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Buddhism Portal

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha (Pāli/Sanskrit "the awakened one"). Buddha who was born as a prince in Kapilvastu, in modern day Nepal, lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE. He is recognized by adherents as an awakened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end suffering, achieve nirvana, and escape what is seen as a cycle of suffering and rebirth. Two major branches of Buddhism are recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada—the oldest surviving branch—has a widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, and Mahayana is found throughout East Asia and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, Tendai and Shinnyo-en. In some classifications Vajrayana, a subcategory of Mahayana, is recognized as a third branch. While Buddhism remains most popular within Asia, both branches are now found throughout the world. Various sources put the number of Buddhists in the world at between 230 million and 500 million, making it the world's fourth-largest religion.

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Foguang Temple is a temple located five kilometers away from Doucun, Wutai County, Shanxi Province of China. The major hall of the temple is the East Hall, built in 857 AD, during the Tang Dynasty (618–907). According to architectural records, it is the third earliest preserved timber structure in China. It was discovered by the 20th century architectural historian Liang Sicheng (1901–1972) in 1937, while the older hall at Nanchan Temple was discovered by the same team a year later. The temple also contains two other halls, one dating from 1137, and one dating from the Ming Dynasty. In addition, the second oldest pagoda in China (after the Songyue Pagoda), dating from the 6th century, is located in the temple grounds.

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Credit: Lankapic

The second most ancient of Sri Lanka's kingdoms, Polonnaruwa was first declared the capital city by King Vijayabahu I, who defeated the Chola invaders in 1070 CE to reunite the country once more under a local leader.

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In this month

5 March 1938 - Japanese Buddhist lay movement Risshō Kōsei Kai established by Nikkyo Niwano and Myoko Naganuma
21 March 2001 - Buddhas of Bamyan destroyed by the Taliban on orders of Mullah Mohammed Omar
24 March 1951 - Italian Buddhist missionary Lokanatha hoists Buddhist flag (pictured) for the first time in Burma
26 March 1979 - Founder of Mahamevnawa Buddhist Monastery Kiribathgoda Gnanananda Thero is ordained at age 17

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Buddhism at Wikinews

February 2: China urges Obama to cancel Dalai Lama visit
August 30: Dalai Lama begins trip to Taiwan

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Steven F. Seagal (born April 10, 1952) is an American action movie actor, producer, writer, director, martial artist and singer-songwriter. He belongs to a generation of movie action hero actors (including Sylvester Stallone, Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren and Jean-Claude Van Damme) who were featured in many of the Hollywood blockbuster action films of the late 1980s and 1990s. A 6' 4" (193 cm) 7th-dan black belt in aikido, Seagal began his adult life as an aikido instructor in Japan. He became the first foreigner to operate an aikido dojo in Osaka, Japan. He later moved to the Los Angeles, California area where he made his film debut in 1988 in Above the Law. Since then, Seagal has become a well recognized action star, mainly due to his action films of the 1990s such as Under Siege (1992) and Under Siege 2 (1995) where he played Navy SEALs counter-terrorist expert Casey Ryback. In total his movies have earned in excess of $850 million worldwide. Seagal is also a recording artist and guitarist and the founder of Steven Seagal Enterprises. In addition to his professional achievements, he is also known as an environmentalist, an animal rights activist and, like other actors such as Richard Gere, is a supporter of Tenzin Gyatso the 14th Dalai Lama and the cause of Tibetan independence. Spiritualism and Buddhism play an important role in Seagal's life and he has been recognized by Tibetan lama Penor Rinpoche as a reincarnated Tulku.

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Did you know...

...that Buryat Mongolian Buddhist Agvan Dorzhiev (pictured) was a tutor and debating partner of the teenage Thubten Gyatso, 13th Dalai Lama?
...that the Buddhist monk Tetsugen spent twenty years in an attempt to publish the Chinese scriptures of Buddhism in Japan, because he kept giving away the money he collected for the purpose?
...that the Double Seven Day scuffle refers to a fight in Saigon in 1963 between South Vietnamese secret police and journalists covering the Buddhist crisis?

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Wikipedia:WikiProject Buddhism

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WikiProject Tibetan Buddhism

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When other sects speak well of Zen, the first thing that they praise is its poverty.

— Dōgen

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Topics

Buddhism (book)

Outline of Buddhism

History of Buddhism: Timeline • Buddhist councils

Major Figures: Gautama Buddha • Disciples • Later Buddhists

Dharma or Concepts: Four Noble Truths • Noble Eightfold Path • Three marks of existence • Dependent Origination • Saṃsāra • Nirvana • Skandha • Cosmology • Karma • Rebirth

Practices and Attainment: Buddhahood • Bodhisattva • 4 Stages of Enlightenment • Wisdom • Meditation • Precepts • Pāramitās • Three Jewels • Monastics • Laity

Countries and Regions

Schools: Theravāda • Mahāyāna • Vajrayāna

Texts: Pali Canon • Tibetan Canon • Chinese Canon

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Requested articles: East West Foundation; Gedatsu Church of America; Jodo Mission; Neo-Dharma; Pansophic Institute; Shingon Mission; Yaoshan Weiyan
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See also: {{BuddhismOpenTask}}

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Hinduism	Shinto	Taoism	Jainism	Religion	Spirituality	Asia

Tibetan Buddhism · Vajrayana Buddhism

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