What do you think prevents your lasting and full happiness?

1. What do you think prevents your lasting and full happiness?

2. The 3 Signs of Being Buddhists identify 3 aspects of life, or “signs of being”, by which we are made unhappy… • Buddhism is about enlightenment – to understand the truth about yourself, so you then know how to free yourself from everything that prevents your happiness. To define the key words To explain how the “signs of being” lead to suffering To evaluate if the signs of being contradict or complement Christian teaching.

3. Look up what these key words mean from your Key words list. Explain them to your partner. Which ones might you agree with? Disagree with ? Dukkha – life is full of disappointment. Things are never as good as they should be. The Three Signs of Being Anicca– nothing lasts. Everything we know is changing. Good things and people and times will pass, as will the bad. Dukkha Anicca Anatta • **What is dukkha for you? Sickness, losing a loved one, a personality issue, dissatisfaction, poverty, inability to do something... Anatta – there is no soul, or self, so there is no selfishness or concern for self. Also, nothing carries on after you are dead, so you are not afraid of death itself.

4. 1st sign: Dukkha Discuss with your partner the one that your teacher gives you. Explain to the class why it is a source of suffering. • Write out the headings of sources of suffering in order of hardest to easiestto bear.Make this clear on your list. • Explain which one is hardest to bear for your personally.

5. Why are these things a source of suffering ? Rank them in order 1-5 of hardest to bear (hardest =5). Discuss with your partner the one that your teacher gives you. Explain to the class why it is a source of suffering. • A. Suffering physical pain - from a broken leg, an ongoing chronic illness like arthritis. We even suffer just from the fear that we might experience such physical pain – dukkhadukkha. • B. Being emotionally attached to things • To love something, means suffering the pain of losing it when it dies. • To love something, means always being afraid of losing it in the future. • Knowing you have to die, is the worst suffering of all- knowing that one day you will have to say goodbye to everything you have ever loved. • C. Craving things • Getting something you want doesn’t make you happy for long. Soon, you want something else. You are never satisfied, even when you have got what you want. • most delightful sensations become painful or tedious if they continue for very long. You can even get fed up of your own daydreams and mental chatter. • D. Experiencing Change • Change means everything good will one day disappear. You can never hold on to anything good for long. • This awareness of change makes the present moment harder to enjoy. Knowing summer holidays will end soon, changes your feeling of relaxation. Remembering summer holidays during lessons, makes hot days at school harder to bear. Which of the sources of Dukkha is hardest to bear? Explain in your books. Compare it to one other form of Dukkha: explain why this other kind of Dukkha is not so hard to bear in comparison to your chosen one. **Which of these sources of Dukkha could you eliminate from your life? How?

6. Dukkha. Disappointment is everywhere. : Anicca. Nothing lasts. Anatta: There is no soul/ self. 3rd Sign of Being - Anatta. There is no soul/ self. There is no “you”. “you” are just a collection of thoughts, feelings, ideas, body parts + karma: the life-force that you make good or bad through your actions. Draw the man/ question mark, subtitle it “Anatta – Buddhist teaching that there is no Soul/self” Add labels to EXPLAIN WHY this doctrine could be a good thing. **Do any of the “signs of being” challenge the teachings of Christianity? If so, how? Since there is no “self” or soul to protect or fight for, the “No-self doctrine” leads to harmlessness towards others, contentment and peace.

7. “Since there is no “self” or soul to protect or fight for, the “No-self doctrine” leads to harmlessness towards others, contentment and peace.” Add labels to show how the “no self” doctrine is a good thing. Not ambitious or in competition with others No jealousy or envy Care more for others, not your “self” Can’t be attached to things so you don’t suffer loss Can’t get annoyed, angry, insulted as no “ego” to offend Don’t fight to protect yourself, or use any violence. Don’t do others down to get ahead yourself Not disappointed by failure or success

8. Which of the 3 signs is this cartoon joking about ? Does the cartoon support this Buddhist idea or not ?

9. Life disappoints. Nothing lasts. There is no self. Is this a depressing view of life ? How could you live with these beliefs ?