Buddhism is a religion that was started by Siddhartha Guatama in the 6th century B. There are an estimated 350 million people that are involved in Buddhism, making it the fourth largest religion in the world. The Buddhists believe that everyone is reborn into the body of other beings, including animals. This is the reason that they are careful that no one steps on any form of a living creature. There are two major branches, or "sects" of the Buddhist religion; they are Theravada and Mahayana. There are also Zen Buddhism, Pure Land Buddhism, Yogacara Buddhism, and Vajrayana Buddhism. There are also different types for different countries, for example, there is Vietnamese Buddhism, there is Chinese Buddhism, and there is Tibetan Buddhism.
It all started in the year563 B.C., with the birth of Siddhartha Guatama. He was believed to be placed inside his mother's womb as a white elephant, and then born ten months later with the thirty-two auspicious signs of the enlightened one. His father became aware of these signs, and was afraid that he would follow a religious life style, rather than a noble life style, as he had intended. For these reasons, Siddhartha's father decided to force Siddhartha to remain on their rich estate. After witnessing four events, and old man, a poor lady, a corpse being buried and a Jain ascetic begging for food and money, he decided to give up his belongings and search for enlightenment. After studying many different religions and trying many different life styles, and even fasting and marathon meditation, he discovered a new, less extreme way, and through meditation, he achieved enlightenment, or Buddahood. .
The Buddhist belief states that this world, also called Samsara, is really an illusion designed by an evil spirit called Mara, to keep souls away from the Dharma. The Dharma is a Buddhist word that means the course of right conduct to enlightenment.
Buddhism has been around since 273 B.C. ... Through this thinking came the Mahayana Buddhism. ... Buddhism reached its peak in China around 700 C.E. ... From then on out Buddhism would only stand as one of the three religions, Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. ... Buddhism is slowly regaining its strength. ...
Prince Siddhartha, also known as Buddha was the creator of Buddhism (Buddhism: an Overview, pg 335). ... The dogma of Buddhism is very broad and is what you may say a gray area. ... Buddhism is also divided into different schools, which are, Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism. ... It is said that Buddhism has been sculpted by its surrounding culture. ... Because of this Buddhism is an unclear religion. ...
Buddhism has broken off into three major traditions. These traditions are Theravada Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, and Vajrayana Buddhism. ... Tibetan Buddhism draws from both Mahayana Buddhism and also Theravada Buddhism. ... During his control he unified Tibet and converted many people into Buddhism. ... This merger formed what is now known as Tibetan Buddhism. ...
This became known as the "Golden Age" of Buddhism. ... After the decline in Buddhism and the return to traditional Chinese ways, Buddhism never regained its power or popularity in China (Murphey, 92). In Japan, however, Buddhism had a somewhat different experience. ... These two social factors welcomed Buddhism into the Japanese society and had an influence over the reasons why Buddhism thrived so greatly there. ... Buddhism also had an effect on Japanese artwork. ...
This was a major factor that led to the decline of Buddhism. ... However, Buddhism and Shinto have coexisted with each other. ... Shinto's persisted on Buddhism in Japan as Daoism persisted on Buddhism and Confucianism in China. However, most Japanese followed both Shinto and Buddhism. ... In the history of Buddhism in China and Japan, it is seen that Buddhism quickly rose and fell just as fast. ...
Buddhism: The culture and the individual (Option #3) With the rise of the Asian population in the U.S., Buddhism has made a tremendous impact in the United States. ... This selectiveness regarding the culture and traditions of Buddhism, with an emphasis on the individual, has created an entirely unique form of the religion in American society, it is: American Buddhism. ... In addition, there is no prayer in Buddhism because there is no one to whom one can pray. ... This is exactly what they find when they turn to Buddhism. ... Gays and lesbians have been attracted to Buddhism as a r...
Buddhism, however, does not worship the Buddha. ... In the centuries following the death of the Buddha, many different approaches to Buddhism, or schools of Buddhism, arose. This pluralism includes Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana, and Zen Buddhism. ... Mahayana is the dominant form of Buddhism in China, Korea and Japan. ... Other forms of Buddhism include Pure Land and Soka Gakkai as well as a contemporary form of "socially engaged- Buddhism. ...
Buddhism has been called a religion, a philosophy, an ideology, and a way of life. ... The following paper will describe the beliefs in which Buddhism was basis was it founded on, and where it stands today in modern society while making some personal reactions about the Buddhism. ... However, this is not so, because Buddhism is as significant now as it was in the past. ... My spirituality differs greatly from the teachings of Buddhism. ... In Buddhism, there are no set commandments to abide by. ...
