Buddhism by the Numbers

Numbered lists can help students remember teachings. Click šŸ…† to read more in Wikipedia.

Four Noble Truths

The four central beliefs containing the essence of Buddhist teaching. šŸ…†

  1. There is suffering (dukkha)
  2. It is caused by clinging (taį¹‡hā)
  3. There is an end to dukkha
  4. Is it the Noble Eightfold Path

Noble Eightfold Path

The Buddhaā€™s practical instructions to reach the end of suffering. Grouped into three parts: ethical conduct (1, 2, 3), mental discipline (4, 5, 6), and wisdom (7, 8). šŸ…†

  1. Right understanding (samma ditthi)
  2. Right thought (samma sankappa)
  3. Right speech (samma vaca)
  4. Right action (samma kammanta)
  5. Right livelihood (samma ajiva)
  6. Right effort (samma vayama)
  7. Right mindfulness (samma sati)
  8. Right concentration (samma samadhi)

Five Precepts

The code of ethics or morality for Buddhists.

  1. to refrain from killing;
  2. to refrain from stealing;
  3. to refrain from lying;
  4. to refrain from improper sexual conduct;
  5. to refrain from consuming intoxicants.

Five Hinderances

Mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and life.

  1. Sensory desire (kāmacchanda)
  2. Ill-will (vyāpāda)
  3. Sloth-and-torpor (thīna-middha)
  4. Restlessness-and-worry (uddhacca-kukkucca)
  5. Doubt (vicikicchā)

Three Jewels

A.k.a. the Three Refuges or the Triple Gem; the three central Buddhist ideals or principals.

  1. the Buddha, the fully enlightened one
  2. the Dharma, the teachings expounded by the Buddha
  3. the Sangha, the monastic order of Buddhism that practice the Dharma

Four Divine Abodes

A.k.a. the brahmaviharas; four Buddhist virtues and the meditation practices that cultivate them.

  1. loving-kindness or benevolence (metta)
  2. compassion (karuna)
  3. empathetic joy (mudita)
  4. equanimity (upekkha)

Three Poisons

The primary causes of karma, which leads to samsara (the cycle of rebirths).

  1. ignorance, delusion (moha)
  2. greed, sensual attachment (raga)
  3. aversion, ill will (dvesha)

Five Aggregates

The bodily and mental factors that help create craving and clinging.

  1. form (rupa) the body or any physical matter
  2. sensation (vedana) the pleasant, unpleasant or neutral sensory experience of an object
  3. discrimination (sanna) sensory and mental process that registers, recognizes and labels (a mountain, the color blue, tiredness)
  4. mental formations (saį¹…khāra) Mental imprints and conditioning triggered by an object; any process that makes a person initiate action or act.
  5. consciousness (viƱƱāį¹‡a) Awareness of an object and discrimination of its components and aspects

Three Marks of Existence

A.k.a. the Three Seals; three characteristics of all existence and all beings.

  1. impermanence (annica)
  2. unsatisfactorynes or suffering (dukkha)
  3. non-self (anatta)

Three Pillars of Dhamma (dharma)

Or, Grounds for Making Merit.

  1. Generosity (dana)
  2. Moral restraint (sila)
  3. Meditation (bhavana) ā€“ consists of Concentration (samadhi) and Mindfulness (sati)

See also...

https://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/books-articles/dhamma-lists/