Buddhism basics quiz – try it and check the answers

Part 2 – right view

Each question quotes a common wrong view; pick the answer that fits right view.

13. 13.Money: someone says «Just grind for money. Enough money means enough happiness — every craving in you will be filled, I promise.»

    1. A.Money is a fine tool for living and helping others, but craving itself can never be filled by any mountain of gold — contentment is what brings peace.
    2. B.Money is sinful. A practitioner must be poor and throw away all possessions at once.
    3. C.Fair enough — first stack up a big enough number, then worry about the heart later.
    Show the answer

    Answer: A.

    The Buddha did not condemn money; he exposed its trick: craving has no 'enough' point. Even a rain of gold cannot satisfy desire — seeing that bitterness is wisdom.

    Dầu mưa bằng tiền vàng, Các dục khó thỏa mãn. Dục đắng nhiều ngọt ít, Biết vậy là bậc trí.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Phật-đà · Dhp 186 →

14. 14.Karma is superstition?: someone says «Karma is a bedtime scare story. Look around — plenty of crooks are living just fine!»

    1. A.If the wicked prosper, it means karma spares the clever ones who know the loopholes.
    2. B.Karma is punishment sent by the gods — big enough offerings can erase it.
    3. C.Unripened fruit is simply not yet visible — like a seed still underground. When a harmful deed ripens, its maker tastes it; that is no scare story.
    Show the answer

    Answer: C.

    Karma is not a same-day court. While a bad deed has not ripened, its maker still finds it 'sweet' — that delay is exactly what fools the unobservant into denying cause and effect.

    Người ngu nghĩ là ngọt, Khi ác chưa chín muồi; Ác nghiệp chín muồi rồi, Người ngu chịu khổ đau.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Người Ngu · Dhp 69 →

15. 15.Fatalism: someone says «Your fate was sealed lifetimes ago. Karma is a verdict — why bother struggling?»

    1. A.There's no causality at all — life is pure random luck.
    2. B.Karma is not a verdict but what I am doing now: I am the owner of my deeds — sowing good or harm today is choosing the road I will inherit.
    3. C.To change fate, hire a master to perform star rituals — the right offering breaks the spell.
    Show the answer

    Answer: B.

    The reflection 'I am the owner of my kamma' puts the steering wheel in your hands: the past shapes conditions, but present action — body, speech, mind — writes what comes next. Karma is an open door, not a chain.

    “Ta là chủ nhân của nghiệp, là thừa tự của nghiệp, nghiệp là thai tạng, nghiệp là quyến thuộc, nghiệp là điểm tựa. Phàm nghiệp nào ta sẽ làm thiện hay ác, ta sẽ thừa tự nghiệp ấy”

    Tăng Chi Bộ · Sự Kiện Cần Phải Quan Sát · AN 5.57 →

16. 16.Revenge: someone says «They hurt you once — hit back tenfold. Swallowing your anger is cowardice, you hear?»

    1. A.Keep the grudge burning inside while smiling outside — that's both clever and patient.
    2. B.Hatred never extinguishes hatred, like oil poured on fire. Letting go is not defeat — it wins the hardest battle: the one with yourself.
    3. C.No need for revenge — just curse them to meet their karma soon, and watch.
    Show the answer

    Answer: B.

    A smoldering grudge or wishing someone harm still feeds hatred. The Dhammapada's 'eternal law': the chain of enmity breaks only with the person who refuses to add a link.

    Với hận diệt hận thù, Ðời này không có được. Không hận diệt hận thù, Là định luật ngàn thu.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Song Yếu · Dhp 5 →

17. 17.Small wrongs: someone says «A tiny cheat, a tiny lie — specks of dust, who cares? Everyone does it.»

    1. A.A jar fills not by one storm but drop by drop — repeated 'tiny' wrongs are exactly how a good person sours without noticing.
    2. B.One slip and your whole life is ruined — no point trying to mend it.
    3. C.Small or large doesn't matter — just make sure no one catches you.
    Show the answer

    Answer: A.

    The Dhammapada never says 'one slip ruins you' — it warns of ACCUMULATION. Every 'tiny' act is a drop; character is the jar that catches them all, seen or unseen.

    Chớ chê khinh điều ác, Cho rằng “chưa đến mình”, Như nước nhỏ từng giọt, Rồi bình cũng đầy tràn. Người ngu chứa đầy ác Do chất chứa dần dần.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Ác · Dhp 121 →

18. 18.Small good deeds: someone says «What can a puny good deed save? If you can't do something grand, don't bother at all.»

    1. A.Wait until you're rich and powerful, then do good all at once, at proper scale.
    2. B.Goodness fills the jar drop by drop just as harm does — one kind word, one small yielding today is quietly building who you become.
    3. C.Good deeds only count if posted online for maximum reach and applause.
    Show the answer

    Answer: B.

    The verse on good mirrors the verse on harm: the same drop-by-drop mechanism. The worth lies in steady gathering — not in scale, and not in applause.

    Chớ chê khinh điều thiện Cho rằng “chưa đến mình”, Như nước nhỏ từng giọt, Rồi bình cũng đầy tràn. Người trí chứa đầy thiện, Do chất chứa dần dần.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Ác · Dhp 122 →

19. 19.Study without practice: someone says «Enough podcasts and a hundred Buddhist books make you a practitioner. Why bother actually practicing?»

    1. A.Books really are useless — toss out all the scriptures, read nothing.
    2. B.Read enough and awakening comes automatically next life — no need to practice now.
    3. C.Reciting many texts without practice is like a hired cowherd — skilled at counting cattle he will never own. Only a teaching lived becomes your own.
    Show the answer

    Answer: C.

    The Dhammapada's hired-cowherd image names the gap between knowing and living: knowledge not yet practiced remains someone else's wealth — it changes nothing in your life.

    Nếu người nói nhiều kinh, Không hành trì, phóng dật; Như kẻ chăn bò người, Không phần Sa môn hạnh.

    Kinh Pháp Cú · Phẩm Song Yếu · Dhp 19 →

20. 20.Believing celebrities: someone says «That teacher has millions of followers. Someone that famous can't be wrong — just believe, no need to think!»

    1. A.Then trust no one at all — every teaching in the world is equally meaningless.
    2. B.Do not believe merely on fame or authority — put the teaching into practice, see for yourself whether it leads to welfare or harm, then accept or set it aside.
    3. C.Just follow whoever has the biggest crowd — the majority can't be wrong.
    Show the answer

    Answer: B.

    The Kālāma Sutta is the charter of free inquiry: the Buddha lists tradition, scripture, authority — even one's own teacher — as insufficient grounds for belief. Not cynicism, but an invitation to verify through living.

    chớ có tin vì nghe báo cáo, chớ có tin vì nghe truyền thuyết; chớ có tin vì theo truyền thống; chớ có tin vì được kinh điển truyền tụng; chớ có tin vì lý luận suy diễn; chớ có tin vì diễn giải tương tự; chớ có tin vì đánh giá hời hợt những dữ kiện; chớ có tin vì phù hợp với định kiến; chớ có tin vì phát xuất từ nơi có uy quyền, chớ có tin vì vị Sa-môn là bậc đạo sư của mình.

    Tăng Chi Bộ · Kinh Kālāmā (Kesamutta) · AN 3.65 →

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