Learn About BuddhismOn this website people can find information about acupuncture and mediation as part of Buddhism but one needs to start by learning one or two main things about this religion and philosophy at the same time. Thus what is Buddhism? Buddhism encompasses different traditions, practices and beliefs and it is a philosophy largely based on teaching that are attributed to Siddhartha Gautama or Buddha, as most of the people know him. In Sanskrit Buddha means the awakened one and it is said that he lived and taught in the Indian subcontinent, in particular in its northeastern side. It is estimated that this took place in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. Buddha is recognized by his followers as the enlightened teacher who was able to share his own insights and beliefs to help individuals in their fight to end ignorance of dependent origination.
There are many books on Buddhism that people can read and find out everything that this religion was about but one must know that there are two branches of Buddhism that are widely recognized and these are the Mahayana and Theravada. The latter is also the oldest branch, mostly common in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia while the former is more commonly seen in Eastern Asia and include several other traditions and customs such as Zen, Pure land, and Tibetan Buddhism, among others. Buddhism as both a religion and philosophy is mainly popular in Asia, but it has started to spread to other cultures and parts of the world as well.
There are various differences between the distinct Buddhists schools and these mainly consist in the exact path to liberation, the importance different teachings and scriptures, among others, but they all have in common the doctrine of dependent origination which implies that all phenomena in the world are arising together in a mutually interdependent ways, including a web of cause and effects. This web representing the interdependence and mutual conditioning is the most important dimension of the universal natural law and, according to Buddhism, it is able to make liberation possible.
|
|
