Advantages And Disadvantages Of Buddhism

Buddhism is a living world religion that has manifested into many different variants since its conception in India around 1500 years ago. Each variant of Buddhism (Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana) have very similar beliefs and teachings which guide all adherents to a goal of ending samsara and reaching nirvana. It is where significant people such as the Dalai Lama of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition have helped shaped Buddhism in today 's modern world guiding adherents through worship and teachings in key ethical issues and significant practices which build upon many sacred texts and writings.

Principal beliefs and teachings are what guide Buddhists onto a path towards enlightenment. These principal beliefs form the basis towards the reasoning

These Noble Truths contain the essence of the Buddha 's teachings and it were these four principles that the Buddha came to understand during his meditation under the bodhi tree. These truths include: the truth of suffering (Dukkha), the truth behind the cause of suffering (Samudāya), the truth of the end of suffering (Nirodha) and the truth of the path leading to the end of suffering (Magga). From these truths, other principal teachings were formed such as The Noble Eightfold Path or Middle Way derived from the Fourth Noble Truth. These teachings are what adherents practise to rid themselves of suffering and attain enlightenment supported by Buddhist scholar Buddhaghosa saying that Nirvana “can only be reached, not produced … [only] being attainable through special insight affected by strong effort”. Furthermore significant people in Buddhism such as the Dalai Lama have a significant role in affirming Buddhist beliefs and teachings all around the world. This has been done so through his articulation of the wisdom of Buddha’s Dharma in which he conducts speeches and conferences all around the world outlining Buddhist beliefs for both adherents and non-adherents. Also the Dalai Lama’s

It is where bioethics is one area of science in which a Buddhist adherent uses principal beliefs and teachings to shape their own understanding of the morally right and wrong decisions behind these different ideas such as abortion. All buddhists believe that anything whether a god, human, animal or plant is capable of reflective thought, it is regarded as having the capacity to know self consciously and is therefore regarded as a sentient being. Therefore the act of abortion is regarded as an act of violence against a living being which goes against the teaching of ahimsa seen in the first of the five precepts as a fetus fulfills the above requirements in having a conscience. This idea is also backed up in the Vanaya (a set of codes for the monastic community) where expulsion from sangha can result if a monk or nun advises or encourages a woman to abort her fetus. However as we move into a much more liberal society many key figures in the Buddhist community have opened up to the idea of abortion in very specific circumstances. The Dalai Lama is one key Buddhist figure who has said how “abortion, from a Buddhist viewpoint, is an act of killing and is negative, generally speaking. But it depends on the circumstances. … [Where an] abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance”. This statement by the Dalai Lama premises abortion in the