Buddhism
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Buddhism is a set of teachings first influenced by Siddhartha Gautama, who is also known as Gautama Buddha or simply just Buddha. Buddha stands for Awakened One, and one of the principle beliefs for people who practice Buddhism is to find this awakening in life. Gautama first began his teachings in Northern India and has spread throughout all of Asia (Molloy 124). As far as religious afterlife is concerned, Buddhists do not believe in eternal damnation as other religions, but rather they believe in reincarnation which continues to take place until a person reaches Nirvana. According to Buddhist belief, Nirvana is the state where liberation and a freedom from suffering takes place and inner peace is achieved. It is the state that every Buddhist follower strives to achieve, and thus follows endless cycles of life and reincarnation to get there. Buddhists also believe in karma. With karma, they believe that a persons actions in their current lifetime will have an affect on how they are reborn and the lessons that they will have to learn in order to try to achieve Nirvana in their next lifetime. They believe that one has to understand their wrongdoings from one lifetime to the next, and if they cannot, rebirth will be necessary again and reincarnation will continue indefinitely. It is not necessarily an atonement that is necessary to overcome these past transgressions; it is just an understanding of the improper behaviors and an ability to overcome them with their next opportunity.
Buddhists do not believe in rigid practices as some other religions do, it is more of a liberated religion that puts the onus on the people practicing the faith to experience the doctrines and find them as truth on their own. Buddha set himself forth as a model but not as a religious deity to be worshipped or followed to exact extremes. So for people that practice Buddhism, they can view these doctrines more as guidelines or helpful tools, rather than as the type of written law that other religions may use to emphasize their doctrines. At the core of the teachings are the Three Jewels. These are the three things that Buddhists take refuge in, and that they can look towards for guidance. Taking refuge is a practice of the Buddhists and the Three Jewels will help them in achieving this. The Three Jewels consists of Buddha which is the awakened one, and the person whom all human beings should imitate, for he is the ideal human being. The Buddhists do not think of him as dead, but rather he is existing in a timeless dimension beyond the world (Molloy 130). The next of the Three Jewels is Dharma, which are the teachings of the Buddha. These teachings set forth guidelines and how to live within it better. The last element of the Three Jewels is the Sangha which translates to congregation or group. In Buddhism specifically, it refers to the monks or nuns that have at least obtained the first stage of enlightenment (Wikipedia.com).
Buddhists are said to believe in what is called the Three Marks of Reality which Buddha felt marked every person. It is said the awareness of these characteristics can help achieve Wisdom which is important in the Buddhist faith. Buddhism has a major focus on suffering that is prevalent in ones life, and the path to enlightenment involves overcoming this suffering. Buddhists believe that by being aware of these three characteristics, you are more able to identify and overcome them. It is believed that Buddha came to the Three Marks of Reality after many hours of meditation (Wikipedia.com). The first characteristic in the Three Marks of Reality is known as anichcha or impermanence (Molloy 131). This refers to the fact that things in life change. Buddha wanted people to understand this. The idea is to understand that not only eventually cease to exist, but they also are in a state of gradual change and flux (Wikipedia.com). The second characteristic is called anatta. This deals with Buddhas thought that there is no permanent identity. This mark of reality is a realization that a human being is not made up of one whole part, but of many parts that are in a constant state of flux. Basically a human has many operating parts both physically and mentally that change and can be attributed to some of our actions. The third mark is called dukkha is often called sorrow or suffering. The Buddhas rationalization behind Dukkha is that suffering is inevitable. In this characteristic or mark, it is believed that nothing can bring about lasting satisfaction (Wikipedia.com). No matter how satisfying something is, one should understand that inevitably that it will turn negative and we need to see past it. The teaching is for Buddhists to not desire for things, especially those of material virtue because they will soon tire of them once they are achieved. True satisfaction and happiness will come once Nirvana has been achieved.
The Three Marks of Reality lead to another helpful guideline that the Buddhists follow. These are known as the Four Noble Truths. The Truths explore human suffering which is needed to be overcome for Nirvana to be achieved. The Four Noble Truths are one of the most fundamental Buddhist teachings and are said to have been realized by Gautama Buddha during his enlightenment. The first noble truth is that of suffering. Suffering exists and is a part of life. Suffering is inevitable and should not be feared, but instead should be understood and acknowledged so that it can be lessened. The second truth deals with the cause of suffering. Gautama Buddha felt that suffering arose from desire or craving. He relates it to the desire of wanting what we cannot have which leads to a sense of never being satisfied. Desire will leave people unhappy with their lives, and keep them from completing their path to enlightenment. The third truth deals with ceasing the suffering. To help lessen the suffering, one has to find inner peace. They have to put