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Differences and similarities christian and buddhism
Buddhism v. Christianity
Buddhism v. Christianity
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Buddha was a Great Teacher, Christ is Our Eternal Lord
In Buddhism, one’s path to nirvana relies on the effort and discipline of the individual. By contrast, Jesus taught our goal is not a state of non-conscious being, but an eternal relationship with God. There is nothing one can do to earn a right relationship with God. Instead, we must receive His gift of grace, the sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus Christ and this restores our relationship with our creator
Almost all religions teach that a person's personality continues after death. In fact, many religious historians believe that this belief was the prime reason that motivated people to originally create religions. Christianity and Buddhism are no exception. However, they conceive of life after death in very different forms: Buddhism teaches that humans are trapped in a repetitive cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth. One's goal is to escape from this cycle and reach Nirvana. .. The term nirvana means "the blowing out" of existence. Nirvana is very different from the Christian concept of heaven. Nirvana is not a place like heaven, but rather an eternal state of being. It is the state in which the law of karma and the rebirth cycle come to an end. It is the end of suffering; a state where there are no desires and the individual consciousness comes to an end. Although to our Western minds this may sound like annihilation, Buddhists would object to such a notion. Gautama never gave an exact description of nirvana, but his closest reply was this. "There is disciples, a condition, where there is neither earth nor water, neither air nor light, neither limitless space, nor limitless time, neither any kind of being, neither ideation nor non-ideation, neither this world nor that world. There is neither arising nor passing-away, nor dying, neither cause nor effect, neither change nor standstill." The mind experiences complete freedom, liberation and non-attachment. Suffering ends because desire and craving -- the causes of suffering -- are no more. Christianity has historically taught that everyone has only a single life on earth. After death, an eternal life awaits everyone: either in Heaven or Hell. There is no suffering in Heaven; only joy. Suffering is eternal without any hope of cessation for the inhabitants of Hell.
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...ther major world religions share a basic rule of behavior which governs how they are to treat others. Two quotations from Buddhist texts which reflect this Ethic are:
"...a state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another?"
“ Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." Udana-Varga 5:18. (www.hindunet.org)
This compares closely to Christianity's Golden Rule, which is seen in: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." Matthew 7:12.
"...and don't do what you hate...", Gospel of Thomas 6.
After comparative study we realize Buddha was a great teacher who lived a noble life, but Christ is the unique revelation of God who is to be worshipped as our eternal Lord and Savior.
Works Cited
Holy Bible,New International Version,(Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House,2001)
Lewis M. Hopfe and Mark Woodward, Religions of the world.(New Jersey: Pearson,
Prentice Hall, 2004)
www.religioustolerance.org (http://www.religioustolerance.org/buddhism4.htm) www.hindunet.org (http://www.hindunet.org/alt_hindu/1995_May_2/msg00015.html)
By learning from the Dharma, understanding The Four Noble Truths, three jewels, living by the five precepts, and following the eightfold path will assist to the completed path of enlightenment. Nirvana, which means to extinguish or unbind, is when a Buddhist has reached a state in which he has gained knowledge and freedom from what ever has bound him from reaching nirvana. Whether it be passion, desire, jealousy, egotism, or ignorance. When nirvana has been reached then there will be complete release from the samsara and karmic cycles.
Living Buddha, Living Christ has taught me the true meaning of Buddhism, and it demonstrates what the path to true enlightenment is. The following concepts have stood out to me, and they are ones that I relate to on a more personal level. Buddhism has perceptions that are not always seen by everyone, but they are concepts that are important for our own happiness.
Many pieces of literature and characters in literature are based off of religious figures or beliefs. In the literary pieces that we have read this semester, Buddha, Jesus Christ, and their religions have often been motifs. Buddha and Christ have many striking differences, but also quite a few similarities. They have both been very influential in many of the worldly religions of today, and in literature throughout the years.
“With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us
Buddhism does not look at death as a continuation of the soul but as an awakening. Dying and being reborn has been compared by some Buddhist as a candle flame. When the flame of one lit candle is touched to the wick of an unlighted candle, the light passes from one
The concept of sins is present in both religions but it is regarded differently. In Christianity there are the Original and individual sin, and in Buddhism there are the Five Deadly Sins. However, traditional Christians views sins stricter than Buddhists. The Five Deadly sins, for example, are seen as Although the concept of sins is not a key concept in Buddhism, one cannot completely exclude it from Buddhism because its doctrines do not deny the presence of evil (“Pure Land”). The principle of the Golden Rule is a shared idea in most religions and so is it in both Christianity and Buddhism (“Introduction”). One could conclude that if humankind would follow the teachings of the Golden Rule that this could prevent most of our sins.
Death has a great impact on people's lives in such a way that they learn to value life or even live it to the fullest. But what happens to us after we die? Many religions have answered this question for us according to their faiths. Buddhism is a religion where Buddhists believe in the concept of death and reincarnation or rebirth. On the other hand, Christians believe that after you die you go into a period of dormancy and until the second coming of Jesus will you be woken up and decided your fate whether you go to heaven or hell according to how you have lived your life. Christianity teaches salvation from sin through Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Through Him, the gift of eternal life is also attained.
He also makes reference to the long history of religious intolerance and persecution within the Christian tradition, brought about by greed, mistrust, and ignorance. He emphasizes the need for continuous practice, prayer, meditation, mindfulness, and personal growth within individual religious traditions and cultures. We must make the spirit of the Buddha and the spirit of Christ part of our everyday lives. He explores the “Five Wonderful Percepts of Buddhism”: reverence for life, generosity, responsible sexual behavior, speaking and listening deeply, and ingesting only wholesome substances; comparing them to the teachings of Christ. These precepts are without a doubt, very similar to the principles thought by Christ and his apostles. Each precept or teaching works with the next, interconnecting and building upon each other toward the same goal to end suffering, bring about personal and worldly understanding, world peace, and spiritual
Buddha believed that by following the Eightfold Path, one could fulfill and find legitimacy in the Four Noble Truths, and reach Nirvana; the release from selfishness and pain. Like the Hindu, Buddha believed in reincarnation, a major factor in achieving Nirvana, as...
I never knew that, “ Buddhism is sometimes called a non historical religion. In other words, it does not tell a story of creation, or speculate that we are heading toward a heaven or afterlife of some kind” (p.10). For me it is hard to imagine not believing in any of this like people who practice Buddhism do. It is difficult to understand how they might see where they will be when they die. I look forward to being in heaven after I live and complete my life. I could not imagine dying and not having any kind of afterlife. I know that one day when I die I will see all the people that died who I love and dearly miss. I had a best friend die and I cannot wait to be with him after I die.
Siddhartha Gautama is famously known as Gautama Buddha and was the founder of the idea of Buddhism. The Buddha was known to possess supernatural powers and abilities. He was born in the holy land of Nepal and his journey began in India when he decided to travel and teach himself about life. In the midst of his journey, he discovered Buddhism after he experienced a profound realization of the nature of life, death and existence. Buddhism became a religion based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama and since then Buddhism has been popular throughout many civilizations. Buddhism is now one of the most ancient religions in the world, where people follow Buddha, which stand for “awakened one,” and Buddhism which has gained popularity because of the teachings of the Buddha.
In both Hindu and Buddhist philosophies, they follow and focus on similar yet different concepts of liberating themselves from ‘Samsara’ and the suffering that comes with it. Samsara in both Hindu and Buddhist philosophies is the endless cycle of death and rebirth. So, the end goal is to work towards the enlightenment from this cycle. Though the two concepts are similar in that the goal is the same, the two have distinctive and important differences on how they view this “release” from the rebirth-death cycle; they both follow different paths to reach that end goal which, in basic terms, is to live a happy life.
In the bible it says that we should treat each other as we would want
One major strength is the common ground basis for all to adhere by regardless of one’s religious, ethnic or personnel background. The application of treating others, as one would like to be treated is universal to the human nature regardless of personnel beliefs. It is also simple to use by putting oneself in someone else’s situation and observing it from their viewpoint. However, the “Golden Rule” is from the book Matthew in the bible and not everyone believes in Christianity. This might turn some people away from its application but several other religions have constructed its own version as well due to its universal cause. In addition, it can be easily manipulated to defend one’s immoral conduct by reversing its
It is essential to commence with the following two quotes which respectively define the Christian and Buddhist’s fundamental notion of salvation, and displays aspects of the two opposing worldviews. Firstly, Jesus said "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16, NIV). Secondly, Buddha spoke "The long road of transmigration is a road of pain for the traveller: let him rest by the road and be free" (The Dhammapada, translated by Juan Mascaro 1973, v. 302). The first quote assumes a lineal event-filled theocentric view of time, a world-loving empathetic view of suffering, and salvation being Christocentric. In general, Christianity’s means of salvation is also defined through Christ's death and resurrection, by grace, through faith, not by works lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:9). The second quote however, Buddha assume...