Buddhism 불교
The path taught by Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha ('awakened one'): life is marked by suffering, suffering has a cause in craving, it can end, and the Eightfold Path leads there. Wisdom and compassion grow together through ethics and meditation.
OriginNorthern India (Lumbini, Bodh Gaya)
When5th c. BCE
Followers (rounded)roughly 320–500 million, depending on how it is counted
TextsPali Canon, Mahayana sutras (Heart, Diamond, Lotus), Tibetan canon
A practice you can try today
Sitting and walking meditation, chanting, bowing (108 or 3,000 prostrations), keeping the five precepts.
🕯 Pray in the Mountain Temple Make your own caveSacred places
Related
Seon / Zen Buddhism선불교 (선종)The meditation school of Mahayana Buddhism: awakening is not far away but is your own original mind, seen directly.Theravāda Buddhism테라와다 (남방) 불교'The teaching of the elders', the oldest surviving school, living in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayāna)티베트 불교 (금강승)Mahayana compassion joined to the tantric methods of the 'diamond vehicle': mantra, visualisation and the guidance of a lama.Won Buddhism원불교A modern Korean Buddhism with the circle (Il-Won-Sang) as the symbol of the one truth.
A short introduction written by CavePray from the sources below — not the official voice of any tradition. Follower numbers are rounded estimates that differ by survey. Tell us if something should be corrected.