Buddhism is a variety of teachings, sometimes described as a religion or way of life that attempts to identify the causes of human suffering and offer various ways that are claimed to end, or ease suffering. It is said by some to be a body of philosophies influenced by the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, known as Gautama Buddha. It is said by others to be a set of teachings to guide one to directly experiencing reality. Many scholars say that there is not one Buddhism but many Buddhisms, and the latest edition of one textbook is retitled Buddhist Religions. Buddhism is also known as Buddha Dharma or Dhamma, which means roughly the "teachings of the Awakened One" in Sanskrit and Pali, languages of ancient Buddhist texts. Buddhism began around the 5th century BCE in India with the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, commonly referred to as "the Buddha".

Buddhism Life

Gautama, whose personal name according to later sources was Siddhartha, was born in the city of Lumbini and was raised in Kapilavastu. The traditional story of his life is as follows; little of this can be regarded as established historical fact. Born a prince, his father, King Suddhodana, was said to have been visited by a wise man shortly after Siddhartha was born. The wise man said that Siddhartha would either become a great king (chakravartin) or a holy man (Sadhu). Determined to make Siddhartha a king, the father tried to shield his son from the unpleasant realities of daily life. Despite his father's efforts, at the age of 29, he discovered the suffering of his people, first through an encounter with an elderly man. On subsequent trips outside the palace, he encountered various sufferings such as a diseased man, a decaying corpse, and a monk or an ascetic. These are often termed 'The Four Sights.'
Gautama was deeply depressed by these four sights and sought to overcome old age, illness, and death by living the life of an ascetic. Gautama escaped his palace, leaving behind this royal life to become a mendicant. For a time on his spiritual quest, Buddha "experimented with extreme asceticism, which at that time was seen as a powerful spiritual practice...such as fasting, holding the breath, and exposure of the body to pain...he found, however, that these ascetic practices brought no genuine spiritual benefits and in fact, being based on self-hatred, that they were counterproductive."
After abandoning asceticism and concentrating instead upon meditation and, according to some sources, Anapanasati (awareness of breathing in and out), Gautama is said to have discovered what Buddhists call the Middle Way—a path of moderation that lies mid-way between the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification. He accepted a little milk and rice pudding from a village girl and then, sitting under a pipal tree or Sacred fig (Ficus religiosa), also known as the Bodhi tree, in Bodh Gaya, he vowed never to arise until he had found the Truth. His five companions, believing that he had abandoned his search and become undisciplined, left. After 49 days meditating, at the age of 35, he attained bodhi, also known as "Awakening" or "Enlightenment" in the West. After his attainment of bodhi he was known as Buddha or Gautama Buddha and spent the rest of his life teaching his insights (Dharma). According to scholars, he lived around the fifth century BCE, but his more exact birthdate is open to debate. He died at the age of 80 in Kushinagara (Pali Kusinara) (India).

The history of Indian Buddhism may be divided into the following five periods:

1. Early Buddhism (also called Pre-sectarian Buddhism); Professor Nakamura subdivides this into two subperiods:
1. original Buddhism (other scholars call this earliest Buddhism or precanonical Buddhism)
2. early Buddhism
2. Period of the Early Buddhist schools (also called Sectarian Buddhism, Nikaya Buddhism)
3. Early Mahayana Buddhism
4. Later Mahayana Buddhism
5. Vajrayana Buddhism (also called Esoteric Buddhism)

It must be remembered that these developments are not always consecutive. For example, the early schools continued to exist alongside Mahayana. Indeed, some scholars have argued that Mahayana remained marginal for centuries.

Buddhism today

Buddhism had become virtually extinct in India, and although it continued to exist in surrounding countries, its influence was no longer expanding. It is now again gaining strength. While estimates of the number of Buddhist followers range from 230 to 500 million worldwide, most estimates are between 310 million, and 350 million. In addition, most scholars classify similar numbers of people under a category they call variously Chinese (folk/traditional) religion, which is an amalgam of various traditions, including Buddhism. Furthermore, estimates are totally uncertain and in dispute:

• because of difficulties in defining who counts as a Buddhist;
• because of uncertainties in the situation for several countries; most notably China, Vietnam and North Korea.

According to one analysis, Buddhism is the fourth-largest religion in the world behind Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. The monks' order (Sangha), which began during the lifetime of the Buddha in India, is among the oldest organizations on earth.

Typical interior of a temple in Korea

• Theravāda Buddhism, using Pāli as its scriptural language, is the dominant form of Buddhism in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Burma. Also the Dalit Buddhist movement in India (inspired by B. R. Ambedkar) practices Theravada.
• East Asian forms of Mahayana Buddhism that use scriptures in Chinese are dominant in most of China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Vietnam as well as within Chinese and Japanese communities within Indochina, Southeast Asia and the West.
• Tibetan Buddhism, using the Tibetan language, is found in Tibet, and the surrounding areas in India, Bhutan, Mongolia, Nepal, and the Russian Federation.
• Most Buddhist groups in the West are at least nominally affiliated to some eastern tradition listed above. An exception is the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order, though they can be considered Mahayanist in a broad sense.

According to a website specializing in religious statistics, the numbers of adherents of the three main traditions listed above are about 124, 185 and 20 million, respectively.
At the present time, the teachings of all three branches of Buddhism have spread throughout the world, and Buddhist texts are increasingly translated into local languages. While, in the West, Buddhism is often seen as exotic and progressive, in the East, Buddhism is regarded as familiar and part of the establishment. Buddhists in Asia are frequently well organized and well funded. In a number of countries, it is recognized as an official religion and receives state support. In the West, Buddhism is recognized as one of the growing spiritual influences. (See also: Buddhism in the West)

Some teachings

Other teachings can be found in the sections below on history of Indian Buddhism and the main traditions, and also in separate articles on Buddhist devotion, Nichiren Buddhism, Shingon. (Also, Falun Gong is classified sometimes as a form of Buddhism, sometimes as a form of Chinese religion).
In Theravada Buddhism, any person who has awakened from the "sleep of ignorance" (by directly realizing the true nature of reality), without instruction, and who has reached the end of the compulsive cycle of rebirths (as human, animal, ghost, etc.) after numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving, and who teaches this Path to Awakening to others is called a Buddha, while those who achieve realisations but do not teach others are called paccekabuddhas. All traditional Buddhists agree that Shakyamuni or Gotama Buddha was not the only Buddha: it is generally taught that there have been many past Buddhas and that there will be future Buddhas too. If a person achieves this awakening, he or she is called an arahant. Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, is thus only one among other buddhas before or after him. His teachings are oriented toward the attainment of this kind of awakening, also called liberation, or Nirvana.
One of the teachings ascribed to the Buddha regarding the holy life and the goal of liberation is constituted by the "The Four Noble Truths", which focus on dukkha, a term that refers to suffering or the unhappiness ultimately characteristic of unawakened, worldly life. According to the interpretation of earlier Western scholars, followed by many modern Theravadins, the Four Noble Truths regarding suffering state what is its nature, its cause, its cessation, and the way leading to its cessation. This way to the cessation of suffering is called "The Noble Eightfold Path". However, according to at least some recent scholars, the so-called truths are not statements at all, but "things": suffering and the rest.
Numerous distinct groups have developed since the passing of the Buddha, with diverse teachings that vary widely in practice, philosophical emphasis, and culture. Few valid generalizations are possible about all Buddhists.

The Four Noble Truths

According to the Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism (2004), these are

1. "the noble truth that is suffering"
2. "the noble truth that is the arising of suffering"
3. "the noble truth that is the end of suffering"
4. "the noble truth that is the way leading to the end of suffering"

According to the scriptures, the Four Noble Truths were among the topics of the first sermon given by the Buddha after his enlightenment, which was given to the five ascetics with whom he had practised austerities. The Four Noble Truths were originally spoken by the Buddha not in the form of a religious or philosophical text, but in the manner of a medical diagnosis and remedial prescription in a style that was common at that time. The early teaching and the traditional understanding in the Theravada is that these are an advanced teaching for those who are ready for them. The Mahayana position is that they are a preliminary teaching for people not yet ready for the higher and more expansive Mahayana teachings. They are little known in the Far East.

Buddhist symbols

The eight auspicious symbols of Mahayana and Vajrayana are:

• the Parasol (Umbrella)
• the Golden Fish
• the Treasure Vase
• the Lotus
• the Conch Shell
• the Endless Knot
• the Victory Banner
• the Dharma wheel