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Buddha: The Word
Compiled by Paul Carus
In this early 20th century document, Paul Carus compiles basic teachings of the Buddha,
from sermons and discourses attributed to the Buddha himself. (Carus makes
commentaries on these, clearly marked by parentheses.) In the teachings presented here,
Buddha did not claim to have supernatural authority. No mention is made of God or any
Supreme Being. For those who have been exposed to Westernized syntheses of
Buddhism, please note carefully. The stereotypical understanding is that Buddhism
teaches that each person has (or “is”) a "soul" or an "ego" that gets reincarnated until
liberation into Nirvana. Does the Buddha actually say this in this document? Read
carefully
Later variants of Buddhism, and the typical Westernized understandings of Buddhism,
do revert to the concept of a soul that briefly journeys after death until getting
reincarnated. If one takes seriously the words attributed to Buddha himself on these
matters in this document, however, it is not clear that this theory of the afterlife comes
from him. Read carefully and draw your own conclusion.
Be able to discuss briefly the following terms.
Khandas
Samsara
Arahat
Nirvana
Be able to answer the following questions.
What does “Buddha” mean? The Four Noble Truths all deal with ______.
It is often claimed that Buddhism is a religion with no God or spirits. What information
in the opening paragraphs of this document, attributed to Buddha, show that that is
partially incorrect?
What does Buddha say about things – “beings” or “entities” – like chariots or individual
Egos? Houses and human bodies belong to the element of ___________.
According to Buddha, persons seeking enlightenment must first come to understand the
following truths about their bodies and their feelings. “This does not _____; this I am
not; this is not my ____.”
All objects or mental of psychic entities are transient. And because they are transient
they are subject to _______. An unenlightened human being is viewed by Buddha as
“a heap of many sores, piled up, diseased, and full of greediness, unstable, and
impermanent!” Buddha compares such a person to a ________.
The Three Warnings of Buddha concern _____, ______, and _____.
humans which gives rise to rebirth and causes suffering.
It is _______ by
The Craving for _________ refers to the notion of an Ego which totally disappears at
death, and which does not stand in any causal relation with the time before birth or after
death. People take the “evil way” in three different ways: _____, _____, _____.
For you to enjoy the Extinction of Suffering, and to free yourself from rebirth into
suffering, you must forsake, give up, liberate yourself, and detach yourself from
_______.
Right understanding, right speech, right action, and other behaviors are all part of
_________
For Buddha, sexual intercourse must be _________.
lawful
Some persons, before undertaking the path to enlightenment, first want intellectually
convincing answers to the questions about whether the world is eternal or temporal, finite
or infinite; whether the life principle is identical with the body, or something different
from the body; whether an enlightened person continues to exist after death. Buddha
labels such questions as ______.
If you have not yet reached Englightenment but have at least broken the fetters of selfillusion, skepticism, and attachment to mere religious rule and ritual, you are said to have
_____________.
What are the four English phrases to label persons in each of the four stages on the way
to Enlightment? (Enlightenment is the fourth stage).
Buddhism recommends the control of one’s thoughts, called Right Mindedness.
Mundane (worldly) right-mindedness consists of making our thoughts free from _____,
______, and _____.
Buddhism recommends the control of one’s words, called “Right Speech”. It means
abstaining from ______, _______, _______, and ______.
Buddhism recommends the control of one’s behavior, called “Right Action”. The three
central elements of right action are abstaining from _____, ______, and _______.
To overcome an evil thought that invades your mind, what does Buddha recommends that
you do with your mouth?
In contemplating one’s body during meditation, Buddha recommends that disciples focus
attention first on their ______. What will the disciple come to realize about the
individual person doing the meditation?
What is the Buddhist position on the relation between body and the person or self
associated with the body?
What does Buddhism mandate for a disciple in moments of ordinary activity, of “looking
forward and backward; bending and stretching; eating,drinking, chewing, and tasting;”
etc. What is a Buddhist supposed to do on encountering a corpse.
Ten blessings will be bestowed on a disciple who has become proficient in the habit of
contemplating ________.
Whereas consciousness is ______, individual thoughts are ___________.
Lust, anger, drowsiness, anxiety, and doubts are called the Five ______.
enthusiasm, tranquility, and concentration are among the _______.
Inner energy,
Disciples have to train themselves to inhale and exhale while concentrating on four
fundamental objects of Attentiveness. What are these four topics, or Fundamentals of
Attentiveness -- which the disciple should contemplate while breathing in and out?
In discussing the second, third, fourth,and fifth steps of morality, the text discusses the
path of the Buddhist who has decided to pursue Nirvana. Are there any regulations with
regard to clothing and hairstyle and owning or renting dwelling places?
What are the gender implications of the text? According to the words of the text, is the
path to enlightment open to both men and women?
What is the principle occupation recommended by the text for the Buddhist seeking for
Enlightment?
For the disciple, sexual intercourse is referred to as _________.
What is the position of the Buddhist text regarding what we would call simple daily
“gossip” about others? What word is used to describe what should be the goal of the
Buddhist with regard to relations among humans.
In discussing the seventh step, the text talks about the preferred dwelling of the disciple.
Where should he live?
How did Buddha believe that his teachings would be perpetuated after his death?