Buddhism is the fourth largest religion in the world. Buddhism is a spiritual tradition that focuses on personal spiritual development and the attainment of a deep insight into the true nature of life. The main spiritual goal of Buddhist Religion is to attain 'Nirvana', which means the spiritual liberation from the cycle of birth and rebirth. It was founded in Northern India by the first known Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama.

Siddharta Gautama was born around the year 580 BCE in the village of Lumbini in Nepal. Later he attained true wisdom under the Bodhi tree (the tree of awakening). Buddha delivered his first public address at Sarnath Deer park in Benares, where he spoke of the four noble truths which are,


(i) the world is full of suffering
(ii) suffering is caused by desire
(iii) suffering can be removed
(iv) in order to remove suffering one has to overcome desire and follow the Eightfold Path.



According to Buddha these noble truths can be achieved by following the 'eight fold path', comprising of:

1. Right view.
2. Right thought.
3. Right speech.
4. Right action.
5. Right livelihood.
6. Right effort.
7. Right mindfulness.
8. Right concentration.

The Buddha's Eightfold Path consists of:

• Panna : Discernment, wisdom:
  
  1. Samma ditthi Right Understanding of the Four Noble Truths
  2. Samma sankappa: Right thinking; following the right path in life
     
• Sila: Virtue, morality:
  1. Samma vaca: Right speech: no lying, criticism, condemning, gossip, harsh languag
  2. Samma kammanta Right conduct by following the Five Precepts
  3. Samma ajiva: Right livelihood; support yourself without harming others
     
• Samadhi : Concentration, meditation:
  
  1. Samma vayama Right Effort: promote good thoughts; conquer evil thoughts
  2. Samma sati Right Mindfulness: Become aware of your body, mind and feelings
  3. Samma samadhi Right Concentration: Meditate to achieve a higher state of consciousnes

The teachings of Buddha were first compiled on the Pali script as the 'Tripitakas'. Buddha created monasteries for praying and preaching and till date the paintings of his life and stupas can be seen in the Ajanta & Ellora caves. Schools of Nalanda and Vikramshila in Bihar and Valashi in Gujarat were famous institutes of learning and Ashwaghosha and Nagarjuna were responsible for the spread of Buddhist Culture after Buddha's death.

Temples

Buddhist temples come in many shapes. Perhaps the best known are the pagodas of China and Japan. Another typical Buddhist building is the Stupa, which is a stone structure built over what are thought to be relics of the Buddha, or over copies of the Buddha's teachings. Buddhist temples are designed to symbolise the five elements:

• Fire
• Air
• Earth, symbolised by the square base
• Water
• Wisdom, symbolised by the pinnacle at the top.
• All Buddhist temples contain an image or a statue of Buddha.