The people of the world vary greatly in many aspects. Social norms, familial practices and structures, and of course, governmental systems, can all be markedly different as one moves through the knowledge driven exploration of one country or cultural tradition to the next. While the number of differences between the people of the world are certainly insurmountable, there are commonalities amongst all that can be closely defined as universal. One such commonality is the importance of religion. Religion can be found across virtually all cultures on every continent in the world. Understanding the religion of a culture can give valuable insight into the culture as a whole. Of particular interest are cultures that embrace more than one religion. One such culture is the Indian culture. The Indian culture is marked by the practice of Buddhism and Hinduism. While there are clear differences between the two religions, there are also similarities that help to explain why both may have a strong position within the Indian culture.
Similarities
As previously mentioned, both Buddhism and Hinduism are practices in the Indian culture. Both religions place high importance on Dharma, or “natural law” which governs religious duties in addition to personal conduct as well as all aspects of everyday life. They both also emphasize karma and the cycles of births and death. Both life and death are a part of a cyclical process which includes the transmigration of souls. These souls are not believed to simply roam the Earth upon release from the body. The Earth is considered to be the center of the universe and the place where Buddha was born to be Jambudviap (University of Missouri-St. Louis, n.d.). Both encompass a belief of the existence of several heavens and several hells. Gods or deities exist on different planes Practice of both religions requires the renunciation of the worldly life and the strengthening of the spirituality of a person to be to some degree tied to spiritual practices like meditation and concentration. Both religions also address the human emotion of desire. They tie desire to suffering, thus, it is something that is best suppressed (University of Missouri-St. Louis, n.d.).
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Difference
Differences between Hinduism and Buddhism can be seen just as abundantly as the similarities. The first difference is in the founding of each. While Buddhism is founded by Buddha, Hinduism is not believed to be founded by any particular prophet. While Buddha himself does play a specific role in each religion, the roles are very different. In Hinduism, Buddha is accepted as in incarnation of one of the gods of the trinity (University of Missouri-St. Louis, n.d.). Buddhism does not view any Hindu god as a superior or as an equal to Buddha. While both Hinduism and Buddhism both recognize dharma as a chief aim of human life, Buddhism recognizes liberation (Nirvana) as an aim as well (University of Missouri-St. Louis, n.d.).
How They are Practiced Today
Today there are over 370,000,000 followers of Buddhism and over 828,000,000 of Hinduism and both are practiced on several different continents (University of Missouri-St. Louis, n.d.). There are three main branches of Buddhism and they are Theravada, Mahayana, and Varaya. Meditation festivals are used around the world to bring the Buddhist together to worship. Buddhism has evolved greatly over tie and the practice of religion can differ by country (Faith Resources, n.d.). Hinduism is more of an individually practiced religion. The practice today may involve women wearing a red dot on their forehead which is called a bindi. Also common today is a place of worship inside of Hindu homes (Himalayan Academy, 2013).
Conclusion
In conclusion, Hinduism and Buddhism have many similarities and many differences. Both represent a religion that is engrained in the foundation of the Indian culture. They have also both spread to different continents at which time they have changed to some degree with regard to practice. These two religions demonstrate the evolution of religion and the differences that may exist with regard to belief in one culture.
- Faith Resources. (n.d.). Buddhism: Basic information. Retrieved from http://www.faithresource.org
- Himalayan Academy. (2013). Section 3: Hinduism in practice. Retrieved from http://www.hinduismtoday.com/
- University of Missouri-St. Louis. (n.d.). Hinduism and Buddhism. Retrieved from www.umsl.edu/
