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Buddhism:
Origins and
the Buddha


The Buddha's First Sermon

 

Questions to Accompany the Text
The World's Religions by Huston Smith

The Man Who Woke Up
The Silent Sage
The Rebel Saint


Reading Selections
from The World's Wisdom
source book, Chapter 2

The Instructive Legend of the Buddha’s Life
The Rebel Saint: The Buddha’s Attitude Toward Authority


Suggested Supplemental Readings

Assign "Growing Up With the Dharma Bums" by Josh Schrei. Possible discussion topics include Josh's relationwhips with his non-Buddhist friends, his vegetarianism, and his feelings about the atmosphere of the Zen center and the role is has placed in his life.
Siddhartha serves as the main literary text of the unit. Discussion should focus on Hesse's interpretation of the story of the Buddha and how it differs from the traditional account. Discussion could also focus on the struggle for enlightenment and the various forms that such an endeavor might take.
Source of paintings: Digital Image Archive in Religious Studies (Buddhism)

 

This site was created by James C. Blynt at the NEH Summer Institute
"Cultures and Religions of the Himalayan Region," held at the College of the Holy Cross,
Summer 2006