Buddhism is a path of teaching and practice. It teaches ways of changing ourselves and becoming kinder, wiser and less self-centered. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to become more aware, to grow, or to follow a path of spiritual development.

The word "Buddha" means "one who is awake" in the sense of having "woken up to reality". This title was first given to a man called Siddhartha Gautama, who lived in northern India about 2,500 years ago. At the age of 35, after years of striving, he gained Enlightenment or awakening. During the remaining 45 years of his life he traveled through much of northern India teaching with incredible kindness and insight. His teaching is known in the East as the Buddha-dharma or "the teaching of the Enlightened One".