RE Buddhist practices

Temple - a place of Buddhist worship and

meditation, where offerings can be made to monks,

where Buddhists can listen to sermons. Temples

may be one building or a range of buildings, they

usually have a main hall, meditation hall, a

study hall or library, a shrine dedicated to the

Buddha, a Pagoda or Stupa a tiered tower,

symbolising the 5 elements, a Stupa may contain

relics of Buddha’s.           

Shrine: A Buddha often sits in the lotus

position, in a temple or home. They are a

focal point for meditation or worship. On the

shrine are flowers: (impermanence, Anicca), Light:

(wisdom, enlightenment), Incense: (purity, in

speech, actions, thoughts) Buddhists make offerings

to remember the Dharma (teachings) and pay respect

to the Buddha.

Monastries are buildings where a community of monks or nuns live.

They have dedicated their lives to following the

dharma, they meditate, study the Buddha’s

teachings. A Stupa is an important part of a

monastery as they are said to hold the Buddha’s

ashes, today they may also contain the remains of

monks and nuns, or important Buddhists.

The purpose of worship is to show respect to the

Buddha for giving the Dharma, to deepen their grasp

of the Buddha’s teachings, and their commitment to

following the Dharma, as well as to become more

compassionate. They may chant the scriptures, such

as the three refuges ‘’to the Buddha for refuge I

go, to the Dharma for refuge I go, to the Sangha

for refuge I go’’. Mantras may be chanted over and

over again such as: ‘om mani padme hum’these are

seen as a form of meditation and are often

associated with Bodhisattvas. They may also make

offerings to monks or shrines and bow to show

respect, in addition to this there is often

meditation.