Learn about Buddhism

1. BUDDHISM
World Religions and International Affairs
IR 8311
Spring 2015
Ely, Vincent, and Adam
February 2, 2015

2. BUDDHISM

3. Buddha/ Siddhartha
Buddha
Who was he?
Buddha means “the Awakened One.”
It is someone who awoke from a sleep of
ignorance and sees reality as it is.
Buddha is someone who is completely free from all
fault and mental obstruction.
Was he a God?
Buddhism deals with issues of life, death, afterlife and
ultimate reality. It is considered a religion but does not
presume a creator and states that everyone has the
potential to become a Buddha.

4. Buddha & Siddhartha
Siddhartha
Who was he?
Siddharta Gautama was born Kshatriya, son of
Suddhodana, and elected chief of the Shakya clan.
His mother was Queen Maha Maya, who dreamt of a
white elephant on the night Siddharta was conceived.
Siddharta means “he who achieves his aim”
Siddhartha was brought up by his mother's younger
sister, and destined for the life of a prince. Siddharta
had three palaces (for seasonal occupation) built for
him. His father, King Śuddhodana, wished for his son
to be a great king, shielded him from religious
teachings and human suffering.

5. Buddha & Siddhartha
What did he teach?
Nothing is lost in the universe
Matter turns to energy, energy turns to matter.
Everything changes
Law of cause and effect
Karma
The Four Noble Truths
Noble Eightfold Path
What is his relationship with Buddha?
He became a Buddha

6. Buddha/Siddhartha
At age 16, his father arranged his marriage to a cousin
named Yasodhara. Siddhartha spent 29 years as a
prince and was provided with everything he could
want or need, Buddhist scriptures say that the future
Buddha felt that material wealth was not life's ultimate
goal.
At age 29, Siddhartha left his palace to meet his
subjects. Despite his father's efforts to hide from him
the sick, aged and suffering, Siddhartha was said to
have seen an old man, a diseased man, a decaying
corpse and an ascetic. These depressed him, and he
initially strove to overcome aging, sickness, and death
by living the life of an ascetic.
Gautama quit his palace for the life of a mendicant.

7. Image of the Buddha
Statues of Buddha include lots of symbols. There are
32 symbols in Buddhism, which show that the Buddha
was a special person. Any of these symbols can be
used on statues. For example the Buddha is often
shown with:

8. Image of the Buddha
A round mark on his forehead
A Bump on the to of his head

9. Image of the Buddha
Curled hair Long ears

10. What is Buddhism?
Where does the word come from and what does it
mean?
The word Buddhism comes from Buddha or the
teachings of Gautama Buddha. Buddha is a
Sanskrit word, which means “awakened one”, one
who is awakened to reality, understands the true
nature of the mind, the world, and all beings.
Buddhism is a religion that teaches that suffering is
inherent in life and one can be liberated from it
through mental and moral purification.
This major world religion and philosophy was
founded in northeastern India between the 6
th
and
the 4
th
centuries BC

11. Place of Origin &
Demographics

12. Place of Origin & Demographics
Buddhism has two major branches;
the Mahayana and the Theravada
Developed distinctive practices and
unique collections of canonical texts
in the early 21st century
Various traditions of Buddhism have
more than 375 million followers. It
represents a major component of the
spiritual heritage of East and
Southeast Asia.

13. Place of Origin &
Demographics

14. Place of Origin & Demographics
Mahayana Buddhism is practiced by around 185
million people and is the dominant form of
Buddhism in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore and
Vietnam.
Theravada Buddhism has about 125 million
followers and is dominant in Cambodia, Thailand,
Laos, Sri Lanka and Burma.
Another significant strand of Buddhism related to
Mahayana is Tibetan Buddhism, practiced by 20
million people in Tibet, Bhutan, Mongolia, and
surrounding areas in India, China and Russia.

15. Where do they worship?
Buddhist worship at home or at a temple.
Worshippers may sit on the floor barefoot facing an image of
Buddha and chanting.
It is very important that their feet face away from the image of
Buddha.
It is not required for Buddhist to worship at a temple.
All temples contain an image or statue of Buddha.

16. Where do they worship?

17. What do they worship?
Buddhist temples are designed to
symbolize the five elements:
Fire
Air
Water
Earth
Wisdom

18. Types of worship
There are as many forms of Buddhist worship as
there are schools of Buddhism.
Worship in Mahayana tradition takes the form of
devotion to Buddha and to Bodhisattvas.
Worshippers may sit on the floor barefoot facing
an image of Buddha and chanting. They will
listen to monks chanting from religious texts,
perhaps accompanied by instruments, and take
part in prayers.

19. How do they worship?

20. Mantras

21. Mantras
A mantra is a word, a syllable, a phrase or a short
prayer that is spoken once or repeated over and over
again (either aloud or in a person's head) and that is
thought to have a profound spiritual effect on the
person.
A very well known mantra is the mantra of
Avalokiteshvara: om mani padme hum. This is
sometimes said to mean "Behold! The jewel in the
lotus!" but this translation isn't much help - the phrase
isn't really translatable because of the richness of
meaning and symbolism it contains.

22. What are some physical
prayer aids?
Beads & Prayer Wheel

23. Physical prayer aids
It is common to use prayer beads to mark the number
of repetitions of a mantra.
Mantras may be displayed on a prayer wheel and
repeated by spinning the wheel.
Mantras may be written on a prayer flag - in which
case the prayer is repeated each time the flag moves in
the wind.

24. Physical prayer aids
A prayer flag is a colorful rectangular cloth, often
found strung along mountain ridges and peaks
high in the Himalayas. They are used to bless
the surrounding countryside and for other
purposes. Prayer flags are believed to have
originated with Bon, which predated Buddhism in
Tibet
Prayer wheels can be tiny things that a Buddhist
carries with them or enormous objects up to nine
feet high found in monasteries.

25. Main Branches (Denominations)

26. Main Branches (Denominations)
Main Branches (Denominations)
Theravada
Mahayana
Tibetan
Chinese and Japanese groups
including Soto and Zen

27. Symbols

28. Symbols
Precious Umbrella

29. Symbols
Victory Banner

30. Symbols
Golden Fish

31. Symbols

32. Symbols
Auspicious Drawing

33. Symbols
Lotus Flower

34. Symbols
Vase of Treasure

35. Symbols
The wheel of life
Symbolizes the cycle of life, death and rebirth. The
eight spokes remind people that the Buddha taught
about eight ways of life.
The lotus flower
Symbolizes purity and divine birth. The lotus flower
grows in mud at the bottom of a pool, but rises
above the surface to become a beautiful flower.
Buddhist say this is how people should rise above
everything which is dukkha. A flower may be very
beautiful and have a wonderful scent, but it soon
withers and dies. This shows that nothing in life is
perfect.

36. Beliefs & Concepts
A. Life and the World
Samsāra
The repeating cycle of
birth, life and death
(reincarnation) as well as
one's actions and
consequences in the past,
present, and future

37. Beliefs & Concepts
Karma
Karma, existence a person's
good or bad deeds would impact
positively or negatively on their
store of "merit”. Karma-merit
would underpin the
advantageous, or pitiful, state
into which individual
reincarnations would occur.

38. Beliefs & Concepts
Rebirth
The doctrine of evolving
consciousness or stream
of consciousness upon
death becomes one of the
contributing causes for the
start of a new aggregation.

39. Beliefs & Concepts
o The Four Noble Truths
o First Noble Truth is that old age, illness, and death are all forms
of human suffering, and there are many other ways in which
people suffer.
o The Second Noble Truth is that suffering is closely linked to
desire, a desire for being which leads from birth to death and
involve ageing, illness, and mortality. There are also various
desires for pleasures and for powers, which frustratingly, may
not be realized.

40. Beliefs & Concepts
The Third Noble Truth is that suffering can be
dispelled by abandonment of all desires.
The last of the Four Noble Truths holds that such
abandonment of desires can be achieved by
following the Noble Eightfold Path

41. Beliefs & Concepts
Noble Eightfold Path
o Right Belief (in the Truth);
o Right Intent (to do good rather than evil);
o Right Speech (avoid untruth, slander and
swearing);
o Right Behavior (avoid blameworthy behaviors);

42. Beliefs & Concepts
Right Livelihood;
Right Effort (towards the good);
Right Contemplation (of the Truth);
Right Concentration (will result from following
the Noble Eightfold Path

43. Beliefs & Concepts
The Four Immeasurable
Loving-Kindness
The wish that all sentient beings, without any
exception, be happy.
Compassion
The wish for all sentient beings to be free from
suffering.

44. Beliefs & Concepts
Appreciative Joy
It is the wholesome attitude of rejoicing in
the happiness and virtues of all sentient
beings.
Equanimity
The attitude of regarding all sentient
beings as equals, irrespective of their
present relationship to oneself.

45. Beliefs & Concepts
The Middle Way
It implies a balanced approach to life and the
regulation of one's impulses and behavior, close
to Aristotle's idea of the "golden mean" whereby
"every virtue is a mean between two extremes,
each of which is a vice."

46. Influence of Buddhism in
Early China and Japan
Prince Shotoku’s Support of Buddhism
In order to carry out his plans, Prince Shotoku
issued the 17–Article Constitution in 604, which
emphasized Buddhist and Confucian principles.
Article II of this injunction reads, “Fervently
respect the Three Treasures.” Prince Shotoku
stressed that everyone should faithfully revere
the Three Treasures (the Buddha, Dharma, and
Sangha) as the supreme and unmistakable
guidance.

47. Influence of Buddhism in
Early China and Japan
Buddhism has had a profound impact on all of
Asia. Starting in India, Buddhism’s reach has
extended across the world. China and Japan
were both strongly influenced by the influx of
Buddhism. Social, political, and economic
changes were brought about due to the influence
of Buddhism and Buddhist clergy on the people
of China and Japan. In China the Buddhist clergy
fought for favor in the royal court.

48. Buddhism and war
Non-violence is at the heart of Buddhist thinking
and behavior. The first of the five precepts that all
Buddhists should follow is "Avoid killing, or
harming any living thing.”
Buddhism is essentially a peaceful tradition.
Nothing in Buddhist scripture gives any support
to the use of violence as a way to resolve
conflict.

49. Buddhism and war
But Buddhism, like the other great faiths, has not
always lived up to its principles - there are numerous
examples of Buddhists engaging in violence and
even war.
in the 14th century Buddhist fighters led the uprising
that evicted the Mongols from China
in Japan, Buddhist monks trained Samurai warriors in
meditation that made them better fighters
In the twentieth century Japanese Zen masters wrote
in support of Japan's wars of aggression. For
example, Sawaki Kodo (1880–1965) wrote this in
1942:

50. Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka the 20th century civil war between
the mostly Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the
Hindu Tamil minority has cost 50,000 lives.

51. Current Hot Spot
Burma: The 969 Movement
The three digits of 969
"symbolize the virtues of the
Buddha, Buddhist practices and
the Buddhist community
Tibet: China