Raphael Mizrahi 4C
1
Topic 4: Worship and Festivals
4.1 Worship in Buddhism
● Puja=Worship
4.1.1 Why do people worship?
● to show praise
● gain reward/karmic merit
● to get help in a difficult situation+giving hope
● relaxation+focus+mindfulness
● showing gratitude
● fear of consequence
4.1.2 What do we mean by worship?
● word worship comes from same root as word “worth”
● worship is expression of devotion respect admiration and love for something
● Worship is a means of gaining access to your emotions, deepest thoughts and feeling, true
nature
4.1.3 The Spiritual life
● feeling that there is more to what you see (there is more to life than reaches the eye)
● you need to practice it
4.1.4 Why Buddhists Worship? (not as an act to praise G-d (no creator G-d)
● to develop generosity
● to remind them that nibbana can be achieved
● to show respect to the Buddha
● to try and develop the qualities the Buddha had
● to help remember Buddhist teachings
Raphael Mizrahi 4C
1
, Raphael Mizrahi 4C
2
4.1.5 “Worship” of the Buddha
● BUDDHA IS NOT A GOD
● Buddhists do not (shouldn’t worship the Buddha)
● they don’t worship the Buddha/Buddharupa but use it as a way to focus their minds when
worshiping
● may sit in front of a Buddha statue which seems like worship to us
● it is a way to respect the Buddha and gives them a reminder of the Buddha and what he stood
for
● they focus on moral qualities of his such as respect for life, compassion and equality
● they focus on spiritual qualities of his such as how he reached enlightenment
● Buddha is in a sense the human being who fully realised all three aspects of puja, [looking
inwards, developing himself and extending positive feelings to all beings]. He thus made his
spirit extra strong and gained enlightenment.
4.1.6 Lay Buddhists
● no rules concerning how many times/how long Buddhists should worship
● lay community will spend more time worshipping that monastic (who have many other
opportunities in daily life to gain merit)
● reason for this is because of puja gives you merit
● may go to the temple to worship though most will worship at home
● lay Buddhists may have a shrine room in their house
● layout of the shrine and the objects associated with it vary from one branch of Buddhism to
another, but there are some common features, each with a symbolic meaning
4.1.7 Puja
● Puja is a word some Buddhists use for worship.
● Worship involves honouring something by giving it your devoted attention.
● In most religions the object of this attention is God or beings related to God, e.g. saints or
angels in Christianity.
● Buddhist worship does not involve a God. It is rather the focusing of attention into the true
nature of things
● Buddhist take the term to mean showing respect or love.
● Grasping the truth about life and the world leads to enlightenment.
● You could also think of it as devoted attention.
Raphael Mizrahi 4C
2
1
Topic 4: Worship and Festivals
4.1 Worship in Buddhism
● Puja=Worship
4.1.1 Why do people worship?
● to show praise
● gain reward/karmic merit
● to get help in a difficult situation+giving hope
● relaxation+focus+mindfulness
● showing gratitude
● fear of consequence
4.1.2 What do we mean by worship?
● word worship comes from same root as word “worth”
● worship is expression of devotion respect admiration and love for something
● Worship is a means of gaining access to your emotions, deepest thoughts and feeling, true
nature
4.1.3 The Spiritual life
● feeling that there is more to what you see (there is more to life than reaches the eye)
● you need to practice it
4.1.4 Why Buddhists Worship? (not as an act to praise G-d (no creator G-d)
● to develop generosity
● to remind them that nibbana can be achieved
● to show respect to the Buddha
● to try and develop the qualities the Buddha had
● to help remember Buddhist teachings
Raphael Mizrahi 4C
1
, Raphael Mizrahi 4C
2
4.1.5 “Worship” of the Buddha
● BUDDHA IS NOT A GOD
● Buddhists do not (shouldn’t worship the Buddha)
● they don’t worship the Buddha/Buddharupa but use it as a way to focus their minds when
worshiping
● may sit in front of a Buddha statue which seems like worship to us
● it is a way to respect the Buddha and gives them a reminder of the Buddha and what he stood
for
● they focus on moral qualities of his such as respect for life, compassion and equality
● they focus on spiritual qualities of his such as how he reached enlightenment
● Buddha is in a sense the human being who fully realised all three aspects of puja, [looking
inwards, developing himself and extending positive feelings to all beings]. He thus made his
spirit extra strong and gained enlightenment.
4.1.6 Lay Buddhists
● no rules concerning how many times/how long Buddhists should worship
● lay community will spend more time worshipping that monastic (who have many other
opportunities in daily life to gain merit)
● reason for this is because of puja gives you merit
● may go to the temple to worship though most will worship at home
● lay Buddhists may have a shrine room in their house
● layout of the shrine and the objects associated with it vary from one branch of Buddhism to
another, but there are some common features, each with a symbolic meaning
4.1.7 Puja
● Puja is a word some Buddhists use for worship.
● Worship involves honouring something by giving it your devoted attention.
● In most religions the object of this attention is God or beings related to God, e.g. saints or
angels in Christianity.
● Buddhist worship does not involve a God. It is rather the focusing of attention into the true
nature of things
● Buddhist take the term to mean showing respect or love.
● Grasping the truth about life and the world leads to enlightenment.
● You could also think of it as devoted attention.
Raphael Mizrahi 4C
2
