what does dharma mean?
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Dharma is the path of righteousness and living one's life according to the codes of conduct as described by the Vedas and Upanishads. Dharma means "that which holds" the people of this world and the whole creation. It refers to the religious ethics as propounded by Hindu gurus in ancient Indian scriptures. Tulsidas, author of Ramcharitmanas, has defined the root of dharma as compassion. This principle was taken up by Lord Buddha in his immortal book of great wisdom, Dhammapada.\n\nHinduism describes dharma as the natural universal laws whose observance enables humans to be contented and happy, and to save himself from degradation and suffering. Dharma is the moral law combined with spiritual discipline that guides one's life. Hindus consider dharma the very foundation of life. Atharva Veda describes dharma symbolically: Prithivim dharmana dhritam, that is, "this world is upheld by dharma".\n\nHinduism accepts the concept of reincarnation, and what determines the state of an individual in the next existence is karma which refers to the actions undertaken by the body and the mind. In order to achieve good karma it is important to live life according to dharma, what is right. This involves doing what is right for the individual, the family, the class or caste and also for the universe itself.\n\nDharma is like a cosmic norm and if one goes against the norm it can result in bad karma. So, dharma affects the future according to the karma accumulated. Therefore one's dharmic path in the next life is the one necessary to bring to fruition all the results of past karma.\n\nThe term dharma can best be explained as the "law of being" without which things cannot exist, just as the essential factor in human being is life - the atman without which he cannot exist. Therefore the dharma of human being is atman. And hence any good atmic quality is dharmic. Dharma therefore implies duty - a course of conduct. For example, Hinduism endorses the idea that it is one's dharma to marry, raise a family and provide for that family in whatever way is necessary.\n\nAnything that helps human being to reach god is dharma and anything that hinders human being from reaching god is adharma. For instance, in the epic poem Mahabharata, the Pandavas represent dharma in life and the Kauravas represent adharma.\n\nThe essence of dharma lies in possessing a certain ability, power and spiritual strength. Vedic Dharma is always truthful because its basis is the unique combination of spiritual brilliance and physical prowess.\n\nHindu saints have classified all human aspirations under four broad categories: dharma, kama (desire), artha (money) and moksha (liberation from the cycle of birth and death). The practice of dharma gives an experience of peace, joy, strength and tranquillity within one's self and makes life disciplined. Of these four values the majority of human beings pursue artha and kama, and the more sensitive individual pursue dharma, while very few are conscious if the moksha - ideal spiritual aspiration.\n\nAccording to the Bhagavat Purana, righteous living or life on a dharmic path has four aspects: austerity (tap), purity (shauch), compassion (daya) and truthfulness (satya); and adharmic or unrighteous life has three vices: pride (ahankar), contact (sangh), and intoxication (madya).\n\nManusmriti written by the ancient sage Manu, prescribes ten essential rules for the observance of dharma: Patience (dhriti), forgiveness (kshama), piety or self control (dama), honesty (asteya), sanctity (shauch), control of senses (indraiya-nigrah), reason (dhi), knowledge or learning (vidya), truthfulness (satya) and absence of anger (krodha). Manu further writes, "Non-violence, truth, non-coveting, purity of body and mind, control of senses are the essence of dharma". Therefore dharmic laws govern not only the individual but all in society.\n\nThe purpose of dharma is not only to attain a union of the sou
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Buddhism is a religion to about 300 million people around the world. The word comes from 'budhi', 'to awaken'. It has its origins about 2,500 years ago when Siddhartha Gotama, known as the Buddha, was himself awakened (enlightened) at the age of 35.\nbuddha is not a god. he is a teacher.\nTo many, Buddhism goes beyond religion and is more of a philosophy or 'way of life'. It is a philosophy because philosophy 'means love of wisdom' and the Buddhist path can be summed up as:\n\n(1) to lead a moral life,\n(2) to be mindful and aware of thoughts and actions, and\n(3) to develop wisdom and understanding.\n\nBuddhism explains a purpose to life, it explains apparent injustice and inequality around the world, and it provides a code of practice or way of life that leads to true happiness.\nBuddhism is becoming popular in western countries for a number of reasons, The first good reason is Buddhism has answers to many of the problems in modern materialistic societies. It also includes (for those who are interested) a deep understanding of the human mind (and natural therapies) which prominent psychologists around the world are now discovering to be both very advanced and effective.\nScience is knowledge which can be made into a system, which depends upon seeing and testing facts and stating general natural laws. The core of Buddhism fit into this definition, because the Four Noble truths can be tested and proven by anyone in fact the Buddha himself asked his followers to test the teaching rather than accept his word as true. Buddhism depends more on understanding than faith.
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Spiritual means invisible...\n\nReligion is what someone personally practices...\n\nSpirituality is in the realm of inner feelings...
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There are many forms of Buddhism and as you know, Zen is only one of them.  Zen is a form of Mahayana Buddhism. The Name Zen is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese Character Ch'an which was the name given to the Dhyana teachings of Buddhism. \n\nA few of the more distinctive teachings of Zen(Ch'an) are:\n- Zen puts a great deal of emphases on meditation. This includes traditional sitting meditation, walking meditation and meditation while performing daily tasks such as eating, working, etc...\n- Zen puts little emphases on textual studies. Zen practitioners do read the sutras, but unlike many other forms of Buddhism, the sutras are not considered the paramount in the achievement of enlightenment. \n- Some forms of Buddhism, such as most schools of Tibetan Buddhism as well as Pure Land schools of Buddhism have many ceremonies, and rituals. Zen has many fewer and less 'secretive' practices.  \n- The Use of the Koan.  Most other schools of Buddhism believe that Enlightenment comes from a deep understanding of the doctrines of Buddhism. Zen teaches the enlightenment is a spontaneous response that is NOT perpetuated by classical study and knowledge... It just happens. A koan is a question, statement or story that generally contains aspects that are inaccessible to rational understanding, yet may be accessible to intuition and thus lead to enlightenment. \n- Generally speaking, Zen puts less emphases on Buddha the man and more on Buddha's teachings. \n\nI hope this helps.
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Buddhism generally explain the cause of our existence , and how to end the rebirth cycle . The main core teaching of The Lord Buddha is the Four Noble Truth and the Noble Eight Fold Path . These teachings or Dharma preach by The Buddha teaches us on how to end our suffering by practicing Morality ( Sila ) , Samadhi ( Concentration ) and Panna ( Wisdom )\n\nFrom the Dharma that The Lord Buddha have preached to us , the cause of Suffering ( our existence ) is due to Tanha ( attachment ).  Literally , Tanha means thirst which covers all the senses of greed , lust , desire, cravings , and likes .\n\nWhen there is Tanha , there will be suffering . For example , people who are very greedy and love their money so much that they do not want to be apart . This is the attachment and when they loss their money , they feel very sad which is clearly a suffering to them . Or when one loss a love one , this is also a suffering because they are very attached to the decease .\n\nAs summary : Suffering is the cause of Attachment . Attachment is the cause of Wrong View . Wrong view is the cause of Ignorant . So , By learning and practicing the Dharma , one is expected to eliminate Ignorant ( Moha / Avijja in Pali Language ) which eventually , eliminates sufferings in the end . \n\nIt may be very hard to understand Budhhism here because you may not understand what i say here . However , what i have written here is only a very general idea on what Buddhism is since there are those who have already told you who the Buddha is .\n\nIf you are interested in knowing more about Buddhism , you can always attend to the nearest Buddhist temple or other Buddhist website. There is no regulation such as if you enter a Buddhist Temple , you must be a Buddhist . Every people ( from other religion or all walks of life )is allowed to come , investigate , question and study the Dharma ( teachings of the Buddha ) without the need to convert to Buddhism if he / she has no intention to do so .\n\nHowever , for those who wish to create havoc by questioning every thing about the teaching of the Buddha in which his / her objective is not towards the understanding of the religion but more to condemning the religion , i urge them all to be more understanding and stop their action as many people will be irritated or hurt by their words.\n\nSadhu , May all be well and happy ..
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There's actually an answer to this question, the problem is, it doesn't translate into English. The answer is "Mu" (in Japanese,  Wú orMou in Chinese). It's used as a response to certain koans and other questions in Zen Buddhism, intending to indicate that the question itself was wrong.
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Hinduism is known as Sanatana Dharma. Sanatana means eternal. Dharma means Righteousness and good moral and ethical practices in accordance with the scriptures. Includes all duties -- individual, social and religious.\n\nSanatana-dharma means both the ultimate spiritual truth and the means to attain it. And that truth is the divine knowledge of the soul. So if there is to be any eternality in our relationships, or any spiritual connection with anything we do, it has to be based on that divine knowledge of the soul, the ultimate reality. That is the path of Sanatana-dharma, to realize our spiritual identity and then know how to act accordingly.\n\n\nAnyone who follows certain basic beliefs is a hindu. They are listed below:\n\n*Who believe in an all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both          immanent and transcedent, both Creator and Unmanifest reality. The supreme reality becomes manifest in various aspects and forms, and is known by various names. There are various ways by which individuals, in accordance with his/her temperament can realize God.\n\n*believe in karma, the law of cause and effect by which each individual creates his own destiny by thoughts, words and deeds.\n\n*believe in Dharma, Righteousness and good moral and ethical practices in accordance with the scriptures. Includes all duties -- individual, social and religious.\n\n*believe that the soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved.\n\n*believe that all souls are evolving towards union with God and will ultimately find moksha: spiritual knowledge and liberation from cycle of rebirth. Not a single soul will be eternally deprived of this destiny.\n\n*believe in Humanism, Equality of all human beings, regardless of caste, color and creed. Respect and reverence for womanhood.\n\n*believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore practice ahimsa or nonviolence.\n\n*believe that no particular religion teaches the only way to salvation above all others, but that all genuine religious paths are facets of God's pure love and light, deserving tolerance and understanding.\n\n\nAlso follow some observances like:\n# Patience, firmness and stability (Dhruti)\n\n# Forgiveness (Kshama)\n\n# Self-control and contentment (Dama)\n\n# Not to steal or conceal, or be selfish (Asteya)\n\n# Cleanliness, purity and honesty (Saucham)\n\n# Control over senses and sexual energy (Indriya Nigraha)\n\n# Right knowledge of the scripture (Dhee)\n\n# Material and spiritual knowledge or study (Vidya)\n\n# Truth (Satya)\n\n# Absence of anger (Akrodha)
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Buddhism is Not a Religion.\n\nhttp://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/buddha.html#1  <<< who is buddha?\n\nBuddhism is a philosophy of life expounded by Gautama Buddha ("Buddha" means "enlightened one"), who lived and taught in northern India in the 6th Century B.C. The Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of Buddhism does not entail any theistic world-view. The teachings of the Buddha are aimed solely to liberate sentient beings from suffering. \nGautama Buddha taught the four noble truths: that there is suffering, that suffering has a cause, that suffering has an end and that there is a path that leads to the end of suffering. He saw that all phenomena in life are impermanent and that our attachment to the idea of substantial and enduring self is an illusion which is the principle cause of suffering. \nFreedom from self liberates the heart from greed hatred and delusion and opens the mind to wisdom and the heart to kindness and compassion. \n\nif you want to gain more insight into buddhism's wisdom, my advice to you is to find a temple or monastry near you, and ask a buddhist master directly. do not be afraid that they may 'recruit' you into buddhism. no obligation, really. you should have the 'look see' attitude. \nfor people who are new to buddhism, this is an advice: TRY TO BE CRITICAL at everything you see and hear, but do not be afraid to open yourself up, and give new ideas the chance to settle in; in other words, avoid accepting things before you have taken time to 'sit on it' (meditate), and also avoid rejecting things before you 'sat on them'. Especially if we grew up in a different religious tradition, our prejudices often go deeper than we think - be aware of your own mind. \nyou must remember that buddhism can't be told or taught. it has to be experienced.
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nirvana (nērvä'nə) , in Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism, a state of supreme liberation and bliss, contrasted to samsara or bondage in the repeating cycle of death and rebirth. The word in Sanskrit refers to the going out of a flame once its fuel has been consumed; it thus suggests both the end of suffering and the cessation of desires that perpetuate bondage. Epithets of nirvana in Buddhism include “the free,” “the immortal,” and “the unconditioned.” Nirvana is attainable in life, and the death of one who has attained it is termed parinirvana, or complete nirvana. This has often been interpreted as annihilation, but in fact the Buddhist scriptures say that the state of the enlightened man beyond death cannot be described. Nirvana in the different Indian traditions is achieved by moral discipline and the practice of yoga leading to the extinction of all attachment and ignorance. See also karma.
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A Buddha is a person who has developed all positive qualities and has eliminated all negative qualities. A Buddha has been an "ordinary" living being, like you and me before he became enlightened or awakened. Enlightenment is compared to waking up, as a person makes a complete transformation in body and especially mind. A Buddha is said to be all-knowing. One could say that a Buddha represents the very peak of evolution. A Buddha is not omnipotent or all-powerful; otherwise the Buddha would have ended all suffering in the universe....\nHe did not claim that he was a god, the child of a god or even the messenger from a god.\nWhen we bow, we express our gratitude to the Buddha for what his teachings have given us. This is the nature of Buddhist worship.\n\n***When someone worships a god, they praise him or her, making offerings and ask for favours, believing that the god will hear their praise, receive their offerings and answer their prayers. Buddhists do not indulge in this kind of worship.\n\nSimply speaking, this is to avoid harming others and to help them as much as possible. Another way of expressing this is, Abandon negative action; create perfect virtue; subdue your own mind. This is the teaching of the Buddha. By abandoning negative actions (killing, etc.) and destructive motivations (anger, attachment, close-mindedness, etc.), we stop harming ourselves and others. By creating perfect virtue, we develop beneficial attitudes, like impartial love and compassion, and do actions motivated by these thoughts. By subduing our mind, we cut away all false projections, thus making ourselves calm and peaceful by understanding reality.\n\nThe essence of Buddha’s teachings is also contained in the three principles of the path: definite emergence, the dedicated heart and wisdom realizing emptiness. Initially, we seek definitely to emerge from the confusion of our problems and their causes. Then, we see that other people also have problems, and with love and compassion, we dedicate our heart to becoming a Buddha so that we are capable of helping others extensively. In order to do this, we develop the wisdom understanding the real nature of ourselves and other phenomena.
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I'm not 100% sure but I think it means "the one who speaks politely/good things". It's a sanskrit word.\n\nSu- prefix for good\nbhash- probably means speech as in bhasha (language)\n\nbut I'm not sure, I could be wrong.
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Buddhism is a way of life that was passed down in a teacher-student relationship, unlike most religion in the west which is God -  man.  Since religion is define as worship to a God, Buddhism can not really be label as a religion since its not about worship detities; its a teaching about life, universe and the path to enlightenment.\n\nBuddhism in a nutshell is the search of understand yourself and its surrounding; Buddhist believe that man was pure in heart but for various reason we were polluted and tainted by desires and sin.\n\nSo the goal of Buddhism is to purify your soul/mind and through various methods to revert back to our original state of being.\n\nBuddhist follow the teaching of Buddha, a man that exist in India around 500 B.C.  He was born a prince but he gave everything away to pursuit the path of enlightenment. He ultimately achieved its goal and spend all his time teaching / sharing his knowledge to his students and people.\n\nBuddhism use different method to achieve its goal,hence you see different practice method of Buddhism: Zen, pure-land, Tibetan and many others.\n\nThere is no disrespect to try to understand something and ask question, I'm sure your friend would be happy to answer any question you may have.\n\nThis is just a very brief outline of Buddhism. If you are interested, there is an non-profit organization that promotes Buddhism in the U.S.  They have books and videos for free distribution.  \n\nYou can write or call them and they can send you books free of charge too.  Their website is http://www.amtb-usa.org
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It is transliterated and written as 杰达 (jieda).  Of course, it holds no meaning as a word but in case you are wondering what the individual characters mean, 杰 means "outstanding" and 达 means "to reach".
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Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path - a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.\n\nBecause Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator God, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible. Thus Buddhism addresses itself to all people irrespective of race, nationality, or gender. It teaches practical methods (such as meditation) which enable people to realize and utilize its teachings in order to transform their experience, to be fully responsible for their lives and to develop the qualities of Wisdom and Compassion.\nBuddhism explains the reality of life and the universe: that all beings are equal by nature and that all teachings are equal. The Buddha said many times that the wisdom to understand the true reality of life and the universe, and the virtuous abilities to cultivate are all already within our true nature. Buddhism teaches us to have a broad mind, one that overflows with sincerity, purity, equality, proper understanding, and compassion. Everyday, we must strive to awaken to this reality. Being contented with all conditions and settings is a good example for all, and striving for attainment of freedom of mind and spirit will help to awaken. From this, we can see that the Buddha is a compassionate multicultural educator who is worthy of emulation.\nBuddhism is Not a Religion. According to the Webster's Dictionary, the definition of religion is as follows, "An organized system of beliefs, rites, and celebrations centered on a supernatural being power; belief pursued with devotion."\nBuddhism is not a religion because:\nFirst, the Buddha is not a 'supernatural being power'. The Buddha is simply a person who has reached Complete Understanding of the reality of life and the universe. Life refers to ourselves, and universe refers to our living environment. The Buddha taught that all beings possess the same ability to reach Complete Understanding of themselves and their environment, and relieve themselves from all sufferings to attain utmost happiness. All beings can become Buddhas, and all beings and the Buddha are equal by nature. The Buddha is not a God, but a teacher, who teach us the way to restore Wisdom and Understanding by conquering the greed, hatred, and ignorance which blind us at the present moment. The word 'Buddha' is a Sanskrit word, when translated it means, "Wisdom, Awareness/Understanding". We call the founder of Buddhism Shakyamuni Buddha because He has attained Complete Understanding and Wisdom of life and the universe. Buddhism is His education to us, it is His teaching which shine the way to Buddhahood.\nSecond, the 'belief' in the Buddha's teachings is not blind belief, or blind faith. Shakyamuni Buddha taught us not to blindly believe what he tells us, he wants us to try the teachings and prove them for ourselves. The Buddha wants us to know, not merely believe. The Buddha's teachings flow from his own experience and understanding of the truth, and shows us a path of our own to taste the truth for ourselves. The Buddha uses a perfectly scientific way of showing us reality in its true form.\nThird, Buddhism is not a religion because all the 'rites and celebrations' are not centered on a supernatural being, but rather the people attending the assemblies. The ceremonies and celebrations in Buddhism all serve an educational purpose, a reminder of the Buddha's teachings an
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If you are referring to the Eightfold Path in Buddhism, you simply respect the eight rules. This includes:\n\nRight Livelihood (you should not earn your money as a soldier, weapons-dealer, sex trade worker, drug dealer or butcher)\n\nRight Meditation\n\nRight Thought (keeping the mind clear of negative/hateful/intolerant thoughts)\n\nRight Speech (words that are honest, kind, worthy and nurturing)\n\nRight Conduct (do no harm to others)\n\nRight Mindfulness (i.e. awareness)\n\nRight Effort (effort to putting the other parts of the path into action)\n\nRight Concentration
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Here....I found this.\n\nMaya, in Hinduism, a term used in the Veda to mean magic or supernatural power. In Mahayana Buddhism it acquires the meaning of illusion or unreality. The term is pivotal in the Vedanta system of Shankara, where it signifies the world as a cosmic illusion and also the power that creates the world.
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It means religion is whatever you want it to be. It's relative. Just like philosophy. I always took it to mean that living your life shouldn't be hampered by someone elses rigid ideaology.......live it with a hey Im me mentality. Be yourself, find yourself. What I am is what I am and what you are............That song is AWESOME.