Born from the experience of one man, Buddhism is part of the "Three Teachings" of China. Shaped by the cultures that embraced it, it exists today in several forms. A closer look at this tradition from India, primarily represented in China through Lamaism and Chan Buddhism.

Buddhism is today among the world's most significant religions, with over 375 million followers. However, this tradition has taken varied forms throughout its spread, so we can speak of several Buddhisms today.

Origins: The Awakening of Siddhartha Gautama

Unlike the monotheistic religions of the Mediterranean basin, Buddhism does not possess an all-powerful God. The figure known as Buddha was merely a mortal whose merit lay in achieving Awakening (Bodhi) and subsequently helping part of humanity realize this state of consciousness.

This man, Siddhartha Gautama, was born in 566 BCE according to the most widely accepted chronology. Many accounts of his life contain mysteries and have fueled legends. Born into a royal family, his experiences led him to become aware of human suffering and the ephemeral nature of all things. In search of inner peace, he devoted himself to certain disciplines, the most important being meditation. According to the most widely accepted tradition, he is said to have awakened in 531 BCE. He would then use this experience to teach others the path to Awakening, with the number of his disciples growing rapidly.

It is from them that we have information about Buddha's life (a term that actually designates anyone who has achieved Awakening). No scientific evidence exists to date, and the tradition is based on oral teachings that were only committed to writing around the 2nd century BCE.

Two major texts are thus considered the canons of original Buddhism: the "Vinaya-pitaka" (the monastic rules) and the "Sutra-Pitaka" (the teaching discourses).

Born into a highly hierarchical world, within a royal family, Siddhartha Gautama nevertheless affirmed that Awakening was accessible to all. According to texts of the tradition, he spent 45 years teaching his doctrine to numerous people of very different backgrounds and educations. He appears in these accounts as capable of adapting his discourse and teaching to each person according to their different levels of knowledge, education, and individual qualities.

The Teaching: The Four Truths

Each person, before achieving Awakening and thus becoming a Buddha, must pass through several stages similar to those experienced by Siddhartha Gautama: the discovery of human suffering, commitment to the spiritual path, study with masters of other traditions...

Buddha-Dharma (Buddha's teaching) could thus be summarized in a discourse through which the Buddha explained his thought: the Four Noble Truths.

• 1st Truth: the symptom – suffering is inherent to human existence
• 2nd Truth: the diagnosis – this suffering originates in ignorance and the desire for possession, characteristic of the ego
• 3rd Truth: the therapeutic – there exists a state of wellness where, ignorance being abolished, desire does not manifest and does not give rise to suffering
• 4th Truth: the remedy – to return to this state of wellness, one must follow a discipline of life that ends ignorance and desire.

Over time, the Buddha's original teachings were interpreted in different ways by his disciples and their successors, leading to great variety in schools of thought. This diversity is also explained by the cultural aspects of the regions where the doctrine spread. Nevertheless, certain ideas remain fundamental across all variants of Buddhism, although each accords priority to a specific aspect of the quest for Awakening.

The Fundamental Concepts of Buddhism

For Buddhists, all things—people, animals, objects—are an integral part of a universal Self. Present in each human being, the ego (âtman) is what determines our individual personality and creates a sense of isolation, the impression of being separate.

All things are destined to disappear, whether a living being, a material object, or an idea. This impermanence in all things is a source of suffering for humans, as their ego cannot accept this universal law.

Actions (karma) are thus influenced by this suffering born of the ego, which leads to intentional actions and attachment to their results. By becoming aware of this suffering, then educating oneself and following a discipline of life, the practitioner learns to act selflessly, without attachment to the results of their actions, and thus moves toward Awakening, the state of perfect consciousness.

Linked to the notion of the universal Self, the idea of the interdependence of all things is also essential in Buddhist philosophy. A very clear explanation is provided on this subject by the site www.bouddhisme-universite.org, of which here is an excerpt:

"But in fact, all phenomena exist only in interdependence. Physical objects are composites. Just as a mountain is an aggregate of stone, earth, and plant or animal residue, our body is composed of cells that come from our parents, the food we ingest, the air we breathe. Our perceptions, too, are 'composed.' They are the combined result of the existence of external objects, their contact with our body, the impression they leave on our senses, and the interpretation our brain makes of them. Our ideas, likewise, are composed. They depend on the education we have received, our perception of the external world, the events we have experienced, the ideas expressed by other people. And our ego—the idea we have of ourselves—is an idea like any other..."

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