Buddhism is the world’s oldest missionary religion. Since its beginnings some 2,500 years ago in northern India, it has spread to nearly every region of the world. There are now more than 350 million Buddhists in the world, most of whom belong to one or the other of the 2 major schools: the Mahayana and the Theravada. Buddhist core philosophical tenets and beliefs include Karma, Nirvāna, and
Category: PHILOSOPHY
Theravada Buddhism comes from the teachings of the Buddha, who lived in the 5th century B.C.E. The Theravada (School of the Elders, in the Pali
Category: TEACHER
Bodhidharma (ca. early 5th century), known in China as Damo and in Japan as Daruma; traditionally considered the 28th patriarch of Indian Buddhism and
Category: BUDDHA ASPECTS
Bhaiṣajyaguru, the Buddha named Master of Healing, is an important member of the Mahāyāna Buddhist pantheon. He has been worshiped predominantly in
BUDDHISM
Theravada Buddhism comes from the teachings of the Buddha, who lived in the 5th century B.C.E. The Theravada (School of the Elders, in the Pali language) is the sole surviving branch of the earliest Buddhism. Its primary emphasis was on monastic life, with the single goal of
Shandao | Biography Shandao (613–681) was an eminent Buddhist scholar and major figure in the Chinese Pure Land ( Jingtu ) movement. His writings had a strong influence on later Pure Land masters including Hōnen and Shinran in Japan. Shandao ( Shan-tao , 613-681) was born at
1. Shandao's life Shandao ( Shan-tao , 613-681) was born at Suzhou in the present Anhui Province (according to another tradition, Zhucheng in the Shandong Province ). When young, he entered the priesthood and devoted himself to the study of the Larger Sūtra of Amit ābha and the
Hōnen Hōnen (1133–1212), more fully Hōnen Shōnin Genkū , was a Japanese Buddhist priest and reformer, and the founder of the Jōdo Shū sect of Japanese Buddhism. Hōnen 's life reflects the changing times in which he lived as well as his role in those changes. He was born in the 4
1. Hōnen Hōnen (May 13, 1133 – February 29, 1212) was the religious reformer and founder of the first independent branch of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism called Jōdo-shū (" The Pure Land School "). He is also considered the 7 th Jōdo Shinshū Patriarch . Hōnen became a Tendai