Adult Education

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       St.Mark's Adult Education

Buddhism - David Fletcher

Buddhism is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, known as 'the Buddha'. Siddhartha was a Hindu prince who was raised in luxury. His father tried to shield him from the harshness of life, but when Siddhartha was 29 he ventured out from the palace and was stunned by the suffering he encountered. At first he tried to find solace in asceticism and then meditation but finally discovered "The Middle Way", a moderate approach between selfish hedonism and self-mortification.

Buddhism is characterized by four Noble Truths and the Noble EightFold Path.

The Four Noble Truths:

1) suffering is part of life

2) origin of suffering is our attachment to people ad things

3) we can eliminate attachment

4) by following the eightfold path, we can eliminate attachment and therefore suffering

The Noble Eightfold Path comprises

1) right understanding,

2) right thought,

3) right speech,

4)right action,

5) right livelihood,

6) right effort,

7) right mindfulness,

8) right concentration.