What is Buddhism?

Buddhism the main religion in many Asian countries the religion is 2500 years old and is followed by 350 million Buddhists worldwide. It is religion about suffering and need to get rid of it. A key concept of Buddha is Nirvana, the most enlightened and blissfull state that one can achieve.

The Buddhist tradition is founded on and inspired by the teachings of Sddhartha Gautam. He was called Buddha and lived in the 4th or 5th century B. C. in India. there are also claims about birth place of Gautama Buddha to be Kapileswara,Orissaor Kapilavastu at Piprahwa, Uttar Pradesh. He later taught throughout regions of eastern India Magadha.

Siddhartha Gautama found the path to Enlightenment. By doing so he was led from the pain of suffering and rebirth, and became known as The Buddha.

He was born around the year 580 BCE In village of Lumbini of Nepal. He was into a royal family away from all kind of suffering and pain. One day after growing up, marrying and having a child, Siddhartha went outside the royal palace and saw each for the first time—

1. An old man, 2. A sick man, and 3. corpse. After seeing the all He was very much worried. He learned that sickness age and death are inevitable truth.

Siddhartha’s travel showed him much more of he suffering of the world. He searched a way to escape the inevitability of death, old age and pain. Since then he decided to get the stage on Nirvana.

Buddhists believe that there is a cycle of birth life and death. This goes on and on. They believe that unless someone gets Enlightenment, when they die, they will reborn. If a person can get enlightenment, he can break up of this cycle. Breaking out of the cycle is called Nirvana.

Buddha’s teachings are divided into three parts—

1 Three sings of beings
2. Four noble truths
3. Noble Eight-fold path

1. Nothing in life is perfect ( Dukkha)
2. Everything in life – even solid high like mountain, is Changing, is subject to destroy.
3. There is no soul – Buddha taught what does carry on to the next life is a person’s life forces ( Karma)

1. Dukkha ( illness, pai sufferings etc.)
2. Samudaya- there is cause for suffering. Desire to avoid unpleasant pain, feat etc.
3. Nirodha – there is an end to suffering. If we avoid to think about the past and think to make the future better.
4. Magga- the way- in order to end the suffering you must the eightfold path

Right view
Right thought
Right speech
Right action
Right livelihood
Right effort
Right mindfulness
Right concentration

Lumbini Nepal: Lumbini in southern Nepal is where Queen Mayadevi gave birth to Prince Siddhartha. It is just a short distance from the Shakya capital of Kapilavastu. Pilgrimages focus on the sacred garden which contains the site of the birth, the Mayadevi temple, the Pashkarni pond and the Ashoka pillar.

Bodhgaya India: It was in Bodhgaya in Bihar, India that Prince Siddhartha found Enlightenment (nirvana) under the bodhi tree after meditating for 49 days. No longer a bodhisattva (mentor), he became Lord Buddha, the Enlightened One.

Sarnath India: Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath after achieving enlightenment, about 10 km from the ancient holy city of Varanasi. It was here that the Buddha established his first disciples (sangha) to promote his new doctrine. The splendid Dhamekha Stupa at Sarnath was originally erected by King Ashoka, as was the famous lion capital pillar, now the proud symbol of India.

Kushinagar India: At Kushinagar, Lord Buddha fell ill and left this world in 543 BC. His mortal remains were preserved in eight commemorative chortens, and then further distributed by King Ashoka into 84,000 stupas across his kingdom and beyond.