Buddhism Exam Study Guide PDF

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Survey of World Religions Dr. Hagele Buddhism Exam Study Guide 1. What is the Triple Refuge? What are some other names for this central concept? 2. Discuss several differences between the religion of the brahmins and what the book calls Ganges Spirituality at the time of the Buddha. 3. When does a buddha generally enter the world? What does he do (hint: wheel)? 4. Be familiar with the bodhisattva vow taken by the man who would eventually become the historical Buddha. What are the Jataka? 5. Discuss the life of the historical Buddha, including his conception and birth, the prophecies about his future, the Four Sights, the Departure from the palace life, his mastery of yoga and later asceticism, his battle with Mara, his enlightenment, his first teaching to the ascetics, and his eventual death or parinirvana. 6. List and describe the Four Noble Truths. How do the Three Marks of Existence fit into these Truths? Break down the Eightfold Path using the Three Instructions. 7. Without memorizing the 12 steps, describe the concept of Dependent Origination in relation to the 12 spokes. 8. What are the two meanings of the sangha? 9. Discuss the Three Baskets of sacred texts (name, define, describe). 10. Who was Ashoka? What was his significance for the tradition (hint: ideal king, pillars, missionaries)? 11. Be familiar with the Theravada sect as one of eighteen early Buddhist sects. What does Theravada mean? How does it view the Buddha, and how does it feel about sacred texts? 12. What is one possible reason why Theravada Buddhism became the official form of Buddhism in Southeast Asian nations in the 11th-15th centuries (hint: traditional)? 13. Describe the four aspects of Mahayana Buddhism discussed in lecture. 14. Briefly describe the philosophical positions of Madhyamika and Yogacara. 15. What was one of the vows taken by the person who would eventually be Amitabha? What is the basic structure of Indian Pure Land Buddhism (beliefs, practices, goals)? 16. Who emerges in Chinese Pure Land, and why?

17. What does “Chan” mean? Who is its founder, and to whom does it trace its lineage (hint: flower)? How does Chan understand the path to enlightenment? What is the difference between the Caodong and Linji subgroups? What is zazen? What are koans? 18. Be familiar with the monks’ involvement in politics during the Nara period of Japan, as well as the Heian attempt to reform Buddhism in its headquarters on Mount Hiei. 19. Briefly describe the emphases of Tendai Buddhism in the Heian period. 20. What is Zen? How do the Rinzai and Soto subgroups understand enlightenment differently? 21. Why did Honen turn to Pure Land Buddhism? What is the nenbutsu? What domestic decision did Shinran make that forever shaped the Japanese Buddhist leaders? 22. Who was Nichiren? Why did he leave Mount Hiei? How is the structure of Nichiren similar to Pure Land? 23. Be familiar with the meaning of the following names for Vajrayana: Diamond/Thunderbolt Vehicle, Third Turning, Northern Buddhism, Mantrayana, Esoteric Buddhism, Tantric Buddhism. 24. What are mandalas, and how do they assist in the tantric practices of visual meditation? 25. What was the Buddha’s opinion on rituals (animal sacrifice, moral emphasis, avoid dependence)? 26. What is Buddha-puja? 27. List the five moral precepts. 28. Describe the rituals of Almsgiving, dana, and the Buddha Day Festival. 29. What is vipassana? 30. Be familiar with the Mahayana practices of the bodhisattva vow, bodhisattva veneration, meditation, koan training, stupa veneration, and mantra repetition. 31. How does Obon represent the Mahayana tendency to adopt practices based on local customs? 32. How might the Bon religion have helped cause The Tibetan Book of the Dead? What is the basic message of this Book? 33. What are some of the early symbols used to depict the Buddha? 34. How is Maitreya (Milo) viewed by many Chinese Buddhists? 35. What is Dual Shinto? 36. Why did Buddhism mostly vanish in North and South India? Describe the four factors in the 20th-century revitalization of Buddhism in India.

37. How has the relationship between Buddhism and politics changed in most Southeast Asian nations? Giving examples and connecting the ruler back to Ashoka, how is Thailand different? 38. Discuss the ambiguity in Buddhism’s historical treatment of women. Focus on the Buddha’s decision to form a female sangha, three positive views toward women found in the early texts, the perceived inferior capability of spiritual progress in women, and the developments in Mahayana Buddhism that have impacted women (bodhisattva vow, Emptiness). 39. Who is the Dalai Lama? How is a new Dalai Lama chosen? 40. Be familiar with the popularity of Vietnamese versions of Chinese Chan and Pure Land. What did monks do in the 1960s as acts of protest?...