Buddhism: Sources of Wisdom and Authority | AQA A-Level Religious Studies (7062)

Buddhism: Sources of Wisdom and Authority

19 questions
2 subtopics
Component 2: Buddhism, one religion of five
Component 2

Buddhism: the texts, teachers and institutions that carry authority.

Part of Component 2, sat only by students who take Buddhism as their chosen religion.

Sample questions from Buddhism: Sources of Wisdom and Authority

Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.

The Buddha, Skilful Means and Dukkha

In the Lotus Sutra, how does the burning house story illustrate skilful means?

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A father uses different promises to lure his children from a burning house, showing how the Buddha uses various teachings suited to different people to lead all beings to enlightenment.
The Buddha, Skilful Means and Dukkha

What is the central issue in the debate about whether Buddhism is pessimistic?

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Whether recognising Dukkha as a fundamental characteristic of existence constitutes a negative worldview or a realistic diagnosis leading to liberation.
The Pali Canon

What does the Abhidhamma Pitaka contain?

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Systematic philosophical analysis.
The Pali Canon

Why does the debate about the accuracy of the Pali Canon matter to Buddhists?

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It affects how literally texts should be interpreted and whether later developments can claim equal authority.

The 2 subtopics

One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.

Subtopic	What it covers	Questions
The Buddha, Skilful Means and Dukkha	Recall questions on the Buddha's authority for Theravada Buddhists, skilful means and the burning house of the Lotus Sutra, and the meaning of dukkha and whether Buddhism is pessimistic.	9
The Pali Canon	Recall questions on the three collections of the Tipitaka, where the Pali Canon's authority comes from, the debate about its accuracy and its use in Theravada worship and daily life.	10

Buddhism: Sources of Wisdom and Authority is 19 of the 3,683 questions in the guide.Get the guide, £8

How the guide is worked

Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.

Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.

Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.