Deck 14: Asian Outlooks

Question 1

What are the Four Noble Truths and how do they embody a practical rather than theoretical aim of Buddhist thought? Do you agree that following these teachings can lead to "peace, direct knowledge, and enlightenment"?

Answer 1

good essay will:
State the Four Noble Truths.
Explain their role in ending suffering and reaching enlightenment.
State whether you agree/disagree with this approach and why.

Question 2

Why did the Buddha think that living a moral life would be a struggle as long as the belief in "one as a self persisted"? Explain.

Answer 2

No Answer

Question 3

Compare the Buddha's Noble Eightfold Path, or "middle way," to Aristotle's doctrine of the mean. What similarities/differences do you see?
.

Answer 3

No Answer

Question 4

Buddha's teachings are essentially practical in nature.

Question 5

The Second Noble Truth states that all human beings suffer.

Question 6

The Eightfold Path is described in the Fourth Noble Truth.

Question 7

The key to understanding Buddhism lies in relinquishing the idea of a persistent self.

Question 8

We cannot know very much about the state of Nibbāna-in-life.

Question 9

The aim of Buddha's teaching is to show people how to

A) Understand the theoretical metaphysics supporting his doctrine of Nibbāna.
B) Overcome suffering.
C) Attain Nibbāna.
D) Both b and c

Question 10

The Third Noble Truth refers to the

A) The existence of suffering.
B) Cessation of suffering.
C) The cause of suffering.
D) The way to achieve Nibbāna.

Question 11

The way to achieve Nibbāna is described in the

A) First Noble Truth.
B) Second Noble Truth.
C) Third Noble Truth.
D) Fourth Noble Truth.

Question 12

Suffering, or dukkha, is caused by one's

A) Cravings.
B) Meditation.
C) Lack of wealth.
D) Imagination.

Question 13

The Eightfold Path is

A) The "middle way."
B) The doctrine of the not-self.
C) Described in the Fourth Noble Truth.
D) Both a and c

Question 14

According to the Buddha, as long as belief in the self persists

A) Nibbāna will be within one's reach.
B) The cycle of rebirth and suffering will be perpetuated.
C) One will avoid accountability from kamma (karma).
D) One will achieve wealth, power, and happiness.

Question 15

Buddha described the possibility of Nibbāna as

A) Only attainable after death.
B) Only attainable during this life.
C) Attainable both in this life and after death.
D) Attainable only to those ascetics who dedicate their lives to its search.

Question 16

Comprehending the Four Noble Truths requires

A) Intellectual cultivation.
B) A commitment to understanding its fundamental teachings.
C) The discipline to avoid distraction from desires.
D) All of the above.

Question 17

Right speech, right action, and right livelihood, for the Buddha,

A) Were described in his Noble Eightfold Path.
B) Concerned his morality or ethics.
C) Both a and c
D) Concerned his intellectual precepts.

Question 18

The aim of Buddhist meditation is to

A) Concentrate on the persistence of one's self.
B) Purify the mind and know reality as it is.
C) Experience suffering.
D) Both a and c

Question 19

Buddha was not interested in answering philosophical questions about his teachings but in providing a way to cease suffering and gain enlightenment. Are there questions you feel are necessary to ask in your system of belief?

Question 20

Try to think of your life without the persistence of your individual self over time. What difficulties do you run into?

Question 21

Is the doctrine of karma the same as the sentiment expressed in "what goes around, comes around"? Why or why not?

Question 22

Confucius sees individuals primarily in terms of their relationships with others rather than as autonomous agents. Explain how this approach differs from traditional Western views of morality based on rational individual agency. (Alternatively, compare the views of Confucius to an ethics of care, as expressed by Held.)

Question 23

According to Confucius, how does the performance of li, rituals, help one to progress toward ren, authoritativeness?

Question 24

In what ways do the teachings of Confucius pertain to society at large as well as to individual lives?

Question 25

Confucius was primarily concerned with the individual as autonomous agent.

Question 26

The roles of beneficiary and benefactor, to Confucius, are reciprocal throughout our lives.

Question 27

It is through rituals that our true feelings are revealed, according to Confucius.

Question 28

The Analects is a religious text similar to the Hebrew scriptures, the Quran, and the New Testament.

Question 29

Confucius was concerned with the philosophical meaning of life.

Question 30

The Analects is

A) A systematic overview of Confucian metaphysics.
B) Similar to the treatises of philosophers like Aristotle and Kant.
C) Addressed to the question "What kind of life should I live?"
D) All of the above.

Question 31

According to Confucius, individuals are best understood

A) In relation to others.
B) In isolation.
C) As autonomous agents.
D) As responsible parties.

Question 32

For Confucius, doing right means

A) Following a strict rule of behavior.
B) Doing what is appropriate under the circumstances.
C) Abiding by a universal principle.
D) Abstaining from action.

Question 33

According to Confucius, our first and most important duty is

A) Preserving our identity and independence.
B) Fulfilling the needs of our children.
C) Filial piety.
D) Fulfilling our obligations, even if insincerely.

Question 34

Confucius believed that rituals, when properly performed, would

A) Cover up our true feelings.
B) Allow our true feelings to shine through.
C) Increase our ability to coerce someone.
D) Decrease a person's authority.

Question 35

According to Confucius, people who accept and follow ritual behaviors

A) Would not need much law and punishment to achieve harmony.
B) Would eventually find themselves in a lawless society.
C) Lack all sense of obligation.
D) Forego honesty for the sake of formality.

Question 36

According to Confucius, true rulers

A) Submit to rituals.
B) Rule by personal example.
C) Both a and
D) Rule by coercion.

Question 37

Do you think the Confucian formulation of the Golden Rule (to not do unto others what you do not want them to do unto you) differs from the Western version of the Golden Rule? If so, how?

Question 38

Confucius believed that societies were better off when rulers ruled by personal example rather than by coercion. What did he mean by this, and can you find examples that support this notion?

Question 39

Think of some existing rituals that are helpful to members of your culture. Can you also imagine some rituals that, if performed, would make things easier?

Question 40

What is the central focus of Taoism and how are its adherents admonished to live? Explain your answer. Do you think such a goal is worthy, or possible to attain?

Question 41

What is the Taoist conception of the origins of the universe?

Question 42

What is involved in the practice of wu-wei and how does it apply to an individual's life and to members of a community?

Question 43

According to Taoism, the Tao can be known through the practice of wu-wei.

Question 44

The practice of wu-wei involves waiting patiently for the right moment to act.

Question 45

In Taoism, yin and yang form the primordial breath or life-force of the universe.

Question 46

A wise person, to a Taoist, would focus on reading sacred texts and observing rituals.

Question 47

The central focus of Taoism is to live in harmony with God.

Question 48

In Taoism, the first principle of the universe is

A) The primordial breath of Ch'i.
B) The opposing forces of yin and yang.
C) The unnamable and unknowable Tao.
D) The practice of wu-wei.

Question 49

Tao Te Ching, means

A) The unknowable origin of the universe.
B) The unnamable and the unknowable.
C) The classic of the yin and the yang.
D) The classic of the way and its power.

Question 50

The power of Te, in Taoism,

A) Allows human beings to experience the Tao.
B) Is the primordial breath of the universe.
C) Is the practice of effortless action.
D) Represents the polar opposite forces.

Question 51

Yin and yang are

A) Eternally motionless.
B) Never motionless.
C) Can be understood in isolation.
D) Unknowable.

Question 52

The "Three" in Taoism refers to

A) Ch'i, yin, and yang.
B) The supreme trinity of gods.
C) Harmony, eternity, and divinity.
D) Heaven, earth, and humanity.

Question 53

According to Chuang Tzu,

A) We must continually try to affect change.
B) Much of what we do is a waste of time.
C) Convincing another of our viewpoint is often requires force.
D) Appropriate action requires the maximum amount of effort.

Question 54

The notion of simplicity (p'u) in Taoism is consonant with

A) Ignorance.
B) Full awareness of the human condition.
C) Childishness.
D) Patience.

Question 55

In Taoism, the wise person is someone who

A) Observes religious rituals.
B) Studies sacred texts.
C) Devotes him- or herself to God.
D) None of the above.

Question 56

The concept of suchness (tzu yan) is best understood as

A) That which has no name.
B) That which cannot be known.
C) That which has no being.
D) That which is in harmony with itself.

Question 57

In Taoism it is most important to

A) Engage in academic research.
B) Observe religious rituals.
C) Live according to the natural forces of the universe.
D) Study the sacred texts.

Question 58

Imagine today's politicians practicing wu-wei in their professional lives. What might change in the public sphere?

Question 59

Can what is unknowable and unnamable truly be grasped by human beings? Explain your answer.

Question 60

Billington explains the Taoist concept of simplicity (p'u) as "not arising from ignorance, but from…full awareness of the human condition: childlikeness without being childish." Have you encountered this difference among people you know?
Twelve Zen Stories

Question 61

What do you think is the significance of "A Cup of Tea"?

Question 62

Which monk in "Muddy Road" was adhering more closely to the practice of Zen, in your opinion?

Question 63

Discuss the relationship between one's reputation and one's actions, as exemplified in the story "Is That So?"

Question 64

In "A Cup of Tea" a Zen master accidentally overfills a cup of tea.

Question 65

According to "A Letter to A Dying Man," the essence of mind has neither beginning nor end.

Question 66

In "Real Prosperity" a Zen master claims that peace, not wealth, is real prosperity.

Question 67

In "The Moon Cannot Be Stolen," a Zen master offers his clothes to a thief.

Question 68

In "Is That So?" a Zen master fathers an illegitimate child.

Question 69

In "A Cup of Tea," Master Nan-in overfills a cup of tea in order to make a point about

A) Hospitality.
B) Excessive indulgence.
C) Learning.
D) None of the above.

Question 70

According to Master Kennin in "The Sound of One Hand," the sound of one hand is

A) The music of geishas.
B) The sound of dripping water.
C) The sighing of the wind.
D) None of the above.

Question 71

According to Bassui in "A Letter to a Dying Man," the essence of mind is

A) A void.
B) Without form.
C) Perishable.
D) All of the above.

Question 72

According to Sengai in "Real Prosperity," real prosperity consists in

A) Wealth.
B) Study and meditation.
C) Peace.
D) None of the above.

Question 73

According to Bassui in "A Letter to a Dying Man," death is like

A) A snowflake dissolving.
B) The setting of the sun.
C) A candle being blown out by the wind.
D) All of the above.

Question 74

Have experienced a moment in which your perspective or understanding of a situation shifted suddenly? Describe this experience and what impact it had on you.

Question 75

What kinds of things are better learned through reason, and which are better learned through experience? Explain your answer.

Question 76

What do you think is the significance of the story "The Moon Cannot Be Stolen"?