Buddha:Born,Lived&Died a Hindu

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Buddha:Born,Lived&Died a Hindu

Mrs Rhys Davids writes, "Gautama (the founder of Buddhism) was born

and brought up and lived and died as a Hindu …"

Hinduism and Buddhism

http://www.cuhcs.org.uk/home.html

There has, of late, been a renaissance of Buddhism with the faith

becoming increasingly popular in the West where it has attracted many

celebrity followers such as Richard Gere and Julia Roberts. Perhaps,

one reason for this upsurge of popularity is Buddha's emphasis on

rationality rather than blind faith, which is increasingly striking a

chord with people in today's scientific world. Indeed, Buddhism is

based on reason and experience of life rather than metaphysical

subtleties. Whether there is a God or an Absolute, Buddha does not

say nor does he deny or affirm the existence of the soul. What he

does emphasise is the law of karma and the ideal of self-

discipline: "One may overcome a thousand men in battle, but he who

conquers himself is the greatest victor". Buddha lays down the "Four

Noble Truths" which deal with suffering, its cause, the possibility

of ending it and the way to do it; the end of the state of suffering

is known as "nirvana". Buddhism stresses the role of the individual

in following the right paths and taking responsibility for his or her

own life. Buddha's message is one of universal benevolence: "… the

poor and the lowly, the rich and high, are all one and that all

castes unite in this religion as do the rivers in the sea". Barth

writes, Buddha is the "finished model of calm and sweet majesty, of

infinite tenderness for all that breathes and compassion for all that

suffers, of perfect moral freedom and exemption from every prejudice".

 

Buddhism developed during the reign of Ashoka (273 -232 BC). Ashoka

devoted himself to the spread of Buddha's teachings , to

righteousness and goodwill, and to public works for the good of the

people. Under Ashoka, Buddhism spread rapidly in India from Kashmir

to Ceylon and from here, it penetrated into Nepal and later reached

Tibet and China and Mongolia.

 

It is often said that despite its origins, Buddhism was ultimately

rejected by India. However, if we examine its principles and core

values, we find that there is nothing there which cannot be

reconciled or integrated with Hinduism. Hinduism alike Buddhism

preaches that all are one; Lord Krishna in The Bhagavad Gita says to

Arjuna, "See now the whole universe with all things that move and

move not, and whatever thy soul may yearn to see. See it all as one

in me". The law of karma is obvious common ground and Lord Krishna

also urges man to follow the right path by performing his Dharma for

the benefit of society as a whole. Furthermore, neither Hinduism nor

Buddhism claim a monopoly of the truth, believing that all religions

should be respected, "… I have given you a handful of truths, but

besides these there are many thousands of other truths" (Buddha).

According to Jawarhlal Nehru, "Buddhism was not only entirely a

product of India; its philosophy was in line with previous Indian

thought and the philosophy of the Vedanta (The Upanishads)".

 

Mrs Rhys Davids writes, "Gautama (the founder of Buddhism) was born

and brought up and lived and died as a Hindu … a great deal of his

morality could be matched from earlier or later Hindu books. Such

originality as Gautama possessed lay in the way in which he adapted,

enlarged, ennobled, and systematized that which had already been well

said by others" (Sir S. Radhakrishnan's Indian Philosophy). Where

Buddhism separated from Hinduism was not with its theory or

philosophy but its interference with the social life and organisation

of the people; "The old system was free and flexible in thought,

allowing for every variety of opinion, but in practice it was rigid,

and non-conformity of practice was not approved" (Nehru). Buddha

probably did not see himself as the founder of a new religion but a

reformer only. Indeed, he did not claim to be an uprooter of the

existing social order or economic system; he accepted their basic

premises and only attacked the evils that had grown under them.