Buddhism

Buddhism is the largest religion in the world. It is a belief system which teaches that desire causes suffering and if desire is eliminated, enlightenment and Nirvana are attained. Buddhism is a Dharmic religion.

Buddhism's foundations lie with an Indian prince, Siddhartha Gautama, who after observing the suffering of his people, worked to discover the reason for suffering and pain. There are many accounts and theories as to the course of Gautama's life, one of which story proclaims that he went into meditation for 49 days seated under a fig tree, and after finishing his period of meditation he achieved enlightnment, and formed Buddhism.

The philosophy has its roots in Hinduism and Vedic religion, to which Gautama belonged until the foundation of Buddhism.

Buddhism is an atheistic religion, although certain denominations, such as the Mahayana tradition, believe in Bodhisattvas, or quasi-divine cosmic beings that seek to benefit others by remaining in a state of Samsara, or eternal rebirth. These are prayed to, for advice and spiritual guidance, and often venerated.

The highest ideal for a Buddhist is the state of Nirvana, or release from eternal rebirth, a state beyond conceptual thought described by the Buddha as follows: "There is O monks, an Unborn, Unoriginated, Uncreated, Unformed. Were there not, o monks, this Unborn, Unoriginated, Uncreated, Unformed, there would be no escape from the world of the born, originated, created, formed. ~ Udana, 80-81"

The Buddha taught that we should not speculate about what we cannot know, and that speculation about God is pointless. Buddhism is a very practical philosophy, which teaches us to focus our attention on ourselves, to determine what is the cause of our discontent (dukkha) and to find a way to liberate ourselves from these, all the while expressing metta, which is universal, unconditional love, and karuna, which roughly translates to 'compassion', towards others. These teachings are encapsulated in the Four Noble Truths.[1]

Buddhism teaches that in order to attain Nirvana (a complete contentment, and separation from suffering), you must follow the Noble Eightfold Path.