Ch 3 Buddhism Inquizitive
Buddhism was one of many new religious movements that developed in India around the fifth century BCE. What did all these new religious movements share?
a critique of the priestly authority of the Brahmin caste
In mainstream Buddhism and Theravada Buddhism today, a(n) ___ is an individual who achieves enlightenment and ceases participating in the cycle of reincarnation.
arhat
While all Buddhists work to eradicate suffering, or ___, the exemplar of one who has successfully eradicated suffering morphs between branches of Buddhism, with mainstream Buddhists working to become an enlightened ___, while Mahayana Buddhists endeavor to become a compassionate ___.
dukkha, arhat, bodhisattva
In addition to concentration and insight meditation, Buddhists may also engage in ___ ("loving-kindness") meditation, in which they aim to eventually cultivate a form of loving-kindness for the all sentient beings.
metta
Which of the following texts has been proclaimed by some Mahayana Buddhists as the only Buddhist scripture that leads to Buddhahood?
the Lotus Sutra
Which of these BEST describes what is represented by this Buddhist image, known as the Bhavachakra?
the cycle of life, death, and rebirth known as samsara
Which of the following statements BEST characterizes early Buddhist attitudes toward the Hindu concept of brahman?
Early Buddhists disagreed as to whether it was important to deny brahman's existence.
Like early and Theravada Buddhists, Mahayana Buddhists say that only monks and nuns can achieve enlightenment.
False
Pilgrimage is a relatively recent phenomena in the Buddhist tradition, reflecting increasing access to both cars and air travel in the Buddhist world.
False
There has been only one Buddha in human history.
False
In Myanmar, ultranationalist Buddhist monks have encouraged mob violence toward an ethnic minority called the Rohingya, who are Muslim. Which of the following conclusions should scholars of religious studies draw from the fact that Buddhists engage in mob violence?
It is simply not the case that Buddhism is a "religion of peace". All human beings have a propensity for violence.
Who built this pillar photographed here in Sarnath, India, where the Buddha gave his first sermon?
King Ashoka
Kokoro is a Buddhist. Her practice consists of chanting the name of Amida Buddha. By doing this, Kokoro believes Amida will use his abilities so that in her next life she will be reborn in his Buddha field. Kokoro MOST LIKELY practices ___ Buddhism.
Pure land
If your friend Katherine is visualizing a mandala as part of her Buddhist meditation practice, she probably practices which form of Buddhism?
Tibetan Buddhism
According to early Buddhism, who is capable of becoming an enlightened arhat?
only Buddhism monks or nuns
The bodhisattva depicted here in this elaborate statue from the Song dynasty has been called by many different names. Which of the following is one of this bodhisattva's names?
Avalokiteshvara Guanyin Kannon
While meditating under the Bodhi tree, Siddhartha Gautama was tempted by ___ to give up his meditation. Persisting, he achieved enlightenment and earned the title of ___.
Mara, Buddha
Which of the following BEST represents the Buddhist teaching imparted in the Arrow Sermon?
One should not spend their life in fruitless speculation about the creation of the universe and the nature of the cosmos. Rather, one should work to end one's own suffering.
What is this monk doing?
He is performing prostrations to show devotion to a sacred object.
Which of the following is an example of a textual encounter with Buddhism?
an American college student reading a translation of the Lotus Sutra
Click on Siddhartha Gautama in this painting of the Four Sights.
top
Why is Bodh Gaya significant in the Buddhist religious tradition?
Bodh Gaya is said to be the place where Siddhartha Gautama was enlightened and became the Buddha.
The bodhisattva depicted here in this elaborate statue from the Song dynasty has been called by many different names. Which of the following is one of this bodhisattva's names?
Guanyin Kannon Avalokiteshvara
Which of the following statements MOST accurately describes the Mahayana Buddhist idea of upaya?
The Buddha said seemingly contradictory things at different times because he understood that different people need to hear different things.
In a famous story in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha is likened to a father standing outside a burning house with his children inside. Which of the following statements BEST summarizes the moral of this story?
The Buddha used skillful means to convince people there are many forms of Buddhism. In reality, there is only one.
Which branch of Buddhism is concentrated in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asian countries like Thailand?
Theravada or mainstream Buddhism
Carlos is a Buddhist and meditates regularly. When he meditates, he does not try to move, chant, or visualize anything. He says he is "just sitting." Carlos MOST LIKELY practices ___ Buddhism.
Zen
Which of the following comprise the three marks of existence, according to Buddhists?
anicca (impermanence) dukkha (suffering) anatta (no soul)
One popular Mahayana school took its name from the word "meditation," which is ___ in Sanskrit, ___ in Chinese, and ___ in Japanese.
dhyana, Chan, Zen
Identify the five skandhas, or aggregates, that mainstream Buddhists believe make up the self.
feelings perception consciousness conditioning factors matter
Which of the following comprise the Three Jewels in which Buddhists take refuge?
sangha dharma Buddha
After his enlightenment on the Diamond Throne in ___, Siddhartha Gautama supposedly travelled to ___, where he gave his first sermon and gained his first disciples.
Bodh Gaya, Sarnath
Which of the following is a trait or doctrinal concept that Buddhism shares with Hinduism?
Both Buddhism and Hinduism believe that humanity is faced with the problem of "samsara," an ever-flowing cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Both Buddhism and Hinduism offer two different tracks for practitioners wherein some seek the ultimate goal of escaping the cycle of reincarnation, while others seek karmic merit and a better rebirth. Both Buddhism and Hinduism believe that the cycle of rebirth is fueled by the positive and negative consequences of actions known as karma.
Arrange the following countries in order from largest total population of Buddhists to smallest.
China, Japan, Thailand, India, The United States
Which of the following features likely MOST helped Mahayana Buddhism to become more popular than mainstream Buddhism?
Mahayana Buddhism emphasized other-help over self-effort in the form of devotion to numerous Buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Which of the following represents an innovation Mahayana Buddhism brought to mainstream Buddhism?
Mahayana Buddhism opened the goal of enlightenment not only to monks and nuns but also to lay people. Mahayana Buddhism argued that the five skandhas were empty of inherent existence and that everything from gender to the self was formed by composites, which were themselves empty. Mahayana Buddhism emphasized the role of bodhisattvas as beings who had elected to forgo the goal of attaining nirvana so that they could remain in the cycle of suffering to benefit those in need. Rather than becoming an arhat, Mahayana Buddhism said that all who attained enlightenment would become buddhas working to further save suffering beings.
Match the characteristics below to either mainstream Buddhism or Mahayana Buddhism.
Mainstream arhat exemplar anatta (self is empty) one Buddha popular in South and Southeast Asia self-effort earlier school Mahayana later school shunyata (everything is empty) popular in East Asia many buddhas bodhisattva exemplar
Your Buddhist friend Aimee's grandmother is passing away, and you have come to deliver some food to help the family. While at Aimee's home, you notice that they have calming Vietnamese music playing in the grandmother's room and flowers all around the ailing woman. Aimee also asks that you keep your voice quiet when you enter the home to keep her grandmother calm. Why might Aimee and her family be so concerned with keeping her dying grandmother calm?
Many Buddhists believe that the state of one's mind at death can significantly affect one's future rebirth.
Place these events in the correct chronological order.
Reign of Ashoka, Mauryan emperor and Buddhism patron. Indian Buddhist monks reportedly take Buddhism to China. Composition of the Mahayana Buddhist Lotus Sutra. Buddhism is adopted in Japan.
Which of the following statements BEST characterizes the earliest European understandings of Buddhism?
Roman Catholic missionaries to Asia were the first to identify and describe local people practicing a religion we identify today as Buddhism, though they did not use the term.
Which of the following BEST describes the causes of suffering, according to Buddhists?
Suffering arises from craving, which begins in ignorance of the true nature of reality and of one's self.
Which of the following statements about tantra are accurate?
Tantra is an esoteric tradition not taught to ordinary Buddhists. Tantra emphasizes the divine power of the feminine known as shakti. Tantra is often transmitted directly from teacher to student. Tantra emphasizes overcoming dualistic thinking, especially regarding the idea of clean and unclean things.
The Heart Sutra states: "Form is empty; and emptiness is form." It logically follows that the Four Noble Truths are actually empty.
True
The majority of the world's Buddhists are Mahayana Buddhists.
True
Tenzin is a Buddhist monk. He has great respect for his teacher, whom he believes is a reincarnated tulku that has taught monks of his lineage for many lifetimes. Tenzin also believes there are secret teachings that can only be transmitted directly by his teacher. Tenzin MOST LIKELY practices ___ Buddhism.
Vajrayana
On what festival do Buddhists often perform the ritual of bathing the Buddha, shown here.
Vesak or Wesak
Many people define "religion" as what people believe about God. Buddhism presents a challenge to this definition. Which of the following represents the BEST response to the challenge Buddhism raises to our understanding of what "religion" is?
We should broaden our definition of "religion" and consider that religions can exist without a divine figure.
Which of the following statements MOST accurately describes the Buddhist concept of the five skandhas?
What we normally think of as a "self" is actually a composition of matter, feelings, perception, conditioning factors, and consciousness
Which of the following is an example of Engaged Buddhism?
monks in Thailand protesting deforestation
Select the four core teachings of Zen attributed to Bodhidharma
not relying upon words and letters maintaining a special transmission outside the teaching seeing one's own nature and becoming a buddha pointing directly at the human mind
A Buddhist ___ or sacred text always begins with the phrase "Thus have I heard," reflecting its origins as the remembered oral teachings of the Buddha. Such texts eventually coalesced into the "Three Baskets" of Buddhist teachings: the sutta basket of doctrinal discourse, the ___ basket of monastic discipline, and the ___ basket of higher teachings or philosophical thought.
sutra, vinaya, abhidhamma
