Question: Karen Armstrong wrote a biography on who?
Answer: the Buddha

Question: Karen Armstrong has said that we can be confident who existed?
Answer: Siddhatta Gotama

Question: According to early texts, when was Siddhārtha Gautama born?
Answer: fifth century BCE

Question: According to early texts, where was Siddhārtha Gautama born?
Answer: in a community that was on the periphery, both geographically and culturally, of the northeastern Indian subcontinent

Question: What type of community was Siddhārtha Gautama raised in?
Answer: It was either a small republic, in which case his father was an elected chieftain, or an oligarchy, in which case his father was an oligarch.

Question: Where was Siddhārtha Gautama born?
Answer: the northeastern Indian subcontinent

Question: When did Siddhārtha Gautama live?
Answer: fifth century BCE

Question: What size was Siddhārtha Gautama's birthplace?
Answer: a small republic

Question: Where did we find proof of his existence?
Answer: early texts

Question: What was most likely Siddhārtha Gautama's father?
Answer: an oligarchy

Question: Who was born in a northeastern part of India/
Answer: Siddhārtha Gautama

Question: If Siddhartha lived in a small republic, his father would have been a what?
Answer: elected chieftain

Question: What was the name of the astrologer who visited Prince Gautama's father?
Answer: Asita

Question: What was the prediction made by Asita?
Answer: Siddhartha would either become a great king or renounce the material world to become a holy man

Question: According to Asita, how would Siddhartha decide which path to take in life?
Answer: depending on whether he saw what life was like outside the palace walls

Question: What was the occupation of the person who visited Gautama?
Answer: an astrologer

Question: What was the name of his father?
Answer: Suddhodana

Question: What was Buddha predicted to become contrary with his life as we know it?
Answer: a great king

Question: What was the name of the astrologer that visited Gautama's father?
Answer: Asita

Question: What is Gautama's fathers name?
Answer: Suddhodana

Question: Asita prophesied that Siddhartha would be a kind or a what?
Answer: holy man

Question: What did Śuddhodana do to ensure that his son became a king instead of a holy man?
Answer: prevented him from leaving the palace grounds

Question: How old was Gautama when he first left the palace grounds?
Answer: 29

Question: What happened when Gautama left the palace grounds?
Answer: he learned of the suffering of ordinary people

Question: What are the four sights in Buddhism?
Answer: encountering an old man, a sick man, a corpse and, finally, an ascetic holy man

Question: What did Buddha's father want him to become?
Answer: a king

Question: By what age was he venturing outside?
Answer: 29

Question: What were his first four encounters called?
Answer: the four sights

Question: What did Gautama do after learning about the outside world?
Answer: abandon royal life

Question: Suddhodana wanted his son to become what?
Answer: a king

Question: At what age did Gautama venture out from the palace area?
Answer: 29

Question: How many "sights" did Gautama have that are well known?
Answer: four

Question: Gautama encountered an old man, a sick man, a holy man, and a what?
Answer: corpse

Question: What was the first thing Gautama did on his spiritual quest?
Answer: went to study with famous religious teachers of the day

Question: What is the path of moderation between the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification called?
Answer: the Middle Way

Question: What are some of the practices Gautama underwent on his quest?
Answer: prolonged fasting, breath-holding, and exposure to pain

Question: What was the first skill Gautama learnt?
Answer: meditation

Question: What almost killed Gautama in his pursuit?
Answer: asceticism

Question: What did he receive from the locals that changed his approach?
Answer: milk and rice

Question: What is the path of moderation called he followed?
Answer: Middle Way

Question: Gautama didn't like the religious teaching he initially found because of why?
Answer: they did not provide a permanent end to suffering

Question: What did Gautama accept from a village girl?
Answer: milk and rice

Question: Gautama devoted himself to what type of meditation?
Answer: anapanasati

Question: Buddhists call anapanasati what?
Answer: the Middle Way

Question: How old was Gautama when he sat under the Bodhi Tree?
Answer: 35

Question: What kind of tree was the Bodhi Tree?
Answer: Ficus religiosa

Question: What did Gautama spend the rest of his life doing after reaching enlightenment?
Answer: he spent the rest of his life teaching the path of awakening he had discovered

Question: How old was the Buddha at the time of his death?
Answer: 80

Question: What is the south branch of the tree Gautama sat under called?
Answer: Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi

Question: What was the tree called he sat under?
Answer: Ficus religiosa

Question: What was the tree renamed that Gautama achieved enlightenment under?
Answer: Bodhi Tree

Question: At what age did Gautama come to pass?
Answer: 80

Question: When he was 35 Gautama sat in meditation under what tree?
Answer: Bodhi Tree

Question: What type of tree was the Bodhi Tree?
Answer: Ficus religiosa

Question: What town was the Bodhi Tree in?
Answer: Bodh Gaya

Question: The south branch of the original fig tree is known as?
Answer: Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi

Question: What is samsara?
Answer: the continual repetitive cycle of birth and death

Question: What is avidya?
Answer: ignorance

Question: What is dukkha?
Answer: suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction

Question: Is liberation from samsara possible?
Answer: In the Buddhist view, liberation from samsara is possible by following the Buddhist path.

Question: The cycle of birth and death is called what in Buddhism?
Answer: Samsara

Question: How many realms of existence are there in Buddhism?
Answer: six

Question: avidya is what kind of samsara?
Answer: ignorance

Question: How can you be freed from samsara?
Answer: by following the Buddhist path

Question: What is samsara defined as?
Answer: the continual repetitive cycle of birth and death

Question: How many realms of existance are within the cycle of rebirths?
Answer: six

Question: Realms can be understood as physical realms of what type of states?
Answer: psychological

Question: Samsara is caused by what?
Answer: avidya

Question: A person can get away from samsara by doing what?
Answer: following the Buddhist path

Question: What does the Sanskrit term Karma translate as?
Answer: action, work

Question: What is karma according to Buddhism?
Answer: the force that drives saṃsāra

Question: What is theavoidance of unwholesome actions and the cultivation of positive actions called?
Answer: sīla

Question: What actions does karma refer to in Buddhism?
Answer: actions of body, speech or mind that spring from mental intent

Question: What is the definition of Karma from Sanskrit?
Answer: action, work

Question: What is the avoidance of bad acts called?
Answer: sīla

Question: Karma's actions come from what?
Answer: cetanā

Question: What is the result of Karma called?
Answer: vipāka

Question: What is Karma?
Answer: the force that drives saṃsāra

Question: Avoidance of unwholesome actions and use of positive actions is called what?
Answer: sīla

Question: what does vipaka mean?
Answer: result

Question: In which branch of Buddhism is it believed that there can be no divine salvation or forgiveness for karma?
Answer: Theravada Buddhism

Question: In Mahayana Buddhism, what are some Mahayana sutras that are believed to remove negative karma just by the hearing of the texts?
Answer: the Lotus Sutra, the Aṅgulimālīya Sūtra and the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra

Question: The reciting of mantras as a means for removing past negative karma is a part of which branch of Buddhism?
Answer: Vajrayana