Buddhist Philosophy & Meditation
(REL 390)
Instructor: Ryan
Harrison, MA
Phone: 909-455-7946
E-mail: RHarrison2@ulv.edu
_______________________________________________________________________________
Texts
Sacred World: The Shambhala Way to
Gentleness, Bravery, and Power, J. & K. Hayward, © 1998.
Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, Chogyam Trungpa,
© 1987.
The Wisdom of No Escape, Pema Chodron ©
2001.
The Myth of Freedom, Chogyam Trungpa,
© 1988.
Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the
Warrior, Chogyam Trungpa, © 1988.
Description
This course explores the Buddhist teachings
surrounding the cultivation of compassion through daily meditative practice and
Buddhist philosophy. Topics of study include: the Buddha’s life, the challenge
of spiritual materialism, the experience of basic goodness, the “Four Noble
Truths,” the cultivation of mindfulness, the meaning of “warriorship,” and the
practice of unconditional loving-kindness (“maitri”).
Goals
Requirements/Assignments
Evaluation/Grading
Standard grading principles apply:
Assignment/Examination Values
10 Weeks Reading, Discussion, &
Participation (100 points)
Meditation Practice & Journal (100
points)
Reflection Paper (50 points)
Mid-Term (50 points)
Final Examination (100 points)
TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE = 400
points
Extra Credit for Online Course
Evaluation = 10 points
Grading Scale
95 – 100% = A
90 – 94% = A-
87 – 89% = B+
83 – 86% = B
80 – 82% = B-
77 – 79% = C+
73 – 76% = C
70 – 72% = C-
60 – 69% = D
0 – 50% = F
Course Schedule
Week 1 Introduction & Meditation Instruction
Readings: Syllabus; Lecture 1; No Escape, Chapters 2-4; Myth pgs. 1-4
Week 2 The “Three Lords of Materialism” and the
Life of the Buddha
Readings: Lecture 2; Cutting
Through, pgs. 3-11; "Meet the Three Lords
of Materialism" (article); "The Buddha's Resume"
(article)
Week 3 Basic Goodness, Warriorship, Practice &
Renunciation
Reading:
Sacred World, Chapters 1-2; No Escape, Chapters 5-8, 11;
Shambhala, Chapters 1-4, 8
Week 4 The Cocoon&Loving Kindness
Reading:
No Escape, Chapter 1; Sacred World, Chapters 4-8;
Myth, pgs. 48-51; Shambhala, Chapter 7
Week 5 Checking In: Practice
Reading: Lecture 3
(Mid-Term Examination)
Week 6 The Four Noble Truths
Reading: No Escape, Chapter 9; Cutting
Through, Pages 151-164;
Myth pgs. 56-59; "The Four Noble Truths" (article)
Week 7 Spiritual Materialism
Reading: No Escape, Chapters 14, 16; Cutting
Through, Pages 13–22;
Myth, pgs. 5-7;
"Narcissism & Spiritual Materialism: The New Age Legacy"
(article)
(Reflection Paper Due)
Week 8 Working with Emotions
Reading:
Lecture 4; No Escape, Chapter 15; Sacred World, Chapter 8;
Myth, pgs. 29-35, 37-40, 51-56, 63-72; "To Know Yourself is
To Forget
Yourself" (article); "When the Going Gets Rough" (article)
Week 9 Going Forward & The
Eight-Fold Path
Reading:
Lecture 5; No Escape, Chapters 17-18; Sacred World, Chapter 19;
Myth, pgs. 90-99
(Meditation Journal Due)
Week 10
Conclusion & Final Examination
Reading: Lecture 6
Examinations
There will be 2 tests: a mid-term and final
examination. All questions will be taken from the text and online lectures. The
final examination will be cumulative (featuring questions from all materials
covered). Students are encouraged to maintain good study habits and time
management skills.
Meditation Journal
The Meditation Journal is due by Friday of Week 9. Over
the course of 9 weeks, students are required to maintain a meditation
journal using a word processing program (e.g., MS Word, WordPerfect). This
journal will be e-mailed to the instructor or submitted online (using the
document upload function) for grading during Week 9. It should reflect the
inner processes each student experiences while undertaking a beginner’s
meditative practice. Students will be on the "honor system" where
logging meditation hours (minimum 2 hours/week required) is concerned. Students
should write in their journal at least once per week with an average of 1 page
per week (for a minimum of 9 pages, total). The completed journal should be
saved in Rich Text Format (.RTF extension), formatted with 1" margins all
around and typed using Times New Roman 12-sized font.
Reflection Paper
The reflection paper is due by the Friday of Week 7. This is
to be 5 pages in length and submitted online (using the document upload
function). The purpose of this paper is to give students an opportunity to
reflect, form and share opinions, and demonstrate the ability to think
critically about the chosen topic. The paper is to be typed, double-spaced,
with 1-inch margins in Times New Roman font size 12, and
saved in Rich Text Format (.RTF extension). Deviation from this
instruction will result in a lower grade.
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is the practice of quoting
another's words without giving that person proper credit. In writing, an
occasional quotation is acceptable, but the writer should keep quotations to a
minimum, and always when quoting, one should give credit where credit is due.
Academic dishonesty of any kind is sometimes illegal and always unethical. A
student who practices dishonesty of any kind will receive no credit for that
portion of the coursework until it is reworked to correct the problem and
re-submitted.
Course Questions
Contact Ryan Harrison at (909)455-7946 or RHarrison2@ulv.edu.