence?

A

Dukkha, anicca, anatta.

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34
Q

What is dukkha?

A

The first noble truth; there is suffering.

Dukkha is like a thorn in your foot - it represents the suffering or dissatisfaction we experience in life, whether it’s physical pain, emotional distress, or the feeling that something is missing.

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35
Q

What is anicca?

A

Anicca is the Buddhist concept of impermanence, reminding us that everything in life is constantly changing, like a flowing river or a flickering flame.

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36
Q

What is anatta?

A

The idea that people do not have a permanent, fixed self or soul.

37
Q

What are the three types of dukkha?

A

Suffering, change, attachment.

38
Q

What is suffering?

A

Physical/emotional pain.

39
Q

What is change?

A

The sorrow that someone feels due to change or losing something for good.

40
Q

What is attachment?

A

When people crave things and try to hold attachment, they suffer.

41
Q

What are the three things that anicca affects?

A
  1. Living things.
  2. Non-living things.
  3. Minds.
42
Q

How are anicca and dukkha linked?

A

When things change when people expect them to stay the same, this results in suffering.

43
Q

What is the story of King Milanda?

A

A monk arrives at his court and when asked who he is, he says Nagasena and says it is merely his name not himself. He then uses the analogy of a chariot as a chariot only exists in relation to its parts, and the same applies for humans.

The story of King Milanda teaches us that our identity is not fixed, just like a chariot is not a standalone entity but a collection of parts working together.

44
Q

What are the five aggregates?

A
  1. Form - our bodies.
  2. Sensation - our feelings.
  3. Perception - our recognition of what things are.
  4. Mental formations - our thoughts.
  5. Consciousness - our awareness of things.
45
Q

What are the four noble truths?

A
  1. The truth of suffering (dukkha)
  2. The truth of the cause of suffering (samudaya)
  3. The truth of the end of suffering (nirodha)
  4. The truth of the path leading to the end of suffering (magga)

Another way to think of these:
- suffering exists
- suffering is caused by something
- suffering can end
- there is a way to bring about the end of suffering

46
Q

Which type of Buddhists are the four noble truths most important for?

A

Theravada, as they believe that understanding the four noble truths is the most important goal for achieving enlightenment.

47
Q

What are the four unavoidable types of physical suffering?

A
  1. Birth
  2. Old age
  3. Sickness
  4. Death
48
Q

What did the Buddha teach about happiness?

A

Happiness is real but impermanent, will not last and will eventually give way to unhappiness.

49
Q

What is tanha?

A

Craving (desiring or wanting something).

50
Q

What are the three main types of craving?

A
  1. Craving things that please the senses.
  2. Craving to become something that you are not.
  3. Craving not to be, or craving non-existence.

Example: Drinking a hot chocolate because you like the taste rather than because you are thirsty.

51
Q

What are the three animals at the centre of the Tibetan wheel of life?

A
  1. Pig
  2. Cockerel
  3. Snake
52
Q

What does the pig represent?

A

Ignorance.

53
Q

What does the cockerel represent?

A

Greed and desire.

54
Q

What does the snake represent?

A

Anger and hatred.

55
Q

What are these known as?

A

The three poisons, the main causes of suffering.

56
Q

What did the Buddha teach that craving was rooted in?

A

Ignorance about the world and the nature of reality.

57
Q

What did the Buddha teach about how to be satisfied with life?

A

To let go of craving, to have an inner satisfaction with life and appreciate what you already have got.

58
Q

What is the link between nirvana and the three poisons?

A

Once you obtain nirvana, you are free of the three poisons.

59
Q

What is the eightfold path?

A

Eight aspects that Buddhists practise and live by in order to achieve enlightenment.

60
Q

What is the threefold way?

A

The eightfold path grouped into the three sections of ethics, meditation, and wisdom.

61
Q

What are the components of the threefold way?

A
  1. Wisdom - panna
  2. Ethics - sila
  3. Meditation - samadhi
62
Q

What are the components of wisdom?

A
  1. Right understanding: understanding the Buddha’s teachings.
  2. Right intention: being determined to follow the Buddhist path.
63
Q

What are the components of ethics?

A
  1. Right speech: speaking truthfully.
  2. Right action: behaving in a peaceful and ethical way.
  3. Right livelihood: doing a living that doesn’t exploit or harm others.
64
Q

What are the components of meditation?

A
  1. Right effort: putting effort into meditation.
  2. Right mindfulness: becoming fully aware of yourself and the world around you.
  3. Right concentration: developing the mental concentration required for meditation.
65
Q

Why is the eightfold path often represented as a wheel with eight spokes?

A

Emphasises the fact that the different steps don’t need to be followed in a linear sequence.

66
Q

What came first, Theravada or Mahayana Buddhists?

A

Theravada

67
Q

What is the Buddha considered as in Theravada Buddhism?

A

The main focus of commitment and is one of the three refuges; he is treated as a guide, not a God.

68
Q

What is the goal of Theravada Buddhists?

A

Achieve enlightenment and reach nirvana.

69
Q

What do Theravada Buddhists do at funerals to transfer merit?

A

They gather around who has died and transfer their merit for them to have a more favourable rebirth; they give money to charity to improve kamma.

70
Q

What are the five aggregates?

A

The five aspects that make up a person’s identity and personality.

  1. Form: our bodies
  2. Sensation: our feelings
  3. Perception: our recognition of what things are
  4. Mental formations: our thoughts
  5. Consciousness: our awareness of things.
71
Q

How can a cake be an example of the five aggregates?

A
  1. Form: you enter the room and see a slice of cake
  2. Sensation: seeing it gives you a sense of anticipation
  3. Perception: you realise it is a slice of cake having seen other slices of cake in the past
  4. Mental formations: you form an opinion of the cake and decide whether you want to eat it or not
  5. Consciousness: all these things are connected by your general awareness of the world.
72
Q

What is the main difference in terms of belief about the Buddha between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhists?

A

Theravada Buddhists see the Buddha as a purely historical figure, whilst Mahayana Buddhists believe that the Buddha remains active and can influence the world and that it is possible to encounter him through visions and meditation.

73
Q

What is sunyata?

A

Emptiness; the concept that nothing has a separate independent self or soul.

74
Q

What is Buddha-nature?

A

The idea that everyone has the essence of a Buddha inside them.

75
Q

What is an example given in Buddhist scripture to explain Buddha nature?

A

Honey surrounded by many bees; the honey is sweet and tasty but until the bees are gone you cannot get the honey; the bees represent desires, attachments, and negative thoughts and the only way to get to the honey is by following the Buddha’s teachings.

76
Q

What is an Arhat in Theravada Buddhism?

A

Someone who has become enlightened.

77
Q

What is an Arhat in Mahayana Buddhism?

A

Someone who is far along the path of enlightenment but has not become enlightened yet.

78
Q

What is a Bodhisattva?

A

For Mahayana Buddhists, someone who has become enlightened but chooses to remain in the cycle of samsara to help others achieve enlightenment as well.

79
Q

What are the six perfections?

A
  1. Generosity
  2. Morality
  3. Patience
  4. Energy
  5. Meditation
  6. Wisdom.
80
Q

What are earthly Bodhisattvas?

A

Earthly Bodhisattvas are reborn into the world and support others to reach enlightenment.

81
Q

What are transcendent Bodhisattvas?

A

Transcendent ones remain in some region between earth and nibbana, and support those on the journey to enlightenment.

82
Q

What is Pure Land Buddhism?

A

A Mahayana form of Buddhism based on belief in Amitabha Buddha.

83
Q

Who is Amitabha Buddha?

A

The Buddha worshipped by Pure Land Buddhists.

84
Q

What is Sukhavati?

A

The paradise where Amitabha Buddha lives, and where Pure Land Buddhists aim to be reborn; in the Pure Land there is no suffering and nothing to stop Buddhists achieving enlightenment.

85
Q

What are the five religious practices Buddhists do to attempt to reach the Pure Land?

A
  1. Reciting scripture
  2. Meditating on Amitabha and his paradise
  3. Worshipping Amitabha
  4. Reciting Amitabha’s name
  5. Making praises and offerings to him.
86
Q

Which of these five is the most important?

A

Reciting Amitabha’s name - this is more important than actions, so in theory, a bad person could enter Sukhavati.

87
Q

How is Pure Land Buddhism different from other types?

A

Theravada teaches that you gain enlightenment from your own inner thoughts and actions, whilst in Pure Land you pray to be enlightened.

88
Q

What is Pali?

A

The language of the earliest Buddhist scriptures.

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