Study Guides

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 concept of dependent arising and how it influences Buddhists today.

Key Notes

• Dependent arising is a fundamental concept across schools of Buddhism.
• Everything arises and exists in dependence on multiple causes and conditions.
• There is a 12 link chain of causation.
• The twelve links include matters of thought, feeling and change.

Vocabulary To Learn

• dependent arising: the belief that everything exists because other things do; everything is interconnected and everyone affects everyone else
• kamma: the belief in cause and effect, intentions and actions will affect the future
• nidanas: twelve links of causation
• samsara: the cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth
• Tibetan wheel of life: a symbolic representation of the cycle of samsara

Common Mistakes To Avoid

• That dependent arising means everything exists in a deterministic way and that all things are fixed and dependent on conditions.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

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
• Human personality in Theravada 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 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