evelyn notes

• Buddhism


  A tradition that focuses on personal spiritual development
• Buddhists strive for deep insight into the true nature of life
• Buddhists do not worship Gods or Deities
• There are 376 million followers of Buddhism worldwide
• The Buddha


  Siddhartha Gautama, born into a royal family in present-day Nepal over 2500 years ago
• Siddhartha Gautama's journey

  1. He was a Hindu

  2. He lived a life of privilege and luxury

  3. He left the royal enclosure and encountered an old man, a sick man, and a corpse

  4. He became a monk before adopting the harsh poverty of Indian asceticism

  5. He decided to pursue the 'Middle Way'

  6. He became deeply absorbed in meditation under the Bodhi tree and became enlightened
• Buddhism arose as a result of Siddhartha Gautama's quest for Enlightenment in around the 6th Century BC
• The Four Noble Truths


  • The suffering exists (dukkha)
  • The cause of suffering (tanha)
  • The end of suffering can be achieved
  • The path that frees us from suffering is the noble eightfold path
• Dukkha


  Translated as 'Life is suffering', refers to anything that is temporary
• Cause of suffering

  Craving or desire
• Bodhi

  Awakened
• Nirvana


  The enlightened being exists in this state
• The Eightfold Path

  • Right view
  • Right intention
  • Right speech
  • Right action
  • Right livelihood
  • Right effort
  • Right mindfulness
  • Right concentration
• Achieving enlightenment through the Eightfold Path


  Developing wisdom, right conduct, and mental discipline
• Karma


  A Sanskrit word meaning 'action', the connection between actions and their results
• Rebirth


  The process of being born over and over again in different times and different situations
• Dharma


  The teachings of the Buddha
• Sangha


  The Community of all Buddhist practitioners
• The Three Jewels


  • Buddha
  • Dharma
  • Sangha
• The Three Unwholesome Roots

  • Greed (lobha)
  • Anger / Hatred (dosa)
  • Delusion (moha)
• Anatta/Anatman


  The doctrine of 'no self', the Buddha's most unique and radical teaching
• The Five Aggregates of Attachment

  • Matter - phyiscal existence with your brain functions are constantly changing
  • Sensation - sight, small happiness, sadness
  • Perception - recognition of mental and physical functions
  • Mental Formations - concentration or desire, hate, jealousy - direct mind to a particular thought or action
  • Consciousness - awareness of a particular physical or mental thing e.g. sound as music, consciousness is the awareness of sound as sound of music
• Anicca


  The law of impermanence, everything is subject to decay and change
• Buddhism teaches tolerance toward other faiths, loving-kindness, and compassion for all living things
• The Three Baskets of the Pali Canon

  • Vinaya: Rules about monks and nuns
  • Sutra: Sayings and sermons of the Buddha
  • Abhidarhma: Philosophical reflections on Buddhist teachings
• The Three Main Traditions of Buddhism

  • Theravada
  • Mahayana
  • Tibetan Buddhism
• Theravada Buddhism


  Based on the Pali Canon, the oldest teachings of the Buddha, more conservative and monastic centered
• Mahayana Buddhism


  Teachings refer to everyone, not just monks and nuns, includes additional texts and beliefs beyond the Pali Canon, believe one can delay nirvana and follow the bodhisattva path
• Bodhisattva


  One who puts off Nirvana for the sake of others, makes a vow to Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha
• vinaya

  rules about monks and nuns
• sutra

  sayings and sermons of the buddha
• in theravada monks can only attain the detachment from craving which is necessary to realise nirvana