REE: Buddhism Unit
The Life of the Buddha
View the BBC Documentary “The life of the Buddha” and answer the questions below. I will be including some of these on your Buddhism test. Your answers should provide one piece of information or argument per point. All answers should be in complete sentences. Some questions have an indication of the point at which they occur in the video to help with your answers.
You will find the video at the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsEksMEE2Eg
Questions
Q1. Why do some call Buddhism called a philosophy rather than a religion? How is it different from Western religions? (3 points)
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______Q2. Where is the Buddha thought to have been born, and then where did he spend his childhood. (2 points)
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Q3. What parallels are identified between the births of Jesus and the Buddha? (2 points)
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Q4. What were the four sights that Siddhartha’s father tried to prevent him from seeing? Is he successful? (4 points)
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Q5. Describe Siddhartha’s life as a prince. (3 points)
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Q6. What does it mean to say that the Buddha’s life is an allegory? (at 17:00) (2 points)
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Q7. Siddhartha leaves the palace and sees the four sights of the prophecy. What realisation does Siddhartha have and what does he decide to do? (3 points)
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Q8. How does Siddhartha describe his body after his period of extreme fasting? (at 28:00)
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Q9. Siddhartha realises that he has not learned anything from his life of extreme deprivation. What does he try next? (2 points)
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Q10. What sort of tree does Siddhartha sit under? (1 points)
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Q11. How is the demon Mara like the boggart in Harry Potter (a creature which turns into your greatest fear)? (at 34:00). How does Siddhartha overcome Mara’s visions? (3 points)
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Q12. What are the four noble truths identified by the Buddha? (4 points)
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Q13. Why does the Buddha encourage living in sangha (Buddhist community)?
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Q14. What different views do different schools of Buddhism have of the Buddha’s divinity?
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