Over the years, numerous theistic and atheist scholars have attempted to devise methods in which the complex nature of world religions can be further understood (ed. Blagden, 2007). Among these methods, there is the model known as the “seven dimensions of religion”, proposed by academic professor Ninian Smart in many of his published works (Brodd, 2009, p.9). However, by defining religion and how it is studied, as well as examining Smart's "seven dimensions" and applying them to the widely followed Eastern religious tradition of Theravada Buddhism, one can see that, although there are strengths in the model, among these The strengths are notable limitations when the model is applied to the study of such Eastern faiths (The Open University, 2011). First of all, when it comes to defining religion, the Australian High Court provides a legal definition of religion as “a body of beliefs and practices indicating a set of values ​​and an understanding of the meaning of existence” (Henry, 2010 However, despite this, religion is a very personal part of humanity and has different meanings for different people, and as such the legal definition provided only goes so far in defining it (Beck et al., 2000, pp.4-6), religion and religious systems have been the focus of scholarly attention for some time and many methods have emerged to study them. These methods may include psychological (observation of religion as a product of individual or collective consciousness); sociological (observing the place of religion in civilization); Darwinian (observing religion as similar to a living organism in its evolution) (ed. Blagden, 2007); and finally phenomenological...... half of the paper ......s and Modern Transformations, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.• Smart, N, 1996, Dimensions of the Sacred: An Anatomy of the World's Beliefs, HarperCollins Publishers , London.• Swearer, D, 1998, 'Buddhist virtue, voluntary poverty and extensive benevolence', The Journal of Religious Ethics, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 71-103, consulted on 20 and 21 August 2011,• The Open University, 2011, Studying Religion – 5.4 A dimensional model of religion, consulted on 7, 17 and 21 August 2011,• The roles of science and religion, 2011, viewed August 17, 2011,• Yee, D, 1993, The World's Religions (Ninian Smart) – Book Review, viewed August 20, 2011,