Ancient Traditions Of Buddhism And Hinduism - 1260 Words

The ancient traditions of Buddhism and Hinduism go far back in history and are both very revered and followed even up to today. They are similar in many ways but also very different in their worldviews and theology. The world is full of suffering and both Hinduism and Buddhism discuss ways to end that suffering through enlightenment. Buddhists believe in a place called nirvana, where suffering does not exist, and Hindus follow a path to reach liberation, or moksa. They both are a way to escape the suffering found in this world. This paper will discuss both these traditions and their history in detail and will also look at the ways both of these religions reach liberation from the endless cycle of suffering. Buddhism is a†¦show more content†¦The four main areas or expressions of Buddhism in the world are Theraveda Buddhism, practiced in South and Southeast Asia; Zen Buddhism, practiced in Japan; Pure Land Buddhism, practiced in East Asia, and lastly; Tibetan Buddhism, prac ticed in Tibet. The three main types of Buddhism are Theraveda, Mahayana, and Tantric. All Buddhists share and respect the teachings of the Buddha, trace their origins back to Siddhartha Gautama and follow a set of ethical rules. There are around 350 million practicing Buddhists in the world today and this number is being conservative (Engelmajer, 4-5). The Buddha’s teachings were known as the middle path or the path to enlightenment. Buddhism in the Vedic context consisted of a soteriological goal, the path to achieve that goal, and social order in the class system. The Mahayana branch of Buddhism focuses on meditative practices and the path of the Bodhisattva. It is important to have compassion, wisdom, and skillful means in order to follow this path. The ultimate purpose of this path is to liberate all beings from suffering and help all to reach enlightenment. So this differs from other forms of Buddhism because it focuses on others reaching nirvana before oneself reachi ng nirvana. The Mahayana’s felt that mainstream Buddhists were selfish as they themselves followed this path for the benefit for all beings. This was considered to