What is Buddhism?
This page is an introduction to the basic ideas of Buddhism. I have been formally practicing for about three years, and this information is from my practice, from reading, and from talking to other practitioners.
Who was Buddha?
The historical figure knows as the Buddha was a man named Siddhartha Gautama. He was born a nobleman in what is now southern Nepal about 2500 years ago.
He spent the first part of his life in the relative luxury of the royal family as the heir to the kingdom. At some point during his mid-twenties, he came to realize that there was old age, suffering, and death, and that he had been sheltered from them.
He left his home and wandered the area of northern India, studying with various wise men, practicing a fairly severe form of asceticism. After several years of denial, near-starvation, and serious practice, he again became dissatisfied with this extreme opposite of the comfortable life he had lead with his family.
Buddha sat under a tree and practiced deep meditation. After some time, he came to some basic realizations about life and the nature of existence. These realizations are what are called "enlightenment," and the name Buddha means enlightened one.
Buddha spent the next forty years and more teaching others. He did not claim to be a god or a supernatural being, just a man who had some understanding of things which he shared with anyone who was interested.
What are the basic beliefs of Buddhism?
Here is a short list of basic beliefs.
The Four Noble Truths
- Life is dukkha, sometimes translated as "suffering" or "unsatisfactoriness"
- There is a cause. The root cause of our difficulties is clinging or attachment.
- There is a cure for our situation.
- The cure is the eightfold path.
The Three treasures
- The Buddha
- The Dharma, or the teachings of the Buddha
- The Sangha, or the group of fellow practitioners
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