1.Siddhartha Gautama
2.The first sight was a decrepit old man and the significance is that Siddhartha saw this fate was in store for everyone including himself. The second sight was a diseased man and Siddhartha thought people could not enjoy life when disease threatened them. The third sight was a corpse and he thought what the point of living is when everyone has to die. The fourth sight was a homeless ascetic religious man and Siddhartha thought that there is a way to salvation.
3.A basic Buddhist teaching that rejects both the pleasures of sensual indulgence and the self-denial of asceticism, focusing instead on a practical approach to spiritual attainment.
4.Siddhartha was sitting under a fig tree by a fig tree and he said he would not leave until he was enlightened. The god of death Mara did everything he could to try and stop him by frightening and tempting him from his spot. However Gautama defeated Mara and became enlightened.
5.The Sangha is the Buddhist community of monks and nuns.
6.The Three Jewels in Buddhist teachings are the Buddha, Dharma, and the Sangha.
7.Buddhism and Hinduism both regard time as cyclical and the universe is eternal. They believe that Gods and goddesses inhabit various heavens, and demons inhabit various hells. Also they believe in samsara and liberation from life. In Hinduism it is called moksha and in Buddhism it is called nirvana.
8.He was discontented with many of the religious features of his day, especially speculative philosophy and the sacrificial rituals of the Brahmin class. Buddha did not believe that philosophical speculation regarding the nature of the world, human self, and divine were important for salvation.
9.The first mark of existence is Anatta which means no self within reality. Annicca means impermanence because existence is constantly changing. This is closely related to Anatta because existence is always changing so there is never any self in the world. Dukkha means suffering and this is a natural result of Anatta and Annicca.
10.The doctrine of anatta states that there is no self in reality because we are not attached to this world. This related to the Hindu Atman because like atman there is not specific soul because life is always changing when we are reborn.
11.A bundle of energy or the eternal self is reborn. Karma in terms of samsara is the nautre of one’s rebirth which depends on the status of one’s karma.
12.The five precepts of Buddhism are do not take life, take what is not given, engage in sensuous misconduct, use false speech, or drink intoxicants. The five precepts for monks and nuns are do not eat after noon, watch dancing or shows, use garlands, perfumes, or ornaments, use a high or soft bed, and accept gold or silver.
13.Some possible translations to the word dukkha are suffering, frustration, dislocation, and discomfort. The meaning of this word is when something is not as it should be and you know it needs to be fixed. For example if you see a crooked picture frame you know that it is not where it should be and that it should be straight.
14.Tanha is desire and it is related to dukkha because suffering is caused by desire which is one of the four noble truths.
15.To follow the eightfold path one must have the right views, the right intentions, the right speech, the right conduct, the right livelihood, the right effort, the right mindfulness, and the right meditation.
16.The different between the Buddha and the other humans who attain enlightenment is that a Buddha did not need to follow teachings or a model to be awakened because Buddha’s are able to accomplish enlightenment on their own.
17.An arhat is a person who has reached enlightenment but do not go into nirvana.
18.The literal meaning for the word nirvana is blowing out. This helps explain the concept of nirvana because a person who has reach nirvana has lost all of its desire and suffering because it has essentially been blown out.
19.The three divisions of Buddhism are Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana.
20.The main focus of Theravada Buddhism is the teachings of the Buddhism.
21.The literal meaning for the word Mahayana is way of the elders because it follows the original teachings of Buddhism strictly.
22.The Vajrayana fights fire with fire because it harnesses the energy of desire and uses it for good.
23.The Dalai Lama is the leader of Vajrayana Buddhism. The Dalai Lama is chosen by the successors of him and they use various spiritual and supernatural rituals to find the next Lama. For example if the successors find a suspected baby of being the Lama they would see if it would attract to something once owned by him.
24.The primary geographic region for Theravada Buddhism is in Cambodia, Burma, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. The primary geographic region for Mahayana Buddhism is in China, Japan and Korea. The primary geographic region for Vajrayana Buddhism is in Tibet.
