Only when it agrees with your experience and reason, and when it is conducive to the good and gain of oneself and all others, then one should accept the teachings, and live up to them.

"Three qualities enable people to understand the teachings: objectivity, which means an open mind; intelligence, which is the critical faculty to discern the real meaning by checking the teachings of Buddha; and interest and commitment, which means enthusiasm." --His Holiness the Dalai Lama

The Five Lay Precepts

1. abstain from killing living beings

2. abstain from taking that which is not given

3. abstain from sexual misconduct

4. abstain from telling lies or using hurtful language

5. abstain from intoxicants, which diminish mental capacity

Karma, Samsara, and Reincarnation

Definition of Karma and Samsara

Karma (Sanscrit) – “action;” the universal law of cause and effect

Samsara (Sanscrit) – the cycle of repeatedly being born, living, suffering, dying, being reborn again, due to the accumulated negative karma of previous lifetimes

Six Realms of Existence (from buddhism.kalachakranet.org)

1. God realm – life is experienced as happiness virtually without any problems, except when the time to die comes near. Then one begins to experience suffering as one can see the next rebirth, which is usually less pleasant. Most easily compared to the gods of Greek mythology than the Judeo-Christian god.

2. Demi-god realm – quite a happy life, except that they can see the lives of the god realm and they then become jealous. They then want to fight the gods, but are always defeated.

3. Human realm – life shifts between happiness and suffering. In this realm, it is possible to realize the possibilities to change one’s karma to become liberated from samsara (cyclic existence). One might experience enough problems to be motivated into action.

4. Animal realm – life is ruled by ignorance. Happiness and suffering happen but understanding it or being able to control it is beyond the capacity or awareness of an animal.

5. Hungry ghost (Preta) realm– life is marked by suffering, especially from attachment and craving, without being able to satisfy one’s needs. Life here is described as constantly being hungry or thirsty, but being unable to eat or drink.

6. Hell realm – life here is suffering with virtually no happiness. After consuming much of the negative karma, one will die and have the chance to be reborn in a higher realm.

Reincarnation and the importance of preparing for death

The preciousness of a human rebirth

Impermanence

1. life is impermanent

2. death is certain

3. the time of death is uncertain

4. the only thing that can help us at the time of death is what we have accomplished in this lifetime in terms of our spiritual development

Spread of Buddhism

1st Century CE Central Asia and China

3rd Century Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam

372 Korea

520 Bodhidharma to China

552 to Japan from Korea

760 to Tibet via Guru Rinpoche

There is no god in Buddhism.

In Buddhism, time is beginningless and endless.