Figures and Terms: Buddhism (Unit 2-b)

Person/Term	Identify	Religious Importance
Siddhartha Gautama	Siddhartha Gautama is known as the Buddha which is the Enlightened or Awakened one. He is also the founder of Buddhism.	Buddhism focuses on attaining enlightenment and nirvana through mediation and dharma. He preached his philosophies for several years as well as his opinion of Hinduism, and eventually created a similar, (now known as a religion) of Buddhism. He believed that the Caste System was not fair, that offerings to deities were irrelevant, that determining the creation/eternity of the world was pointless, that the language of Hinduism should be Pali (so everyone could understand it), and that to achieve salvation by uniting the atman with the Brahman was virtually impossible, because it related to the caste system. Therefore the peaceful philosophy, and later, religion of Buddhism emerged. J
Samsara	The endless cycle of uncontrolled rebirths.	Siddhartha Gautama retained the idea of samsara therefore all Buddhist teachings show the way to end suffering of life and to stop samsara. These rebirths involve the transfer of one’s mind/consciousness into new bodies after death (reincarnation). When once achieves nirvana, one has attained perfect wisdom, and is released from samsara.
Stupa	Dome-shaped mounds built to house holy figures (relics of Buddha). Most Buddhist temples have one and they are often decorated with paintings/carvings illustrating the life of the Buddha, both inside and out.	Monks and laypeople walk around these Stupas three times when making their devotions. Some temple sites have smaller Stupas, which serve as memorial places of prominent Buddhists, who belonged to that particular temple. Pilgrimages to a Stupa are considered to be merit-gaining activities by some Buddhists.
Puja	Pujas are offerings to holy beings, which is a ritual. This also includes bowing, making offerings, and chanting. With bowing, you can stand or kneel, with the palms of their hands joined and held to the chest or forehead. The most common offering is flowers because as they wilt/fade they emphasize notion of impermanence.	Bowing is very common in a puja. For example, a lay person bows to monks/nuns to show respect. Also, Buddhists bow before sacred objects (images of the Buddha) three times to honour the Three Refuges. Incense sticks burn symbolizing Buddha’s “odour of sanctity” and very often, an offering is the light of a candle/lamp to represent Buddha’s enlightenment.
Zen Buddhism	One of the sects of Buddhism that emerged, and became successful in the 12-14^th century was called Zen. Zen was originally called Ch’an in China and was founded by a legendary Indian monk, Bodhidharma.	A (most likely untrue) story about Bodhidharma is that he spent so long meditating, staring at a wall, that his legs fell off. This story describes Zen’s emphasis on meditation as the best method to attain enlightenment. Good works and devotion are not discounted in Zen, but should not be the ways to reach enlightenment. Zen cannot be taught, but experienced. Therefore Zen Buddhism focuses on meditating as a means to gain enlightenment and achieve nirvana. The two schools that are predominant in the Zen tradition are The Rinzai School, and The Soto School.
4 Sights	The 4 Sights are the sights that led to the Buddha’s departure from his palace to help mankind, which were: a sick man, a corpse, an old man, and a begging monk.	When Siddhartha was young, life was comfortable, but he craved spiritual satisfaction. His father arranged for the streets of the city to be filled with healthy, happy people so that Siddhartha would not see unpleasantness that would bother him. However, later on, Siddhartha visited the city four times with his charioteer, Channa where he experienced the Four Sights: a sick man, a corpse, an old man, and a begging monk. Siddhartha asked Channa for the meaning behind three sightings, and he replied “these come to all men”. Channa also replied to the sighting of the begging monk as “This is a man living the homeless life in order to seek the answer to life’s riddle”. It was that night when Siddhartha decided to leave the palace and become a homeless beggar. This began his path to enlightenment.
5 Precepts	The 5 Precepts are the rules that Buddhists follow. They include avoiding: harmful living beings, stealing, improper sexual activity, false speech, and taking alcohol/drugs.	These rules follower by Buddhist people control improper physical and verbal behaviour that may cause suffering. The first precept is also known as “ahimsa” which accounts to Buddhists’ non-violent behaviour. These precepts help one achieve the right “state-of –living” helping one not to give into temptation in order to improve their karma.
4 Noble Truths	The 4 Noble Truths are the Buddha’s diagnosis of the main problems in life: suffering, the cause of suffering, elimination of suffering, and the path to end suffering. The cessation of suffering is also known as nirvana.	1. The Noble Truth of Suffering: “To live is to suffer”. These sufferings include birth, death, old age, etc. These experiences, we do not want, we try to avoid, and sometimes pretend do not exist. 2. The Noble Truths of the Origin of Suffering: The cause of suffering is negative desire. Greedy people for the wrong types of pleasures do harmful things to their bodies and minds. The possessions that people desire most cause them suffering. The only basic needs of humans are food, shelter, and clothing. 3. The Noble Truths of the Extinction of Suffering: The goal of Buddhism is to end the suffering, by reaching nirvana. Nirvana is only achieved when the urge to posses more things is destroyed. Nirvana is a peaceful Buddhist state of being. 4. The Noble Truth of the Path Leading to the Extinction of Suffering: To end suffering, one must follow the Middle Way by following the Noble Eightfold Path. This path will help one live the Buddhist way to life.
Middle Way	The Middle Way is the path in life, between two extremes, prescribed by the Buddha. It means that the best lifestyle is one of moderation.	When Siddhartha became a wandering seeker of spiritual knowledge, he first had a teacher who taught him to meditate. Though the experience was good, after meditation, we had back in the same state which he started. Constant meditation resulted in headaches. He then tried to reduce food intake to only one grain or rice a day, but became extremely ill. He then concluded that the best course is the Middle Way, or a path between two extremes. He therefore concluded that the best life is one of moderation, which is a huge influence on the lifestyle of Buddhists.
Nirvana	Nirvana is an everlasting state of joy and peace resulting from the end of desire and suffering.	The goal of Hindu life is to achieve nirvana, mainly through means of meditation to achieve enlightenment from the pain and suffering of life.
First Sermon	After Siddhartha came to be known as the Buddha (enlightened one), he went to Sarnath, India, in a park reserved for royal deer to preach his first sermon. During this sermon, he shared his new understanding of life with five Hindus who accepted his ideas.	The five Hindu ascetics became bhikkhus (Buddha’s first monks). After the First Sermon, his teachings spread quickly, and after five years, had an order of monks (the sanghas) and an order of nuns (bhikkhuni sanghas). For Forty-five years after his First Sermon, the Buddha preached over northern and central India. This was the beginning of Buddhism, as it was the first time people were able to hear its philosophies.
Eightfold Path	When Buddha gave his first sermon, he described the “wheel of Dharma”. This was an eight-spoke wheel representing the Eightfold Path. The centre of the wheel represented nirvana, which was the only fixed point. Buddhists need to follow each step of the Eightfold Path to reach the end of suffering. The Eightfold Path includes: Right View, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Conduct, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration.	Buddhists need to follow the eightfold path to lead themselves into peace, happiness, and nirvana. 1. Right View: It is essential for us to know the Four Noble truths. 2. Right Thought: The mind must be freed from sensuous desire, ill-will, and cruelty. Good thoughts develop a good character. 3. Right Speech: Using kind speech will make us respected and trusted. We should not lie, criticize unjustly, use harsh language, or gossip. 4. Right Conduct: This is accomplished by following the Five Precepts. 5. Right Livelihood: Earning a living though occupations that do not cause harm to others. 6. Right Effort: Conquering evil thoughts and trying to have good thoughts. 7. Right Mindfulness: A person should recognize what is important and full attention should be given to proper thoughts, words, and deeds. 8. Right Concentration: Involves focusing the mind on one thought/object at a time which will leave to tranquility and peace in the mind. Deep mediation leads to enlightenment.
Mantras	Mantras are symbolic phrases that are chanted. They help Buddhists keep in touch with their spiritual nature, and enhance meditation.	Anyone who recites certain mantras is said to be protected from danger. Mantras serve as religious/spiritual phrases, used as an aid to Buddhists to meditate, and perform all spiritual duties. For example, Om Mani Padme Hum is a mantra meaning “Hail the jewel in the lotus”, representing compassion.
Dalai Lama	The Dalai Lama is the ruler and spiritual leader of Tibet.	Tibetan Buddhists believe that when a Dalai Lama dies, the newly released consciousness will immediately enter the body of a new-born male child and will be discovered by monks, using complicated procedures. Once this male is found, he will become the new Dalai Lama, to guide Tibetan Buddhists as a ruler and spiritual leader.
Meditation	Meditation is a method of calming and training the mind through a deep concentration.	Monks and lay people pray through meditation, by bowing, chanting, and receiving offerings. Buddhists believe that meditation leads to wisdom, which leads to the end of suffering. This practice helps Buddhists understand precepts more clearly, while calming the mind, and clearing bad thoughts. One should, ideally, sit in the “lotus posture. This posture involves crossed lags and hands, the hands being on the lap and the soles of the feet resting on top of the thighs. The back should be straight, the tongue should touch the back of the upper teeth and the eyes should be downcast with the eyelids partially closed. Meditation is essential for monks, nuns, and lay people and to novices.
3 Characteristics of Existence	Through observation and meditation, the Buddha came to the conclusion about the natural existence of things representing a huge concept in Buddhism. He believed that all things, outside of nirvana, had 3 fundamental characteristics: annica (impermanence), dukkha (dissatisfaction) and anatta (selflessness).	Anicca (impermanence) means that nothing stays the same for long. Everything changes, including, our clothing, environment, cars, even our bodies age. Dukkha (dissatisfaction) means that all living things experience suffering (both physical and mental). Anatta (selflessness) means that we cannot point to any one thing in ourselves and say it is self. No one part of us is a person. It must be the whole package (body+mind). Therefore a dead body is not a person.
Tripitaka	The main written source of the Buddha’s wisdom is known as the Tripitaka (a.k.a. Three Baskets)	The Tripitaka is known as the Three Baskets because the palm leaf manuscripts written by the Buddha’s followers were kept in three different baskets. The baskets were called Vinaya-Pitaka, Sutta-Pitaka, and Abhidhamma-Pitaka. These books are known as the most accurate record off Buddha’s teachings. The Vinaya-Pitaka (basket of discipline) consists of 5 books that emphasize the rules of monastic life and the codes of conduct. The Sutta-Pitaka (basket of discourses) is the most important book because it incorporates the teachings of Buddha. The Abhidhamma-Pitaka (basket of further teachings) discusses the natures of consciousness.
Wheel of Life	The Wheel of Life is a complete visual representation of the cycle of samsara (the endless cycle of uncontrolled rebirths).	The Wheel of Life consists of 4 concentric circles and is said to be designed by the Buddha. The inner circle has a bird, a pig, and a snake. These animals represent greed, ignorance, and hatred, which must be conquered to reach enlightenment. The next ring shows the forms we take when reborn. The white half of the circle represents the heavens and the black half represents hell. The third ring shows the regions where we can be reborn and also includes illustrations of experiences we have, as humans. The outer circle represents the 12 causes of endless rebirths: ignorance, actions, consciousness, body, senses, contact, feeling, craving, existence, birth, aging, and death. The wheel is held by Yama, the Lord of Death. The Buddha pointing towards the moon represents nirvana.