Year 10 - Religious education
Human personality in Theravada tradition
Buddhism: beliefs
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit pupils will examine key beliefs in Buddhism. They will examine key concepts such as dhamma and the idea of the human condition. They will gain an understanding of Buddhist ideas about suffering and the way to end it. They will also examine the story of Gautama Buddha.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain the Theravada Buddhist belief in the human personality and how this influences Theravada Buddhists today.
Key Notes
- In Theravada Buddhism, a human is understood to be a combination of five elements known as the Five Aggregates(Skandhas)
- A human is made up of Five Aggregates (Skandhas) – body, sensation, perception, thoughts and consciousness.
- This helps Buddhists to understand the concept of 'no-self'.
- Understanding the truth about existence and the self helps Buddhists understand ultimate reality.
- Theravada Buddhists are influenced by the Five Aggregates (Skandhas) to avoid attachments and cravings.
Vocabulary To Learn
- form: physical form which includes the physical elements and physical organs
- sensation: the feelings that arise from our sense organs
- perception: how we perceive the world, the meaning we put on to what we experience
- mental formations: mental activities which lead a person to actions and produce kamma (karma)
- consciousness: the state of being aware of something
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- The Five Aggregates represent a "self" or a "soul" that are permanent or fixed.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the lesson in two key points.
In Theravada Buddhism, a human is understood to be a combination of five elements known as the Five Aggregates(Skandhas). A human is made up of Five Aggregates (Skandhas) – body, sensation, perception, thoughts and consciousness.
2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'form'
physical form which includes the physical elements and physical organs.
3. Correct this common mistake.
Mistake: The Five Aggregates represent a "self" or a "soul" that are permanent or fixed. Correction: The Five Aggregates are constantly changing, and none of them are permanent or fixed. Each aggregate is subject to impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and non-self (anatta). They show that there is no independent, permanent self.
More Lessons In This Unit
- Buddhahood and the Pure Land Study Guide
- Gautama Buddha's life and its significance Study Guide
- Human destiny: the Arhat and Boddhisatva ideals Study Guide
- Human personality in Mahayana tradition Study Guide
- Meditation and wisdom Study Guide
- Nibbana and the end of suffering Study Guide
- Suffering and its causes Study Guide
- The concept of dependent arising Study Guide
- The concept of Dhamma Study Guide
- The Eightfold Path Study Guide
- The Four Noble Truths Study Guide
- The three marks of existence Study Guide
- The three poisons Study Guide
- The Threefold Way Study Guide
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