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Buddhism
Introduction
Buddhists do not believe in a God. This however does pose
the question as to whether Buddhism can be classed as a
religion.
Buddha means enlightened.
They believe everything is constantly changing. Nothing is
fixed or permanent.
They follow a path of meditation, morality and wisdom to
reach enlightenment.
There are many different subdivisions of Buddhism.
Important Figures
The Buddha
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1Qhja4OhdM
Siddhartha Gautama is the Buddha he was born in Nepal over 2500
years ago.
He was born into royalty and lived a life of luxury.
One day he left royal grounds and witnessed an old man, a sick
man and a corpse.
Troubled by what he had seen he turned to other religions such as
a Monk and an Indian asceticism.
Siddhartha Gautama wasn’t content with either path so decided to
pursue the ‘Middle Way’ - a life without luxury but also without
poverty.
Buddhists believe that seated beneath the Bodhi tree (the tree of
awakening), Siddhartha meditated and reflected on his experience
of life until he became enlightened.
By finding the path to enlightenment Siddhartha became known as
the Buddha or 'awakened one'.
The Bodhi tree
The Bodhi Tree stands
beside the Mahabodhi
temple in India. It is the
tree in which Buddhists
believe the Buddha came
to enlightenment under
whilst mediating, it is
described as complete
and perfect sanity.
Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama means ‘Ocean of Wisdom.’
The current Dalai Lama is 76 years old.
The Dalai Lama is the head monk in the school of Tibetan Buddhism.
1937
Current date
Choosing of the Dalai Lama
After the Dalai Lama has died it is tradition for the High Lamas to find a boy who
was born around the same time as the death. (this is because they believe in
reincarnation).
High Lamas have many ways in which they might find where the reincarnation
is…
Dream
• One of the High Lamas may dream about a location that will identify the
boy.
Smoke
• If the previous Dalai Lama was cremated, High Lamas will watch the
direction of the smoke and search in that direction.
Oracle Lake
• High Lamas go to this holy lake and watch for a sign from the lake itself
i.e. A vision, an indication of direction.
Once the High Lamas have located the home in which this reincarnation has
occurred they present a number of artefacts which they have brought with them
in preparation for this child.
If the boy chooses the items that belonged to the previous Dalai Lama it means
that the boy they have chosen is a reincarnation.
The Four Noble Truths
The Four Noble Truths contain the essence of the Buddha's
teachings. It was these four principles that the Buddha
came to understand during his meditation under the Bodhi
tree.
1.
2.
3.
4.
The truth of suffering
The truth of the origin of suffering (the cause of suffering)
The truth of the cessation of suffering (realising there is a cure to
suffering/making it stop)
The truth of the path to the cessation of suffering (the eightfold
path, the journey to stop suffering)
Buddhist Meditation
Meditation is a form of mental concentration that leads ultimately to
enlightenment and spiritual freedom.
Meditation has been known to have health benefits and is possible for anyone
to try. It involves the body and the mind.
There are two main types of Buddhist meditation:
• Insight
• Tranquillity
Different practices of meditation are:
• Concentrative
• Generative
• Receptive
• Reflective
There are also many holy days in Buddhism such as, Dharma Day, Losar,
Sangha Day, Kathina, Parinirvana and Buddha Day which is known as Wesak.
The 5 moral precepts
Buddhists refrain from…
1. Harming things
2. Taking what is not given
3. Sexual misconduct
4. Lying or gossip
5. Taking intoxicating substances (drugs, alcohol)
The Eight Fold Path
The noble eightfold path is
extremely important in
Buddhism since it impacts
on how people live.
Following the eightfold
path means that believers
try and live better lives in
accordance with the
morality enclosed in it.
Karma
Teachings about karma explain that our past actions affect us,
either positively or negatively, and that our present actions will
affect us in the future.
The concepts of karma have developed over time.
Buddhists follow teachings such as the eightfold path in the
hope that leading a life of good will reduce chances of
misfortune.
Karma also has an affect in reincarnation. Bad actions can be
continued/follow a person into their next life.
Karma also determines where a person will be born into their
next life. The wheel of life explains the 5 realms that Buddhists
believe in.
The Wheel of Life
The Wheel of Life
The realm of
humans – the most
fortunate state. They
have the best chance
of enlightenment.
They suffer the least
but are not in total
bliss like the Gods.
The realm of Gods – live in
a state of bliss in the realm
of heaven. They live for a
long time but they too will
die. At the bottom there
are angry Gods known as
the Titans who dislike the
other Gods.
The wheel is held by
a demon known as
Yama the Lord of
death. Yama
symbolises the
impermanence of
everything.
Buddhism teaches to
not be afraid of
death and that it is
not the end.
The Three Fires – the
3 main causes of
suffering. Greed,
ignorance and
hatred represented
in a pig, rooster and
snake.
Represents the Buddhists view of the universe. There are 5
sections on the wheel which a soul can be reborn into.
The realm of animalsanimals are considered to
lack the awareness to
become enlightened.
Buddhists do not believe it is
a good thing to be reborn as
an animal although they do
believe in treating every
living thing with kindness.
Hell- at the bottom
of the wheel.
People here get
tortured but only
The realm of hungry ghosts – stuck
until their bad
between mortal realms full of their
karma has been unfulfilled desires. Symbolised by their
worked off.
huge bellies and tiny mouths that
cannot be satisfied.
Here are some Buddhists meditating.
This is a picture of a tree that Buddhists have tied ribbons to as a symbol of
a hope, wish, dream or prayer as they believe that the wind will carry the
aspiration away to be heard in the hope that it may come true.