Hinduism And Buddhism Similarities

Hinduism vs. Buddhism The religions of Hinduism and Buddhism are similar in that they both are believed to have originated in India, and were first spread through that area, and were also similar in the way that their common beliefs affected social hierarchy. They differed in their general beliefs and the location where each religion ended up becoming established. Hinduism and Buddhism are similar in that both of their origins are in India. It is believed that the religion of Hinduism originated in Northern India, near the river Indus, about 4000 years ago, and that it is the world's oldest existing religion. It is difficult to pinpoint the exact origin of Hinduism because, although myths and legends tell differently, there is no recorded …show more content…
In Hinduism, it's more what you do, than what you believe. Hindus believe in a universal soul or God called Brahman. Brahman takes on many forms that some Hindus worship as gods or goddesses in their own right. The most widely worshiped of these gods are Shiva, Krishna, and Lakshmi. (cite my history lab) Hindus believe that there is a part of Brahman in everyone and this is called the Atman. They also believe in reincarnation, a belief that the soul is eternal and lives many lifetimes, in one body after another. Hindus believe that all forms of life contain a soul, and all souls have the chance to experience life in different forms. Another major part of Hinduism and life in South Asia is the caste system. The Indian caste system is an unfair way to organize society into classes of people. Everyone fell into one of 4 or 5 major castes. People were permanently locked into their caste. Castes were usually linked to a certain job. In Buddhism, a “Buddha” is a person who discovers the true understanding of life through years of spiritual investigation and studying using meditation. There have been several Buddhas, but Siddhartha was THE Buddha. During his time, Siddhartha viewed life as a time of great suffering. He basically said, 'life is suffering... but there is a path to end the suffering". His "path" became his dharma, or lifestyle. He said we …show more content…
Although they both originated in India, because of trade routes, missionaries, and other spreading factors, these religions traveled to different territories. Hinduism traveled to China and was the dominating religion during the Mauryan Empire (Spodek 246) but soon became the dominant religion in India again and has remained so ever since. In fact, Hinduism overtook India and today eighty percent of the population follows what they believe. Buddhism, although originally in India, traveled to Southeast Asia quickly. One emperor of India who majorly aided to this traveling of Buddhism was Asoka whom sent missionaries everywhere to teach the beliefs that changed him from a vicious man of war to a peaceful honored ruler. (Spodek