The Schools Of Buddhism

On Day 1, I will shortly introduce who I am and my background in meditation and Buddhism. After which we will be looking at the earliest form of Buddhism. The teachings, world, and Buddhism as taught and practiced during and shortly after the lifetime of Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, more commonly known as the Buddha and the Tathagata.

On Day 2, we will be taking a look at a School called Theravada, or “doctrine of the elders”. This is considered to be the more traditional and orthodox of the three main branches of Buddhism but did not arise until a few centuries after the death of the Buddha. We will talk about where it is most prominent and what separates it from the two other branches as a tradition.

On Day 3, we will be taking a look at the Mahayana school of Buddhism, which is the second of three main branches. Mahayana, also called the “Great Vehicle” has a vast multiplicity of sects that it incompasses. We will look at the more general thought which brings them all together and in the coming lessons look more into the specifics of its popular iterations.

On Day 4, we will be looking at one of the most widely practiced forms of Mahayana Buddhism throughout Asia called Pure Land Buddhism. We will be taking a look at its specific practices, why it has such a large following and what separates it from the other schools of thought in the Mahayana Branch. All to help us get a better grasp on the vast array of schools of thought throughout Buddhism.

On Day 5, we will be looking at a very interesting and influential school within Mahayana Buddhism called Chan. Chan itself is often unfamiliar to those in the west but its influences, practices, and teachings are incredibly far-reaching and influential to many of the things you hear today. You also probably are far more familiar with the big names in it than you thought! Let's dig in and see what makes it unique.

On Day 6, we will take a look at what is probably the most popular and familiar form of Buddhism to most people, Zen Buddhism. What is Zen Buddhism? We will be engaging with its two most prominent and influential schools of thought - Soto and Rinzai - what makes them different and what makes Zen Buddhism itself so unique and palatable to the rest of the world.

On Day 7, we will be moving away from Looking at Mahayana and look at the third and final branch of the Buddhist Tree: Vajrayana. There are two main schools of Vajrayana thought that we will be looking at in the coming days, but in today's lesson let's take a moment to step back and understand what makes Vajrayana different in general and why it sprouted and became its own branch.

On Day 8, we will be taking a look at what is perhaps the second most recognized form of Buddhism to people outside of Asia: Tibetan Buddhism. We will see why it is so uniquely Tibetan, its meditative practices, philosophical sects, and what separates it from the rest of the schools of thought. We will also be looking at the history of Tibetan Buddhism and why it is so widespread today.

On Day 9, we will be looking at an incredibly interesting and unique form of Buddhism which is both Vajrayana and uniquely Japanese at the same time: Shingon Buddhism. We will look at its practices, beliefs, and how it came to be. As well, we will look at why and how it differentiates itself from the rest of both Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.

On the final day of the course, we will be taking a step back and looking at the ways that we can take the information and knowledge learned in this course and apply it to our everyday lives. Just as we can be open and genuinely curious about spiritual things we need to be open to the chance of investing within ourselves and using the vast teachings and practices of the world to work together to make not only our own world but the world at large a better more mindful place.