It Dawned on Me...Buddhism Religion, I want to know more!

 The beliefs of the Buddhist religion I am going to start with in this blog is a basic overview followed by some really great details and interesting pictures. So, follow me on this informative journey into Buddhism as it has "Dawned on Me." This first part of our journey as previously mentioned is the overview. Let's do this! Buddhists have strong beliefs that human life is a recurring event , by this I mean they refer to it as a cycle and it consists of suffering, and rebirth however, if one achieves enlightenment (nirvana), it then becomes possible to escape this cycle forever. This achievement of enlightenment is known as the Buddha. I told you this was going to get interesting!  How many of you knew this fact? 

  Does the picture look familiar from my previous post? It should. Did you know one of the (3) main beliefs in Buddhism is based on the teaching of Siddhartha Gautama....wait for it, a.k.a. Budda. Here is some insight into Budda. He lived in the 5th century B.C. Gautama was born into a very wealthy family and was a prince in present-day Nepal. He was known as ("the awakened"). He founded Buddhism. Budda taught the principles of this belief known in Buddhism as the system of karma, rebirth, and impermanence 'everything changes, and nothing lasts forever.'  https://www.history.com/religion

  These are 5 basic beliefs of Buddhism: 1. Refrain from taking life. They are referring to not killing any living being.   2. Refrain from taking what is not given. Do not steal from anyone.  3. Refrain from the misuse of the senses. This refers to sexual misconduct, adultery,  ove rindulging, or committing sexual offenses.  4. Refrain from wrong speech. This pertains to lying, misleading, and gossip.  5 . Refrain from intoxicants that can cloud the mind. This is drugs and alcohol.  In comparison would you say that a few of these five principles are similar to the teachings of the ten commandments in the Christian religion?  "It just "Dawned on me."                                    https://tricycle.org/beginners/buddhism/fourth-precept                    

                           Upper left, Japan Temple, Upper right, United States Temple, Lower center, Thailand Temple   A place of worship for the Buddhist religion is called a Vihara, also referred to as Temple or Centre.   Buddhist will worship there whenever they can and at home, there will be one dedicated room used as a shrine with a statue of Buddha, candles, and incense.   The Vihara (monastery) is the main place for communal life and a focal point for corporate worship. These services at the local Temple are teachings that offer up offerings of flowers, candles, and food.  https://www.bbc.co.uk Pictures courtesy of   istockphoto.com

                                                                           Feng shui The Buddhist religion feels that meditation is a pathway towards liberation from defilements (kleshas) along with clinging and craving (upadana) which is also referred to as an awakening on the pathway we discussed in this blog to Nirvana. Some of the most notable meditation techniques are Yoga and mindfulness of breathing (anapanasati). Buddha himself used meditation as a form of enlightenment. In the beginning stages of Buddhist meditation , they sit for fifteen minutes and once fully practicing they will meditate for an hour.   Buddha spoke that "Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance". Interesting tidbit: It "Dawned on Me" that there is Feng s...

  Did you know that Buddhism is one of the largest religions in the world? They account for approximately 400 million followers. Though Buddhism unlike other religions does not worship a deity. As of 2020 Buddhist Americans make up only 1% of the United States Population.   https://www.prri.org https://www.worlddata.info/religions/buddhism