This has been part of my path to self-mastery, but perhaps not as most people would envision. My father was sent to China in the early 70´s (and my grandfather fought there in the late 1930´s). My mother made an arrangement with my father for my studies while we were there. I attended a Monastery and was taught martial arts. This created bonds that I continue to have to this day with classmates some of who are now senior monks at a few monasteries in China. Buddhist principles were at the forefront, however, my teacher was from the Vajrayana tradition of the Bon (which goes back many millennia before Buddhism). The most important thing in the tradition is the relationship between student and teacher (master) as the details are passed down via oral tradition (my teacher has since passed, but his teacher still lives). I have connections to Nepal and Tibet (which at one time included parts of south western China).
In a general sense, the greatest thing that is missing from the Buddhist tradition is the focus on doing in the outer world. As you practice over decades, however, this is not always the case, depending on your tradition.
The mental disciplines, insights and practices in these traditions far outshine what exists in western psychological traditions (in my opinion). I have approached the tradition more from a psychological perspective, but the spiritual part has influenced me as the decades have rolled forward.
The historical Buddha Gautama was not the first Buddha. There had been others who had walked the way before him. He was not a god, a prophet or any kind of supernatural being. He was one who was born, lived and died a human being (achieving enlightenment after according to their tradition). A remarkable human being, who discovered a way of achieving true wisdom, compassion and freedom from suffering. He is said to have rediscovered an ancient way to a destination/state of being that had been covered up and forgotten. Through his own efforts he was able to find the way out of suffering to liberation. The word Buddha means the Awakened One, coming from the Sanskrit root budh – ´to wake´. He was a man who had woken fully, as if from a deep sleep, to discover that suffering, like a dream, is over.
There were three basic traditions that came as a result of teachings of Siddhartha Guatama that were orally transmitted for almost 500 years in the monastic community before they written down in the Pali Canon. These three were the Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana, along with a fourth-Zen Buddhism-that grew out of Mahayana and has gained increasing popularity in the West. Here are a few generalizations, and that is all they are, generalizations.
The Theravada tradition centers around the Pali scriptures, By studying these ancient texts, meditating, and following the Eightfold Path, Theravada Buddhists believe they will achieve Enlightenment (Nirvana). There is a strong emphasis on the monastic community. This type of Buddhism is dominant in Southeast Asia
The Mahayana tradition developed out of the Theravada tradition some 500 years later and focuses on the idea of compassion and centers on the Bodhisattvas, who are beings that work out of compassion to liberate other sentient beings from their suffering and become as the Buddha. This type of Buddhism is more dominant in East Asia
The Vajrayana tradition focuses on the belief that the physical has an effect on the spiritual and that the spiritual, in turn, affects the physical. This type of Buddhism is more dominant in Tibet, Bhutan, Mongolia and the Russian republic of Kalmykia,
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Zen Buddhism is said to have originated in China with the teachings of the monk Bodhidharma. Zen Buddhism treats zazen meditation and daily practice as essential for attaining Enlightenment, and deemphasizes the rigorous study of scripture.
The Buddhist Society has overviews of the different scripture sets, including the Pali Canon, Sanskrit Canon, Mahayana texts, Tantric texts, and the Tibetan and Mongolian Canon. Most of these can be found on-line.
Buddhism is generally a system based on practice and individual experience rather than on theology or dogma (although it exists), the different forms that have emerged differ less in what they believe the Buddha´s teachings to be rather in how they believe Buddhism should be practiced in daily life.
The Buddha did not teach that a God created the Universe. He pointed to a great Law or Dharma running through everything that exists. It is by living in accordance with this Law that true Wisdom and Compassion and hence Freedom from suffering may be achieved. Suffering may only be overcome, however, by being confronted and lived through.
The foundations of Buddhist tradition and practice are the Three Jewels: 1) the Buddha, 2) the Dharma (the teachings), and the 3) Sangha (the community). Here are a few basic principles.
The 12 linked chain of Causation teaches the interconnectedness of all things and in particular the law of Karma and the mechanism by which we create a world of suffering for ourselves and others, and the opposite; the way to live that reduces suffering for all, and leads to liberation.
The 3 signs of being; 1) Change 2) Suffering 3) no ´I´
The 4 Noble Truths; 1) The Noble Truth of Suffering 2) The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering 3) The Noble Truth of Cessation of Suffering 4) The Noble Truth of the Way leading to the Cessation of Suffering: The Noble Eightfold Path.
The (Noble) Eightfold Path; 1) Right View. 2) Right Thought. 3) Right Speech. 4) Right Action. 5) Right Livelihood. 6) Right Effort 7) Right Mindfulness. 8) Right Concentration. The Wheel is the symbol of the Dharma and is shown with eight spokes which represent the (Noble) Eightfold Path.
The 3 Fires; 1) Desire/Thirst, 2) Anger 3) Delusion.
I am not a practicing monk, but I have practiced (physically and mentally) with the monks throughout my years. To answer the OP more directly, my experience is that it is not generally beneficial to masculine growth as transformation and sublimation of the masculine is often (not always) taught, but I am of the opinion that it can be beneficial to personal growth especially when done in concert with a martial art where some of the more masculine traits may come forth.
