BUDDHISM

SACRED TEXTS

WORSHIP

FESTIVALS

HISTORY

BELIEFS

BUDDHISM

TYPES OF BUDDHISMTYPES OF BUDDHISMTHE BUDDHATHE BUDDHA

THERAVADA MAHAYANA VAJRAYANA ZEN

c. 100ce

c. 500ce

c. 500bce

c. 750ce

THERAVADA MAHAYANA

Emphasis on knowledge and action; role of full time monks

Each person alone is the universe; no help from others

Buddha is a great human being

Individuals to follow Buddha’s example

Ideal person = Arhat:Worthy one who strives alone towards Nirvana

More accessible to ordinary people, emphasis on compassion

People help each other and pray for each other to reach Nirvana

Buddha= a divine or super human being

Buddha is compassionate; helps all; wishes all to gain Nirvana

Ideal person=Bodhisattva= Buddha to be who postpones own reaching of Nirvana in order to reach others

Siddharta - Buddha

He was the most highly esteemed and respected leader who showed his followers the way so they too could reach enlightenment.

He was not a God.

• Buddha Statues

• What is emphasised in each statue?

In Thailand there are rows of these statues. What do they symbolise?

Who is the Dalai Lama? What are some contributions he has made?

Karate Kid

Daniel, bullied by amenacing gang, meetsMiyagi, a Buddhist and

aMartial arts master. What does Miyagi

teachDaniel?

What does Miyagi teach Daniel? He trains him in activities that demand that he be awake and attentive.

Karate is a mastery over the self- mind and body- and that fighting is always the last answer to a problem.

Daniel develops not only physical skills but also the faith and self confidence to compete against tremendous odds, both internal and external, as he encounters the fight of his life.

How was Buddhism an influence on Miyagi?

s

Siddhartha Gautama Born 560 BCE

Siddhartha Gautama Born 560 BCE at the foot of the Himalayas.

Indian prince whose father had high hopes for him, isolating him from the outside world

Siddhartha married a princess and they had a son.

He had a privileged life where he wanted nothing. He was completely protected from the harsh realities of life.

Yet he was dissatisfied with his office and ventured into the outside world.

What did he see?

•The Four Signs

• Old Age• Sickness • Death• Holy man

Siddhartha’s Four SightsAt 29, Siddhattha journeyed outside his palace

and saw four sights:SIGHT 1: An old man.An old man. Siddhattha realised that old

age destroys beauty, youth and strengthSIGHT 2: A leper.A leper. Siddhattha realised that

disease can occur and its consequencesSIGHT 3: A dead man.A dead man. Siddhattha realised that

everyone diesSiddhattha came to recognise that suffering was

inevitable in life. He took one more trip outside the palace and saw:

SIGHT 4: A holy man.A holy man. This man seemed happy even though he had nothing.

Siddhartha left the palace in which he was surrounded by illusions to try to find the way to overcome the unsatisfactory nature of existence.

After his experiences hetried to separate himself from his old lifestyle.He slipped out of the

Palace,shaved his head and

traded clothes with a beggar.

He left his family and thepalace, to seek truth, never to return.

Ascetical and disciplinary

• Siddhartha decided to find life’s answers through his own thinking. He entered a village and sat down under a Bodhi tree.

• He decided to meditate.

• The next day he believed he had a deep understanding of the meaning of life.

Tree of EnlightenmentBodhi Tree

• In the first watch of the night he saw all of his previous lives pass before him.

Tree of EnlightenmentBodhi Tree

• During the second watch he saw the cycle of birth, death and rebirth of living things and understood it.

Tree of EnlightenmentBodhi tree

• In the third watch he contemplated and realised the four noble truths which form the main foundation of Buddhism

The Middle Way

• – the extremes of self-indulgence and self-torture should both be avoided. He experienced both extremes when he was young and saw that neither helped.

The Lotus Flower

• The Lotus flower has been a central symbol since Buddhism began. The lotus refers to humans by comparison- born in stagnant ponds, it emerges or blossoms in the air or on the surface. It is the symbol of enlightenment.

• Buddha• The

Enlightened One.

• What are the symbols here?

• Birth -Old Age -Illness -Death - Nirvana

• What do you believe about life after death?• How does one escape the cycle?

• The Buddha delivers his first sermon.

The

Four

Noble Truths

The word SUFFERING is used in the slides ahead.

Perhaps suffering would be translated as

UNSATISFACTORINESSA word that suggest that our deepest longings

and our satisfaction in this life is always limited and incomplete.

The Four Noble Truths

The first truth is that suffering,to a greater or lesser degree, is part of all existence.

The Four Noble Truths

The Second truth is that suffering is caused by selfish craving for things in the world around us, and that nothing in the world lasts nor can be depended upon to bring true happiness.

The Four Noble Truths

The third truth is that the cessation of suffering, the attainment of Nirvana, can be achieved.

The Four Noble Truths

The fourth truth is that the cessation of suffering can be achieved by living and practising according to the Noble Eightfold Path.

Structure…. LIFE IS FULL DESIRE CAUSES SUFFERING THE PATH

TO OF SUFFERING SUFFERING CAN BE ENDED

LIBERATION---------------------- ------------------------- ---------------------- --------------------

Right knowledge, Right intention,

Right speech, Right action, Right living, Right effort,

Right mindedness, Right concentration

The Noble Eightfold Path

What did the Buddha teach about how to live?

1.RightViewpoi

nt

Understanding the four noble truths.

2. Right Thought

An attitude of good will and a wholesome way of thinking

3. Right speech

Good and truthful speech

These three lead to the next:

4. Right Action

Moral behaviour which includes avoiding the killing of living beings, stealing and sexual misconduct.

5. Right Living

Earning a living without causing harm to other living creatures

6. Right Effort

Working to develop goodness in thought, word and deed.

7. Right Mindfulne

ss

A bright and alert mind aware of the choices that arise and which lead away from selfishness ad towards good

8. Right Concentrati

on

Calmness, focus of the mind and composure.

The Eightfold Path

Breaking thevicious circle ofdoubt, greed, worry, hatred and lazinessby the

Eightfold path

What does the stylised

head of the Buddha suggest to

you?• The stylised head

of the Buddha could suggest :

• a state of relaxation,

• freedom,• composure, • detachment and • alert openness.

Reincarnation • Buddha taught that human

being must endure a long cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

• People must spend several lives on earth until they accumulate enough positive karma.

• Only then can they halt their long chain of rebirths and achieve a perfect state on perfect peace called NIRVANA

SACRED

TEXTS SACRED STORIES

SACRED TEXTS

SACRED STORIES

Jews have their Scriptures, a record of the interpretation of their family stories which began as an oral tradition and then were written down.

Christians have the Bible -The Jewish Scriptures, some additional works,The Gospels and the Letters.

Muslims have the Koran- a mix of Jewish stories, words of Jesus, and the revelation to Muhammed.

What is the sacred text for the Buddhist?

ReligiousText Pali

Canon

The sayings of the Buddha were

passed on orally

The saying were then put into written form:

a) Rules for the community ofmonks and nuns b) Sermons

c) The most profound and important teachings.The canons

are preserved on Palm leaves

Texts: The Pali Canon

• Binding copies of the Pali

• A monk explains the Pali canon to a young initiate into the monastery.

The death of the Buddha.His entry into Nirvana, where the cycle of death and rebirth is broken.

Siddharta, the Buddha, the enlightened one, has broken the cycle.

Death of the Buddha

The Buddha died lying on his side between two trees

so statues of him often portray him lying down.

•The Buddha always made clear that he was NOT a God to be worshipped. He only claimed of himself that he was ‘awake’.

• Why are there so many statues?• Each person is called to enlightenment.

MEDITATION

Meditation is the way the individual frees him or herself from distractions and from the limitations imposed by the self.

•Through meditation, we can use emotions such as anger, greed and hatred in order to first recognise and then overcome them.

• The cupped hands suggest an openness and a readiness and willingness

• to let go, • to enter into

a state of deep awareness and attentiveness

Entrance to a Buddhist monastery:Stone gate surmounted by carved

wheel with eight spokes

• The Eight spokes symbolise the eightfold path.

• The central hub represents Nirvana.

BUDDHIST

MONASTERIES and TEMPLES

The venerable Nando, a Buddhist Monk will visit us next week.

Visit a Monastery and Temple. There is one at Coburg and another at East Malvern

• In Christian cathedrals the spires point to the heavens, inviting us to raise our minds and hearts above the rush of the day.

• What do the shapes on Buddhist temples represent?

• What might the eyes on the top suggest?

Inside a Inside a Tibetan Tibetan

monasterymonasterycool, semi-darkness.

usually lit only by a few narrow windows and

candles.

to quiet the mind and to draw

attention towards the great statue of the Buddha.

statues of the Buddha are sumptuous, colourful and complex.

The altarThe altar• This statue of the Buddha is

often about 15ft tall – this is to symbolise the greatness of his virtues. It is a focus of meditation in the monastery.

• The statue is a riot of colour – all used to create the impression of a living being.

• Offerings are made every day of fruit, flowers and water – NOT to appease a deity but to give thanks to a great teacher.

• A Buddhist monk leads the people in meditation• What are the symbols and objects that surround him?• Eg Candles, shells, food,flowers, incense, water

• What do the objects symbolise?• This is a start for your research.

• CANDLES - symbolise understanding

• SHELLS - symbolise sound• FOOD- symbolise taste• FLOWERS- symbolise sight • INCENSE- symbolise smell• WATER - symbolise touch, offering,

healing, purification, satisfaction of thirst and desires

Buddhist Monks

DALAI LAMAA world renowned leader

Dalai Lama

THE DALAI LAMAMaster of Wisdom,

The fourteenth reincarnation of the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion

• Born as Tenzin Gyatso and recognised as the 14th Dalai Lama at 2.5 years old in Eastern Tibet. He was taken in Oct. 1938 to Lhasa and enthroned in 1940.

• The Dalai Lama heads the Gelupga Buddhist group.

• Exiled from Tibet in 1958 when China brutally suppressed a Tibetan anti-Chinese revolt

THE POTALA –The winter palace

• This is the traditional winter palace of the Dalai Lama where he used to live in Tibet prior to the Chinese takeover.

• It was formally the seat of Tibetan government in Lhasa.

Karma• Buddha believed that all of

a person’s activities- thoughts, words and needs. They are like seeds which will grow in this or some future life.

• If a person does evil, it builds up negative karma;

• If a person does good then it builds up positive karma.

KarmaKarmaand Deathand Death

•This monk, meditating before the bones of someone who has died, reminds himself of his own mortality.

Meditation is the way the individual frees him or herself from distractions and from the limitations imposed by the self.

•Through meditation, we can use emotions such as anger, greed and hatred in order to first recognise and then overcome them.

•The ultimate aim of meditation is the achievement of Nirvana, when all desire has been eliminated.

Westerners are attracted toBuddhism.

We are a society that is consumer focused. Wemeasure success andhappiness by what we have and possess.

To have things is to have happiness.

Some people reject thismeasure for happiness.

Inside a Tibetan Inside a Tibetan monasterymonastery

• On entering a monastery one is enclosed in cool, semi-darkness. The interior is usually lit only by a few narrow windows and candles.

• The whole building is designed to quiet the mind and to draw attention towards the great statue of the Buddha.

• There is a contrast between the tremendous simplicity of the lives of the monks and the statues of the Buddha are sumptuous, colourful and complex.

The KHORTEN or

Prayer Wheel• This is a symbol of the wheel

of the law. It is a hollow cylinder, engraved with prayers, with a rod running through it. Enclosed within it are mantras or sacred texts and the cylinder is rotated in the same direction as the sun- each turn is equivalent to a reading of the prayers within it.

• The portable prayer wheel has a ball at the end of a small chain and this half way up the metal body – this rotates with the wheel.

Inside a Inside a Tibetan Tibetan

monasterymonastery• On entering a monastery one is enclosed in cool, semi-darkness. The interior is usually lit only by a few narrow windows and candles.

• The whole building is designed to quiet the mind and to draw attention towards the great statue of the Buddha.

• There is a contrast between the tremendous simplicity of the lives of the monks and the statues of the Buddha are sumptuous, colourful and complex.

Westerners are attracted toBuddhism.

We are a society that is consumer focused. Wemeasure success andhappiness by what we have and possess.

To have things is to have happiness.

Some people reject thismeasure for happiness.

THE MIDDLE WAY• The starting point in the Buddha’s first

sermon and possibly the most important point in Buddhist ethics is the pursuit of the Middle way

• – the extremes of self-indulgence and self-torture should both be avoided. He experienced both extremes when he was young and saw that neither helped.

• There is a very close connection with Christian thought – one should avoid the extremes: thus courage is the middle way between cowardice and foolhardiness.

Monk meditating

• Note the position of the fingers. This is a standard position and is intended to help focus when sitting with a straight back and breathing correctly. If the thumbs rise, it is an indication of too much tension,whilst if they fall it signals a lack of concentration.

• The aim of the Buddhist life is to become free of the cycle of birth and death. This can only be done by achieving enlightenment through meditation.