In early Buddhist art, the wheel or dharmachakra is used to represent which event in the life of the Buddha?
- A.His birth
- B.His renunciation
- C.His first sermon
- D.His death
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, his first sermon. Because early sculptors at Sanchi and Bharhut did not show the Buddha in human form, they used signs, and the wheel stands for the first sermon at Sarnath, which is itself called the turning of the wheel of law.
Option A, his birth, is represented by the lotus and the elephant or bull in these reliefs. Option B, his renunciation, is shown by a riderless horse, recalling Kanthaka carrying him away from Kapilavastu. Option D, his death, is represented by the stupa, the burial mound raised over relics, which is why stupas multiply after the Mahaparinirvana. The footprints and the empty throne stand for his presence in general. This set of symbols is asked in art and culture sections as often as in history.
Read the full article: Buddhism and Jainism: Teachings, Councils and Exam Facts
Practice Questions
View allGautama Buddha delivered his first sermon at which of the following places?
- A.Bodh Gaya
- B.Sarnath
- C.Kushinagar
- D.Lumbini
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After his enlightenment the Buddha walked to the deer park at Sarnath near Varanasi and taught the Four Noble Truths to the five ascetics who had earlier deserted him.
Read the full explanation →The Fourth Buddhist Council was held under the patronage of which ruler?
- A.Ashoka
- B.Ajatashatru
- C.Kanishka
- D.Kalashoka
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The Fourth Buddhist Council met at Kundalvana in Kashmir in the first century CE under the Kushana king Kanishka, with Vasumitra presiding and Ashvaghosha assisting him.
Read the full explanation →Who among the following was the twenty-third Tirthankara of Jainism?
- A.Rishabhadeva
- B.Parshvanatha
- C.Neminatha
- D.Mahavira
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He was the twenty-third Tirthankara, a prince of Varanasi and son of King Ashvasena, whose emblem is the serpent. He is placed about two hundred and fifty years before Mahavira and gave his followers four vows: non-violence, truth, non-stealing and non-possession.
Read the full explanation →Which vow did Mahavira add to the four vows already taught by Parshvanatha?
- A.Ahimsa, non-violence
- B.Satya, truthfulness
- C.Aparigraha, non-possession
- D.Brahmacharya, celibacy
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Parshvanatha had prescribed four restraints, and Mahavira added celibacy to them, so Jain monastic discipline rests on five great vows: ahimsa, satya, asteya, aparigraha and brahmacharya.
Read the full explanation →The Abhidhamma Pitaka was compiled at which Buddhist council?
- A.First council at Rajgriha
- B.Second council at Vaishali
- C.Third council at Pataliputra
- D.Fourth council in Kashmir
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Held in the reign of Ashoka under the presidency of Moggaliputta Tissa, it purged the order of dissenters, added the Abhidhamma Pitaka, the philosophical third basket, to the canon, and decided to send missionaries to Sri Lanka and other lands.
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