Buddha was born a Hindu in the Chaitrya caste His objections to Hinduism o Too many gods humans should get more attention than the Gods o Too many rituals too ritualistic o Too much focus on castes o Too much emphasis on sacrifices Common elements with Hinduism o Karma o Reincarnation o Ahinsa o Nirvana moksha Life of Buddha o Siddhartha the one who has overcome the cycle of birth and death o Gautama good soul o Buddha the one who has awakened and found wisdom o Legends about buddha The moment he was born he walked seven steps it was his final birth and final birth White elephant entered womb of mother become great king or a great teacher As a result raised his son in a luxurious and princely manner Finest education o Four Noble Truths Life existence is suffering dukkha remember it Suffering is caused by desire tisna Desire must be overcome Desire is overcome by joining monastic life sanga How does one become Buddhist o The three Jewels refuge accept I take refuge in Buddha I take refuge in Dharma the teachings of Buddha I take refuge in Sanga o The eightfold path Right understanding Right intention Right speech Right action Right work Right effort Right meditation Right contemplation Buddhist scriptures o Pitakas Sutta Pitaka sayings of the Buddha Vinaya Pitaka describes the rules and regulations for monastic life Abhidhamma pitaka contains metaphysical and philosophical doctrines Sects of buddhism o Hinayana or Theravada India Ceylon Sri Lanka Burma and Thailand SE Asian countries Nirvana can be achieved only by joining Sanga monastic order Buddha was simply a human being in spite of being a great teacher and a man of profound character The goal or the ideal of Hinayana Buddhism is to become Arhat a perfect being like Buddha It considers only Sutta Vinaya and Abhidhamma Pitakas as the scriptures and authentic teachings of Buddha o Mahayana China Korea Japan One does not need to join Sanga order Every layman Buddhist by helping others who are in Sanga is in fact showing compassion Karuna for others Buddha is divine being divine nature manifests in three body doctrine Trikaya Trikaya Buddha nature has also taken bodily shape in supernatural buddhas Pure land where we reside after achieving Nirvana is full of such beings Heavenly boddhisatvas who help human on this earth Goal of life is to become boddhisatva the enlightened one namely the one who follows the footsteps of Buddha who refuses to enter Nirvana The Statue of sleeping Buddha Besides Pitakas they also consider Sutras as the sources of Buddha s teachings It mostly employs esoteric practices such as chants and rituals to gain supernatural powers Is found blending with Tibetan Buddhism and believes that Lamas gurus or teachers are the incarnations of the previous lands o Vajryana Tibet o Zen Buddhism One of the Mahayana schools of thought Zen comes from Sanskrit word Dhyana Sanskrit Dhyana necomes Chinese chan Japanese pronounced it as zen Satori or Enlightenment achieved by zazen sitting meditation and deep regular breathing Matsuo Basho great Haiku poet of Japan o Three marks of Reality Change or impermanence anitya Anata your soul must change contrary to Hinduism where soul is unchanging Our existence is dis ease and dis content