Band E (Ages 15-18)

• 420EThe Paramita of Virya/Diligence

  Analyze the distinction between ordinary effort and joyful diligence (virya) in Buddhist practice; evaluate personal experiences of learning dharma through the three-step process of listening, contemplation, and meditation; and synthesize understanding by implementing consistent practice that demonstrates “cheerful commitment” to inner development.
• 421EGain and Loss

  Implement a positive, playful approach to competition without attachment to outcomes; practice observing and releasing arising emotions without dwelling on them; and create expressions of goodwill toward opponents.
• 423EThe Paramita of Ksanti/Patience

  Analyze the three forms of Buddhist patience: enduring harm from others, persevering through practice difficulties, and accepting ultimate truths; evaluate personal triggers that challenge patience practice; and implement strategies for maintaining equanimity that transform irritation into opportunities for wisdom development.
• 424EBodhicitta

  Define both relative and absolute bodhicitta. Assess the personal motivations behind daily choices and adopt practices that turn everyday activities into acts of altruism aimed at benefiting all sentient beings.
• 425ERight Livelihood

  Evaluate activities based on their quality of creating benefit or harmony without harming, and analyze the concept of right livelihood.
• 426EEight Worldly Dharmas: Overview

  Analyze the eight worldly concerns by categorizing specific life experiences into the four opposing pairs, evaluate how attachment to these conditions creates cycles of hope and fear that perpetuate samsara, and synthesize understanding by developing equanimity practices that demonstrate freedom from dependence on external circumstances for well-being.
• 427EMantra of Compassion

  Analyze the symbolic meaning of each syllable in OM MANI PADME HUM; evaluate how mantra recitation functions as both meditation practice and a method for cultivating compassion; and implement regular practice while documenting personal observations about the relationship between mantra repetition and emotional patterns or responses to challenging situations.
• 406ELoving-Kindness

  Analyze the nature of metta/loving-kindness; improvise a guided meditation that generates this quality; and initiate kind actions based on understanding all beings’ desire for happiness.
• 401EDhyana: Meditation Techniques

  Compare and contrast multiple Buddhist meditation techniques (shamatha, vipassana, loving-kindness, walking meditation), analyze how each method addresses specific mental states and obstacles, and design appropriate meditation practices for different situations and temperaments.