Buddhist beliefs, history, and traditions.
Test your knowledge with these top questions!
Sri Lankan Vesak lanterns traditionally symbolize what?
Families make paper lanterns on light wooden frames and hang them outside homes, passing the craft between generations.
Unlike many temples, a traditional Buddhist stupa usually has what kind of interior?
Worshippers usually honor a stupa by walking around it rather than entering a room inside.
The Great Stupa at Sanchi has a main body shaped like what?
The rounded mound recalls the burial mounds from which early stupas developed.
What name is commonly used for a Tibetan Buddhist stupa?
Small metal chortens can house holy relics, just as monumental stupas do.
In Sri Lanka, what do Vesak dansal stalls offer to passersby?
Volunteers fund and run these stalls as an act of generosity, welcoming people regardless of their religion.
Vesak commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of which spiritual teacher?
Many Buddhists bring flowers to temples at Vesak; the fading flowers remind worshippers that life is impermanent.
How do Buddhist worshippers traditionally move around a stupa?
Walking clockwise keeps the sacred monument on the worshipper's right side, a traditional sign of respect.
Vesak is traditionally celebrated during which phase of the Moon?
Different lunar calendar traditions can place Vesak on different civil dates, even within the same year.
In a Japanese dry garden, what can represent water?
"Karesansui" means "dry landscape"; its raked sand or gravel can evoke streams, ponds, or ocean waves.
How often do caretakers rake the patterned surface of Kyoto's Ryoanji rock garden?
Ryoanji's 15 rocks rest on white sand that caretakers rake every day, recreating the garden's clean patterns.