What is the historical and geographical background of Buddhism?
Buddhism came into existence in India some 2,600 years ago when an Indian Prince, Siddhattha, became enlightened and hence came to be known as the Buddha, meaning the Enlightened One. His teaching is preserved in Buddhist scriptures known as the Tripitaka, which literally means the three baskets, namely the Vinaya or Vinaya-pitaka (monastic rules), Sutta or Suttanta-pitaka (collection of the teaching of the Buddha and His disciples) and Abhidhamma or Abhidhamma-pitaka (higher philosophy). Buddhism is Atheistic; it does not give significance to divine beings. There are two major Schools in Buddhism: Theravada, the teaching as preserved by the elders and Mahayana, the later development. The former is practised in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma (Myanmar), Laos and Cambodia. The latter is more prevalent in China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan and Tibet.
