Buddhism in the Philippines conducted by Philip Maise has included the discovery of giant sculptures, has also discovered what he believes to be cave paintings within the burial chambers in the caves depicting the Journey to the West. Estimates of the Buddhist population of the Philippines is at 2%. Several schools of Buddhism are present in the Philippines. There are Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhist temples as well as Theravada followers, lay organizations, meditation centers and groups, such as Pure Land Buddhism, Soka Gakkai International which is an international Nichiren Buddhist organization founded in Japan. The Maha Bodhi Society's Zen circle was founded in October
Buddhism in Japan particular, represents almost every strand of Buddhist teachings and practices. However, in comparison to Chinese or Korean Buddhist schools that are generally more united and less sectarian in their groupings, Buddhist denominations in Japan have developed into independent sects with autonomous organizations that have differing emphases on the doctrine and separate lay followings." (Authors: Kawananami, Partridg, and Woodhead page 82.)]In the post-Meiji, pre-WWII period, there were officially 13 schools and 56 branches () of traditional Buddhism (i.e., those not established in modern times). The official schools included three from the Nara period, two from the Heian period (Tendai and Shingon),