📘 Class 10 English Chapter 10 – The Sermon at Benares Notes

Book: First Flight
Chapter: 10
Author: Based on the teachings of Gautama Buddha
Board: CBSE Class 10 (2025)

✍️ Introduction

“The Sermon at Benares” is an enlightening extract from the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha. This story explains Buddha’s message about life, suffering, and death. Through the story of a grieving woman named Kisa Gotami, Buddha explains the universal truth of mortality and how to overcome grief through wisdom and detachment.

📖 Summary of the Chapter

The story begins with the early life of Siddhartha Gautama, who was born into a royal family in North India. At the age of 25, he saw suffering, sickness, and death for the first time. These events disturbed him and made him leave his palace in search of truth and enlightenment. After years of deep meditation, he attained spiritual awakening and became known as the Buddha, or “The Awakened One.”

After enlightenment, Buddha gave his first sermon at Benares. In this sermon, he shared the story of a young woman, Kisa Gotami, who had lost her only son. Grief-stricken, she went from house to house asking for medicine to bring her child back to life. People thought she had lost her mind until she met Buddha.

Buddha told her to bring a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had ever died. She eagerly went in search, but every house she visited had experienced death. Slowly, she realized that death is common to all and that suffering is a part of life. She returned to Buddha and understood his message of accepting death as a natural process.

🧠 Theme and Message

  • Universality of Death: Death comes to everyone; no one is spared.
  • Acceptance of Reality: Wisdom lies in accepting suffering as part of human life.
  • Detachment and Peace: Letting go of worldly attachments leads to inner peace.

🧘‍♂️ Character Sketch – Gautama Buddha

Gautama Buddha was born a prince but gave up his luxurious life to seek answers about human suffering. He became a spiritual teacher whose teachings emphasized compassion, peace, and wisdom. His sermon at Benares reflects his deep understanding of life and death. He taught people how to find peace by overcoming sorrow and desire.

📚 Word Meanings

Word Meaning
SermonA religious or moral talk
Grief-strickenFilled with deep sorrow
EnlightenmentSpiritual awakening or understanding
DetachmentFreedom from emotional connection
UniversalityThe state of being common or widespread

❓ Important Questions and Answers

  1. Q1. What did Buddha teach Kisa Gotami?
    Ans: Buddha taught her that death is universal and everyone faces it. One should accept it rather than suffer through attachment.
  2. Q2. What was the significance of the mustard seed in the story?
    Ans: Buddha asked her to bring mustard seeds from a house where no one had died to make her realize that death touches every home.
  3. Q3. What lesson do we learn from “The Sermon at Benares”?
    Ans: We learn that grief can only be overcome by accepting death as a natural law of life.
  4. Q4. How did Gautama Buddha’s experiences influence his teachings?
    Ans: His encounters with sickness, old age, and death made him leave royal life and seek enlightenment. These experiences shaped his teachings on detachment and suffering.

📥 Download PDF Notes

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📌 Tags: Class 10 English Notes, Sermon at Benares Summary, Gautama Buddha Teachings, First Flight Chapter 10, CBSE 2025, ToppersNoteHub

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