Buddhism

Buddhism is a religious tradition that enjoys a good deal of attention in American popular culture and is often the focus of curiosity and interest for high school students. The "Free Tibet" movement of the 90's, the charismatic personality of the 14th Dalai Lama, and the advocacy of celebrities like Richard Gere and the Beastie Boys have contributed to Buddhism's popularity. It becomes the responsibility of educators to respond to student's curiosity with accurate and balanced information about the Buddhist tradition and to provide students with the tools they need to successfully navigate media portrayals of Buddhism.

The first step towards helping students understand Buddhism is to provide them with an historical context. Under History, you will find two lessons. The first asks students to locate Buddhism in the world, and the second asks them to examine the Buddha's relationship with the ideas of Hinduism.

The Philosophy section encourages students to examine several accounts of the Buddha's life and to do a close reading of a Buddhist avadana to discover how karma functions in the lives of traditional Buddhist householders.

Under Buddhist Practice, students will examine the iconography of Himalayan Buddhist art, and be introduced to the role of ephemeral arts like sand mandalas and butter sculpture in Tibetan ritual.