Essay

This is a reminder the upcoming paper, Paper #1, is due 3/12/21 at 11:59pm.

Review the guidelines for Paper #1 NOW, and get started on it. The best papers were never ones produced in the last minute despite the things we like to tell ourselves. For this assignment you need to write a 3-4 page essay using one of the topics from the Hinduism or Buddhism topic sets (see folders); you are required to directly reference the primary source read for class; you are discouraged from referencing other sources. The reading questions have prepared you for this assignment. I want YOUR INTERPRETATION of the text, and answer to the prompt, not your report of someone else’s ideas that you find online (I can find those for myself!).

All students must complete THREE PAPERS in order to fulfill the course requirements. There is a paper due at roughly week seven, another due at roughly week fourteen and a third at the end of the semester. Students can select the religion they want to write about as long as they meet the base requirements for papers and deadlines for paper production that are stated in the course syllabus. Topics for each religion are provided in the folder for each religion. Remember, students who meet certain performance expectations on the first two assignments can earn exemption from the third and final paper. See the syllabus for details.

 

Once students have chosen the paper topic option they want, they should review the requirements of each assignment carefully. Students must either SELECT ONE of the paper topics provided OR propose an independently designed paper topic to the professor. Paper 1 MUST BE WRITTEN using the topics from either HInduism or Buddhism.

 

DO NOT try to write one essay that encompasses all three topics. Independently designed paper topics MUST be submitted by email for the professor’s pre-approval (  [email protected]  ) and must be pre-approved by the professor at least 48 hours before the paper deadline. Students submitting papers on independently designed topics that are not pre-approved will NOT receive credit for the assignment and will NOT have the option to resubmit. This is not because I am trying to be difficult; I really enjoy working with students on papers of their own design. I insist on pre-approval because I want to make sure you do not take on a topic that cannot be done successfully within the parameters of the assignment (I want you to do well!), and I want to make sure we have established expectations for content such that you are not being asked to do something that is easier or harder than that required of classmates doing the prepared topics.

 

Speaking of the prepared topics, each paper topic has specific requirements that count for credit. Thus, students are encouraged to read the basic guidelines for papers (syllabus) and their chosen topic (paper topic sheet) very carefully and make sure that their essay contains all the required elements as well as meets the stated general length and citation requirements for papers. Substantive deductions will be taken if requirements are not met. It is your responsibility to check to make sure your paper meets all the requirements and is firing on all cylinders!

 

Basic Guidelines and Grading Rubric:

Papers must be typed, double spaced, and have 1” margins. Length specifications represent the minimum expected page length. I do not penalize students if they go over that length. However, if you go under I will deduct the percentage of the paper a student did not complete from the final grade. Papers are due on or before the deadline. No late papers will be reviewed unless students have utilized a second chance extension. Papers without second change exemptions that are received after the deadline will automatically receive an F.  Students who fail to submit a paper altogether will receive a zero. Thus, it is better to hand in a paper late than not hand in a paper at all. Late papers must be submitted within 48 hours of the stated deadline. After that point, unless a medical emergency or other situation warranting an extension has occurred that can be documented, no credit will be given. All papers that are received on time and meet general paper requirements (length) receive half-credit (50 points). The remainder of the assigned credit will be determined by the degree to which they meet the following grading criteria. All papers are expected to:

a. establish a clear focus through the presence of a topic statement or thesis (10 points)

b. be clear, correct, and coherent in presentation of required central content (10 points)

c. be mechanically sound (be properly formatted and free of spelling/grammatical errors) – (10 points)

d. use the required number of direct citations to substantiate exposition and/or argument (10 points)

e. cite all direct/indirect citations correctly and include a works cited (MLA format) - (10 points)

Buddhism: Paper Topics

1.) Using the Dhammapada, and its discussion of desire, and the dangers the desire poses, write an essay that comments on the impact that understanding the Buddhist notion of desire (and its understanding of salvation) has had on your sense of consumerism in American culture. Many advertisers in our country create the impression that happiness is intimately linked to the acquisition of goods. What would Buddhism say about that idea. Use at least three direct references to the primary text in your essay.

2.) Using the Dhammapada, and one of the two required Hindu texts that we covered, explain the difference between the Buddhist theory of the person, and the Hindu notion of the self, and explain how these theories relate to how each tradition regards salvation. Use at least three direct references to the primary text in your essay.

Hinduism: Paper Topics

1.) Many religious traditions believe that faith involves overcoming doubt and fear. Some maintain that it also involves suspending reason. Write an essay that discusses Arjuna’s experience and indicates how doubt, fear, and reason play into his experience and the test of faith that the text describes. Relate your comments on the text to the precepts of Hinduism that you have learned and to modern tests of faith (like a pandemic) that people might experience. Use at least three direct references to the primary text in your essay.

2.) Write an essay that examines the Upanishads; select a recurrent image or analogy that the text uses for God. Analyze the text’s use of these examples and discuss at least three reasons why you believe this particular image (light, mirrors) is used to further the reader’s understanding of God. Relate your comments on the text to the precepts of Hinduism that you have learned. Use at least three direct references to the primary text in your essay

Sources For Hinduism

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2388/2388-h/2388-h.htm

Hinduism: Main Concepts and Terms Third largest world religion with 1.2 billion adherents worldwide Originated in 1500BC in Indus Valley region Primary texts: Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavad-Gita, Advaita Vedanta Largest concentrations in Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh Monotheistic and polytheistic aspects All things derive from God/Spirit (Purusha/Brahman)—including matter (prakriti) and all the things in the material world. God creates spontaneously out of its infinite nature through the process of lila or play. Hindu cosmology assumes myriad worlds (heavens, hells) born of Brahman’s plenitude. Hindu Trimurti: Brahman (creator), Vishnu (sustainer), Shiva (destroyer)—shown above. All gods and goddesses are incarnations of the godhead (e.g., Krishna an incarnation of Vishnu). Individual soul—Atman—also known as the jiva—is eternal and ultimately identified with Brahman; indeed, enlightenment (moksha) involves realizing this identification; the soul is believed to cycle through thousands of lives (reincarnations) prior to its emancipation which is achieved through enlightenment. Prior to enlightenment, the soul subsides in samsara—the cycle of bondage in material plane due to accrued karma and due to ignorance (maya—illusion) of divine nature. Karma—is the law of cause and effect that goversn the system and determines where the atman finds itself in the world. Hindu cosmology envisions a world where everything is necessary (as opposed to random or accidental). Enlightenment brings absolute Being, Consciousness, Bliss (Sat, Chit, Ananda) through the realization that Thou Art That (Tat Tvam Asi) or Atman=Brahman. Three gunas (aspects of material nature) are: sattva (intellect), rajas (emotion), tamas (appetite) and these correspond to different yogas (see below) and loosely to Hindu castes (brahmin, kyshaitrya, vaisya, shudra). Individuals differ by virtue of their possession of different ratios of the three gunas. As a result of differences, spiritual development should be pursued through different means (yogas—path or way), namely those consistent with one’s constitution and social role (dharma—duty). Four yogas: jnana (wisdom); bhakti (devotional); karma (action); rajas (meditative)

Sources for Buddhism

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2017/2017-h/2017-h.htm

Buddhism: Main points

• 4th largest world religion (approx. 250-500 million adherents)

• Two main types (Theravada and Mahayana)

• Founded: 6th century BC

• Founder: Historical Buddha—Siddhartha Gautama (Four Sights: age, illness, death,

denial)

Fourfold Noble Truth

1.) Life is suffering (dukkha)

2.) Desire is the cause of suffering (trsna)

3.) There is an end to suffering (nirvana)

4.) The end to suffering lies in following the Eightfold Path (marga)

Eightfold Path

1.) Right understanding

2.) Right thought

3.) Right speech

4.) Right action

5.) Right livelihood

6.) Right effort

7.) Right mindfulness

8.) Right concentration

Principle doctrines

1.) Impermanence (anitta)

2.) No-Self (anatman)

3.) Relational Origination (pratitya-samutpada)

4.) Emptiness (sunyata)

5.) Truth-Truths Doctrine (practical versus ultimate)