Which of these four Tibetan Buddhist sects is better for lay people Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya or Gelug? And why?

It's literally spread by the same people who developed Vajrayan in the first place, namely the Tantric Buddhist scholars and practitioners from India, mainly the eastern states of Bengal,Bihar,Assam,Tripura,Orissa,Nepal and also South Indian states of Tamil Nadu. So it should not come as so much of a surprise to anyone who has little to some knowledge of the origins of Vajrayan. Not only is the symbol of Vajra is the same, but most deities will also be the same as Tibetan Buddhism. As a Bengali myself, the oldest Bengali literature is the Charyapada, which is a collection of Vajrayan Buddhist poems which forms the core of what is now Vajrayan Buddhism Philosophy.

⁠@@nicholasflammel2017the Buddha himself taught the vajrayana at vulture peak (gridhakuta). You're trying to point towards mahasiddha Tilopa who was from bengal but it's much later. The "core" of vajrayana is definitely not some poem but wisdom and compassion/skillful means. There are no surviving texts in India as Buddhism is basically vanished from India, all that remains is some misunderstood belief that it all came from vedas while a careful study of Buddhism contradicts almost everything the vedas and later upanishads teach.

@@rafaelecattonar1506when you study all, you will find the one that will match your own view of the world. So Gelug, in my opinion, would be best for complete beginners. The rest require atleast the basic understanding of cause and conditions, interdependence and altruism.

​@@hellboundtruck123 At the time of Buddha, there was no "Vajrayan" concept. Vajrayan itself developed almost parallely with tantric hinduism. The use of tantra Buddhism did not come with Buddha and developed circa 100 CE and was simultaneously developed alongside tantric hinduism and this DID HAPPEN in the eastern states of India and Kashmir in this very time. So yeah, the core of "tantric" Buddhism is developed by eastern Indian Buddhist scholars and not by Buddha or the older Buddhist schoalars. And no, tantricism is by definition not part of "vedic" tradition. Buddhism by definition is distinctly different from the Vedic tradition just as Jainism is and to be honest so is the Bhakti tradition which is part of Hinduism itself. Only some uninformed Hindu supremacist idiots claim such things that Buddhism is a continuation or a "copy" of vedic ideas. If you read my comment, I specifically talk about tantric Buddhism. But it is amply clear the the vajra as a symbol and weapon is clearly due to influence of Hindu mythology as firstly it is the weapon of Indra and secondly, it gains immense popularity in the Mahabharat as well as the Ramayan where Indra's and other gods' weapons are used in the war by humans. So it is very very likely that vajra will be a very common symbol in all Mahayana traditions across Asia as it was the people from India who spread Buddhism. What you are mentioning can be found for example, the Ashtasahasrika Pragyaparamita sutra which is from 1st century BC states "evamaya shrutam ekasmin samaye bhagwan rajagrihe, gridhrakute parvate ......etc" which means that it was once heard from the mouth of Buddha at the Gridhrakut in Rajgir (btw it was one of my favourite destinations in my childhood and Rajgir is one of the most visited places for Bengalis). But these are quite clearly later addition. There's no way to actually prove that it was the Buddha who spoke the concepts of Pragyaparamita or not. Pragyaparamita is not even important in Theravada traditions (I am not sure about this as my knowledge in Theravada is not up to the marks). For historians, it is clearly a later concept that was developed by Buddhist scholars (who btw are again from all over the states of India where Buddhism thrived and the Mahaviharas and universities were situated).

+senzu sensei Jiujitsu ga arimasuka?...Do you have fulfillment?...Anshin mou, arimsuka?...Do you have a peace of mind...please consider Jesus Christ.....Jya, Yesu kurisuto, ga Kamison desu...in my understanding of truth...Jesus is Lord and God...Ma ta ...ne...peace and love to you, Senzuson.

Cheryl , Understanding can be unclear and clouded with illusion until experience. And Experience may never be lasting. Until state of concious, And concious must be worked on. Only then understanding can be realized without defilement or doubt . And understanding truth or falsehood . Can only be done through practical. Peace.

@@prabshiro damn, why did your comment go unnoticed for so long? You're a genius.

Yes, I lived there briefly. I also know an American who has lived there for 20+ years and become a monk. His name is Tom Dreitlein.

In my opinion, even as a Mahayanist follower of Chinese Chan, I'd recommend Maurice Walshe's translation of the Long Discourses of the Buddha. It lays out all the basic concepts and is more friendly towards a lay audience unfamiliar with Buddhism.

Depends. If you're interested in the Buddhism as depicted in this video, Tibbetan Vajrayana Buddhism, and/or Pure land Buddhism might interest you. Sadly, in the western world filled with arrogance, they have decided to deprive Buddhism of its esoteric principles, even coming to the point of "modern secularist Buddhism" which has got nothing to do with Dharma teachings.

Ariel Figueroa the best buddhism practice is in orient...theres several buddhist center in all over the world

Theravada（Southeast Asia countries,Siri Lanka,Yunnan Dai autonomous rigion China） Mahayana(Han area China, Korea,Japan) Vajrayana(Tibet China, Mongolia, Japan).

An old story speaks of a similar problem. A devoted meditator, after years concentrating on a particular mantra, had attained enough insight to begin teaching. The student's humility was far from perfect, but the teachers at the monastery were not worried. A few years of successful teaching left the meditator with no thoughts about learning from anyone; but upon hearing about a famous hermit living nearby, the opportunity was too exciting to be passed up. The hermit lived alone on an island in the middle of a lake, so the meditator hired a man with a boat to row across to the island. The meditator was very respectful of the old hermit. As they shared some tea made with herbs the meditator asked him about his spiritual practice. The old man said he had no spiritual practice, except for a mantra, which he repeated all the time to himself. The meditator was pleased: the hermit was using the same mantra he used himself -- but when the hermit spoke the mantra aloud, the meditator was horrified! "What's wrong?" asked the hermit. "I don't know what to say. I'm afraid you've wasted your whole life! You are pronouncing the mantra incorrectly!" "Oh, Dear! That is terrible. How should I say it?" The meditator gave the correct pronunciation, and the old hermit was very grateful, asking to be left alone so he could get started right away. On the way back across the lake the meditator, now confirmed as an accomplished teacher, was pondering the sad fate of the hermit. "It's so fortunate that I came along. At least he will have a little time to practice correctly before he dies." Just then, the meditator noticed that the boatman was looking quite shocked, and turned to see the hermit standing respectfully on the water, next to the boat. "Excuse me, please. I hate to bother you, but I've forgotten the correct pronunciation again. Would you please repeat it for me?" "You obviously don't need it," stammered the meditator; but the old man persisted in his polite request until the meditator relented and told him again the way he thought the mantra should be pronounced. The old hermit was saying the mantra very carefully, slowly, over and over, as he walked across the surface of the water back to the island.

@@mannaz2525a great mahasiddha once said : " I am not impressed by ones who can turn the roof into floor or fly across oceans but by ones who can turn even a single negative emotion into a positive one"

For this view, you must have missed the primary point of the two mandalas (Womb & Diamond) existing in non-duality. Look deeper. When you are in the ultimate view, there is no heresy, and no 'you'.

the Buddha didn't teach any mandalas, all this is later human inventions, of those humans who were short of profundity of the Buddha's insight

BayanTheOne Maybe or maybe not.Just don’t think that Theravada is all there is to Buddhism.This kind of talk is the sole reason why I left it.

Neither person nor skandha but wisdom untainted is buddha. In recognition, ever serene- Refuge I take therein.

@@ARE_YOU_SICK_OF_YT_CENSORSHIP Yes Buddha don't rituals but practice of ethics n mindfulness only. Instead of these praying before Buddha, doesn't matter. Blessings of Buddha always will be with us when we follow ethics n mindfulness.