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Buddhism and Hinduism

Two of the most widely practiced and most widely misunderstood religions in the world are Hinduism and Buddhism. Hinduism is an ancient religion which developed over the course of centuries in India, but Buddhism sprang up almost fully formed as a reaction to certain corrupt practices in Hinduism. Buddhism might be considered a sort of Indian protestantism. Since Buddhism is both grounded in and a rebellion against Hinduism, it is unsurprising that the two share many of the same basic attitudes but also differ significantly in some respects. In this paper we will explore Hindu and Buddhist attitudes toward life, death, relationships, love, knowledge, perfection, and the human condition.

The purpose of life is a subject that all religions must address. In Hinduism there are four recognized goals, or wants of man: pleasure, worldly success, duty, and liberation. The first two form the Path of Desire, and the second two form the Path of Renunciation. Although India is known for its asceticism, Hinduism does not scorn the pursuit of pleasure or worldly success. Rather, it holds that nothing can be gained by pretending that men do not have these desires or by forcing men to repress them. What is expected is that sooner or later men will tire of pleasure and realize that it alone cannot satisfy them because it is essentially private, and the self is "too small an object for perpetual enthusiasm." (Smith, 1958, p. 17)

The goal of success, with its three aspects of wealth, fame, and power, is somewhat more enduring than simple pleasure, since it is more involved with the lives of others. However, it is still exclusive and competitive in that it does not multiply if shared. Thus, worldly success, like pleasure, ends up being unsatisfactory because it attempts to place all value on the self, which is inadequate. Similarly, all worldly achievements fail to satisfy because they are essentially ephemeral, a sentiment that we in t...

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Buddhism and Hinduism. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 10:08, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1681821.html