Buddhism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, who lived in what is now Northern India and Nepal between 566 and 483 BCE. Buddhism spread throughout the ancient Indian sub-continent in the five centuries following his death. It continued to spread into Central, Southeast, and East Asia over the next two millennia. With approximately 708 million followers, Buddhism is a major world religion whose adherents are called Buddhists. Buddhist denominations are historically categ ...

Including:

• Buddhism - What is a Buddha?
• Buddhism - Origins
• Buddhism - Principles of Buddhism
• Buddhism - The Four Noble Truths
• Buddhism - The Noble Eightfold Path
• Buddhism - Practices of Buddhism
• Buddhism - Refuge in The Three Jewels
• Buddhism - The Five Precepts
• Buddhism - Meditation
• Buddhism - Buddha-dhatu Buddha-Principle, Buddha-nature
• Buddhism - Other principles and practices
• Buddhism - Vegetarianism
• Buddhism - Buddhist religious philosophy and branches
• Buddhism - Buddhism after the Buddha
• Buddhism - Principal schools of Buddhist philosophy
• Buddhism - Scriptures
• Buddhism - Relations with other Eastern faiths
• Buddhism - Buddhism in the modern world
• Buddhism - Buddhism and the West
• Buddhism - Buddhism
• Buddhism - Related systems and religions
• Buddhism - References and Links
• Buddhism - References
• Buddhism - Footnotes
• Buddhism - External links

Read more here: » Buddhism

Including:

• Buddhism - What is a Buddha?
• Buddhism - Origins
• Buddhism - Principles of Buddhism
• Buddhism - The Three Marks of Existence
• Buddhism - The Four Noble Truths
• Buddhism - The Noble Eightfold Path
• Buddhism - Practices of Buddhism
• Buddhism - Refuge in The Three Jewels
• Buddhism - The Five Precepts
• Buddhism - Meditation
• Buddhism - Buddha-dhatu Buddha-Principle Buddha-nature
• Buddhism - Other principles and practices
• Buddhism - Vegetarianism
• Buddhism - Buddhist religious philosophy and branches
• Buddhism - Buddhism after the Buddha
• Buddhism - Principal schools of Buddhist philosophy
• Buddhism - Scriptures
• Buddhism - Relations with other Eastern faiths
• Buddhism - Buddhism in the modern world
• Buddhism - Buddhism and the West
• Buddhism - Buddhism
• Buddhism - Related systems and religions
• Buddhism - References and Links
• Buddhism - References
• Buddhism - Footnotes
• Buddhism - External links

Read more here: » Buddhism: Encyclopedia - Buddhism

Occasional intersections between Western civilization and the Buddhist world have been occurring for thousands of years. Perhaps the most significant of these began in 334 BCE, early in the history of Buddhism, when the Macedonian king Alexander the Great conquered most of Central Asia. The Seleucids and the successive Greco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek kingdoms established an important Hellenistic influence in the area, which interacted with Buddhism. The conversion to Buddhism of the Indo-Greek king Menander (155-130 BCE) is described in Indian sources (the Mili ...

See also:

Buddhism, Buddhism - Headline text, Buddhism - What is a Buddha?, Buddhism - Origins, Buddhism - Principles of Buddhism, Buddhism - The Three Marks of Existence, Buddhism - The Four Noble Truths, Buddhism - The Noble Eightfold Path, Buddhism - Practices of Buddhism, Buddhism - Refuge in The Three Jewels, Buddhism - The Five Precepts, Buddhism - Meditation, Buddhism - Buddha-dhatu Buddha-Principle Buddha-nature, Buddhism - Other principles and practices, Buddhism - Vegetarianism, Buddhism - Buddhist religious philosophy and branches, Buddhism - Buddhism after the Buddha, Buddhism - Principal schools of Buddhist philosophy, Buddhism - Scriptures, Buddhism - Relations with other Eastern faiths, Buddhism - Buddhism in the modern world, Buddhism - Buddhism and the West, Buddhism - Buddhism, Buddhism - Related systems and religions, Buddhism - References and Links, Buddhism - References, Buddhism - Footnotes, Buddhism - External links

Read more here: » Buddhism: Encyclopedia II - Buddhism - Buddhism and the West

Buddhism: Origins of Buddhism

Legend has it that the Buddha to be, Siddhartha Gautama, was born around the 6th century BCE. His birthplace is said to be Lumbini in the kingdom of Magadha, in what is now Nepal. His father was a king, and Siddhartha lived in luxury, being spared all hardship.

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It is commonly believed that Buddhism involves long hours of meditation and is devoid of elaborative pujas (prayers) and ceremonies associated with prayer-offerings. People also think that Gautam Buddha was against an organised religion and propounded Buddhism minus the offerings and ceremonies to undermine the priestly class who exploited the common masses with religious superstitions. But the fact is Buddhism has elaborate ceremonial prayer offerings, especially its Mahayana and Vajrayana forms.

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Buddhism is a philosophy and/or religion based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama (Sanskrit; in Pali, Siddhattha Gotama), who lived between approximately 563 and 483 BCE. Originating in India, Buddhism gradually spread throughout Asia to Central Asia, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, as well as the East Asian countries of China, Mongolia, Korea, and Japan.

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The main principles of Buddhism: The Three Jewels, The Four Noble Truths, The Noble Eightfold Path, The Five Precepts, The three marks of conditioned existence and vegetarianism.

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Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what it sees as inconsistencies in Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. Early Korean monks believed that the traditions they received from China were internally inconsistent. To address this, they developed a new holistic approach to Buddhism. This approach is characteristic of virtually all major Korean thinkers, and has resulted in a distinct variation of Buddhism, which Wonhyo (617–686) called the Tongbulgyo ("interpenetrated Buddhism"). K ...

Including:

• Korean Buddhism - Historical overview of the development of Korean Buddhism
• Korean Buddhism - Buddhism in the Three Kingdoms
• Korean Buddhism - Baekje
• Korean Buddhism - Kaya
• Korean Buddhism - Silla
• Korean Buddhism - Buddhism in the Unified Silla period 668-918
• Korean Buddhism - Buddhism as state religion in the Goryeo period 918-1392
• Korean Buddhism - Suppression under the Joseon dynasty 1392-1910
• Korean Buddhism - Buddhism during the Japanese occupation 1910-1945
• Korean Buddhism - Buddhism and Westernization 1945-present
• Korean Buddhism - Looking Ahead

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Buddhism after the Buddha

Buddhism spread slowly in India until the powerful Mauryan emperor Asoka converted to it and actively supported it. His promotion led to construction of Buddhist religious sites and missionary efforts that spread the faith into the countries listed at the beginning of the article.

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Buddhism in the modern world

An overview of Buddhism in Modern Asia and Buddhism in West.

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Buddhism: Uposatha Observance Days

Uposatha days are times of renewed dedication to Dhamma practice, observed by both lay people and monastics throughout the world of Theravada Buddhism.

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Buddhism is a very important religion in China and one of the three major schools of thought along with Confucianism and Taoism. It has affected and been affected by Chinese culture, politics, literature and philosophy for almost two millennia. For a more generalized discussion of Chinese religion, see religion in China. Buddhism in China - History of Buddhism in China. The arrival of Buddhism in China followed the first contacts between China and Central Asia which occurred with the opening of the Silk Ro ...

Including:

• Buddhism in China - History of Buddhism in China
• Buddhism in China - Relation to Confucianism and Daoism
• Buddhism in China - Local interpretation of Indian texts
• Buddhism in China - Buddhism gains political traction in the north
• Buddhism in China - Monks and rulers join forces
• Buddhism in China - Modern Chinese Buddhism
• Buddhism in China - Reference

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Buddhist beliefs and practices vary according to region. There are distinctions between and within the Buddhism practised in various regions, including: South Asia India Bangladesh Sri Lanka Nepal Kashmir Central Asia Mongolia Southeast Asia Thailand Malaysia Cambodia Laos Myanmar Indonesia East Asia China < ...

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Relevance of Buddhism In the New Century

In the 20th century great changes took place as a result of experiments and developments in a broad range of human activities, in economics, politics, and science. The past hundred years' experiences have made us appreciate the importance of freedom, and the significant contributions of individual and private enterprise in improving the economy. We also began to recognise the importance of putting a stop to the production and proliferation of weapons of tremendous destructive power.

By The Dalai Lama

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Buddhism: Relations with other faiths

Some Hindus (primarily in the northern regions of India) believe that Gautama is the 9th incarnation (see avatar) of Vishnu; there are accounts of the Buddha as an incarnation of Vishnu that are pro- and anti-Buddhist (i.e., either Vishnu "really meant" what he said while incarnated as Buddha or he was just messing with the Nastikas). This is not a majority view, however.

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Buddhism in Brazil has practitioners of various Buddhist schools, as well as a fair number of somewhat Buddhist-inspired cults and "New Age" movements. Many Japanese schools have a strong presence mainly as a result of World War II, which encouraged emigration of Japanese people. A considerable number of those chose to radicate in Brazil, including teachers of schools such as Soto Zen, Honmon Butsuryu Shu (a Nichiren Buddhism school), Jodo Shinshu (also known as True Pure Land Buddhism) and the controversial Soka Gakkai movemen ...

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Buddhism is a religion with millions of followers in the United States, including traditionally Buddhist Asian Americans as well as non-Asian converts. The U.S. presents a strikingly new and different environment for Buddhists, leading to a unique history and a continuing process of development as Buddhism and America come to grips with each other. Buddhism in the United States - Early history. Occasional intersections between Western civilization and the Buddhist world have been occurring for thousands of years. ...

Including:

• Buddhism in the United States - Early history
• Buddhism in the United States - Modern American Buddhism
• Buddhism in the United States - Import Buddhists
• Buddhism in the United States - Export Buddhists
• Buddhism in the United States - Demographics of Buddhism in the United States
• Buddhism in the United States - Ethnic divide
• Buddhism in the United States - Trends in American Buddhism
• Buddhism in the United States - Engaged Buddhism
• Buddhism in the United States - Buddhist education in the United States

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History of Buddhism

The history of Buddhism is the story of one man's spiritual journey to Enlightenment, and of the teachings and ways of living that developed from it.

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The history of Buddhism in Japan can be roughly divided into three periods, namely the Nara period (up to 784), the Heian period (794-1185) and the post-Kamakura period (1185 onwards). Each period saw the introduction of new doctrines and upheavals in existing schools. Buddhism in Japan - Early Chinese accounts. In 467 CE, according to the Chinese historic treatise Liang Shu, five monks from Gandhara traveled to the country of Fusang (Chinese: 扶桑, Jp: Fusō: "The country of the extreme East" beyo ...

Including:

• Buddhism in Japan - Early Chinese accounts
• Buddhism in Japan - Nara Period
• Buddhism in Japan - Jojitsu
• Buddhism in Japan - Kusha
• Buddhism in Japan - Sanron
• Buddhism in Japan - Hosso
• Buddhism in Japan - Kegon
• Buddhism in Japan - Heian Period
• Buddhism in Japan - Tendai
• Buddhism in Japan - Shingon
• Buddhism in Japan - Kamakura to Modern Period
• Buddhism in Japan - Amidist Schools
• Buddhism in Japan - Zen Schools
• Buddhism in Japan - Nichiren Buddhism
• Buddhism in Japan - Timeline

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Theravada is the single remaining representative of the eighteen (or twenty) Nikaya schools of Indian Buddhism, which are sometimes referred to by the controversial term Hinayana. Theravada is now practiced mainly in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Another prominent Nikaya school, was the Sarvastivada, much of the doctrine of which was incorporated into Tibetan Buddhism. It included one of the main branches of Indian Abhidharma that was instrumental in the creation of Yogacara doctrine. Its system of monastic ru ...

Including:

• Buddhism in India - Characteristics
• Buddhism in India - Mahayana
• Buddhism in India - Vajrayana
• Buddhism in India - History
• Buddhism in India - Modern Revival

Read more here: » Buddhism in India