What is Buddhism?

Buddhism is a world religion that regards the "Buddha" as its supreme teacher and is fundamentally characterized by the veneration of the Buddha. Together with Christianity and Islam, it is known as one of the world’s three major religions. According to tradition, it was founded between the 6th and 5th centuries BCE by Siddhartha Gautama, a prince of the ancient Indian kingdom of Kapilavastu (located near present-day Tilaurakot in southern Nepal), who is known as Shakyamuni Buddha.

The core doctrine of Buddhism asserts that real life is characterized by impermanence (anitya), non-self (anātman), impurity, and suffering (duḥkha). Suffering is caused by individuals’ own delusions (kleśa) and karmic actions (karma). Delusions refer to afflictions such as greed, hatred, and ignorance, while karma encompasses actions of body, speech, and mind. Delusions and karma are the causes that bring about the continuous cycle of birth and death (saṃsāra), with rebirth and retribution based on one’s moral conduct. Therefore, the only way to transcend suffering is by following the teachings preserved in the Tripiṭaka—the scriptures of sutra (discourses), vinaya (discipline), and abhidharma (philosophy)—and by cultivating the Threefold Training of morality (śīla), concentration (samādhi), and wisdom (prajñā), thereby transforming worldly desires and understanding. The ultimate goal of such transformation is called nirvāṇa or liberation. These teachings are embodied in fundamental doctrines such as the Five Aggregates (pañcaskandha), the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination (dvādaśa nidāna), the Noble Eightfold Path (āryāṣṭāṅgamārga), Nirvāṇa, and the Four Noble Truths (catuṣpariṣat), which form the basis of the various schools of Buddhist thought.

As Indian society evolved, Buddhism also underwent four major stages of development:

• From the mid-6th to mid-4th century BCE, the period of Shakyamuni’s teaching and the transmission of his teachings by disciples, known as Early Buddhism;

• From the mid-4th century BCE, due to doctrinal and disciplinary disagreements, the Sangha split into numerous sects, later referred to as the 18 or 20 schools, collectively known as Sectarian Buddhism;

• Around the 1st century CE, Mahāyāna Buddhism emerged, referring to the earlier teachings and their adherents as Hīnayāna or “Lesser Vehicle.”

Mahāyāna Buddhism emphasized great compassion and the ideal of benefiting both self and others, advocating active engagement in the world and the salvation of all beings. Its doctrines shifted from a focus on human existence to broader cosmological interpretations. The ultimate goal evolved from personal liberation and nirvāṇa to enlightenment and Buddhahood. Practitioners of the Mahāyāna path are known as Bodhisattvas, while those of the Hīnayāna path are called Śrāvakas or Pratyekabuddhas, collectively referred to as the “two vehicles.”
Within Mahāyāna, two prominent philosophical schools later developed: the Madhyamaka school, which teaches that conventional reality exists but ultimate reality is emptiness, and all things are insubstantial like illusions; and the Yogācāra school, which posits that external phenomena do not truly exist and that all experiences are manifestations of consciousness—these became the two most representative theoretical systems.

Buddhist scriptures were initially transmitted orally and later written down. Over time, a wide variety of texts emerged, forming the basis of different sects and traditions. These texts are collectively known as the Tripiṭaka: Sūtra (discourses), Vinaya (disciplinary codes), and Abhidharma (philosophical treatises). They exist primarily in four major languages: Sanskrit, Pāli, Chinese, and Tibetan.

Starting from the reign of Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya dynasty in the 3rd century BCE, and later under King Kaniṣka of the Kushan dynasty in the 2nd century BCE, Buddhism began to spread beyond the Indian subcontinent. Through interaction with diverse cultures and religions, it developed into a global religion with a wide range of ethnically distinctive schools.

Generally speaking, the transmission of Buddhism to China and subsequently to Korea, Japan, and Vietnam took the form of Mahāyāna Buddhism and is referred to as Northern Buddhism. The Chinese-language texts of this tradition are called Chinese Buddhism (Han Buddhism). The form of Buddhism transmitted to Tibet, Inner Mongolia, Mongolia, and Siberia is a branch of Northern Buddhism known as Tibetan Buddhism, with its scriptures preserved in Tibetan.
The tradition that spread to present-day Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and parts of Yunnan in China is primarily Theravāda Buddhism (also known as Southern Buddhism), with its canonical texts in Pāli.

Buddhism was introduced to mainland China in the first year of the Yuanshou reign of Emperor Ai of the Western Han Dynasty (2 BCE). It flourished during the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties (220–589), reaching its zenith during the Sui and Tang dynasties (581–907), during which numerous schools developed, including Tiantai, Sanlun, Vinaya (Lüzong), Pure Land, Yogācāra (Faxiang), Huayan, Chan (Zen), Esoteric Buddhism (Mizong), and the Three Stages Teaching (Sanjiejiao).
In the early Tang period, Buddhism was introduced to Tibet, where it integrated with the indigenous Bon religion and began to develop into a distinctive Tibetan Buddhist tradition based on the Mahāyāna esoteric teachings from 7th-century India.

After the Song Dynasty, Chinese Buddhism increasingly merged with Confucianism and Daoism, gradually declining in influence, though it continued to deeply affect various aspects of society. In the Liao, Jin, and Western Xia dynasties, Buddhism remained vibrant. By the Yuan Dynasty, Tibetan Buddhism gained nationwide prominence, further reinforcing the integration between Tibetan and Han Buddhist traditions.