For one of the session I had missed I visited the LACMA museum with my collegue Erin. We originally thought we had class that Tuesday night, however class did not meet that week, so we made the best of it. The artwork that I found particularly interesting was located in the Hammer and Ahmanson building and focused on Buddha. The first two classes that I attended were primarily focused on the different religions and governmental systems that have shaped China. It was interesting to read and see the different interpretations of the Buddha throughout the exhibit. The part of the visit that I found particulary beneficial to teaching was the dialogue and conversation that centered around the novel Siddhartha. Many of my students read this novel and I read it many years ago, but it was great to be re-enlightened about the novel by my colleague. In my world history class the first unit that we focus on is the development of democracy. The class briefly touches on the contributions of monotheistic religions to democracy. This visit and discussion with my colleague has inspired me to teach a mini lesson on the influence of Buddhism on East Asian governments and political decisions and actions.
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