Metta Sutta Flashcards
What does Dhamma mean?
The Pali term for the truth of how things are, and practices that lead to knowledge and understanding of that truth
What is the Sanskrit term for Dhamma?
Dharma
What does Karma the word mean?
Sanskrit word for ‘action’.
What is the philosophy of Karma?
whatever is done in this life is influenced by the circumstances of previous lives, and that actions in this life will in turn influence lives to come
what does mantra mean?
any formula of words or syllables whose sound is said to have great potency. The words or syllables spoken by the practitioner are understood on various levels, from their literal meaning to elaborate symbolic interpretations
What two forms of meditation are there in Budhism?
- meditation to calm the mind
2. meditation to develop understanding of dhamma
In what areas can meditation be used?
religious and therapeutic purposes
What does nibbana mean?
The Pali term used in Buddhism to refer to the highest possible happiness. it means literally ‘blowing out’
What is the word in Sanskrit for nibbana
nirvana
What is Pali?
an ancient language
where was Pali developed?
in the Indian subcontinent
in what language are the early recorded Buddhist texts?
Pali
What is Sanskrit?
an ancient Indian language used primarily for religious texts
what does the word Sutta mean?
Pali term for ‘thread’. It is used to mean a text from the Buddhist tradition that is said to have been composed by the Buddha
What does Tipitaka mean
literally means the ‘three baskets’, this term denotes the collection of Buddhist texts
Where did the term ‘canon’ originate from?
What does it mean?
Greek
signified a rule or standard
later - describe a body of religious texts that were accepted as authentic within a tradition over a long period of time
what do religious text provide by ways of their canon?
- range of content
- explanation of history
- stories of activities / saying of founders and other important individuals
- ethical injunctions
what do religious texts deal with?
mundane everyday
big questions - meaning of life and death
In what way are Christian, Muslim and Jewish texts authoritative?
revealed by God
not constructed entirely by human minds
What disagreements do RC and Protestants have in relation to the Bible?
RC include Books of Tobit and Judith and the first and second Books of the Maccabees
What does Judaism have in addition to its Bible?
vast collection of ethical and legal guidance for living
provide interpretation or explanation for a new time and place or in new circumstances
How do ancient texts address contemporary issues?
go back to the basic principles of the text - underlying lessons.
e.g. use of nuclear arms
not conform to ‘thou shalt not kill’
- sometimes action is better than inaction
In what way are religious traditions not discrete entities?
there are divisions that may be deep-rooted and significant - internal conflict
e.g. abortion laws - not all Christians believe in this.
Give an example of different views from another module studied
Iconoclasm - destruction of religious images during the reformation
In what way is the Christian Bible seen as authoritative?
- People identify with the religious traditions the text represents
- The Ideas and Stories have influenced western culture
in what ways has the Christian Bible influenced western culture?
Laws - morality and ethically
in literature - moral compass/code
underpins western cultural identity
Name a Buddhist canonical text
Metta Sutta
What is the Buddhist canonical text based on?
sermons of the Buddha
what does the word Buddha mean?
the awakened one
where did the Buddha originate from?
debated, but generally accepted northern India in 5th and 4th centuries BC
What did the Buddha wake up from?
ignorance and delusion
awakening = wisdom + knowledge
What does enlightenment mean?
‘the way things really are’
After his death, which countries did the Buddha’s teachings go to?
over the course of centuries to: East Asia - -China -Japan -Korea Central Asia -Afghanistan -Uzbekistan
now also in western countries
North America
Europe
What is the difference between the Christian Bible and the Buddhist Canon (apart from the obvious!)
Christian Bible = 1 book
Buddhist Canon = vast, thousands of texts, some short and others very long (about a thousand pages long)
More disagreement about which texts are canonical in Buddhism than Christianity
How many canons are there in Buddhism today?
3 - different geographical areas:
southern tradition of Sri Lanka and SE Asia
eastern tradition of China Japan and Korea
northern tradition of Tibet
lot of common material but some texts are highly influential in some areas and are rejected in others.
What is the most important text for many east Asian Buddhists?
Lotus Sutra
not recognised by southern Buddhists of Sri Lanka, Thailand and Burma
Which text is recognised by all Buddhist scholars across Asia?
Metta Sutta
but, particularly significant in south and southeast Asia - where it is not just a canonical text but is in regular use.
they are read and studied but also put to work in other ways
in what language is the Metta Sutta written in?
Pali - ancient language developed in the Indian Subcontinent
What does the word Sutta mean?
thread
teaching of Buddha extends threadlike, connecting the Buddha to those who hear it.
How is the word Metta translated?
Loving kindness
aka ‘goodwill’, or ‘universal love’
what does the academic study of religion focus on?
understanding the reactions of others
who provided the Metta Sutta translation in book 2 which is translated from Pali to English
Venerable Dr Hammalawa Saddhatissa (1914 - 1990)
Where did the Buddha mainly teach from?
northwest India
what was the culture like where the Buddha taught from?
texts were transmitted orally from generation to generation
Who had access to the texts?
access was controlled by elite families, passing on to their sons
What were the concerns about where the teachings came from?
oral method may seem unreliable to modern western societies, but scholars argued that the system allowed for a high degree of accuracy in transmission
How did the Buddha change the tradition of texts?
not as tightly controlled as earlier Indian religious texts and not controlled within families but maintained oral
Who had the task of remembering and preserving the oral teachings?
monks - spend much of their time in study including learning texts by heart
What does Buddhist tradition say about when the Buddha died
all the monks gathered together to recite the teachings they remembered
What was the first gathering of monks called?
the First Council
how many monks were at the first gathering?
500
How does tradition say which texts were kept?
those that all 500 monks agreed on
although modern scholarship calls this into question
What criticism is given about the First Council
some monks did not agree that the communal recitation was useful
unlikely all monks could have got to the meeting on time - bearing in mind 4th and 5th century
Which other sutta is mentioned in book 2?
Mahaparinibbana Sutta
where is this second sutta from, or represent?
conversation between Buddha and closest disciple Ananda when Buddha was close to death
What does dhamma mean in Buddhism?
the truth of how things are
What did the Buddha say would happen after his death?
after his death when instruction has ceased, explanation and authority will reside in the teachings that he has given
Why did the Buddha not appoint a successor?
told his disciples that he was leaving behind what he had taught them as the dhamma and the discipline
How can it be decided that a text is authentic?
all teachings were required to be given by the Buddha himself or by one of his senior disciples
how did the texts have authority?
everything they contained, regardless of their author appeared to be the thought and the voice of one mind.
Small disagreements about the authentic canon of texts arose quite soon after the Buddha’s death - what happened as a result?
formation of different schools who developed their own canons
what form did the disagreements take?
small points of monastic discipline rather than significant doctrinal matters
What is significant about the Pali canon
only one of the early collections to survive
Which tradition preserves the Pali canon?
Theravada Buddhism
meaning - the Buddhism of the Elders
Where does the Pali canon obtain it’s authority from?
Theravada tradition that it is of a very early date
how was the large amount of text put into writing?
monks were each assigned a manageable portion to memorise
Why was it so important to pass the texts on to subsequent generations?
to keep it alive
to follow the teachings
ensure accuracy
authoritative source of truth as taught by the Buddha himself
Where were the first texts written down?
Sri Lanka - mid or towards end of the first century
on what were the texts written?
dried palm leaves
how were the texts catalogued?
collected together in baskets according to their content
What do Buddhist practitioners and scholar still refer to the Pali-language canon as?
‘the three baskets’
tipitaka
What is significant about the Metta Sutta
widely used and popular short text
