buddhism
The most basic Buddhist expression of faith is called the triple refuge: "I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Dharma (teaching), and I take refuge in the Sangha (the community of Buddhist disciples).
To start to learn about Buddhism we must look at each one of these three refuges. We'll begin with the Buddha himself. The Buddha is often depicted seated in a very serene posture with his feet crossed in front of him and his hands folded in his lap. This is the very picture of calm and contemplation. This is the image that has drawn many people to the Buddha. The Buddha is the image of calm and serenity in a confused and distracting world.
The second refuge is the Dharma or teaching. These teaching is presented in a doctrinal formula known as the Four Noble Truths: the truth of suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering and the path to the cessation.
The Buddha didn't remain sited for his entire life. He got to get up and build a community of disciples. The sites where the major events of the Buddha's life took place are still the focus of pilgrimages today.
In India itself, there were two major reform movements that appeared in the early history of Buddhism that changed the face of the tradition. The first of these was called the Mahayana, the "great vehicle". It involved a massive reorganization of basic Buddhist values. The second movement was called Tantra. This is a complex tradition, you might want to visit the link to my site at the end of the article to learn about it.
As Buddhism was transmitted to other countries in Asia, it also continued to develop in striking ways. It was carried to Sri Lanka by Buddhist missionaries. From there it was carried to most of South East Asia. Buddhism entered China and developed some distinctive traditions interacting with the indigenous traditions already present. China, as you may know, is a supremely confident and bold civilization, and it wasn't easy at all for Buddhism to be accepted as it was a foreign teaching. However, there was some kind of affinity between Buddhist teachings and some aspects of the Chinese culture.
From China, Buddhism was carried to Korea, Japan and then to Vietnam. In the 8th century, Buddhism was carried across the Himalayas from India to Tibet. Today, the Dalai Lama, the leader of the Tibetan Buddhist community, is one of the most active leaders in the world. In many aspects, he is a living symbol of Buddhism itself.
Today, Buddhism has spread through much of the rest of the world, including Europe, Australia and the Americas. In some places, Buddhism is stronger in ethnic communities, such as the Sri Lankan Buddhist Sangha in Los Angeles.
To learn more about Buddhism, you might be interested in my site. There you will find free articles about Buddhist teachings, history and practices:
