Buddhism is one of the world's most prolific religions, dominating in much of mainlandSoutheast Asia, and influential as well inSouth Asia,East Asia and parts ofRussia. There is also a Buddhist diaspora spread across most of the world and a renaissance of interest in the West since the late 1960s and 1970s.
| “ | Form is emptiness and emptiness is form | ” |
—Heart Sutra | ||
Buddhism is a religion founded around 400-500 BCE by Sakyamuni Buddha. According to tradition, Prince Siddharta Gautama (the Buddha's former name) was born inLumbini as the heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Sakya (in present dayNepal, near theIndian border). He was raised in the palace with the best luxuries money can buy, but shut off from the outside world by his father, the king. One night, he snuck out of the palace and saw four sights that had a profound impact on the rest of his life; an old man, a sick man, a dead man and an ascetic. As a result, he discovered that a life of luxury did not lead to peace of mind, and that the rich, like the poor, still suffer the torments of old age, sickness and death. He therefore renounced his titles and abandoned his wealth in order to seek a way that could lead all beings, without discrimination, to freedom from suffering. He spent six years experimenting with the various common methods of the day, but to no avail. Finally, at the age of 35 and while meditating under the bodhi tree atBodh Gaya, he awoke to the insights he had been seeking. The essence of the Buddha's discovery are categorized in his first teaching that was delivered to a group of five ascetics at the Deer Park inSarnath and is called the Four Noble Truths. The Buddha devoted the rest of his life to spreading his teachings, and finally passed away from dysentery in a copse of sal trees atKushinagar. He was believed to be over 80 years old at the time.
For many centuries, Buddhism was the major religion in India, and was supported by many great kings. Ashoka (273–232 BCE), the thirdMauryan emperor, was probably the most famous. He ruled most of theIndian subcontinent from his capital city of Pataliputra, modern dayPatna. Some sources portray him as a wicked, fierce, and extremely violent monarch in the years before his conversion. Asoka embraced Buddhism and became a follower of the cause of Dharma (right behaviour, translated in Ancient Greek asευσεβεία- respect for human sufferings) after he repented, following his victory over the neighboring empire of Kalinga (modernOdisha), which was so costly in lives that it caused him to turn his back on imperialism and concentrate on bettering the world. Asoka left a large number of inscriptions on rocks and pillars, as Achaemenid rulers had inIran. Asoka’s inscriptions witness his change of heart. Almost all of the emperor's edicts deal with the Buddhist concept of Dharma. He abolished the death penalty and showed respect towards all living beings, becoming a vegetarian and saying that rearing and killing animals for food violates the Dharma cosmic law.
Ashoka's inscription inDelhi-Topra Pillar summarize his efforts for the promotion of the Dharma and the dispatch of missions which established Buddhism within his kingdom and beyond. He was responsible for the spread of Buddhism in a major way, as he is known to have sent Buddhist missionaries toSri Lanka,Afghanistan,Nepal,Bhutan,China,Mongolia,Cambodia,Laos,Myanmar,Thailand,Vietnam,Syria,Iran,Egypt,Greece,Italy andTurkey. He also had stone-carved Buddhist pillars with inscriptions or animal figures erected, apparently throughout his realm — 19 of these, including those atSarnath andPrayagraj, survive to this day. Buddhism's influence in India waxed and waned over the next millennium, and during the 6th and 7th century CE support was mostly confined to Southern India. However, perhaps the single most significant blow to Buddhism in India occurred in 1193 when Turkic Islamic raiders burnt the great Buddhist center of learning inNalanda (in current-dayBihar), and by the end of the 12th century it had all but disappeared from the lowlands, though it continued to thrive in theHimalayan regions and in what is nowSri Lanka. However, the Buddha was incorporated into theHindu pantheon: many Hindus consider the Buddha to be an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu.
From India, Buddhism would be spread to what is today Sri Lanka in the 1st century B.C. by Ashoka's son Mahinda. It would later spread to Southeast Asia, beginning from what is today Myanmar, around the 2nd-3rd century A.D. It spread northwards into what is today Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia, and eventually reached China via theSilk Road by the 1st century A.D. Later Chinese monks, perhaps most famously Faxian during the Jin Dynasty and Xuanzang during the Tang Dynasty, would travel to India to study Buddhism and collect scriptures. Today, China has the largest Buddhist population in the world, far eclipsing its original homeland India. From China, Buddhism would spread to Korea by the 4th century and Vietnam by the 2nd century. It was introduced to Japan from Korea in the 6th century, though later Japanese monks would be sent to study in Chinese monasteries during the Tang Dynasty and bring back Buddhist teaching from there. Buddhism was introduced to Tibet in the 7th century A.D., and would later be spread to Mongolia by Tibetan envoys in the 13th century.
Buddhism as a philosophy and religion can roughly be divided into two schools: Theravada and Mahayana. The Theravada school which spread toThailand,Myanmar,Laos,Cambodia,Sri Lanka and theDai ethnic minority in China promotes personal liberation from suffering, whereas the Mahayana, which is prevalent inChina,Japan,Taiwan,Korea andVietnam emphasizes the liberation of all beings. The Vajrayana school, which is prevalent inTibet,Bhutan,Mongolia and theRussian republics ofKalmykia,Buryatia andTuva, often called Tibetan Buddhism, is a branch of Mahayana and differs only in method, not philosophy. Common threads throughout all Buddhist schools are the cultivation of wisdom, compassion for all living creatures and the principle ofahimsa (non-violence) as a basis of interacting with the world. All schools of Buddhism recognize karma (the law of cause and effect) as the creator of our illusory universe, which Buddhists refer to assamsara, and reject the notion of a creator god; in fact, the Buddha himself explicitly denied being a god according to the canon. Buddhism generally aims to follow the "middle path", in which one does not go out of the way to inflict suffering on himself, but at the same time does not indulge in material pleasures. The ultimate goal in all schools of Buddhism is to attain enlightenment as the Buddha did, which is believed to be reached when one is successfully purged of all emotional attachments and selfish desires.
For the most part, relations between the different schools are peaceful, with no history of major armed conflict between them. It is also not uncommon for followers, or even monks of one school to visit temples belonging to other schools to study and offer prayers. It is also common for monasteries to host monks from the other traditions as visiting scholars (e.g. Thai monasteries hosting Chinese monks and vice versa), something that would be nearly unthinkable between different Christian denominations.
Unlike many other religions, Buddhism does not have a holy book with the authority of the Bible in Christianity, the Koran in Islam or even the Vedas in Hinduism. Different schools of Buddhist have adopted slightly different collections of scriptures, though the Buddha's core teachings remain consistent. The Theravada school uses the Palī Canon, also known as the Tripitaka since it is divided into three parts, namely the Vinaya Piṭaka, which spells out the monastic rules for monks, the Sutta Piṭaka, a collection of the teachings by the Buddha and his closest companions, and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka, a scholarly analysis and summary of the Buddha's teachings. East Asian Mahayana Buddhism uses the Chinese Canon, a collection of various ancient Buddhist texts that were brought back from India and Central Asia by pilgrims like Faxian and Xuanzang and translated into a Classical Chinese, as well as several texts composed within China by various Buddhist masters. It contains equivalents of the collections of texts in the Pali canon, as well as additional Mahayana sutras not considered canon by the Theravada school, and some esoteric texts known as tantras. The Vajrayana school uses the Tibetan Canon, which contains a much larger collection of tantras than the Chinese canon, in addition to the Mahayana sutras and the Mahayana version of the Tripitaka.
Buddhism also does not demand exclusivity, so in many places, Buddhism is syncretised with other local religions to one degree or another.
While some Buddhists, such as the Tibetan Buddhists, have a hierarchy of lamas, Buddhism does not have a centralized governing body, and most Buddhists do not recognize any single pope-like figure.
Below are listed some of the most notable Buddhist sites in thesub-continent.
TheBuddhist Circuit is a route following the footsteps of Gautama Buddha starting from his place of birth to his place of death.
Uniquely among Buddhist societies, as a result of Meiji-era reforms, Japanese Buddhist monks are allowed to get married and have children, and temple abbotships are often passed down from father to son. The reforms also abolished the traditional dietary restrictions for monks and today, most Japanese Buddhist monks eat meat and drink alcohol. The traditional Buddhist vegetarian diet, known asShōjin Ryōri (精進料理) still exists, but has largely been preserved as a homage to the past, and is no longer a regular diet for Buddhist monks. It is considered to be a form of fine dining in Japan, and hence is usually rather expensive.
UNESCO World Heritage Site.Mongolia's traditional dominant religion is Tibetan Buddhism, though much of its Buddhist heritage was destroyed during the iconoclastic years of communist rule.
The Jogye Order, the largest Buddhist sect in South Korea, runs aTemple Stay program, where one can stay overnight at a Buddhist temple. This usually includes Buddhist vegetarian meals, and opportunities to participate in some activities with the monks such as chanting and meditation.
The historical Buddha is believed to have spoken a now-extinct ancient Indo-Aryan language known as Magadhi Prakrit. This language is also believed to be the native language ofJainism's founder Mahavira, who was a near contemporary of the Buddha.
Most Buddhists speak the language of the country or region they reside in. However, religious concepts are often described through loanwords from the language the concept first originated in. The original versions of most Buddhist religious texts are in the ancient Indian languages ofSanskrit andPalī. Buddhist chants are typically just transliterated from the Palī or Sanskrit original into the local language.
However, the original Sanskrit versions of various Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhist texts have been lost through various wars in India, and these only survive in theirChinese andTibetan translations and/or transliterations respectively. However, the Chinese and Tibetan used in these texts are in classical literary forms, which are difficult for even native speakers of those languages to understand without specialized training.
In modern times, most Buddhist texts whose meaning is known have been translated into English and other major world languages. Temples and meditation centres that host large number of foreign pilgrims often have English classes available.
Spiritual retreat tourism is a branch of leisure travel. People go to meditate to renew their energies, remove emotional blocks, gain an understanding of themselves, and get rid of their anxieties.
For example, Vipassana meditation is a practice associated with the Theravada Buddhism. The word "Vipassana" can be translated from the Sanskrit to mean "clear-seeing". Retreat centers are generally set in beautiful environments and stunning scenery. Apart from some luxury hotels inKerala andSri Lanka that may offer some Vipassana retreats as a complement of their Ayurveda packages, meditation centers in South and South-East Asia charge a small amount of money for the lodgings and food. Most of them usually operate on a donation basis. People who want to stay in Buddhist monasteries or meditation centers have to bring bed sheets, towels, toiletry, as they are probably not available outside of a retreat setting. Buddhist monasteries are usually set on silent mountain slopes. Although they are a great option for budget travelers, conditions can be somewhat uncomfortable for those seeking just a relaxing vacation or used to luxuries. Participants follow a prescribed code of discipline and a strict daily schedule.
In Theravada Buddhist societies, it is customary for men to spend a certain amount of time living as monks at least once in their lifetime. Some countries, such as Thailand and Myanmar, issue special visas for foreign men who wish to spend time living as monks and studying Buddhism at a monastery. To be eligible for such a visa, you will need to be sponsored by a monastery and approved by the relevant religious authorities. However, this is not something you can decide on a whim, as you will have to prove your sincerity to the monastery that you intend to reside in, and are required to observe a strict regimen and abstain from indulging in material pleasures during your time living as a monk. As women cannot be ordained as nuns in Theravada Buddhism, this option is not available to women.
While Mahayana Buddhist societies permit women to be ordained as nuns, becoming a monk or nun is generally seen as a lifetime commitment, so there are no opportunities for people to become monks or nuns on a temporary basis. However, some Mahayana Buddhist monasteries organise temple stay programmes where their lay followers can spend some time studying Buddhism at the monastery, during which they have to follow the routines of the monks and nuns. InJapan andSouth Korea, some temples run temple stay programmes for tourists, but they must be willing to follow the routines of the monks and nuns, including waking up early for morning prayers and doing their share of chores, in order to participate.
Lay followers are always welcome to join the monks in chanting during their regular prayer sessions. Non-Buddhist visitors are welcome to join in as well so long as they behave respectfully.
See also
Although Buddhism does not have strict dietary laws in the same way that Judaism, Islam or Hinduism does, most Mahayana Buddhist sects require their monks and nuns to be vegetarian, and also encourage their lay followers to do the same. Many otherwise non-vegetarian Buddhists would also go on a vegetarian diet for specific Buddhist festivals.
ManyEast Asian countries have restaurants serving Buddhist vegetarian cuisine, which in addition to being meat-free, must also be free of the "five pungent vegetables", namely onion, garlic, chives, shallots and leeks. In Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, these are believed to have aphrodisiac effects and hence, inhibit one's ability to meditate on the dharma. Whether or not eggs are permitted depends on the sect in question; some sects permit their monks and nuns to eat unfertilized eggs, while others prohibit consumption of eggs entirely. InJapan andSouth Korea, this type of cuisine is usually served in specialistfine dining establishments and hence very expensive. On the other hand, in places likeTaiwan,Hong Kong,China,Vietnam andSingapore, options run the gamut from cheap and hearty street food to over the top luxury, and numerous options between those too.
Many Buddhist temples accommodate guests who desire the serenity and contemplation of a temple environment. However, guests who choose this option are often required to book in advance, and usually required to follow a strict routine and show sufficient respect for the temple grounds.
Buddhist temples and meditation centers welcome people of all faiths. They exist not only in Buddhist countries but in many large cities and some smaller cities in many other countries including those in North America and Europe.
Because Buddhism is not a very common religion in Western countries, there are many scams that prey on tourists' lack of knowledge of Buddhist customs. Here are some points to take note of so you can avoid a few of the common scams.
All Buddhist temples welcome people of all faiths, though everybody is expected to behave in a respectful manner when in the temple compounds.
It is common for people visitingSouth East Asia orEast Asia to buy Buddha statues, but they may not be aware of how truly important Buddha is to Buddhists. There is absolutely nothing wrong with buying a Buddha statue or having a Buddha statue in your home, but many Buddhists consider it extremely disrespectful if Buddha is depicted inappropriately in any way, shape, or form.
To preserve the sanctity of the Buddha Dharma, it is advisable to follow these tips with regard imagery of the Buddha and usage of the term Buddha.
Theravada Buddhist monks are forbidden from having any physical contact with the opposite sex, including their own immediate family members. Women who wish to offer food to a monk should either place it on a piece of cloth the monk will place on the ground to pick up the food, or hand it to a man to pass it on to the monk. With the exception of those in Japan, who are allowed to get married, monks of either tradition are required to abstain from any form of sexual activity.
The languages of Buddhist cultures often have specific forms of address and greetings for Buddhist monks and nuns.
In Chinese, Buddhist monks and nuns are customarily addressed as 師父/师父 (shīfu), and are customarily greeting with the expression 阿彌陀佛/阿弥陀佛 (Ēmítuófó) while putting your palms together at chest level and fingers closed together and pointing upwards, and a slight bow of the head.
| Thistravel topic aboutBuddhismis ausable article. It touches on all the major areas of the topic. An adventurous person could use this article, but pleasefeel free to improve itby editing the page. |
