BRAHMANISM AND BUDDHISM CHAPTER 2 ANCIENT INDIA BRAHMANISM

BRAHMANISM AND BUDDHISM CHAPTER 2 ANCIENT INDIA

BRAHMANISM

BRAHMANISM § Early Aryan religious beliefs are known to historians as Brahmanism § Brahmanism (origin of Hinduism) § Vedas- four collections of hymns and religious ceremonies transmitted by memory through the centuries by Aryan priests. § Believed in a Pantheon of gods representing great forces of nature § Concept of sacrifice was very important § Asceticism – self-discipline or subjecting oneself to painful stimuli had begun to replace sacrifice as a means of placating or communicating with the gods. ( importance piece to

THE SEARCHER In their search for truth and the ultimate reality, some early followers of Brahmanism embarked on a lifelong retreat from the material world. The holy scripture for such early ascetics was the Upanishads, a collection of writings dating from the middle of the first millennium B. C. E. extolling a life of privation and self-denial. The practice continues today, as this photograph of an Indian mendicant wandering in the mountains of the Deccan Plateau attests.

REINCARNATION • This is the idea that the individual soul is reborn in a different form after death and progresses through several existences on the wheel of life until it reaches its final destination in a union with the Great World Soul, Brahman. – Karma- ones rebirth in a next life is determined by ones actions in this life – Dharma- Karma is governed by the dharma or the law. A law regulating human behavior, the dharma imposed different requirements on different individuals depending on their status in society.

THE UPANISHADS: KARMA AND REINCARNATION • Read page 90 • Does the idea of reincarnation make caste organization stronger or weaker • Main Idea of document • Analysis – answer to question

BUDDHISM

BUDDHISM QUESTIONS • Discuss with your partner the answers to the questions. Using the text pages 52 -56. Write these in your notes. • How did Buddhism start? • What are the four noble truths? • How did Siddhartha view women? • How did Buddhism spread? • P 56 -Read A Singular Debate- What arguments does the Brahmanic scholar present to Siddhartha Gautama? How does the latter respond? • Make a T chart- What are differences between Buddhism and