A little about Buddhism...

There are different varieties of Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism is one, southeast asian Buddhism is found in Thailand and surrounding areas, the Indian variety can be fount in northern India and in Sri Lanka.

The Buddha himself seems to be a half man, half mythical figure. His name was Siddhartha Gautama and was born as a rich man. His father tried to sheild him from the realities of life by creating a utopian existance for him. At some point, Siddhartha decided to leave the palaces and went out into the world to experience suffering. Through meditation for 49 days under a Bodhi tree , he achieved enlightenment and discovered the root of suffering. Here's an excerpt from the book "Sacred Symbols of Buddhism" about what he understood:


For Enlightenment, which brings salvation, the Buddha laid out the Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Paths. The Four Noble Truths are constructed on the logic of syllogism with the proposition or premise - the thesis - :

1. That suffering is cused by worldly bonds;


2. That its origin is linked to Samsara, the cycle of human existence, caused by desire such as lust, possession, and happiness;


3. That suffering must be eliminated by the destruction of desire through the elimination of ignorance;


4. And that the elimination of ignorance, the ultimate cause of human misery, must be made through the Eightfold Paths which leads to Enlightenment.

The Eightfold Paths recommend the following:

1. Right understanding


2. Right attitude


3. Right speech


4. Right action


5. Right conduct


6. Right effort


7. Right attention or mindfulness


8. Right meditation

There is a lot more to Buddhism than this, but it should give you an idea of what the buddha taught. For more on Buddhism, read here.