Reference no: EM133733126

Assignment:

World Civilizations

Answers as if you are trying to get an 8th grader to understand what is being said.

1. During the Ming Dynasty in China (1366-1644), Western Europe was experiencing the Renaissance (about 1350 to 1550). Discuss three interesting things going on during the Renaissance and why they are interesting.

2. What was an important trend going on in China during the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC).

What was an important trend going on in Europe during that same period?

3. Why were European Dynasties so important? (Give detailed reason)

4. In India, the Buddha (a.k.a. Siddhartha Gautama) taught a philosophy of suffering and a philosophy of coping with suffering. He taught that one of the best ways of coping with suffering is to have the right view of oneself. One should not view oneself as being independent from the rest of reality because an independent self is either a proud, inflated self or else an alienated, deflated self. Both are bad. One should not view oneself as an absolute being, which one cannot really be, since each one is only a limited, temporal, changing being.

Everything is changing (anatta), and it is not possible for anything in the universe, including one's existence, to remain the same. One should try to view one's limited being as being a part of the essence of the universe, which is called the tathata. It is possible to have a deep insight into it, which is called satori or kensho, and this is what one should desire to attain these deep insights above all else. One should spend time meditating on the reality of the tathata to identify with it more and more. This is the only path to find enlightenment and freedom (moksha) from ignorance and the burdens of suffering. One may still feel pain but not feel the alienation and misery associated with wrong suffering. In this way, one will not think too highly or too lowly of one's life.

(This is a summary of essentialist Buddhism as opposed to nihilistic Buddhism. Some essentialist Buddhists, especially the Pure Land Mahayana sects, believe in the immortality of the soul and believe that Amida Buddha is the savior of those who believe. Other Buddhists believe in many gods and spirits (polytheism and spiritism), and some Zen Buddhists claim not to believe in any gods, spirits, or immortality. On the other hand, nihilistic Buddhists believe that existence is characterized by an underlying nothingness, so the reality is being and non-being at the same time.)

According to the summary given above, Buddhism does offer good advice for life, explain why? (Why does it, and give the best reasons).