CogKnoSys

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Spiritual

Buddhism

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, who taught a path to freedom from suffering.

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The idea

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophy based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. The Buddha was a wandering religious teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. Buddhism began in the eastern Gangetic plain of India and gradually spread across much of Asia along the Silk Road. In 2020 it was the world's fourth-largest religion, practiced by an estimated 4.1% of the world's people.

The Buddha taught that dukkha, a word often translated as suffering or unsatisfactoriness, arises together with attachment, or clinging. He described a path that leads to awakening and freedom from dukkha by reaching nirvana, the "blowing out" of the passions. He called this path a Middle Way between harsh self-denial and chasing pleasure. Widely followed teachings include the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, karma and dependent origination. Buddhists practice meditation and keep ethical rules rooted in not causing harm.

Scholars recognize two major living branches. Theravada, the "School of the Elders," focuses on reaching nirvana and ending the cycle of death and rebirth, and it is followed mainly in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Sri Lanka. Mahayana, the "Great Vehicle," stresses the ideal of the bodhisattva, who works to free all living beings. It includes Zen and Pure Land and is practiced in countries such as China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam. Vajrayana, which includes Tibetan Buddhism, is sometimes counted as a third branch.

Check yourself

Question 1 of 3

What did the Buddha call his path between harsh self-denial and chasing pleasure?

Pick one. The first pick counts.

Composition

what it's made of

  • The Buddha — The wandering teacher whose teachings are the basis of the religion.
  • Four Noble Truths — A core teaching about suffering, its cause, its end and the path that leads to its end.
  • Noble Eightfold Path — The practical path of right understanding, conduct and mental training that leads toward nirvana.
  • Meditation — Mental training that the Buddha advised as part of the path to awakening.
  • Triple Gem — The Buddha, his teaching (the Dharma) and the community of followers (the Sangha).
  • Monastic vows — Promises taken by monks and nuns who devote their lives to the path.

Connection

how it relates

Under Religious Traditions

Related

  1. Meditationstrength 80 of 100

    Meditation is a central Buddhist practice for calming and training the mind.

  2. Mindfulnessstrength 70 of 100

    Mindfulness, or right mindfulness, is part of the Noble Eightfold Path and is now also practiced outside religion.

  3. Moral Philosophystrength 50 of 100

    Buddhist ethics are built on avoiding harm to oneself and to other living beings.

Change

how and why it evolves

Past
Buddhism began as a movement of wandering ascetics in the 5th century BCE. It was widely practiced in the Indian subcontinent until the early 2nd millennium and then declined there, while it lived on in other parts of Asia. It began spreading to the West in the 19th century.
Now
According to the Pew Research Center, Buddhists were the only major religious group that shrank between 2010 and 2020, from about 343 million to 324 million people.
Next
Buddhist meditation and mindfulness will likely keep spreading in Western countries, often in settings that are not religious, such as schools and clinics.

Knowledge you can walk. Read the idea, then step up, across or down.

Buddhism

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, who taught a path to freedom from suffering.

Learn, discuss, create, buy or invest

The idea

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophy based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. The Buddha was a wandering religious teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. Buddhism began in the eastern Gangetic plain of India and gradually spread across much of Asia along the Silk Road. In 2020 it was the world's fourth-largest religion, practiced by an estimated 4.1% of the world's people.

The Buddha taught that dukkha, a word often translated as suffering or unsatisfactoriness, arises together with attachment, or clinging. He described a path that leads to awakening and freedom from dukkha by reaching nirvana, the "blowing out" of the passions. He called this path a Middle Way between harsh self-denial and chasing pleasure. Widely followed teachings include the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, karma and dependent origination. Buddhists practice meditation and keep ethical rules rooted in not causing harm.

Scholars recognize two major living branches. Theravada, the "School of the Elders," focuses on reaching nirvana and ending the cycle of death and rebirth, and it is followed mainly in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Sri Lanka. Mahayana, the "Great Vehicle," stresses the ideal of the bodhisattva, who works to free all living beings. It includes Zen and Pure Land and is practiced in countries such as China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam. Vajrayana, which includes Tibetan Buddhism, is sometimes counted as a third branch.

Check yourself

3 quick questions, instant feedback.