Mantras and Meditation
Today we talked about the Buddhist idea of a mantra: a word or sound repeated many times, to aid in meditation. I told the students that some people use mantras in a non-religious context (such as athletics), and Phineas said that he uses a kind of mantra to help himself focus on the lacrosse field. At the bottom of this post, I've included a video of monks chanting the Buddhist mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum."
We also continued to puzzle through the idea of nirvana. The Core 1 and Core 3 students were at the top of their questioning game, with all sorts of great queries:
Alex: If nirvana is undefinable, how do people define it?
Sofia: Where is nirvana? Is it an idea, and if so how do you get there?
Mia: If you were a Buddhist, how would you know that you had reached nirvana? Riley had a similar question: How did Siddhartha Gautama know that he had reached nirvana?
Charlie M.: Why did Siddhartha choose to meditate under a banyan tree?
Asher: Do Buddhists remember things from their past lives? Jack D., along similar lines: If you are reborn, will you lose all of the knowledge you had in your last life?
Meredith: When Buddhists meditate, why do they often sit with their legs crossed?
Charlotte: Did the first monks start as Hindus, and then go on to become Buddhists? Or, did they start as having no religion, then go on to become Buddhists?
Leo: Why did Siddhartha believe that fasting would be a good way to find enlightenment?
Mary Holland: How do you think Siddhartha Gautama's family responded when he decided to become a wandering holy man?
Kate: What happened to Buddha's wife and son, after he left them?
[Mary Holland and Kate: Great job of thinking about the Buddha's story from the perspective of his wife and son.]
We also continued to puzzle through the idea of nirvana. The Core 1 and Core 3 students were at the top of their questioning game, with all sorts of great queries:
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| By Kat |
Sofia: Where is nirvana? Is it an idea, and if so how do you get there?
Mia: If you were a Buddhist, how would you know that you had reached nirvana? Riley had a similar question: How did Siddhartha Gautama know that he had reached nirvana?
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| By Sarah |
Charlie M.: Why did Siddhartha choose to meditate under a banyan tree?
Asher: Do Buddhists remember things from their past lives? Jack D., along similar lines: If you are reborn, will you lose all of the knowledge you had in your last life?
Meredith: When Buddhists meditate, why do they often sit with their legs crossed?
Charlotte: Did the first monks start as Hindus, and then go on to become Buddhists? Or, did they start as having no religion, then go on to become Buddhists?
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| By Priya |
Mary Holland: How do you think Siddhartha Gautama's family responded when he decided to become a wandering holy man?
Kate: What happened to Buddha's wife and son, after he left them?
[Mary Holland and Kate: Great job of thinking about the Buddha's story from the perspective of his wife and son.]
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| The Four Sights, by Charlotte |
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