Transcript BUDDHISM - St Mary's College RE

SACRED
TEXTS
FESTIVAL
S
BUDDHISM
WORSHIP
BELIEFS
HISTORY
BUDDHISM
TYPES OF BUDDHISM
THE BUDDHA
c. 500bce
c. 100ce
c. 750ce
c. 500ce
THERAVADA
MAHAYANA
VAJRAYANA
ZEN
THERAVADA
MAHAYANA
Emphasis on knowledge and action;
role of full time monks
More accessible to ordinary people,
emphasis on compassion
Each person alone is the universe;
no help from others
People help each other and pray for
each other to reach Nirvana
Buddha is a great human being
Buddha= a divine or super human
being
Individuals to follow Buddha’s example Buddha is compassionate; helps all;
wishes all to gain Nirvana
Ideal person = Arhat:Worthy one who
strives alone towards 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 a
menacing gang, meets
Miyagi, a Buddhist and a
Martial arts master.
What does Miyagi teach
Daniel?
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 bodyand 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?
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 Sights
At 29, Siddhattha journeyed outside his palace and
saw four sights:
SIGHT 1: An old man. Siddhattha realised that old
age destroys beauty, youth and strength
SIGHT 2: A leper. Siddhattha realised that disease
can occur and its consequences
SIGHT 3: A dead man. Siddhattha realised that
everyone dies
Siddhattha came to recognise that suffering was
inevitable in life. He took one more trip outside the
palace and saw:
SIGHT 4: 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
After his experiences he
tried 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 the
palace, 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 Enlightenment
Bodhi Tree
• In the first
watch of the
night he saw all
of his previous
lives pass
before him.
Tree of Enlightenment
Bodhi Tree
• During the
second watch he
saw the cycle
of birth, death
and rebirth of
living things and
understood it.
Tree of Enlightenment
Bodhi 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
UNSATISFACTORINESS
A 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.Right
Viewpoint
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
Mindfulness
A bright and alert mind aware of
the choices that arise and which
lead away from selfishness ad
towards good
8. Right
Concentration
Calmness, focus of the mind and
composure.
The Eightfold Path
Breaking the
vicious circle of
doubt, greed,
worry, hatred
and laziness
by 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?
Religious
Text
Pali Canon
The sayings of the Buddha were
passed on orally
The saying were then put into
written form:
a) Rules for the community of
monks and nuns
b) Sermons
The canons are
preserved on
Palm leaves
c) The most profound and
important teachings.
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
The Buddha died lying on his
side between two trees so
statues of him often portray
him lying down.
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
attentivenes
s
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
Tibetan
monastery
cool, semi-darkness.
usually lit only by a few
narrow windows and candle
to quiet the mind and to d
attention towards the grea
statue of the Buddha.
statues of the Buddha are
sumptuous, colourful and
complex.
The 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
FOODsymbolise taste
FLOWERSsymbolise sight
INCENSEsymbolise smell
WATER symbolise touch, offering,
healing, purification, satisfaction of thirst
and desires
Buddhist Monks
DALAI LAMA
A world renowned leader
Dalai Lama
THE DALAI LAMA
Master 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.
Karma
and Death
• This monk,
meditating
before the
bones of
someone
who has
died,
reminds
himself of
his own
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 to
Buddhism.
We are a society that is
consumer focused. We
measure success and
happiness by what we
have and possess.
To have things is to have
happiness.
Some people reject this
measure for happiness.
Inside a Tibeta
monastery
• 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
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
Tibetan
monastery
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
Westerners are attracted to
Buddhism.
We are a society that is
consumer focused. We
measure success and
happiness by what we
have and possess.
To have things is to have
happiness.
Some people reject this
measure 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.