Dharmic and Daoic Handouts PDF

INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGION AND BELIEF SYSTEMS 2ND QUARTER HANDOUTS DHARMIC RELIGIONS THERAVADA BUDDHISM Hinduism - One of the most prac cal among the world’s...

INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGION AND BELIEF SYSTEMS 2ND QUARTER HANDOUTS DHARMIC RELIGIONS THERAVADA BUDDHISM Hinduism - One of the most prac cal among the world’s - Oldest and most complex of all religions great religions - Hindu – from the Persian word hindu - Penetrated East Asia first but was rejected meaning river because of being too strict - Originally knowns as “Arya Dharma” or the - Belief system intends to meet basic human “Aryan Way” needs and solve humankind’s spiritual - Dharma for them means an individual’s problem without depending on supernatural appropriate behavior or duty to be fulfilled forces. in observance of a custom or law - “School of elder monks” or Southern School of Buddhism SACRED SCRIPTURES o Draws on the collected teachings of - Passed down throughout genera ons by the oldest recorded texts of Buddhist music, recita on, dance, and drama texts to become its central precept, - Wri en in Sanskrit the Pali Canon - Two classes: Shru and Smri - Siddhartha Gautama – le his family, wealth, - SHRUTI – “that which is heard” and social status a er venturing outside the o Eternal truths that were passed orally palace. un l the beginning of the present age o Vedas – “knowledge” or “sacred lore” SACRED SCRIPTURES o Upanishads – “si ng down nearby” - Parinirvana – Siddhartha’s death - SMRITI – “that which has been remembered o First Buddhist Council was convened o Wri ng reinforce Shru and are to recite his teachings or Dhamma/ interpret by sages and scholars Dharma o Ramayana – “story of Rama” - Pitaka – basket – referred to the receptacles o Mahabharata – 100k verses where the palm leaf manuscripts were stored by the monks BELIEFS AND DOCTRINES - Tripitakan / Tipitaka – three baskets - Hinduism offers many paths to salva on or o Su a pitaka – conven onal teaching Bhak Yoga delivered by Siddhartha - Trimur : Brahma the creator, Vishnu, the o Vinaya Pitaka – disciplinary code preserver, and Shiva, the destroyer required of Buddhist monks (bhikkus) - Routes to Moksha (libera on from the cycle and nuns (Bhikkhunis) or death and rebirth) o Abhiddhamma Pitaka – moral o Every soul dies and is reborn anew in psychology new form (samsara) o One’s deeds have an effect in this or BELIEFS AND DOCTRINES future life - Gautama never intended to start a religion o One may escape the weary round of - His teachings focused more on ethics and death and birth self-understanding o Within every human is an eternal soul - No place for God or savior as salva on or Atman that is being reborn many en rely lies within anyone’s control mes an in various forms in - Gautama never claimed to be a savior but a accordance with the moral law or guide and teacher karma - Soul or atman do not exist as people live in a state of nonsoulness or anatman WORSHIP AND OBSERVANCES - Does not preach that humans have an - Fes vals eternal and indestruc ble soul soul o Diwali – Fes val of lights; India’s - Nothing is permanent in this world biggest and most important holiday - All condi oned things are transitory and  similar to Christmas passing - Pilgrimages are also undertaken by Hindus - Humans do not have a permanent, throughout India to visit the sacred shrines unchanging sou, real soul that dwells within of their dei es them - No soul is being reborn because there is no permanence in anything  INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGION AND BELIEF SYSTEMS 2ND QUARTER HANDOUTS - Triratna or Three Jewels: summarizes the CONFUCIANISM Buddhist faith: I take refuge in the Buddha, in - As a philosophy: to revive the ancient the teachings (Dharma), and in the Sangha religion of the Zhou dynasty; seldom - FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS – suffering is due to touched on religious ma ers the people being unsa sfied - Gives primary a en on to human o 1st – Suffering can be experienced rela onships throughout the different stages of life; dukkha (unsa sfactoriness) is the DOCTRINES AND BELIEFS origin of all problems - RECTIFICATION OF NAMES (Zhengming) – to o 2nd – samodaya (craving/ desire), the return to the Way, people must play their cause of suffering assigned roles in society rd o 3 – nirodha (cessa on of desire) – - Mengzhi – all human beings are born with drop the bonds of craving innate goodness and can be cul vated th o 4 – magga, termina on of the through proper educa on and self-discipline cravings and desire; this is the path (li) towards modera on or the “Middle - Xunzhi – human nature is basically evil but way” can be improved through self-cul va on - EIGHTFOLD PATH - Ren(benevolence) – can be achieved by o Right view extending one’s filial love for parents and o Right inten on siblings o Right speech - “Do not do unto others, what you don’t want o Right ac on others do unto you” o Right livelihood - Filial piety is an important virtue o Right effort o Right mindfulness DAOISM o Right concentra on - Founded by Lao -tzu meaning old master - LAW OF DEPENDENT ORIGINATION – with o Authored Dao De Jing (the Book of the everything built upon a set of rela ons, it Way and its Power) follows that every effect has a definite cause, - Considered to be a religion for the lazy and every cause has a definite effect - Wu Wei - means “no behavior” or “doing o Nothing comes into being by mere Nothing” accident and ac ons do not happen o Also means “to do without doing in a random way (Wei-Wu Wei) - Impermanence – unavoidable fact of human o Taking li le ac on as possible existence o Advocated Go with the flow a tude o Old age, sickness, dying, decay, & by cul va ng a state of being death wherein our ac ons are in harmony o When we are released from samsara with the natural cycles of the (recurring cycle of life and death), we universe. escape from such phenomenon o Let nature run its course o Opposite: Yu Wei – taking ac on MAHAYANA BUDDHISM - “Great Vehicle” SHINTOISM - Aims to extend religious authority to a larger - Kami worship number of people. - Purifica on is the key concept - Believes that Siddhartha secretly taught key - More of a way of life than a religion principles to chosen people - Amaterasu O Mikami is their sun god - Siddhartha is a benevolent celes al being - People are regarded as superior beings, and not a human being everyone is considered a poten al kami - Siddhartha was not the only Buddha whose life on earth is des ned to be filled - Were able to penetrate new places without with blessings fear of reprisal from na ve religions since - People are basically good and have no they adapted local dei es and accepted concept of original sin them as manifesta ons of Buddha - Does not have a clear dis nc on between - Bodhisa vas delay their own enlightenment what is right and wrong in order to help other achieve theirs - Very important to maintain physical, external, and material purity  INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGION AND BELIEF SYSTEMS 2ND QUARTER HANDOUTS - Blood is regarded as impure - Death is also impure o Women who are menstrua ng and o Worst form of impurity just gave birth, are impure o Applies Buddhist prac ces during o In rural areas, some women are death separated from their family during o They believe that even the dead are their me of the month allowed to visit the world of the living o Menstrua on houses are built for during Shinto fes vals them to isolate themselves in.