Buddhism
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| Buddhism
has 307 million followers worldwide. It was founded in southern Nepal
in the 5th and 6th centuries B.C. by Siddharta Gautama, known as the
Buddha (Enlightened One). The Buddha achieved enlightenment through
meditation and he gathered a community of monks to carry on his
teachings. According to Buddha, meditation and the practice of good
religious and moral behavior can lead to Nirvana, the state of
enlightenment, although before achieving Nirvana one is subject to
repeated lifetimes that are good or bad depending on one's actions
(karma). Existence, for Buddhists, is a realm of suffering. Desire,
along with the belief in the importance of one's self, causes
suffering. Achievement of Nirvana ends suffering. And Nirvana is
attained only by meditation and by following the path of righteousness
in action, thought and attitude. |
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