Exam Topics A: REL 440/540 Buddhist Scriptures, exam due on Canvas by 2:00 p.m. Wed, Oct 12

The exam will be in two parts. Part I, THE FIRST HALF OF THE EXAM, will be on matters related to Writing Papers. Part II will be on topics covered thus far in the readings and lectures. If you will not be here on the exam date to take the exam, you must make prior arrangements at least one week before. You must receive prior permission for absence as well as to take the exam separately. Only exceptional cases will be allowed.

The exam will be multiple choice, and as covered in the syllabus, will count 10% of your grade. There is only one right answer per question. If there appears to be more than one right answer, pick the best answer.

If you have any questions about the exam or the topics included in the exam, please ask me. You can come in during office hours, make an appointment or send me email.

From the "Writing Papers" links

Read the following essays and guidelines that are posted on the Writing Papers links on my web pages:

I. Four Keys to Writing in the Humanities

II. Four Stages of Writing

III. Paper Writing Guidelines

IV. Sentence Structure and Puncuation: Clauses and Commas

V. Writing: The Bridge between Consciousness and Unconsciousness

 

From the Readings and Lectures

1. Who are: King Suddhodana, Queen Maya, Siddharta Gautama, Prajapati, Princess Yasodhara, Rahula, Sakyamuni Buddha?
2. Who are: King Bimbisara, Queen Vaidehi, Prince Ajatasatru, Devadatta, Ananda, and Sariputra?
3. What are: The Four Noble Truths, The Three Marks of Existence, The Three Jewels, The Three Baskets?
4. What are: Bodhisattva, upaya, form and emptiness?

4. There is a subtle relation between emptiness theory and the bodhisattva ideal in Mahayana Buddhism. Emptiness/oneness implies that the true self of the Buddhist seeker is none other than the cosmos itself, and by implication all beings in the universe. Give an example that appears in one of the Mahayana sutras.

5. What is the social significance of the bodhisattva ideal and the emergence of Mahayana Buddhism?

6. Who is Sudhana from the Avatamsaka Sutra, and what is his journey about?

7. What is the significance of the parable of the burning house from the Lotus Sutra reading?

8. What is Primal Vow? It refers to the bodhisattva vow made by a Cosmic Buddha, such as Amitabha or Amitayus when at the stage of still being a bodhisattva. "Primal" here means, "at the beginning" as well as "elemental" or "foundatoinal."