Buddhism: Part 1 Insights

Buddhism

Part-1

Buddhism is one of the most prevelant religions of South and South-Eastern Asian countries.
It originated in India over 2,600 years ago when Gautama Buddha gained enlightenment and spread his teachings.
Currently it is the world’s fourth-largest religion and has over 520 million followers i.e., about seven percent of the global population.
Buddhism encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs, and spiritual practices that are largely based on the Buddha’s teachings and their resulting interpreted philosophies.

Gautama Buddha, born as Siddhartha was the son of Śuddhodana and Maya Devi who were the rulers of Sakya republic.
Siddhartha married Yashodhara and had a son Rahula.
It is believed that as a Prince Siddhartha did not see any misery in his early years.
One day he saw four sights which shook his world view, which were an old man, a man suffering from disease, a dead man, and finally an ascetic.
Seeing these Siddhartha left the house in an event known as Mahabhinishkramana or the great renunciation.
He searched for a way out of this misery and attained Bodhi (enlightenment) under a pipal tree at Bodhgaya, a village in Bihar.
He gave his first sermon in the village of Sarnath, near the city of Benares in UP.
The event of first sermon is known as Dharma-Chakra-Pravartana or turning of the wheel of law.
He died at the age of 80 in 483 BCE at a place called Kushinagara a town in UP.
The death of Buddha is called Mahaparinibbana or Final Nirvana.

Buddha after attaining enlightenment declared the four noble truths which were

Buddha believed that one can attain salvation or moksha through following the Atthanga Magga or eight-fold path.

The eight fold path contains:

Buddhism does not recognise the existence of soul hence it follows the idea of anatta.
However, Buddhism believes in the existence of karma and believes that desire is the reason for creation of karma.
Buddhism also believes in impermanence or anicca which says that all existence is transient, evanescent, inconstant. Hence says that attachment to material properties is not worthwhile.
Anicca, along with anatta and dukkha forms the trilakshana or three marks of existence in Buddhism.