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Difference between hinduism and buddhism informative essay
Difference between hinduism and buddhism informative essay
Difference between hinduism and buddhism informative essay
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Hinduism Worldview
The Question of Origin –
Hinduism considers no particular moment of origin. They believe everything as timeless and always existing. The oldest religious text of Hinduism are the Vedas (connote knowledge) containing hymns to various deities of the sun, moon, earth, sky, wind, and night. These deities did not create the world, although Brahman is considered to be the "all in one force" (Halverson). "Brahman is the womb of both the existent and the nonexistent" (Shattuck) and responsible for establishing the earth, sky and atmosphere the creator and the primary cause of reality in Hinduism.
The Question of Identity –
There is no sense of identity in Hinduism, because humanities identity is considered part of the ultimate reality. Hinduism believes men and women are manifestations from a "division of Brahman into two aspects one male and one female" (Shattuck). The man "Shiva" and women "Shakti" find their identity (becoming part of the ultimate reality) by obtaining enlightenment in "the individual self to lose its separate identity in the universal Self" (Shattuck) and achieve "union with an impersonal oneness" (Halverson).
The Question of Meaning/Purpose –
Hinduism is a revolving wheel of life, death and rebirth called Samsara better known as reincarnation. Hinduism believes this life cycle is directly related to a person's karma, which are the deeds they have done. "Karma determines the kind of body, whether human, animal, or insect, into which he or she is reincarnated in the next life" (Halverson). To effectively ending the life cycle one must obtain Liberation. Liberation is obtained by striving to remove desires of the ego "through realizing that only the undifferentiated oneness of Brahman is real" (...
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...achievement of enlightenment answers the question of destiny, but destiny for a Christian is receiving eternal life. There are many different paths to obtain enlightenment in Hinduism, which are "karma marga (the way of action and ritual, jnana marga (the way of knowledge and meditation), and bhakti marga (the way of devotion)" (Halverson). These paths are very different from Christian acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior to receive salvation. The Bible is very clear that there is only one way to God. "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" John 14:6.
Works Cited
Halverson, Dean C. Hinduism: A Religion Profile from International Students, Inc. : Colorado Springs, CO : International Students (1992): 8. Print.
Shattuck, Cybelle T. Hinduism. London: Routledge, 1999. Open WorldCat. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
The Question of Origin: Hinduism believes everything has been in existence and is a part of numerous gods. In (Foundation of Indian Psychology Vol.2 Pg.116) the text Hinduism is a treasury of spiritual laws discovered by different people in different times of life. Over the centuries the Hindus beliefs are not literally interpreted by the scriptures and there ethics are derived from them.
1.) Intro: I decided to focus my Religious Ethnography on a friend whom I recently have become close with. Adhita Sahai is my friend’s name, which she later told me her first name meant “scholar.” I choose to observe and interview Adhita, after she invited me to her home after hearing about my assignment. I was very humbled that she was open to this, because not only was it a great opportunity for this paper, but it also helped me get to know Adhita better. I took a rather general approach to the religious questions that I proposed to the Sahai family because I didn’t want to push to deep, I could tell Hinduism is extremely important to this family. Because this family does not attend a religious site where they worship, I instead listened to how they do this at home as a family instead.
Hinduism first started in India around 1500 BC. The word Hindu comes from the Sanskrit word sindhu, or river. The Hindu community define themselves as "those who believe in the Vedas", or also "those who follow the way, or dharma, of the four classes and the stages of life. The four classes being the varnas and the stages of life being the ashramas.
This paper is a comparison between two very different religions. Specifically Christianity and Buddhism. Coming from opposite sides of the globe these two religions could not be any farther apart in any aspect. I will discuss who Christ is for Christians and who Buddha is for Buddhists. I will also get into the aspects of charity, love, and compassion in both religions and I will be looking at the individual self and how christians see resurrection where the buddhists feel about the afterlife. One thing to keep in mind is that the two religions are very different but they seem to have a very similar underlying pattern. Both believe that there was a savior of their people, Buddha and Christ, and both believe that there is something good that happens to us when our time is done here on earth. This is a very generalized summarization but in order to go in to depth I need to explain the two religions more to fully convey this theory.
Both Christianity and Judaism are religions that have some relationship between them as much as they also have differences. Judaism and Christianity developed on the basis obeying God, on adherence to his rules and fulfillment of God’s will is a duty of a Jewish or Christian person, both religions fall into the rule deontological category.
...onsibility in life which is decided by the caste they are born into. However, living amongst other people, one’s soul might become “forgetful of the Lord” which leads to “[attaching] itself to pleasure” which would make it “bound” to the wheel of the universe. For a soul to escape this cycle birth, death, and rebirth, it is necessary to connect with this god. The Hindu people believed that “by uniting oneself with him…one ceases to be ignorant” and this means “Birth, death, and rebirth will be no more.” This credence of rebirth and karma highly influenced the way the Hindu society developed.
Hinduism, also known by the name Sanatana-Dharma, is often referred to as the “oldest religion” in the world, is generally considered to be an ethnic religion and is fundamentally based on the religion of the original Aryan settlers. “Hinduism, from the Persian Hindi (Sanskrit sindhu), literally "river." Means "of the Indus Valley" or simply "Indian." Hindus call their religion sanatama dharma,"eternal religion" or "eternal truth” (“Facts on Hinduism”). It was founded around 3000 BCE, and is now considered to be the third largest religion in the world. Followers of Hinduism, which is estimated to be anywhere around 900 million, are especially concentrated in India, Nepal, and other countries throughout Asia. The broader world contact that has occurred since World War II allowed various forms of Hinduism to become more widely known and accepted. The multiple Hindu sects, including the Krishna Consciousness, have been particularly successful among young American and Europeans and claims to be adherent around the world. Hinduism is dissimilar compared to other religions, in the fact that it has no founders. This religion is considered to be permissive in creed or code as it is not necessarily coordinated in any way, even though various sects and cults are formulated. This religion is especially known for its tolerance because it is willing to accommodate those who are exceptionally religious; whether it be a Jew, Christian, or Muslim as a part of their religion. Hinduism is very transformable and accepts elements of different religion. Overtime it has even developed different aspects of both Christianity and Buddhism and incorporated them into the religion of Hinduism. Hinduism worships a multiplicity of gods; the most important in...
"In Hinduism, salvation is achieved through a spiritual oneness of the soul, atman, with the ultimate reality of the universe, Brahman. To achieve this goal, the soul must obtain moksha, or liberation from the samsara, the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. As a result of these basic teachings, Hindus believe in reincarnation, which is influenced by karma (material actions resulting from the consequences of previous actions), and dharma (fulfilling one's duty in life)"(Teachings and Beliefs, 2004, par. 1).
Eliot, Sir Charles. HINDUISM AND BUDDHISM. 1921. Vol. 1. London: ROUTLEDGE & KEGAN PAUL LTD, 1954. 3 vols. wisdom library. Web. 9 Dec. 2013. .
Hinduism and Christianity are two religions that have been around for thousands of years. These religions have developed philosophies on certain subjects that can be compared in order to show their similarities and differences. Some of the main subjects that can be reflected upon are the paths to enlightenment or salvation, the religions' treatment of women, and the concept of the afterlife. This paper will give an analytic comparison of these religions through the discussion of these topics.
Hinduism And Buddhism Hinduism and Buddhism both try to offer a theory of why people would suffer from temptation, drudgery and pain, and how to attain enlightenment and self-awakening in order to obtain freedom from the tempting and arduous world. Hinduism believes that all beings and existence of the universe are one, but Buddhism thinks that no body has self. Buddhism produced more workable and fairer views in terms of metaphysics and institutional requirements for individuals than Hinduism. The fundamental core of Hindu metaphysics is that Atman is Brahman. Atman refers to the conscious core of one’s being, as well as other sentient beings, and it is an eternal, pure spirit (Bresnan, p.54).
Huyler, Stephen P. Meeting God: Elements of Hindu Devotion. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1999.
Hinduism believes in the teachings of one human man, the Buddha, the “Enlightened One”. The ultimate objective of a Buddhist is to reach nirvana which is a state of enlightenment where a person no longer desires or suffers and is at peace. The Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths. Fiero lists the Four Noble Truths as “pain is universal, desire causes pain, ceasing to desire relieves pain, and right conduct leads to release from pain” (11). The Buddha believed and taught that insight and knowledge come from following the Eightfold Path (Middle Way). Fiero states that the Eightfold Path includes “right views, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration” (11). If a person follows the Eightfold Path which leads to insight and knowledge then they could ultimately achieve nirvana. A Buddhist that avoids suffering and gains enlightenment is then released from what Fiero calls the “endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth” (11). Only then has a person accomplished extinction of the Self or salvation. The aspect of the release from the cycle of rebirth is similar to the goal of a Hindu and like Hinduism; Buddhism encourages moral behavior in order to attain inner
Hinduism is regarded as the world’s oldest organized religion, but it’s also a way of life for much of India and Nepal. Unlike other religions, Hinduism allows and encourages multiple paths to the divine. There is no single founder and no single scripture, but is rather a conglomerate of diverse beliefs and traditions. They are often understood to be different means to reach a common end. But this acceptance of variety makes it difficult to identify religious tenets that are specifically Hindu. Still, there are some basic principles common to Hinduism that are essential to one's approach to life.
Karma is the good and bad deeds we do to complete our dharma. It influences specific life circumstances such as the caste one is born into, one’s state of health, wealth or poverty, etc. This continuous cycle is possible through reincarnation. They would repeatedly reincarnate into different types of life forms until they would achieve their dh...