Description
Focus paper on The Dhammapada.
Read Eknath Easwaran’s introduction to the book from pages 13-63, and the chapters of The Dhammapada that follow. Then, in essay format answer the following questions, taking care to use as many specific examples from the book as possible:
- Who was the Buddha, and why did he leave his family to teach others his ideas?
- Using specific examples, describe the essence of the Buddhas teachings. How did he believe people should behave? What role did the mind, meditation, dharma, and karma play in his teachings?
- What might these teachings tell us about South Asian societies during this period?
- Why do you think these ideals were so appealing to some in this society?
- Thinking back on the Confucian ideals you read in The Analects, how does the model of behavior and living taught by the Buddha compare to the model taught by Confucius?
Guidelines for Focus Papers
Focus Papers should be written in essay format containing an introduction (with thesis statement), body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Papers should be a MINIMUM of 1000 words but should not exceed 1,250 words. Papers that are significantly shorter will be penalized, and those that significantly exceed the limit are also subject to penalty. Students should be sure to answer the questions fully, offer historical context, be specific, and use plenty of examples from the book, remembering that your textbook offers the background context for these sources. Finally, a primary objective for these papers is to look more deeply into the histories we are learning about in the course. As such, students should consider information from other course readings to support their analysis when appropriate. Please do not do additional research, or use outside web pages, blogs, or wiki pages to complete this paper, the assignment is meant to be an assessment of your understanding of the materials offered in this course.
https://books.google.com.tw/books?id=8czJAAAAQBAJ&…
above is book link.
