Teaching methods of the Buddha

the Buddha
Teaching skills
Teaching methods
Education

1. Pedagogic Skills Conducted by The BUDDHA 28/Dec/2018

2. INTRODUCTION The Buddha (563 BC to 483BC), the founder of Buddhism, is one of the great religious teachers from India. By the time His Enlightenment and even today, Buddhism has steadily spread to other nations propelled by an inner dynamism together with the power of the veracity of Hi s teaching and commitment to non-violence. An excellent skill which makes the Buddha different from other religious teachers and is conducive to widely acceptance of people is pedagogic skills conducted by the Buddha. It is very obvious that the Buddha has fruitfully done His missionary work through this noble skill .

3. Based on the pedagogic skill, the Buddha is honorably named as “Tilokaguru”_ the teacher of the three worlds and “ Sabbaññu ”_ all knowing one. Moreover, among the nine great virtues of the Buddha, the five virtues, Sugato : His words are sublime and infallible, Lokavidū : He had experienced, known and penetrated into all aspects of world, Anuttaro purisa dhamma sārathi : He is capable of bringing wayward men to the path of righteousness, Satthā deva manussānaṁ : He is the teacher of devas and men, Buddho : He was the first to be awakened and subsequently convinced other to be awake, are particularly associated with “Pedagogic skills” of the Buddha. Hence, it is worthwhile to observe the way He shares the Dhamma and why He becomes the greatest and noblest teacher.

4. Undeniably, the skill to educate oneself and others is willingly demanded by today progressing world. There are many teaching centers for various subjects all over the world. Different teachers utilize and create different teaching methods to harvest fruitful outcomes for themselves and their pupils. Therefore , it is necessary to discern why Buddha is the most eminent and reliable teacher

5. In this paper, the principle ways of teaching of the Buddha is started to analyzed. Then, teaching through question and answer will be thoroughly researched. The following chapter will clearly explain the teaching style with interpersonal skill. Additionally, some effective teaching methods of the Buddha will be scrutinized in the last chapter. With the application of textual, analytical and description research methods, this study will try to accomplish its aims. However, it is not able to cover all the excellent technique of the Buddha as His unique wisdom is untouchable things for ordinary persons.

6. Chapter I The Buddha preached more than 10,000 Suttas to suit different occasions, for various persons with different temperaments. Although the discourses were mostly intended for the benefit for the liberation from the world, and deal with the practice of the pure life and with the exposition of the teaching, there are also several other discourses which deal with the material and moral progress of the lay disciples. Whatever teaching which is for the welfare of the world and beyond the world, there are major principle way of teaching.

7. Cause and Effect The Buddhist teaching is usually based on causes and effects. In every Sutta, the Buddha pointed out what is cause of something with its effect in order to lead cessation of suffering. T he theory of Kamma is a fundamental doctrine in Buddhism. The law of Kamma can scope cause and effect: that every volitional act brings about a certain result. Four Noble Truths, and also Dependent Origination are also composed of causes and effects.

8. Dos and Don’ts Regulation The Buddha always instructs 'what to do or what to avoid'. All Suttas are filled with 'dos and don'ts regulation' so the teachings of the Buddha are not merely for the purpose of writing down in books and keeping them in library shelves for veneration, but to follow . A mong the three kinds of miracle, miracle of instruction (Anusāsanīpāṭihāriya) is one of the best instructions.

9. Categorization and Classification By applying Categorization and Classification, the Buddha compassionately shared what He has known. In nature, all can be classified as good and bad, right and wrong, positive and negative. All the major doctrines: Triple Gem, Four Noble Truths, Eight-fold Noble Path, Three Universal characteristics, 37 Factors of Enlightenments, Four Foundations of Mindfulness, Four Maggas and Four Phalas etc. all are explained by means of categorization and its specific classification.

10. Concise and Detailed The Buddha taught the Dhamma concisely or in detail, and sometimes in both ways. Although the discourses have detailed explanation of the Dhamma. Sometimes he preached concisely at the request of disciples. Among His disciples, some prefer the Dhamma in short .while some need to be explained in detail . In some cases, the Buddha intentionally preached Dhamma in brief to motivate desire to listen more and then expounded in detail if He was requested by the listeners.

11. Chapter II Educators recognize that teachers need to have expertise in the skill of using questions, and making question is core of effective teaching . The Buddha performed His educational service by questioning, by responding to questions from disciples.

12. Answering the questions from others What is one quality that keeps both kinds of benefit secure-benefits in this life and benefits in lives to come? A.II , 319

13. Requestioning from the Buddha Suppose the king had a slave, he renounces the world, wonders with a shave head. If this slave meets again with the king, will you commend him to be continued as a slave? D.I,44

14. Questions from the Buddha Why do you put your efforts into bartering worthlessness for worthiness? Dhp.aII,192

15. Undetermined Questions One of the Buddha’s most important teachings deals directly with unimportant teachings . Any why unimportant? Because they neither lead to understanding nor lead to the cessation of suffering. As the Buddha never wasted his precious time on such useless topics . He kept silent and made no reply.

16. Chapter III Interpersonal skills are the life skills used every day to communicate and interact with other people, both individually and in groups . Teacher who have worked on developing strong interpersonal skills are usually more successful in teaching and personal lives . Because of the Buddha's teaching styles with interpersonal skills, one can see the advantages of Dhamma and enthused, active, and feel fresh to follow the instructions.

17. Motivation and Inspiration The Buddha motivated his disciples in various ways to live in accordance with the Dhamma. The Buddha is inspirer of his followers. He successfully motivated and bloom the good inspiration to renounce the world of suffering. The sons of good families who have gone forth from the home life into homelessness out of conviction. They take him as their example.

18. Another way of teaching to avoid bad deeds through fear based motivation. The Buddha usually delivered the results of doing bad deeds. The Buddha described the evil and terror of hell that await the evil doer after death and illustrates the duration of suffering in the hell . Such doctrine becomes good motivator to avoid bad deeds and to do good deeds.

19. As long as you remain in saṁsāra the tears you will shed for the death of parents and others are greater than the water of the four oceans. Such is the lament of the human being afflicted with grief. Dhp -a , I, 144 Consolation

20. Coaching In Buddhism, coaching is a part of teaching. The Buddha supported his disciples to improve their learning and practicing through coaching. The Buddha taught to overcome their biggest obstacle by helping them access their inner wisdom and power by coaching what they should do and what should they speak.

21. At the time of the Buddha, India is like a museum that preserves the traditional customs and manners, thoughts and philosophies, cults, creeds, beliefs, and caste systems, over a long period to time. There was no one who could to examine right or wrong in that system. When the Buddha appeared, He cleansed their fallacies, superstitions and corruption, to make people see their ignorance, wrong views, and wrong actions. Refutation

22. Sharing Experience Immediately on attaining Enlightenment, the Buddha's first concern was to find things and person whom should be honored, and to obtain advice from. However, He did not find another person like him so that not to say anything about a person who could be recognized as His teacher . He discovered himself and indicated to others the Noble Eightfold Path . All Dhamma are directly come from his direct knowledge, not from any other person nor books. In fact, He shared his own experience to educate his disciple.

23. Chapter IV There is no one the best teaching method because all of learners do not follow the same way. Different students like to learn in different ways . Different methods will help foster learning in different ways. In Sutta Pitaka the Buddha used many teaching methods to be effective in remembering, easy to understand.

24. The Buddha never uttered a word that the listeners could not understand. He spoke in figurative languages that everybody could appreciate. The Buddha's teaching is about Citta, Cetasica , Rūpa, and Nibbāna. Of them, Citta, Cetasica and Nibbāna are not tangible, abstract nouns. The Dhamma is also intangible subject, like four noble truths, law of Kamma, Universal characteristics, and Eight-fold noble path . Only way to explain it is using figurative languages. Using Figurative Languages

25. Delivering Figurative Speech " I have stopped, Aṅgulimāla , you too stop."

26. Using Teaching Aids Khemātherīvatthu Dhp-a.II,339

27. “The body was a mass of sores, supported by bones, sickly, a subject of many thoughts of sensual desire and admiration, but last it is the subject to deterioration and decay at the cemetery ” Dhp-a.II, 339

28. Delivering Direct Speech The Buddha explained wholesome verbal actions and unwholesome verbal actions with his or her speech directly, and also explained wholesome mental actions and unwholesome mental actions with his or her thought directly. The Buddha knows others' mind directly with its objects. Buddhism is very revealing about the nature of all types of person. In so many Suttas the Buddha revealed how people are different in the process of thinking, reflecting, saying, and telling with their direct speech.

29. Storytelling can be used as a method to teach ethics, values and cultural norms and true statement . Stories function as a tool to pass on knowledge in education Stories tend to be based on experiential learning. Stories are effective educational tools because listeners become engaged and therefore remember . The Buddha possessed the power to recall past births of himself and others . In consequence, he could figure out, immediately on seeing a person, that his thoughts and ideas were such and such, and that he has had such and such a past. T he Buddha used stories extensively when he was teaching. Telling the background story

30. Conclusion Undeniably, the supreme Buddha stands a foremost place among teachers, professors and savants who have an expert mastery over educational science, educational technique and educational psychology. In order to protect the world or to live happily or to propagate the Buddhism, there need to teach or learn the teaching of the Buddha. Pedagogic skills conducted by the Buddha become an imperative part of Buddhism. If every teacher today would take this ways of teaching seriously, all students would reap the benefit. In consequence, the society is filled with only educated persons, living standard will be high, there is no violence, and everyone possess the noble qualities of life.

31. The Buddhists are very , very fortunate t o have the Buddha as A Teacher. 28/Dec/2018