Hinduism and Buddhism

Today in class we learned about two new religions: Hinduism and Buddhism.
Hinduism:
* number of adherents- 1.1 billion
* call them Hindus
* geographic location- India, Nepal
* holy book- the Vedas- eternal truths revealed to ancient sages; composed in verse form (meant to be sung and easily memorized.)
* founder- no distinct founder: oldest religion, it's less of a religion than a way of life.
* example of this- "as a person puts on new clothes and discards old and torn clothes, similarly an embodied soul enters new material bodies leaving the old bodies." this represents reincarnation.
* sentient being- one who can make a decision for oneself

Buddhism:
* number of adherents- 500 million to 1.5 billion ( estimates vary quite a bit)
* call them Buddhists
* geographic location- southeast Asia, China, Nepal, Japan (there are 1.2 Buddhists in the United States)
*founder- Siddhartha Gautama
*four noble truths:
1. there is suffering
2. attachment to desire is the origin of suffering
3. there is a cessation of suffering
4. the Eightfold Path will lead to the cessation of suffering

* Eightfold Path:
1. right view
2. right intention
3. right speech
4. right action
5. right livelihood
6. right effort
7. right mindfulness
8. right dedication