Here is a Cultural Literacy worksheet on the Buddha; this is a half-page document I’ve used as a do-now to get lessons started–particularly lessons on the civilization and culture of India.
I don’t think most people realize that Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha, was born into an Indian aristocratic clan, the Shakya, and arrived at his compassionate philosophy (Buddhism really isn’t a religion) by self-abnegation, voluntary poverty, prayer, and meditation. One gets a sense of this, as I recall (it’s over forty years since I read it), in Siddartha, the classic 1922 novel by Herman Hesse–and a high school literary staple, if memory serves. Anyway, this short document (two questions) serves as a very basic introduction to this relatively complex topic.
If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.
