As the fastest growing religion in the world, Buddhism originated in India and has now spread across the entire earth and has most recently found a foothold in North America. Buddhism has a long history of attempting to maintain a ‘Middle Path’ between communism and capitalism, as well as having been heavily affected by colonialism, Marxism, capitalism, and nationalism. Essential for our examination of Buddhism, we must differentiate between two distinct types of monks, those who are bookish monks and reside in a monastic institution, and ‘forest’ monks known as mediators who focus on Buddhism has three main groupings, Southern Buddhism, Northern Buddhism, and Eastern Buddhism, which vary in concentration, and Buddhism has also spread to the West through emigration and globalization. Southern Buddhism refers to Buddhism as it was practiced in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. Southern Buddhism puts a focus on monasticism and maintains a conservative outlook on the original teachings and values a life of renunciation as the epitome of being. Sri Lanka was subjugated to foreign rules, first by the Portuguese and the Dutch, and subsequently the British, and thus imperialism and Christianity had a major effect on the development of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Many Buddhist reformers engaged in debates against Christian missionaries and Buddhist reformer, Anagarika Dharmapala, founded the Maha Bodhi society and strong opposed the adulterated “Protestant Buddhism” that was beginning to emerge. Cambodia used Buddhism to avoid sides and maintain the “Middle Path” between capitalism and communism. With Pol Pot coming to rule in 1975, Buddhism almost became extinct in Cambodia as monks were targeted after they were labeled as being against the state, and subsequently 6000 monks were killed or disrobed. However, since the 1980’s, Buddhism has reestablished itself and has played a pivotal role in rebuilding the country