Buddha Statue, Butwal, Lumbini Nepal

 The Buddha Statue is a symbol of Buddhism's ancient founder, Siddhartha Gautama, a prince from northern India. He lived from about 563 to 483 BC. Buddhism originated as a form of atheism. They abandoned the idea of a personal God (Ishvara) who controlled the eternal fate of souls. Gautama denied the ancient theistic beliefs, because he found it challenging to bring together the idea of suffering and evil with the existence of a righteous God.

The Buddha Statue represents a belief system that has evolved into three main philosophies:

Mahayana (the "Greater Vehicle") represents approximately 56% of the total Buddist population and is prominent in China, Japan and Korea. Over the years, Mahayana has opened itself to many different Asian beliefs and now treats Buddha as a god.

Theravada (the "Doctrine of the Elders") represents approximately 38% of the total Buddist population. Theravada is the closest to the original atheistic philosophy, and is principally followed in Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia (Kampuchea), Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and Myanmar (Burma).

Vajrayana (also known as Lamaism or Tantrism) represents the remaining 6% of Buddists and is primarily found in Tibet, Nepal and Mongolia. Vajrayana has added disturbing portions of shamanism and the occult.