Why is Buddhism shrinking worldwide?
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Anonymous
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https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/03/11/why-is-buddhism-shrinking-worldwide/
Buddhists are the world’s only major religious group whose population shrank between 2010 and 2020, according to a recent Pew Research Center analysis of religion in 201 countries and territories. In 2010, an estimated 343 million people around the world identified as Buddhists. By 2020, that figure had fallen to 324 million. That’s a decline of roughly 5%. During this period, the global population grew by 12%. The size of other religious groups we track at the global level also grew. As a result, Buddhists’ share of the global population dropped from 4.9% in 2010 to 4.1% in 2020. 
I was surprised to see this article. |
Anonymous
| Many people who were raised as Buddhists in childhood no longer identify with Buddhism in adulthood, a process known as religious switching. Although some people also convert to Buddhism, more people are leaving than joining. |
Anonymous
| Birth rates in predominantly Buddhist E Asian countries have been below the replacement rate for years. |
Anonymous
Are you saying that Buddhism is decreasing in East Asia because the birth rate is shrinking, so fewer people are "Born Buddhists? |
Anonymous
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Probably because Buddhism is a personal choice more than other religions.
If you are a Buddhist you let your kids discover for themselves if it is true for them. |
Anonymous
| I don’t think this data is useful without birthdate data. |
Anonymous
| Buddhists don't evangelize. |
Anonymous
| After what monks did to Uyghurs in Xinjiang and when Dalai Lama lip kissed a child, I got over my fascination with Buddhism. |
Anonymous
The one in my office does. There's a joke going around that, if you want to know about Buddhism, she'll talk your ear off. I don't know if this is a convert thing (she was born Jewish). |
Anonymous
| It's also true that some religions don't let you leave (apostasy). And that for many people, religion is about identity but not necessarily about belief in its theological tenets. i don't know if the Pew report goes into that, but it would make a difference in comparing growth/decline numbers. |
Anonymous
Definitely a convert thing, and true I most religions |
Anonymous
It’s not about a person it’s about philosophy. |
Anonymous
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As a Hindu, I already worship Buddha. We also claim him as an ancestor in my family.
Both Hinduism and Buddhism - all focus on spirituality. So for me it is great that I can follow my own path and regardless of if I believe or not believe - I will remain a Hindu and a Buddhist. |
Anonymous
The 14th Dalai Lama had ties with Keith Raniere, the founder of the NXIVM "self-help" organization that was later exposed as a sex cult. 2009 Meeting: Keith Raniere and his associates (including Clare and Sara Bronfman) facilitated a meeting with the Dalai Lama in Albany, New York, in May 2009, where he was the keynote speaker for a conference hosted by the Ethical Foundations Consortium. Financial Transaction: Reports indicate the Dalai Lama accepted a $1 million payment from the group, which was organized by NXIVM-associated entities. Why did the Dalai Lama need a million dollars? |
Anonymous
| I feel like there’s a lot of people who don’t think Buddhism is a religion, they practice it, but they don’t say it’s their religion. |