Download What are the beliefs of Buddhism?

Buddhism
The Middle Path
Essential Questions
 What
is Buddhism?
 How did Buddhism begin?
 What are the beliefs of Buddhism?
 How do Buddhists view the
world?
 Why is Buddhism considered a
major world religion?
Facts about Buddhism…
 One
of world’s most popular
religions w/over 500,000 followers
worldwide…
 Originated in India…
 Founded by Siddhartha Gautama…
 Practiced predominantly in Far
East…
% of Buddhists in World
Beliefs of Buddhism
 Polytheism
 Four
Noble Truths
 Eightfold Path
 Reincarnation
 Nirvana
 Non-Violence
Siddhartha Gautama
Founder
of Buddhism…
Born (c. 563 BCE) a prince
into a wealthy family who
tried to shelter him from
the evils of the world…
Buddha’s Four Sights
 Sick
Man
 Old Man
 Dead Man
 Monk
Search for Truth
 Legend
has it that
Siddhartha Gautama
meditated beside a
stream underneath a
Bodhi tree in search of
the truth…
 After 49 days of deep
meditation he became
enlightened…
Siddhartha becomes Buddha…
 Meditation
had helped
lead Siddhartha to
enlightenment…
 Buddha means
“enlightened one”…
 But how could one
become enlightened like
Siddhartha?
 The answer was in the
Four Noble Truths…
Four Noble Truths
Life
is filled with suffering…
Suffering is caused by desire…
Suffering will cease if desire is
eliminated…
Desire can be eliminated by
following the eight fold path…
Reincarnation
 Path
to enlightenment is not
a simple one…
 In fact, the journey may take
several “lifetimes”…
 Reincarnation = belief that a
person is “born again” into
another bodily form –
human or animal…
Smells like Enlightenment
 End
of one’s journey for the
Truth, perhaps after several
reincarnations, is the end of
all suffering, or Nirvana…
 It is in this state that one is
free from all desire & in
union w/the Truth…
Could this be Nirvana???
Buddha teaches…
Eightfold Path
 Right
Speech
 Right Meditation
 Right Conduct
 Right Resolve
 Right Livelihood
 Right Effort
 Right Mindfulness
 Right View
Eightfold Path
 Also
known as the Middle
Way…
 Path to enlightenment…
 Need not be completed in any
set order…
 Anyone can follow path &
achieve enlightenment…
Right Understanding
 Understanding
that life
involves suffering & change.
Realizing that following the
Noble Path is the way to
overcome suffering & to be
happy…
Right Emotion
Committing
yourself to
following the
Path…
Right Speech
Speaking
in a
positive & helpful
way & speaking
the Truth…
Right Action
Living
a life
according to
rules &
beliefs…
Right Livelihood
Doing
work that
does not harm
others & is
helpful…
Right Effort
Practicing
kind &
thoughtful
thinking…
Right Awareness
Being
fully aware of
yourself, other
people & the world
around you…
Right Meditation
Training
the mind
to be kind &
positive & to
develop wisdom…
Buddhist Wisdom
Hurt
not others w/that which
pains yourself.
Refrain from all evil, obtain
merit & purify the mind: this is
the Buddha’s teachings.
Spread of
Buddhism
Statutes of Buddha…miniatures
Statutes of Buddha…Colossal
The Lotus Position
Buddhist Temples
Faces of Buddha
Buddhist Symbols
Dalai lama
Tenzin
Gyatso,
the 14th
Dalai lama
Books & Films