Ultimate Reality and Spiritual Truths within Buddhism and Judaism

Buddhism is the fourth largest religion in the world. It originated in India as a development of Hinduism and was founded by Prince Siddhartha Gautama, or ‘Buddha’ who lived in India in the fifth century BCE (see Understanding Faith, 2010). The Four Noble Truths are the centre to Buddhism. These truths set out the Buddhist understanding of reality and the human condition. Dukkha, suffering, dissatisfaction, or illness, is the main idea that the truths are set about. Dukkha marks anything that is not satisfactory in each individual’s life, whether it is physical suffering, mental suffering or change in life which causes good things to become impermanent.

        The Four Noble Truths:

• All forms of life, particularly human life, are marked by dukkha.
• Dukkha and rebirth are caused by desire for the things of this world and for the survival of the self.
• Escape from dukkha – nirvana – is only possible if human desire can be eliminated.
• Release from desire and from dukkha comes by following the Noble Eightfold Path.

(See Understanding Faith, 2010)

These noble truths and the belief in nirvana are what Buddhists turn to for spiritual guidance. Ultimate reality in Buddhism differs greatly from that in many other world religions. Like in Hinduism, Buddhists believe in reincarnation but this belief differs to Hindu’s where they try to keep good karma in this life to better their position in the next. In Buddhism, the state of nirvana is reached when there is no more reincarnation for the self. Only by eliminating desire, giving up attachment to this world, rejecting the very belief that one’s self is to be saved, can a person find release from the circle of reincarnation (see Understanding Faith, 2010). The claim that Buddhist’s make of their ultimate reality is that nirvana exists, and that by taking steps outlined by Buddha to become completely selfless, it can be attained, and the circle of reincarnation will be at an end. Buddhist ultimate reality is nirvana.  

Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion in the world. It shares many of its spiritual truths and claims of ultimate reality with Christianity and some with Islam. Stemming from the same roots as Christianity and Islam, Judaism’s claims about ultimate reality and spiritual truths centre on its main belief in one God and God’s special covenant with His people. The Jewish beliefs are very complex but some of the most important are:

• There is only one God.
• To disobey God’s law is sin.
• God is constantly active in the world, guiding and directing history and providing spiritual and material growth and support.
• After death, the individual is judged by God and rewarded or punished accordingly.

(See Understanding Faith, 2010)

In Judaism, ultimate reality is a single, all-powerful God (religionfacts.org, 2010). Like in all theistic religions, ultimate reality is attributed to a personal being. The spiritual truths of Judaism are the aforementioned beliefs, and the main truth that God is ever-present and that He created the universe.

Compared with Buddhism, the main difference between claims about ultimate reality and spiritual truths in Judaism is the difference in the type of ultimate reality which both believes in. The Buddhist ultimate reality is that of a target for each individual to strive for – nirvana. The Jewish ultimate reality is that of a personal being – God. When comparing these claims of ultimate reality that differ substantially, and when understanding the validity of these claims, one must look back at the definition of ultimate reality. When looking at it in a philosophical mind-frame, the three forms of ultimate reality can be considered to just be different manifestations of the same reality. Each religion’s ultimate reality can be seen as a different interpretation of the same reality and therefore neither is wrong and neither cancels out the validity of the other’s claim. To understand the veracity of each claim, the individual does not need to believe in the spiritual truths and ultimate reality of every world religion, but instead simply needs to appreciate the fact that all ultimate reality beliefs and spiritual truths could stem from the same ultimate reality.

All world religions carry unique beliefs in an ultimate reality. A Buddhist’s ultimate reality is that of nirvana – an impersonal being, whereas the Jewish ultimate reality is that of a personal being – God. These claims on ultimate reality and spiritual truths are distinct, yet can be traced back to the same roots and treated as manifestations of the same ultimate reality. When comparing world religions, one can understand the validity or veracity of each religion’s claims about ultimate reality and spiritual beliefs by looking at the bigger picture of ultimate reality.