Learn Buddhism

What is Buddhism? Buddhism is Awakening

The Buddha showed that the potential for buddhahood exists right here and now in all of us. We all have incredible potential for wisdom and compassion, but we are caught in just chasing figments of our imagination. These figments are an attitude of self clinging and self cherishing, thinking that will bring us happiness.

Buddha showed us the path to cultivate that potential and eventually achieve lasting freedom, as well as boundless compassion, wisdom and energy.

Is Buddhism a Religion?

The whole idea that on the one side you have something called religion, on the other you’ve got something called philosophy, and on the other side science and so on, these are very Western categorisations.

Essentially dharma is a way of looking at and understanding the world.

Not just looking at and understanding but transforming our experience of the world so that what we know about the world is not just an opinion or a theory but something we actually live in in this very moment.

What does Buddhism consist of?

What is Buddhism? The Buddhist path consists of three main elements: meditation, ethical behaviour and wisdom. Each of these aspects of the path acts as a helpful support for the others.

For example, without a stable mind, it is difficult to fully investigate the world. If we only act on impulse and don’t take time to reflect, it is hard to develop a calm mind.

Meditation

Through the practice of meditation we begin to calm the turbulence of mind and develop real insight into how things really are.

Ethical Behavior

By practicing ethical behavior we transform our way of relating to others into one which puts their needs first.

Wisdom

Through the accumulation of wisdom we come to an understanding of the true nature of the world around us.

Since the time of the historical Buddha, numerous men and women have achieved great states of realization through the practice of his teachings, which have been preserved and transmitted in the many Buddhist traditions, including the Sakya tradition of Buddhism, down to the present day.