Buddhists practices Flashcards
What does Puja mean?
To honour/venerate the Buddha
What is Puja? (the act of puja)
Offerings at the shrine room
- earth touching mudras
- meditation
- chanting dharma
- involves taking shoes off
Why is Puja important?
- Reminder of the Dharma: mantras, chant the 5 precepts, objects on the shrine are a reminder of the dharma
- Reminder of the Buddha and what he did: He made offerings at the shrine and meditated to become enlightened, his statues have mudras
- Brings the Sangha together: meditate together, monks help lay people with meditation, chant together, offerings at the shrine are given to monks in their alms bowls
- Helps Buddhists become enlightened: Chanting mantras and meditation, focuses, calms and trains the mind (essential for enlightenment), Vipassana meditation helps to see the world as it really is (essential for enlightenment), Offerings at the shrine give good karma (helps to become enlightened)
What are the objects at the Shrine + their meaning?
Bell- law of karma
Candle- enlightenment
Incense- spreading dharma around the world
Fruit- pratitya samutpada, everything depends on everything else
Flowers- impermanence, they die but the seeds grow again
Water- preciousness of life
Statue of the Buddha- reminder of his qualities
What are Skilful acts?
acts driven by metta or karuna for good karma to break out of samsara
What are features of a Theravada temple?
Stupa- represents 5 elements + house relics of the Buddha
Bodhi tree- reminder of enlightenment
Statue of the Buddha- reminder of his qualities (ie metta, karuna)
Meditation hall
Shrine room
Teachings room
Vihara- where monks live
What are features of a Mahayana temple?
Statue of Bodhisattvas- reminder of their qualities (avalokiteshvera= compassion)
Meditation hall
Shrine room
Teaching room
Vihara- where monks live
What are examples of Offerings?
- Dana to monks
- Shrine: offer flowers, candles, incense
- Money into temple money box
- Festivals + Funerals: Kathina, offer cloth for robes
- Food into the alms bowls of Monks
- Free service (cleaning, painting)
What are the 3 marks of existence?
Anicca, Anatta, Dukkha
Why are Buddhist practices important?
- Reminder of the 3 jewels/triratna
- Reminder of the Buddha/qualities
- Reminder of the Dharma (guidance towards enlightenment)
- Bring Sangha together
- Help end suffering-> enlightenment
- ## Help see the world as it really is-> enlightenment
Why should Buddhists listen to the Buddha and Dharma?
sources of authority- trust them-> leads to enlightenment
What is a strength and a weakness of the Sangha?
Strength: part of the triratna which the Buddha set up
Weakness: the Buddha was enlightened on his own
What is a strength of the Buddha/Dharma?
The Buddha said
“one who takes refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, sees with perfect wisdom the 4 noble truths”
What is a weakness to the Buddha/Dharma/3 Jewels etc?
The Buddha said
“find your own path to salvation”
Where is meditation carried out?
Alone or as a sangha in front of the Shrine
What is Samatha meditation?
- Calms the mind
- Focuses the mind
- focus on one thing (breathing, walking)
-Focus on Kasinas (breathing, in and out breaths) - Develops Brahma Viharas (upekkha, mudita, karuna, metta) (peace, joy, compassion, love)
- Before Vipassana meditation
What are the Brahma Viharas?
Metta- loving kindness
Karuna- compassion
Uppekah- peace
Mudita- joy
Calm mind
What is Vipassana meditation?
Insight mediation
- develops wisdom
- Helps Buddhists to see the world as it really is
- After Samatha meditation
- Allows to reflect on personal situation, apply 3 marks of existence/lakshanas ie in a situation of injustice
- “Wisdom is borne of meditation”
- develop brahma viharas
- Focus on the Dharma
- Insight into Buddha’s teachings (ie tanha)
- Apply to personal situation (focus on something you don’t like to develop non attachment)
What is Mettabhavana meditation?
Loving Kindness meditation
- Wish for self, those you love, don’t know, don’t like, all living beings
- May I be free of danger, may I be healthy, may I be happy, may I live with peace and loving kindness
- Develop Brahma Viharas of metta, achieve enlightenment like the Buddha
- taught Pothilla knowing the dharma wasn’t enough- needed to meditate, more important
What analogies did the Buddha use to show the importance of meditation?
- Buddha compares our minds to monkeys jumping from branch to branch
- Handkerchief with knots in