Download Ch. 3-2-2

Ch. 3-2-2
The Caste System Shapes
India
Key Teachings of Buddha
The Caste System Shapes
India
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Aryans divided by Aryan and non-Aryan
During the Vedic Age, class division
were based on social and economic
roles
Castes were created:
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Social groups were born into and hard to
change
Complex Rules Uphold the
Caste System
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High-caste (Brahmin)
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Closer to moksha
purer
Could not marry outside your caste
Can not eat with members of another
caste
Rules protected against pollution from
lower caste
Complex Rules Continued
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“Untouchables”
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Grave diggers, street cleaners, those who
made leather = impure
Caste Affects the Social
Order
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Believed the caste was determined by
karma
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Come back better next time
Each caste had their own leaders
Leaders worked together
Lower-caste builder = builds for high
caste scholar
Key Teaching of the Buddha
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Siddhartha Gautama:
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His teachings spread
One of the world’s most influential religions
Buddhism
From Boy to Buddha
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563 B.C. born a prince
Mother dreamed a radiant white
elephant descended from heaven:
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Sign led a prophet saying he would become
a wondering holy man
Father kept him in the palace
surrounded by luxury
Age 16, married a beautiful woman
From Boy Continued
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At 29 went beyond the palace gardens
Met an old man, then a sick person, and
a dead boy
Became aware of human suffering
Left the palace for good
Wandered for years:
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Looking for “the realm of life where there is
neither suffering nor death”
From Boy Continued
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Wondering looking for Hindu scholars
and holy men
Fasted and meditated
Sat under a large tree, meditating
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Fended off evil spirits that tried to stop his
meditating
When he got up he had become Buddha or
“Enlightened One”
Following the Four Noble
Truths
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Spent the rest of his life teaching others
Four Noble Truths:
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1. All life is full of suffering, pain, and sorrow
2. The cause of suffering is nonvirtue, or negative
deeds and mindsets such as hatred and desire
3. The only cure for suffering is to overcome
nonvirtue
4. The way to overcome nonvirtue is to follow the
Eightfold Path
Following Continued
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“Eightfold Path”:
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Must live a moral life, avoiding evil words and
actions
Meditation helps reach enlightenment
Final goal of nirvana:
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“right views, right aspirations, right speech, right
conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right
mindfulness, and right contemplation”
Union with universe and release from the circle of
rebirth
Taught honesty, charity, and kindness
Buddhism Spreads Beyond
India
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Buddhism attracted many followers
Followers set up monasteries and
convents for meditation and study
Collecting the Buddha’s
Teachings
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Legend says at 80, Buddha ate spoiled
food
As he lay dying he told his disciples,
“decay is inherent in all things. Work out
your own salvation with diligence”
Collected his teachings in the Tripitaka
Buddhism Spreads and
Divides
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Two sects created
Theravada Buddhism:
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Followed original teachings
Spread to Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia
Mahayana Buddhism:
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Easier for ordinary people to follow
Buddha said don’t worship me, they
pictured him as a holy being
Spread to China, Tibet, Korea, and Japan
Buddhism Decline in India
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Firm roots in Asia
Declined in India
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Hinduism absorbed some Buddhist ideas
Buddha became another Hindu god
A few Buddhist centers survived until 1100s
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Fell to the Muslim armies in India