The Buddha’s Life
This was the birth name of the man who became the Buddha.
Who is Siddhartha Gautama?
This Sanskrit word, meaning “action,” refers to intentional deeds that shape our future experiences.
What is karma?
The Noble Truths come in this number.
What is four?
This Indian emperor of the 3rd century BCE embraced Buddhism and helped spread it across Asia.
Who is Ashoka?
Anicca, the first of the Three Marks of Existence, means this.
What is impermanence?
This is the meaning of the title “Buddha.”
What is “the awakened one”?
This is the community of Buddhist followers, one of the Three Jewels.
What is the Sangha?
According to the Second Noble Truth, this is the cause of suffering.
What is craving (or clinging)?
Found in Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Myanmar, this branch focuses on the early teachings and the monk’s path to personal liberation.
What is Theravada?
This doctrine holds that there is no fixed, unchanging self.
What is anatta (or no-self)?
These four sights, an old man, a sick man, a dead body, and a peaceful ascetic, inspired Siddhartha to leave the palace. Name any one of the first three realities they revealed.
What are aging, illness, and death?
The cycle of birth, death, and rebirth is known by this name.
What is samsara?
The Four Noble Truths follow the structure of a doctor’s visit: diagnosis, cause, cure, and this.
What is treatment (the path, or the Eightfold Path)?
Including Zen and Pure Land traditions, this branch is found in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam and emphasizes the bodhisattva ideal.
What is Mahayana?
In the poisoned arrow story, the Buddha says to do this first rather than asking who made the arrow.
What is treat the wound (focus on ending suffering)?
After years of extreme fasting failed, the Buddha chose this approach, balanced between indulgence and self-torture.
What is the Middle Path (or Middle Way)?
This word, literally meaning “blowing out,” describes the end of greed, hatred, and delusion.
What is nirvana?
The three “poisons” that drive suffering are greed, delusion, and this.
What is hatred?
Found in Tibet, Bhutan, and Mongolia, this branch emphasizes ritual, visualization, and teacher-student lineages.
What is Vajrayana?
The idea that everything arises from conditions and nothing exists independently is called this.
What is dependent origination?
The Buddha reached awakening while meditating beneath a Bodhi tree in this Indian town.
What is Bodh Gaya?
Along with the Buddha and the Sangha, this is the third of the Three Jewels, referring to the Buddha’s teachings.
What is the Dharma?
Wisdom, Ethics, and Mental Discipline are the three groups of this eight-part path.
What is the Noble Eightfold Path?
The Buddha gave his first sermon in this deer park.
What is Sarnath?
This Mahayana philosopher of the 2nd century CE developed the concept of emptiness (shunyata).
Who is Nagarjuna?