Buddhism is a major religion founded in northeastern India that has developed over many years. The founder of this religion is Sidhartha Gautama known as Buddha (see Buddha).

Buddhism is a religion divided into two branches, Theravada (the way of the elders) and Mahayana (the great vehicle.) If you were a follower of Mahayana you would say Theravada by saying Hinayana (the lesser vehicle). Theravada has been the dominant branch in India ,Sri Lanka, Thailand, Cambodia, Burma, and Laos. The Mahayana branch has been dominant in China, Japan, Taiwan, Tibet, Nepal,Mongolia, Korea, Vietnam, and India. The estimated total number of Buddhists is between 150 million to 300 million.

Traditionally, Buddhism is not taught through writing, like schools teach in textbooks. It was always taught by speaking. Buddha's father, King Asoka, would send missionaries to teach Buddhism to countries along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, but they were not very succesful.

In most Buddhist countries, monks are expected to live a life of poverty, meditation, study, and no interaction with women at any time. In Buddhist countries, monks are common sights. You can tell who is a monk by their clothes, because they wear special robes.

There are many important symbols in Buddhism. One important symbol of Buddhism is a wheel. This wheel is called either "The Wheel of the Law" or "The Wheel of Life." Another example of an important symbol is the one on Buddha's belly on the front page that means good fortune.