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Buddhism – Quick Facts
• One of the four largest religions in the world
today with over 350 million followers
• Followers are known as Buddhists
• Followers are located primarily in Asia
• (China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, etc.)
• Based on pursuit of enlightenment (Nirvana)
• Key Beliefs:

The Four Noble Truths

The Eightfold Path
Buddhist Shrine in Japan
Founder: Siddhartha Gautama
• Born in India, raised in
luxury, was overcome with the
suffering that exists in the
world
• Set out to find enlightenment
through physical deprivation –
found it didn’t work
• Found enlightenment through
the “Middle Path” –
moderation and getting rid of
desires
• Got followers and became
known as Buddha (“The
Enlightened One”)
Main Beliefs
• Goal: to end the cycle
of rebirth and
suffering : Attain
Nirvana!
• Attained by:
discarding desires
• How: Meditating on
the Four Noble Truths
Four Noble Truths
• 1. The world is suffering
• 2. The cycle of reincarnation is a result of
desires “The thirst for existence leads from rebirth to
rebirth . . .”
• 3. suffering ends by eliminating desires
“Nirvana”literally means “Snuffing Out” as greed, hatred,
desire, and delusion are all extinguished
• 4. One can eliminate desire by following
the Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path
•RIGHT VIEW: Accepting Buddhist views.
•RIGHT RESOLVE: A serious commitment to developing the right attitudes.
•RIGHT SPEECH: telling the truth and speaking in a thoughtful and sensitive
way.
•RIGHT ACTION: Abstaining from wrongful behavior or over indulgence.
•RIGHT LIVELIHOOD: Avoiding a livelihood that harms others.
•RIGHT EFFORT: Controlling one’s thoughts and cultivating positive states of
mind
•RIGHT MINDFULNESS: Cultivating constant awareness
•RIGHT MEDITATION: Developing deep levels of mental calm through
various techniques which concentrate the mind and integrate the personality.
Places of Worship
• Places of Worship
include Stupas,
Temples, and Shrines
A Temple in Japan
A Stupa in Thailand
Leaders
• There are two types of
leaders in Buddhism,
priests and monks
Bodhisatvas:
Those who’ve
attained
enlightenment
but experience
rebirth to help
others (a saint)
Symbols
• Wheel of Life
8 spokes remind people of
the Eightfold path and the
wheel represents the cycle
of life, death, and rebirth
• Lotus Flower
symbolizes purity
Holy Book
• The Tripitaka
– Written down from
what oral tradition said
about Buddha’s
sayings
• When written in
English, it is over 40
volumes!
Divisions
• There are two main branches
of Buddhism
• Mahayana
– Believes Buddha was
divine
• Theravada
– Believes Buddha was a
great teacher