Buddhist Parables

Basic Religious Beliefs

• The origin of this parable is buddhism
• Buddhists believe in the Three Universal Truths, Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path

Three Universal Truths

• Nothing is lost in the universe
• Everything changes
• The law of cause and effect

The Four Noble Truths

• Suffering exists (dukkha)
• There is a cause of suffering (samudaya)
• There is an end to suffering (nirodha)
• In order to end suffering, you must follow the Eight-fold Path (magga)

Eight-fold Path

• (Samma ditthi) Right Understanding of the Four Noble Truths.
• (Samma sankappa)Right thinking; following the right path in life.
• (Samma vaca) Right speech
• (Samma kammanta) Right conduct or Right Action
• (Samma ajiva) Right livelihood
• (Samma vayama) Right Effort
• (Samma sati) Right Mindfulness
• (Samma samadhi) Right Concentration

Purpose

• The purpose of this parable is to show that anyone can become a desciple and to share all you own and extend grace to others

Writing

• The type of writing in this text is modern and metaphorical
• The grammar and composition of the text makes it very easy to understand because it is a lot like how modern people speak
• It is metaphorical in the sense of it not being a true story but one with the purpose of sending a point across to the reader

Christian Parables

Basic Beliefs

• God is all-knowing and all powerful
• We are saved from sin and an afterlife in hell because Jesus , sinless offspring of God, died
• To have a rightful life you must live in the footsteps of Jesus

Purpose

• The purpose of christian parables are much like the purpose of Buddhist parables, to show one how to live their life the way the religion believes it should be lived.
• Jesus was said to be the perfect example of man.

Writing

• This type of writing is a lot like how people spoke in the ancient world
• The way words are spelled and the dialect is very old fashioned
• This parable is metaphoric because it is a fictional story meant to portray a life lesson

Similarities

• There are many similarities between Christian and buddhist parables
• For example the message the two are meant to portray
• Although there are some differences like speech and composition of words