The Four Noble Truths
The Four Noble Truths Buddhism, a religion spawned from the same culture and geography of Hinduism, is an Eastern religion based on the doctrine of “No Self”. The principles of Buddhism stem from the teachings of the Buddha, who lived in 560-480 BCE. In the year 340 BCE, the “Second Council” transcribed the oral teachings into written record. Theravada Buddhism is known as the way of the elders, and it is centrally formed around the concept of “No Self”. This principle of “No Self” dictates the rituals, philosophies and culture of those who practice Theravada Buddhism. “No Self” is key to understanding the religion of Buddhism on a deep level. Buddhism teaches “anatman”, the “no self” or “no ego”. Anatman states that there is no separate individual self, and humans are but an impermanent collection of parts. Buddhism attributes the suffering of the world to the false belief that we have a separate individual self. Instead, the human being is comprised of five separate entities that work together and interact in a way to make a person think of themselves as an individual self.