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Buddhism has always been a religion I’ve been curious about because Buddhist always seem so peaceful and kind to one another. Buddha believe in teaching and providing simple solutions to become happier people and living a life without suffering in rational ways. Also they teach the fundamental idea that kindness and compassion are skills we can learn and master. Buddhism has become more popular over the years, and people are becoming more curious about this religion.
The beliefs and values of Buddhism are based on several different concepts. Buddhism has 3 universal truths, they believe that everything in life is not permanent and it’s always changing, they believe that happiness shouldn’t be based on prized possessions, and lastly they believe that you can’t change your soul, you can only change characteristics of yourself. Buddhism also believes in their 4 noble truths. They believe that suffering is a part of human life, the main cause of suffering is often greediness, and lastly they believe that there's always an end to suffering. Buddhism has a set of norms and rules that they follow daily as well. These set of rules are called the five precepts. They are not to kill or harm any living thing, not to steal, to lead a good life, not to speak unkindly or untruthful, and lastly to not abuse drugs or consume alcohol.
There are many symbols that represent Buddhism, the most popular and oldest symbol is the Dharmachakra which is also recognized as the eight-spoked wheel. The eight spokes of the Dharmachakra represent the eight parts of the path to wisdom and the end of suffering. There is a swirl in the middle that represents the Buddha himself. Buddhism also has many animals set as symbols to represent, such as lions that are often used to represent Buddha himself being kingly and powerful, the deer symbolizes happiness and peace, elephants are symbols of mental strength and resilience to achieve, and lastly peacocks symbolize wisdom. Another symbol for Buddhism are footprints because they represent the physical presence of Buddha and they're also representing following in his footsteps. Lastly Bodhi Trees are a prominent symbol of the Buddha and his path because that's where he was sitting and accomplished enlightenment.
The main languages of Buddhism is Pali, Sanskirt, Chinese, and Tibetan. Originally all of Buddhas sutras were written in Pali, Pali is most likely the original language of Buddhism. Obviously now in time it has probably been translated into all languages so that everyone can enjoy and understand this religion. Some objects and materials that are significant to Buddhism is the Buddist prayer bell, the bells are rung in order to receive protection from “Gods”. The sound of the bell is meant to symbolize the voice of the Buddha, making the sound of the heavenly law. At other times, the bell can represent a sign that it is time to start prayer and reinforce faithfulness. Another significant object used are the Malas prayer beads, these beads are composed of 108 beads, all 108 beads signifies the mortal sins of humanity.
Buddhism is a very interesting religion that I have always wanted to learn more of. Their beliefs are really straightforward and simple unlike other religions, but the rules of daily living are very similar to most religions. It was fascinating to compare my religion to Buddhism and learning about their culture, beliefs, and symbols.
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