Intro to Buddism

The creator of Buddhism is Siddhartha Guatama in Nepal. Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of reality. Guatama was sheltered in his life, so he didn't see any of the negatives in the world. One day when he went outside, he saw a old man, a sick man, and a dead man. So he left his palace to search for a meaning of the true reality. After sitting under a tree for 40 days thinking, he became enlightened, the traveled giving out his teachings as the Buddha.

The three jewels are at the heart of Buddhism. The are the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. The Buddha is the yellow jewel, Dharma is the blue, and Sangha is the red. The first jewel refers to obtaining enlightenment just like the Buddha. The second jewel is the teachings from Buddha. The third jewel is spirtual community.

In Buddhism there is also another teaching that is called the Threefold Way. They are the way of ethics, mediation, and wisdom. Ethics is how one should act, mediation is used to clear the mind, and wisdom gains the person enlightenment.
Next is the four Noble Truths. They are a the characteristics that humanity shares. The four truths are: To live is to suffer, Suffering is caused by desire, Suffering can be brought to cessation, The solution to suffering is the Noble Eightfold Path.

Then there is the Noble Eight Path. The Noble Eightfold path is the practice one must do in order to end suffering and reach a perfect Dharma. The path gets you to obtain:

1. Right Understanding or Perfect Vision, Right Resolve or Perfect Emotion, Right Speech or Perfect Speech, Right Action or Perfect Action, Right Livelihood or Perfect Livelihood, Right Effort or Perfect Effort, Right Mindfulness or Perfect Awareness, Right Meditation or Perfect Samadhi