Can anyone tell me is Buddhism a true religion?

Answer 1

To many, Buddhism goes beyond religion and is more of a philosophy or 'way of life'. It is a philosophy because philosophy 'means love of wisdom' and the Buddhist path can be summed up as:

(1) to lead a moral life,
(2) to be mindful and aware of thoughts and actions, and
(3) to develop wisdom and understanding.

Buddhism depends more on understanding than faith.

Buddhism teaches that wisdom should be developed with compassion. At one extreme, you could be a goodhearted fool and at the other extreme, you could attain knowledge without any emotion. Buddhism uses the middle path to develop both. The highest wisdom is seeing that in reality, all phenomena are incomplete, impermanent and do no constitute a fixed entity. True wisdom is not simply believing what we are told but instead experiencing and understanding truth and reality. Wisdom requires an open, objective, unbigoted mind. The Buddhist path requires courage, patience, flexibility and intelligence.

In Buddhism, understanding is the most important thing and understanding takes time. So do not impulsively rush into Buddhism. Take your time, ask questions, consider carefully, and then make your decision. The Buddha was not interested in having large numbers of disciples. He was concerned that people should follow his teachings as a result of a careful investigation and consideration of facts.

Answer 2

I'm taking a World Religions course right now and Buddhism is not only a religion, but a culture as well. The founder of the religion is Siddhartha Kautama "The Buddha" (one of the Hindu prophets) and there are three large branches: Theravada (concerned with self-preservation), Mahayana (concerned with helping others), and Vajrayana (still learning about this one). If you want more information, let me know. I have a whole textbook!

Answer 3

An estimated 350+ Million Buddhists worldwide think so. The religion was founded in 535 (BCE) in northern India by Siddhartha Gautama, the first known buddha. It is an older religion than Islam or Christianity (obviously). Just stating facts, I don't mean to imply anything by it.

How does one prove a religion is true(tm)?

Answer 4

NO, As in the times buddhism was created, is where people are still looking for false idols, from the start man has made things out of materials, a God cannot be made, God created Jesus, Man can not create Gods. Many people in the days of old, created images to find something to worship out of ignorance, that is why God came as the flesh of the son, so that people could know this, and be forgiven of there sins, We are seperated from God through our sins and the only way to be near God, is through Jesus Christ and the only way to Heaven, Gods Kingdom, other religions are built on lack of knowledge, egyptians even worshipped cats at one time and had them buried with them.

Answer 5

All religions were true at one point. Over time it became changed do to politics. As humanity matured so did he have the capacity for higher levels of knowledge and thus new prophets came until the Final Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and eventually brought Europe out of the dark ages with the Renaissance and here we are in a nutshell.

Answer 6

That depends. Zen Buddhism, for instance, is really not a religion. For those who believe that the Buddha was an incarnation of Vishnu however, it is very much a religion.

Answer 7

anyone can tell you buddhism is a true religion. see, buddhism is a true religion. any faith in something is considered religion these days, but don't get mixed up in the politics. if you believe, then it is real.

Answer 8

Buddhism is a philosophical way of life. Buddhists aren't exclusive of secular religions.

Answer 9

Followers of the Buddha might get torqued at such an impertinent question, except that they are generally accepting of the universe just the way it is, and so would probably appreciate that you cannot help but ask the questions you ask.

I bet $12 dollars you are a Christian. Do I win?

The world is just as it is.

Answer 10

I do not believ it is. not in the purest sense anyway.
dependng on what school you follow there is no "god".

The buddha was a man. He lived and died. we buddhists (some anyway) do not pray to him and hope he lets us become enlightened. It is a lifelong journey. a way to live your life.

Buddhism helps you see the world and to understand it. as you go through life showing peace and kindness to all you hope to bring buddhism to others.

It really is a way of living your life, a way of thinking.

I am very glad I found this faith.