Buddhism
Buddhism in addition to be a religion it is also a philosophy and a system of psychology. This religion is based on the philosophy of Siddharta Gautama, an Indian prince, who lived around 500 BC. The religion spread from India, and today the estimated numbers of followers vary between 230 and 500 million. But the Indian Buddhism has become virtually extinct, except in parts of Nepal.
Today it is usually classified into three distinct traditions:
- Southern Buddhism, also know as the Old Teaching, is practiced mainly in Southeast Asia. This is the dominating Buddhist tradition in Indonesia.
- Eastern Buddhism, also known as Chinese Buddhism or the New Teaching, is practiced predominantly in East Asia. In Indonesia you find most followers of this teaching in the Chinese communities.
- Northern Buddhism, also known as Tibetan Buddhism, is practiced mainly in Tibet, Mongolia, Bhutan and parts of Nepal, India, China and Russia.
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