Introduction to Buddhism

Today we began to study our fourth religion: Buddhism.

Buddhism is sometimes called a "philosophy" rather than a religion, since many Buddhists choose not to focus on the question of whether god (or another higher power) exists. In this class, though, we are going to classify Buddhism as a religion.

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The Buddha was very interested in the topic of suffering. He asked a number of deep questions: Why do people and other creatures suffer? Is it possible to escape from suffering? How can humans lessen the amount of suffering in the world?

To begin thinking about these questions, I posed a couple of "thought questions" to the students today. They came up with fantastic responses:

What would you think if you saw a bird eat a worm? How would you feel?

Andrew: I would feel sad for the worm, but I would feel happy that the food chain is in balance.

Kelly: I would feel fine with seeing this. This is how birds stay alive -- it is their natural instinct. Maybe I would care more if I had actually known the worm.

Martha: I wouldn't be happy, because death isn't a happy thing. But if you look at the situation from the bird's perspective, it becomes much more humane. The bird probably has children to feed ... a bird eating a worm bothers me much less than a 5th grader bullying a 3rd grader, because birds only take what they need for survival.

Isabella: It makes me feel sad. The worm doesn't have a chance. He cannot fight back. At least the 3rd grader getting bullied can try to defend himself.

Max M.: I wouldn't be happy, sad or mad. Worms get eaten by birds, just as birds get eaten by other things.

This is the way of life. You are born, you live, and you die. The bird needed to eat the worm for food, so that it could live.

Another animal will eat the bird, so that the other animal can live.

Sophie G.: My feeling is mutual. This is nature; it is something that happens every day. I could try to save every worm from dying, but what good would that do for birds?

Lyra: I would feel bad for the worm because he was eaten before he died naturally, and it was probably painful and scary.

But, the bird has to eat, and if the bird didn't eat the worm then it might starve. So, I would say that this is nature.

Dylan: If I saw a bird eating a worm, I would leave the two animals alone because it's just nature. If you were to help the worm, then you would be hurting the bird.

What would you think if you saw a 5th grader being mean to a 3rd grader? How would you feel?

Izzy: I would feel disappointed. I believe that if you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all. People who are older than others should set a good example. It would be disappointing to see a 5th grader setting an awful example.

Laney: I would go full rage. My brother is a 3rd grader, and my sister and I are the only ones allowed to be mean to my brother.

Jake: I would feel bad for both the 3rd grader and the 5th grader. The 5th grader has sunken to a low enough level that he has to degrade others just to make himself feel better.

Gus: I would feel bad for the 3rd grader, but I'd also want to know more about the situation. Maybe the 3rd grader did something that caused the 5th grader to be mean?

Polina: I would try to stop the 5th grader from being mean. The worm that gets eaten upsets me even more, though, because the worm actually gets killed, where the 3rd grader is just treated badly.

Whit: Unlike a bird eating a worm, the 5th grader isn't doing this for survival. He's doing it for pleasure, which makes it much worse. Also, I feel worse when humans are hurt, compared to other animals being hurt.

Abby: I feel equally bad for the worm and the 3rd grader. They both probably feel very frightened.

Musical Mondays: We listened to the Buddhist chant Om Mani Padme Hum and talked about the idea of a mantra.