Bellringer

• Complete the word search on your desk. You have either a word search with key terms from Hinduism or Buddhism

Hinduism

History of Hinduism

• Hinduism cannot be traced to one founder with a single idea, unlike most religions.

• It was created in India• The exact beginnings of Hinduism are

impossible to determine, since they evolved as time and culture impacted the religious ideas of early India.

Hindu Beliefs

• Truth is eternal– Hindus pursue knowledge and understanding of

the Truth

• Brahman is truth and reality– Brahman as the one true God who is formless,

limitless, all-inclusive, and eternal. Brahman is not an abstract concept; it is a real entity that encompasses everything (seen and unseen) in the universe.

Hindu Beliefs

• The Vedas are the ultimate authority– Ancient scriptures; have no beginning and no end– They will remain even after the universe is

destroyed• Everyone should strive to achieve dharma

– Dharma can be described as right conduct, righteousness, moral law, and duty. Anyone who makes dharma central to one’s life strives to do the right thing, according to one’s duty and abilities, at all times.

Hindu Beliefs• Individual souls (atmans) are immortal

– Reincarnation• People try to achieve understanding and release from life in

this world. Can’t be achieved in one lifetime.• Rebirth – a soul is born again and again until understanding

is reached• The goal of the individual soul is moksha

– Moksha is liberation: the soul’s release from the cycle of death and rebirth. It occurs when the soul unites with Brahman by realizing its true nature. Several paths can lead to this realization and unity: the path of duty, the path of knowledge, and the path of devotion (unconditional surrender to God).

Beliefs

• Karma (good and bad deeds) follow a soul through reincarnations.

• There is one supreme god, Brahman, and all of the other deities are its forms and expansions.

• Shiva – the creator and destroyer• Vishnu – the preserver• Devi – the Protecting Mother

Upanishads

• collection of Vedic texts which contain the earliest emergence of some of the central religious concepts of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism

Caste System• A person’s caste is determined by birth• Karma is believed to influence your new incarnation by

which caste you are born into– Brahmin

• the seers, the reflective ones, the priests.– Kshatriyas

• the born administrators (formerly nobles, rajahs, and warriors).– Vaisyas

• the producers, the craftsmen, artisans, farmers.– Shudras

• the unskilled laborers or laboring class– Untouchables

• Outside the caste system

"Om," in Hindu thought this image represents a sacred sound.

Buddhism

History of Buddhism

• Founded in the late 6th century B.C.E in India• The founder of the religion is Siddhartha

Gautama (the "Buddha")• Around the time that the Hindu belief in

reincarnation became widespread and when the Upanishads were written.

Siddhartha Gautama

Buddhist Beliefs• Four Noble Truths

– Dukkha: Suffering exists: (Suffering is real and almost universal. Suffering has many causes: loss, sickness, pain, failure, the impermanence of pleasure.)

– Samudaya: There is a cause for suffering. (It is the desire to have and control things. It can take many forms: craving of sensual pleasures; the desire for fame; the desire to avoid unpleasant sensations, like fear, anger or jealousy.)

– Nirodha: There is an end to suffering. (Suffering ceases with the final liberation of Nirvana (a.k.a. Nibbana). The mind experiences complete freedom, liberation and non-attachment. It lets go of any desire or craving.)

– Magga: In order to end suffering, you must follow the Eightfold Path.

Beliefs

• Nirvana– Goal of the Buddhist path

• The Eightfold Path– the path to nirvana, comprising eight aspects in

which an aspirant must become practiced: right views, intention, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration.

The Eight-Spoked Dharma Wheel or 'Dharmachakra' symbolises the Buddha's turning the Wheel of Truth or Law