Compare the Buddhist understandings of life after death with on other view
Compare the Buddhist understandings of life after death with on other view We are all aware that, at least in a physical sense, we will one day inevitably cease to exist, yet this universally known fact has produced many different conclusions about what may happen after and Buddhist thought differs extremely from that of Christianity. The issue is inexorably linked to eastern and western views of causation and what constitutes personal identity as these play a major role in influencing beliefs about the afterlife. Indeed to even talk of 'life after death' seems linguistically problematic; we are trying to approach two contradictory phrases 'life' and 'death' and to reconcile them. The way in which to do this largely depends on whether one's personal view is that of a cyclical universe or a linear one, for example it may seem easier from a Buddhist viewpoint to literally talk of 'life after death' as the belief in rebirth means that to a Buddhist there is literally a life, another living existence, after one's earthly body has died. From a Christian perspective however the phrase has an entirely different meaning, through resurrection and the intervention of God one continues to the afterlife although in a very different way than reincarnation. The most obvious point that should be made in reference to Buddhist understanding of life after death are the doctrines of karma,
The Life of the Buddha.
Hossein Amini 5S GCSE Religious Studies Coursework: Buddhism The Life of the Buddha Question 1- Select, describe and explain the events in the life of Siddhartha Gautama, which illustrate his religious development There are generally many events in the life of Siddhartha Gautama, which illustrate his religious development, but personally, I have planned to look at specific events very carefully. It can be said that the events contained specifically within the past lives of Siddhartha Guatama illustrate his religious development. There are, most evidently, the Jataka tales of the Pali Canon, which are supposedly stories of his actual rebirths. First of all, there is a most fundamental event, which occurs at around 100,000,000 aeons ago, where Dipuncena makes the crucial Bodhissatva vow to devote a life for the help of others. Now, after this, we see many stories of compassionate actions done by the 547 reincarnations of Dipuncena in the form of animal, god, and man. For example, one is the courageous story of Prince Vessantra, who gives up everything that he owns, even his wife and children out of compassion. The fact that he did this, giving everything and not expecting anything in return, portrays Dana, which is the idea of charity, and is a fundamental quality that is essential to be on the way to the Bodhissatva Path. There is also the story of the young prince, who '
Critically examine the contributions which Ashoka made to the early development of Buddhism.
(a) Critically examine the contributions which Ashoka made to the early development of Buddhism. At the beginning of Ashoka's reign (c.269 BCE) Buddhism had been in existence and expansion for about two hundred years. The Second Council had already occurred by that time, and there were disagreements over the Vinaya (rules for the monks). Buddhism had only spread throughout North India and was widely seen as a religion for monks, which was supported by the lay people (those who were not monks). Ashoka's grandfather, Chandragupta, had created the Mauryan Dynasty, which extended the Kingdom of Magadha to cover the whole of Northern India. Since Ashoka's father, Bindusara, was a powerful monarch, Ashoka would have been educated and trained in the Brahminical religion and brought up to be a militaristic ruler. The Brahminical concept of kingship involves conquest and enlargement of land ownership, which is greatly different to the Buddhist promotion of peace. Ashoka was very much a typical Brahminical king, and was said in the Buddhist Chronicles to have been a bloodthirsty monarch. He expanded his empire through many battles; his last was the conquest of Kalinga which created much unnecessary carnage. When Ashoka saw the devastation he had caused it led him to convert to Buddhist ways, although evidence suggests that he had become a Buddhist two years earlier. Ashoka
Ultimate Reality and Spiritual Truths within Buddhism and Judaism
World Religions Ultimate Reality and Spiritual Truths within Buddhism and Judaism An integral part of all world religions is that of an ultimate reality and spiritual truths. Each world religion has its own set of spiritual truths and a belief in an ultimate reality which denotes the underlying cause of all existence and is a ground of being for each follower of the religion. All world religions also have a set of beliefs, or spiritual truths, which encompass the integral teachings of the religion. When comparing each religion's claims about ultimate reality and spiritual truths, similarities and differences arise that question the credibility of these claims. Only under closer examination can the individual understand the validity of these claims when comparing them. All world religions acknowledge an ultimate reality that is unyielding and unchanging. These ultimate realities generally take one of three forms. The first form is that of a personal being, like a loving god, who is a focal point of the religion's belief. The second form is that of an impersonal being as the target of all personal beings and the origin of all personal beings. The third form is an eternal truth or principal that governs the universe (see Valea, 2010). The reason that it is possible for all world religions to make claims about an ultimate reality is to do with the broadness of the term. For a
Modernity and Enlightenment
EUR1100 European Studies Catherine Wyatt 19453175 Natalie Doyle Modernity and Enlightenment /4/04 The Persian Letters (1721), a fictional piece by Charles Montesquieu, is representative of 'the Enlightenment,' both supporting and showing conflict with its ideas. The initial perception of European people, in particular the French, is of a busy people with goals and ambition whose focus is progress; in this way they are able to gain knowledge - a core foundation to Enlightenment. One particular section of the Persian Letters states that the revolt against the authorities was lead by women, who through reason, saw the inequity of their treatment and formed a voice. In Montesquieu's story, their decision to change tradition was part of a powerful movement towards this new found 'light'. The pressure for people to conform was greatly impressed by the King. With the Enlightenment movement, came recognition of this and a rebellion of what Montesquieu calls, the King's "invisible enemies" formed. These were people trying to break the mold and think for themselves, using reason and searching for answers outside what they had been told to believe. However the ignorant authority described in the letters is opposing to this new movement. The King colluded with the Pope and Gaelic church over ways to retain control and openly practice the way of life that the new ideology
Buddhism In China
Shannon Scott Jessica Johnson Ms. Reagan English 2H 29 August 2002 With Peace Comes Life, With Life Comes Peace "Religion is as healthy and normal as life itself" (Dole 34). The world today is overflowing with beliefs and religions. Asia, one of the most influential continents in the world, is a place filled with a society rich in culture and religion. The most prominent religion that shapes Asia is Buddhism, a religion solely based on a necessity for peace, nirvana. In China, Buddhism is much more than trite; it is the thriving, chief religion. Within the faith, there is a deep history and a well-rooted integration into the Chinese culture, great beliefs, a vast geography, and many considerable contributions. The immense history of Buddhism is a profound legacy that enriched China spiritually and relates well to the rest of the Chinese culture. The scripture was first introduced into China around A.D. 64 during the Han Dynasty. Unfortunately, the religion was not very popular among the Chinese community (Buddhism In China). The fact that Buddhism was hard to understand and that it was foreign, led to the teachings' unpopularity. After the fall of the Han Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty brought on more hope to the religion. There were three Chinese Buddhists who started to establish different types of Buddhism. A man named Hui Yuan started the pure Land Buddhists; he
The Life and Teachings of Siddhartha Gautama
Annabel Weaver The Life and Teachings of Siddhartha Gautama Buddhism is a way of life for Buddhists, based on the teachings of a man who had lived more than two and a half thousand years ago in northern India. He was born in the foothills of Lumbini, in what is now Nepal, in about 563BCE, and was called Siddhartha. His family was called Gautama, and his father (Shuddhodana) was the rular of the Shakya clan at that time. Everyone who followed Siddhartha called him the Buddha, which means 'the enlightened one'. They believed that he had found the truth about life. Many stories about the life of the Buddha were passed on by word of mouth for about 600 years before anyone wrote them down. They were a constant reminder of the Buddha and all the things he did for other people. Siddhartha's father felt very strongly about him taking over as rular. He therefore gave Siddhartha everything he wanted and every luxury he could have. He didn't tell his son about suffering and death because he didn't want to upset him. He was afraid that these things would stop him from becoming interested in religion. Because Siddhartha was a prince, he was taught the skills of archery, horsemanship, swordplay and martial arts. He was given the staff of beautiful young women to care for him and to look after him. When he was only nineteen, he married a beautiful princess named
The day the Buddha left.
One day, Siddhartha Gautama awoke Minister Channa and ordered him to get his horse Kandaka saddled. Then he went to the son and wife's rooms to see them before he went to the forest. He saw that his wife (Yasodara) and his son by her side were both sleeping. Siddhartha wanted to kiss his son for the last time but he realized that his wife would wake up and his journey to finding truth would be disturbed. He then left the castle and set off with his Horse and his friend Channa. He then got to the river Anoma. Once he crossed the river, Siddhartha took his hair-knot by one hand, and with a sword in the other, cut it off. He then threw up the hair-knot into the sky and it is said that it stayed in the sky. Next Siddhartha took an alms-bowl and yellow robes. And gave Channa his very expensive clothes and ordered him to return to the castle. Channa took the Horse Kandaka and the clothes to the castle. Half way through the journey the Horse Kandaka missed his master Siddhartha and died. So Channa continued the journey all by his own to the Castle. When the Sakya Tribe knew about Siddhartha they all cried out in tears. After leaving Channa, Siddhartha stayed in the mango grove called Anuppiya near the Anoma river for seven days and then he went to Rajagaha (a town). When he went into the town for food, the citizens looked admiringly at the splendid and graceful appearance of
Taoism beliefs and practice
In the beginning The founder of Taoism is believed by many to be Lao-Tse (604-531 BCE), a contemporary of Confucius. He was searching for a way that would avoid the constant feudal warfare and other conflicts that disrupted society during his lifetime. The result was his book: Tao-te-Ching. Others believe that he is a mythical character. Taoism started as a combination of psychology and philosophy but evolved into a religious faith in 440 CE when it was adopted as a state religion. At that time Lao-Tse became popularly venerated as a deity. Taoism, along with Buddhism and Confucianism, became one of the three great religions of China. Much of the Taoist heritage was destroyed during the next period of warlordism. After the Communist victory in 1949, religious freedom was severely restricted. "The new government put monks to manual labor, confiscated temples, and plundered treasures. Several million monks were reduced to fewer than 50,000" by 1960. 3 During the cultural revolution in China from 1966 to 1976, much of the remaining Taoist heritage was destroyed. Some religious tolerance has been restored under Deng Xiao-ping from 1982 to the present time. Where did Tao come from? Tao is the source of all nature. There are two forces that interact and cause change (creation) in nature. These forces are the Yin and the Yang. Yin, which is the Mandarin word for moon,
Buddhism - : Training the mind properly is more important than acting correctly Do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Assessment Question: 'Training the mind properly is more important than acting correctly' Do you agree or disagree with this statement? The symbol of Buddhism is the wheel. The circle represents samsara (the cycle of life). Buddhists believe that after they die their life force will travel to a higher level if they do good actions during their life and to a lower level if they do bad actions. The Buddha taught people how to escape the cycle and reach Nirvana. He told them that if they want to reach Nirvana, they must follow the four noble truths and the eightfold path. The eight spokes on the wheel represent the eightfold path. The Eightfold Path has three sections: wisdom, action & training the mind. Some people believe that training the mind properly is more important than acting correctly. They believe that if you train the mind properly, then you will automatically act correctly. The sixth rule of the eightfold path is 'right effort'. 'Right effort' is to train yourself to avoid doing bad things and working hard to do good. This is important because it won't make others suffer because you won't do bad things. Also, others will benefit from the good things you do, which will prevent people from suffering. Some people believe that if you follow this rule you will avoid killing, stealing, and being dishonest and unfaithful, as well as avoid drinking or taking drugs. This is