Buddhist art originated in the Indian subcontinent in the centuries following the life of the historical Gautama Buddha in the 6th to 5th century BCE, before evolving through its contact with other cultures and its diffusion through the rest of Asia and the world.
A first, essentially Indian, aniconic phase (avoiding direct representations of the Buddha), was followed from around the 1st century CE by an iconic phase (with direct representations of the Buddha). From that time, Buddhist art diversified and evolved ...
Buddhist atoms in the tradition of Buddhist atomism underwent a very rich period during the time of Dharmakirti. In discussing Buddhist atomism, Stcherbatsky writes:
...[T]he Buddhists denied the existence of substantial matter altogether. Movement consists for them of moments, it is a staccato movement, momentary flashes of a stream of energy... "Everything is evanescent“,... says the Buddhist, because there is no stuff... Both systems [Sānkhya, and later Indian Buddhism] share in common a tendency to push the ...
The first Buddhist council was held soon after the death of the Buddha under the patronage of king Ajatasatru, and presided by a monk named Mahakasyapa, at Rajagaha (today's Rajgir). Its objective was to record the Buddha's sayings (sutra) and codify monastic rules (vinaya).
Buddhist Councils - 2nd Buddhist council 383 BC.
The second Buddhist council was convened by king Kalasoka and held at Vaisali, following conflicts between the conservative and liberal elements of Sangha.
The conservative school ...
Buddhist polemics revolve around the veracity and efficacy of doctrine and practice. It seems that from the very beginning Buddhists were involved in a struggle with non-believers to establish the Truth.
By the time the Vajrayana came into being there was already a considerable superstructure of doctrine and practice built up. But the Vajrayana was bound by the same constraints and so ended up adopting everything and trying to make sense of it. The Tibetans synthesised it all into a complex hierarchical system which has ...
The Buddhist flag is a flag designed to symbolise Buddhism. It was in designed in 1880 by a committee comprised of Ven Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Thera (Chairman), Ven. Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera, Don Carolis Hewavitharana (father of Anagarika Dharmapala), Andiris Perera Dharmagunawardhana (maternal grandfather of Anagarika Dharmapala), William de Abrew, Charles A. de Silva, Peter de Abrew, H. William Fernando, N. S. Fernando and Carolis Pujitha Gunawardena (Secretary). Colonel Henry Steele Olcott, an American journalist later made sug ...
Monasticism is one of the most fundamental institutions of Buddhism. Monks and nuns are responsible for preserving and spreading Buddhist teachings, as well as educating and guiding Buddhist lay followers. The ultimate goal of Buddhist monasticism is liberation from the cycle of rebirth through Nirvana. Collectively, the ordained male and female Buddhist monastics constitute two of the four groups that compose the Buddhist sangha (the other two groups being male and female lay followers). All four groups are seen as being important an ...
Chinese cuisine
Eight Great Traditions
Anhui
Cantonese
Fujian
Hunan
Jiangsu
Shandong
Sichuan
Zhejiang
Others
Chinese Buddhist
Chiuchow
Hakka
Historical Chinese
Hong Kong
Huaiyang
Chinese Islamic
Macanese
Mandarin
Northeastern
Sha ...
Buddhist religious architecture developed in the South Asia in the third century BCE.
Two types of structures are associated with early Buddhism: stupas and viharas. The initial function of a stupa was the veneration and safe-guarding of the relics of the Buddha. The earliest existing example of a stupa is in Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh). In accordance with changes in religious practice, stupas were gradually incorporated into chaitya-grihas (stupa halls). These reached their highpoint in the first century BCE, exemplified by the ca ...
Buddhist temples and monasteries, sorted by location.
List of Buddhist temples - Australia.
List of Buddhist temples - New South Wales.
Nan Tien Temple
List of Buddhist temples - Queensland.
Queensland Burmese Buddhist Monastery
List of Buddhist temples - Bhutan.
Kurjey Lhakhang
Kyichu Lhakhang
Taktshang
List of Buddhist te ...
Buddhist symbolism appeared from around the 3rd century BCE, and started with aniconic symbolism, avoiding direct representations of the Buddha. Anthropomorphic symbolism appeared from around the 1st century CE with the arts of Mathura and the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara, and were combined with the previous symbols. Various symbolic innovations were later introduced, especially through Tibetan Buddhism.
Buddhist symbolism - Early aniconic symbols.
Among the earliest and most common symbols of Buddhism ar ...
Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. Below are given a number of important Buddhist terms, short definitions, and the languages in which they appear. In this list, an attempt has been made to organize terms by their original form and give translations and synonyms in other languages below the definition.
Languages and traditions dealt with here:
English (Eng.)
Pāli: Theravāda Buddhism
Sanskrit (or Buddhist Hybrid S ...
Buddhist meditation, meditation used in the practice of Buddhism, "includes any method of meditation that has Enlightenment as its ultimate aim"1. The closest word for meditation in the classical languages of Buddhism is bhavana or "mental development"2.
The main methods of Buddhist meditation are divided into samatha (tra ...
The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB) is arguably the largest and most influential international Buddhist organization. It was founded in 1950 in Colombo, Sri Lanka by representatives from 27 nations. Although Theravada Buddhists are most influential in the organization, (its headquarters are in Thailand and all of its presidents have been from Sri Lanka or southeast Asia), members of all Buddhist schools are active in the WFB. It now has regional centers in 35 countries, including India, the United States, Australia, and several nations of Africa and Europe, in addition to traditional Buddhist coun ...
The Buddhist calendar is used on mainland southeast Asia in the countries of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar (formerly Burma) in several related forms. It is a lunisolar calendar having months that are alternately 29 and 30 days, with an intercalated day and a 30-day month added at regular intervals. All of its forms are based on the original third century Surya Siddhanta, not its modern fo ...
While Buddhist practice varies considerably among its various schools, Marriage is one of the few concepts specifically mentioned in the context of Sila (Buddhist behavior discipline).
One of the five precepts that even lay practitioners are expected to follow to the best of their abilities - specifically the third - is a promise to abstain from sexual misconduct. While it is generally understood that what constitutes "misconduct" from a Buddhist perspective is widely dependent from the local cultural reality (e.g. is polygamy "miscon ...
The Buddhist Churches of America is the United States branch of the Hongwanji-ha Hongwanji (a.k.a. Honpa Hongwanji / Nishi-Hongwanji) sub-sect of Jōdo Shinshū (淨土眞宗 "True Pure Land School") Buddhism.
The term 'Churches' in the name of the sect derives historically from the desire of Japanese immigrant Buddhists to be accepted into North American society and to avoid attracting discrimination, especial ...
Buddhist temples in Thailand - Bangkok.
Wat Benchamabophit (marble temple)
Wat Suthat the Giant Swing
Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen
Wat Ratchanadda
Wat Phra Kaew
Wat Pho
Wat Arun
Buddhist temples in Thailand - Chiang Mai.
Wat Chedi Luang
Wat Chiang Man
Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep
Wat Phra Sing
Wat Ched Yot
Wat Chedi Liem
Buddhist temples in Th ...
Buddhist prayer beads are traditional devotional tools of prayer used in various forms of Buddhism. They are similar to other forms of prayer beads and the Rosary used in various world religions; thus this tool has also been known as the Buddhist rosary.
Prayer beads or japa malas are used in many forms of Mahayana Buddhism, often with a lesser number of beads than the Hindu japa malas's 108--usually a divisor of 108. In Pu ...
The Buddhist Publication Society is a charity whose goal is to explain and spread the doctrine of the Buddha. It was founded in Sri Lanka in 1958 . This organization has published hundreds of book, plus two periodicals still edited : The Wheel and Bodhi leaves.
Other related archives1958, Buddha, Sri Lanka, doctrine
Buddhist mythology is a mythology within the Buddhism belief system. It is a relatively broad mythology, as it was adopted and influenced by several diverse cultures. As such, it includes many aspects taken from other mythologies of those cultures (for instance, Japanese kami are considered to be local bodhisattvas by many Japanese Buddhists).
See also.
Hindu mythology
Bön
Chinese mythology
Japanese mythology
...
The Buddhist Society, London was created in London as an offshoot of a Theosophical Lodge by Christmas Humphreys, a British judge and convert to Buddhism, along with his wife.
The Buddhist Society, 58, Eccleston Square, London SW1V 1PH.
See also.
Religion in the United Kingdom
Friends of the Western Buddhist Order
New Kadampa Tradition
Heruka Buddhist Centre
...
The religious philosophies and schools of thought in Buddhism have evolved since Buddha's death into diverse, and complex traditions.
Buddhist religious philosophy - Three main schools.
Buddhism has evolved into myriad schools that can be roughly grouped into three types: Nikaya, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. Of the Nikaya schools, only the Theravada survives. Each branch sees itself as representing the true, original teachings of the Buddha, and some schools believe that the dialectic nature of Bu ...
