Social Sciences and History / Unit 5 SSH 0415 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Buddhism: Origin and Spread
Captions available
The idea
In the sixth century BCE Siddhartha Gautama founded Buddhism, teaching escape from suffering. It spread beyond India after Ashoka's conversion in the third century BCE. It assailed caste and offered women enlightenment on an equal basis with men.
In practice
The Kushans promoting Buddhism along the Silk Roads.
Where people slip
The anchor adds that monasteries stayed patriarchal, nuns ranked lower.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it