describe teaching of Buddhism
Answers
Buddhism, like most of the great religions of the world, is divided into a number of different
traditions. However, most traditions share a common set of fundamental beliefs.
One central belief of Buddhism is often referred to as reincarnation -- the concept that people are
reborn after dying. In fact, most individuals go through many cycles of birth, living, death and
rebirth. A practicing Buddhist differentiates between the concepts of rebirth and reincarnation.
In reincarnation, the individual may recur repeatedly. In rebirth, a person does not necessarily return
to Earth as the same entity ever again. He compares it to a leaf growing on a tree. When the
withering leaf falls off, a new leaf will eventually replace it. It is similar to the old leaf, but it is not
identical to the original leaf.
Buddhism is a philosophy of life expounded by Gautama Buddha ("Buddha" means "enlightened
one"), who lived and taught in northern India in the 6th century B.C. The Buddha was not a god and
the philosophy of Buddhism does not entail any theistic world view. The teachings of the Buddha
are aimed solely at liberating sentient beings from suffering.
The Basic Teachings of Buddha which are core to Buddhism are:
• The Three Universal Truths;
• The Four Noble Truths; and
• The Noble Eightfold Path.
II. THE THREE UNIVERSAL TRUTHS
1. Nothing is lost in the universe
2. Everything Changes
3. The Law of Cause and Effect
In Buddhism, the law of karma, says "for every event that occurs, there will follow another event
whose existence was caused by the first, and this second event will be pleasant or unpleasant
according as its cause was skillful or unskillful." Therefore, the law of Karma teaches that the
responsibility for unskillful actions is borne by the person who commits them.