A Clear Introduction to Buddhism

Buddhism is not Homogeneous

There are countless introductions to Buddhism across the internet and the wider world in general. I myself am a practicing Buddhist (Lay householder - keeping the precepts as best I can and working towards becoming a Sotapanna (Stream-Enterer).

What is Buddhism vs What is Doing Buddhism?

Knowing what Buddhism is and what Doing Buddhism is are two very different things. Below, I elaborate on what Buddhism is .

There are different kinds of Buddhism. 

These tend to reflect the goals and areas of higher importance emphasised by different people and sects. I want to try my hand at presenting Buddhism in a way that will be informative and palatable for a non-Buddhist audience and hopefully, this information will help you better contextualize the Buddhist traditions that exist throughout the world. 

What is Buddhism? 

A Philosophical / Religious / Spiritual / Secular / Psychological / Intellectual / Moral Tradition(s) that comes to us from North Eastern India / Nepal roughly 2500 years ago.

A Buddha is a perfectly enlightened Being.  

All Buddhisms identify as being a tradition that follows from the teachings of a Buddha. 

Most traditions acknowledge the historical Buddha as the Buddha of our age. He is one who began the turning of the wheel of the Dhamma for us living today. And ever since he lived 2500 years ago. Although Sidartha Gaotama is the Buddha of our age he is not the only one. There have been countless Buddhas who came before him stretching back countless eons into the past and there will be countless Buddhas in the future reaching out into fathomless futures unforeseen by living man. 

Before Sidartha Gautama became the Buddha, he was what is known as a Bodhisattva, a being destined to one day achieve perfect Buddhahood. There are other beings who are currently Bodhisattvas and these are treated more akin to deities than the historical Buddha. While they are not perfectly enlightened Buddhas, they are often thought to currently dwell as Devas level beings, able to intercede on our behalf and interact with the physical world.  

Through The Buddha, The teachings, The Sangha (Community of Buddhists), and the Bodhisattvas, people are able to practice “Buddhism” The working towards an end of experienced Samsara. The ultimate goal of the Buddhist path is to reach Nibbana (nirvana) The ultimate extinguishment and liberation from the realms of rebirth. 

The Bodhisattvas technically would fall under the category of (Sangha: The community of Buddhists), but because in Many traditions that function so fundamentally different than other living people, I wanted to include them as a separate point.

The difference between the different sects of Buddhism is how one goes about journeying down that path. 

As Buddhism spread across Eurasia, it took on local flavors, but in general, there are four major kinds of Buddhism. 

Broadly speaking. 

• Mahayana Buddhism - China, Korea and Japan 

• Theravada Buddhism  - Sri Lanka Malaysia and Thailand 

• Vajriana Buddhism - Tibet 

• Secular Buddhism - European and American Countries. 

• Early Buddhism - European and American Countries.

What do they have in common? 

• The source of the tradition is that periodically a being arises in the world that rediscovers the 4 Noble Truths and becomes a perfectly enlightened being. This being teaches this and propagates the (Teachings) Dhamma. 

• They all acknowledge the most recent Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, to be their founder of the current iteration of Buddhism. Also known as the setting forth the turning of the wheel of the dhamma.

• They all accept the 4 Noble truths. -

  • There is Dukkha - (duḥkha/ suffering)

  • The origin of Dukkha -

  • That Dukkha can end -

  • The prescription leading out of Dukkha. 

• The 8 fold Path - Leading out of Dukkha 

• The Basic Precepts 

  
  

How these are understood and acted upon differs widely between the different branches and traditions.  

Theravada Buddhism: The focus of the tradition is on the monastic community. There is a strong emphasis on Silla (morality) and the gradual training. The highest aspiration in this tradition is to become an arahant (an enlightened being), and by doing so, one breaks from the cycle of rebirth. The laity also works towards this goal, but to a lesser extent, and there is a greater emphasis on doing good to develop merits to achieve a more auspicious rebirth. 

Mahayana Buddhism: (The Greater Vehicle) The focus of this tradition is on the monastic community but there is a greater inclusion of the laity in comparison to the Theravada. There is also greater variation between the traditions with the umbrella category of Mahayana. Most varieties aspire to become Bodhisattva, being on the verge of enlightenment who postpone it in order to bring aid and salvation to other beings. This is the goal for the majority of both monastics and Laity. Technically, Zen would be considered a kind of Mahayana, but they seek to achieve enlightenment instantly as opposed to the gradual training of the Theravada tradition.   

Vaijriana: This stemmed from Mahayana but took on its unique characteristics in Tibet. It relies on direct transmission of Esoteric teachings that they state comes from a line directly from the Historical Buddha himself. Vaijriana (Diamond/Thunderbolt vehicle). Similar to Zen, it looks for a rapid transformation as opposed to the gradual training. Tibetan Buddhism has had a disproportionate influence on the popular perception of Buddhism outside of Asia because of the Tibetan diaspora following the incorporation of Tibet into China. 

Secular Buddhism: Out of the different branches of Buddhism, this one is the most controversial. Some people don’t consider it a form of Buddhism at all, and some who practice it would not consider it a religion, but an adopted philosophy. Essentially, Secular Buddhism is the adoption of the moral and philosophical aspects of the Buddha’s teachings, but tends to reject the cosmological and world views that serve as the foundations of the teachings. This kind of Buddhism is primarily practiced in Europe and the Americas. 

Early Buddhism: Similar to Secular Buddhism, Early Buddhism is primarily practiced in Europe and the Americas, and it is also the youngest and smallest of the traditions. Early Buddhism is basically an attempt at a reformed Theravada where the regional characteristics are stripped away, and a major emphasis is placed on the Pali canon and sometimes early commentaries as the primary way of understanding the Dhamma as expounded by the historical Buddha. 

Although I categorize this as separate from Theravada, the functional difference is very minimal. 

I myself would like to say that I am a Theravada Buddhist with leanings into Early Buddhism, but in reality I am probably more accurately just an Early Buddhist or Theravada reformist? The tradition is so young that I am unaware if there is any kind of more convenient term for it.

Throughout my content, I will be applying a Buddhist perspective. I was skeptical at first, but I believe that there is a benefit to including this, as Buddhist perspectives of the Theravada tradition are under-represented in an already under-represented religious tradition in Europe and the Americas. I think that there is much that Buddhism and Buddhist thought have to offer modern discourse, and I am happy to be able to share it.