Lesson 10.

Mahayana
Buddhist Customs
and Traditions

Introduction to World Religions and Belief Systems

General Academic Strand | Humanities and Social Sciences
Mahayana Buddhism
focuses on the
path of the bodhisattvas.

It teaches a way to be
liberated from all
forms of sufferings.

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Essential
Question

What are the major doctrines and practices of

Mahayana Buddhism?

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 Learning
Competency
Explain the core teaching of Mahayana
Buddhism is to seek complete enlightenment
for the benefit of all living beings through
insight and compassion (HUMSS_WRB12- II/IVc-
10.3).

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Learning ● Identify the doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism.
Objective
● Describe the customs and tradition of
Mahayana Buddhists.

● Recognize the core teachings of Mahayana

Buddhism.

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To attain full
enlightenment,
Buddhists also
performed religious
practices and follow
doctrines to bring
blessing to everyone.

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 Quotation Analysis
Explore
Study the quotation. Answer the following questions.

“Pain is certain, suffering is optional.”

- Gautama Buddha

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 Guide Question
Explore
1. What is your interpretation of the
quotation?

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 Guide Question
Explore
2. Why do people experience pain and
suffering?

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 Guide Question
Explore
3. What is the connection of sufferings
to the teachings of Buddhism?

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 Definition of Doctrine

● a set of beliefs and principles taught and followed by a

particular group in a religion

● Mahayana Buddhists has its sacred text that serves as the

basis of their doctrines.

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 Doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism

Some of the doctrines that Mahayana Buddhists:

● The Four Noble Truths

● The Eightfold Path
● The Six Perfections to become a Bodhisattva

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 Four Noble Truths

● summarizes the teachings of

Buddha

● The Four Noble Truths were

the topic at the first sermon
that Buddha underwent after
his enlightenment.

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 Four Noble Truths
First Noble Truth

sufferings were subjected to all

beings, regardless of their status.

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 Four Noble Truths
First Noble Truth

Physical Suffering: aging, disease, and death

Emotional Suffering: brought by unfulfilled desires and

separation from loved ones

Mental Suffering: can also be experienced such as ignorance

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 Four Noble Truths
First Noble Truth

teaches that to eliminate suffering, we need to first recognize its

reality

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 Four Noble Truths
Second Noble Truth

The root cause of the

suffering was desire.

Desire creates emptiness

within oneself.

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 Four Noble Truths
Second Noble Truth

The desire that causes sufferings was made out of ignorance.

We mistakenly believe that the things we usually crave will not

be gone.

This view leads us to the inability to detach ourselves from

desirable things.

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 Four Noble Truths
Third Noble Truth

to end the sufferings, we

need to eliminate the
desires we have out of
ignorance.

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 Four Noble Truths
Third Noble Truth

Suffering out of ignorance is not one’s fate, we have options to

escape out of it.

We need to be enlightened about important things in life and

practice detaching from the things that are impermanent.

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 Four Noble Truths
Fourth Noble Truth

Buddha taught the “Middle Way”

where people will find happiness,
peace, and eventually,
enlightenment in a moderate way.

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 Four Noble Truths
Fourth Noble Truth

Buddha points out two things:

● eliminate too much attachment to desirable things
● avoidance of too much asceticism

Buddha also provides us the Eightfold Path that will lead us to

end suffering.

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 Eightfold Path

The Buddha's Middle Way is

summarized in the Eightfold
Path.

It discusses that the person

must embrace these teachings
in order to live correctly and
attain liberation from suffering.

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 Eightfold Path

The Path Meaning Dimensions of

Person’s Character

Right View Correcting the way of viewing

the world and four noble
Gaining insights and
truths
wisdom
Right Thought Avoiding thoughts of anger,
greed, and selfishness.

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Eightfold Path

The Path Meaning Dimensions of

Person’s Character

Right Speech Avoiding lies and harsh

words
Morality or good
Right Action Avoiding evil acts that may
conduct
hurt any beings

Right Livelihood Pursuing livelihood that

hurts no one and earns a
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living in a righteous way
Eightfold Path

The Path Meaning Dimensions of

Person’s Character

Right Effort Improving oneself while

avoiding extremes
Mental development
Right Focusing energy on positive
Mindfulness things that permit active
observation and control

Right Training mind to be focused

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Concentration that brings inner peace
Check Your Why is it important for Buddhists to know the
Progress
concept of “suffering”? Explain your answer.

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 Six Perfections to become Bodhisattva

A bodhisattva must pass six

perfections before attaining
nirvana or “Buddha-hood”.

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 Six Perfections to become Bodhisattva

Sanskrit word for perfection is Paramitas. It means to cross

over the shore.

This implies crossing from the sea of sufferings to the shore of

happiness.

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Six Perfections to become Bodhisattva

Perfections Description
(Paramitas)

Generosity Giving a sincere desire to benefit others, without

expectation of reward

Morality Purifying oneself from immoral conduct and

dispositions

Patience Practicing endurance of personal hardship; patience

with others; and acceptance of the truth 30
Six Perfections to become Bodhisattva

Perfections Description
(Paramitas)

Perseverance Being pleased to perform virtuous actions and

believing that there is nothing we cannot achieve

Meditation Cultivating the mind to achieve clarity and insights

Insights Representing transcendent knowledge that all

phenomena are without self-essence

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 From your point of view, how do these six
Check Your
Progress perfections help Buddhists attain
enlightenment? Explain your answer.

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 Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions

Buddhist practice sort of religious rituals to aid the worshipper

on their journey towards enlightenment.

As Mahayana Buddhism introduced to many countries, religious

practices were that varied from place to place.

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Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions

Mahayana temples were

considered sacred places.

In the temples, they pray and

chant to pay their respects to
Buddha and bodhisattvas.

They also offer vegetarian food

and light incense.
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 Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions

Buddhists also undertake a

pilgrimage to the Buddhist
sites.

Meditational practices were

also done as a fundamental
practice in all forms of
Buddhism.

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 Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions
Mahayana New Year

Some Buddhists celebrated the new year on December 31 or

January 1.

Others celebrated it on the first full moon of January.

Celebrated by giving honor and offering prayer to Buddha

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 Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions

Some of the symbols that also plays an important part in the

Mahayana Buddhism:

Lotus symbolizes the purity of the enlightened mind amidst

the sufferings.

Mudras are used hand gestures during extensive meditation.

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 Mahayana Buddhists Customs and Traditions

The Wheel of Dharma represents the eightfold path. The

three turnings of Wheels of Dharma are as follows:

● First Turning: Teaching of the Four Noble Truths.

● Second Turning: Emphasizing the concept of emptiness
and compassion
● Third Turning: Focusing on attaining Buddha-nature

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Check Your How do these religious practices uplift the
Progress
spirituality of the Mahayana Buddhists?

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 A 41-pound statue of a
In Philippine
Context
golden female deity
was discovered on the
riverbank of Wawa in
Agusan.

This was named the

Golden Tara.

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In Philippine
Context
Others suggest that the image could
emphasize the tradition of Mahayana
Buddhism. It was because of the manner of
the statue’s sitting, the calmness of facial
experience, elongated ears, and halo around
the head.

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 Correct the Sentence. Change the underlined word
to make the statement correct.
Try This!

1. The Six Perfections were the topic at the first

sermon that Buddha underwent after his
enlightenment.

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 Correct the Sentence. Change the underlined word
to make the statement correct.
Try This!

2. Emotional sufferings include aging, disease, and

death.

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 Correct the Sentence. Change the underlined word
to make the statement correct.
Try This!

3. The root cause of the sufferings that human

experience was imperfection.

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 Correct the Sentence. Change the underlined word
to make the statement correct.
Try This!

4. Buddha taught the “Nirvana” where people will

find happiness, peace and eventually, enlightenment.

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 Correct the Sentence. Change the underlined word
to make the statement correct.
Try This!

5. The path of Right Decision refers to avoidance of

evil acts that may hurt any beings.

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 ● Mahayana Buddhism has religious doctrines that serve as a
Wrap- guide on achieving a more peaceful life that is free from
Up
suffering. The doctrines are as follows:
○ The Four Noble Truths is the topic of the first sermon of
Buddha.
■ The Truth of Suffering
■ The Truth of the Origin of Suffering
■ The Truth of the End of Suffering
■ The Truth of the Path of the End of Suffering

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Wrap- ○ Eightfold Path discusses that a person must embrace
Up these teachings to live correctly and attain liberation from
suffering.
○ Six Perfection must pass by bodhisattva before attaining
nirvana or “Buddha-hood”.
● Mahayana temples are considered sacred places where
followers pray and chant to pay their respects to Buddha and
bodhisattvas.
● Mahayana New Year is celebrated to give honor to Buddha
and serves as a time for meditation and self-reflection.

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Challenge
Yourself
Answer the question.

Based on Mahayana Buddhism's doctrines,

what are the ways to eliminate human
suffering? Explain your answer.

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Photo Credits

● Slide 1: A Lotus, one of the eight auspicious symbols in Mahāyāna by Christopher J. Fynn is licensed under
CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikipedia

● Slide 2: 016 Buddha Teaching by Photo Dharma is licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

● Slide 6: Chinese Buddhist Monks Ceremony Hangzhou by Jon Bragg is licensed under CC BY 2.0 via
Wikimedia Commons

● Slide 14: sadness-717439__340 by Pixabay is licensed under CC0 via Pixabay

● Slide 17: desire-1819895__340 by Pixabay is licensed under CC0 via Pixabay

● Slide 19: thinking-4695538__340 by Pixabay is licensed under CC0 via Pixabay

● Slide 21: Emaciated Siddhartha Fasting Gautama Buddha by Akuppa John Wigham is licensed under CC BY 2.0
via Wikimedia Commons

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Photo Credits

● Slide 23: Dharmachakra by Chris Falter is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
● Slide 28: bodhisattva-3993854__340 by Pixabay is licensed under CC0 via Pixabay

● Slide 35: meditation-2214532__340 by Pixabay is licensed under CC0 via Pixabay

● Slide 40: Filippine, provincia di agusan, immagine hindu, statuetta in oro massiccio, xiii secolo by Sailko is
licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

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 Bibliography

Nhcp. “Maria Clara and the Golden Tara.” PIA News. Philippine Information Agency, December 31, -1.
https://pia.gov.ph/features/articles/1062544.

Cornelio, Jayeel Serrano, Mark Joseph Tumada Calano, and Manuel Victor Jamias Sapitula. Introduction to World
Religions and Belief Systems. Manila, Philippines: Rex Book Store, 2016.

Napoleon, Mabaquiao M. The Padayon Series: Introduction to World Religion and Belief System. Quezon City,
Philippines: Phoenix Publishing House, 2018.

“Mahayana Buddhism and Tradition.” and Tradition. Accessed January 2, 2021.

https://www.burmese-art.com/blog/mahayana-buddhism.

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