It’s A Gray Area:

The Buddhist religion dates back to about 563 BCE with the birth of Siddhartha Gautama in Lumbini, Northern India, which now is in Nepal. He was the son of a king, and in childhood was completely sheltered from the real world. But when he was eventually exposed to the miseries of the world, he also encountered a monk who had found peace through contemplation and the renunciation of material objects. Siddhartha was so impressed with that approach that at the age of 29 he renounced his crown and family and set out on a journey to seek the truth.

After a lengthy period of self-denial, discipline and meditation, he attained Supreme Enlightenment. Thereafter as he worked to share his teachings with others he became known as the Buddha, or “the Enlightened One.”

Buddha’s teachings were not actually written down and finalized for about 500 years. Nevertheless, Buddhism slowly spread to numerous countries worldwide, which resulted in the religion’s development. Today, there are an estimated 350 million Buddhists in the world, with the largest concentration in China and Southeast Asia.

Buddha is not a god, and Buddhists do not believe in a god who is the creator of the universe. Instead, Buddha is the highest form of morality and the supreme teacher. Hence, the name Buddha is derived from “budh,” which means “to awaken and be aware or completely conscious of.”

Buddhism today is divided into large numbers of denominations, but most of these share a common set of fundamental beliefs. One of these is reincarnation, which is to say that people are reborn after dying, and this may be done repeatedly. Then after many cycles, if people release their attachment to desire and to the self, they can attain the state of liberation and freedom from suffering that is known as Nirvana.

Most Buddhists also believe in three trainings or practices that can lead to Nirvana. The first is Sila, which is virtue, good conduct and morality. This is in turn is founded upon two principles: equality, which means that all living entities are equal, and reciprocity, which is like the “Golden Rule” in Judaism and Christianity.