Buddhism

Buddhism

Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism

Shared Basic Beliefs

Buddhism is one of the major religions of the world with number of followers between 200 to 300 million. According to the religious historians, Buddhism was founded in the northeastern region of present day India. The highest figure of the religion is Siddhartha Gautama - more commonly known as Buddha, which means the “Enlightened One”. Most of the Buddhists are divided into two major branches or sects of Buddhism - the Theravada and Mahayana (Gard, 1961) (Gard, 1961).

Despite some difference in the teachings and religious beliefs of the Theravada and Mahayana, the two sects also ...