Buddhism

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Standing Buddha. One of the earliest known representations of the Buddha, 1st–2nd
century CE. Greco-Buddhist art, Gandhara. (Tokyo National Museum)
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Buddhism is a religion indigenous to the Indian subcontinent that encompasses a variety

of traditions, beliefs and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha
Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha, meaning "the awakened one". The
Buddha lived and taught in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent sometime between
the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.[1] He is recognized by Buddhists as an awakened or
enlightened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end their suffering
(dukkha) through the elimination of ignorance (avidyā) by way of understanding and the
seeing of dependent origination (pratītyasamutpāda) and the elimination of craving
(taṇhā), and thus the attainment of the cessation of all suffering, known as the sublime
state of nirvāņa.[2]

Two major branches of Buddhism are generally recognized: Theravada ("The School of
the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada has a widespread following
in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar etc.). Mahayana
is found throughout East Asia (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Taiwan etc.)
and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism,
Shingon, and Tiantai (Tendai). In some classifications, Vajrayana—practiced mainly in
Tibet and Mongolia, and adjacent parts of China and Russia—is recognized as a third
branch, while others classify it as a part of Mahayana.

While Buddhism remains most popular within Asia, both branches are now found
throughout the world. Estimates of Buddhists worldwide vary significantly depending on
the way Buddhist adherence is defined. Conservative estimates are between 350 and 750
million.[3][4][5] Higher estimates are between 1.2 and 1.7 billion.[6][7][8] It is also recognized
as one of the fastest growing religions in the world.[9][10][11][12]

Buddhist schools vary on the exact nature of the path to liberation, the importance and
canonicity of various teachings and scriptures, and especially their respective practices.[13]
The foundations of Buddhist tradition and practice are the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the
Dharma (the teachings), and the Sangha (the community). Taking "refuge in the triple
gem" has traditionally been a declaration and commitment to being on the Buddhist path,
and in general distinguishes a Buddhist from a non-Buddhist.[14] Other practices may
include following ethical precepts; support of the monastic community; renouncing
conventional living and becoming a monastic; the development of mindfulness and
practice of meditation; cultivation of higher wisdom and discernment; study of scriptures;
devotional practices; ceremonies; and in the Mahayana tradition, invocation of buddhas
and bodhisattvas.

Contents
 1 Life of the Buddha
 2 Buddhist concepts
o 2.1 Life and the world
 2.1.1 Saṃsāra
 2.1.2 Karma
 2.1.3 Rebirth
o 2.2 Suffering's causes and solution
 2.2.1 The Four Noble Truths
 2.2.2 Noble Eightfold Path
 2.2.3 The Four Immeasurables
 2.2.4 Middle Way
o 2.3 Nature of existence
 2.3.1 Three Marks of Existence
 2.3.2 Dependent arising
 2.3.3 Emptiness
o 2.4 Liberation
 2.4.1 Nirvana
 2.4.2 Buddhas
 2.4.2.1 According to Theravada
 2.4.2.2 According to Mahayana
 2.4.3 Buddha eras
 2.4.4 Bodhisattvas
 3 Practice
o 3.1 Devotion
 3.1.1 Yoga
 3.1.2 Refuge in the Three Jewels
o 3.2 Buddhist ethics
o 3.3 Monastic life
o 3.4 Meditation
 3.4.1 Samādhi (meditative cultivation): samatha meditation
 3.4.1.1 In Theravāda
 3.4.2 Prajñā (Wisdom): vipassana meditation
 3.4.3 Zen
 3.4.4 Vajrayana and Tantra
 4 History
o 4.1 Philosophical roots
o 4.2 Indian Buddhism
 4.2.1 Pre-sectarian Buddhism
 4.2.2 Early Buddhist schools
 4.2.3 Early Mahayana Buddhism
 4.2.4 Late Mahayana Buddhism
  4.2.5 Vajrayana (Esoteric Buddhism)
o 4.3 Development of Buddhism
o 4.4 Buddhism today
o 4.5 Late 20th Century Buddhist Movements
 5 Demographics
 6 Schools and traditions
o 6.1 Timeline
o 6.2 Theravada school
o 6.3 Mahayana traditions
o 6.4 Vajrayana traditions
 7 Buddhist texts
o 7.1 Pāli Tipitaka
o 7.2 Mahayana sutras
 8 Comparative studies
o 8.1 Is Buddhism a religion?
 9 See also
 10 Notes
 11 References
 12 Bibliography
o 12.1 Online

 13 External links

Life of the Buddha

Relic depicting Gautama leaving home. The Great Departure, c.1–2nd century. (Musée
Guimet)
Main article: Gautama Buddha

This narrative draws on the Nidānakathā biography of the Theravāda sect in Sri Lanka,
which is ascribed to Buddhaghoṣa in the 5th century CE.[15] Earlier biographies such as
the Buddhacarita, the Lokottaravādin Mahāvastu, and the Mahāyāna / Sarvāstivāda
Lalitavistara Sūtra, give different accounts. Scholars are hesitant to make unqualified
claims about the historical facts of the Buddha's life. Most accept that he lived, taught and
founded a monastic order, but do not consistently accept all of the details contained in his
biographies.[16][17]
Ascetic Gautama with his five companions, who later comprised the first Sangha.
(Painting in Laotian temple)

According to author Michael Carrithers, while there are good reasons to doubt the
traditional account, "the outline of the life must be true: birth, maturity, renunciation,
search, awakening and liberation, teaching, death."[18] In writing her biography of the
Buddha, Karen Armstrong noted, "It is obviously difficult, therefore, to write a biography
of the Buddha that meets modern criteria, because we have very little information that
can be considered historically sound... [but] we can be reasonably confident Siddhatta
Gotama did indeed exist and that his disciples preserved the memory of his life and
teachings as well as they could."[19][dubious – discuss]

The evidence of the early texts suggests that Siddhārtha Gautama was born in a
community that was on the periphery, both geographically and culturally, of the
northeastern Indian subcontinent in the 5th century BCE.[20] It was either a small republic,
in which case his father was an elected chieftain, or an oligarchy, in which case his father
was an oligarch.[20]

The Vajrashila, where Gautama sat under a tree and became enlightened, Bodh Gaya,
India, 2011

According to the Theravada Tripitaka scriptures[which?] (from Pali, meaning "three

baskets"), Gautama was born in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, around the year 563
BCE, and raised in Kapilavastu.[21][22]
According to this narrative, shortly after the birth of young prince Gautama, an astrologer
visited the young prince's father—King Śuddhodana—and prophesied that Siddhartha
would either become a great king or renounce the material world to become a holy man,
depending on whether he saw what life was like outside the palace walls.

Śuddhodana was determined to see his son become a king, so he prevented him from
leaving the palace grounds. But at age 29, despite his father's efforts, Gautama ventured
beyond the palace several times. In a series of encounters—known in Buddhist literature
as the four sights—he learned of the suffering of ordinary people, encountering an old
man, a sick man, a corpse and, finally, an ascetic holy man, apparently content and at
peace with the world. These experiences prompted Gautama to abandon royal life and
take up a spiritual quest.

Dhamek Stupa in Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh, India, built by King Ashoka, where the Buddha
gave his first sermon

Gautama first went to study with famous religious teachers of the day, and mastered the
meditative attainments they taught. But he found that they did not provide a permanent
end to suffering, so he continued his quest. He next attempted an extreme asceticism,
which was a religious pursuit common among the Shramanas, a religious culture distinct
from the Vedic one. Gautama underwent prolonged fasting, breath-holding, and exposure
to pain. He almost starved himself to death in the process. He realized that he had taken
this kind of practice to its limit, and had not put an end to suffering. So in a pivotal
moment he accepted milk and rice from a village girl and changed his approach. He
devoted himself to anapanasati meditation, through which he discovered what Buddhists
call the Middle Way (Skt. madhyamā-pratipad[23]): a path of moderation between the
extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification.[24][25]

Buddha statue depicting Parinirvana. (Mahaparinirvana Temple, Kushinagar, Uttar

Pradesh, India)
Gautama was now determined to complete his spiritual quest. At the age of 35, he
famously sat in meditation under a sacred fig tree — known as the Bodhi tree — in the
town of Bodh Gaya, India, and vowed not to rise before achieving enlightenment. After
many days, he finally destroyed the fetters of his mind, thereby liberating himself from
the cycle of suffering and rebirth, and arose as a fully enlightened being (Skt.
samyaksaṃbuddha). Soon thereafter, he attracted a band of followers and instituted a
monastic order. Now, as the Buddha, he spent the rest of his life teaching the path of
awakening he had discovered, traveling throughout the northeastern part of the Indian
subcontinent,[26][27] and died at the age of 80 (483 BCE) in Kushinagar, India. The south
branch of the original fig tree available only in Anuradhapura Sri Lanka is known as Jaya
Sri Maha Bodhi.

Buddhist concepts
Main article: Buddhist terms and concepts

Life and the world

Traditional Tibetan Buddhist Thangka depicting the Wheel of Life with its six realms

Saṃsāra

Main article: Saṃsāra (Buddhism)

Samsara is the cycle of birth and death.[28] Sentient beings crave pleasure and are averse
to pain from birth to death. In being controlled by these attitudes, they perpetuate the
cycle of their conditioned existence and suffering (saṃsāra), and by that means produce
the causes and conditions of the next rebirth after death. Each rebirth repeats this process
in an involuntary cycle, which Buddhists strive to end by eradicating these causes and
conditions by the application of the methods laid out by the Buddha and subsequent
Buddhists.
Karma

Main article: Karma in Buddhism

In Buddhism, Karma (from Sanskrit: "action, work") is the force that drives saṃsāra—the
cycle of suffering and rebirth for each being. Good, skillful deeds (Pāli: "kusala") and
bad, unskillful (Pāli: "akusala") actions produce "seeds" in the mind that come to fruition
either in this life or in a subsequent rebirth.[29] The avoidance of unwholesome actions and
the cultivation of positive actions is called śīla (from Sanskrit: "ethical conduct").

In Buddhism, karma specifically refers to those actions of body, speech or mind that
spring from mental intent ("cetana"),[30] and bring about a consequence or fruit, (phala) or
result (vipāka).

In Theravada Buddhism there can be no divine salvation or forgiveness for one's karma,
since it is a purely impersonal process that is a part of the makeup of the universe. In
Mahayana Buddhism, the texts of certain Mahayana sutras (such as the Lotus Sutra, the
Angulimaliya Sutra and the Nirvana Sutra) claim that the recitation or merely the hearing
of their texts can expunge great swathes of negative karma. Some forms of Buddhism
(for example, Vajrayana) regard the recitation of mantras as a means for cutting off of
previous negative karma.[31] The Japanese Pure Land teacher Genshin taught that Amida
Buddha has the power to destroy the karma that would otherwise bind one in saṃsāra.[4][5]

Rebirth

Gautama's cremation site, Ramabhar Stupa in Uttar Pradesh, India

Main article: Rebirth (Buddhism)

Rebirth refers to a process whereby beings go through a succession of lifetimes as one of

many possible forms of sentient life, each running from conception[32] to death. Buddhism
rejects the concepts of a permanent self or an unchanging, eternal soul, as it is called in
Hinduism and Christianity. According to Buddhism there ultimately is no such thing as a
self independent from the rest of the universe (the doctrine of anatta). Buddhists also
refer to themselves as the believers of the anatta doctrine—Nairatmyavadin or
Anattavadin. Rebirth in subsequent existences must be understood as the continuation of
a dynamic, ever-changing process of "dependent arising" ("pratītyasamutpāda")
determined by the laws of cause and effect (karma) rather than that of one being,
transmigrating or incarnating from one existence to the next.
Each rebirth takes place within one of five realms according to Theravadins, or six
according to other schools.[33][34]

1. Naraka beings: those who live in one of many Narakas (Hells);

2. Preta: sometimes sharing some space with humans, but invisible to most people;
an important variety is the hungry ghost;[35]
3. Animals: sharing space with humans, but considered another type of life;
4. Human beings: one of the realms of rebirth in which attaining Nirvana is possible;
5. Asuras: variously translated as lowly deities, demons, titans, antigods; not
recognized by Theravāda (Mahavihara) tradition as a separate realm;[36]
6. Devas including Brahmas: variously translated as gods, deities, spirits, angels, or
left untranslated.

The above are further subdivided into 31 planes of existence.[37] Rebirths in some of the
higher heavens, known as the Śuddhāvāsa Worlds or Pure Abodes, can be attained only
by skilled Buddhist practitioners known as anāgāmis (non-returners). Rebirths in the
arupa-dhatu (formless realms) can be attained by only those who can meditate on the
arūpajhānas, the highest object of meditation.

According to East Asian and Tibetan Buddhism, there is an intermediate state (Tibetan
"Bardo") between one life and the next. The orthodox Theravada position rejects this;
however there are passages in the Samyutta Nikaya of the Pali Canon (the collection of
texts on which the Theravada tradition is based), that seem to lend support to the idea that
the Buddha taught of an intermediate stage between one life and the next.[38][39]

Suffering's causes and solution

The Four Noble Truths

Main article: Four Noble Truths

The teachings on the Four Noble Truths are regarded as central to the teachings of
Buddhism, and are said to provide a conceptual framework for Buddhist thought. These
four truths explain the nature of dukkha (suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction), its causes,
and how it can be overcome. The four truths are:[a]

1. The truth of dukkha (suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction)

2. The truth of the origin of dukkha
3. The truth of the cessation of dukkha
4. The truth of the path leading to the cessation of dukkha

The first truth explains the nature of dukkha. Dukkha is commonly translated as
“suffering”, “anxiety”, “dissatisfaction”, “unease”, etc., and it is said to have the
following three aspects:

 the obvious suffering of physical and mental illness, growing old, and dying;
  the anxiety or stress of trying to hold onto things that are constantly changing; and
 a subtle dissatisfaction pervading all forms of life, due to the fact that all forms of
life are impermanent and constantly changing.[b]

The second truth is that the origin of dukkha can be known. Within the context of the four
noble truths, the origin of dukkha is commonly explained as craving (Pali: tanha)
conditioned by ignorance (Pali: avijja). On a deeper level, the root cause of dukkha is
identified as ignorance (Pali: avijja) of the true nature of things. The third noble truth is
that the complete cessation of dukkha is possible, and the fourth noble truth identifies a
path to this cessation.[a]

Noble Eightfold Path

Main articles: Noble Eightfold Path and Buddhist Paths to liberation

The Dharmachakra represents the Noble Eightfold Path.

The Noble Eightfold Path—the fourth of the Buddha's Noble Truths—consists of a set of
eight interconnected factors or conditions, that when developed together, lead to the
cessation of dukkha.[40] These eight factors are: Right View (or Right Understanding),
Right Intention (or Right Thought), Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right
Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration.

Ajahn Sucitto describes the path as "a mandala of interconnected factors that support and
moderate each other."[40] The eight factors of the path are not to be understood as stages,
in which each stage is completed before moving on to the next. Rather, they are
understood as eight significant dimensions of one's behaviour—mental, spoken, and
bodily—that operate in dependence on one another; taken together, they define a
complete path, or way of living.[41]

The eight factors of the path are commonly presented within three divisions (or higher
trainings) as shown below:

Division Eightfold factor Sanskrit, Description

 Pali
samyag
Viewing reality as it is, not just as it
1. Right view dṛṣṭi,
appears to be
Wisdom sammā ditthi
(Sanskrit: prajñā, samyag
Pāli: paññā) 2. Right saṃkalpa, Intention of renunciation, freedom and
intention sammā harmlessness
sankappa
samyag vāc, Speaking in a truthful and non-hurtful
3. Right speech
sammā vāca way
samyag
Ethical conduct karman,
4. Right action Acting in a non-harmful way
(Sanskrit: śīla, sammā
Pāli: sīla) kammanta
samyag
5. Right
ājīvana, A non-harmful livelihood
livelihood
sammā ājīva
samyag
vyāyāma,
6. Right effort Making an effort to improve
sammā
vāyāma
Awareness to see things for what they
Concentration samyag are with clear consciousness;
7. Right
(Sanskrit and Pāli: smṛti, being aware of the present reality
mindfulness
samādhi) sammā sati within oneself, without any craving or
aversion
samyag
8. Right samādhi, Correct meditation or concentration,
concentration sammā explained as the first four jhānas
samādhi

The Four Immeasurables

Statue of Buddha in Puji Temple on Putuo Shan island in China

Main article: Brahmavihara
While he searched for enlightenment, Gautama combined the yoga practice of his teacher
Kalama with what later became known as "the immeasurables".[42][dubious – discuss] Gautama
thus invented a new kind of human, one without egotism.[42][dubious – discuss] What Thich Nhat
Hanh calls the "Four Immeasurable Minds" of love, compassion, joy, and equanimity[43]
are also known as brahmaviharas, divine abodes, or simply as four immeasurables.[44]
Pema Chödrön calls them the "four limitless ones".[45] Of the four, mettā or loving-
kindness meditation is perhaps the best known.[44] The Four Immeasurables are taught as
a form of meditation that cultivates "wholesome attitudes towards all sentient beings."[46]
The practitioner prays:

1. May all sentient beings have happiness and its causes,

2. May all sentient beings be free of suffering and its causes,
3. May all sentient beings never be separated from bliss without suffering,
4. May all sentient beings be in equanimity, free of bias, attachment and anger.[47]

Middle Way

Main article: Middle Way

An important guiding principle of Buddhist practice is the Middle Way (or Middle Path),
which is said to have been discovered by Gautama Buddha prior to his enlightenment.
The Middle Way has several definitions:

1. The practice of non-extremism: a path of moderation away from the extremes of

self-indulgence and self-mortification;
2. The middle ground between certain metaphysical views (for example, that things
ultimately either do or do not exist);[48]
3. An explanation of Nirvana (perfect enlightenment), a state wherein it becomes
clear that all dualities apparent in the world are delusory (see Seongcheol);
4. Another term for emptiness, the ultimate nature of all phenomena (in the
Mahayana branch), a lack of inherent existence, which avoids the extremes of
permanence and nihilism or inherent existence and nothingness.

Nature of existence
Monks debating at Sera Monastery, Tibet

Buddhist scholars have produced a remarkable quantity of intellectual theories,

philosophies and world view concepts (see, for example, Abhidharma, Buddhist
philosophy and Reality in Buddhism). Some schools of Buddhism discourage doctrinal
study, and some regard it as essential practice.

The concept of liberation (nirvāṇa)—the goal of the Buddhist path—is closely related to
overcoming ignorance (avidyā), a fundamental misunderstanding or mis-perception of the
nature of reality. In awakening to the true nature of the self and all phenomena one
develops dispassion for the objects of clinging, and is liberated from suffering (dukkha)
and the cycle of incessant rebirths (saṃsāra). To this end, the Buddha recommended
viewing things as characterized by the three marks of existence.

Three Marks of Existence

Main article: Three marks of existence

The Three Marks of Existence are impermanence, suffering, and not-self.

Impermanence (Pāli: anicca) expresses the Buddhist notion that all compounded or
conditioned phenomena (all things and experiences) are inconstant, unsteady, and
impermanent. Everything we can experience through our senses is made up of parts, and
its existence is dependent on external conditions. Everything is in constant flux, and so
conditions and the thing itself are constantly changing. Things are constantly coming into
being, and ceasing to be. Since nothing lasts, there is no inherent or fixed nature to any
object or experience. According to the doctrine of impermanence, life embodies this flux
in the aging process, the cycle of rebirth (saṃsāra), and in any experience of loss. The
doctrine asserts that because things are impermanent, attachment to them is futile and
leads to suffering (dukkha).

Suffering (Pāli: दक्

ु ख dukkha; Sanskrit दःु ख duḥkha) is also a central concept in
Buddhism. The word roughly corresponds to a number of terms in English including
suffering, pain, unsatisfactoriness, sorrow, affliction, anxiety, dissatisfaction, discomfort,
anguish, stress, misery, and frustration. Although the term is often translated as
"suffering", its philosophical meaning is more analogous to "disquietude" as in the
condition of being disturbed. As such, "suffering" is too narrow a translation with
"negative emotional connotations"[49] that can give the impression that the Buddhist view
is pessimistic, but Buddhism seeks to be neither pessimistic nor optimistic, but realistic.
In English-language Buddhist literature translated from Pāli, "dukkha" is often left
untranslated, so as to encompass its full range of meaning.[50][51][52]

Not-self (Pāli: anatta; Sanskrit: anātman) is the third mark of existence. Upon careful
examination, one finds that no phenomenon is really "I" or "mine"; these concepts are in
fact constructed by the mind. In the Nikayas anatta is not meant as a metaphysical
assertion, but as an approach for gaining release from suffering. In fact, the Buddha
rejected both of the metaphysical assertions "I have a Self" and "I have no Self" as
ontological views that bind one to suffering.[53] When asked if the self was identical with
the body, the Buddha refused to answer. By analyzing the constantly changing physical
and mental constituents (skandhas) of a person or object, the practitioner comes to the
conclusion that neither the respective parts nor the person as a whole comprise a self.

Dependent arising

Main article: Pratītyasamutpāda

The doctrine of pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit; Pali: paticcasamuppāda; Tibetan:

rten.cing.'brel.bar.'byung.ba; Chinese: 緣起) is an important part of Buddhist
metaphysics. It states that phenomena arise together in a mutually interdependent web of
cause and effect. It is variously rendered into English as "dependent origination",
"conditioned genesis", "dependent co-arising", "interdependent arising", or
"contingency".

The best-known application of the concept of pratītyasamutpāda is the scheme of Twelve

Nidānas (from Pāli "nidāna" meaning "cause, foundation, source or origin"), which
explain the continuation of the cycle of suffering and rebirth (saṃsāra) in detail.[54]

Main article: Twelve Nidānas

The Twelve Nidānas describe a causal connection between the subsequent characteristics
or conditions of cyclic existence, each one giving rise to the next:

1. Avidyā: ignorance, specifically spiritual ignorance of the nature of reality;[55]

2. Saṃskāras: literally formations, explained as referring to karma;
3. Vijñāna: consciousness, specifically discriminative;[56]
4. Nāmarūpa: literally name and form, referring to mind and body;[57]
5. Ṣaḍāyatana: the six sense bases: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind-organ;
6. Sparśa: variously translated contact, impression, stimulation (by a sense object);
 7. Vedanā: usually translated feeling: this is the "hedonic tone", i.e. whether
something is pleasant, unpleasant or neutral;
8. Tṛṣṇā: literally thirst, but in Buddhism nearly always used to mean craving;
9. Upādāna: clinging or grasping; the word also means fuel, which feeds the
continuing cycle of rebirth;
10. Bhava: literally being (existence) or becoming. (The Theravada explains this as
having two meanings: karma, which produces a new existence, and the existence
itself.);[58]
11. Jāti: literally birth, but life is understood as starting at conception;[59]
12. Jarāmaraṇa: (old age and death) and also śokaparidevaduḥkhadaurmanasyopāyāsa
(sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and misery).

Sentient beings always suffer throughout saṃsāra, until they free themselves from this
suffering by attaining Nirvana. Then the absence of the first Nidāna—ignorance—leads
to the absence of the others.

Emptiness

Main article: Śūnyatā

Mahayana Buddhism received significant theoretical grounding from Nagarjuna (perhaps

c. 150–250 CE), arguably the most influential scholar within the Mahayana tradition.
Nagarjuna's primary contribution to Buddhist philosophy was the systematic exposition
of the concept of śūnyatā, or "emptiness", widely attested in the Prajñāpāramitā sutras
that emerged in his era. The concept of emptiness brings together other key Buddhist
doctrines, particularly anatta and pratītyasamutpāda (dependent origination), to refute the
metaphysics of Sarvastivada and Sautrantika (extinct non-Mahayana schools). For
Nagarjuna, it is not merely sentient beings that are empty of ātman; all phenomena
(dharmas) are without any svabhava (literally "own-nature" or "self-nature"), and thus
without any underlying essence; they are "empty" of being independent; thus the
heterodox theories of svabhava circulating at the time were refuted on the basis of the
doctrines of early Buddhism. Nagarjuna's school of thought is known as the
Mādhyamaka. Some of the writings attributed to Nagarjuna made explicit references to
Mahayana texts, but his philosophy was argued within the parameters set out by the
agamas. He may have arrived at his positions from a desire to achieve a consistent
exegesis of the Buddha's doctrine as recorded in the Canon. In the eyes of Nagarjuna the
Buddha was not merely a forerunner, but the very founder of the Mādhyamaka system.[60]

Sarvastivada teachings—which were criticized by Nāgārjuna—were reformulated by

scholars such as Vasubandhu and Asanga and were adapted into the Yogacara (Sanskrit:
yoga practice) school. While the Mādhyamaka school held that asserting the existence or
non-existence of any ultimately real thing was inappropriate, some exponents of
Yogacara asserted that the mind and only the mind is ultimately real (a doctrine known as
cittamatra). Not all Yogacarins asserted that mind was truly existent; Vasubandhu and
Asanga in particular did not.[61] These two schools of thought, in opposition or synthesis,
form the basis of subsequent Mahayana metaphysics in the Indo-Tibetan tradition.
Besides emptiness, Mahayana schools often place emphasis on the notions of perfected
spiritual insight (prajñāpāramitā) and Buddha-nature (tathāgatagarbha). There are
conflicting interpretations of the tathāgatagarbha in Mahāyāna thought. The idea may be
traced to Abhidharma, and ultimately to statements of the Buddha in the Nikāyas. In
Tibetan Buddhism, according to the Sakya school, tathāgatagarbha is the inseparability of
the clarity and emptiness of one's mind. In Nyingma, tathāgatagarbha also generally
refers to inseparability of the clarity and emptiness of one's mind. According to the Gelug
school, it is the potential for sentient beings to awaken since they are empty (i.e.
dependently originated). According to the Jonang school, it refers to the innate qualities
of the mind that expresses themselves as omniscience etc. when adventitious obscurations
are removed. The "Tathāgatagarbha Sutras" are a collection of Mahayana sutras that
present a unique model of Buddha-nature. Even though this collection was generally
ignored in India,[62] East Asian Buddhism provides some significance to these texts.

Liberation

Nirvana

Mahabodhi temple in Bodhgaya, India, where Gautama Buddha attained Nirvana under
the Bodhi Tree (left)
Main article: Nirvana (concept)

Nirvana (Sanskrit; Pali: "Nibbana") means "cessation", "extinction" (of craving and
ignorance and therefore suffering and the cycle of involuntary rebirths (saṃsāra)),
"extinguished", "quieted", "calmed"; it is also known as "Awakening" or
"Enlightenment" in the West. The term for anybody who has achieved nirvana, including
the Buddha, is arahant.

Bodhi (Pāli and Sanskrit, in devanagari: बॊधि) is a term applied to the experience of
Awakening of arahants. Bodhi literally means "awakening", but it is more commonly
translated into English as "enlightenment". In Early Buddhism, bodhi carried a meaning
synonymous to nirvana, using only some different metaphors to describe the experience,
which implies the extinction of raga (greed, craving),[63] dosa (hate, aversion)[64] and
moha (delusion).[65] In the later school of Mahayana Buddhism, the status of nirvana was
downgraded in some scriptures, coming to refer only to the extinction of greed and hate,
implying that delusion was still present in one who attained nirvana, and that one needed
to attain bodhi to eradicate delusion:

An important development in the Mahayana [was] that it came to separate nirvana from
bodhi ('awakening' to the truth, Enlightenment), and to put a lower value on the former
(Gombrich, 1992d). Originally nirvana and bodhi refer to the same thing; they merely use
different metaphors for the experience. But the Mahayana tradition separated them and
considered that nirvana referred only to the extinction of craving (passion and hatred),
with the resultant escape from the cycle of rebirth. This interpretation ignores the third
fire, delusion: the extinction of delusion is of course in the early texts identical with what
can be positively expressed as gnosis, Enlightenment.
—Richard F. Gombrich, How Buddhism Began[66]

Therefore, according to Mahayana Buddhism, the arahant has attained only nirvana, thus
still being subject to delusion, while the bodhisattva not only achieves nirvana but full
liberation from delusion as well. He thus attains bodhi and becomes a buddha. In
Theravada Buddhism, bodhi and nirvana carry the same meaning as in the early texts,
that of being freed from greed, hate and delusion.

The term parinirvana is also encountered in Buddhism, and this generally refers to the
complete nirvana attained by the arahant at the moment of death, when the physical
body expires.

Buddhas

Main article: Buddhahood

According to Buddhist traditions a Buddha is a fully awakened being who has completely
purified his mind of the three poisons of desire, aversion and ignorance. A Buddha is no
longer bound by Samsara and has ended the suffering which unawakened people
experience in life.

Buddhists do not consider Siddhartha Gautama to have been the only Buddha. The Pali
Canon refers to many previous ones (see List of the 28 Buddhas), while the Mahayana
tradition additionally has many Buddhas of celestial, rather than historical, origin (see
Amitabha or Vairocana as examples, for lists of many thousands Buddha names see
Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō numbers 439–448). A common Theravada and Mahayana
Buddhist belief is that the next Buddha will be one named Maitreya (Pali: Metteyya).

According to Theravada

In Theravada doctrine, a person may awaken from the "sleep of ignorance" by directly
realizing the true nature of reality; such people are called arahants and occasionally
buddhas. After numerous lifetimes of spiritual striving, they have reached the end of the
cycle of rebirth, no longer reincarnating as human, animal, ghost, or other being. The
commentaries to the Pali Canon classify these awakened beings into three types:

 Sammasambuddha, usually just called the Buddha, who discovers the truth by
himself and teaches the path to awakening to others
 Paccekabuddha, who discovers the truth by himself but lacks the skill to teach
others
 Savakabuddha, who receive the truth directly or indirectly from a
Sammasambuddha

Bodhi and nirvana carry the same meaning, that of being freed from craving, hate, and
delusion. In attaining bodhi, the arahant has overcome these obstacles. As a further
distinction, the extinction of only hatred and greed (in the sensory context) with some
residue of delusion, is called anagami.

According to Mahayana

The Great Statue of Buddha Amitabha in Kamakura, Japan

In the Mahayana, the Buddha tends not to be viewed as merely human, but as the earthly
projection of a beginningless and endless, omnipresent being (see Dharmakaya) beyond
the range and reach of thought. Moreover, in certain Mahayana sutras, the Buddha,
Dharma and Sangha are viewed essentially as One: all three are seen as the eternal
Buddha himself.

The Buddha's death is seen as an illusion, he is living on in other planes of existence, and
monks are therefore permitted to offer "new truths" based on his input. Mahayana also
differs from Theravada in its concept of śūnyatā (that ultimately nothing has existence),
and in its belief in bodhisattvas (enlightened people who vow to continue being reborn
until all beings can be enlightened).[67]
Celestial Buddhas are individuals who no longer exist on the material plane of existence,
but who still aid in the enlightenment of all beings.

Nirvana came to refer only to the extinction of greed and hate,[dubious – discuss] implying that
delusion was still present in one who attained Nirvana. Bodhi became a higher attainment
that eradicates delusion entirely.[66] Thus, the Arahant attains Nirvana but not Bodhi, thus
still being subject to delusion, while the Buddha attains Bodhi.[dubious – discuss]

The method of self-exertion or "self-power"—without reliance on an external force or

being—stands in contrast to another major form of Buddhism, Pure Land, which is
characterised by utmost trust in the salvific "other-power" of Amitabha Buddha. Pure
Land Buddhism is a very widespread and perhaps the most faith-orientated manifestation
of Buddhism and centres upon the conviction that faith in Amitabha Buddha and the
chanting of homage to his name liberates one at death into the Blissful (安樂), Pure Land
(淨土) of Amitabha Buddha. This Buddhic realm is variously construed as a foretaste of
Nirvana, or as essentially Nirvana itself. The great vow of Amitabha Buddha to rescue all
beings from samsaric suffering is viewed within Pure Land Buddhism as universally
efficacious, if only one has faith in the power of that vow or chants his name.

Buddha eras

Buddhists believe Gautama Buddha was the first to achieve enlightenment in this Buddha
era and is therefore credited with the establishment of Buddhism. A Buddha era is the
stretch of history during which people remember and practice the teachings of the earliest
known Buddha. This Buddha era will end when all the knowledge, evidence and
teachings of Gautama Buddha have vanished. This belief therefore maintains that many
Buddha eras have started and ended throughout the course of human existence.[68][69] The
Gautama Buddha, then, is the Buddha of this era, who taught directly or indirectly to all
other Buddhas in it (see types of Buddhas).

In addition, Mahayana Buddhists believe there are innumerable other Buddhas in other
universes.[70] A Theravada commentary says that Buddhas arise one at a time in this world
element, and not at all in others.[71] The understandings of this matter reflect widely
differing interpretations of basic terms, such as "world realm", between the various
schools of Buddhism.

The idea of the decline and gradual disappearance of the teaching has been influential in
East Asian Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism holds that it has declined to the point where
few are capable of following the path, so it may be best to rely on the power of the
Amitabha Buddha.

Bodhisattvas

Main article: Bodhisattva

Bodhisattva means "enlightenment being", and generally refers to one who is on the path
to buddhahood. Traditionally, a bodhisattva is anyone who, motivated by great
compassion, has generated bodhicitta, which is a spontaneous wish to attain Buddhahood
for the benefit of all sentient beings.[72] Theravada Buddhism primarily uses the term in
relation to Gautama Buddha's previous existences, but has traditionally acknowledged
and respected the bodhisattva path as well.[73]

According to Jan Nattier, the term Mahāyāna ("Great Vehicle") was originally even an
honorary synonym for Bodhisattvayāna, or the "Bodhisattva Vehicle."[74] The
Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, an early and important Mahāyāna text, contains a
simple and brief definition for the term bodhisattva, and this definition is the following:
[75][76][77]

Because he has enlightenment as his aim, a bodhisattva-mahāsattva is so called.

Mahāyāna Buddhism encourages everyone to become bodhisattvas and to take the

bodhisattva vows. With these vows, one makes the promise to work for the complete
enlightenment of all beings by practicing six perfections (Skt. pāramitā).[78] According to
the Mahāyāna teachings, these perfections are: giving, discipline, forbearance, effort,
meditation, and transcendent wisdom.

A famous saying by the 8th-century Indian Buddhist scholar-saint Shantideva, which the
Dalai Lama often cites as his favourite verse, summarizes the Bodhisattva's intention
(Bodhicitta) as follows:

For as long as space endures, and for as long as living beings remain, until then may I too
abide to dispel the misery of the world.

Practice
Devotion

Main article: Buddhist devotion

Devotion is an important part of the practice of most Buddhists.[79] Devotional practices

include bowing, offerings, pilgrimage, and chanting. In Pure Land Buddhism, devotion to
the Buddha Amitabha is the main practice. In Nichiren Buddhism, devotion to the Lotus
Sutra is the main practice.

Yoga
Statue of the Buddha in meditation position, Haw Phra Kaew, Vientiane, Laos

Buddhism traditionally incorporates states of meditative absorption (Pali: jhāna; Skt:

dhyāna).[80] The most ancient sustained expression of yogic ideas is found in the early
sermons of the Buddha.[81] One key innovative teaching of the Buddha was that
meditative absorption must be combined with liberating cognition.[82] The difference
between the Buddha's teaching and the yoga presented in early Brahminic texts is
striking. Meditative states alone are not an end, for according to the Buddha, even the
highest meditative state is not liberating. Instead of attaining a complete cessation of
thought, some sort of mental activity must take place: a liberating cognition, based on the
practice of mindful awareness.[83]

Meditation was an aspect of the practice of the yogis in the centuries preceding the
Buddha. The Buddha built upon the yogis' concern with introspection and developed their
meditative techniques, but rejected their theories of liberation.[84] In Buddhism,
mindfulness and clear awareness are to be developed at all times; in pre-Buddhist yogic
practices there is no such injunction. A yogi in the Brahmanical tradition is not to practice
while defecating, for example, while a Buddhist monastic should do so.[85]

Religious knowledge or "vision" was indicated as a result of practice both within and
outside of the Buddhist fold. According to the Samaññaphala Sutta, this sort of vision
arose for the Buddhist adept as a result of the perfection of "meditation" coupled with the
perfection of "discipline" (Pali sīla; Skt. śīla). Some of the Buddha's meditative
techniques were shared with other traditions of his day, but the idea that ethics are
causally related to the attainment of "transcendent wisdom" (Pali paññā; Skt. prajñā) was
original.[86]

The Buddhist texts are probably the earliest describing meditation techniques.[87] They
describe meditative practices and states that existed before the Buddha as well as those
first developed within Buddhism.[88] Two Upanishads written after the rise of Buddhism
do contain full-fledged descriptions of yoga as a means to liberation.[89]
While there is no convincing evidence for meditation in pre-Buddhist early Brahminic
texts, Wynne argues that formless meditation originated in the Brahminic or Shramanic
tradition, based on strong parallels between Upanishadic cosmological statements and the
meditative goals of the two teachers of the Buddha as recorded in the early Buddhist
texts.[90] He mentions less likely possibilities as well.[91] Having argued that the
cosmological statements in the Upanishads also reflect a contemplative tradition, he
argues that the Nasadiya Sukta contains evidence for a contemplative tradition, even as
early as the late Rig Vedic period.[90]

Refuge in the Three Jewels

Relic depicting footprint of the Buddha with Dharmachakra and triratna, 1st century CE,
Gandhāra.
Main articles: Refuge (Buddhism) and Three Jewels

Traditionally, the first step in most Buddhist schools requires taking refuge in the Three
Jewels (Sanskrit: tri-ratna, Pāli: ti-ratana)[92] as the foundation of one's religious practice.
The practice of taking refuge on behalf of young or even unborn children is mentioned[93]
in the Majjhima Nikaya, recognized by most scholars as an early text (cf. Infant baptism).
Tibetan Buddhism sometimes adds a fourth refuge, in the lama. In Mahayana, the person
who chooses the bodhisattva path makes a vow or pledge, considered the ultimate
expression of compassion. In Mahayana, too, the Three Jewels are perceived as possessed
of an eternal and unchanging essence and as having an irreversible effect: "The Three
Jewels have the quality of excellence. Just as real jewels never change their faculty and
goodness, whether praised or reviled, so are the Three Jewels (Refuges), because they
have an eternal and immutable essence. These Three Jewels bring a fruition that is
changeless, for once one has reached Buddhahood, there is no possibility of falling back
to suffering."[94]
The Three Jewels are:

 The Buddha. This is a title for those who have attained Nirvana. See also the
Tathāgata and Gautama Buddha. The Buddha could also be represented as a
concept instead of a specific person: the perfect wisdom that understands Dharma
and sees reality in its true form. In Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha can be
viewed as the supreme Refuge: "Buddha is the Unique Absolute Refuge. Buddha
is the Imperishable, Eternal, Indestructible and Absolute Refuge."[95]
 The Dharma. The teachings or law of nature as expounded by the Gautama
Buddha. It can also, especially in Mahayana, connote the ultimate and sustaining
Reality that is inseparable from the Buddha. Further, from some Mahayana
perspectives, the Dharma embodied in the form of a great sutra (Buddhic
scripture) can replace the need for a personal teacher and can be a direct and
spontaneous gateway into Truth (Dharma). This is especially said to be the case
with the Lotus Sutra. Dr. Hiroshi Kanno writes of this view of the Lotus Sutra: "it
is a Dharma-gate of sudden enlightenment proper to the Great Vehicle; it is a
Dharma-gate whereby one awakens spontaneously, without resorting to a
teacher".[96]

 The Sangha. Those who have attained any of the Four stages of enlightenment, or
simply the congregation of monastic practitioners.

According to the scriptures, Gautama Buddha presented himself as a model. The Dharma
offers a refuge by providing guidelines for the alleviation of suffering and the attainment
of Nirvana. The Sangha is considered to provide a refuge by preserving the authentic
teachings of the Buddha and providing further examples that the truth of the Buddha's
teachings is attainable.

Buddhist ethics

Main article: Śīla

Statue of Gautama Buddha, 1st century CE, Gandhara. (Musée Guimet)

Śīla (Sanskrit) or sīla (Pāli) is usually translated into English as "virtuous behavior",
"morality", "ethics" or "precept". It is an action committed through the body, speech, or
mind, and involves an intentional effort. It is one of the three practices (sila, samadhi,
and panya) and the second pāramitā. It refers to moral purity of thought, word, and deed.
The four conditions of śīla are chastity, calmness, quiet, and extinguishment.

Śīla is the foundation of Samadhi/Bhāvana (Meditative cultivation) or mind cultivation.

Keeping the precepts promotes not only the peace of mind of the cultivator, which is
internal, but also peace in the community, which is external. According to the Law of
Karma, keeping the precepts are meritorious and it acts as causes that would bring about
peaceful and happy effects. Keeping these precepts keeps the cultivator from rebirth in
the four woeful realms of existence.

Śīla refers to overall principles of ethical behavior. There are several levels of sila, which
correspond to "basic morality" (five precepts), "basic morality with asceticism" (eight
precepts), "novice monkhood" (ten precepts) and "monkhood" (Vinaya or Patimokkha).
Lay people generally undertake to live by the five precepts, which are common to all
Buddhist schools. If they wish, they can choose to undertake the eight precepts, which
add basic asceticism.

The five precepts are training rules in order to live a better life in which one is happy,
without worries, and can meditate well:

1. To refrain from taking life (non-violence towards sentient life forms), or ahimsā;
2. To refrain from taking that which is not given (not committing theft);
3. To refrain from sensual (including sexual) misconduct;
4. To refrain from lying (speaking truth always);
 5. To refrain from intoxicants which lead to loss of mindfulness (specifically, drugs
and alcohol).

The precepts are not formulated as imperatives, but as training rules that laypeople
undertake voluntarily to facilitate practice.[97] In Buddhist thought, the cultivation of dana
and ethical conduct themselves refine consciousness to such a level that rebirth in one of
the lower heavens is likely, even if there is no further Buddhist practice. There is nothing
improper or un-Buddhist about limiting one's aims to this level of attainment.[98]

In the eight precepts, the third precept on sexual misconduct is made more strict, and
becomes a precept of celibacy. The three additional precepts are:

6. To refrain from eating at the wrong time (eat only from sunrise to noon);
7. To refrain from dancing and playing music, wearing jewelry and cosmetics,
attending shows and other performances;
8. To refrain from using high or luxurious seats and bedding.

The complete list of ten precepts may be observed by laypeople for short periods. For the
complete list, the seventh precept is partitioned into two, and a tenth added:

6. To refrain from taking food at an unseasonable time, that is after the mid-day
meal;
7. To refrain from dancing, music, singing and unseemly shows;
8. To refrain from the use of garlands, perfumes, ointments, and from things that
tend to beautify and adorn (the person);
9. To refrain from (using) high and luxurious seats (and beds);
10. To refrain from accepting gold and silver;[99]

Monastic life

Buddhist monks performing a ceremony in Hangzhou, China

Vinaya is the specific moral code for monks and nuns. It includes the Patimokkha, a set
of 227 rules for monks in the Theravadin recension. The precise content of the
vinayapitaka (scriptures on Vinaya) differs slightly according to different schools, and
different schools or subschools set different standards for the degree of adherence to
Vinaya. Novice-monks use the ten precepts, which are the basic precepts for monastics.
Regarding the monastic rules, the Buddha constantly reminds his hearers that it is the
spirit that counts. On the other hand, the rules themselves are designed to assure a
satisfying life, and provide a perfect springboard for the higher attainments. Monastics
are instructed by the Buddha to live as "islands unto themselves". In this sense, living life
as the vinaya prescribes it is, as one scholar puts it: "more than merely a means to an end:
it is very nearly the end in itself."[100]

In Eastern Buddhism, there is also a distinctive Vinaya and ethics contained within the
Mahayana Brahmajala Sutra (not to be confused with the Pali text of that name) for
Bodhisattvas, where, for example, the eating of meat is frowned upon and vegetarianism
is actively encouraged (see vegetarianism in Buddhism). In Japan, this has almost
completely displaced the monastic vinaya, and allows clergy to marry.

Meditation

Buddhist monks praying in Thailand

Main article: Buddhist meditation

Buddhist meditation is fundamentally concerned with two themes: transforming the mind
and using it to explore itself and other phenomena.[101] According to Theravada Buddhism
the Buddha taught two types of meditation, samatha meditation (Sanskrit: śamatha) and
vipassanā meditation (Sanskrit: vipaśyanā). In Chinese Buddhism, these exist (translated
chih kuan), but Chán (Zen) meditation is more popular.[102] According to Peter Harvey,
whenever Buddhism has been healthy, not only monks, nuns, and married lamas, but also
more committed lay people have practiced meditation.[103] According to Routledge's
Encyclopedia of Buddhism, in contrast, throughout most of Buddhist history before
modern times, serious meditation by lay people has been unusual.[104] The evidence of the
early texts suggests that at the time of the Buddha, many male and female lay
practitioners did practice meditation, some even to the point of proficiency in all eight
jhānas (see the next section regarding these).[105]

Samādhi (meditative cultivation): samatha meditation

Main articles: Samādhi (Buddhism) and Dhyāna in Buddhism

In the language of the Noble Eightfold Path, samyaksamādhi is "right concentration". The
primary means of cultivating samādhi is meditation. Upon development of samādhi,
one's mind becomes purified of defilement, calm, tranquil, and luminous.

Once the meditator achieves a strong and powerful concentration (jhāna, Sanskrit ध्यान
dhyāna), his mind is ready to penetrate and gain insight (vipassanā) into the ultimate
nature of reality, eventually obtaining release from all suffering. The cultivation of
mindfulness is essential to mental concentration, which is needed to achieve insight.

Samatha meditation starts from being mindful of an object or idea, which is expanded to
one's body, mind and entire surroundings, leading to a state of total concentration and
tranquility (jhāna) There are many variations in the style of meditation, from sitting
cross-legged or kneeling to chanting or walking. The most common method of meditation
is to concentrate on one's breath (anapanasati), because this practice can lead to both
samatha and vipassana'.

In Buddhist practice, it is said that while samatha meditation can calm the mind, only
vipassanā meditation can reveal how the mind was disturbed to start with, which is what
leads to knowledge (jñāna; Pāli ñāṇa) and understanding (prajñā Pāli paññā), and thus
can lead to nirvāṇa (Pāli nibbāna). When one is in jhana, all defilements are suppressed
temporarily. Only understanding (prajñā or vipassana) eradicates the defilements
completely. Jhanas are also states that Arahants abide in order to rest.

In Theravāda

Main article: Jhāna in Theravada

In Theravāda Buddhism, the cause of human existence and suffering is identified as

craving, which carries with it the various defilements. These various defilements are
traditionally summed up as greed, hatred and delusion. These are believed deeply rooted
afflictions of the mind that create suffering and stress. To be free from suffering and
stress, these defilements must be permanently uprooted through internal investigation,
analyzing, experiencing, and understanding of the true nature of those defilements by
using jhāna, a technique of the Noble Eightfold Path. It then leads the meditator to realize
the Four Noble Truths, Enlightenment and Nibbana. Nibbana is the ultimate goal of
Theravadins.

Prajñā (Wisdom): vipassana meditation

Main articles: Prajñā and Vipassana

Prajñā (Sanskrit) or paññā (Pāli) means wisdom that is based on a realization of

dependent origination, The Four Noble Truths and the three marks of existence. Prajñā is
the wisdom that is able to extinguish afflictions and bring about bodhi. It is spoken of as
the principal means of attaining nirvāṇa, through its revelation of the true nature of all
things as dukkha (unsatisfactoriness), anicca (impermanence) and anatta (not-self).
Prajñā is also listed as the sixth of the six pāramitās of the Mahayana.

Initially, prajñā is attained at a conceptual level by means of listening to sermons

(dharma talks), reading, studying, and sometimes reciting Buddhist texts and engaging in
discourse. Once the conceptual understanding is attained, it is applied to daily life so that
each Buddhist can verify the truth of the Buddha's teaching at a practical level. Notably,
one could in theory attain Nirvana at any point of practice, whether deep in meditation,
listening to a sermon, conducting the business of one's daily life, or any other activity.

Zen

Main article: Zen

Zen Buddhism (禅), pronounced Chán in Chinese, seon in Korean or zen in Japanese
(derived from the Sanskrit term dhyāna, meaning "meditation") is a form of Buddhism
that became popular in China, Korea and Japan and that lays special emphasis on
meditation.[106] Zen places less emphasis on scriptures than some other forms of
Buddhism and prefers to focus on direct spiritual breakthroughs to truth.

Zen Buddhism is divided into two main schools: Rinzai (臨済宗) and Sōtō (曹洞宗), the
former greatly favouring the use in meditation on the koan (公案, a meditative riddle or
puzzle) as a device for spiritual break-through, and the latter (while certainly employing
koans) focusing more on shikantaza or "just sitting".[107]

Zen Buddhist teaching is often full of paradox, in order to loosen the grip of the ego and
to facilitate the penetration into the realm of the True Self or Formless Self, which is
equated with the Buddha himself.[108] According to Zen master Kosho Uchiyama, when
thoughts and fixation on the little "I" are transcended, an Awakening to a universal, non-
dual Self occurs: "When we let go of thoughts and wake up to the reality of life that is
working beyond them, we discover the Self that is living universal non-dual life (before
the separation into two) that pervades all living creatures and all existence."[109] Thinking
and thought must therefore not be allowed to confine and bind one.[110]

Vajrayana and Tantra

Though based upon Mahayana, Tibeto-Mongolian Buddhism is one of the schools that
practice Vajrayana or "Diamond Vehicle" (also referred to as Mantrayāna, Tantrayāna,
Tantric Buddhism, or esoteric Buddhism). It accepts all the basic concepts of Mahāyāna,
but also includes a vast array of spiritual and physical techniques designed to enhance
Buddhist practice. Tantric Buddhism is largely concerned with ritual and meditative
practices.[111] One component of the Vajrayāna is harnessing psycho-physical energy
through ritual, visualization, physical exercises, and meditation as a means of developing
the mind. Using these techniques, it is claimed that a practitioner can achieve
Buddhahood in one lifetime, or even as little as three years. In the Tibetan tradition, these
practices can include sexual yoga, though only for some very advanced practitioners.[112]
History
Main article: History of Buddhism

Philosophical roots

The Buddhist "Carpenter's Cave" at Ellora in Maharashtra, India

Historically, the roots of Buddhism lie in the religious thought of ancient India during the
second half of the first millennium BCE.[113] That was a period of social and religious
turmoil, as there was significant discontent with the sacrifices and rituals of Vedic
Brahmanism.[114] It was challenged by numerous new ascetic religious and philosophical
groups and teachings that broke with the Brahmanic tradition and rejected the authority
of the Vedas and the Brahmans.[115][116] These groups, whose members were known as
shramanas, were a continuation of a non-Vedic strand of Indian thought distinct from
Indo-Aryan Brahmanism.[117][118] Scholars have reasons to believe that ideas such as
samsara, karma (in the sense of the influence of morality on rebirth), and moksha
originated in the shramanas, and were later adopted by Brahmin orthodoxy.[119][120][121][122]
[123][124]

A ruined Buddhist temple on Gurubhakthula Konda (konda meaning "hill" in Telugu) in

Ramatheertham village in Vizianagaram, a district of Andhra Pradesh, India

This view is supported by a study of the region where these notions originated. Buddhism
arose in Greater Magadha, which stretched from Sravasti, the capital of Kosala in the
north-west, to Rajagrha in the south east. This land, to the east of aryavarta, the land of
the Aryas, was recognised as non-Vedic.[125] Other Vedic texts reveal a dislike of the
people of Magadha, in all probability because the Magadhas at this time were not
Brahmanised.[126] It was not until the 2nd or 3rd centuries BCE that the eastward spread of
Brahmanism into Greater Magadha became significant. Ideas that developed in Greater
Magadha prior to this were not subject to Vedic influence. These include rebirth and
karmic retribution that appear in a number of movements in Greater Magadha, including
Buddhism. These movements inherited notions of rebirth and karmic retribution from an
earlier culture.[127]
Rock-cut Lord Buddha statue at Bojjanakonda near Anakapalle in the Visakhapatnam
district of Andhra Pradesh, India

At the same time, these movements were influenced by, and in some respects continued,
philosophical thought within the Vedic tradition as reflected e.g. in the Upanishads.[128]
These movements included, besides Buddhism, various skeptics (such as Sanjaya
Belatthiputta), atomists (such as Pakudha Kaccayana), materialists (such as Ajita
Kesakambali), antinomians (such as Purana Kassapa); the most important ones in the 5th
century BCE were the Ajivikas, who emphasized the rule of fate, the Lokayata
(materialists), the Ajnanas (agnostics) and the Jains, who stressed that the soul must be
freed from matter.[129]

Many of these new movements shared the same conceptual vocabulary - atman ("Self"),
buddha ("awakened one"), dhamma ("rule" or "law"), karma ("action"), nirvana
("extinguishing"), samsara ("eternal recurrence") and yoga ("spiritual practice").[114] The
shramanas rejected the Veda, and the authority of the brahmans, who claimed they
possessed revealed truths not knowable by any ordinary human means. Moreover, they
declared that the entire Brahmanical system was fraudulent: a conspiracy of the brahmans
to enrich themselves by charging exorbitant fees to perform bogus rites and give useless
advice.[130]

A particular criticism of the Buddha was Vedic animal sacrifice.[86] The Buddha declared
that priests reciting the Vedas were like the blind leading the blind.[131] According to him,
those priests who had memorized the Vedas really knew nothing.[132] He also mocked the
Vedic "hymn of the cosmic man".[133] However, the Buddha was not anti-Vedic, and
declared that the Veda in its true form was declared by "Kashyapa" to certain rishis, who
by severe penances had acquired the power to see by divine eyes.[134] He names the Vedic
rishis, and declared that the original Veda of the rishis[135][136] was altered by a few
Brahmins who introduced animal sacrifices. The Buddha says that it was on this
alteration of the true Veda that he refused to pay respect to the Vedas of his time.[137] He
declared that the primary goal of Upanishadic thought, the Atman, was in fact non-
existent,[138] and, having explained that Brahminical attempts to achieve liberation at
death were futile, proposed his new idea of liberation in life.[139][140] However, he did not
denounce the union with Brahman,[141] or the idea of the self uniting with the Self.[142] At
the same time, the traditional Brahminical religion itself gradually underwent profound
changes, transforming it into what is recognized as early Hinduism.[114][115][143] In
particular, the brahmans thus developed "philosophical systems of their own, meeting the
new ideas with adaptations of their doctrines".[144]

Indian Buddhism

Main article: History of Buddhism in India

The history of Indian Buddhism may be divided into five periods:[145] Early Buddhism
(occasionally called Pre-sectarian Buddhism), Nikaya Buddhism or Sectarian Buddhism:
The period of the Early Buddhist schools, Early Mahayana Buddhism, Later Mahayana
Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism (also called Vajrayana Buddhism).

Pre-sectarian Buddhism

Main article: Pre-sectarian Buddhism

Pre-sectarian Buddhism is the earliest phase of Buddhism, recognized by nearly all

scholars. Its main scriptures are the Vinaya Pitaka and the four principal Nikayas or
Agamas. Certain basic teachings appear in many places throughout the early texts, so
most scholars conclude that Gautama Buddha must have taught something similar to the
Three marks of existence, the Five Aggregates, Dependent origination, Karma and
Rebirth, the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, and Nirvana.[146] Some scholars
disagree, and have proposed many other theories.[147][148]

Early Buddhist schools

Main articles: Early Buddhist schools, Buddhist councils, and Theravada

Painting depicting Buddhaghosa offering his Visuddhimagga to monks in Mahavihara,

the center of Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka

According to the scriptures, soon after the parinirvāṇa (from Sanskrit: "highest
extinguishment") of Gautama Buddha, the first Buddhist council was held. As with any
ancient Indian tradition, transmission of teaching was done orally. The primary purpose
of the assembly was to collectively recite the teachings to ensure that no errors occurred
in oral transmission. In the first council, Ānanda, a cousin of the Buddha and his personal
attendant, was called upon to recite the discourses (sūtras, Pāli suttas) of the Buddha,
and, according to some sources, the abhidhamma. Upāli, another disciple, recited the
monastic rules (vinaya). Scholars regard the traditional accounts of the council as greatly
exaggerated if not entirely fictitious.[149]

According to most scholars, at some period after the Second Council the Sangha began to
break into separate factions.[150] The various accounts differ as to when the actual schisms
occurred. According to the Dipavamsa of the Pāli tradition, they started immediately after
the Second Council, the Puggalavada tradition places it in 137 AN, the Sarvastivada
tradition of Vasumitra says it was in the time of Asoka and the Mahasanghika tradition
places it much later, nearly 100 BCE.

The root schism was between the Sthaviras and the Mahāsāṅghikas. The fortunate
survival of accounts from both sides of the dispute reveals disparate traditions. The
Sthavira group offers two quite distinct reasons for the schism. The Dipavamsa of the
Theravāda says that the losing party in the Second Council dispute broke away in protest
and formed the Mahasanghika. This contradicts the Mahasanghikas' own vinaya, which
shows them as on the same, winning side. The Mahāsāṅghikas argued that the Sthaviras
were trying to expand the vinaya and may also have challenged what they perceived were
excessive claims or inhumanly high criteria for arhatship. Both parties, therefore,
appealed to tradition.[151]

The Sthaviras gave rise to several schools, one of which was the Theravāda school.
Originally, these schisms were caused by disputes over vinaya, and monks following
different schools of thought seem to have lived happily together in the same monasteries,
but eventually, by about 100 CE if not earlier, schisms were being caused by doctrinal
disagreements too.[152]

Following (or leading up to) the schisms, each Saṅgha started to accumulate an
Abhidharma, a detailed scholastic reworking of doctrinal material appearing in the Suttas,
according to schematic classifications. These Abhidharma texts do not contain systematic
philosophical treatises, but summaries or numerical lists. Scholars generally date these
texts to around the 3rd century BCE, 100 to 200 years after the death of the Buddha.
Therefore the seven Abhidharma works are generally claimed not to represent the words
of the Buddha himself, but those of disciples and great scholars.[153] Every school had its
own version of the Adhidharma, with different theories and different texts. The different
Adhidharmas of the various schools did not agree with each other. Scholars disagree on
whether the Mahasanghika school had an Abhidhamma Pitaka or not.[153][154]

Early Mahayana Buddhism

Main article: Mahāyāna

A Buddhist triad depicting, left to right, a Kushan, the future buddha Maitreya, Gautama
Buddha, the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, and a Buddhist monk. 2nd—3rd century. Musée
Guimet
The origins of Mahāyāna, which formed between 100 BCE and 100 AD,[155] are still not
completely understood.[156] The earliest views of Mahāyāna Buddhism in the West
assumed that it existed as a separate school in competition with the so-called "Hīnayāna"
schools. The split was on the order of the European Protestant Reformation, which
divided Christians into Catholic and Protestant.[155] Due to the veneration of buddhas and
bodhisattvas, Mahāyāna was often interpreted as a more devotional, lay-inspired form of
Buddhism, with supposed origins in stūpa veneration.[157] The old views of Mahāyāna as a
lay-inspired sect are now largely considered misguided and wrong.[158]

There is no evidence that Mahāyāna ever referred to a separate formal school or sect of
Buddhism, but rather that it existed as a certain set of ideals, and later doctrines, for
bodhisattvas.[159] Initially it was known as Bodhisattvayāna (the "Vehicle of the
Bodhisattvas").[155] Paul Williams has also noted that the Mahāyāna never had nor ever
attempted to have a separate Vinaya or ordination lineage from the early schools of
Buddhism, and therefore each bhikṣu or bhikṣuṇī adhering to the Mahāyāna formally
belonged to an early school. This continues today with the Dharmaguptaka ordination
lineage in East Asia, and the Mūlasarvāstivāda ordination lineage in Tibetan Buddhism.
Therefore Mahāyāna was never a separate rival sect of the early schools.[160] From
Chinese monks visiting India, we now know that both Mahāyāna and non-Mahāyāna
monks in India often lived in the same monasteries side by side.[161]

Buddhas of Bamiyan: Vairocana before and after destruction by the Taliban in 2001

The Chinese monk Yijing who visited India in the 7th century CE, distinguishes
Mahāyāna from Hīnayāna as follows:[162]

Both adopt one and the same Vinaya, and they have in common the prohibitions of the
five offences, and also the practice of the Four Noble Truths. Those who venerate the
bodhisattvas and read the Mahāyāna sūtras are called the Mahāyānists, while those who
do not perform these are called the Hīnayānists.

Much of the early extant evidence for the origins of Mahāyāna comes from early Chinese
translations of Mahāyāna texts. These Mahāyāna teachings were first propagated into
China by Lokakṣema, the first translator of Mahāyāna sūtras into Chinese during the 2nd
century CE.[163] Some scholars have traditionally considered the earliest Mahāyāna sūtras
to include the very first versions of the Prajñāpāramitā series, along with texts concerning
Akṣobhya Buddha, which were probably composed in the 1st century BCE in the south
of India.[164][165][166]

Late Mahayana Buddhism

During the period of Late Mahayana Buddhism, four major types of thought developed:
Madhyamaka, Yogacara, Tathagatagarbha, and Buddhist Logic as the last and most
recent.[167] In India, the two main philosophical schools of the Mahayana were the
Madhyamaka and the later Yogacara.[168] According to Dan Lusthaus, Madhyamaka and
Yogacara have a great deal in common, and the commonality stems from early
Buddhism.[169] There were no great Indian teachers associated with tathagatagarbha
thought.[170]

Vajrayana (Esoteric Buddhism)

Main article: Vajrayana

Scholarly research concerning Esoteric Buddhism is still in its early stages and has a
number of problems that make research difficult:[171]

1. Vajrayana Buddhism was influenced by Hinduism, and therefore research must

include explore Hinduism as well.
2. The scriptures of Vajrayana have not yet been put in any kind of order.
3. Ritual must be examined as well, not just doctrine.

Development of Buddhism

Main article: Timeline of Buddhism

Buddhist proselytism at the time of emperor Ashoka (260–218 BCE).

Coin depicting Indo-Greek king Menander, who, according to Buddhist tradition records
in the Milinda Panha, converted to the Buddhist faith and became an arhat in the 2nd
century BCE . (British Museum)

Buddhism may have spread only slowly in India until the time of the Mauryan emperor
Ashoka, who was a public supporter of the religion. The support of Aśoka and his
descendants led to the construction of more stūpas (Buddhist religious memorials) and to
efforts to spread Buddhism throughout the enlarged Maurya empire and even into
neighboring lands—particularly to the Iranian-speaking regions of Afghanistan and
Central Asia, beyond the Mauryas' northwest border, and to the island of Sri Lanka south
of India. These two missions, in opposite directions, would ultimately lead, in the first
case to the spread of Buddhism into China, and in the second case, to the emergence of
Theravāda Buddhism and its spread from Sri Lanka to the coastal lands of Southeast
Asia.

This period marks the first known spread of Buddhism beyond India. According to the
edicts of Aśoka, emissaries were sent to various countries west of India to spread
Buddhism (Dharma), particularly in eastern provinces of the neighboring Seleucid
Empire, and even farther to Hellenistic kingdoms of the Mediterranean. It is a matter of
disagreement among scholars whether or not these emissaries were accompanied by
Buddhist missionaries.[172]

The gradual spread of Buddhism into adjacent areas meant that it came into contact with
new ethnical groups. During this period Buddhism was exposed to a variety of
influences, from Persian and Greek civilization, to changing trends in non-Buddhist
Indian religions—themselves influenced by Buddhism. Striking examples of this
syncretistic development can be seen in the emergence of Greek-speaking Buddhist
monarchs in the Indo-Greek Kingdom, and in the development of the Greco-Buddhist art
of Gandhāra. A Greek king, Menander, has even been immortalized in the Buddhist
canon.

The Theravada school spread south from India in the 3rd century BCE, to Sri Lanka and
Thailand and Burma and later also Indonesia. The Dharmagupta school spread (also in
3rd century BCE) north to Kashmir, Gandhara and Bactria (Afghanistan).
The Silk Road transmission of Buddhism to China is most commonly thought to have
started in the late 2nd or the 1st century CE, though the literary sources are all open to
question.[173][174] The first documented translation efforts by foreign Buddhist monks in
China were in the 2nd century CE, probably as a consequence of the expansion of the
Kushan Empire into the Chinese territory of the Tarim Basin.[175]

In the 2nd century CE, Mahayana Sutras spread to China, and then to Korea and Japan,
and were translated into Chinese. During the Indian period of Esoteric Buddhism (from
the 8th century onwards), Buddhism spread from India to Tibet and Mongolia.

Buddhism today

Main article: Timeline of Buddhism:Common Era

Polish Buddhists

By the late Middle Ages, Buddhism had become virtually extinct in India, and although it
continued to exist in surrounding countries, its influence was no longer expanding. It is
now again gaining strength worldwide.[176][177] Estimates of the number of Buddhist
followers by scholars range from 550 million to 1.691 billion. Most scholars classify
similar numbers of people under a category they call "Chinese folk" or "traditional"
religion, an amalgam of various traditions that includes Buddhism.
Map showing regions where Buddhism is a major religion

Formal membership varies between communities, but basic lay adherence is often
defined in terms of a traditional formula in which the practitioner takes refuge in The
Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings of the Buddha), and the Sangha
(the Buddhist community).

Estimates are uncertain for several reasons:

 difficulties in defining who counts as a Buddhist;

 syncretism among the Eastern religions. Buddhism is practiced by adherents
alongside many other religious traditions- including Taoism, Confucianism,
Shinto, traditional religions, shamanism, and animism- throughout East and
Southeast Asia.[178][179][180][181][182][183][184]
 difficulties in estimating the number of Buddhists who do not have congregational
memberships and often do not participate in public ceremonies;[185]
 official policies on religion in several historically Buddhist countries that make
accurate assessments of religious adherence more difficult; most notably China,
Vietnam and North Korea.[186][187][188] In many current and former Communist
governments in Asia, government policies may discourage adherents from
reporting their religious identity, or may encourage official counts to
underestimate religious adherence.

China and India are now starting to fund Buddhist shrines in various Asian countries as
they compete for influence in the region.[189]

Late 20th Century Buddhist Movements

A number of modern movements or tendencies in Buddhism emerged during the second

half of the 20th Century, including the Dalit Buddhist movement[190][191] (also sometimes
called 'neo-Buddhism'), Engaged Buddhism, and the further development of various
Western Buddhist traditions.

Demographics
Percentage of cultural/nominal adherents of combined Buddhism with its related religions
(according to the highest estimates).[192][193][194][195][196][197][198][199]

According to one analysis, Buddhism is the fourth-largest religion in the world, after
Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.[200] The monks' order (Sangha), which began during the
lifetime of the Buddha, is among the oldest organizations on earth. Buddhism was the
first world religion[201][202][203] and was the world's largest religion in the first half of the
20th century — in 1951 Buddhism was the world's largest religion with 520 million
adherents. By comparison, the second largest was Christianity with 500 million
adherents.[204][205][206][207][208][209][210][211][212][213][214][215]

 Theravada Buddhism, using Sanskrit and Pāli as its scriptural languages, is the
dominant form of Buddhism in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Burma.
The Dalit Buddhist movement in India (inspired by B. R. Ambedkar) also
practices Theravada. Approximately 124 million adherents.[216]
 East Asian forms of Mahayana Buddhism that use Chinese scriptures are
dominant in most of China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Vietnam as well
as such communities within Indochina, Southeast Asia and the West. Vietnam and
Singapore are major concentrations of Mahayana Buddhism in Southeast Asia.
Approximately 500 million to one billion.[217]
 Tibetan Buddhism is found in Bhutan, Nepal, Mongolia, areas of India (it's the
majority religion in Ladakh; significant population in Himachal Pradesh,
Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim), China (particularly in Tibet and Inner Mongolia),
and Russia (Kalmyk Autonomous Republic). Approximately 20 million
adherents.[216]

Most Buddhist groups in the West are at least nominally affiliated with one of these three
traditions.

At the present time, the teachings of all three branches of Buddhism have spread
throughout the world, and Buddhist texts are increasingly translated into local languages.
While in the West Buddhism is often seen as exotic and progressive, in the East it is
regarded as familiar and traditional. Buddhists in Asia are frequently well organized and
well funded. In a number of countries, it is recognized as an official religion and receives
state support. Modern influences increasingly lead to new forms of Buddhism that
significantly depart from traditional beliefs and practices.

Overall there is an overwhelming diversity of recent forms of Buddhism.[218]

Schools and traditions

Main articles: Schools of Buddhism and Buddhahood
 A young monk

Buddhists generally classify themselves as either Theravada or Mahayana.[219] This

classification is also used by some scholars[220][page  needed] and is the one ordinarily used in
the English language.[221] An alternative scheme used by some scholars[222] divides
Buddhism into the following three traditions or geographical or cultural areas: Theravada,
East Asian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism.

Some scholars[223] use other schemes. Buddhists themselves have a variety of other
schemes. Hinayana (literally "lesser vehicle") is used by Mahayana followers to name the
family of early philosophical schools and traditions from which contemporary Theravada
emerged, but as this term is rooted in the Mahayana viewpoint and can be considered
derogatory, a variety of other terms are increasingly used instead, including Śrāvakayāna,
Nikaya Buddhism, early Buddhist schools, sectarian Buddhism, conservative Buddhism,
mainstream Buddhism and non-Mahayana Buddhism.

Not all traditions of Buddhism share the same philosophical outlook, or treat the same
concepts as central. Each tradition, however, does have its own core concepts, and some
comparisons can be drawn between them. For example, according to one Buddhist
ecumenical organization,[224] several concepts common to both major Buddhist branches:

 Both accept the Buddha as their teacher.

 Both accept the Middle way, Dependent origination, the Four Noble Truths, the
Noble Eightfold Path and the Three marks of existence.
 Both accept that members of the laity and of the sangha can pursue the path
toward enlightenment (bodhi).
 Both consider buddhahood the highest attainment.

Timeline

This is a rough timeline of the development of the different schools/traditions:

Timeline: Development and propagation of Buddhist traditions (ca. 450 BCE – ca. 1300 CE)

[225] 250 BCE [226]

  450 BCE 100 CE 500 CE 700 CE 800 CE 1200 CE
 

   

Early Buddhist Mahayana Vajrayana

Early schools
India Sangha
 

 
 

   

Theravada  

Sri  Lanka &      
Southeast  Asia Buddhism
   

Greco-Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism
Central  Asia    

 
Silk Road Buddhism

Chán, Tiantai, Pure Land, Shingon

 
East  Asia Zen, Nichiren
 

  450 BCE 250 BCE 100 CE 500 CE 700 CE 800 CE 1200 CE

= Mahayana = Vajrayana
  Legend:   = Theravada tradition    
traditions traditions

Theravada school

Main article: Theravada

Theravada ("Doctrine of the Elders", or "Ancient Doctrine") is the oldest surviving

Buddhist school. It is relatively conservative, and generally closest to early Buddhism.[227]
This school is derived from the Vibhajjavāda grouping that emerged amongst the older
Sthavira group at the time of the Third Buddhist Council (c. 250 BCE). This school
gradually declined on the Indian subcontinent, but its branch in Sri Lanka and South East
Asia continues to survive.

The Theravada school bases its practice and doctrine exclusively on the Pāli Canon and
its commentaries. After being orally transmitted for a few centuries, its scriptures, the
Pali Canon, were finally committed to writing in the 1st century BCE, in Sri Lanka, at
what the Theravada usually reckon as the fourth council. It is also one of the first
Buddhist schools to commit the complete set of its canon into writing.[citation needed] The
Sutta collections and Vinaya texts of the Pāli Canon (and the corresponding texts in other
versions of the Tripitaka), are generally considered by modern scholars to be the earliest
Buddhist literature, and they are accepted as authentic in every branch of Buddhism.

Theravāda is primarily practiced today in Sri Lanka, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia
as well as small portions of China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bangladesh. It has a growing
presence in Europe and America.

Theravadin Buddhists think that personal effort is required to realize rebirth. Meditation
is done by forest monks for the most part, while village monks teach and serve their lay
communities. Laypersons can perform good actions, producing merit that can be traded to
the gods who may reward it with material benefits.[228]

Mahayana traditions

Main article: Mahayana

Chinese and Central Asian monks. Bezeklik, Eastern Tarim Basin, China, 9th–10th
century. (National Institute of Informatics and the Tōyō Bunko)

Mahayana Buddhism flourished in India from the 5th century CE onwards, during the
dynasty of the Guptas. Mahāyāna centres of learning were established, the most
important one being the Nālandā University in north-eastern India.

Mahayana schools recognize all or part of the Mahayana Sutras. Some of these sutras
became for Mahayanists a manifestation of the Buddha himself, and faith in and
veneration of those texts are stated in some sutras (e.g. the Lotus Sutra and the
Mahaparinirvana Sutra) to lay the foundations for the later attainment of Buddhahood
itself.
Japanese Mahayana Buddhist monk with alms bowl

Native Mahayana Buddhism is practiced today in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, parts
of Russia and most of Vietnam (also commonly referred to as "Eastern Buddhism"). The
Buddhism practiced in Tibet, the Himalayan regions, and Mongolia is also Mahayana in
origin, but is discussed below under the heading of Vajrayana (also commonly referred to
as "Northern Buddhism". There are a variety of strands in Eastern Buddhism, of which
"the Pure Land school of Mahayana is the most widely practised today.".[229] In most of
this area however, they are fused into a single unified form of Buddhism. In Japan in
particular, they form separate denominations with the five major ones being: Nichiren,
peculiar to Japan; Pure Land; Shingon, a form of Vajrayana; Tendai, and Zen. In Korea,
nearly all Buddhists belong to the Chogye school, which is officially Son (Zen), but with
substantial elements from other traditions.[230]

Vajrayana traditions

Main article: Vajrayana

Bodhnath Stupa, Kathmandu, Nepal

The Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism spread to China, Mongolia, and Tibet. In Tibet,
Vajrayana has always been a main component of Tibetan Buddhism, while in China it
formed a separate sect. However, Vajrayana Buddhism became extinct in China but
survived in elements of Japan's Shingon and Tendai sects.

There are differing views as to just when Vajrayāna and its tantric practice started. In the
Tibetan tradition, it is claimed that the historical Śākyamuni Buddha taught tantra, but as
these are esoteric teachings, they were passed on orally first and only written down long
after the Buddha's other teachings. Nālandā University became a center for the
development of Vajrayāna theory and continued as the source of leading-edge Vajrayāna
practices up through the 11th century. These practices, scriptures and theories were
transmitted to China, Tibet, Indochina and Southeast Asia. China generally received
Indian transmission up to the 11th century including tantric practice, while a vast amount
of what is considered Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayāna) stems from the late (9th–12th
century) Nālandā tradition.

In one of the first major contemporary academic treatises on the subject, Fairfield
University professor Ronald M. Davidson argues that the rise of Vajrayana was in part a
reaction to the changing political climate in India at the time. With the fall of the Gupta
dynasty, in an increasingly fractious political environment, institutional Buddhism had
difficulty attracting patronage, and the folk movement led by siddhas became more
prominent. After perhaps two hundred years, it had begun to get integrated into the
monastic establishment.[231][page  needed]

Vajrayana combined and developed a variety of elements, a number of which had already
existed for centuries.[232] In addition to the Mahāyāna scriptures, Vajrayāna Buddhists
recognise a large body of Buddhist Tantras, some of which are also included in Chinese
and Japanese collections of Buddhist literature, and versions of a few even in the Pali
Canon.

Buddhist texts

Buddhist monk Geshe Konchog Wangdu reads Mahayana sutras from an old woodblock
copy of the Tibetan Kanjur.
Main article: Buddhist texts

Buddhist scriptures and other texts exist in great variety. Different schools of Buddhism
place varying levels of value on learning the various texts. Some schools venerate certain
texts as religious objects in themselves, while others take a more scholastic approach.
Buddhist scriptures are mainly written in Pāli, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese. Some
texts still exist in Sanskrit and Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit.

Unlike many religions, Buddhism has no single central text that is universally referred to
by all traditions. However, some scholars have referred to the Vinaya Pitaka and the first
four Nikayas of the Sutta Pitaka as the common core of all Buddhist traditions.[233] This
could be considered misleading, as Mahāyāna considers these merely a preliminary, and
not a core, teaching. The Tibetan Buddhists have not even translated most of the āgamas
(though theoretically they recognize them) and they play no part in the religious life of
either clergy or laity in China and Japan.[234] Other scholars say there is no universally
accepted common core.[235] The size and complexity of the Buddhist canons have been
seen by some (including Buddhist social reformer Babasaheb Ambedkar) as presenting
barriers to the wider understanding of Buddhist philosophy.

The followers of Theravāda Buddhism take the scriptures known as the Pāli Canon as
definitive and authoritative, while the followers of Mahāyāna Buddhism base their faith
and philosophy primarily on the Mahāyāna sūtras and their own vinaya. The Pāli sutras,
along with other, closely related scriptures, are known to the other schools as the āgamas.

Over the years, various attempts have been made to synthesize a single Buddhist text that
can encompass all of the major principles of Buddhism. In the Theravada tradition,
condensed 'study texts' were created that combined popular or influential scriptures into
single volumes that could be studied by novice monks. Later in Sri Lanka, the
Dhammapada was championed as a unifying scripture.

Dwight Goddard collected a sample of Buddhist scriptures, with the emphasis on Zen,
along with other classics of Eastern philosophy, such as the Tao Te Ching, into his
'Buddhist Bible' in the 1920s. More recently, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar attempted to
create a single, combined document of Buddhist principles in "The Buddha and His
Dhamma". Other such efforts have persisted to present day, but currently there is no
single text that represents all Buddhist traditions.

Pāli Tipitaka

Main article: Pāli Canon

Pāli Canon

Vinaya Pitaka

 Suttavibhanga
 Khandhaka

 Parivara

Sutta Pitaka

 Digha Nikaya
 Majjhima Nikaya
 Samyutta Nikaya
 Anguttara Nikaya

 Khuddaka Nikaya

Abhidhamma Pitaka

 Dhammasangani
 Vibhanga
 Dhatukatha and Puggalapannatti
 Kathavatthu
 Yamaka

 Patthana

 v
 t
  e

The Pāli Tipitaka, which means "three baskets", refers to the Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutta
Pitaka, and the Abhidhamma Pitaka. The Vinaya Pitaka contains disciplinary rules for
the Buddhist monks and nuns, as well as explanations of why and how these rules were
instituted, supporting material, and doctrinal clarification. The Sutta Pitaka contains
discourses ascribed to Gautama Buddha. The Abhidhamma Pitaka contains material often
described as systematic expositions of the Gautama Buddha's teachings.

The Pāli Tipitaka is the only early Tipitaka (Sanskrit: Tripiṭaka) to survive intact in its
original language, but a number of early schools had their own recensions of the Tipitaka
featuring much of the same material. We have portions of the Tipitakas of the
Sārvāstivāda, Dharmaguptaka, Sammitya, Mahāsaṅghika, Kāśyapīya, and Mahīśāsaka
schools, most of which survive in Chinese translation only. According to some sources,
some early schools of Buddhism had five or seven pitakas.[236]

According to the scriptures, soon after the death of the Buddha, the first Buddhist council
was held; a monk named Mahākāśyapa (Pāli: Mahākassapa) presided. The goal of the
council was to record the Buddha's teachings. Upāli recited the vinaya. Ānanda, the
Buddha's personal attendant, was called upon to recite the dhamma. These became the
basis of the Tripitaka. However, this record was initially transmitted orally in form of
chanting, and was committed to text in the last century BCE. Both the sūtras and the
vinaya of every Buddhist school contain a wide variety of elements including discourses
on the Dharma, commentaries on other teachings, cosmological and cosmogonical texts,
stories of the Gautama Buddha's previous lives, and various other subjects.

Much of the material in the Canon is not specifically "Theravadin", but is instead the
collection of teachings that this school preserved from the early, non-sectarian body of
teachings. According to Peter Harvey, it contains material at odds with later Theravadin
orthodoxy. He states: "The Theravadins, then, may have added texts to the Canon for
some time, but they do not appear to have tampered with what they already had from an
earlier period."[237]

Mahayana sutras

Main article: Mahayana sutras

The Tripiṭaka Koreana in South Korea, an edition of the Chinese Buddhist canon carved
and preserved in over 81,000 wood printing blocks.

The Mahayana sutras are a very broad genre of Buddhist scriptures that the Mahayana
Buddhist tradition holds are original teachings of the Buddha. Some adherents of
Mahayana accept both the early teachings (including in this the Sarvastivada
Abhidharma, which was criticized by Nagarjuna and is in fact opposed to early Buddhist
thought[238]) and the Mahayana sutras as authentic teachings of Gautama Buddha, and
claim they were designed for different types of persons and different levels of spiritual
understanding.

The Mahayana sutras often claim to articulate the Buddha's deeper, more advanced
doctrines, reserved for those who follow the bodhisattva path. That path is explained as
being built upon the motivation to liberate all living beings from unhappiness. Hence the
name Mahāyāna (lit., the Great Vehicle).

According to Mahayana tradition, the Mahayana sutras were transmitted in secret, came
from other Buddhas or Bodhisattvas, or were preserved in non-human worlds because
human beings at the time could not understand them:[239]

Some of our sources maintain the authenticity of certain other texts not found in the
canons of these schools (the early schools). These texts are those held genuine by the
later school, not one of the eighteen, which arrogated to itself the title of Mahayana,
'Great Vehicle'. According to the Mahayana historians these texts were admittedly
unknown to the early schools of Buddhists. However, they had all been promulgated by
the Buddha. [The Buddha's] followers on earth, the sravakas ('pupils'), had not been
sufficiently advanced to understand them, and hence were not given them to remember,
but they were taught to various supernatural beings and then preserved in such places as
the Dragon World.

Approximately six hundred Mahayana sutras have survived in Sanskrit or in Chinese or

Tibetan translations. In addition, East Asian Buddhism recognizes some sutras regarded
by scholars as of Chinese rather than Indian origin.

Generally, scholars conclude that the Mahayana scriptures were composed from the 1st
century CE onwards: "Large numbers of Mahayana sutras were being composed in the
period between the beginning of the common era and the fifth century",[240] five centuries
after the historical Gautama Buddha. Some of these had their roots in other scriptures
composed in the 1st century BCE. It was not until after the 5th century CE that the
Mahayana sutras started to influence the behavior of mainstream Buddhists in India: "But
outside of texts, at least in India, at exactly the same period, very different—in fact
seemingly older—ideas and aspirations appear to be motivating actual behavior, and old
and established Hinnayana groups appear to be the only ones that are patronized and
supported."[240] These texts were apparently not universally accepted among Indian
Buddhists when they appeared; the pejorative label hinayana was applied by Mahayana
supporters to those who rejected the Mahayana sutras.
Only the Theravada school does not include the Mahayana scriptures in its canon. As the
modern Theravada school is descended from a branch of Buddhism that diverged and
established itself in Sri Lanka prior to the emergence of the Mahayana texts, debate exists
as to whether the Theravada were historically included in the hinayana designation; in
the modern era, this label is seen as derogatory, and is generally avoided.

Scholar Isabelle Onians asserts that although "the Mahāyāna ... very occasionally referred
contemptuously to earlier Buddhism as the Hinayāna, the Inferior Way," "the
preponderance of this name in the secondary literature is far out of proportion to
occurrences in the Indian texts." She notes that the term Śrāvakayāna was "the more
politically correct and much more usual" term used by Mahāyānists.[241] Jonathan Silk has
argued that the term "Hinayana" was used to refer to whomever one wanted to criticize
on any given occasion, and did not refer to any definite grouping of Buddhists.[242]

Comparative studies
Buddhism provides many opportunities for comparative study with a diverse range of
subjects. For example, Buddhism's emphasis on the Middle way not only provides a
unique guideline for ethics but has also allowed Buddhism to peacefully coexist with
various differing beliefs, customs and institutions in countries where it has resided
throughout its history. Also, its moral and spiritual parallels with other systems of
thought—for example, with various tenets of Christianity—have been subjects of close
study. In addition, the Buddhist concept of dependent origination has been compared to
modern scientific thought, as well as Western metaphysics.

Is Buddhism a religion?

There are differences of opinion on the question of whether or not Buddhism should be
considered a religion. Many sources commonly refer to Buddhism as a religion. For
example:

 Peter Harvey states: "The English term 'Buddhism' correctly indicates that the
religion is characterized by devotion to 'the Buddha', 'Buddhas', or
'buddhahood'."[243]
 Joseph Goldstein states: "Although there are many difference among the various
religions of the world, and among the various schools of Buddhism itself, there is
also a great deal in common..."[244]

Other sources note that the answer to this question depends upon how religion is defined.
For example:

 Surya Das states: "For Buddhism is less a theology or religion than a promise that
certain meditative practices and mind trainings can effectively show us how to
awaken our Buddha-nature and liberate us from suffering and confusion."[245]
 B. Alan Wallace states: "When we in the West first engage with Buddhism, it is
almost inevitable that we bring out one of our familiar stereotypes and apply it to
 Buddhism, calling it simply a 'religion.'... But Buddhism has never been simply a
religion as we define it in the West. From the very beginning it has also had
philosophical elements, as well as empirical and rational elements that may invite
the term 'science.'"[246]
 Rupert Gethin states: "I am not concerned here to pronounce on a question that is
sometimes asked of Buddhism: is it a religion? Obviously it depends on how one
defines ‘a religion’. What is certain, however, is that Buddhism does not involve
belief in a creator God who has control over human destiny, nor does it seek to
define itself by reference to a creed; as Edward Conze has pointed out, it took
over 2,000 years and a couple of Western converts to Buddhism to provide it with
a creed. On the other hand, Buddhism views activities that would be generally
understood as religious—such as devotional practices and rituals—as a legitimate,
useful, and even essential part of the practice and training that leads to the
cessation of suffering.[247] Gethin points out that some key differences between
Buddhism and conventionally considered Western religions are that Buddhism
does not assert a belief in a creator god, nor does it define itself by a particular
creed. On the other hand, Gethin notes, Buddhist practice often includes
devotional practices and ritual, which are typically associated with religious
belief.[247]
 Damien Keown states: "Problems [...] confront us as soon as we try to define what
Buddhism is. Is it a religion? A philosophy? A way of life? A code of ethics? It is
not easy to classify Buddhism as any of these things, and it challenges us to
rethink some of these categories. What, for example, do we mean by ‘religion’?
Most people would say that religion has something to do with belief in God. [...]
If belief in God in this sense is the essence of religion, then Buddhism cannot be a
religion. [...] Some have suggested that a new category – that of the ‘non-theistic’
religion – is needed to encompass Buddhism. Another possibility is that our
original definition is simply too narrow.[248]
 The Dalai Lama states: "From one viewpoint, Buddhism is a religion, from
another viewpoint Buddhism is a science of mind and not a religion. Buddhism
can be a bridge between these two sides. Therefore, with this conviction I try to
have closer ties with scientists, mainly in the fields of cosmology, psychology,
neurobiology and physics. In these fields there are insights to share, and to a
certain extent we can work together."[249]
 Ilkka Pyysiäinen states: "There are thus great difficulties involved in
conceptualizing religion as belief in god(s), superhuman agents, etc., although we
intuitively think that some such beings, nevertheless, are essential in religion. As
is well-known, Buddhism is the favorite example of scholars who have argued
that we should find some other way of defining religion than the one based on the
idea of belief in gods or superhuman beings." and "Buddhism does not have to be
the problematic touchstone for a global concept of religion."[250]
 Martin Southwold states: "It is argued that Buddhism, though non-theistic,
resembles other religions in depending on mystical notions; it is shown how this
contributes to understanding the social functions of religions."[251]
 Walpola Rahula states: "The question has often been asked: Is Buddhism a
religion or a philosophy? It does not matter what you call it. Buddhism remains
 what it is whatever label you may put on it. The label is immaterial. Even the
label 'Buddhism' which we give to the teaching of the Buddha is of little
importance. The name one gives it is inessential. What's in a name? That which
we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet. In the same way Truth
needs no label: it is neither Buddhist, Christian, Hindu nor Moslem. It is not the
monopoly of anybody. Sectarian labels are a hindrance to the independent
understanding of Truth, and they produce harmful prejudices in men's minds."[252]
 Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche states: "If you are interested in 'meeting the Buddha'
and following his example, then you should realize that the path the Buddha
taught is primarily a study of your own mind and a system for training your mind.
This path is spiritual, not religious. Its goal is self-knowledge, not salvation;
freedom, not heaven. And it is deeply personal."[253]

See also
 Book: Buddhism
Buddhism portal
 Outline of Buddhism
 Buddhism by country
 Criticism of Buddhism
 Index of Buddhism-related articles
 List of books related to Buddhism
 List of Buddhist temples
 Dharma Drum Retreat Center
 Nonviolence
 Indian religions
 Easily confused Buddhist representations
 Chinese folk religion
 Iconography of Gautama Buddha in Laos and Thailand

Notes
1. ^ a b See the article Four Noble Truths for further details and citations. In
particular, the section "The four truths" within that article provides a footnote
showing variety of translations of these four statements.
2. ^ See the article Dukkha for further details and citations.

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are only five destinies ... the kalakanjika asuras have the same colour, same
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foods, same lifespan as the gods, with whom they marry."(Translated from the
French)
37. ^ The 31 Planes of Existence (PDF), Ven. Suvanno Mahathera
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54. ^ This twelve nidana scheme can be found, for instance, in multiple
discourses in chapter 12 of the Samyutta Nikaya—Nidana Vagga (e.g., see SN
12.2, Thanissaro, 1997a). Other "applications" of what might be termed "mundane
dependent origination" include the nine-nidana scheme of Digha Nikaya 15 (e.g.,
Thanissaro, 1997b) and the ten-nidana scheme of Samyutta Nikaya 12.65 (e.g.,
Thanissaro, 1997c). So-called "transcendental dependent origination" (also
involving twelve nidanas) is described in Samyutta Nikaya 12.23 (e.g., see Bodhi,
1995). In addition, Digha Nikaya 15 describes an eleven-nidana scheme (starting
with "feeling") that leads to interpersonal suffering ("the taking up of sticks and
knives; conflicts, quarrels, and disputes; accusations, divisive speech, and lies").
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are addressed to "bhikkhave", but that in this context the terms is more generic
than simply (male) "monks" and refers to all practitioners, and that this is
confirmed by Buddhaghosa.
106. ^ According to Charles S. Prebish (in his Historical Dictionary of
Buddhism, Sri Satguru Publications, Delhi, 1993, p. 287): "Although a variety of
Zen 'schools' developed in Japan, they all emphasize Zen as a teaching that does
not depend on sacred texts, that provides the potential for direct realization, that
the realization attained is none other than the Buddha nature possessed by each
sentient being ...".
107. ^ Prebish comments (op. cit., p. 244): "It presumes that sitting in
meditation itself (i.e. zazen) is an expression of Buddha nature." The method is to
detach the mind from conceptual modes of thinking and perceive Reality directly.
Speaking of Zen in general, Buddhist scholar Stephen Hodge writes (Zen
Masterclass, Godsfield Press, 2002, pp. 12–13): "... practitioners of Zen believe
that Enlightenment, the awakening of the Buddha-mind or Buddha-nature, is our
natural state, but has been covered over by layers of negative emotions and
distorted thoughts. According to this view, Enlightenment is not something that
we must acquire a bit at a time, but a state that can occur instantly when we cut
through the dense veil of mental and emotional obscurations."
108. ^ (Critical Sermons on the Zen Tradition, Hisamatsu Shin'ichi, Palgrave
Macmillan, New York, 2002, passim) Commenting on Rinzai Zen and its Chinese
founder, Linji, Hisamatsu states: "Linji indicates our true way of being in such
direct expressions as 'True Person' and 'True Self'. It is independent of words or
letters and transmitted apart from scriptural teaching. Buddhism doesn't really
 need scriptures. It is just our direct awakening to Self ..." (Hisamatsu, op. cit., p.
46).
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Penguin Books, New York, 1993, p. 98
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117. ^ Y. Masih (2000) In : A Comparative Study of Religions, Motilal
Banarsidass Publ : Delhi, ISBN 81-208-0815-0 Page 18. "There is no evidence to
show that Jainism and Buddhism ever subscribed to vedic sacrifices, vedic deities
or caste. They are parallel or native religions of India and have contributed to
much to the growth of even classical Hinduism of the present times."
118. ^ S. Cromwell Crawford, review of L. M. Joshi, Brahmanism, Buddhism
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karmas and reincarnation entered the mainstream brahaminical thought from the
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122. ^ Padmanabh S. Jaini 2001 "Collected Paper on Buddhist Studies" Motilal
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140. ^ Alexander Wynne, The Origin of Buddhist Meditation. Routledge 2007,
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141. ^ "Even so have I, monks, seen an ancient way, an ancient road followed
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External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Buddhism

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Buddhism.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Buddhism

Wikiversity has learning materials about Buddha oracle# Buddhism

 Frequently Asked Questions About Buddhism
 Orange Tip Editions Buddhism in everyday life
 Religion and Spirituality: Buddhism at Open Directory Project
 "Buddhism — objects, art and history". Asia. Victoria and Albert Museum.
Retrieved 2007-12-06.
 Buddhist texts at Sacred Texts.com
 Buddhism in various languages
 The Future of Buddhism series, from Patheos
 Thanissaro Bhikkhu. "Emptiness". A Theravada Library. Retrieved 2012-12-19.