Buddhist Practices Flashcards
Places of worship 4x
-home
-temple
-vihara(monastery)
-gompa(monks live n study)
Purpose of Shrines and worship, plus how do Buddhists worship
People make offerings to the shrine statue, to remind Buddhists of dhamma / teachings
Water, candles, incense, flowers, food and money
AIDS to worship
-malas (prayer beads)
-prayer wheel- make sounds to meditate to
-dril-bu bell
-dorje: perfections to strive for and rid of vices
Devotional practices
-short chanting, focus on sound and meditate
-using malas to count chants 108x
-recite mantras
- perform puja
Aims of meditation
Focus one’s mind
Gain insight into religious truths
Gain merit (8 fold path)
Achieve enlightenment
Improve health
Importance of meditation
People follow their role model- Buddha who meditated
Part of 8fold path to enlightenment
Stills the mind and achieve deep insight
Central practice as all kinds of Buddhism recommends it
4 Forms of meditation
Samatha- train concentration; on object or breathing
Vipassana- insight meditation, develop deeper understanding
Zazen- ask questions and deep insight thinking, meditation to sounds too
Visualisations- image to understand deeper
3 kinds of Mourning rituals
Theravada
Tibetan Sky burial
Japanese
Theravada mourning rituals
Recite suttas
Offerings that symbolise impermanence
Gain merit for rebirth by cremating body, empty jug of water, recite kind words, alms giving
Tibetan sky burial
Destroy body and offer feeding to animals, reincarnate and give back to nature ; samsara
Dana(giving)- merit making
Japanese pure land mourning rituals
Dress in white and cover home shrine in white- block impure spirits entering the body
White=mourning colour
Items: coins + sandals to cross river in afterlife
Dana (giving materials)
Buddhist festivals
- Wesak- gain merit day
- Parinibbana- celebrate Buddha’s enlightenment
4 Ethical teachings of Buddhism
Kamma and rebirth
Karuna (compassion,mercy), desire to reduce others’ sufferings
Metta (loving kindness)- selflessness
5 moral precepts
Abstain from:
- intoxicants that cloud one’s mind
- false speech
- sexual misconduct
- taking what’s not given
- harming life
The 6 perfections
Giving, generosity
Morality, sila
Patience, ksanti
Energy, virya
Meditation, dhyana
Wisdom, prajna
GPEMMW
