Mahayana Buddhism Hinayana Buddhism Zen Buddhism Secret Buddhism Home

Buddhism represents one of the largest and most respected religions in Asian countries. In 589 B.C., Shakyamuni Buddha enlightened five monks after His attainment of Buddhahood. Thus began the religion of Buddhism. Buddhism is based upon human nature. Therefore, Buddhism views mundane interactions and consequences between human beings as the results of their free will. Buddhism promises the emancipation of human beings from suffering through the realization of their true nature. Therefore, Buddhism can be described as a religion with its vital elements being The Buddha, benevolence, compassion, and emancipation. The Buddha, Buddha's teachings (The Dharma), and Buddha's followers (The Sangha) are the three essential components of Buddhism. Buddhism represents The Buddha's teaching and enlightenment. Hence, to obtain enlightenment, one needs to be absolutely dependent upon and faithful to The Buddha's teachings, which contain fundamental truths of the Universe and human nature. Furthermore, one should trust and rely upon assistance from Buddhist monks, who are the disciples of The Buddha. Buddhist monks devote themselves to The Buddha and His teachings, and are thereby able to help countless people achieve enlightenment through the propagation of The Buddha's teachings. There are four types of Buddhism: Hinayana Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, Secrete Buddhism, and Zen Buddhism.

Compared to Hinayana Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism is very practical. Mahayana Buddhism does not require people to enter the monkhood, nor does it cherish transcendence of desire as essential. Mahayana Buddhism, however, values mercy and compassion. Through the practice of compassion, Mahayana Buddhism believes that one can emancipate oneself, and, furthermore, provide help, peace, and happiness to the all people. In Mahayana Buddhism, compassion represents the love and acceptance of truth and human nature. Self-centered people are only interested in the achievement of their own worldly desires. They ignore values such as truth and the meaning of human nature. But pure compassion means to convey unconditional love toward the certainty of truth and human nature because, unlike our conventional lives, the truth is eternal and priceless. It is also important to care for human beings, since only a human can look after another human. Therefore, it is vital for human beings to unite, understand, and care for each other to obtain true brother/sisterhood and peace, and at last, compassion through the love of human nature. Furthermore, people who strictly follow this way of living are called Bodhisattvas (enlightened beings), ones who support the truth and adhere to the love of all human beings. Bodhisattvas are those who have reached spiritual perfection but choose to remain on earth to help their fellow beings rather than going to their final reward, Nirvana.  We can all learn to follow the Bodhisattva path.

Hinayana Buddhism concentrates on unleashing oneself from desire. Hinayana Buddhism views the cravings and desires of human beings as the reason for their agony, and believes that one can reach emancipation through introspection and the control of one's desires. Thus, Hinayana Buddhism's philosophy and organization focuses on transcendence of desire, and seeks deep forests or the insides of caves as the venue for ascetic practices. Hinayana Buddhism also recommends that one enter monkhood, so that one can separate oneself from luxuries, and even essentials, such as clothing and housing. The monk would then make robes out of used clothes and beg for meals. Consequently, the monk would experience emancipation.

Zen Buddhism can cause some confusion since there are inherent differences between Zen and Buddhism. Some would even argue that it should be called Zen Meditation. However, Zen Buddhism sees Zen meditation as an integral part of Buddhism. Zen Meditation will be covered in detail later. Zen is disciplined action taken to train one's mind. Humans make decisions or choices by using their minds. Action is precipitated by the thought of the mind. Therefore, an unethical mind will cause undesirable and sometimes catastrophic results. Zen meditation concentrates on mind training so that, throughout the training, people can realize the foundations of the mind's function. To understand human nature or one's own, true identity, one must open the mind. As people master their minds, they come to understand the principles of the Universe, and at last, obtain freedom and peacefulness. Therefore, Zen is a very important aspect of Buddhism. The question one must pose then, is "How can one train one's own mind?" The answer is simply to return to an "empty mind". In Dharma Sunim's Zen of China, an empty mind is the critical element. Empty mind represents complete detachment from thoughts, such as worries, anxieties, anger, fear, greed, resentment, etc., and a return to the original, unadulterated status of the mind. Empty mind does not mean a mind without thoughts, rather, a mind which is empty of the usual and disturbing reactions to thoughts. Thoughts are good servants, but bad masters. It does not mean that the mind does not exist, but that it is like a mirror to all that is perceived from the outside world. Or, like an empty bottle that is without content but ready to receive anything that is poured into it.

Secret Buddhism concentrates on religious faith. Some say that " Buddhism is close to philosophy," or that " Buddhism is not a religion." However, those points of view are incorrect. Buddhism is identical and formal, and it is true that Buddhism is highly developed in philosophical dogma. Secrete Buddhism is characterized by its faithful and dignified religious ceremonies. Thus, one can obtain religious wishes through the dedication of body and mind in the ceremonies. The services involve prayers, chants and so on. The basic faith of Buddhism can be seen in the word, "Namu" (praise). Namu represents the object to please, respect, support, and depend upon. Thus, Namu only arise from sincere adherence of religious faith to The Buddha. Recitation of phrases such as "Namu Shakyamuni," or "Namu Avalokitesvara" could be examples. Namu Avalokitesvara is a Bodhisattva who looks down on mankind with unconditional compassion. Religion or non-religion can be distinguished by the existence or absence of faith. Through Secrete Buddhism's faith, one can experience the unknown world of the Universe.