Buddhism

8 Pages 2106 Words

e thing that sets Buddism apart from the other religions of the world, is that it helps people find spiritual fulfillment without an outside deity to help guide them.




Buddhism is one of the major religions of the world. It was founded by Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, who lived in northern India from c.560 to c.480 BC. The time of the Buddha was a time of social and religious change, the development of trade and cities, the breakdown of old tribal traditions, and the rise of many new religious
movements that answered the demands of the times. These movements came from the Brahmanic tradition of Hinduism but were also reactions against it. Of the new sects, Buddhism was the most successful and eventually
spread throughout India and most of Asia.
Today Buddhism is divided into two main branches. The Theravada, or "Way of the Elders," the more conservative
of the two, it is mainly found in Sri Lanka, Burma, and Thailand. The Mahayana, or "Great Vehicle," is more liberal,
it is found mainly in Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and among Tibetan peoples, where it is known by its emphasis on
the Buddhist Tantras. In recent times, both branches, as well as Tibetan Buddhism, have gained followers in the
West.
It is almost impossible to tell the size of the Buddhist population today. Statistics are difficult to obtain because
some individuals may have Buddhist beliefs and engage in Buddhist rites while maintaining folk or other religions;
these people may or may not call themselves Buddhists. Nevertheless, the number of Buddhists worldwide is
estimated at more than 300 million.

The matter of what Buddha's original teachings were cause of major controversy. Even so, it is said to have centered
on certain basic doctrines. The first of the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha held, is suffering. By this, he meant not
only...