Buddhism, one of the major religions of the world, was founded by Siddhartha
             Gautama, the Buddha, who lived in northern India from 560 to 480 B.C. The time of the
             Buddha was one of social and religious change, marked by the further advance of Aryan
             civilization into the Ganges Plain, the development of trade and cities, the breakdown of
             old tribal structures, and the rise of a whole spectrum of new religious movements that
             responded to the demands of the times (Conze 10). These movements were derived from
             the Brahmanic tradition of Hinduism but were also reactions against it. Of the new sects,
             Buddhism was the most successful and eventually spread throughout India and most of
             Today it is common to divide Buddhism into two main branches. The Theravada, or
             "Way of the Elders," is the more conservative of the two; it is dominant in Sri Lanka,
             Burma, and Thailand (Berry 23). The Mahayana, or "Great Vehicle," is more diverse and
             liberal; it is found mainly in Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and among Tibetan peoples, where
             it is distinguished by its emphasis on the Buddhist Tantras (Berry 24). In recent times both
             branches, as well as Tibetan Buddhism, have gained followers in the West.
             It is virtually impossible to tell what the Buddhist population of the world is today;
             statistics are difficult to obtain because persons might have Buddhist beliefs and engage in
             Buddhist rites while maintaining folk or other religions such as Shinto, Confucian, Taoist,
             and Hindu (Corless 41). Such persons might or might not call themselves or be counted as
             Buddhists. Nevertheless, the number of Buddhists worldwide is frequently estimated at
             Just what the original teaching of the Buddha was is a matter of some debate.
             Nonetheless, it may be said to have centered on certain basic doctrines. The first of the
             Four Noble Truths, the Buddha held, is suffering, or duhkha. By this, he meant not only that
             human e...