What is Buddhism and Nirvana?
Perhaps I shall first begin by talking about my personal experiences with Buddhism. My family, originally from Laos, are all Buddhist. In fact, my mother and father are devout Buddhists and attend temple on a regular basis. My sisters and brother and I were all raised Buddhist, but we did not really learn the meaning behind the practices. For example, we adhered to many Buddhist traditions, such as praying in front of a shrine, bowing to the Buddha statue to show reverence, holding hand-held prayer wheels, and honoring our ancestors on specific days. However, we were not taught the stories and significances behind such practices. Rather, we were expected to practice many aspects of Buddhism simply because generations and generations of our ancestors had adhered to these traditions. This did not make sense to me however - to accept things solely based on tradition did not seem practical to me. My desire to learn more about my Buddhist background, coupled with my desire to travel to Southeast Asia, led me to travel to China, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Myanmar last summer. It was there that I really learned more about the different aspects that comprise Buddhism, the different wa . . .
Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, did not claim to be divine. Nirvana is the enlightenment of the soul and is a state of total peace and happiness. Eat little, and sparingly, be kind to one another, speak gently to each other, never revile another human form, live in as secluded and peaceful a place as you can, to concentrate yourselves on higher thoughts. However, I think his actions do not have to be judged as merely good or bad. He smiled gently, “Buddhism is an education itself. Even when Buddhists describe it as supreme happiness and perfect wisdom, they are not really explaining it completely. They were very serious and chanted, . The Burmese are Buddhists--more than 80% are Buddhist--and they are gentle and kind and very devoted. Traditional practices proclaim that nirvana can only be reached by practicing the four nobles truths, which is accepting the principles that (1) life is suffering, (2) this suffering is caused by craving (3) this suffering can be overcome and happiness obtained and (4) truth and contentment are possible. There is no conflict between learning and praying. Wealthy merchants and pilgrims heading west on the Silk Road made donations to the monks here to paint grottoes dedicated to their God. ” His are the same beliefs that this place was founded on over 1,700 years ago. Those who are truly enlightened should not feel the need to identify with polar extremes such as "good" or "bad".
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