Lesson video

Hello, I'm Ms. Ramalli, and thank you for joining me for today's RE lesson.

I'll be guiding you through our learning today and my priority is to ensure you successfully meet our learning outcome.

By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to explain the term Buddha and the fact that Buddhists can be found throughout the world.

To help with our understanding, in today's lesson there are three keywords.

They are Siddhartha Gautama, Buddha, and Enlightened One.

Siddhartha Gautama is the founder of Buddhism.

He became known as the Buddha.

Buddha refers to the Enlightened One.

And the Enlightened One is a person who has been freed from ignorance.

So let's start our lesson on the idea of a Buddha with the first part of our lesson, what is a Buddha? So on your screen there is an image.

Look at this statue, which is found in Thailand.

I would like you to discuss with your partner.

What can you see? And then I would like you to consider, what questions might you ask about this statue? Pause the video, have a discussion with your partner, and press play when you are ready to reflect on your answers.

Okay, great discussions, everyone, welcome back.

I asked you to look at this statue, which is found in Thailand, and say what can you see and what questions might you ask about it.

So let's reflect on your discussions.

So what can you see and what questions might you ask? You may have said, "I can see a huge statue of a person." They are seated cross-legged, maybe that's something that you noticed.

You may have said, "I think they might be a significant person for people to have built such a richly decorated and huge statue." I also asked you to consider what questions you might ask about the statue, so here are some examples of questions that you may have asked.

What does it show? How is it used? Are there other examples of this statue? Those are just some examples of questions that you may have asked, but I'm sure you came up with lots of examples of your own.

So this statue is an image of Siddhartha Gautama.

The size and scale of the statue shows that Siddhartha Gautama is a significant figure for the people who made it.

He later became known as the Buddha.

The religion of Buddhism is named after him.

Looking at photographs like this can help us understand more about Buddhist worldviews.

Okay, so let's pause for a moment and just reflect on what we have heard.

On your screen there is a statement.

"The Buddha was originally known as Siddhartha Gautama." Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, welcome back, and well done to everybody that said true.

The Buddha is the title that was given to a person called Siddhartha Gautama.

Fantastic, well done.

So, Buddhism was founded around the 6th century BCE.

Buddhism originated in Nepal, in the Himalayas, which is next to northern India.

What other religions have their origins in the Indian subcontinent? Pause the video here and have a discussion with your partner.

Press play when you're ready to check your answers.

Okay, great discussions, everyone.

Well done and welcome back.

I asked you to discuss with your partner what other religions have their origins in the Indian subcontinent.

Well done if you said Hinduism or Hindu dharma, or Sikhism or Sikh dharma.

Fantastic, well done.

Okay, so let's pause for a moment and reflect on what we have heard.

On your screen, there is a statement.

"Buddhism originated in India." Is that statement true or false? I would like you to pause the video and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done to everybody that selected false.

Well, why is that false, that statement? Well, Buddhism has its origins in Nepal, which is a country that borders India.

Well done if you selected false.

So, the title of the Buddha means the Enlightened One.

So we're just gonna consider here what this term enlightened means.

Well, the first part is a Latin prefix meaning in or into.

And the light is a Latin word of lux meaning light.

So, when those segments are combined, together they mean into the light.

So I'd like you to imagine for a moment about being in a dark room and you are unable to see.

Think about how you might feel.

And then I want you to imagine switching the light on and suddenly being able to see your surroundings clearly.

And then just think to yourself for a moment, how would you feel now once that light has been switched on? Well, the moment of seeing the light, of waking up to reality, is what it means to be a Buddha.

Siddhartha Gautama was given the title Buddha, meaning the Enlightened One.

And for many Buddhists, Siddhartha Gautama gained understanding about the true nature of life.

He woke up to reality and was no longer ignorant.

Okay, so let's pause for a moment and check our understanding of what we have heard just now.

Which two statements help understand the idea of enlightenment? A, being free from ignorance; B, being full of light; or C, waking up to reality? Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answer.

Okay, welcome back, everybody, and well done if you selected A and C.

Being free from ignorance and waking up to reality are statements that help understand the idea of enlightenment.

Well done, everybody.

Okay, so here we have Linn, and Linn is a Buddhist and has a Buddhist worldview.

Listening to someone can help us understand more about their worldview.

Linn says, "For me, the Buddha is a hugely significant figure as he is the Enlightened One.

He discovered the truth of reality.

By following his teaching, I have a path to follow to lead a meaningful life." Okay, so let's pause for a moment and reflect on what we have just heard.

True or false? The Buddha is a significant figure for many Buddhists.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Welcome back and well done to everybody that said that statement is true.

Why is that statement true? Well, we saw in a previous photograph a huge statue of the Buddha in Thailand, which shows how significant he is for many Buddhists, and Linn also described him as a significant figure in her life.

So well done again if you selected true.

Okay, so now we are in a strong position to demonstrate our understanding of what is a Buddha by completing the following practise task.

I would like you to fill in the missing words.

Buddhism originated around the.

century BCE in.

Siddhartha.

was given the title the.

which means the.

One.

This describes a person who is free from.

Looking at photographs can help us better.

Buddhist worldviews.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answers.

Okay, welcome back and well done on all your hard work on that practise task, so now let's check your answers.

So Buddhism originated around the 6th century BCE in Nepal.

Siddhartha Gautama the was given the title the Buddha, which means the Enlightened One.

This describes a person who is free from ignorance.

And looking at photographs can help us better understand Buddhist worldviews.

Fantastic, well done on all your hard work on that practise task.

So, now we are on the second part of our lesson on the idea of a Buddha, and we're going to be exploring where do we find Buddhists.

So here is another statue of the Buddha and this statue can be found in China.

So let's think for a moment.

What links can you make with the statue in Thailand? And what more might this tell us about how Buddhists might see the Buddha and where we find Buddhism? So I would like you to pause the video here and speak to your partner and discuss those questions.

Press play when you're ready to reflect on your answers.

Okay, welcome back, fantastic discussions.

So, let's consider, first of all, what links this statue might have with the statue we saw previously in Thailand.

Well, the statue is huge compared to the people visiting it, so the statue we saw in Thailand was also very large.

And the photograph of this statue helps us understand better the significance of Buddha to many Buddhists.

So, seeing the scale and size of this statue really does demonstrate how significant the Buddha is to many Buddhists.

So it is in China, so what does that tell us? Well, that tells us that Buddhists can be found in other countries in Asia, so we've seen statues of the Buddha in Thailand and in China.

There are huge statues of Buddha found across Asia.

And this helps us understand that Buddha has been important in Asia for many centuries as well as today.

We can also find large statues in other Asian countries, so here is a statue of the Buddha in Taiwan and a statue of the Buddha in Japan.

These photographs help us understand that we can find Buddhists across Asia.

Okay, let's pause the video here and reflect on what we have just heard.

What can photographs of statues of Buddha help us understand about Buddhist worldviews? A, Buddhism spread beyond Nepal to Asia.

B, Buddhist countries are rich as the statues are huge.

C, many Buddhists see the Buddha as a significant figure.

Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answer.

Okay, welcome back and well done to everybody that selected answers A and C.

We could also find images or statues of the Buddha in the UK and not every image we see is always owned or used by a Buddhist.

We might see an image or statue of the Buddha in the UK in a shop, in a garden centre, or in a person's home.

Pause the video here and with your partner spend 30 seconds discussing, have you seen images of Buddha near you? Pause the video here and press play when you have finished your discussions.

Fantastic, welcome back, great discussions, great to hear about the different places that you also might have seen images of the Buddha near you.

So on the screen now we can see a photograph and this photograph shows a Buddhist vihara or place of worship, and this particular photograph was taken in London.

So what might this help us understand about where Buddhists might be found now? Pause the video and turn to your partner and discuss that question.

Press play when you're ready to reflect on your answers.

Okay, great discussions, everybody.

Welcome back and well done.

So I asked you to discuss, what might this help us understand about where Buddhists might be found now? Well, we can understand that Buddhists can be found in the UK as well as Asia.

And Linn explains about her family origins.

Linn says, "My mum is originally from Thailand, she is Buddhist.

She married my dad, who is British.

We live in the UK and I would call myself a Buddhist.

I go to the vihara with my mum sometimes." Okay, so let's pause for a moment and reflect on what we have just heard.

On your screen there is a statement and I want you to decide if it's true or false.

"You only see statues of the Buddha in Asian countries." Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your answer.

Okay, well done everybody that selected the answer false.

Why is that statement false? Well, Buddhism has its origins in Nepal, Asia, but Buddhists live all over the world and there are statues of Buddha that can be found globally.

Okay, so now we're in a really strong position to complete our second practise task.

Okay, so now we're in a great position to complete a practise task on, where do we find Buddhists? Here we have Lucas and Sofia, and Lucas and Sofia discuss where we find Buddhists today.

I would like you to decide who shows a better understanding and why.

So Lucas says, "Buddhists are found in Asia.

I know this because I have seen photographs of some of the huge Buddha statues in Thailand and China." Sofia says, "Buddhists are found in Asia, but they are found in other countries like the UK.

I know this because we have photographs of Buddha statues and viharas in the UK." So I would like you to complete the task to say who shows a better understanding and explain why.

Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answers.

Okay, welcome back, everyone.

So, opportunity now to check your answers.

Who shows a better understanding and why? So just to remind ourselves, Lucas said, "Buddhists are found in Asia.

I know this because I have seen photographs of some of the huge Buddha statues in Thailand and China." And Sofia said, "Buddhists are found in Asia, but they are found in other countries like the UK.

I know this because we have photographs of Buddha statues and for horrors in the UK." So who do you think showed a better understanding and why? So your answer might have included the following points.

Lucas correctly mentions that there are statues of Buddha in Asian countries such as Thailand and China.

However, Sofia shows a better understanding, as she also mentions we see statues of Buddha and viharas in the UK.

Fantastic, well done on all your hard work on that practise task.

So now we're at a point where we are at the summary of our lesson on the idea of a Buddha.

Siddhartha Gautama is the founder of Buddhism.

Siddhartha Gautama was later titled the Buddha, meaning the Enlightened One.

Buddhists believe an enlightened one is someone who is free from ignorance.

While Buddhism has its origins in Nepal, but today, Buddhists live all across the world.

We can better understand the diversity in Buddhist worldviews by looking at different photographs.

Well done, everybody, and thank you for joining me on your lesson today, goodbye.