The Sanskrit word, Budh, means to wake up and to know. Thus, Buddha refers to the “Enlightened One,” or the “Awakened One.” In this course, we begin with the historical facts since Buddhism begins with a man, and we evolve into study of Buddhism as a religion. Original Buddhism was empirical, scientific, pragmatic, therapeutic, psychological, egalitarian, and directed toward individuals. We will examine the nature and benefits of The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold Path, Basic Buddhist concepts as well as compare and contrast the 3 vehicles, Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana as they have evolved through the influence of culture and time. (4 units)
- Teacher: Randy Fauver, PhD