What do Buddhists teach?

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Some key Buddhism beliefs include:

• Followers of Buddhism don’t acknowledge a supreme god or deity. They instead focus on achieving enlightenment—a state of inner peace and wisdom. When followers reach this spiritual echelon, they’re said to have experienced nirvana.

 

• The religion’s founder, Buddha, is considered an extraordinary man, but not a god. The word Buddha means “enlightened.”

 

• The path to enlightenment is attained by utilizing morality, meditation and wisdom. Buddhists often meditate because they believe it helps awaken truth.

 

• There are many philosophies and interpretations within Buddhism, making it a tolerant and evolving religion.

 

• Some scholars don’t recognize Buddhism as an organized religion, but rather, a “way of life” or a “spiritual tradition.”

 

• Buddhism encourages its people to avoid self-indulgence but also self-denial.

 

• Buddha’s most important teachings, known as The Four Noble Truths, are essential to understanding the religion.
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• Buddhists embrace the concepts of karma (the law of cause and effect) and reincarnation (the continuous cycle of rebirth).

• Followers of Buddhism can worship in temples or in their own homes.

 

• Buddhist monks, or bhikkhus, follow a strict code of conduct, which includes celibacy.

 

• There is no single Buddhist symbol, but a number of images have evolved that represent Buddhist beliefs, including the lotus flower, the eight-spoked dharma wheel, the Bodhi tree and the swastika (an ancient symbol whose name means "well-being" or "good fortune" in Sanskrit). ​

​A gold Buddha figure at the Longhua Temple in the south of Shanghai, first built in 242 AD.

From <https://www.history.com/topics/religion/buddhism#section_1>