GCE Getting Started



4A Buddhism

Scheme of work

AS and A Religious Studies

Introduction

This scheme of work covers the A Level content in 19 weeks and assumes 4.5-5 hours per week. As all schools and colleges have different timetables and teach the courses in a different way, these schemes of work have been issued in Word format to allow you to cut and paste and use the materials to suit your department and teaching.

There is no requirement to study arguments in the original text – except for specified texts required for study at A Level in the Anthology. The websites and resources listed in the Resources columns are simply indications of where texts may be found.

As the following resources are referred to regularly throughout the scheme of work, the abbreviations given below are used.

● DM AS: Dominique Messent’s Buddhism material in Edexcel AS Religious Studies (2008). Note that the sections on Buddhism are on the accompanying CD-ROM.

● DM A2: Dominique Messent’s Buddhism material in Edexcel A2 Religious Studies (2009). Note that the sections on Buddhism are on the accompanying CD-ROM.

Other resources are referred to in full as they appear in the scheme of work.

It is not compulsory to study these in this format but candidates must be aware of the argument or view of those named in the Specification for each topic area. Texts in bold and referenced in the Anthology ARE compulsory for study at A Level.

|Week |Topic |Content |Suggested resources |

|1 |Introduction |Introduction to Buddhism, the structure of the course and the assessment. |DM AS and DM A2 |

| | | |P Cole & R Gray Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) was |

| | | |endorsed for the 2008 specification and contains material on Buddhism. |

| | | | |

| | | |There are a number of general resources which you may want to refer to in your|

| | | |studies of this component: |

| | | |E Conze, Buddhist Scriptures (Penguin Classics 1969) |

| | | |W Rahula, What the Buddha taught (Oneworld publications, 2014) |

| | | |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan Updates, 2005). This text was written to |

| | | |support AS and A level students. |

| | | | |

| | | |Useful websites on Buddhist studies: |

| | | | |

| | | | |

| | | | |

| | | |religiousstudies.stanford.edu |

| | | | |

| | | |Videos: |

| | | |show/the-buddha/ |

| | | |YouTube Buddhism videos |

|2 |Religious beliefs, values and |The Four Noble Truths |B Bodhi, The Four Noble Truths dhamma/fourNoble.htm |

| |teachings |The Four Noble Truths as the basis of Buddhism and the centrality of such for different | |

| | |Buddhists: |D Keown, Buddhism. A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 1996), |

| | |a) The Three Poisons. |Chapter 4 |

| | |b) The Buddha’s teaching on suffering and the cessation of craving/desire in the Four Noble |D Keown, A Dictionary of Buddhism (Oxford University Press, 2004) |

| | |Truths: dukkha, samudaya/tanha, nirodha and magga. Including reference to the nature of | |

| | |Enlightenment and nibbana. |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005), chapters 7,8 |

| | | | |

| | |How these are understood in Theravada and Mahayana, both historically and in the |W Rahula, What the Buddha taught (Oneworld publications, 2014) |

| | |contemporary world. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of D Keown and B Bodhi. | |

|3 |1. Religious beliefs, values and |The Four Noble Truths (cont’d) |DM A2 Chap 2: 2.1; 2.3; 2.4 |

| |teachings (cont’d) | | |

| | |c) The Eightfold Path: |B Bodhi, The Noble Eightfold Path dhamma/nobleEight.htm |

| | |its summary in the Three-fold Way: ethics, meditation and wisdom | |

| | |the ethical principles of the Noble Eightfold Path: right action, right speech, right |D Keown, Buddhism. A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 1996), |

| | |livelihood |Chapter 4 |

| | |the qualities of metta, karuna and khanti |D Keown, A Dictionary of Buddhism (Oxford University Press, 2004) |

| | |the relationship between these principles and the Four Noble truths. | |

| | | |Other useful sources: |

| | |How these are understood in Theravada and Mahayana, both historically and in the |P Cole & R Gray, Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) |

| | |contemporary world. |Unit 2 Area D |

| | | |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005) Chapter 4 |

| | |With reference to the ideas of D Keown and B Bodhi. | |

|4 |1. Religious beliefs, values and |1.2 The Five Khandas and the Three Marks of Existence |DM A2 2.2 |

| |teachings (cont’d) |How the three marks and the Five khandas are understood in Theravada and Mahayana, both |A reference book for the ideas of Buddhaghosa is in the Visuddhimagga |

| | |historically and in the contemporary world, including how they may be linked to the |lib/authors/nanamoli/PathofPurification2011.pdf. This |

| | |rejection of the idea of the self and the non-existence of God. |is a large text and is an indicative/suggested source, should students wish to|

| | | |study elements of this. |

| | |a) The three marks of existence and how these are reflected throughout existence and also |Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, Everyday Consciousness and Primordial Awareness |

| | |through Buddhist teachings. The importance of this in understanding the nature of reality, |(2007). |

| | |the ultimate reality, and the meaning and purpose of life. |Other useful sources include: |

| | |b) The Five khandas in Theravada; death and the afterlife: the concept of rebirth, Nibbana, |W de Bary, The Buddhist Tradition in India, China and Japan (Knopf Doubleday |

| | |karma and the search for Enlightenment. The importance of this in understanding the nature |Publishing Group, 2011), pp.9-12; |

| | |of reality, the ultimate reality, and the meaning and purpose of life. |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005), Chapters 8-11. |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of Buddhaghosa in the Visuddhimagga and T W Rinpoche. | |

|5 |1. Religious beliefs, values and |1.3 The Three Refuges |DM AS 2.1 |

| |teachings (cont’d) |The meaning and significance of the three refuges: the Buddha, dhamma and the sangha. | |

| | | |B Bodhi, Going for Refuge & Taking the Precepts |

| | |a) The significance of each of these for a place of refuge within Buddhism. |lib/authors/bodhi/wheel282.html |

| | |b) The interrelationship between these three refuges. | |

| | |c) Different interpretations of the role and nature of the sangha and the role and nature of|T Bhikkhu Refuge: An Introduction to the Buddha, Dhamma, & Sangha |

| | |the Buddha. |lib/authors/thanissaro/refuge.html |

| | |d) The implications of the refuges for worship and daily life. | |

| | | |Other useful sources: |

| | |How these are understood in Theravada and Mahayana, both historically and in the |P Cole & R Gray Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) Unit|

| | |contemporary world. |1 Area C |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of B Bodhi, T Bhikkhu. | |

|6 |1. Religious beliefs, values and |1.4 Key Moral Principles |B Bodhi Going for Refuge & Taking the Precepts |

| |teachings (cont’d) |a) The Five Precepts. |lib/authors/bodhi/wheel282.html |

| | |b) How these are understood in Theravada and Mahayana both historically and in the | |

| | |contemporary world. |P Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and practices |

| | | |(Cambridge University Press, 2013), Chapter 9. |

| | |With reference to the ideas of P Harvey and B Bodhi. | |

| | | |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005), chapter 12 |

|7 |2. Sources of wisdom and |The Life and Work of the Buddha |DM AS Chap 1 |

| |authority | | |

| | |The life and work of the Buddha, its meaning and significance in its historical, religious |ANTHOLOGY (1) Armstrong K – Buddha, Chapter 3 Enlightenment, pp. 60–88 |

| | |and social context and the important teachings that his life exemplifies. (1) |(Phoenix, 2002) ISBN 9780753813409 |

| | | | |

| | |a) The key events of his life, including birth, childhood, the four sights, life as an |N Bhikkhu, The Life of the Buddha: According to the Pali Canon (Pariyatti |

| | |ascetic, search for Enlightenment, Enlightenment, founding of the sangha, preaching, his |Press, 2003) |

| | |death and parinibbana. | |

| | | |Other useful sources: |

| | |b) Links with a range of religious groupings at this time, including their beliefs and |W de Bary, The Buddhist tradition (Knopf Doubleday, 2011), chapter 2 |

| | |practice. |P Cole & R Gray, Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) |

| | | |Unit 1 Area C |

| | |c) Understanding and assessment of sacrifices, caste systems, social and economic groupings |E Conze, Buddhist Scriptures (Penguin Classics, 1969), chapter 2 |

| | |and changes; types of authority and kingship. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to K Armstrong and N Bhikkhu. | |

|8 |2. Sources of wisdom and |2.2 The Tipitaka |D Keown, A Dictionary of Buddhism (Oxford University Press, 2004) |

| |authority (cont’d) |The significance, interpretation, use and treatment of the Tipitaka. | |

| | | | |

| | |a) The status of the Tipitaka as the teachings of the Buddha and its collection and |A reference book on the Tipitaka is Matthew Meghaprasara New Guide to the |

| | |formation. |Tipitaka: A Complete Reference to the Pali Buddhist Canon (Sangha of Books, |

| | |b) The different sections, along with their context: |2013). This is a very large text itself and should be used for reference. |

| | |Vinaya Pitaka and how this aims to produce a cohesive community | |

| | |Sutta Pikata and the search for Enlightenment |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005), Chapter 5. This provides a useful and |

| | |Abhidhamma Pitaka and interpretation and understanding of the Buddha’s teachings and a |accessible summary. |

| | |consideration of whether this is the work of the Buddha himself. | |

| | |c) The significance of the Tipitaka as the source of the Buddha’s teachings and its use, | |

| | |importance and impact as a source of wisdom in Buddhism. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of D Keown and M Meghaprasara. | |

|9 |3. Practices that shape and |3. 1 Theravada Buddhism |A handful of leaves |

| |express religious identity |Distinctive practices and emphases of Theravada Buddhism and how they shape and express | |

| | |religious identity. |R Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to |

| | | |Modern Colombo (The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices) (Routledge, |

| | |a) Its significance as the only surviving form of Nikaya Buddhism. |2006) |

| | |b) Rejection of the idea of the Three Vehicles. |H Gunaratana, The Jhanas in Theravada Buddhist Meditation |

| | |c) The centrality of Buddha Gautama, especially in their use of images and stupas. |lib/authors/gunaratana/wheel351.html |

| | |d) The goal of nibbana and parinibbana as a central teaching alongside an emphasis on | |

| | |renunciation, including the four stages to becoming an arahant. |Other useful sources: |

| | |e) The distinctive teachings of Theravada; their interpretation and application in light of |W de Bary, The Buddhist tradition (Knopf Doubleday, 2011), chapter 1 |

| | |the life and teachings of the Buddha and other traditions of Buddhism and their different | |

| | |emphases. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of R Gombrich and H Gunaratana. | |

|10 |3. Practices that shape and |3. 2 Mahayana Buddhism |A Basham in de Bary W T et al, The Buddhist Tradition in India, China and |

| |express religious identity | |Japan, Chapter 3 (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2011) |

| |(cont’d) |Distinctive practices and emphases of Mahayana Buddhism and how they shape and express | |

| | |religious identity. |14th Dalai Lama ‘Essence Of Mahayana Buddhism’ (video) |

| | | | |

| | |a) Its development and context in the second century BCE and the first century CE. | |

| | |b) The extension of the concept of the Buddha to include the Buddha and creation. The | |

| | |specific concept of the Buddha as a cosmic presence that influences the world. | |

| | |c) The Buddha nature in every person. The centrality of Buddha Gautama, especially in their | |

| | |use of images and stupas. | |

| | | | |

| | |The different schools of Mahayana should be explored in the context of the countries in | |

| | |which they developed and are practised. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of A Basham and the 14th Dalai Lama. | |

|11 |3. Practices that shape and |3.3 Meditation |DM AS 2.2 |

| |express religious identity |The different types and purposes of meditation, their context and application and how they |T Bhikkhu: Basic Breath Meditation Instructions |

| |(cont’d) |shape and express religious identity. |lib/authors/thanissaro/breathmed.html |

| | | | |

| | |a) The different types of meditation in Buddhism. |The Agendas of Mindfulness |

| | |b) The place and context of meditation as part of the eight-fold path, links to wisdom and |lib/authors/thanissaro/agendas.html |

| | |morality, including the influence of types of meditation on moral development. | |

| | |c) The practice and purpose of dhyana, samatha and vipassana as types of meditation, | |

| | |including accounts of meditation techniques, their purposes and context. |J Goldstein, Mindfulness. A Practical Guide to Awakening (Sounds True, 2016) |

| | |d) Understanding of the purposes of meditation in terms of Enlightenment and the relative | |

| | |importance of some aspects of meditation. The practices of chanting, giving and study to |Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom (Shmabhala, 2003) |

| | |understand Buddhism as it is lived by laypeople as well as monastics. | |

| | | |Other useful source; |

| | |With reference to the ideas of T Bhikkhu and J Goldstein. |P Cole & R Gray, Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) |

| | | |Unit 1 Area C |

|12 | |Complete any remaining topic areas, re-visit key terms and test knowledge of basic concepts | |

| | |before planning and embarking upon systematic revision and question practice. | |

| | | | |

|13 |4. Social and historical |4.1 Spread of Buddhism |DM A2 1.2; 1.3 |

| |developments |The spread of Buddhism and the impact of migration; with specific reference to developments | |

| | |in China and Japan. |A good overview text is de Bary W T et al, The Buddhist Tradition in India, |

| | | |China and Japan, (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2011). Pure Land and Zen |

| | |a) Beliefs and practices of Pure Land and Zen, types of tradition, key people and |in China and Japan chaps 7 , 11, 13 |

| | |distinctive emphases, including relevant indigenous traditions and Buddhism’s encounter with|Shinko Mochizuki, Leo M. Pruden, Trans (2002), Pure Land Buddhism in China: A |

| | |modernity. |Doctrinal History, Chapter Five: The Early Pure Land Faith: Southern China, |

| | |b) Key teachings and practices, including the contributions of key people and significant |and Chapter Six: The Early Pure Land Faith: Northern China. In: Pacific World |

| | |features of relevant scripture. |Journal, Third Series, Number 4, 259-279. |

| | |c) Significant features that constitute gradual or more radical changes from earlier |149-165. |

| | |traditions, including debates about belief and practice in these respective | |

| | |traditions/schools. |Another useful source is |

| | | |D Side, Buddhism Philip Allan 2005 chaps 15, 16 |

| | |With reference to the ideas of S Mochizuki and W T de Bary. | |

|14 |4. Social and historical |4.2 Triratna Buddhism |Vajragupta, The Triratna Story (Windhorse, 2010) |

| |developments (cont’d) |The rise of Triratna Buddhism in response to secularisation, Western culture and ideals. | |

| | | |J Coleman, The New Buddhism: The Western Transformation of an Ancient |

| | |a) The beliefs and teachings of Triratna Buddhism (formerly Friends of the Western Buddhist |Tradition (Oxford University Press, 2002) |

| | |Order) in the context of Western society and wider Buddhist beliefs and teachings, including| |

| | |the importance of the three refuges, the unity of the sangha, the importance of spreading |Other useful source |

| | |the message of Buddhism and the rejection of specific rules within the context of the |D Side, Buddhism (Philip Allan, 2005), chapter 21 |

| | |sangha. | |

| | |b) The success of applying Buddhist teaching in a different culture and the response of | |

| | |other Buddhist traditions to these developments. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of Vajragupta and J Coleman. | |

|15 |4. Social and historical |4.3 Gender and Buddhism |N S Salgado, Buddhist Nuns and Gendered Practice: In Search of the Female |

| |developments (cont’d) |The development of the role of women, and the changing role of men, in different forms of |Renunciant (Oxford UP, 2013) |

| | |Buddhism. | |

| | | |T Bartholomeusz, Women under the Bo Tree: Buddhist nuns in Sri Lanka |

| | |a) The significance of Māhapājapatī Gotamī and the development of the role of women in the |(Cambridge UP, 2009) |

| | |ordained sangha; the role of men in the sangha. | |

| | |b) Family life and the role of men and women in Buddhism in the dhamma, history and | |

| | |contemporary society. | |

| | |c) Feminist approaches in contemporary Buddhism. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of N S Salgado and T Bartholomeusz. | |

|16 |5. Works of scholars |5.1 Comparison of the bodhisattva doctrine in the works of two scholars. (2) (3) |DM A2 2.5 |

| | | | |

| | |a) The concept of the bodhisattava with specific reference to the writings of Arthur Basham |ANTHOLOGY |

| | |and Walpola Rahula. |(2) de Bary W T et al, The Buddhist Tradition in India, China and Japan, |

| | |b) Mahayana Buddhism: the doctrine as found in the Lotus Sutra, including beliefs about |Chapter 3 The Bodhisattva, pp. 81–109 (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2011)|

| | |wisdom, liberation, loving-kindness and skilful means. |ISBN 9780307778796 |

| | |c) The stages and perfections of the Bodhisattva path, including their place in particular | |

| | |traditions. |(3) Rahula W, Gems of Buddhist Wisdom, Chapter 27 Bodhisattva Ideal in |

| | |d) Debates such as the context of this belief system in Theravada Buddhism, together with |Buddhism, pp. 461–471 (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Buddhist Missionary Society, |

| | |issues, including transfer of karmic merit. |1996) ISBN 9789679920673 |

| | | | |

| | | | |

| | | |With a focus on the bodhisattva doctrine, outline and analyse these two |

| | | |scholars, noting their significance and any difference in understanding and |

| | | |practice between different forms of Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism. |

|17 |6. Religion and society |6.1 Ahimsa |ANTHOLOGY (4) tipitaka/index.html (Samyutta Nikaya |

| | |The interpretation and application of ahimsa for a Buddhist in the modern world. (4) |42.3 Yodhajiva Sutta: To Yodhajiva (The Warrior)) |

| | | | |

| | |a) The First Precept — to refrain from harming a living thing, the interpretation of ahimsa |14th Dalai Lama, Ahimsa - India’s Contribution to the World available at |

| | |by Buddhists with specific examples of how this may be lived, such as vegetarianism, right |

| | |livelihood and involvement in the armed forces. |e-dalai-lama/. |

| | |b) The role of other beliefs and considerations in the living of ahimsa, including |Other useful sources |

| | |differences in application and importance within different traditions, and in the example of|E Conze Buddhist Scriptures Penguin Classics 1969 p 83-90 |

| | |the Buddha. Specific reference should be made to excerpts of the Pali Canon and the Lotus |P Cole & R Gray Edexcel Religious Studies for AS (Hodder Education, 2009) |

| | |Sutra. |Unit 2 Area D |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of the 14th Dalai Lama and T Bartholomeusz. | |

|18 |6. Religion and society (cont’d) |6.2 Issues in contemporary society |Sri Dhammananda, Buddhist Attitudes towards other religions available at |

| | | |pdfs/BUDDHIST_ATTITUDE_TOWARDS_THE_RELIGIONS.pdf |

| | |a) The significance of teachings that underpin involvement and support in and for | |

| | |liberationist approaches to religion and society, religious freedom, religious tolerance, |14th Dalai Lama, Towards The True Kinship Of Faiths: How the World's Religions|

| | |pluralism and interfaith dialogue for Buddhists in a multicultural society. |Can Come Together (Abacus, 2012) |

| | |b) The ways that Buddhists respond to diversity in different traditions of Buddhism. How | |

| | |different Buddhist traditions view other religious and non-religious world views and their | |

| | |truth claims. | |

| | |c) The benefits, extent of the involvement and potential barriers from a Buddhist context, | |

| | |including the difference in application and importance of interfaith dialogue in light of | |

| | |different traditions of Buddhism, including the different cultural and country contexts in | |

| | |which Buddhists are found. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of the 14th Dalai Lama and K Sri Dhammananda. | |

|19 |6. Religion and society (cont’d) |6.2 Issues in contemporary society (cont’d) |14th Dalai Lama, The Universe in a Single Atom (Abacus, 2007) |

| | | |Outline and analyse the significance of involvement and support in and for |

| | |d) Buddhist teachings and responses to issues of science. How Buddhism has responded to |issues of science such as creation for Buddhists today and in history. |

| | |these in the historical and contemporary world. | |

| | | | |

| | |With reference to the ideas of the 14th Dalai Lama | |

| | |Review all topics covered so far. Revise key ideas and terminology. | |

| | |Re-visit essay structure and technique for answering questions across the paper. (Reminder | |

| | |of trigger words.) | |

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download