Where and when Buddhism began, and what its followers believe and practice

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   The Buddha and where Buddhism began (cards A to D). Card A, Buddhist tradition, in our words: according to tradition, Siddhartha Gautama was born at Lumbini. Followers believe that after years of searching he became the Buddha, a title meaning "the awakened one," and that he gave his first sermon at Sarnath, in India, near the city of Varanasi. Card B, a note by scholars, in our words: Buddhism began in northeastern India between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE. Scholars disagree about the Buddha's dates: some say about 563 to 483 BCE, others about 448 to 368 BCE. Card C, a map note: Lumbini lies in Nepal, near the border with India. Sarnath lies in India. Followers of Buddhism are called Buddhists. Card D, how the story was kept: the Buddha's teachings were first passed on by word of mouth. The accounts of his life that followers wrote down were written long after his lifetime.

2. 1.

   Card A says "according to tradition" and "followers believe." What does that tell Ari about the kind of source card A is?

   • It was written by the Buddha himself as an account of his own life
   • It states the Buddha's awakening as a fact that history has settled
   • It is of no use to a historian, since it comes from religious tradition
   • It reports what followers hold to be true, as tradition and belief
3. 2.

   Card B gives one set of dates for the Buddha, about 563 to 483 BCE. About how many years does that set say the Buddha lived, Bo asks?

   • About 563 years
   • About 80 years
   • About 90 years
   • About 1,046 years
4. 3.

   Cards A and C name two places in the story of the Buddha. Which statement matches both cards, Esme asks?

   • Both Lumbini and Sarnath lie in the country of Nepal
   • Lumbini, his birthplace by tradition, is in Nepal; Sarnath is in India
   • Both places lie in India, because the religion began in India
   • Sarnath lies in Nepal and Lumbini lies in India, near the city of Varanasi
5. 4.

   Card B gives two sets of dates for the Buddha. Which sentence matches what the card says, Jun asks?

   • Scholars give no dates, since the story is a matter of belief and not history
   • Scholars place him in the 1st century CE, long after the other dates
   • Scholars place him in the 6th to 4th centuries BCE but disagree on exact dates
   • Scholars have settled on 563 to 483 BCE as the true dates of his life
6. 5.

   Card D says the teachings were passed on by word of mouth, and the life stories were written down much later. Why might accounts differ, Kira asks?

   • Followers made up the whole story so that more people would join them
   • The Buddha wrote parts of the story himself and later followers left them out
   • Stories told by mouth for generations can shift a little in the retelling
   • Writing makes an account less careful than telling the story aloud does
7. 6.

   Card B is a note by scholars and card A is a summary of tradition. How do the two differ as sources, Milo asks?

   • Card B weighs evidence and flags disagreement; card A reports tradition
   • Card B settles that card A is true, since both mention the Buddha's time
   • Card B gives the Buddha's own words, while card A is a plain summary
   • Card B is less reliable than card A, because scholars were not there
8. 7.

   Card A says the Buddha was born at Lumbini, in Nepal. Card B says Buddhism began in northeastern India. Do the cards conflict, Noah asks?

   • Yes: card B shows that Lumbini is really in India
   • Yes: Lumbini and northeastern India are far apart, so one card is wrong
   • No: he was born near the border and his teaching grew in India
   • No: card A is a plain fact that the Buddha was born at Lumbini
9. 8.

   Card B puts the Buddha's death in 483 BCE by the earlier dates. About how many years ago was 483 BCE, if this year is 2026 CE, Pia asks?

   • About 480 years ago
   • About 2,000 years ago
   • About 1,540 years ago
   • About 2,500 years ago
10. 9.

    Card D says followers wrote down accounts of the Buddha's life. Why would followers write them, Tala asks?

    • To keep the story hidden from people outside their own community
    • To record the Buddha's life as he told it to them in person
    • To keep the story and the teachings for followers who came later
    • To give historians exact dates for the Buddha's birth and death
11. 10.

    Card D says the accounts of the Buddha's life were written long after his death. How does that affect what scholars can say, Zee asks?

    • Scholars can give exact dates, because late writers were careful ones
    • Scholars treat late accounts as tradition and mark what is uncertain
    • Scholars can learn the truth of each detail by asking followers today
    • Scholars can say nothing about the Buddha, because the accounts are late