1. Buddhism “Everything that arises also passes away, so strive for what has not arisen.” - Buddha

2. Siddhartha Gautama 566-486 BCE or 484-404 BCE Born in Kapilavatthu (near modern day Lumbini, on the border of Nepal and India) Siddhartha was a prince and his father a king. Lived a sheltered life of luxury and wealth.

3. Two Quests The Ignoble Quest The Noble Quest

4. The Ignoble Quest

5. A person who is liable to sickness, sorrow, old age, and death attaches to things liable to the same. What things are like this? Transient Things Material Possessions

6. The Noble Quest

7. A person who is liable to sickness, sorrow, old age, and death, having seen the danger in this, seeks the unailing, sorrowless, unaging, and deathless. This unsurpassed escape from bondage is nibbana (nirvana).

8. Embarking upon the noble quest, at age 29 Siddhartha Gautama began studying meditational techniques under well-known teachers Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta.

9. After many years Siddhartha mastered these techniques, but he still felt unsatisfied.

10. “This dhamma (teaching) does not lead to aversion, nor to dispassion, nor to cessation, nor to calmness, nor to higher knowledge, nor to awakening, nor to nibbana....So I turned away from and abandoned this dhamma, having not attained enough by this dhamma.” Buddha, Discourse on the Noble Quest

11. Siddhartha joined a group of ascetics and practiced various forms of self-denial. After several years of practicing self-denial, he still felt unsatisfied.

12. Siddhartha sat under a ficus tree to meditate. Here he reached the moment of enlightenment: “everything that arises also passes away.” Buddha: the awakened one

13. “So – being myself liable to birth…old age…sickness…death…sorrow…imp urity…, I attained nibbana…the unborn…the unaging…the unailing…the deathless…the sorrowless…the morally pure, unsurpassed security from bondage. The knowledge and vision arose in me: ‘My liberation is unshakable. This is the last birth. There is now no rebirth.’” Buddha, Discourse on the Noble Quest

14. The Buddha taught his fundamental insights throughout the Ganges Valley for the next 45 years. Buddhism exhibits a diversity of viewpoints, much like Hinduism, though – unlike Hinduism, this diversity originates from a single source – the Buddha.

15. Some Fast Facts on Buddhism

16. The Three Schools of Buddhism Theravada (South Asian Buddhism) Mahayana (East Asian Buddhism) Vajrayana (Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, Mongolia)

17. Three Principal Historical Periods 5 th – 1 st Century BCE: Early Indian Buddhism, origins of Theravada 1 st Century CE: Mahayana emerges and spreads to Southeast and East Asia. 5 th Century CE: Origin of Vajrayana and spread of Buddhism to the Himalayan region.

19. Buddhist Scriptures The Pali Canon Includes Tipitaka consists of three parts (monastic rules, discourses, supplementary doctrines) Chinese Canon A variety of different topics, including histories of different Buddhas, parables, ritual manuals, and spells. The Tibetan Canon Tipitaka, hymns of praise, commentaries on Buddha sermons, and various technical treatises on topics as diverse as logic and medicine.

20. Early Buddhist Discourses Selections from the “Discourse Basket” of the Tipitaka