Hinduism VS. Buddhism

by megweb (student)

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

Megan Webster

01/10/11

Updike Global Studies

Hinduism vs. Buddhism

Religion is one of the most controversial subjects. Throughout the ages people have fought and died for it. But what are they fighting about? Their differences? Well of course they have those, but the one thing that is sometimes over looked is that their similarities outweigh their differences. An example of these different yet so similar religions is Buddhism and Hinduism. The concepts and morals of the religions parallel each other, but the details are unbalanced. To better understand their beliefs, we must know their histories.

Hinduism is the world's oldest religion, and one of its more mysterious ones. For many hundreds of years there has been a search for who founded Hinduism and when it even came into place. Even the authors of its sacred texts are widely unknown. We know of many Gurus, Rishis, saints, and leaders who have reformed and revived the culture, but that is really it. We also know that Hinduism developed out of Brahmanism. There is no single founder of Hinduism and it existed from time unexplored, as a religion. Hinduism is open to interpretation, and is a collection of a path to wisdom. Though its history we know little of, its future is bright. Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world, after Christianity and Islam. It has about 950 million followers, or 14% of the world's population.

Buddhism originated in India from a man named Siddhartha Guatama. Guatama as a boy lived an extravagant life. It was only when he bored of the indulgences of a rich life. He proceeded searching the world for understanding. That is when he then encountered an old man, a corpse, and an ill man, convincing him that suffering lay at the end of all existence. From there, he became a monk and deprived himself of all worldly possessions in hope of comprehending the world around him. One day while meditating under a tree, he had an epiphany of how to be ...

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Now that we know about how these religions came about, it's time to learn about their beliefs and how they are similar and different. Buddhism believes that one has to work for salvation oneself, and must do good deeds. Hinduism believes that one can obtain salvation through good deeds, love, faith, and knowledge. As you can see they both agree on how to achieve salvation. When it comes to enlightenment they both believe that there are many paths to gather enlightenment such as overcoming and controlling ones feelings. On suffering both the schools of thought believe that too much attachment to people and things in the physical world causes pain and suffering. Therefore we must make ourselves free of worldly desires. Another thing they agree on is reincarnation. They both believe that one must perform good deeds. They differ on their beliefs of a God. Hindus believe in 300,000 gods while the original Buddhist had no god. They both have castes systems, but the Buddhists do not use theirs. Buddhists do not believe in stages of life, opposed to Hindus who do. Hindus believe there are four stages of life, student life, family life, the age when a person leaves all worldly desires behind, and finally the age when a person meditates and waits for the ultimate truth, death.

As you can see that although they are different, they are also very similar. They aren't the only religions that are similar either. If every religion was tolerant of the other we would live in a better world. This doesn't only apply to religions but people too. So instead of looking at how we differ from one another, we should see how we are similar.

Work Cited

Das, Subhamoy. "Hinduism for Beginners - What is Hinduism?." About Hinduism - What You Need to Know About Hinduism. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. <>.

V, Jayaram. "Hinduism and Buddhism." Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism and Other Resources. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. <

"Basics of Buddhism." PBS. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2009. <>.

"Buddhism & Hinduism,Comparitive Study of Buddhism & Hinduism,Compare Contrast Buddhism & Hinduism." Buddhist Tourism,Travel Buddhist Sites,Buddhist Tourism in India, Japan, Tibet, China. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. <>.