Connections
In my expository essay, I used lots of information from my research. My essay focused on the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism, and knowing nothing about the Truths prior to my study, I used various sources to draw my information from. In my essay, I referenced a quote on happiness from the Dalai Lama, which reads, “The very purpose of our lives is to seek happiness,” which I found at dalailamaquotes.org. (Dalai Lama Quotes) I also listed the Four Noble Truths, which read, “1) Suffering will happen in life, 2) People suffer because of attachment, 3) It is possible to overcome suffering, and 4) There is a path to follow to overcome suffering.” All of this information was found at The Big View, a religious website, which states the Four Noble Truths as, “1. Life means suffering, 2. The origin of suffering is attachment, 3. The cessation of suffering is attainable, 4. The path to the cessation of suffering.“ (Buddhism-The Four Noble Truths). Because an expository essay requires so much research, I used many sources in my product.
While my poem didn't go into very many specifics about Buddhism, I did reference a large amount of concepts pertaining to the religion. In my second stanza, I said, “These Buddhists work towards their Enlightenment,” which I learned from the book, Becoming Enlightened. (Becoming Enlightened) In my third stanza, I discussed how Buddhists attempt to, “help others along,” “harm none,” and “take a stand.” I learned this about Buddhists from my study of the Noble Eightfold Path, which I learned about from The Big View. (Buddhism-The Four Noble Truths) At the end of the third stanza, I explained how Buddhists strive to reach Nirvana, the ultimate goal in the Buddhist religion. Lots of what I learned about Nirvana came from Buddha101.com, which provided clarifying information, such as, ”The Buddha described Nirvana as the ultimate goal, and he reached that state during his enlightenment.” (Buddhism-Rebirth and Nirvana) Writing my poem required some research to be able to incorporate pertinent information into my sonnet.
My last element was my visual, “The Noble Eightfold Path,” which described and depicted one of Buddhism’s main teachings, the path which leads to the end of suffering. Making this visual required much research; I didn’t know anything about the Path beforehand, and I needed to have a firm knowledge of the Path to aid me in making my visual. My visual depicted a monk interacting in each of the stages of the Eightfold Path, so I first researched what actions each step of the path entailed. One online book entitled, “The Noble Eightfold Path: The Way to the End of Suffering,” helped me a lot; the book had a chapter for each step of the path, which read,” I. The Way to the End of Suffering, II. Right View, III. Right Intentions, IV. Right Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood, V. Right Effort, VI. Right Mindfulness, VII. Right Concentration, and, VIII. The Development of Wisdom.” I used these chapters to help me know what Buddhists did in each step, and I made my visual based off of this.
While my poem didn't go into very many specifics about Buddhism, I did reference a large amount of concepts pertaining to the religion. In my second stanza, I said, “These Buddhists work towards their Enlightenment,” which I learned from the book, Becoming Enlightened. (Becoming Enlightened) In my third stanza, I discussed how Buddhists attempt to, “help others along,” “harm none,” and “take a stand.” I learned this about Buddhists from my study of the Noble Eightfold Path, which I learned about from The Big View. (Buddhism-The Four Noble Truths) At the end of the third stanza, I explained how Buddhists strive to reach Nirvana, the ultimate goal in the Buddhist religion. Lots of what I learned about Nirvana came from Buddha101.com, which provided clarifying information, such as, ”The Buddha described Nirvana as the ultimate goal, and he reached that state during his enlightenment.” (Buddhism-Rebirth and Nirvana) Writing my poem required some research to be able to incorporate pertinent information into my sonnet.
My last element was my visual, “The Noble Eightfold Path,” which described and depicted one of Buddhism’s main teachings, the path which leads to the end of suffering. Making this visual required much research; I didn’t know anything about the Path beforehand, and I needed to have a firm knowledge of the Path to aid me in making my visual. My visual depicted a monk interacting in each of the stages of the Eightfold Path, so I first researched what actions each step of the path entailed. One online book entitled, “The Noble Eightfold Path: The Way to the End of Suffering,” helped me a lot; the book had a chapter for each step of the path, which read,” I. The Way to the End of Suffering, II. Right View, III. Right Intentions, IV. Right Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood, V. Right Effort, VI. Right Mindfulness, VII. Right Concentration, and, VIII. The Development of Wisdom.” I used these chapters to help me know what Buddhists did in each step, and I made my visual based off of this.