39
votes
How to explain what Buddhism is?
In a nut shell Buddhism revolves around the 3 trainings:
Living a life of morality so we do no create misery for one self and others
Developing mastery over the mind so we do not react but be ...
34
votes
Accepted
How do you tell a 4-year-old who the Buddha was?
A 4 year old can be told that the Buddha was a man who wanted to understand how to be happy and free and he worked very hard to understand how to be truly happy and free. Then he taught other people ...
- 9,482
24
votes
Relationship with bad parents (kamma and issues)
My father was an alcoholic, and I suffered a lot of grief from him - so I might as well try and answer this one.
The way my first teacher taught me about this (back when my father was still alive and ...
- 55.4k
17
votes
How to combine Buddhism with being a parent?
Parents are supposed to practice Brahmavihara towards children. Attachment doesn't benefit them in any way. What benefits them are kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity. Attachment or ...
- 25.6k
17
votes
Accepted
How to explain what Buddhism is?
1) It's hard to summarize Buddhism in brief without resorting to one of sometimes inaccurate or misleading summaries. A summary that starts with the Hindu-style cosmology, imho, misses the point. Also ...
- 7,026
13
votes
How to explain what Buddhism is?
In addition to my comments, I quote Ajahn Brahm from his book "Mindfulness, Bliss and Beyond"
The Highest Happiness
The Buddha said, “Nibbāna is the highest happiness” (Dhp 203, 204). This is,...
- 675
12
votes
Accepted
Do monks not have responsibility towards parents and family?
Responsibility in Theravada Buddhism falls into two categories - practical and absolute. In an absolute sense, we only have two responsibilities:
“bhante, imasmiṃ sāsane kati dhurānī”ti?
"Bhante,...
- 23.9k
10
votes
Should a Buddhist have Children?
rebirth is itself a origin of all the Dukhhas.
Not quite. Birth has a requisite condition as well. It's not the case that our birth was the ultimate origin of our suffering.
Doesn't it imply that ...
- 1,807
10
votes
Accepted
How to combine Buddhism with being a parent?
Love and attachment are only incidentally related. Of course that depends on how you define love.
I would propose that love can be crudely understood as the act of giving. Naturally "investing" ...
- 442
10
votes
Accepted
How to help non-Buddhists understand a young person's desire to be ordained as a monk?
Selling Points
According to the Buddha's teaching in the Samaññaphala Sutta (DN 2), there are a whole host of benefits to the life of a samana (i.e. a monk). In brief:
Freedom from requirement to ...
- 23.9k
9
votes
Relationship with bad parents (kamma and issues)
Even if your parents abandoned you the day you were born, you still owe them. The only way to repay them fully is to make them understand the Dhamma. If your parents are alcoholic, take them for rehab....
- 25.6k
8
votes
How and when should a child be introduced to Buddhism?
I have a daughter who is nearly 4 now. I first took her to the local Buddhist Centre when she was about a year old on a family day that we organised. The Buddhist practice involved running around the ...
- 20.9k
7
votes
Relationship with bad parents (kamma and issues)
There is a aspect of Buddhism which actually views difficult people (including parents) as being helpful and we should be grateful to them. Forbearance (kṣānti) is one of the six perfections. To ...
- 20.9k
7
votes
Accepted
Should a Buddhist advocate the learning of a martial art?
Wholesome intent is important
The Buddha learned archery as a kshatriya, but he didn't lose his compassion - see this story of when his cousin shot down a bird.
Martial arts can connect one deeply ...
- 7,383
7
votes
Can bad kammas be eased by apologizing?
Apologizing is good Karma that has a mitigating(not delete) effect on the bad Karma you had committed:
ex:
The story of Soreyya.
Devadatta taking refuge of the Buddha just before being swallowed by ...
- 25.6k
7
votes
Can bad kammas be eased by apologizing?
For example if i have lied to my parents and can the bad kamma be deleted when i apologize to them?
You can neutralise Karma when the result is felt [Sañcetanika Sutta] or by diluting the result of ...
6
votes
Should a Buddhist pay homage/bend to his parents?
From a Therevada perspective, in the Sigalovada Sutta (Pali Canon) the Buddha says to Silaga that parents should be worshiped. He doesn't actually specify monks in this sutra as at this point the ...
- 20.9k
6
votes
How do you tell a 4-year-old who the Buddha was?
In simple terms this can be along the lines of:
Do you get sad, angry and low? The Buddha taught the way out of it, and how to be a good person!
6
votes
Should a Buddhist advocate the learning of a martial art?
My own (limited) experience was learning Chen style Tai Chi (and a sword form) from a sifu, who also taught a "kung fu" to small children (a couple of years older than yours perhaps), and ...
- 43.4k
6
votes
Accepted
Metta for dead father
Generally you should not do Metta to:
Lingavisabhāga (opposite sex - generally directed at a specific person)
Kālakatapuggala (a dead person)
See page 81 Seeing and Knowing revised edition by Pa Auk ...
6
votes
Parents suppressing the teaching
You don't have to make a show out of your Dharma. You don't need to make it fly in your parents faces. There's no need to convince them of anything. Buddhism is what you practice in your mind. No-one ...
- 55.4k
6
votes
How to redeem a wasted youth?
So Buddhism says a lot of things.
One is that unhappiness is caused by "craving" i.e. by wanting things to be other than as they are (or by wanting impermanent things to continue)
Another is that ...
- 43.4k
5
votes
Should a Buddhist have Children?
From the child standpoint:
A human life is considered very precious in Buddhism as it provides a great opportunity for liberation, the human realm is the best of all realms to practice Dhamma, the ...
- 9,807
5
votes
How and when should a child be introduced to Buddhism?
The typical cut off for meditation class at a meditation center is about 4 (just checked google).
Traditional Buddhists said a child could become a monk if he was old enough to scare crows away, ...
- 7,026
5
votes
How to explain what Buddhism is?
It may be useful to choose certain aspects of Buddhism that people can relate to such as Cause and Effect. This reminded me of the dilemma The Buddha had when he almost didn't teach The Dhamma because ...
- 3,052
5
votes
How to explain what Buddhism is?
I think a brief overview of Buddha's life is an excellent way to explain Buddhism, because the listener can follow the train of observation and reasoning that led Buddha to renounce a life of ease for ...
- 51
5
votes
How do you tell a 4-year-old who the Buddha was?
Lord Buddha was no GOD nor Saint but an human being who was born in a wealthy royal family. As prince who gave up his wealth to seek happiness of the mind and body. He understood that being attached ...
- 51
5
votes
Accepted
Teaching Buddhist concepts to a child
Try the videos under the section of Children on this website.
There are some ebooks for children here.
There's a simplified introduction to Buddhism for kids here.
There are websites on Jataka ...
- 34k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible