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University of Phoenix Material Buddhism Worksheet Write a 1- to 2-paragraph response for each of the following. 1. Explain the basic Buddhist teachings including the three marks of reality, the Four Noble Truths, and the Noble Eightfold Path. The goal in the Buddhist teaching is not to aim for happiness but to aim for inner peace, end suffering and liberation from the limitations of the world. The three marks of reality are; 1) Change ??? The only thing constant in life is change. 2) No Permanent Identity- As humans we are made up of several different parts and we are constantly changing never to remain the same as we once were. ) Suffering- To live life is to suffer and experience sorrow; we can never be satisfied because of life’s avoidable change. The Four Noble Truths are a linked chain of truths about life: 1) Suffering exists 2) It has a cause 3) It has an end 4) There is a way to attain release from suffering???namely, by following the Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path are 8 steps that Buddhist follow that they believe will help them to reach Nirvana. Nirvana suggests many things: the end of suffering, inner peace, and freedom from limitations of the world.
When Nirvana is reached it is believed to end karma and rebirth after the present life. The Noble Eightfold Path is meant to guide Buddhist to 3 goals: 1) Face life objectively 2) To live Kindly 3) To develop inner peace The 8 steps of the Noble Eightfold Path are as followed: 1) Right understanding -I recognize the impermanence of life, the mechanic of desire, and the cause of suffering. 2) Right intention- My thoughts and motives are pure, not tainted by my emotions and selfish desires. 3) Right speech- I speak honestly and kindly, in positive ways, avoiding lies, exaggeration, harsh words. ) Right action- My actions do not hurt any other being that can feel hurt, including animals; I avoid stealing and sexual conduct that would bring hurt. 5) Right work- My job does no harm to me or others. 6) Right effort- with moderation, I consistently strive to improve. 7) Right meditation (right mindfulness)- I use the disciplines of meditation and focused awareness to contemplate the nature of reality more deeply. 8) Right contemplation- I cultivate states of blissful inner peace 2. Describe the three major Buddhist traditions???Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana???and how each tradition developed from the early teachings.
Theravada ( The way of the elders)- Theravada schools have always stressed the ideal of reaching nirvana through detachment and desirelessness achieved through meditation. The heart of Theravada is its community of monks. Theravada Buddhist schools were developed in the earlier centuries of Buddhism to adhere to the original unchanged thinking of the Buddha; the way of the elders. Although Theravada does accept that laypeople can attain nirvana, the life of the monk offers a surer path. The notion is enshrined in the ideal of the arhat; a person who has reached nirvana. Mahayana (the big vehicle)-
Between the 1st century B. C. to the 1st century A. D. the two terms Mahayana and Hinayana appeared in the Saddharma Pundarika Sutra or the Sutra of the Lotus of the Good Law. Mahayana Buddhism spread out of India to central Asia and to China, which it entered in the first century of the Common Era. The Mahayana vision accommodates a large variety of people and suggests that Nirvana is not only attainable by monks but can be reached by everyone. In Mahayana, the Buddha nature can express itself in three ways, this is called the trikaya doctrine; law body, form body, or body of reality.
Vajrayana (the diamond vehicle)- Vajrayana is considered by some to be simply a special form of Mahayana. Most consider Vajrayana to be a third branch of Buddhism, because of its complexity and unique elements. It is a Tibetan Buddhism, a complex system of belief, art, and ritual. Vajrayana actually includes other forms of esoteric Buddhism. The monks within this branch of Buddhism were not only used as teachers but also as doctors, they were thought to have special healing powers. A form of Tantric Buddhism first entered Tibet in the seventh century and was spread by Indian missionaries.