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Understanding Buddhism
Some Facts about Buddhism
 Founder: Siddhartha Gautama (The
Enlightened One; Buddha)
 Sacred Texts/Teachings: Various and no
single central text, but the oldest and
most authoritative are compiled in the Pali
Canon.
Core Beliefs
 Buddhism is an impersonal religion of self-perfection to
escape a cycle of suffering and rebirth.
 The essential elements of the Buddhist belief system are
summarized in the Four Noble Truths, the Noble
Eightfold Path, and several additional key doctrines.
The Four Noble Truths
1) Life is full of suffering (dukkha)
2) Suffering is caused by craving
(samudaya)
3) Suffering will cease only when craving
ceases (nirodha)
4) This can be achieved by following the
Noble Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path
(1) right views
(2) right aspiration
(3) right speech
(4) right conduct
(5) right livelihood
(6) right effort
(7) right mindfulness
(8) right contemplation.
Other Key Doctrines
1) Nothing in life is permanent (anicca).
2) Individual selves do not truly exist
(anatta).
3) Reincarnation is an endless cycle of
continuous suffering, or dissatisfaction,
misery (dukkha).
4) All is determined by an impersonal law of
moral causation (karma).
5) The goal of life is to break out of the
cycle of rebirth and suffering and enter a
permanent state of pure nonexistence.
(nirvana).
Buddhist Ethics
 The five precepts are training rules in order to live a
better life in which one is happy, without worries, and
can meditate well:
 To refrain from taking life
 To refrain from taking that which is not given (not
committing theft)
 To refrain from sensual misconduct
 To refrain from lying (speaking truth always)
 To refrain from intoxicants which lead to loss
of mindfulness (specifically, drugs and alcohol)
Three Branches
 1. Theravada or Southern Buddhism (38%)
 Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos
 2. Mahayana or Eastern Buddhism (56%)
 China, Vietnam, Korean, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan
 3. Vajrayana, or Northern Buddhism (6%)
 Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, and Mongolia
Buddhism vs. Christianity
 Buddhism was founded as a form of atheism that
rejected the concepts of personal, creator God and
a permanent self or an unchanging, eternal soul
(even though some later forms of Buddhism
became polytheistic such as Mahayana).
 No Savior; all by self-effort
 No forgiveness; only eradication of self (and thus suffering)
 No real meaning in life’s experiences (only suffering!)
Bridges For Evangelizing Buddhists
 The gospel can be appealing to Buddhists if witnessing
focuses on areas of personal need where the Buddhist
belief system is weak. Some major areas include:
 Suffering
 Meaningful Self
 Moral Law
 Merit and Future Hope
 Desires
References:
 Cameron, K., Comfort, R.(2004). The School Of
Biblical Evangelism: 101 lessons : how to share your
faith simply, effectively, biblically-- the way Jesus did.
Bridge-Logos Foundation, Alachua.
 WikiPedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism