鶹Լ

Dhamma

means the truth about existence. The came to understand this truth when he reached . Dhamma is also the teachings of the Buddha, for example the and the . The Buddha wanted people to follow his teachings and test them out to see if they believed in what he taught. The Buddha’s teachings are intended to relieve suffering, and many Buddhists feel these teachings help them deal with the bad things that happen in life.

Buddhists also believe that Dhamma is a refuge (they can take shelter in the Dhamma). The Buddha taught that people try to take refuge in things that are not helpful and actually cause suffering, for example material possessions. Instead, he said that they should take refuge in the , which is the community of Buddhists. This means they can gain help and guidance from the teachings of the Buddha and community to try to avoid suffering. This is also important as it is a way of working to gain enlightenment.

Dependent arising

Buddhists believe in a concept called or dependent arising. This explains the Buddhist idea of reality. It suggests that everything arises and is dependent on something else to exist. Buddhists believe that nothing in life is permanent and nothing lasts forever. Everything is dependent upon other things – for example, trees give out oxygen, which humans need to breathe in order to stay alive, and trees also take in the carbon dioxide we breathe out and convert it into oxygen.

The Wheel of Life

The shows the idea of dependent arising through the form of images.

Image caption,
Buddhist wheel of life

One part of the wheel shows old age and death. Buddhists believe in the cycle of , which is a continuous cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth. Therefore, this part of the wheel demonstrates the idea that nothing stays the same and everything is always changing. Buddhists aim to break out of the cycle of samsara as they believe that this is where suffering happens and therefore freedom from samsara means an end to suffering.

Buddhists also aim to understand the relationship between desire and suffering. They believe that desire leads to suffering because we attach ourselves to things in life that bring about suffering. Buddhists believe that if they follow the teachings of the Buddha they will no longer suffer and will achieve .