Lesson 1 - Introduction To Buddhism (PowerPoint)

Buddhism
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What is Buddhism?
Buddhism is a religion
People who follow the

religion of Buddhism
are known as Buddhists
When did Buddhism begin?
Buddhism began about 500 BC (about

500 years before Jesus was born)
Buddhism Christianity
begins begins
1000 BC 0BC / AD 2000 AD
Who started Buddhism?
Buddhism was founded

by Siddhattha Gotama
Siddhatta Gotama
became known as the
Buddha (which means
someone who has
gained Enlightenment)
Where did Buddhism begin?
Buddhism began in India
Who was Buddha and what did he do?
The Buddha was a rich and

powerful prince in India
When he was about 29 years old, he left

his father’s palace and saw people
suffering for the first time in his life
He was upset by what he had seen and

wanted to help people who were suffering
Who was Buddha and what did he do?
He gave up his possessions, cut

off his hair, put on a simple
robe and travelled around India
speaking with holy men
He believed that he found

‘Enlightenment’ (the truth about life
and why people suffered) and so he
started teaching other people what
he believed as he travelled
What did Buddha teach people?
Buddha taught the ‘Four Noble Truths’:
1) Nothing in life is perfect
2) This is because people are greedy and selfish
3) People can stop being greedy and selfish
4) People can do this by following the

‘Noble Eightfold Path’
What does the ‘Noble Eightfold Path’ involve?
1) Right understanding:
understanding the Buddha’s teaching
2) Right intention:
thinking about people in a kind way
3) Right speech:
not telling lies or speaking unkindly
4) Right action:
treating other living things well
5) Right livelihood:
doing a useful job that does not harm other people
6) Right effort:
always doing your best
7) Right state of mind:

being aware of what you are doing and feeling
8) Right concentration:
using meditation to help calm your mind
The ‘Eightfold Path can be shown on a Dharma

Wheel, also called a Dharmachakra
What do Buddhists believe?
Buddhists make five promises called

the ‘Five Moral Precepts’:
1) Not to kill or hurt living things
2) Not to steal and to be generous
3) Not cheating on your partner
4) Not lying or saying unkind things
5) Not using alcohol or drugs
What do Buddhists believe?
Buddhists believe in reincarnation:

a cycle of life, death and rebirth
Achieving ‘Enlightenment’ allows a person to

achieve Nibbana / Nirvana and escape this cycle
Nirvana Rebirth
Death Life
What did Buddha teach?
Buddha also taught the ‘Three Signs of Being’:
1) Nothing in life is perfect
2) Everything in the world changes

and nothing lasts forever
3) Each person’s ‘kamma’ (life force), which can

be good or bad, carries into their next life
What do Buddhists believe about the Buddha?
Buddhists do not believe that

the Buddha was a God, that God spoke to him
or that he was sent by God
Instead they think that the Buddha was an

ordinary man who gained Enlightenment
Altogether, Buddha’s teachings are

called Dhamma (or Dharma)
Are there different groups of Buddhists?
There are different groups of Buddhists who
• live in different countries
• have different holy books
• may follow the teachings of people other

than the first Buddha
The main groups of Buddhists are Theravada

Buddhists, Mahayana Buddhists and Tibetan Buddhists
Do Buddhists have a holy book?
The main Theravada Buddhist holy book is called the

Tipitaka (the three baskets of wisdom)
Originally and traditionally, the Tipitaka was written

on separate pieces of paper in special boxes
Today they are also available as modern books
Mahayana Buddhists have some other sacred texts,

as well as the Tipitaka (which they call ‘Tripitaka)
Two important Mahayana texts are the

Lotus Sutra and the Diamond Sutra
Tibetan Buddhists use the

Kanjur (Buddha’s teachings) and
the Tenjur (writings about the teachings),
as well as other books like the ‘Book of the Dead’
Do Buddhists have a sacred language?
The Tipitaka (the holy book of Theravada

Buddhists) is written in Pali
Do Buddhists have a sacred language?
The holy books of Mahayana

Buddhists are written in Sanskrit
What festivals do Buddhists celebrate?
Many Buddhist festivals are to celebrate

events in the life of the Buddha
Different types of Buddhist in different

places celebrate different festivals
Probably the most important Buddhist

festival is Wesak (or Buddha Day)
How do Buddhists celebrate festivals?
Buddhists may do some of the following to

celebrate a festival day:
Light lamps Decorate temples

Give presents
and candles with flowers and
and cards
streamers
What other times do Buddhists celebrate?
Buddhists also have events

for special times in their lives
They may celebrate at

the times of a baby being
born, joining a monastery
(where monks live),
marriage and death
Different Buddhists celebrate

different times in people’s lives and
celebrate them in different ways
Where do Buddhists go to pray?
The building that a Buddhist goes to pray

in is called a temple
Who are Buddhist religious leaders?
Buddhist religious leaders are called monks
They live together in buildings called monasteries
Buddhist monks live very simple lives and spend

most of their time meditating or reading
They own very few possessions and have some extra

rules that they have to live by
There are some Buddhist nuns (women),

but there are a lot more monks (who are men)
What clothes do Buddhists wear?
Buddhist monks and nuns

wear simple robes
The colour of the robes is different

in different places in the world
Other Buddhists dress in the

style of clothing of their
particular country, or they
may wear ‘Western’ clothing
What special symbols and objects do Buddhists have?
Dharma Wheel / Dharmachakra
Lotus flower
(rises from the mud to
become a beautiful flower,
as people should do)
Statues of the Buddha
There are also other special symbols

and objects for Buddhists
Where do Buddhists live?
Most Buddhists live in the ‘Far East’ in Asia

How many Buddhists are there?
There are about 500 million

Buddhists in the world
Which places are special for Buddhists?
The Shwe Dagon Pagoda

is the oldest Buddhist
temple in Myanmar
Eight hairs from the Buddha’s

head are said to be kept there
In 1774 AD, the king of

Myanmar ordered that the
pagoda should be covered in gold
There are also 1500 bells!
Which places are special for Buddhists?
Lumbini Bodh Gaya

(where the (where the Buddha
Buddha was born) gained Enlightenment)
There are also other special places for Buddhists,

like Sarnath, where the Buddha taught people for the
first time after he had gained Enlightenment
References
Festival Time: A Year of Buddhist Festivals by Flora York
Our Places of Worship: Buddhism by Honor Head
Word Religions Today: Buddhism by Kathryn Walker
Religions of the World: Buddhism by Sue Penney
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_by_country
Source of images
Map of India - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IndiaOnWorldMap.png
Loose-leaf Tipitaka - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tipitaka_scripture.jpg
Set of 3 Tipitaka books - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TipitakaMSP.jpg
Part of Lotus Sutra - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sugawara_Mitsushige_Lotus_Sutra,_09.jpg
Part of Kanjur - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eight_Title_Pages_from_a_Kanjur_(Buddhist_Canon)_LACMA_M.86.343.1-

.8_(4_of_6).jpg
Dharmachakra - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dharmachakra,_withprint_(en).svg
Global distribution map - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buddhist_distribution.png
Pali and Sanskrit - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanskrit-Pali_Faulmann_Gesch_T10.jpg
Wesak lights - https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Vesak_in_SriLanka.jpg
Decorating temple - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flowers_for_a_wedding.JPG
Head-shaving -
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Candidate_for_the_Buddhist_novice_in_the_Buddhist_religion_priesthood_03.jpg
Marriage - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marriage_in_Thailand.JPG
Pie chart of religions –

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Major_world_religion_groups_(corrected_Pew_Research_Center_statistics_for_2010).png
Shwe Dagon Pagoda - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SDGYGN.JPG
Lumbini - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Monastery_of_World_Peace,_Lumbini.jpg
Bodh Gaya - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Great_Buddha_Statue,_Bodh_Gaya.jpg
All other images www.clipart.com or www.clker.com

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Buddhism

People who follow the

Buddhism began about 500 BC (about

1000 BC 0BC / AD 2000 AD

Buddhism was founded

Buddhism began in India

The Buddha was a rich and

When he was about 29 years old, he left

He was upset by what he had seen and

He gave up his possessions, cut

He believed that he found

Buddha taught the ‘Four Noble Truths’:

1) Nothing in life is perfect

2) This is because people are greedy and selfish

3) People can stop being greedy and selfish

4) People can do this by following the

7) Right state of mind:

The ‘Eightfold Path can be shown on a Dharma

Buddhists make five promises called

1) Not to kill or hurt living things

2) Not to steal and to be generous

3) Not cheating on your partner

4) Not lying or saying unkind things

5) Not using alcohol or drugs

Buddhists believe in reincarnation:

Achieving ‘Enlightenment’ allows a person to

Buddha also taught the ‘Three Signs of Being’:

1) Nothing in life is perfect

2) Everything in the world changes

3) Each person’s ‘kamma’ (life force), which can

Buddhists do not believe that

Instead they think that the Buddha was an

Altogether, Buddha’s teachings are

There are different groups of Buddhists who

• live in different countries

• have different holy books

• may follow the teachings of people other

The main groups of Buddhists are Theravada

The main Theravada Buddhist holy book is called the

Originally and traditionally, the Tipitaka was written

Today they are also available as modern books

Mahayana Buddhists have some other sacred texts,

Two important Mahayana texts are the

Tibetan Buddhists use the

The Tipitaka (the holy book of Theravada

The holy books of Mahayana

Many Buddhist festivals are to celebrate

Different types of Buddhist in different

Probably the most important Buddhist

Buddhists may do some of the following to

Light lamps Decorate temples

Buddhists also have events

They may celebrate at

Different Buddhists celebrate

The building that a Buddhist goes to pray

Buddhist religious leaders are called monks

They live together in buildings called monasteries

Buddhist monks live very simple lives and spend

They own very few possessions and have some extra

There are some Buddhist nuns (women),

Buddhist monks and nuns

The colour of the robes is different

Other Buddhists dress in the