COURSE PREREQUISITE: Advanced Buddhist Studies I

When someone comes to you seeking to understand Buddhism, where should you start? Should you elaborate on what it means to take refuge in the three jewels? Should you analyze the four noble truths, taking a cue from the Buddha’s first sermon? Joshua Cutler, (Director of the Tibetan Buddhist Learning Center in Washington, New Jersey) asked the Dalai Lama this question and the Dalai Lama suggested that for many in the West today, the two truths – conventional truth and ultimate truth – is the best place to start. He argued that it is best to lead people into dharma via exposure to philosophical reasoning and analysis of the nature of reality. Based upon this advice, Joshua organized a seminar, inviting Tibetan and Western scholars to teach about the two truths in the Buddhist systems they knew best. He created recorded tapes from these talks to make this information available to everyone.

By the end of this course, the student will be able to:

1.             Learn the two truths in the four systems of Buddhism.

2.             Understand the Sutra system.

3.             Understand the two truths and the Bodhisattva Path.

4.             Understand and practice the seven-point thought transformation process.