1. Ritual and Worship Puja : Meditation is about the mind and its purification. It is a technique for developing the right concentration which can only be acquired through direct experience, and not from reading alone. The purpose of meditation is to calm the wandering of our minds. The Buddha himself demonstrated the importance of meditation since he presented a clear outline of meditation in the last three stages of the Eightfold Path i.e. right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration. Buddha taught that the purpose of meditation is to help achieve enlightenment and eventually nirvana. A key sacred formula called the Three Refuges is often spoken, or may be chanted regularly during meditation. These are: 'I go to the Buddha for refuge.' 'I go to the Dharma for refuge.' 'I go to the Sangha for refuge.' The three Refuges are also the initial initiation into Buddhism along with the 5 precepts. Meditation is coming to an understanding of what life means. An insight into reality and truth.

2. Ritual and Worship: Domestic Worship Buddhists can worship both at home or at a temple. It is not considered essential to go to a temple to worship with others. Buddhists will often set aside a room or a part of a room as a shrine. There will be a statue of Buddha, candles, and an incense burner.

3. Ritual Bodhisattva In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhisattva is the Sanskrit term for anyone who, motivated by great compassion, has generated bodhicitta, which is a spontaneous wish to attain buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. A bodhisattva is one of the four sublime states a human can achieve in life (the others being an arhat, buddha or pratyekabuddha). In early Indian Buddhism, the term was used to refer specifically to Buddha in his former lives. These stories are told in the Jataka tales and depict the various attempts of the bodhisattva to embrace qualities like self-sacrifice and morality. The bodhisattva ideal has traditionally been held to be higher than the state of a disciple of Buddha not only in Mahayana but also in Theravada Buddhism. Mahāyāna Buddhism is based principally upon the path of a bodhisattva. Mahāyāna Buddhism encourages everyone to become bodhisattvas and to take the bodhisattva vows. With these vows, one makes the promise to work for the complete enlightenment of all sentient beings by practicing the six perfections. Indelibly entwined with the bodhisattva vow is merit transference (where the practitioner's accumulation of merit (Sanskrit pu ṇ ya) is transferred to all sentient beings)

4. Ritual Bodhisattva A bodhisattva can choose any of three paths to help sentient beings in the process of achieving buddhahood. They are: 1.king-like bodhisattva - one who aspires to become buddha as soon as possible and then help sentient beings in full fledge; 2.boatman-like bodhisattva - one who aspires to achieve buddhahood along with other sentient beings; 3.shepherd-like bodhisattva - one who aspires to delay buddhahood until all other sentient beings achieve buddhahood. Bodhisattvas like Avalokiteśvara and Śāntideva are believed to fall in this category. According to the doctrine of some Tibetan schools (like Theravāda but for different reasons), only the first of these is recognized. It is held that Buddhas remain in the world, able to help others, so there is no point in delay. According to many traditions within Mahāyāna Buddhism, on the way to becoming a Buddha, a bodhisattva proceeds through ten, or sometimes fourteen, grounds or bhūmis Before a bodhisattva arrives at the first ground, he or she first must travel the first two of the five paths: 1.the path of accumulation 2.the path of preparation Avalokiteshvara Statue, Buddhism Tibetan Buddhist bodhisattva of compassion Nyoirin Kannon, Japan,

5. Ritual Bodhisattva 1.Great Joy: It is said that being close to enlightenment and seeing the benefit for all sentient beings, one achieves great joy, hence the name. In this bhūmi the bodhisattvas practice all perfections (pāramitās), but especially emphasizing generosity (dāna). 2.Stainless: In accomplishing the second bhūmi, the bodhisattva is free from the stains of immorality, therefore, this bhūmi is named "stainless". The emphasized perfection is moral discipline (śīla). 3.Luminous: The third bhūmi is named "luminous", because, for a bodhisattva who accomplishes this bhūmi, the light of Dharma is said to radiate for others from the bodhisattva. The emphasized perfection is patience (k ṣ ānti). 4.Radiant: This bhūmi is called "radiant", because it is said to be like a radiating light that fully burns that which opposes enlightenment. The emphasized perfection is vigor (vīrya). 5.Very difficult to train: Bodhisattvas who attain this bhūmi strive to help sentient beings attain maturity, and do not become emotionally involved when such beings respond negatively, both of which are difficult to do. The emphasized perfection is meditative concentration (dhyāna). 6.Obviously Transcendent: By depending on the perfection of wisdom, [the bodhisattva] does not abide in either sa ṃ sāra or nirvā ṇ a, so this state is "obviously transcendent". The emphasized perfection is wisdom (prajñā). 7.Gone afar: Particular emphasis is on the perfection of skillful means (upāya), to help others. 8.Immovable: The emphasized virtue is aspiration. This, the "immovable" bhūmi, is the bhūmi at which one becomes able to choose his place of rebirth. 9.Good Discriminating Wisdom: The emphasized virtue is power. 10.Cloud of Dharma: The emphasized virtue is the practice of primordial wisdom. After the ten bhūmis, according to Mahāyāna Buddhism, one attains complete enlightenment and becomes a Buddha. The chapter of ten grounds in the Avata ṃ saka Sūtra refers to 52 stages. The 10 grounds are The Buddha is presented in the Lotus Sutra as dharmakaya -- the unity of all things and beings, unmanifested, beyond existence or nonexistence, unbound by time and space.

6. Ritual Bodhisattva Various traditions within Buddhism believe in specific bodhisattvas. Some bodhisattvas appear across traditions, but due to language barriers may be seen as separate entities. For example, Tibetan Buddhists believe in various forms of Chenrezig, who is Avalokiteśvara in Sanskrit, Guanyin in China, Gwan-eum in Korea, Quan Am in Vietnam, and Kannon in Japan. Avalokiteśvara is the bodhisattva who has made a great vow to assist sentient beings in times of difficulty and to postpone his own buddhahood until he has assisted every sentient being in achieving nirvana. Avalokiteśvara is associated with Mahayana sutras (texts recording teachings of Buddha) which include the following: Lotus Sutra Kāra ṇḍ avyūhasūtra Heart Sutra (Heart Sūtra) Nīlaka ṇṭ ha Dhāra ṇ ī Sutra Eleven-Faced Avalokitesvara Heart Dharani Sutra Cundī Dhāra ṇ ī Sūtra A total of 33 different manifestations of Avalokiteśvara are described, including female manifestations, all to suit the minds of various beings. Avalokiteśvara