Summary Of I-Tsing's 'A Record Of Buddhist Practices'

In document 5, Zong Mi, Buddhist scholar, talks about the similarities of the 3 traditions of Confucius, Laozi, and Buddha. He stresses the importance of all philosophies as being that of creating an orderly society with respect. It is interesting that a Buddhist scholar is favored by the Tang imperial household in the early ninth century since after 845 CE Buddhism was denounced in the empire. However, Buddhist scholars were very common at this time as many credited the survival of the area to the religion. The scholar, being favored by the royalty, probably tried to greatly influence them to accept and encourage Buddhism. Moreover, Zong Mi finds the commonalities of doing good deeds, punishing the wrong, and rewarding the right to further highlight that the essence of all the teachings is the same. As shown in document one Buddhism provides a clear path to attaining peace in the world and within

Buddhism is not about God or Gods, it doesn't supply a hypothesis about what may occur in after death, nor does it express perspectives about creation; it is situated in the realm of day by day living. Furthermore, Buddhism is largely associated with the condition of being awaken by the nature of humanity. As the fourth-largest religion in the world, Buddhism has proven to be both influential and significant. While most religions have profound theoretical foundations that they are built upon, and while most individuals within such religions have faith that the theory is true, Buddhism does not address theories; nor does it agree or disagree with any religion, but rather acknowledges religion as a means to live in a positive manner. This religion is about not only living a peaceful life but also about enlightening a person through the regaining of wisdom and grace from within. The purpose of this paper is to examine the depth of Buddhism through Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, and karma.

Soko Morinaga was a Japanese liberal arts student who called up to the front line during World War II. At that time, he lost his parents, family’s land, and his trust in the world. Soko idled away his time for some days and decided to go to Zen temples. First, Soko went to meet Goto Zuigan Roshi, Master of Daishuin temple. After his master training him with trust, he retook his trust for others, especially for Master Roshi. Also, he made a vow to his master that to become a Zen monk. Then, Soko went to Daitokuji monastery. After few days of ordeal, Soko was allowed to enter to Daitokuji monastery. Soko had hard training and became a monk at Daitokuji monastery. At Daitokuji，Master Zuigan showed the meaning of trust for Soko. Trust can be categorized into three classes: trust in the world, trust in others, and self-confidence. In the essay “My Struggle To Become A Zen Monk, ” by introduced theme of trust and how it relates to the human problem of social trust.

This paper is a book report on “Living Buddha, Living Christ,” written by, Thich Nhat Hanh. In this paper I will discuss the four themes; Mindfulness, Understanding, Interbeing, and Wisdom. I will define the themes, and explain how each theme listed is a part of my life and whether this theme, can be co-related along with my faith.

Buddhism has been around for over two thousand years, and continues to do so in many countries around the world. This religion originates in Asia and has a very unique adversity, much of its structure arose from the end of World War II, predominantly Asian nations needed to restructure society (RoAT 167). The word ‘Buddha’ means one who has awakened and will no longer be reborn. Thereafter, one who will enter nirvana, the state of being free from suffering.

During the centuries of disunity in China, the Chinese supported and defended Buddhist influence from India. An anonymous Chinese scholar (like many other Buddhist scholars) created a “guide” for Chinese Buddhists to defend against the false suspicions of Chinese critics (Doc 3); however, since the author is anonymous, it is unknown whether he is as credible as other Chinese scholars such as Zhi Dun. Zhi

Even when we are presented with answers or guides to the many questions we have about life and to how we should live, as inquisitive animals, we strive to enhance our understanding and so begin to learn that perhaps, ultimately, the answers don’t simply come from outside but also from within us. This is then perhaps the greatest implication of this paper, finding new ways in understanding what the true way of life is for human beings and what the true way of life is for ourselves. In the discussion of Zen Buddhism, William A. Young’s framework’s itself must first be explained and understood.

In The Heart of Understanding, Thich Nhat Hanh’s uses simple but powerful words and real world examples to illustrate the profound Buddhist philosophy from the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra, an important representative of Mahayana Buddhist literature. The Mahayana school of Buddhist teachings emphasizes the doctrine of Sunyata- emptiness. The doctrine of emptiness, one of the most important Mahayana innovations, focuses on the relational aspect of existence. Thich Nhat Hanh coins and introduces a new word- interbeing to explain the state of emptiness. This idea of interbeing not only illustrates emptiness well but also provides understanding of other fundamental Buddhist ideas such as No-Self, impermanence and non-duality.

This Philosopher compares the idea of Buddhism to widely accustomed philosophies like Confucianism. This made the idea of Buddhism less invasive because the author equates the philosophy of Buddhism to existing beliefs to display that the philosophies of Buddhism is like any other. Nevertheless, with this positively opinionated document the writer counters the Emperor's voice challenging the negative opinion He put out there. The writer in Document 5 shows that though some parts may be contrasted, Buddhism is very indistinguishable to all the other philosophies in China. Due to this correlation to other beliefs, the author convinces the Chinese people that Buddhism can be seen in a positive light if only they

The Kannon Bosatsu, or Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, is a carved wood statue of a Bodhisattva figure standing about two and one half to three meters tall. This statue shows a high level of detail on the Bodhisattva 's body, and is carved so smoothly that it could be mistaken for a stone carving. The show of skilled craftsmanship can be seen around the shoulders with the interaction of the cloth with the jewelry the Bodhisattva. The statue is placed on an ornate pedestal to cause the figurine to appear taller, giving it a feeling of authority, which contrasts with its calm, expressionless face. While the figure appears to be standing in a meditative state like the Buddha, the jewelry present all over the body of this figure distinguishes this figure as a Bodhisattva instead of a Buddha. In his book, The Story of Buddhism a Concise guide to Its History and Teachings, Donald S. Lopez Jr. establishes the importance of imagery in Buddhism. One major point he makes concerning the worship of Buddhist figures, is that the disciples of Buddhism not only believe that the figures are a mere representation of Buddha, but that the figures actually become and are animated by Buddha, an argument which seems to hold merit as truth.

There are many different definitions and views of Buddhism and many of these views and definitions vary from each other. A quick internet search reveals all the different definitions of Buddhism and some of them may not even be correct or have a scholarly perspective. A five minute Google search reveals one definition which we will take a look at:

In The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching, Thich Nhat Hanh provides a citation from the Buddha, which gives insight into the cure of our distress. “I teach only suffering and the transformation of suffering” (Thich Nhat

Fa-hsien and his companions left his homeland to travel to India in search of rules of Buddhist discipline. In chapter two, he described his arrival in the kingdom of Shen-shen, where he first encounters the discipline of self-denial. The citizens of Shen-shen, including their King and priests followed the “rules of India” (Fa-hsien 2). In an effort to resist worldly temptation and comfort, they separated themselves from the comfort of family and friends in order to focus on Buddhist teachings.

a huge connection with our main character and the Lotus Sutra, a discussion on the symbolism behind the text is needed. Throughout this lecture, I will emphasize the function of lotus sutra as a text that offers universal salvation and the karmic repercussions people suffer when the text is not properly honor. By analyzing the patterns of karmic repercussion that exists in many Japanese tales, a deeper appreciation for the Lotus Sutra as “the Sutra

In “The Journey to the West,” the monk was accompanied by Pigsy, the Sha Monk, the Handsome Monkey King, and the horse. Each of these supporting characters possess a certain magical ability that assisted the monk on his journey, additionally they had their own flaws. This contrasts the monk, which has no magical ability and was devoted buddhism. The strengths, weaknesses, and backgrounds of these supporting characters encapsulate the idea of buddhism throughout the novel, and by including them and Xuanzang the book is able to summarize the idea of buddhism.