The past few weeks I have written mainly about Christianity and the dominant beliefs in this area. However, there is obviously more than one religion out there so why not discuss it, right? Let’s shift gears and chat about a not necessarily lesser known, but a lesser-understood religion called Buddhism.
When many people think of Buddhism, they picture China, those monks in orange robes with the shaved heads and the Dalai Lama, but there are many other aspects to this religion than what appears on the outside. The way I see it, there are three major misconceptions about Buddhism.
1. Buddhists worship their God, Buddha.
Not quite. Gautama Siddha, commonly known as “the Buddha,” is not a god. He was a prince who gave up all of his riches in order to find an end to what is called Dukka, or suffering. Dukka is a natural part of life and is part of what is called The Four Noble Truths. But, as Buddhists believe, if one follows the Eightfold Path, one can finally end suffering.
Buddha was the first to practice these concepts and is seen as more of a prophet than a god. In fact, Buddhists are not believers in a god in the traditional sense. They believe in Dharma, the Laws of Nature, but that is about as close as it gets to a traditional god.
2. All Buddhists are from East Asia
Wrong again. While the majority of Buddhists are of Asian descent, there is a large population of Buddhists in the United States that do not trace their ancestry back to East Asia. In Southern California, there are almost 1.2 million Buddhists who come from a variety of backgrounds. In even bigger numbers, meditation (which is a Buddhist concept) is practiced by millions of people from all demographics.
3. “Nirvana” means to be enlightened
This is very close, but not entirely true. Every sect of Buddhism has a different view of Nirvana, yet for the most part, it is widely agreed that Nirvana is when one ends his or her personal suffering. Some believe that this can be achieved through the Eightfold Path, but all practices of the religion have their different view on this subject.
Essentially, there is much about religions that is often misconstrued by people who do not understand them. My advice is to find out for yourself the beliefs of Buddhism and how they vary from person to person.
