Clear Vision Trust

BUDDHIST STORIES FOR SCHOOLS

Author's introduction

Each of the following stories is based on a careful examination of authoritative translations of a traditional text, in most cases from the Pali Canon, written down by followers of the Buddha from the original oral tradition.

My purpose was to produce a version fully accessible to young students who have grown up in the west, while respecting as much as possible of the detail and structure of the original text. They are thus a ‘re-telling’, an interpretation of what seems to be helpful as we seek to learn from the Buddhist tradition about issues that urgently confront us today – issues of meaning, reality, truth and ethics.

I have used some of the stories with classes visiting the Cambridge Buddhist Centre. I hope that they will be of help to other teachers in presenting Buddhism as part of religious education in schools and, perhaps, certain aspects of a philosophy curriculum as well.

With the exception of the first story, ‘How Siddhartha Gotama Became “The Awakened One”’, the stories are written in such a way that they do not assume any knowledge of Buddhism. So, after that first story, they can be used in any order. Each story is followed by a few questions that may be posed to the class and a suggestion as to the issues the story raises. There is also an indication of the original text(s) on which the story is based, so my version can easily be checked against the original.

Please use or adapt the stories as you wish. If you make changes for your own purposes, please add your own name to the amended text, so that I am not credited with your ideas! This material may not be used for commercial purposes without permission.

I would be very interested in receiving your comments and suggestions. If you wish to get in touch, please don’t hesitate to write to me.

Richard Winter
Buddhist Stories For Schools
Cambridge Buddhist Centre
38 Newmarket Road
Cambridge CB5 8DT, UK.