There's a couple of reasons why I got so fascinated by Buddhism. First of all, it does not include all of the concepts I disliked so much in other religions. Like the existence of a God and creator. The existence of an afterlife in the form of heaven and hell. The thought that everything happened because it was God's will. The concept of divine intervention. The existence of miracles you read about in many holy books. I'm too much a sceptic realist to believe in all of these concepts. Instead I believe in science and the theory of evolution. Now, Buddhism doesn't feature any of the mentioned concepts. And for those who might misunderstand, Buddha is not a god. He was a human being, just like you and me. But a very special one at that, someone with unlimited wisdom, gained through enlightenment.

A second thing I like about Buddhism is that, unlike many other religions, there is no urge to convert other people to this way of thinking. Centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ Buddhism had already spread throughout certain parts of Asia, purely based on the free will and interest of the people who wanted to hear the teachings of the Buddha and his followers (Sangha). What's more, Buddhism doesn't consider itself to be superior to whatever other religion. As a matter of fact Buddha said that we have to respect other religions and the Dalai Lama has often said that whereas Buddhism might be the best for him, that certainly does not mean that everybody should become a Buddhist. Everybody should stay with his or her own religion he grew up with, as long as they feel comfortable with it. What an enormous difference with the blood on the hands of many other religions.

Not having a God to 'blame' for all bad things that happen in life, Buddhism makes the individual responsible for his own life. This is a third thing I like about Buddhism. Someone's suffering or happiness is the result of good and bad things (karma) this person has done in his life or previous lives. Now, I must admit that I'm not 100% convinced by the concept of reincarnation, but it still sounds much more believable than the concept of heaven and hell. And I like the concept of karma, which could be explained simplistically with 'what goes around comes around'. If you do good, you will eventually find happiness, if you cause suffering, suffering will be yours in the future. In Buddhism you can't rid yourself of your 'sins' by simply confessing and redeeming.

Before I came into contact with Thailand's Buddhism I had been spending some time pondering life and the human race. During a short vacation I had a rather 'deep' conversation with my girlfriend in which we exchanged our opinions about the nature of humans. Thanks to the constant stream of news about the misbehaviors of the human race in the daily news, but also because of the total lack of integrity I saw around me in daily life and work I had become convinced that humans were 'evil' by nature. I was convinced that human beings had to do their utmost to lead a 'good life' and not be tempted by all forms of behaviour that would harm others or place them above others. She however had the opinion that humans were 'good' by definition and only a small part of them was tempted to do bad deeds. Whoever was right, it was clear that I had become very disillusioned by the way people treated each other. You'd only have to open the papers or turn on the TV to be hit straight in the face by a multiple of examples: terrorism, pointless violence, murder, robberies, fraud by business men, adultury, cheating, lying, etc.

And then came Thailand ....

It didn't take long for me to understand that 'the average Thai' had a remarkable compassionate character and real urge to lead 'the good life'. Their passion for Buddhism, the manner in which their whole daily life was 'soaked' in Buddhism and how they folded peace birds from paper in Bangkok as a token of kindness for the Muslims in the south of Thailand sparked my curiosity. Fascinated I listened to the stories our guide Anne told us in the temples we visited and when we finally reached Chiang Mai and walked in a bookstore to buy a map of the city my eye was caught by the last available copy of The Good Life, a tiny little booklet by one Gerald Roscoe. The booklet was a short introduction into Buddhism for the 'Westerner'. It was a fascinating revelation. A few days later I bought two more booklets of the same series about the life of Buddhist monks and the life of Buddha himself.

In his booklet Roscoe described how many Westerners, when they first come into contact with Buddhist teachings, realise that they've been Buddhists for years without even knowing it. After all, Buddhism isn't a religion, but more a philosophy, a way of life. Theoretically it is very well possible for someone to be a Buddhist Atheist. And I had that exact same feeling when reading his booklet and I was convinced I should go and talk to Pra Santi, a western monk who was said to live in Chiang Mai and was described in Roscoe's writings. However, since the booklet had been written in 1992 I first decided to consult the Internet to see if the monk was still living in Chiang Mai. After some research I found, to my disappointment, that Pra Santi had moved to Australia. For the time being I had to be satisfied with Roscoe's booklets.

There's a lot to tell about Buddhism, and surely this is not the right place to go into great detail. Nevertheless, I'd like to share some of the fascinating basics of Buddhism with you. When interested, simply check out the recommended readings or links for more information.

Oh, one more thing. The laughing, fat bloke that is often named 'Buddha' is not the historical Buddha described above. As a matter of fact he was a Boddhisatva (see below) named Pu-tai Ho-shang or "Hemp-bag monk" in China and Hotei in Japan. According to some believes he was an early incarnation of Maitreya, a future Buddha.

1. There is Dukkha. Dukkha can be described as suffering, pain, sadness, loss, not getting something you would like to have or getting something you do not want, etc. For the sake of simplicity: all unpleasant and traumatic aspects of life.
2. Dukkha is caused by craving to satisfy our needs, ignorance and hatred. Just think about the constant strive for long life, status, power and wealth.
3. Dukkha, or suffering, can be stopped by giving up these cravings and gaining wisdom and insight into the real nature of life through enlightenment.
4. Dukkha can be eliminated (or minimised) by following the Noble Eightfold Path. The Noble Eightfold path could be considered the 'golden mean' or 'middle way' between abundance and deprivation.

Ethical behaviour:

• Right speech: don't lie, don't curse, be honest and courteous, don't gossip and say bad things about others.
• Right action: refrain as much as possible from taking the life of living beings, don't take what has not been given (stealing), avoid recklessness by alcohol and drugs, avoid improper sexual behaviour (including adultery and sex with minors).
• Right livelihood: chose a job that does not conflict with the Noble Eightfold Path and does not harm others.

Mental Discipline:

• Right effort: avoid evil manners, aim for goodness. Developing the will power to change our thoughts and habits. Developing the intuition to control our state of mind.
• Right mindfulness: being conscious of the human body, health of the body and consciousness of every thought, every word and every deed.
• Right concentration: basically this means the proper meditation to gain insight and wisdom.

Insight and Wisdom:

• Right understanding: understanding the Four Noble Truths, the Dharma and the law of Karma.
• Right intention: giving up ambition, revenge, hatred, greed, lust and violence.

The Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path translate themselves in a large number of advises and practical guidelines for living.

Theravada Buddhism: Theravada means 'The Teaching of the Elders'. This school focussed on perfecting ones own life according to the original teachings of the Buddha, recorded in the Pali scriptures, in order to reach one's own enlightenment. This tradition remains active in South-East Asia (Thailand, Birma, Sri-Lanka, Laos and Cambodia). There is a strong emphasis on Vipassana meditation in this tradition, aiming for the total eradication of mental impurities and the resultant highest happiness of full liberation.

Mahayana Buddhism: Instead of focussing on the individual this school focuses on helping others to attain enlightenment. Catchwords are compassion, loving kindness, the Boddhisattva, anatta (non-self) and sunyata (emptiness). The Mahayana tradition developed a whole range of sutras in addition to the Buddha's own teachings (e.g. the Lotus, Heart and Diamond Sutra). The Mahayana tradition remains active in the Northern parts of Asia (China, Korea, Japan, Tibet, etc as well as Vietnam).

The table below sums up the biggest differences between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism.

Source: Stichting Vipassana Meditatie Groningen.

Between the 5th and 11th century the Mahayana school developed into three other traditions: Vajrayana (or Tibetan) Buddhism, Pure Land Buddhism and Zen Buddhism.

Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism: In this school the lama's are the spiritual leaders of the people. The Dalai Lama is the most important of them and Tenzin Gyatso is the current, 14th Dalai Lama. This truly inspiring person is believed to be the latest reincarnation of Chenrezig, the Bodhisattva of compassion. Tibetan Buddhism in itself has evolved in four schools: Nyingma-Pa (emphasising on meditation and tantras), Kagya-Pa (the oral tradition), Sakya-Pa (the scholarly tradition) and Gelug-Pa (the tradition of the Dalai Lama)

Pure Land Buddhism: In strong contrast with other Buddhist traditions, this school believed in a Western Paradise of Pure Land. The strive of followers in this school are to be reincarnated in this Pure Land which is presided over by Amitabha Buddha (the Buddha of Infinite Light).

Zen Buddhism: In Japan the Mahayana school evolved into the school of Zen Buddhism, which believes that enlightenment can be attained in this earthly life. Catchwords for Zen Buddhism are 'koans' (riddles that have no logical answer; for example, What was your face before your parents were born?), zazen (sitting) meditation and the relationship between teacher and disciple.

Now, having read all of this and remembering the opening texts on this page, it will probably not come as a big surprise that I personally prefer the Theravada school. Although I find the concept of the 'Boddhisattva' and pursuit of compassion quite fascinating and worthy of respect, Mahayana Buddhism has developed certain characteristics which I've always disliked so much in other religions (e.g. divine intervention, rituals, etc). I've therefore chosen to focus myself on the Theravada tradition, with a healthy interest in certain aspects of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. And as far as Zen Buddhism goes, that's far too vague and woolly for my taste. I've got enough problems understanding the Theravada teaching as it is. ;-)

Now one of the shelfs of my bookcase has slowly filled itself with books on Buddhism by the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Frits Koster and more. Yes, even a Buddhism for Dummies! Two more Buddha statues adorn the living room and a tattoo of the Eyes of Buddha adorns my own back ...

The black band shows three words that are known as the Three Marks of Existence. These could be considered three realities of life that many people don't understand or accept, but which are invaluable in order to see things as they really are:

• Dukkha. The concept of Dukkha has been explained above. The reality of life is that Dukkha, or suffering, exists and you cannot escape it. Therefore it has to be accepted and dealt with.
• Anicca. This basically means 'impermanence'; everything is subject to change, nothing is permanent or stays as it is. This also goes for moments of happiness or unhappiness. Not being able to understand and accept the concept of Anicca can cause more dissatisfaction, thus Dukkha.
• Anatta. This is the most difficult of the three concepts and one I'm still struggling with myself. Anatta means 'non-self', or the non-existence of a permanent self or soul. Instead, one's personality is made up of five changing factors - body, feeling, perception, mental activity (including the will) and consciousness. So at any given time someone can be considered the sum of these five factors, which will be influenced by experience in the past as well.

The white band could be considered the way to deal with the black band, or the way to help you accept the Three Marks of Existence and the elusiveness of life. This band shows the Three Jewels, which are considered the essential trinity of Buddhism:

• Buddha. This doesn't only refer to the 'historical Buddha' (Siddhartha Gautama) but also to the 'Buddha inside yourself', your so-called Buddha nature. Buddha was no God, he was a human being like you and me and therefore every human being has the potential to become a Buddha himself through enlightenment.
• Dharma. This is the collective name for the teachings of the Buddha, to which the Eight Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path are central.
• Sangha. This refers to the Buddhist community and the order of monks and nuns in particular. They should be considered the spiritual leaders of the Buddhists.

An alternative, second white band I had made and I'm currently wearing, shows the intitials of the aforementioned Eightfold Path: View, Intention, Speech, Action, Livelihood, Effort, Mindfulness, Concentraction.

Buddhism for Dummies - by Jonathan Landaw & Stephan Bodian	The Good Life. An Introduction to Buddhism for the Westerner - Gerald Roscoe	Being Peace - Thich Nhat Hanh
Teachings of the Buddha - Jack Kornfield	The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living - The Dalai Lama	Dhammapada (Shambhala Pocket Classics) - Thomas Byrom

And here's some alternatives in Dutch.

Dalai Lama De kunst van het Geluk	Landaw & Bodian Boeddhisme voor Dummies	Frits Koster Bevrijdend Inzicht
Jack Kornfield De leringen van Boeddha	Thich Nhat Hanh Omarm je Woede	Thich Nhat Hanh Vredelevend