Additionally, both believe in the spiritual practices such as meditation, yoga, concentration, and cultivation of states of mind, called mindfulness. While Hinduism and Buddhism share similarities, they also celebrate differences; Hinduism is not founded by any particular prophet and Buddhism was founded by Buddha and Buddhists do not believe in the existence of souls like Hindus, neither do they believe in the sacred texts of the Vedas or any other Hindu scripture. Refuge in the Buddha, the Sangha and Dhamma are the three fundamental requirements of the eight fold path while Hinduism offers many choices to its followers for
The term ‘religion’ is “perhaps not a very good term to use in connection with Buddhism since it recognizes no God” (Zaehner). Buddha taught over 84,000 teachings (Gyasto). The word ‘Buddha’ means “Awakened One.” When someone is awakened or enlightened, then they have became a Buddha; someone who is completely “free from all faults and mental obstructions”
OLD SCHOOL VS NEW SCHOOL The two largest forms of Buddhism are the old school way of the elders, Theravada, “The Lesser Vehicle”; and Mahayana, the reformed Buddhist group, “The Greater Vehicle.” Although there are significant differences between Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism, they share much in common, including that both believe in their commitment to the teaching of the Noble Fourfold Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, emphasis on establishing mindfulness as the heart of their practice, and their acceptance of the Buddha as a model of a fully enlightened person/being. Theravada and Mahayanist Buddhists differ greatly in the emphasis put on Buddha and how they interpret his teachings. Theravada Buddhists are following Pali Cannon, the oral tradition taught by Buddha; the earliest available teachings of “the Awakened One.” In them, he never claimed to be divine. Though Buddha was revered above all else for “The Elders” view him as first and foremost the historical person Siddhartha Gautama, who achieved enlightenment. By following his guide/Pali Cannon/ Dharma we can hope to actuate the same fate of release from the Wheel of Death and Rebirth.
Buddhism, another belief practiced by the great Asoka Maurya, did not support the caste system and was, just like the Chinese Daoism, a religion of pure salvation which practiced elimination of desire in order to achieve a higher spiritual status or nirvana. Spread by missionaries it was one of the most practiced religions of that time, both in India and China, but it had little political impact due to its nature. Like in China, Indian social and political structure depended on the belief system, but it was not influenced by the dynastic
But as the old saying goes “One cannot judge a book by its cover”. Once I picked the book up it was very hard for me to set it down. What I believed to be a boring tale of Taoist monks actually became an interesting summary of the philosophies learned in the Eastern Religions class. The book not only discussed Daoism but also included the philosophies of Confucianism and Buddhism. I would like to begin by discussing a philosophy of Buddhism that was apparent while reading the “Seven Taoist Masters”.
Sutta Pitaka Main article: Sutta Pitaka [edit]Atthakavagga The Atthakavagga, one of the oldest books of the Sutta Pitaka, contained in the Sutta Nipata, does not give a clear-cut goal such as Nirvana, but describes the ideal person. [2] This ideal person is especially characterized by suddhi (purity) and santi (calmness). [2] Commentaries on the Atthakavagga, namely the Mahaniddesa and the commentary by Buddhaghosa, show the development of Buddhist ideas over time. Both commentaries place the Atthakavagga in their frame of reference, giving an elaborated system of thought far more complicated than the Atthakavagga itself. [2] [edit]The Noble Eightfold Path Main article: Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path is widely known as the description of the Buddhist path.
1 In and around the same time, Theravada Buddhism, meaning the way of the elders, was founded by Siddhartha Gautama who came to be the Buddha once he established enlightenment. Buddhists have no beliefs in the Tirthankaras; there is only one prophet, the Buddha himself. The Buddha said that by following his teachings,
This is because Zen is concerned only with the direct experience or insight into enlightenment, away with all dogma, theology and doctrine which is ever-present in other religions. In Zen, this direct insight into the nature of life, or enlightenment, is achieved through meditation, and also through the contemplation of unsolvable riddles called koans. Through the analysis of the teachings, beliefs and art of Zen culture, we can assess how Zen attempts to gain direct insight instead of relying on any doctrine to attain enlightenment. Zen Buddhism is a form of Mahayana Buddhism, which holds its roots from China, the home of Ch’an Buddhism (Dumoulin 34). The incessantly interesting feature of Zen Buddhism is that there is no dogma, philosophy or doctrine one must believe in to be a Zen Buddhist (“Buddhist beliefs”).
Vipassana meditation, also commonly known as insight meditation, (the Pali word passana means ‘to see with open eyes,’ and vi, means through) is India’s most ancient meditation technique. Although it was discovered by the enlightened one, Buddha, vipassana meditation is not a religious practice, as it does not rely on any deity or spirit. It depends solely on the efforts of oneself. Vipassana meditation is a way of self-transformation through self-awareness and establishing deep connections with the mind and body to aim for an enlightened state of true happiness and the termination to suffering. The history of the practice is centered on dharma- the law of nature and way to liberation, which Buddha preached during his forty-five years in ministry.
Why most Chinese people have no religion? Many western scholars had studied and researched on it, and the answer is, Chinese culture can be considered as Chinese people’s religion! Chinese culture is based on Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism and etc. Compared with other religions, Chinese traditional culture promulgates properties and meanings of space, society, and human life based on both Philosophy and science. It is highly reasonable, and it can be proved.