Buddhist Temple Research Paper

I went to Grand Island, Nebraska, on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 to the Buddha Matta Phaaphayaram Lao Buddhist Temple. The temple used to be an old Faith United Methodist Church until purchased on November 28, 2013 by local Buddhists in Grand Island. I was not the only one from my class that went. My teacher and four other students were there too.

Greek Orthodox Church is encompassed by Livingston’s working definition of religion. ​Every symbol in the Greek Orthodox Church is directly related to that which “sacred value and transforming power.” For example, during our visit to the church, we noticed that the main sanctuary was clearly divided into three sections by a wall with images of saints and icons, which is known as the iconostasis. I learned that the three different sections are the narthex, the nave, and the altar. Upon further research, the iconostasis symbolizes the link between heaven and Earth, the gate which we will one day be able to cross. There are typically paintings of saints and icons on the iconostasis, which that also holds meaning for the church goers. Because this area is typically not accessible by the church goes, it provides a clear indication for what we should strive for: to someday access heaven. Thus, this corresponds to one of the types of theodicies that Livingston presents. Greek Orthodox believe in an other-worldly theodicy. They believe that they will eventually be rewarded after death in another world. During Orthros, only the reverend can be behind the iconostasis. This area, known as the altar or sanctuary, is one of the holiest space within the church and not many are allowed to enter

I visited the Mid-American Buddhist Association, they are a part of the three schools in Northern Buddhism. These schools are Elder teaching, modern Buddhism, and Depant, or strict Buddhism. They are different from other Buddhist communities because they all speak different languages and they all have different cultures which coexist peacefully. I went to Mid-America Buddhist Association with a classmate Angelique Failor, and the address is 299 Heger Lane Augusta, MO 63332.We went on November 12 and we got there around 11:00 a.m. and we stayed until about 12 p.m. We also went back on Sunday, November 13 and we got there around 10 and stayed till 12. Before we entered the Meditation Hall we took our shoes off , and then Master Jiru greeted us. He took us to a sitting area where we could ask him questions. He talked a little bit about their history, and let us ask what we needed. He told us that the land was cleaned in 1995 and the first structure that was build was the Meditation Hall in 1997.The Buddhist community is 15 minutes away from Saint Louis and it is now 17 years old. The community built around the Buddhist have been there at least 10 years based off of the Victorian style homes. Theses Buddhist are funded by a Buddhist community started on Washington University’s- St.Louis campus. Master Jiru actually is from Thailand but lived in New York before coming to Missouri. They believe they are the most diverse Buddhist community because they have many different

When the word “Sunday” comes to mind many people think of making their way into a sacred temple in which they will be taught the holy word of God, or a boring in which nothing is ever understood, like I did a couple years ago. My life changed when I began to bring out meanings from the unknown, and stopped doing things only because I was accustomed to but began to do them because of my growing passion for them.

When I first pulled up to the Won Buddhist Temple, it was sort of what I had expected. Being that the original Buddha was a human, I did not expect an elaborate building, such as the Hindu temple. I did not have a clear picture in my mind about what the temple would look like, but I did picture a smaller and simpler-looking building. One of the most pleasantly surprising aspects I noticed at the beginning of the visit was how those at the temple were of all different ages, races, and genders. Seeing this made me more excited for the service because it showed that the teachings were something that appealed to a wide range of people.

In the Greek polis they use the temple to show worship for the gods. They also bring offerings to give the gods.

The speaker started the service by speaking about Buddha as a philosopher, not God. This Buddhist temple practices Theravada, and bows to 3 things: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Theravada is one of the four types of Buddhism. The other three types are Mahayana, Tibetan, and Zen/Chan. Buddhism exemplifies as a very pragmatic religion (The Four Noble Truths). “The followers take joy in a straight-forward approach to life, and they do not indulge in metaphysical speculation about first causes. As most religion have a theology and worship a deity, Buddhists do not have one. This religion believes that it is impossible to make a permanent relationship with anything because the world is constantly changing” (The Four Noble Truths).

Within the first two centuries of existence, Buddhism became popular enough to have Nikaya (schools). According to Religions of the world, written by J. Gordon Melton and Martin Baumann, all of the thirty different schools were said to have resided under the same branch, Shravakayana (The Vehicle of Listeners), “The various schools of so-called ‘early Buddhism’-Buddhist tradition speaks of eighteen and the texts state names for about thirty different schools-differed according to their interpretation of monastic rules and later of specific doctrines. All these schools may be summed up under the designation of Shravakayana, ‘The Vehicle of the listeners (of Buddha’s word).’” Baumann and Melton described the fact that for centuries, even though

In this tour we visit the cape of Sounio and the ancient temple of Poseidon. Sounio is on the southest edge of the Attica region. It is about 1 hour and 15' far from the center of Athens. We follow a beautiful road trip close to coast. When we reach Sounio you will meet this charming site with clear waters, sandy beaches and rocky cliffs.

Buddhism believes in escaping the cycle of rebirths not through coming to an ultimate soul (it doesn't believe in this), but through Nirvana the ultimate relinquishing of attachment to materialism by transcending response to earthy feeling. In this way, one ends suffering by escaping the cycle of rebirths. and reincarnations. Karma from past life can affect the happenings in a present one according to both Hinduism and Buddhism, but Buddhism believes that one can escape this karma and cycle of rebirths by practicing the 8-fold path which culminates in Nirvana. With this Nirvana too, one gains a spirit of meditation or blissful mindfulness which is the epitome of the Hindu Moksha. (The Buddha Garden.)

The founder of Buddidism is know to be a Prince called Siddhartha Gautama, he was born in North India. He was the son of King Suddhodanna and Queen Maha Maya Devi. The young man was given the name Prince Siddhartha Gautama. As soon as the prince was born there was prediction on whether he would become a Buddah or a world leader, no one knew as it could have been either. He was born into a very rich family and everything was done for him, however his father never let him in contact with real life as he didn’t want him to experience the true nature of life yet, he only saw the greater life with no worries or concerns. However the Prince married Princess Yasodhara and had a son, who was called Rahula.

In the western world, a dominant belief is that after life, a person’s soul is sent to a place of eternal bliss, heaven, or a place of eternal damnation, hell. To Buddhists, this concept is not the norm. Buddhists believe that a person is reincarnated into another life form, either human or animal. What life form a person is reincarnated as is determined by the person’s karma. The concept of karma not only affects reincarnation, but also what path a person’s life takes. While much of the concept of karma is believable and comprehensible by a person of any denomination, some aspects are dependant upon a belief in reincarnation and that a person will eventually be punished for his sins or rewarded

Hindu and Buddhist cultures are both rich in religion and expressing their faith through art. The Buddhist culture was formed by Buddha who went out to discover the causes of pain and suffering. Once Buddha realized what the cause was, he provided a set of four guiding principles know as the “Four Noble Truths” that are exercised in Buddhism (Kleiner, p. 13). The Four Noble truths are “Life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, one can overcome and extinguish desire, the way to conquer desire and end suffering is to follow Buddha’s Eightfold Path…” (p. 13). These truths are expressed in the following of Buddhism and commonly carried out through art. Buddhism is practiced throughout Southeast Asia and southern India where

Buddhism is religion that is based off of peace and spirituality taught by the teachings of Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gotama. Many who follow its teachings believe Buddhism to be more of a way of life or lifestyle choice rather a religion. Buddha is not a god, but one man that taught his followers a path of enlightenment from his experiences and values. Buddha’s main teachings were the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. The Four Noble Truths were teachings about suffering, pain, disease, happiness, loneliness, and aging. It explained why we as humans can overcome certain obstacles in our lives by looking at the more spiritual side of things such as “Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own

According to Harvey (2013), Buddhists trust that after death reincarnation can happen in one of the numerous possible forthcoming existences. This future existence is normally determined by one’s last thoughts the moment they die. The last though that determine where one is reborn is normally determined buy one’s actions in their lifetime. As a result, if one’s final thoughts before he or she died where about commendable actions, then the individual would most likely find future existence in a happy setting. On the other hand, MacLaughlin 92013), asserts that the sins one commit during their lifetime may not be the only cause of their rebirth in hell. Accumulated karma over multiple births are summed to the karmic potential