Top ten facts
about Buddhism
Damien Keown September 25th 2015
OUPblog
Damien Keown, author of
Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction,
tells us ten things we need to know about Buddhism. From the Sangha
to reincarnation, discover fascinating facts about Buddhism
below:
1.
The term
‘Buddhism’ was coined by Western scholars in the 1830s. Buddhists
don’t actually refer to their religion as “Buddhism”.
2.
Buddhism
originated from around 400BC with the historical individual known
as the
Buddha.
3.
The first mention
of the Buddha in Western writing is in the writings of Clement of
Alexandria, 2 AD.
4.
The Buddha founded
an order of monks and nuns known as the
Sangha who have preserved his
teachings down to the present day.
5.
Buddhism is
an extensive and internally diverse tradition with two main
branches.
6.
With 360 million
followers, Buddhism is the fourth largest religion in the
world.
7.
In Buddhism, there
is no single holy book. Extensive scriptures have been preserved in
many Asian languages.
8.
Buddhists don’t
believe in a supreme being or creator god.
9.
Because of its
emphasis on meditation and mindfulness, Buddhism is often
considered to be a form of psychology rather than a
religion.
10.
Many
traditional Buddhists believe in
reincarnation
and rebirth.
Modern Buddhists believe this idea can be jettisoned without losing
any central value.